High of 88 Low of 74 Slight to moderate to with wave heights of 2 to 4 feet. ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 75 CENTS – FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 30 ELECTION 2017 DAYS LEFT TO REGISTER TO VOTE MADE WITH 100% BEEF SEVEN MILE BEACH WATERFRONT WALKERS ROAD TOWN CENTRE PLAZA RED BAY (COMING SOON) EDITORAL | PAGE 4 ELECTION COUNTDOWN: REGISTER TO VOTE FIND OUT HOW ON PAGE 12 CAYMAN WEEKENDER Parade of lights 1,500 civil servants in line for immediate pay increases BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com A pre-Christmas gift is coming for hun- dreds of Cayman Islands civil servants whose salaries have remained stagnant for at least three years. According to documents circulated among the Civil Service Thursday morning, the gov- ernment has approved a proposed remedy for ongoing “pay stagnation” issues. These have arisen over the years when longtime civil servants have been paid at the same rate due to ongoing austerity measures. The issue has created a pay disparity between longer serving government workers, who are now paid less compared to new hires, who tend to be paid at market rates. Deputy Governor Franz Manderson esti- mated that some 1,500 civil servants in var- ious core government departments had stag- nated pay and would qualify for a pay hike. “Pay for these employees [has] been stag- nant for at least three years, with the majority of employees’ pay being stagnant for more than seven years,” Mr. Manderson said in a memo to civil servants released Thursday. Pay stagnation awards to those govern- ment workers deemed deserving, will take ef- fect as of Dec. 1. and they will see the pay in- crease in their December checks. Mr. Manderson said those who will receive the pay increases have largely been identi- fied. Length of service without a pay increase is only one of the qualifying factors. The civil servant must also have received at least a “3 out of 5” rating on their most recent perfor- mance appraisal and must not be on required leave or extended sick leave. Also, those civil servants already at the top of their pay grade for their job will not receive an increase. “Good performance pays off,” Mr. Man- derson said Thursday. “This is proof that if we perform at a very high level, that good perfor- mance will be rewarded.” Mr. Manderson said about $4 million in the current budget would be spent on the pay raises GOV’T TO PAY 17% TOWARD PENSIONS BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Cayman Cabinet members have approved a $16 million additional annual payment to- ward the “funding deficiency” in the main civil service employees’ retirement plan, to be made in monthly installments for the fors- eeable future. That contribution from government – rec- ommended in a report done by the Mercer consulting firm – is to be paid beyond the an- nual pension contributions made on behalf of government employees. The government has also approved an ad- ditional “normal cost” 5 percent contribution rate for participants in the civil service defined benefit retirement plan. What that means is the total contribution paid for each civil servant’s retirement by government has gone from 12 percent to 17 percent of their Education plan ‘outstanding’ but overly ambitious JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com A plan of action to improve Cayman’s schools in the after- math of a series of critical in- spection reports has been described as “outstanding” but “much too ambitious” in its ex- pected time frame, in a consul- tant’s review. Avis Glaze makes the warning in an otherwise glowing re- view of the 2016/17 action plan for school improvement, which she describes as “cogent and comprehensive.” Despite that endorsement, she warns that the improve- ment plan may be taking on too much at once and recommends narrowing the focus to target key problem areas, such as literacy, numeracy and school behavior. “I have one major con- cern with this plan. It is much too ambitious when measured Police warn about boat overcrowding Police are warning tour operators against overloading their boats ahead of what is expected to be the busiest tourism season on record. The issue has been a concern for several years at the North Sound Sandbar, where tourists flock to swim with stingrays. Marine police say they will be clamping down this season. For more, see page 8. PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » MARATHON RUNNERS ON PACE FOR SUNDAY More than 1,200 people are signed up for one of the biggest events in the local sports calendar, the annual In- tertrust Cayman Islands Marathon, which begins at 5 a.m. on Sunday. To read all about it, see page 28. PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 »2 LOCAL&REGIONAL FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS Casual indoor & outdoor dining with a local flair. Family friendly & affordable. 94-PASTA [ 947.2782 ] • Marquee Plaza Enjoy Dinner Tonight at Try One of Our Signature Dishes Banana Wrap Snapper New Years EveNew Years Eve BAREFOOT MAN & Sea N’ B Playing No Cover Charge with DJ Flex Free lessons with Kirk starting 9.30pm Every Tuesday Salsa Tuesdays Friday Happy Hour 50% Off Tapas and Selected Wines Playing No Cover Charge Special a la carte menu and spectacular reworks at midnight and dancing all night long. Call 949-2231 or email: info@wharf.ky “BOOGIE NIGHTS” Old School Dance Party 70’s disco & 80’s classics Friday, December 16th Music By DJ FLEX Starting at 9:30pm “BOOGIE NIGHTS”“BOOGIE NIGHTS” CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com William David McLaughlin-Martinez, 39, was sentenced to 11 years for robbery after being found guilty by a unanimous jury verdict Thursday in relation to a home invasion in Rum Point in which elderly tour- ists were robbed. During the robbery, which