P.M. Gov’t Had No Choice on CIP

Hilaire [Photo: Stan Bishop]

THE St. Lucia government says it had no choice but to follow other Eastern Caribbean States in launching a Citizenship by Investment (CIP) programme here. “It means that a person can get a passport from Dominica for EC$100,000 or get a passport from Grenada, St Kitts or Antigua and have the full rights of being here. They got OECS citizenship,” Prime Minister Allen Chastanet said, noting that some of the Chinese nationals who came here to open restaurants, received their passports through Dominica.

More City Constables Soon

Image of Peterson Francis

CASTRIES Mayor Peterson Francis has vowed to make the city safer by establishing a 50-strong constabulary force. The current 12 member constabulary will get an injection of 18 more into members by year end, said to Francis Thursday at a press conference. The move by the Council to beef up its security force comes as a result of two shooting incidents within the city’s borders earlier this week, one of which resulted in the death of 27 year old Shane Emmanuel of City Gate.

Massy Gives To Sir John Foundation For Education

Image: Massy’s presentation to the John Comption Foundation.

MASSY United Insurance has made a donation to the Sir John Compton Memorial Foundation. Traditionally, at Christmas time, Massy United would express their appreciation for the support and patronage of their clientele with a token gift of thanks. This year, however, the decision was made to celebrate the spirit of the season of giving by sharing with those less fortunate in the community they serve.

Grenada Crackdown on Military Wear, Fireworks

ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, Dec 7, CMC – Grenada police have raided a number of business places here confiscating military type clothing and warning against its importation as well as “explosive” fireworks during the Christmas Season. Head of the Community Relations of the Police Force, Sylvan McIntyre, said that as part of the operations, “all things’ illegal will be seized.

120 On Dialysis; Equal Number on Waiting List

Image of dialysis machine

KIDNEY disease is very prevalent in St. Lucia and according to official records, nearly 120 persons are now undergoing dialysis treatment at the three main medical institutions on the island including Tapion Hospital. This is startling for a country with a population of just over 170,000 where resources are scarce and most importantly, there are nearly an equal number of persons waiting for an opportunity to receive treatment from just 17 dialysis machines at Victoria and St. Jude Hospitals .

Danger Road at Banse, Laborie

A recent traffic accident at Banse, Laborie, where a truck driver lost control of his vehicle which veered off the road and plunged down a precipice, has renewed calls by residents for the Ministry of Infrastructure to make the road safer for users. Over the years, there have been several accidents at a particular bend along the road where people have narrowly escaped death. The situation is of grave concern to residents of the area, especially those living near the bend.

Forestiere Housing Project Coming — 74 Lots To Be Made Available

THE National Housing Corporation (NHC) is looking at the development of house lots in Forestiere as the vehicle through which it will dig itself out of the financial mess it presently is in. The Corporation is in a position where it cannot pay its bills due to several matters before the courts arising from deals and agreements with contractors and companies that either did not materialize or fell through leaving the Corporation to deal with the expenses generated.

Homicide No. 27

A Vieux Fort man is in critical condition at St Jude Hospital after suffering severe burns in a domestic incident. Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident which resulted in 68 year old male resident of St. Jude’s Highway, being admitted to the St. Jude Hospital for treatment with severe burns about his body.

Enjoy It — ARC Participants Urged

Image: ARC+ participants at Sunday evening welcome party at the IGY Rodney Bay Marina (Photo Isabelle Sankar)

A warm Saint Lucian welcome has officially been extended to the sailors who have braved the high seas and successfully finished the 2700 nautical mile trans-oceanic ARC race from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria via the Cape Verde Islands to the IGY Rodney Bay Marina. On Sunday evening, steel pan music to the tune of well-known Christmas hits by local artistes filled the marina air entertaining over forty ARC+ yachts and ARC crews who are already on island. The event would not be complete without a kick of locally made rum punch and delectable treats packed with a generous dose of St Lucian flavour.

St. Lucia Joins ‘One Health’ CARICOM Drive

img: The six OECS, 15 CARICOM and 12 Commonwealth Caribbean member-states will be expected to come out of the current 37th CARICOM Summit, under way in Guyana, with plans to address the expected Brexit Caribbean blowout, which offers both challenges and opportunities for new relationships with Britain and the EU.

SAINT Lucia is hoping to join CARICOM member countries to promote the One Health Concept. The concept encourages a holistic approach to health, bringing together health institutions and health practitioners from a cross section of society. The One Health Concept is not entirely new, and re-emerged in 2004 through the collaborative efforts of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Organization for Animal Health (OIE), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), with the aim to address the escalating diseases affecting humans, 70 percent of which originate from animals.

Thousands Bid Farewell To Castro

Image of Fidel Castro

HAVANA, Cuba, CMC – Cuban President Raul Castro has vowed to honour the socialist principles and goals of the Cuban revolution that was led by his brother, Fidel Castro, who died on November 25 at the age of 90. In an address to tens of thousands of Cubans and world leaders in the city of Santiago on Saturday, the president , who led final tributes to his brother also said Cuba would ban naming any monuments or roads after the late leader – and this was at his request.