Funeral service for the late Charles Elvis Rolle, age 64 years of Rockwell Circle off Rocky Pine Road and formerly of Eleuthera will be held on Friday, September 22nd, 2023, at 12:30 p.m. at Evangelistic Temple, Collins Ave.

Officiating will be Rev. Dave Cash assisted by other ministers of the gospel.Interment will follow in Lakeview Memorial Gardens Mausoleums, John F. Kennedy Drive & Gladstone Road.

Left to cherish his memories are: children: Sharell Rolle-Hodge of (Atlanta Georgia), Jevaughn Rolle and Letisha Curtis; brothers: Bertram, Curlin, Kenhugh, & Hensel (Eljean) Rolle; sisters: Evangeline Rolle & Fredricka Watson of (Green Castle, Eleuthera); aunts: Millie Robinson, Emily Rolle & Eloise Strachan of (Delray Beach, Florida); grandchildren: Donald Stubbs, Kamari Demeritte & Jordyn Rolle; son-in- law: Rashawn Hodge; sisters-in-law: Audrey Bullard, Nadine & Rosienell Rolle; numerous nieces & nephews including: Antoinette, Craig, Marva, Marsha, Brian, Kevin, Dawson, & Nikki Bullard. LaShan, Shantel, Bertram Jr., Franz, Anthram, Drexell, Curtell, Lloyd of Quebec, Canada, Chris, Dana, Kino, Fabian, Joey, Bunnicia, Philicoya, Curlin Jr., Laticia, Shavaughn, Chrislyn, Kayshal, Tamika, Dario, Murvol (Muriel), Latualya, Kenhugh Jr., Tito, Sarah, Karina, Jonette, Hensel Jr., Ashely Rolle, Geneva McIntosh of (Miami, Florida), Portia Archer, Desiree & Anthea Williams, Bernard Lightbourne, Charvari Watson-Rahming, Zulena Baptiste, Sargeant Dexter & Nyoka Hanna, Kenderia Poitier, Kellyopea Thapa, Kennard Mackey. Kelsey, Keno, Larry, Dena, Sophia Watson and Charmaine Johnson; Special Friend: Jennifer McKenzie; a host of other relatives and Friends: Reverend Dave & Donna Cash & Family, Pastor Vaughn & Wendy Cash & Family, The Evangelistic Temple Church Family, Glynis Rolle & Family, MP Vaughn Miller & Family, Terrance & Kelly Hanna & Family, Trevor & Cleora Butler & Family, Charles & Linda Rolle & Family, Estella Butler & Family, Roscoe Thompson, Dr. Eugene Gray, The family of the late Rodger Gomez, Gorvin, Bridgette Curtis & Family, Brian & Maxine Stubbs & Family, Letroy & Royanne Lowe & Family, Anthony & Bernell (Tip) Miller & Family, Ruby Nottage, Kersch Lloyd, Shieko Hoyte, Beatrice Taylor, Jacqueline Hanna & Family, Anthony Morley & Family, Boston Morley & Family, Fredrick Wright & Family, Mildred Maurice (Dr. Chou), Marsha & Kendrick Austin, Langton Bain, Hannah Johnson & Family, Patricia Bethel & Family, Pastor Leroy & Curlean Major & Family, Pilgrim Baptist Temple Family, Pastors E. Randy & Jacqueline Frazer & Family, Palms of Victory Kingdom Ministry Family, Lowell & Venus Taylor & Family, Zilchus & Dellington Thompson & Family, Chamal & Tianna Bethel, Theo Stubbs, Hilbert Richards & Family, The Family of the late Oral Pinder, Nurse Angela Thompson & Family, Winifred Hall & Family, Sheila & Ethel Butler & Family, Vivian Rolle & Family, The family of the late Viola Rolle, Helen, Pinky & Lunnun Burrows & Family, Lynn Rolle & Family of Miami, Florida. Tyrone, Annamae, & Olga Smith & Family, Carmetta Ingraham & Family, The Family of the late Carmetta Burns, Desmond Bannister, Frank & Harold Watson & Family, Johnny & Lana & Family (Sun Luck Restaurant). Antonio Lesbot & Family, Althea Neilly & Family, Vera Smith & Family, Bernell Stubbs & Family, Vazel Curtis & Family, Vekito Ferguson & Family, Valon Thompson & Family, Gully Brown & Family, Rodney & Leon Miller & Family, Euda Neilly & Family. Travis Moss, Nakeitha & Shanado Wallace, Sanchez Rolle Family, Ieasa and Natalia Brown, George and Sandra Robinson Family, Leonardo and Dashinka Johnson family, McKenzie Family, Valerie Higgs Family, King Family, Knowles Family, Clarke Family, Mag Wholesale Miami Florida, Orthnell McKenzie Family, Amando and Family, Brenton Albury, Shona and Family, Fish Pot Family, Keith's Tire Shop family, Bernard "Porky" Dorsett, Ed McPhee, Hayden from Jetro Wholesale, ABU "Sham" Noah and Family, Pastor Brad and Family, Pastor Keno, Reverend Howard F Williamson and Family, Robinson Morris Chapel AME and Family, Customs Family, Dr Geneann Moss, Katrina Marche, Teadore Edgecombe, Monique Darrell, Darien Morley, P.J Paul, Gerrad Pellitier, Alma Whymns Sands, Terranique Brown, Marvin Ferguson, Percy Darville, Geo Bain, Michael Ferguson, Allen Cunningham, Pedro and Hillory Richards (god children), Shandika McKenzie Bain, Sharmaine Smith, Jacqueline Lightbourne, Norman Bastian, Shadrack Phillips and Family, Vincent Sutherland, Rhon Wood, Monty and Family, Vaquel Logan friends too numerous to mention and a host of other relatives and friends too numerous to mention.