occurred around 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 11 this year, a 77-year-old man was report- edly punched in the face. The items stolen included jewelry, watches, an iPad and iPhone, together valued at $33,190, plus several thousand dollars in U.S. currency. Martinez had told the jury he rode his bicycle from Bodden Town to a res- idence where he had done some work previously. The plan was that if the house was unoccupied, he would pass the information on to a man he knew as “Boom,” who would burgle the premises. He said it turned out that the house was occupied, so he thought that Boom would go into another house; instead, Boom went into the house where an elderly couple and their helper were. Martinez stayed outside as lookout. During the incident, the male homeowner suffered a serious injury to his face. That led to a charge of causing grievous bodily harm, but Dame Linda Dobbs instructed the jury to return a verdict of not guilty on that count because of insuf- ficient evidence. The women present, ages 76 and 61, were not injured in the robbery. No other charges have been made in relation to this case. 11 year sentence for Rum Point home invasion Cayman’s Minister for Community Affairs, Sports and Youth Osbourne Bodden released a condolence mes- sage Thursday in the wake of the plane crash that claimed the lives of Brazil’s Chape- coense football team players and many others. “On behalf of the people of the Cayman Islands, I ex- press our deepest condo- lences to the Brazilian Foot- ball Federation, the people of Brazil and the families and fans affected by the plane crash. As well as claiming the lives of players and coaching staff of the Chapecoense football team, more than 15 sports journalists are known to have perished on Monday,” the statement says. “The team was to have played in a historic match against Colombia’s Atletico Nacional and our sympathies also go out to that team in the wake of this tragedy. “In the world of sports we are used to the drama of great wins and great losses but this incident has pro- foundly shocked us all. “We wish a speedy re- covery to the six survi- vors. Our thoughts are with all Brazilians at this dif- ficult time as you mourn loved ones lost.” The plane carrying the team was traveling from Santa Cruz de la Sierra in Bo- livia to Medellin, Colombia Monday when it crashed on its approach to Medellin. In- vestigators say the plane ran out of fuel. Of the 77 people on board, six survived. See page 20 for more. MINISTER OFFERS CONDOLENCES FOR PLANE CRASH VICTIMS PRINCE HARRY JOINS CELEBRATION IN BARBADOS BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (AP) – Britain’s Prince Harry joined Rihanna in celebrating 50 years of independence for her native Barbados. The prince, visiting the sixth of seven nations on a two-week Caribbean tour, and the singer shared the stage Wednesday night with the prime minister during a concert and dance per- formance marking the date the island broke away from Britain. Harry read a message from Queen Elizabeth II con- gratulating Barbados and saying that the island should be “rightfully proud” of a vi- brant culture and natural beauty. He spoke before a crowd of about 20,000 people at the Kensington Oval cricket ground. He also encouraged res- idents to work together to confront challenges such as climate change and the effects of technology on the job market. “The solutions to these challenges will not come from anyone else. The an- swers must come from you,” he said. “Good things happen to good people. Believe you can make change, and if you lead by example, others will follow.” Harry is on a two- week tour of the Caribbean that is also a celebration of the 90th birthday of his grandmother the queen. Britain’s Prince Harry and Bajan singer Rihanna attend golden anniversary celebrations at the Kensington Oval cricket ground Wednesday, marking 50 years of the island’s independence from England, in Bridgetown, Barbados. - PHOTO: AP/CHRIS RADBURN Rescue workers remove the body of a victim of an airplane crash in La Union, near Medellin, Colombia, Tuesday. The plane was carrying a team from the Brazilian first division soccer club Chapecoense for a Copa Sudamericana final match against Colombia’s Atletico Nacional. - PHOTO: AP/FERNANDO VERGARAThe islands’ most-trusted news source 3 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 RULES AND REGULATIONS: Minimum US$100 purchase to enter. One entry per purchase. Receipts can be combined to reach US$100 requirement. Winner must claim prize at Kirk Freeport on Cardinall Avenue within 7 days of announcement. Non-winning valid entries from Kirk Freeport Christmas Sweepstakes will be included in the Rolex Drawing. Kirk Freeport employees and immediate family members are not eligible to enter. Bayshore Mall : Cardinall Avenue : The Strand (345) 949.7477 : kirkfreeport.com MAKE YOUR OWN LUCK THIS CHRISTMAS US$40,000 IN CASH AND PRIZES WILL BE WON! Rolex giveaway is on January 3rd on Daybreak 3 X US$5,000 CASH WINNERS 5 X US$1,000 CASH WINNERS AND OTHER GREAT PRIZES! Every US$100 purchase at any Kirk Freeport store made before noon on December 24th qualifi es for all prize draws! Winners will be announced on Z99 and Rooster 101.9 at 6pm each drawing date. DEC 1ST: ENTRY COLLECTION BEGINS Dec 9th US$5,000 Dec 16th US$5,000 Dec 19th - 23rd US$1,000 each day Dec 24th US$5,000The islands’ most-trusted news source 4 – EDITORIAL – Opinion&Letters The Cayman Compass welcomes comments, opinions and viewpoints from readers. Letters to the editor can be emailed to editor@pinnaclemedialtd.com, submitted via www.caymancompass.com, sent by post or hand-delivered to the Compass office. PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY: Caymanian Compass Limited (a subsidiary of Pinnacle Media Ltd) Compass Centre Shedden Road, George