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[youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=UfIBAWAneoo]

-- Edited by Kareem AkA DJ FRESH at 22:20, 2008-05-17

Hey ppl wa uno think about that barbee girl

-- Edited by Clarksman at 13:10, 2008-05-19

BOTH PRODUCERS ARE AT IT, BUT WHO DO U THINK HAS THE EDGE ?

Dear Pastor,

I'm a young lady who has been involved with a divorcé, engaged and was to get married in a couple months. I recently got baptised. I was reading my Bible and I saw where it says marrying a guilty partner is wrong.

Am I misinterpreting this whole thing? Please tell me, because I really love this man and wouldn't want to lose him unless it's God's will.

L. J., St James, Jamaica

Dear L. J.,

I suggest that you discuss this matter with your minister. Some denominations do not believe in divorce and remarriage and these churches do not interpret the Bible in the same way. Some believe that divorced persons who were guilty of infidelity should never remarry, and whoever marries them is committing sin. Others do not take that position.

I cannot tell you whether this divorced man you are planning to marry was guilty of infidelity. When divorced persons come to see me and ask me to officiate at their weddings, I do not ask them whether or not they had cheated on their spouses. I believe that it is wrong for a marriage officer to ask such a question. If such persons volunteer this information, it would not prevent me from officiating at their weddings because every sin (except the sin of blasphemy) can be forgiven. And everybody deserves a second chance. The Bible says, "Let God be true and every man a liar."

Dear Pastor,

First, I would like to commend you on the wonderful job that you are doing and have done. Anyway, I have a problem and would like any suggestion you can give.

I've been with a guy for two years now. My children love him very much and so do I, but the problem is that since we've been together, we argue almost every day about anything and everything. He is a few years younger than I am, but every little thing gets to him.

When we first met, we spoke on the phone. Not long after, I asked him if he was landed and he told me that he was not. Anyway, I didn't let that stop me from talking to him. He said he was going home soon, but I told him that if he wanted, I'd try and help him as much as I could to get his stay in the country. I liked him a lot and I said that it didn't matter if a man was landed or not. If he's supposed to hurt you, he will. I have been with guys who are legal in the country, and half the things that this guy has done for me, no one has ever done, and people who have their papers have problems and get divorced also. I just say, whatever the Lord has for me, will be.

Anyway, I talked him into staying. Since we've been together, he has worked and has helped me out a lot with everything - more than my own children's father does. My problem is he is a few years younger than I am, but he gets upset so easily, and this is making me second-guess if I should still help him or let him go.

A few weeks ago, I was in this store and a man stopped and was talking to me and my friend for a long time. He was telling us about life and about his past. Then he said to me that because I felt sorry for people easily, guys took advantage of me and that the guy I was talking to was dating other women. He started saying other things that sounded like he knew what he was talking about and how he couldn't tell me everything about this guy because the store was closing and I had to leave, but the next time he saw me, I was going to be shocked about things he had to tell me about this guy. He said things to my friend, too, that made us both look at each other and ask if this guy was for real. How would he know all these things?

I'm not one to believe in psychics and all, but now he makes me look at my fiancé differently and has me asking him if he's cheating and so on, which is building more arguments between us. I told him to move out and we are not speaking to each other. Now I'm wondering if this man can really see things or he's just full of .

Please help me pastor.

T. D., Canada

Dear T. D.,

You haven't said what this man who met you at the store said about your boyfriend apart from saying that your boyfriend was dating other women. You turned on your boyfriend because of what this man said. You don't know whether what the man said was true. So you should not have presented any argument to him. Whether this man is a psychic or not, you should have ignored him.

Suppose this man was trying to say things to you that would cause you to leave your boyfriend, and become intimate with him? The only approach that some men know when they are trying to 'make a move' on a woman is to lie about the woman's boyfriend. Unfortunately, many women believe these liars and break up with their boyfriends or husbands and sometimes it takes years for them to realise that those who took news to them were lying. If your boyfriend and you were having problems, you should have gone to see a family counsellor, but you should not have treated him as someone on whose dignity you can trample.

STEVEN GERRARD

Violator Management has confirmed with AllHipHop.com that reports of a proposed merger between rapper 50 Cent and Rupert Murdochs News Corporation are false.

According to reports, the rapper was supposedly negotiating a $300 million dollar deal that would have brought 50 Cent to MySpace Records.

