The Tribune

EMERGENCY lights were flashing outside The Tribune last night – so of course our reporters went to find out what was going on.

In a tragic turn of events, it appears a young man died on Deveaux Street, the short street that runs alongside The Tribune parking lot.

He had turned 18 just days ago, and while there will be no doubt some who point to the fact he had an ankle monitor on and was due to face a court case, this was not necessarily another case of a person out on bail being murdered.

The cause of death was uncertain at the scene, with The Tribune speaking to officials present to find out more.

The young man was conscious when police arrived, and spoke to them briefly before he died, but at this time the cause of death remains a mystery.

It is of course unsettling for anyone when death comes to the doorstep – but in this case the details of the victim were more unsettling.

Whatever one may think of someone being on bail for a serious offence, 18 is far too young to lose a life.

This young man was potentially facing the loss of years of his freedom, of course, but there are too many caught in these avenues that lead only to death or incarceration.

For those seeking justice for the offences that he was accused of, there may now never be answers. There may never be a resolution.

Scrutiny needed

If anyone ever doubted the value of properly examining the candidates vying for Parliament, the by-election for West Grand Bahama and Bimini is proving the merits of the process.

First up were questions about Lincoln Bain’s finances which, despite his Facebook claims of being targeted by The Tribune when we dared to call him up and ask about a court judgement against him that included a fine absent from his declarations, he was quite right that as an appeal was in process it did not count as a liability yet. We noted that here at the time, although that did not seem to stop him from spinning our questions for social media.

Then there is the FNM candidate, Bishop Ricardo Grant, who seems to have been involved in a pyramid scheme in the past. He has remained quiet since, despite promising to speak to The Tribune after the advance poll.

In a Whatsapp note, he declared that he and his wife were not the primary local organisers of the pyramid scheme in Grand Bahama, and declared that they “owe no one”. Aside from that, no further response has been forthcoming.

And the PLP candidate has come under focus – see today’s front page for more details – for notable absences from his declaration, such as his bank account.

That candidate, Kingsley Smith, the former acting chief passport officer, did not declare anything related to savings or current accounts.

Mr Smith said he would call The Tribune back to discuss the matter – but like Bishop Grant, no further response has been forthcoming.

So when some roll their eyes at the declaration process, or the questions raised of candidates, this by-election ought to restore some faith that candidates are being called to account.

Quite how this swirl of claims will affect the voters, of course, is a different issue.

All voters deserve the best candidate possible – and uncovering such details helps to clarify the issues so voters can make a sound judgement.

The vote draws near – who earns voters’ trust will be decided shortly. Will there be more revelations before voting day? We shall see.