Town SEND US YOUR VIEWS OR NEWS: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman KY1-1108, Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com ADVERTISE WITH US: Telephone: (345) 949-5111 Email: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Website: www.caymancompass.com PUBLISHERS DAVID R. LEGGE AND VICKI L. LEGGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DAVID R. LEGGE EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will findtheirownway” In case our readers had any doubts as to the importance the Cayman Compass places on our local election – beginning today, we’re giving it front page treatment, every day. The top-right corner of Page 1A is reserved for a “daily countdown” indicating how much time Cay- manians have to register to vote in time for the 2017 election. Our primary motivation is not to influence artifi- cially the outcome of the May general election, but to ensure that Cayman’s citizenry is as well-informed as possible on the candidates and the issues. On Election Day (May 24, 2017), we want our populace to arrive at the polling stations prepared and knowledgeable to cast their ballots for their preferred representative. An informed voter is a responsible voter. The first order of business for Cayman’s eligible voters is to register to vote or to verify your reg- istration is valid. The reasoning is straightforward: If you aren’t registered by Dec. 31, you can’t vote in the May election. If you can’t vote in the May election, you’ll have to wait another four years before you can participate directly in the next grand exercise of self-governance. We strongly suggest not sitting out from the 2017 election. Any election is, to a degree, historic. But the upcoming election is certain to rank high atop the list of Cayman’s most important votes — regardless of the outcome — because our country is shifting from “multi- member, multi-vote” districts to a “single-member, single-vote” system. We and the Elections Office share the common mission of making sure that when the time comes for voters to mark their ballots, they know exactly who they can vote for (the candidates running in their district) and how many they can vote for (just one). For voters in East End and North Side, “one man, one vote” is business as usual. But elsewhere, there is significant change. For example, in the 2013 election, voters in George Town could choose up to six candidates. For 2017, the old district of George Town has been dissolved and replaced by seven “mini-districts,” each of which will have one member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). So if you live in the area of “George Town North,” your polling station will be in George Town North, and you will vote for one single person to represent George Town North. One person, one vote, one representative. It’s also worth noting that citizens can vote only in the district of their primary residence. If you live in George Town North, but have a second home in East End – you have to vote in George Town North, not East End. (Those residency restrictions do not apply to the candidates. Theoretically, a candidate could reside in Prospect and vote in Prospect, but run in and repre- sent another district entirely, say West Bay South.) One man, one vote is an entirely new paradigm for Cayman, and it is impossible for anyone to predict what the results of the change will be. What you can be certain of, however, is that the Compass will dedicate our resources, efforts and time to ensure that Caymanians are prepared to vote in May 2017, and when the outcome of the election is known, it will accurately reflect the polit- ical will of the people. Election countdown: If you want a voice, register to vote FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS Yes, humanity is cosmically special HOWARD A. SMITH As we give thanks for our many obvious blessings, let’s reflect on a blessing that is less well known, a gift from modern astronomy: how we view ourselves. There was a time, back when astronomy put Earth at the center of the universe, that we thought we were spe- cial. But after Copernicus kicked Earth off its pedestal, we decided we were cosmi- cally inconsequential, partly because the universe is vast and about the same every- where. Astronomer Carl Sagan put it this way: “We find that we live on an insig- nificant planet of a humdrum star.” Stephen Hawking was even blunter: “The human race is just a chemical scum on a moderate-sized planet.” An objective look, how- ever, at just two of the most dramatic discoveries of as- tronomy – big bang cos- mology and planets around other stars (exoplanets) – suggests the opposite. We seem to be cosmically spe- cial, perhaps even unique – at least as far as we are likely to know for eons. The first result – the an- thropic principle – has been accepted by physicists for 43 years. The universe, far from being a collection of random accidents, appears to be stupendously perfect and fine-tuned for life. The strengths of the four forces that operate in the universe – gravity, electromagnetism, and the strong and weak nu- clear interactions (the latter two dominate only at the level of atoms) – for example, have values critically suited for life, and were they even a few percent different, we would not be here. The most extreme example is the big bang creation: Even an infin- itesimal change to its explo- sive expansion value would preclude life. The frequent response from physicists of- fers a speculative solution: an infinite number of uni- verses – we are just living in the one with the right value. But modern philosophers such as Thomas Nagel and pioneering quantum physi- cists such as John Wheeler have argued instead that intelligent beings must somehow be the directed goal of such a curiously fine- tuned cosmos. It seems likely that