The deal also reportedly would have given News Corporation control over 50 Cents past and present tours, books and film projects, as well as his website, thisis50.com.

The reports are rumors, 50 Cents manager Chris Lighty confirmed with AllHipHop.com.

Michael Jackson is joining forces with Will.I.Am to finally make that comeback happen.

Mike is expected to move somewhere up in New York to start working again. Congrats Poughkeepsie, N.Y there is a star in your midst! Rumor has it, Jackson is moving into a gated community up top and hopes to start recording again. Part of that will be to appear on the new album by Will.I.Am. I guess will did work on the 25th Anniversary of Thiller and this is the get back! That CD sold like 3 million units!

-- Edited by Garrick at 14:47, 2008-05-19

Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller has dubbed the eight-month-old Bruce Golding administration a failure.

"I am not going to rate them on any scale. I give them a failing grade," Simpson Miller said.

Last September, Simpson Miller led the People's National Party (PNP) to its first defeat in contested parliamentary elections since 1980. The Golding administration has been confronted with several challenges as world conditions have forced food and petrol prices to astronomical levels. Oil prices are now at a record US$128 per barrel compared to just over US$80 per barrel when the Jamaica Labour Party came to power.

Worldwide woes

Strong world demand, especially from China and India, is seen as a contributor to food prices rising.

In addition, the diversion of corn and grains to the manufacture of ethanol and other biofuels, as well as higher energy costs, have been listed as factors leading to food prices rising.

While acknowledging the adverse effect of global conditions on local prices, Simpson Miller said that the Government has refused to show leadership in critical areas.

"What I find with this Government is that they are behaving the same way as when they were in Opposition.

"Any Government that is in power has a responsibility to ensure that they deal with the challenges," Simpson Miller told The Gleaner.

According to the opposition leader, the handling of crime and violence has been a major disappointment.

"We will do anything to assist the Govern-ment, but the Government must also be serious," Simpson Miller said. She complained that the administration has not allocated enough money toward social-intervention programmes.

Murders spiked under the PNP's watch during the last 18 years. Nearly 600 persons have been murdered since January.

Prime Minister Golding, in an attempt to address the crime problem, moved Derrick Smith as national security minister and installed former police commissioner and army officer, Colonel Trevor MacMillan.

Over 14,000 Jamaicans were murdered during the PNP's 18-year reign. Some 1,574 persons - 100 fewer than the record homicides in 2005 - were murdered last year.

Asked what she would do if she were prime minister now, Simpson Miller was guarded.

Community intervention

However, the opposition leader said she would spend more on community-intervention programmes to fight crime. In attacking the effects of rising food prices, she said one of her strategies would be to increase the minimum wage, which now stands at $3,700 per week.

"I would dispatch my minister of foreign trade to like, Argentina, to discuss the question of wheat and to other producing countries of rice and wheat for dialogue," Simpson Miller said.

She added that she would charge her finance minister to keep the lid on inflation.

"It is the wickedest tax on the poor," Simpson Miller said.

The opposition leader, who has done her own introspection of her 18-month stay as prime minister, believes she did well in the job but ran out of time.

"I was not able to achieve as much as I wanted in terms of lifting the standard of living of the masses, but I really feel that I made my mark," she said.

The St Catherine Parish Disaster Planning Committee is trying to establish a disaster fund to assist persons who are victims of disaster more quickly.

Parish Disaster Coordinator Patricia Lewis said the sum being sought is about $500,000. She claims this money will allow help to reach disaster victims quicker than if they try to access funds from the parish council directly.

Lewis said that while the council will continue to assist the disaster committee, if there is a fund set up, then quicker and more direct assistance can be given.

"No structure has been in place to deal with natural or man-made disasters. The aim is to have one set up specifically for that component," she said.

Several members of the council also lend a helping hand to residents who wanted to know more about disaster mitigation.

Krista Henry, Staff Reporter

D'Angel shows the meal she prepared to THE STAR.

"They have me as a big chef all over the world," declared STAR of the month, D'Angel, before preparing lunch for the 'In the kitchen' feature last Tuesday at her home.

At the end of the day, THE STAR team was eager to proclaim D'Angel the super chef extraordinnaire.

Preparing a health-conscious meal of stir-fried shrimp, brown rice, vegetables and home-made carrot juice, D'Angel is always watching her slim-and-trim figure. She explained, "I have to eat properly, even though I lost the baby weight, I have to be careful not to put it right back on."

