The Big Story

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Bahamians have benefited from nearly $230 million in income support and unemployment assistance since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Public Service and National Insurance Minister Brensil Rolle. Rolle, while speaking with reporters ahead of a Cabinet meeting today, said: “Never before in the history of The Bahamas has any government agency spent as much...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — National Security Minister Marvin Dames told reporters today that displaced storm victims must follow the law when it comes to registering to vote in the next general election. Hundreds of families were displaced as a result of Hurricane Dorian in September 2019. Many of them have not returned to their homes due to the sluggish pace of...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — A woman who forged a Bahamas Bar Association identification to fraudulently represent and visit inmates at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDOCS) will now join them as a resident of the facility on Fox Hill Road for the next 15 months. Warnika Russell, 25, of Zion Boulevard, was charged with two counts of evading the requirements...

Moultrie opines PM “must” call election before govt eyes more taxes in mid-year budget Says he was told he left the FNM “at the right time” NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Speaker of the House of Assembly Halson Moultrie yesterday predicted that Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis will call a general election in June of this year or shortly thereafter. Moultrie opined...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The Free National Movement (FNM) ratified eight more incumbent members of Parliament, the party announced last night. According to a statement, FNM MPs Michael Pintard (Marco City), Frankie Campbell (Southern Shores), Iram Lewis (Central Grand Bahama), Pakesia Parker-Edgecombe (West Grand Bahama and Bimini), Reuben Rahming (Pinewood), Adrian Gibson (Long Island), Shanendon Cartwright (St Barnabas) and Ricky Mackey...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Attorney General Carl Bethel indicated yesterday the decision not to extend New Providence’s curfew as was done on Grand Bahama was due to ongoing “spikes” of coronavirus cases on the island. Bethel noted that while cases on New Providence have been low in recent months, there continues to be “little spikes every so often”. “From what I...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — A Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) officer was yesterday arraigned in Magistrate’s Court for the rape of a woman marine. According to prosecutors, Renaldo Wilkinson, 35, raped a 32-year-old woman marine at the defense force base in Matthew Town, Inagua, on February 5. He appeared before Chief Magistrate Joyann Ferguson-Pratt. Wilkinson was not required to enter a...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Tourism Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar said yesterday the two-year closure of the Meliá Nassau Beach resort amid the global COVID-19 pandemic is a “double whammy” for the country’s tourism sector. Melia Nassau Beach. Speaking with Eyewitness News after the resort announced it will close as of March 1 to undertake renovations over the next 24 months, D’Aguilar predicted...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Minister of Foreign Affairs Darren Henfield said yesterday that the government will look to the advice of health authorities concerning any consideration to implement additional travel bans. He said the government is closely monitoring the United Kingdom and various states in the United States as a new, more contagious strain of COVID-19 surges. “What I am saying...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Union representatives said yesterday they are prepared to ensure Meliá workers receive severance pay after the resort announced a two-year closure, during which time it will undertake $100 million in renovations. Obie Ferguson, Trade Union Congress (TUC) president, told Eyewitness News: “I received a letter today from the general manager for Meliá indicating that beginning March 1st to March...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Former Member of Parliament Leslie Miller said yesterday that with Mario’s Bowling and Family Entertainment Palace set to reopen this Wednesday, staff members were “elated and ready to go” following a lengthy hiatus due to COVID-19 restrictions. Miller told Eyewitness News: “On behalf of our 58 staff members, we are more than happy to be open after...

Incumbent won Elizabeth seat with more than double the votes NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Elizabeth MP Dr Duane Sands has expressed confidence in a Free National Movement (FNM) nod for the Elizabeth constituency, a seat he won by a landslide in the 2017 General Election. “So, I mean there’s a huge number of people who are not yet nominated or ratified,...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Meliá Nassau Beach will close on March 1 to undertake $100 million renovations over the next 24 months, it has been revealed. Executives of Baha Mar, which is owned by the same company as Meliá, said in a statement that the new, fully renovated resort will open in spring 2023 “following the extensive investment in virtually all...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — While noting the government’s vaccine program could play a large role in limiting new infections in The Bahamas, former Minister of Health Dr Duane Sands yesterday predicted a possible worst-case scenario of 20,000 confirmed cases, based on existing data. Shortly after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020, Sands, then the minister...

Travel ban to be lifted on March 8 NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Attorney General Carl Bethel explained yesterday that the government’s decision to block travelers from Haiti for the next three weeks was to mitigate the risk of a surge of COVID-19 cases in The Bahamas as Haitians celebrate carnival. The Bahamas has direct flights to Haiti. In an amendment to...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Assistant Commissioner of Police Leamond Deleveaux reported for duty last week Sunday after completing a 12-month deployment at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, but was advised to await instructions. He is the second senior officer to report for duty following the completion of special assignments, which began in January 2020. Eyewitness News reported earlier this...

Recovery rate holding at 83 percent NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The number of individuals who have fully recovered from the coronavirus in The Bahamas has reached 7,002, according to the Ministry of Health. This represents a recovery rate of 83 percent. Ten more cases recovered Saturday, just one shy of being on par with the 11 newly confirmed infections recorded: 10...

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Bahamas Taxi Cab Union President Wesley Ferguson said yesterday that taxi drivers plan to stage a protest again this Wednesday, telling Eyewitness News the union “will not be ignored”. Ferguson said that following last week’s protest, the union had received no communication from the government to address their longstanding concerns. “The government hasn’t said anything to us. Not...