exo- planets could host extrater- restrial intelligence. But in- telligence is not so easy to produce. Paleontologist Peter Ward and astronomer Donald Brownlee summarize the many constraints in their book “Rare Earth: Why Com- plex Life is Uncommon in the Universe” and show why it takes vastly more than liquid water and a pleasant envi- ronment to give birth even to simple (much less complex) life. At a minimum, it takes an environment stable for billions of years of evolution, plus all the right ingredi- ents. Biologists from Jacques Monod to Stephen Jay Gould have emphasized the ex- traordinary circumstances that led to intelligence on Earth, while geneticists have found that DNA probably re- sulted from many accidents. So although the same pro- cesses operate everywhere, some sequences could be un- likely, even astronomically unlikely. The evolution of in- telligence could certainly be such a sequence. There is, moreover, a well- known constraint: the finite speed of light, which ensures that even over thousands of years we will only be able to communicate with the com- paratively few stars (tens of millions) in our cosmic neigh- borhood. If the combined as- tronomical, biological and evolutionary chances for life to form and evolve to intel- ligence are only 1 in 10 mil- lion, then we probably have no one to talk to. The discovery of exo- planets was dramatic but not unexpected: Since the Greeks, we have imagined planets were common. Text- books even taught that our solar system was typical. But the exotic diversity of exo- planets came as a surprise. Many have highly elliptical orbits around unstable stars, making evolution over bil- lions of years difficult if not impossible; other systems contain giant planets that may have drifted inward, dis- rupting orbits; and there are many other unanticipated properties. These unexpected discoveries are helping sci- entists unravel Earth’s complex history. The bottom line for extra- terrestrial intelligence is that it is probably rarer than pre- viously imagined, a conclu- sion called the misanthropic principle. For all intents and purposes, we could be alone in our cosmic neighborhood, and if we expand the volume of our search we will have to wait even longer to find out. Life might be common in the very distant universe – or it might not be – and we are unlikely to know. We are probably rare – and it seems likely we will be alone for eons. This is the second piece of new evidence that we are not ordinary. Some of my colleagues strongly reject this notion. They would echo Hawking: “I can’t believe the whole uni- verse exists for our benefit.” Yes, we all have beliefs – but beliefs are not proof. Hawk- ing’s belief presumes that we are nothing but ordinary, a “chemical scum.” All the ob- servations so far, however, are consistent with the idea that humanity is not medi- ocre at all and that we won’t know otherwise for a long time. It seems we might even serve some cosmic role. So this season let us be grateful for the amazing gifts of life and awareness, and acknowl- edge the compelling evidence to date that humanity and our home planet, Earth, are rare and cosmically precious. And may we act accordingly. Smith is a lecturer in the Harvard University Department of Astronomy and a senior astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. © 2016, Special to The Washington PostThe islands’ most-trusted news source 5 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 Holiday iveaway Win a $10,000 Camana Bay Gift Card! Win a $10,000 Camana Bay Gift Card! $10k CAMANA BAY’S CAMANABAY.COM Check off your Christmas list at Camana Bay and enter to win with lots of amazing prizes up for grabs, including a $10,000 Camana Bay Gift Card. Receive a raffle ticket for every purchase of CI$25 or more at participating locations. The raffle runs 22 November through 21 December. Visit our website for full details. Happy holidays from your friends at Camana Bay!6 LOCAL NEWS FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS Police commissioner seeks community focus BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service will renew its focus on community po- licing under new Commis- sioner David Byrne, who said Wednesday that he intends to seek increased resources from government to put local offi- cers back into neighborhoods. “We know the concept of [community policing],” Mr. Byrne said. “We need to build capacity around that. We need to be em- bedded in communities … seeing neighborhood officers, speaking to schoolchildren, talking to people.” Mr. Byrne, 57, said he re- alized coming into the new job – which he took up on Nov. 7 – that the RCIPS faces a perception problem when it comes to public trust. “It takes a while to change perception,” he said. “But not everything at RCIPS is broken. There’s a lot of good stuff going on.” In past years, the RCIPS neighborhood policing unit was slowly dismantled as daily calls for police service took priority. Yet, Mr. Byrne said, the kind of relation- ship building the police need when serious crimes occur, such as this week’s shooting death in George Town’s Scranton neighborhood, is fostered mainly through com- munity police activities. “We have to get to a stage where people can speak to us in a confidential way, and that’s something I’ll be working on,” the com- missioner said. The RCIPS received kudos recently for an operation tar- geting burglaries in North Side district – dubbed “Op- eration Wexford” – where the long-dormant North Side po- lice station was reopened and officers were sent out to talk to residents along Rum Point Drive where nine burglaries or burglary at- tempts were reported within the past month. Mr. Byrne said the police station was reopened on a temporary basis for the op- eration, and whether it would remain open would depend partly on