D'Angel explained that friends were always complimenting her on her cooking, having grown up with her mom, watching her cook dinner. Describing herself as a lazy child growing up, D'Angel said she hated doing housework and cooking, leaving that to her sisters. But when she moved out of her mother's house, she was always calling mom for advice in the kitchen.

Although D'Angel doesn't get to cook often because her housekeeper Judith takes care of the meals, D'Angel says she always makes the effort to cook Sunday dinner, and in December, Christmas dinner. As D'Angel chopped onions, tomato and scallion, her son, Marco Dean, was happily smiling away at the breakfast table.

"Anything Jamaican, I love it. Curry chicken back, dumpling and yam is my ting. Tin mackerel, aka dutty gal, a my ting dat," she laughed. As she looked around the kitchen, she cried out: "Where's my apron? Only angels cook in white, only angels don't get messy. My apron is always sparkling white."

After putting the shrimp in the pot, she added her long-time favourite, Gold Seal margarine, and stirred the pot. Putting the shrimp on a low flame, she started on the brown rice. As the rice cooked, she took out the carrots, lime and Splenda to make her natural juice.

In the kitchen, D'Angel happily sang along to Marco Dean's baby music as he was being bathed. She told THE STAR: "Marco Dean makes me feel like a child again, I know all his songs. I never had these things growing up, but I got good morals."

Meticulously cleaning and washing up as she went along, D'Angel explained that her mother always taught her to be a clean cook. Taking out a bottle of Vybz rum, she said, "This is the only dancehall rum. After a meal, mi haffi have Vybz rum. It's always in my kitchen, it's really good."

It was a wrap in the kitchen as D'Angel offered THE STAR a tasty and well-presented meal.

D'Angel pays close attention to her stir-fried shrimp. - Ian Allen photos

Dear Pastor,

I am in need of some advice. My problem is this. After being with my baby father intimately for the past six years, I am no longer in love with him. Certain feelings have diminished. We have three children together, and we have been through a lot. We have had the usual fair share of relationship problems, but since he started working last November, he has changed. He has started to cheat. We both have told each other lies, but honestly, my feelings were going way before this.

My problem is that I am in love with someone else because I am getting what I want out of a relationship with this new love. My children's father is not the loving, affectionate type. We don't communicate and there is no compromise. I have known my children's father since I was six and he was 10. We have a good friendship, that's all. We still live together. The new love I have found is his friend.

R., St Andrew, Jamaica

Dear R.,

What is your children's father going to do with you or his friend when he finds out that both of you are having an intimate relationship? When people decide to go with others, they always find an abundance of faults with the ones with whom they were living. Face it, you have been with this man for a long time and do you want me to believe that you only now want to give up on him? Tell me what's new.

May I suggest that you tell your children's father you are willing to split because you don't love him anymore. See how he would react. Suppose he is willing for both of you to go for counselling, would you be willing to drop the relationship you are having with his friend and to give the relationship with your children's father a second chance? Think about it.

NEW DELHI, India (AP) -- Locally brewed liquor apparently tainted with lethal chemicals killed at least 59 people in southern India over the weekend, police said Monday.

Bootleggers began selling the deadly brew on Saturday after police shut authorized liquor shops in parts of the Karnataka state because of voting for the state government, said Sri Kumar, the state police chief.

In India, liquor stores and bars are routinely closed during elections to prevent politicians from handing out free alcohol in a bid to win votes.

Since Saturday, 59 people, most of them poor laborers, have died and 17 others were in hospital, said Kumar

Absolute Entertainment Extatic Fridays, staged at The Pantry, New Kingston, last Friday, was slow in gaining momentum and failed to climax to a thrilling end.

The party, staged under the theme 'Inchz', suffered because it was in proximity to May Daze, which was being staged only a stone's throw away. May Daze also boasted a thumping sound system that could be heard well beyond the boundaries of the venue, and this attracted the masses.

When THE STAR team ap-proached The Pantry at minutes after 11 p.m., there were several patrons making their way out and going over to May Daze - 'Bruk Out '90s Overloaded', which was being staged at Akbar. May Daze featured the likes of ZJ Ice and Kurt Riley and was whipping up a storm.

When THE STAR team revisited The Pantry at midnight, the vibes inside were still tame, however, the momentum was building. The Kaotic selectors were finding form and building a platform for the Coppershot selectors who took over selecting duties at approximately 12:30 a.m.