Viewing will be held in the Serenity Suite of Restview Memorial Mortuary and Crematorium Limited, Robinson & Soldier Roads on Thursday (TODAY) from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and again at the church on Friday from 11:30 a.m. until service time.

Nearly 3,000 people descended on Andre Rodgers Baseball Stadium in New Providence yesterday to apply for 300 positions at the soon-to-be-open British Colonial hotel.

Area Director of Human Resources and Training for The Pointe Latoya Kemp said 2,800 people came in person to the stadium.

Today is day two of hiring for the British Colonial, and Kemp expects the turnout to be just as busy as yesterday.

According to Kemp, some people who will get acceptance letters have already been identified.

"We have a lot of persons we are going to hire who we accepted documents from," she said.

"We have a lot of them. Housekeeping blew us out of the water. There were a lot of food and beverage candidates, but housekeeping was the win. Those candidates were amazing.

"I'm confident that we will find all of the staff we need for British Colonial, as well as backfill our talent pool at Margaritaville."

The Pointe comprises a group of properties, including the British Colonial, Margaritaville, and One Particular Harbour in Downtown Nassau.

Kemp said they were also able to find talent for other parts of The Pointe properties while interviewing for the British Colonial.

She explained that the Department of Labour helped facilitate the two-day job fair, and assisted with preregistration, and did an "amazing job" with directing applicants through the process at the stadium.

The British Colonial's owners have spent $100 million on its redevelopment, and it is expected to open in early December, while in mid-October occupancy in the other Pointe properties "should be skyrocketing", Kemp said.

The property closed as a Hilton-branded hotel on February 15, 2022 and has been closed ever since.

As of May 2023, unemployment in The Bahamas stood at 8.8 percent, according to the Labour Force Survey conducted by the Bahamas National Statistical Institute.

At the time of the survey, there were 19,290 unemployed people in the country.

The total labor force in the country stood at 219,465, with 200,175 people being recorded as employed.

It was the first Labour Force Survey conducted since December 2019 when unemployment was recorded at 10.7 percent on New Providence (the only island where the survey was conducted after Hurricane Dorian impacted Grand Bahama and Abaco).

In its "Monthly Economic and Financial Developments July 2023" report, released on September 4, the Central Bank of The Bahamas said the domestic economy is projected to sustain its positive growth trajectory in 2023.

It said new and ongoing foreign investment-led projects are anticipated to provide support to the construction sector and, by extension, to economic growth.

"In terms of the labor market, the employment rate is expected to continue to improve, associated with job gains concentrated largely in the construction and tourism sectors," the Central Bank said.

The post 2,800 apply so far for 300 jobs appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

The post 2,800 apply so far for 300 jobs appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

On June 21, 2000, the defenselessness of the Fourth Estate was exposed by what was notably an unprecedented and extreme punishment for a member of the press, marking a historic moment.

Journalist Obediah "Obie" Wilchcombe was sentenced to a four-day imprisonment in maximum security at then-Her Majesty's Prison, Fox Hill, by then-coroner and magistrate, the late Winston Saunders, for not revealing the location of where he received a suicide note - which he read, live, on-air - that was alleged to have been written by convicted murderer John Higgs Jr.