funding. He said Wednesday that 80 percent of the annual police budget went to salaries, before any new policing initiatives could be considered. “There is a shortage of resources … I don’t think there’s any big secret,” he said. “I have to make the case to government.” Two other areas that the commissioner said are part and parcel of community po- licing, the RCIPS Traffic Man- agement Unit and the Media Relations Office, also need some attention. Mr. Byrne said he in- tends to put more resources into the traffic unit, partic- ularly in the short term to deal with the problem of rogue dirt bikers on Grand Cayman’s roads. In regard to media rela- tions, now staffed by one ci- vilian employee, he noted that the RCIPS’s social media and website use need to come around to the 21st century. “Jackie [Carpenter, the public relations officer] is one lady and she needs sup- port,” the commissioner said. “Media is so very important to policing.” The commissioner met with Cabinet members as a group for the first time Tuesday and said he felt he would get support for po- licing initiatives once he presents a proper business case to elected members. Morale Commissioner Byrne did not dwell on the subject Wednesday, but he acknowl- edged that morale among “some officers” in the RCIPS is a significant problem. The departure of former Police Commissioner David Baines, with several top lieu- tenants leaving in subse- quent months, created some gaps in the police hierarchy, which the service was able to fill by moving two new su- perintendents into command positions and promoting long-serving Caymanian po- lice officer Kurt Walton to deputy commissioner. “I do get a sense from some personnel, not all, that morale is an issue,” Mr. Byrne said. With Mr. Byrne at the top, the RCIPS command staff is more or less fully staffed, with Mr. Walton and Deputy Commissioner An- thony Ennis and Superin- tendents Pete Lansdown and Robert Graham. Also, a new superintendent was recently appointed to lead the finan- cial crime unit. Leaving the Garda The commissioner was asked Wednesday why he left An Garda Siochana, the Irish national police force, after more than 36 years of service. Mr. Byrne said he had been looking for “a lead- ership challenge” and felt there were not any advance- ment opportunities left at the Garda, where he had been an assistant commissioner for eight years. He had applied un- successfully in 2014 for the leadership post at the former Royal Ulster Con- stabulary (now the Police Service of Northern Ire- land), and that Cayman of- fered a chance to “move into the international po- licing environment.” Police Commissioner Derek Byrne “We have to get to a stage where people can speak to us in a confidential way, and that’s something I’ll be working on.” DEREK BYRNE, police commissionerThe islands’ most-trusted news source 7 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 21st Annual Rotary Central Cayman Islands 26th November 2016 OUR PRIZE WINNERS $1,000 Winner – Maxine Whittaker 3RD PRIZ E WIN NER $1,000 Winner – Rion Mohammed 3RD PRIZ E WIN NER $1,000 Winner – Carlmon Bodden 3RD PRIZ E WIN NER $4,000 Winner – Ruben Gordon 2ND PRIZ E WIN NER $1,000 Winner – Rosario Cardozo 3RD PRIZ E WIN NER $1,000 Winner – Shawn Bryan 3RD PRIZ E WIN NER $1,000 Winner – Wendy Evans 3RD PRIZ E WIN NER Maxine WhittakerRion Mohammed TICKET OUTLETS Dr. Bob’s Experiment, DMajor, FootlooseDr. Bob’s Experiment, DMajor, FootlooseDr. Bob’s Experiment, DMajor, Footloose ENTER TAINMENT PROVIDED BY Foster’s Supermarkets, Hurley’s Supermarket, Funky Tangs, A.L. Thompson’s Home Depot, Kirk Supermarket, Cost-U-Less, Camana Bay, Government Administration Building, Kirk Home Centre VENDORS AND SPONSORS Abacus Al La Kebab AL Thompsons Animal House Agua Restaurant Artifax Atlantic Department Store Atlantis Submarine Associated Industries/Parkers Balance Fitness Book Nook Canton Restaurant Cash Wiz Di Kit-Chin Dr. Bob & Friends Eco House Every Blooming Thing GT Yacht Club Kirk Home Center Kirk Offi ce Supply Nova Hall Mrs Doreen Smith Photo Frame Polar Bear Air Conditioning Salty’s Sound Solutions Spa Espirit Subway Tips n Toes Uncle Bills Wok N Roll EVENT SUPPOR TERS And “Thank You” to everyone who sold or bought a ticket! GRA ND PRIZ E WIN NER Music Extravaganza 2016 $40,000 winner Trilby Lou Grant (Centre) with her husband Kevin Ebanks (Left) and Rotary Central President Michael Pratt (right) Congratulations and a BIGand a BIG For full details on all winners please visit our website www.rotarycentral.ky or our Facebook page Rotary Central Cayman Islands ROTARY CENTRALThe islands’ most-trusted news source 8 FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 • CAYMAN COMPASS Our new home is 18 Forum Lane, Camana Bay We look forward to seeing you there soon in our new facility! Please call 945-4447 for an appointment. CAYMAN DENTAL HAS RELOCATED against the stated time frame for implementation,” Ms. Glaze writes in her 13-page analysis of the one-year ac- tion plan, dated July 13, 2016. Ms. Glaze, a former On- tario, Canada, schools com- missioner and the founder of Edu-quest International Inc., suggests the goals outlined are more akin to a five-year plan and warns that there is a risk of people becoming un- motivated and demoralized by unrealistic targets. She wrote, “I also under- stand that politically we al- ways want the public to know that we are pressing ahead – we are not wasting time. But the content of this plan is unmanageable within the short time frame that you have included. I recom- mend we strike a better bal- ance between being ambi- tious and realistic, knowing what we know about the need for deep implementa- tion of a few goals rather than tinkering superficially with many goals.” According to education officials, Ms. Glaze revised that assessment and became “more comfortable” with