The mix of Soulja Boy's Crank That and Shop Boyz's Party Like a Rock Star ignited the party flames that began to spread throughout the venue. Soon, several selections from Vybz Kartel sent some of the patrons into overdrive. The ladies enjoyed Lil Wayne's Lollipop, but reacted more fervently to Vybz Kartel's remix of same.

Snoop Dog's Sexual Seduction did seduce the ladies and Timbaland featuring One Republic on Apologise was well received. Rihanna begged the selectors not to stop the music, however, it was selections from Vybz Kartel that kept the patrons on edge.

The patrons, many of whom were scattered across the venue, enjoyed themselves in their own way although there were others who played the role of observers. Assassin questioned the sexual inclination of some men, asking A Coulda Wha Duh Dem Guy Deh?

A short stint of Monster Empire's A Wah Do Bl..dcl..t Bounty created a ripple, which was soon washed out by The Warlord's heavy voice deejaying Kill Dem All. The crowd loved the counteraction and ZJ Liquid begged the Coppershot selectors not to "rinse out" the song too much as he had a dub-plate version to play later.

Attention was then turned to the ladies as Beenie Man begged them to whine and Back It Up, while Busy Signal outlined his preference for them being Pon Di Edge.

When THE STAR team left the venue at minutes to 2 a.m., Liquid was creating a storm behind the turntables and members of the Alliance were present, mingling with the patrons.

These two patrons get wild at Extatic Fridays Party, held at The Pantry, Dumfries Road, New Kingston on Friday.

Me always hear people a talk bout weh dem woulda do if dem find dem man and dem best friend together inna bed, but me neva know it woulda happ'n to mi a backside! Mi sey mi an' de man together fi five years and me know the girl fi 'bout six years. Me and she work a de same place and she know how much me really love de man. Me is a girl who neva know seh me coulda really love a man so much, the man really take care of me and the sex goooood me a tell yuh.

Now could you believe dat mi did have an assignment and mi did affi go Mo-Bay fi three days but the work was cut short and dem send me home a day early. Me couldn't get fi call him cause me know sey him deh pan night shift and him ca'an tek no phone call. So anyways, me reach home 'bout eleven o' clock de night and a expect to find an empty house. Little did i know dat him and me fren well ina my bed well lock dung.

Me have mi own key so mi open de door and dem neva hear when mi come in, but I was wondering how him gone a work and lef de music a play.

Dem time deh a some sweet love music a play. Anyways, wen I buss the room door mi se the two a dem well a moan an' a groan an' a carry on. The way me frighten me stand up and couldn't move. Me not even did realize seh dem se me. Yuh se wen me realize seh a him and me fren me couldn't decide who fi beat fuss. But mek me tell unu someting, i did give the two a dem a fine bus assing, me neva know a so mi culda fight. Up 'til dis day mi neva love another man and mi no know when mi ago do dat again. It hot trust me!

this was written by dimples
JUST TO NOTE THIS DIDNT HAPPEN TO ME IT HAPPENED TO DIMPLES THE GIRL WHO WROTE IT


-- Edited by steppz at 11:46, 2008-05-19

Yea, mi rich and happy, Abena to the world. How some gal ah gwaan like dem hot and dem a feed dem pickney pon Lasco and Evaporate Milk? Mi is a girl tek care of my daughter, mi woulda rather go hungry than mek she short a nothing. Some gal fi stop go dance and left dem pickney wid dem madda or dem girlfriend. Yu neva watch the news the other day with the two pickney weh bun up inna the house after the mother gone round the road and lef dem one inna the house. Some gal fi go straight prison, dem nuh deserve fi have a blessed w**** that brings forth a life. Yea, ah dat mi seh and mi can defend it too.

CASSAVA PIECE SHOOT UP EMPIRE VEHICLE
Word on the street is that the Empire is quietly stewing over an incident in which Jeffrey Hypes SUV was shot up while he drove in the vicinity of Cassava Piece earlier this week. Jeffrey Hype, who is the right hand man of Vybz Kartel, reported the incident to the Constant Spring police.