Those who followed would recall Higgs' story as one that shook the nation - a popular beautician sentenced to death for the 1993 murder of his wife Joan Butler (descendant of Sir Milo Butler) - who, just two days shy of his scheduled execution, seemed to have taken matters into his own hands, literally, by allegedly slitting both wrists, in what was the darkness and solitude of his "cramped cell with no opening for air or sunlight".

To this day, many wonder how a man facing execution, whose prison cell should have been heavily guarded, managed to get his hands on something that led to his self-appointed death.

Yet, what also remains a concern is why imprisonment was deemed an appropriate penalty for Wilchcombe, as opposed to upholding his right as a journalist to protect the confidentiality of his source.

In the July 8, 2013, Constitutional Commission Report, it was recommended that consideration be given to "expanding Article 23 to expressly include a reference to freedom of the press and the media".

Article 23(1) of the constitution currently states, "Except with his consent, no person shall be hindered in the enjoyment of his freedom of expression. For the purposes of this article, said freedom includes freedom to hold opinions, to receive and impart ideas and information without interference, and freedom from interference with his correspondence."

Sadly, since the report, no changes have been made, as the recommendation has consistently been ignored by successive administrations, leaving members of news media, today, in an equally vulnerable position as that of Wilchcombe.

The sword of Damocles

The Greek parable tells the tale of Damocles, a courtier to Sicilian tyrant Dionysius, who once uttered how wonderful it would be to be king.

Intrigued, Dionysius granted Damocles a seat on his throne, ensuring that he was provided with the best food, service, perfumes, and scented candles.

However, while basking in his newfound position, Damocles noticed a sword hanging above the throne by a single strand of horsehair, which instantly made him beg Dionysius for permission to return to his life as a courtier.

Like Damocles, members of the media today enjoy a great deal of freedom of expression, as is proven by the existence of privately-owned publications and radio and television stations, as well as the protection afforded when covering Parliament.

However, the gap in Article 23 of the constitution, which should explicitly refer to the press, looms over the profession.

The lead story of the June 21, 2000, Tribune edition titled, "Sentenced for silence", reported that Wilchcombe believed that the judges and Saunders found his refusal to disclose his source or the location of the exchange as "obnoxious".

However, according to Wilchcombe, he was mostly thinking about the bigger picture and how his imprisonment would be "a small price to pay" to bring about much-needed change and protection to the journalistic society of The Bahamas.

Had the Contempt of Court Bill been law at the time of Wilchcombe's hearing, which he explained in a recent interview "is designed to protect the rights of journalists and provide leverage in matters where contempt may arise", it is quite possible that his fate would have ended differently.

Just a little over two decades later, however, there remains only a draft of this bill, which Wilchcombe admitted was, at the time, in its "third phase", "soon [to] be made law".

Members of the media are often viewed as the enemy when they seek to hold those in authority to account.

In the same way that doctors, lawyers, politicians, members of the uniformed branches and many others take an oath or follow a code of ethics, so does the journalist, who is bound by the basic principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness, and public accountability.

Yet, without the constitutional protection clearly sanctioning these codes to be lawful, or the passing of the Contempt of Court Bill, the sword remains.

Thus, the case of Wilchcombe (the press) versus Saunders (the law) boils down to two factors: contempt of court and whose rights matter more. And, while this tension between the media and the law is healthy and can coexist, there needs to be appropriate provisions that strengthen the constitutional protection of the media, as suggested by the Constitutional Commission.

What constitutes contempt of court?

In its simplest form, criminal contempt of court is anything that a presiding judge deems "disruptive, insulting or threatening" to the trial, to themselves, or to anyone else in the courtroom, as defined by The New Oxford Companion Law. Even a witness' refusal to be sworn in and interrogated can be considered contempt of court.

Thus, by these standards, Saunders, having presided over the inquest into Higgs' death, found Wilchcombe's refusal to reveal the location in which he met with his source to be in contempt of the Coroner's Court, rather than Wilchcombe being granted the right to be tried by a jury of his peers.

Thus, the then-radio broadcaster, who was, seemingly, doing his job of reporting breaking news, was found on reasonable enough grounds to be confined to a maximum security prison cell with five other inmates - two of whom were in on armed robbery charges, one on charges of multiple murders, one suffering from tuberculosis (TB) and the other who was stricken with AIDS, according to Wilchcombe in a recent interview.

In fact, in a February 11, 2000, article, printed in The Nassau Guardian, titled, "Wilchcombe verdict Monday", Saunders admitted that he "understood that Wilchcombe could not identify the source" but also noted that Wilchcombe's "privilege did not extend to withholding the location of the meeting with the source".