the proposed timelines once the distribution of responsi- bility was explained to her in greater detail. Education Minister Tara Rivers said the consultant provided a second “summary report” after discussions with the ministry about the areas of concern highlighted in her initial review. The summary report, dated Oct. 6 and released publicly this week alongside the more detailed July report, still contains concerns that the timeline may be too am- bitious. However, it strikes a more optimistic tone, com- mending the plan for having “high expectations.” In her initial review, Ms. Glaze recommends spreading the targets outlined in the plan over five years and in- creasing the emphasis on a few key priorities, or even solely prioritizing literacy in the first year. Describing literacy as the “gateway to future learning and springboard to all other subjects,” she recommends giving individual schools the flexibility to open up more room in the timetable for reading or mathematics. “In some schools, you may need to double the number of minutes in the timetable for reading, for example, while in others they may need ad- ditional time for math,” she said. “One rule of thumb should be that one size does not fit all.” She also encourages Cay- man’s education officials to focus on professional devel- opment, highlighting “teacher quality” as one of the most important factors in im- proving standards. The Education Plan of Ac- tion for 2016-2017 is an op- erational plan for all govern- ment schools in the Cayman Islands. It was developed by representatives from the Min- istry of Education, the Depart- ment of Education Services, the Education Quality Assur- ance Unit and government school principals following a series of workshops this year. Customized versions have been produced for each school, incorporating specific feedback from the baseline inspection reports. The national plan in- cludes specific targets at each age group level in seven key areas: numeracy; lit- eracy; data systems; posi- tive learning environments; science; special educational needs and disabilities; and technical and vocational edu- cation and training. Incorporated in the plan are programs that are al- ready being rolled out across schools in Cayman, including the Responses to Interven- tion literacy program, which provides targeted assistance to children falling behind expected reading levels for their age group. The plan also includes targets associated with the Positive Behavior In- tervention System, which is being introduced in schools across the Cayman Islands to help improve behavior in classrooms. In the conclusion of her summary report, Ms. Glaze writes, “It is my opinion that the Plan of Action is inter- nationally competitive and of the highest caliber. The challenge you now face is to engage in deeper implemen- tation, careful monitoring and providing consistent feedback in order to get the results you deserve.” Education officials say the plan is a working docu- ment that is flexible enough to adapt based on trends as the year develops. Ms. Rivers said feedback from Ms. Glaze would be fac- tored in as the plan develops. “Having this feedback was crucial in helping us to deter- mine whether we were on the right track for success and whether our plan embodied the principles, goals and strategies that reflect interna- tional best practice,” she said. Highlighting Ms. Glaze’s praise of the plan and the collaborative process in put- ting it together, she added, “I would like to thank the team and all who were involved in developing this plan as it has set the tone and outlined the requirements to ensure that public education in the Cayman Islands will improve. I would also like to thank all educators who are working hard to diligently carry out the plan to the benefit of our children.” “I have one major concern with this plan. It is much too ambitious when measured against the stated time frame for implementation.” AVIS GLAZE, education consultant CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Education plan ‘outstanding’ but overly ambitious Clampdown on overloaded boats planned New concern over Stingray City crowding JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Police say they will clamp down on overloaded boats at attractions like Stingray City during what is expected to be Cayman’s busiest-ever tourist season. Complaints about boats crammed with passengers have been an ongoing con- cern, particularly at the North Sound sandbar, for several years. Now the Joint Marine Unit is warning tour oper- ators they could face fines if they do not comply with weight and passenger limits specified in their opera- tors’ licenses. “These limits exist for a very good reason,” said Chief Inspector Brad Ebanks, head of Specialist Units, “be- cause as the choppier water at this time of year already can make boats less stable, failing to adhere to passenger limits on top of this pres- ents a clear danger to pas- sengers and crew. Boat op- erators risk penalties if they do not comply with these regulations.” Some tour operators have been complaining for sev- eral years about lack of en- forcement at the sandbar, while environmentalists like Guy Harvey have warned that Cayman risks the rep- utation of its number one tourist attraction by not better managing the experi- ence at the sandbar. Shaun Ebanks, president of the Land and Sea Cooper- ative Society, believes there needs to be a permanent of- ficer stationed at the site. While most operators obey the rules, he said, a few rogue skippers overload boats. He said anyone who worked with the cooperative or who booked tours through the cruise ships would not risk losing their contracts or violating insurance agree- ments to squeeze on a few extra passengers. “Sometimes you can look at a boat and it might look like it is overloaded, but