DIGICEL RISING STARS LAUNCH SUPER X-RATED
Mi go check one of mi hottie hottie cousins dem over Portmore today and mi buck up inna the Rising Stars launch outta the Mall. It come in like the whole ah town come over Portmore fi the audition because mi see crazy faces that mi know, but the audition ram up bad, at least 750 plus people applied. Many of them shouldnt even have bothered to assail our ears with their offerings but there is just no accounting for taste. Still, it was good for plenty of yucks. One of the funniest moment was when a young girl made the questionable decision to sing Lady Saws If the Man left, anno my p___y fault. As you can well imagine, she was quickly ushered away. Another girl sang the unbeeped version of a Mavado song that chronicles the sexual act in teeth-grating detail, she too was quickly yanked offstage. I cant wait to see the edited version of this show.

MALE MODEL CAUGHT SHOPLIFTING
Ah which big model from a well-known local modeling agency was apprehended in London recently after he was caught shoplifting. Rumour has it that the male model went into the high-end store and tried on about 10 pairs of shoes, but had slyly left his own shoes in one of the boxes, and walked out in a pair of expensive Oxfords before the store security officers caught up with him. Good try, old man, good try. But it just underlines that old maxim, you can never trust a male model.

GHETTO GAL HAVE THE WICKEDEST SLAM
One of my girlfriends sent me a link to this Youtube video, it is as funny as hell and it merely underlines an unofficial rule in socio-sexual politics in Jamaica: ghetto gal have the wickedest slam. Party uptown and frolick downtown. Ah so the ting set up. Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfwXr3-iX94

RICH AND HAPPY SATDAZE
Everybody who is anybody is talking about Rich and Happy SatDaze featuring resident DJ Julian Jones of RJR every Saturday at the Destiny Palm Club in Destiny Mall (close to Mega Mart). There will be a guest selector every week, plus in-demand Drenz t-shirts will be given away free.

Last Thursday saw the unfolding of a new turn of events as ace Bembe selector Jigsy took charge of Asylum with their new pre-summer club series dubbed 'Hardcore Thursdays'.

Jigsy and sidekick Penny Bling governed the night's proceedings and did deliver on their promise to make it a memorable one. The club which saw a respectable turn out with some of dancehall's finest got off to a good start and soon shifted in full throttle mode.

However the increased energy levels sparked some fans of Portmore Empire head honcho Vybz Kartel to request that some of the Deejay's tracks be played this was met with total disregard, even though the selector did take time out to pay homage to his former nemesis turn friend. Suprisingly Kartel who was in th club at the time soon departed after the chain of events, Jigsy however was unaware of his presence.

Upon this observation 876radio.com decided to do some investigation into the bizarre occurence as just weeks ago the two had publicly called a truce to the ungoing feud at the popular British Link-Up dance held at La Roose in Portmore. When 876radio.com contacted Jigsy he had this to say.

"Yes mi and Kartel squash the beef ova La Roose, him big mi up and publicly apology to me pon stage and all shake mi hand, but the reason why mi neva play none a him song dem is because mi still no get back mi chain. Mi tell dem from long time seh If mi nuh get back mi change mi nah play no Kartel that was part of the agreement and mi nuh get it back yet, yes di same chain weh dem buss off a mi neck ova Bembe when dem did gun butt mi. so mi still a wait pon it" - Jigsy said.

According to Jigsy the chain cost a lot of money and has sentimental value, hence the reason for his stance, efforts by our team to reach Kartel for a comment proved futile.

The current animosity between the two stems from incident dating a few months back where Jigsy was on stage at the popular weekly event making the utterances

"Tight pants bwoy, bleach out face bwoy, the bwoy dem wid the chinese tatoo pon dem neck, people it nuh mean nuttin a dem boyfriend name..mek mi tell oonu something Jigsy waah kill oonu".

He also segued for a moment and said "Big up Lynch Mob and Pelpa yuh a mi deejay fi life".

Lynch Mob a crew allegedly headed by Mikey Pelpa who is now an artiste was at war with Kartel's crew from the Gaza a garrison in the Waterford community, after a lot of public outcry a peace treaty was struck between the two.

We are not certain if those were the comment that prompted Vybz Kartel to send a page (a jamaican slang, meaning to call, send a message or send for someone) to Jigsy.

However, Jigsy said after he received the message from one of Kartel cronies, he went to converse with the deejay, only to witness someone grabbing his chain, yanking it from his neck, before Kartel allegedly proceeded to wet him up with a bottle of Hennessey and allegedly gun butted him. Jigsy said he was also punched up but can't say who the actually perpetrators were as the blows came from all directions.