The question, however, is: Why didn't it?

Then-Director of Legal Affairs Bernard Turner, in the same article, argued that the individual who handed Wilchcombe the letter may be "an abettor to Higgs' apparent suicide", adding that he and Saunders could not just "assume that a suicide has been committed".

While Turner raised two valid points, as Part IV, Article 19(2)(c) of the Coroner's Act, 2011, does permit the coroner to seize anything that he believes is reasonable evidence or material to the inquiry - in Wilchcombe's case, the location of the exchange with his source - Part V, Article 33(a) and (b) modifies this act.

It states: "In holding an inquest, the coroner's court - (a) is not bound by the rules of evidence and may inform itself on any matter as it thinks fit; and (b) must act accordingly to equity, good conscience and the substantial merits of the case, without regard to technicalities and legal forms."

Therefore, the fact that the Coroner's Court, in accordance with subsection (a), "may inform itself on any matter as it thinks fit" and "must act accordingly to... the substantial merits of the case", in accordance with subsection (b), proves that Wilchcombe's case could have been handled on its own merits, taking into serious consideration his right to maintain the confidentiality of his source.

Moreover, that the Coroner's Court "is not bound by the rules of evidence", which was apparent in Saunders' acceptance of Wilchcombe's right to maintain his source's identity, begs the question of why the same precedence was not granted to Wilchcombe's refusal to disclose the whereabouts of the exchange - a decision that leaves much room for doubt when assessing the respect that journalists and the profession are granted within and outside of the constitution.

The future of the Fourth Estate

While there has not been a similar incident to that of Wilchcombe's in the 21 years since, the court can still exercise its right to force journalists to reveal their source or to submit documents that were received in confidence, as the laws have remained unchanged, hovering like the sword of Damocles.

Today's journalists, however, like their predecessors, have the right to refuse to disclose any of this information, but are still not constitutionally protected from imprisonment, if the courts decide to resort to such an undertaking, which they are well within their rights to do.

In fact, two first-world countries, the US and the UK, have, very recently, run into the government trying to seize information from its local reporters, their data and their children's cell phone data - reporters' Apple, Inc. data in the US, and The Guardian versus the UK government.

If such recent incidents can occur in these countries that do have constitutional legislation for freedom of the press, imagine what can happen for a country like The Bahamas that does not have legislative protection for its press.

The Fourth Estate has proven, since the 18th century, its value and place in society and its power to frame and influence both public and political affairs.

It is now time for the law to prove the same.

• EDITOR'S NOTE: This article originally ran in June 2021.

The post Contempt: protecting the future of the Fourth Estate appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

The post Contempt: protecting the future of the Fourth Estate appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

Bahamian national volleyball team player Donovan Wilmott made the jump to the professional ranks when he signed a contract with Middlefart Volleyball Club, which plays in the Danish Volleyball League - the top league in Denmark.

Securing his first professional contract means a lot to him, especially knowing he has put in the hard work. He is already in Middlefart, Denmark, and his team will start its season on Saturday against ASV Elite.

"The hard work I put in definitely paid off," Wilmott said. "All the people that came before me and paved the way for this opportunity, they all worked hard and it really means a lot. It also means that the guys that aren't going to get that chance to go off and play as yet, will get to live vicariously through me. I'm not taking it lightly, it's going to be a great experience and I'm really appreciative of it."

Middlefart finished fourth out of 10 teams in the league last season. It sported a 10-8 win/loss record to finish with 29 points.

Wilmott, like he has done for Benedict College, will be looking to be a catalyst for Middlefart.

"I bring that fire wherever it may be, whether off the bench or as a starter. I am really the heart of whichever team I play for. So just giving the team some energy and that competitive spirit to be better than we were yesterday, that's what I hope to bring to the team," Wilmott said.

He is looking to contribute to his new team as the middle hitter. He looks up to Byron Ferguson, who played volleyball at the professional level.

"I spoke with Byron Ferguson and he was able to help me make the right decision for my future. After speaking to him, I thought about playing volleyball professionally, even if it's only for a year or two; it would definitely be a great move. Ferguson is someone I look up to. He is very well respected in Europe and he was able to help guide me through the process," Wilmott said.

The 29-year-old graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Benedict College, where he played alongside a few other Bahamians. That team finished with an 11-9 record and its season ended in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) semifinals.

Wilmott is looking to average at least three aces per game and two blocks per set.

The post Volleyball player Donovan Wilmott heads to Europe appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

The post Volleyball player Donovan Wilmott heads to Europe appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.