it is actually carrying its ca- pacity. If you have a boat for 70 people and it is carrying 70 people, it can look full but it might actually be OK. “I am not saying it doesn’t happen, but when you book through the cruise ships, you tell them what your capacity is and that is how many passengers they give you. “I would say there are maybe two or three opera- tors that don’t have contracts with the cruise lines and are outside the gates booking passengers that do this sort of thing and we all end up getting blamed.” He believes the marine police and the Department of Environment should work to- gether to station a dedicated officer at the sandbar with responsibility for managing the attraction. “We pay our license fees. I would have thought they could keep one patrol guy out there. It is very hard for any industry to self police.” He said he was not aware of any occasions when police had stopped a boat for being overloaded or that the DoE had revoked anyone’s license. Mr. Ebanks also raised concerns that too many li- censes were being given out. “I believe there needs to be a moratorium on new licenses for the time being,” he said. Tim Austin, deputy chief officer at the Department of Environment, said the de- partment had received nu- merous complaints about various violations at the sandbar, including over- loaded boats. He said the de- partment had a conservation officer who checked in at the site every hour while on pa- trol in the North Sound. But he acknowledged that it may be time to sta- tion an officer there full-time, something the DoE used to do. He said a limit on the number of licenses handed out was also under consid- eration. Currently the Wild- life Interaction Zone regula- tions curtail the number of boats at the sandbar at any given time to 20, with the number of visitors capped at 1,500. There is no limit on the number of operators that can be licensed. “We are looking at doing a review of the management system there,” said Mr. Austin. One boat operator, who asked not to be named, said overloaded boats have been a perennial problem at the sandbar for several years. He said some smaller operators used adapted fishing boats, meant for 8 to 10 people, stuffing them with passengers from bow to stern. “It is an ongoing issue from a number of boat opera- tors,” he said. West Bay legislator McKeeva Bush said he believes there needs to be proper enforcement. He said operators who break the rules risk damaging the reputation of the attraction for everyone. “Everybody has to be able to make a living, but we have to make sure people are not overloading their boats and creating bad publicity for the tourism sector, which helps no one.” He said representatives of the Land and Sea Cooperative Society previously were paid a stipend to keep an eye on the attraction and suggested that policy be renewed. Those who wish to report overloaded vessels may contact the Joint Marine Unit during regular business hours at 649-7710 or George Town Police Station anytime at 949-4222. Police have warned operators not to overload their boats. Complaints about boats crammed with passengers have been an ongoing concern, particularly at the North Sound sandbar, for several years.The islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY DECEMBER 2, 2016 CI Government Department of Environmental Health (DEH) 2016 Annual Bulk Waste Clean-up The schedule for each district is as follows: EAST END / NORTH SIDE DISTRICTS November 21st to November 26th – bulk items will be collected BODDEN TOWN DISTRICT November 28th to December 3rd – bulk items will be collected. GEORGE TOWN DISTRICT December 5th to December 10th – bulk items will be collected. WEST BAY DISTRICT December 12th to December 17th – bulk items will be collected. CAYMAN BRAC AND LITTLE CAYMAN November 28th to December 15th – bulk items will be collected. Bulk waste should be placed on the curbside where they can be accessed by DEH trucks but not an obstruction to traffic. Bulk waste includes the following items: Household appliances, furniture, and yard waste. (Items not handled by normal DEH residential garbage weekly collection) Construction and demolition debris WILL NOT BE COLLECTED. (Construction and demolition debris is NOT considered residential bulk waste and is therefore not part of this campaign). The public should separate the following waste items from the rest of bulk waste: • METALS - including old appliances, metal furniture, metal roofing etc… • VEGETATION – All yard & plant trimmings etc. • OTHER RECYCLABLES –old tyres, scrap aluminium, batteries, and e-waste (old computers, TV, printers, etc.) RESIDENTS ARE REMINDED THAT ITEMS SHOULD NOT BE PUT OUT AFTER THE ABOVE DATES AS DEH CREWS WILL NOT BE RETURNING TO AN AREA ONCE IT HAS BEEN CLEANED. For further information, in Grand Cayman contact the DEH solid waste dispatch unit at 949-8793; in the Little Cayman & Cayman Brac, contact DEH Cayman Brac office at 948-2321. ************ THANK-YOU for your support of our mission outreach to Haiti Nov 17-26 ...the Haiti team of The United Church of Jamaica and Grand Cayman ( Alice Ebanks, Dr. Liz McLaughlin, Louis Sully, Sue Trull ) for the 1,500 civil servants, but he said it was likely sav- ings achieved in other areas of the spending plan would result in “no net increase” to the overall 2016/17 budget. The increases apply only to workers in core govern- ment and not to those in gov- ernment-owned companies and statutory authorities. Although all govern- ment workers received an across-the-board pay in- crease of 4 percent in mid- 2015, as well as two “bonus payments” of 2.2 percent of salary in 2016 and 2.5 per- cent of salary in 2014, Pre- mier Alden McLaughlin said those payments were given to everyone and did not ad- dress long-existing dis- parities in pay for specific civil servants. Last year, the