In his defense Jigsy said he never expected that from Kartel because as far as he knows there is no bad *lo** between them, but if it's the comment about the tight pants, bleach out face and chinese tattoo that offended him sorry to say but he's not taking it back. "I have no plans to retaliate I will just leave them to Father GOD" - He added.

A very jovial Kartel in an interview with 876radio.com said as far as he knows everything is good with him and Jigsy and if he was attacked by men which he knows nothing of then he should report it to the relevant authorities.

Portmore Empire's wingman Jeffery Hype survived a close call with death last Thursday after the white Toyota Corolla motorcar he was driving was shot by men in the vicinity of Cassava Piece.

When 876radio.com contacted Hype he told us that everything was ok and no injuries were sustained as he related what happened.

"Thursday mi deh pon di road a deal wid some things and di Deejay (Vybz Kartel) asked mi fi buy some food fi him, after mi deal wid it and ah come back towards Mannings hills road through Cassava Piece mi just hear dis bag a gunshot and mi realise seh ah di car dem a shoot up. Mi suh skill dat none a dem neva ketch mi and mi just turn back an guh reports it a di station" - Hype said.

According to Hype the incident occured at exactly 11:30am "yeah man ah broad day light di man dem shot up mi car, but seet deh nutten nuh happen to mi...(laughter)". The matter is presently being investigated by the Constant Sping Police who confirmed that they did receive reports about the shooting.

Just late last year deejay Vybz Kartel and Jeffrey Hype were victims of a stone throwing incident in the same community, that saw the deejay's SUV sustaining some major damage.

If anyone needs yet more evidence that schemes that pay users cash to watch ads, and then pay more for any other users that you get to sign up (AKA Pyramid Schemes) are nonsense, just see Chris Pirillos twitter message, which I have helpfully posted above.

The service in question is called Bux.to. They pay users $0.01 to watch an advertisement for thirty seconds. They also pay $0.01 for every advertisement viewed by anyone that has signed up using your referral code. Sounds great, but theres one problem - users are complaining that they arent getting paid, or are getting paid weeks and weeks after they should have been.

The reason? Bux.to is undoubtedly finding itself in cash flow trouble. Advertisers, Im sure, are not jumping at the chance to get to users who value their time at $1.20/hour and are only looking at ads because theyre paid to.

AGLOCO, another version of the scheme, went belly up last year. AGLOCO was created by the same team that founded AllAdvantage (also DeadPool) back in the late nineties. Basically, the model doesnt work, no matter how people try to spin it.

Pirillo is particularly embarra**ed about Bux.to, which he pushed hard to users in January. They arent paying him, and they wont contact him.

Its not often in a post that I get to explain a situation by saying both Caveat Emptor and Occams razor. If something looks like its a scam, its probably a scam.

Update: In a moment of total geek nirvana, I am watching Chris Pirillo read this blog post live on his Ustream channel (and you can now see him reading this update as well - ok, enough):

Fire believed to have been caused by an electrical short circuit destroyed a 15-apartment building in Main Street, St Ann's Bay, yesterday, leaving 19 people homeless.

The mostly wooden structure also housed three business establishments - a barber shop, an upholstery repair shop and an Island Dairies depot - all of which were badly affected.

It is understood that some of the occupants of the building were asleep when the fire started and had to be rescued by people in the area.

Alarm raised

Reports reaching The Gleaner are that about 8:40 a.m., patrons at the nearby Shell Service Station and Car Wash saw fire coming from a section of the building and raised an alarm.

Leslie Stephens, better known as 'Sparrow', had just driven the St Ann Parish Council's water truck into the gas station to be filled up with petrol when he was forced into action.

Stephens had to use water from his truck to prevent the blaze from spreading to both the gas station and the Lifeline Deliverance Church before fire personnel from the St Ann's Bay Station, who were also quick on the scene, took charge.

'Future Fambo', exploded unto the Dancehall scene with the Kung Fu dance, on the Corduroy riddim in the early 1990s. Known as Future Troubles at that point, he emerged as a militant deejay who infused a good sense of humor.

In accordance with this image, he is ready to release his second album,Mada. The balance of humor and militancy is embedded in this album. According to Fambo, songs such as Run Di Place, which is basically blowing his own trumpet as a Fambo, is one of the people's favourite. Drunken Dance and Out will be on the new album.