govern- ment funded some pay stag- nation awards for teachers and police officers. “Gov- ernment has largely been able to improve civil ser- vants’ pay by realizing sav- ings within human resource budgets and reinvesting these savings to reward civil servants’ productivity,” the premier said. How it works The pay increases must be agreed between the workers and the civil service ap- pointing officer who hired them. Mr. Manderson said “all the work” would be done by human resources managers beforehand, and civil servants would be asked to sign a form approving the pay increase. Any workers whose pay had not increased in the past three to four years (since Jan. 2, 2012), would move up one point on the civil service salary scale. For instance, a civil servant on the “J” range earning $55,560 at “point 1” would move to $56,940 at “point 2.” Workers who had not re- ceived an increase in five to six years (since Jan. 2, 2010) would move up two points on the scale. Using the same “J” range, the “point 1” salary would go from $55,560 to “point 3” at $58,368. Pay for those who did not receive a raise in seven years or more (since before Jan. 1, 2010), would go up three points on the scale. The “J” range civil servant would move from the “point 1” salary to the “point 4” salary of $59,808. annual salary. The increases only apply to government workers who are members of the defined benefit retirement plan, which provides a monthly payment to retirees based on a percentage of their final salary with govern- ment. Civil servants who joined government after April 1999 pay into a de- fined contribution retire- ment fund that is similar to a 401K savings account and will not see their pension contributions increased. Finance Minister Marco Archer told the Legisla- tive Assembly in June, in a statement discussing recommendations for in- creased pension contribu- tions, that civil servants would not be liable for any of these increased pay- ments and that govern- ment would bear the brunt of any funding changes ap- proved. That position has not changed, the minister said Wednesday. “The unfunded liability is something that govern- ment is responsible for,” Minister Archer said. The minister also added that the pension increases only applied to the civil service retirement plan and not the plans for the legislature or the judiciary. The Cabinet order ac- cepting regulatory changes to increase the pension con- tributions was agreed Nov. 28, with an effective date of July 1, 2016. According to the order, government will also pay slightly more [about 0.4 per- cent annually] for the re- tirement accounts of civil servants on the defined contribution scheme. Also, the pension contribution rates for four statutory au- thorities or government- owned companies will be increased at varying rates. Those entities include the Cayman Islands Airports Authority, the Cayman Turtle Centre, the Health Services Authority and the Water Authority-Cayman. Money troubles The Public Service Pen- sions Board reported in May, based on Mercer’s evalu- ations, that unless gov- ernment increased contri- butions to the main civil service retirement fund, the defined benefit pen- sion plan would be depleted within eight years. Public Service Pensions Plan actuaries estimated that the civil servants’ de- fined benefit retirement plan was underfunded by between $166 million and $226 million, meaning the plan’s assets would be sig- nificantly lower than its li- abilities when estimated over a 20-year period. This is why the $16 million per year additional contribution from government was rec- ommended. The $16 mil- lion per year contribution would amount to $320 mil- lion in present dollar value if it is continued for the next 20 years. The unfunded liability in the retirement plan is asso- ciated only with the defined benefit (monthly pension) re- tirement plan. The unfunded liability, often referred to as “un- derfunding” or “past ser- vice liability,” is not a debt government has to pay im- mediately. However, actu- aries were concerned enough about the status of the fund to determine that “A contin- uation of the current level of contributions to the defined benefit plan is projected to result in the depletion of the defined benefit allocated fund by the year 2024.” The Mercer report did not blame the operations of the Public Service Pen- sions Board for the deficit. Rather, it congratulated fund managers for “strong investment performances” in recent years. However, those strong earnings were offset by re- tirees living longer than expected, the cost of benefits provided and the lower con- tributions made on behalf of employees. “For many years, the con- tributions made to the plan have been very low rela- tive to the cost of benefits that have been accruing under the plan,” the Mercer report stated. “The [defined benefit] plan has reached a mature stage where the benefit pay- ments being paid out of the fund are expected to grow rapidly and will begin to ex- ceed the contributions being made into the defined ben- efit part of the plan. By 2024, benefit payments are pro- jected to exceed contribu- tions by about $15 million per year and by 2024, this difference will have grown to $35 million per year.” 1,500 civil servants in line for immediate pay increases CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Gov’t to pay 17% toward pensions CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Public Service Pensions Plan actuaries estimated that the civil servants’ defined benefit retirement plan was underfunded by between $166 million and $226 million, meaning the plan’s assets would be significantly lower than its liabilities when estimated over a 20-year period. This is why the $16 million per year additional contribution from government was recommended. Finance Minister Marco ArcherNext >