Promotion has already begun prior to the release of the album in June. He has recently returned from a European Tour, during which he opened for main-act Bounty Killer. "I was well received on the tour". He said. Fambo is also set to travel to New York for a show, where he is slated to perform at Amazuru.

Interestingly, Fambo revealed in a recent interview that his recent hit, Drunken Dance has been banned in certain countries, because of a perceived glamorizing of alcohol addiction. Nevertheless,the popular phrase says, 'no publicity is bad publicity' and as such, Fambo, is currently in the spotlight.

-- Edited by Riddim Daddy at 12:01, 2008-05-19

Secrets are the types of skeletons we generally want to stay in the closet. With doors closed. And criss-crossed strips of lumber hammered on as an extra precaution.

The main motivation for keeping things under wraps is because letting the cat out of the bag could cause our relationships to crash.

Finances - Vince, 33

Couples should decide on how they are going to finance their lifestyle, for example, the sharing of bills and other household expenses.

Outside of that, I strongly insist on a pre-nup agreement (some legal experts say it is of no legal effect). If it is love, what does money have to do with it. I keep my money and what I do with it outside of our joint obligations - it is my business. With that out of the way, we can live happily ever after.

Health - Steve, 32

It is very important for couples to be open about various health issues - physiological and psychological. Persons need to reveal a history of psychological illnesses because these tend to be hereditary, which then would affect your children.

The medical issues are equally important. For example, the risk of a child being born with sickle-cell anaemia increases if both parents are carriers, or with HIV/AIDS or other sexually transmitted infections. It should be mandatory that one's status is disclosed to a partner, for obvious reasons.

Having a child from a previous relationship - Vivica, 50

This cannot be kept secret, especially if you are entering marriage. A child cannot disappear - if you have one, I need to know. I should be able to make the decision if I want to be a stepmother or not.

Imagine me being married to someone for two or 20 years and then find out he had an outside child. I would feel deceived!

Sexual history - Rory, 24

Ahh, secrets. Some secrets should remain secrets. But on a serious note, I think it's important to share all types of information, though it may have the potential to backfire.

For example, your spouse may decide to use it as ammunition in a heated conversation. One has to be careful not to pull on such information when things get rough. Sharing sexual history is important; if one is infected with any sexually transmitted infections, one's partner must know to assess risk.

If you are supremely comfortable with your mate, you can talk about experiences with your previous partner. Who knows, it might enhance your present relationship.

new single 'Love You Anyway' to be released this summer.

Barbee is upbeat about her latest single, 'Love You Any Way', which is scheduled to be released in the summer. The song is sounding good and from all indications should do well for her on the international scene.

The song comes in her effort to take her career to a higher level. "It's a real lovely song, it was produced by Alicia Key's producer Sean Do," she disclosed. "It is a song that is dear to me. It's about when you are in a relationship you should stay true and just stick it out, just love him and don't bun him."

She added, "I just sat back and focused on my music. I saw where I needed to get back to basics. I started taking guitar lessons and voice training because I am preparing myself for the big times. I am looking at the different aspects of the business because that's where many people fail. They are stuck on the small things and miss the bigger picture."

Barbee disclosed that she is also doing acting lessons which was prompted by her getting some offers for the 'big screen'. "Some roles are on the table, some real big opportunities which I am excited about," she said.

No Artiste has fused R&B, Dancehall and Hip Hop like sisters Nyanda and Nailah Thorbourne, the new musical sensation Brick and Lace.

Their recent performance in Barbados got rave reviews to which the dynamic duo said We love the vibe from the audience, adding Sure well be back.We love Rupee and Alison Hinds and we would love the chance to work with them. And while they admitted they havent done much calypso they said they had done a calypso remix of Love Is Wicked. When asked if they would like to work with anyone from Barbados, the girls said,

Brick and Lace has also been making waves in their home country Jamaica long before singing with Akons new record label Kon Live Music. They will be touring the United States, Europe and Africa for the remainder of this year.

Apart from their lovely voices, Brick & Lace are also competent song writers. The sisters have penned hits for the likes of Janet Jackson, Paris Hilton and The p*u**yy Cat Dolls Nicole Scherzinger. They have also sang back up for the likes of Roberta Flack, Lauren Hill and family friend Marcia Griffiths

A 28-year-old man died after he was shot in the chest early Saturday morning at a Brunswick nightclub.
Police said Roderick Jermaine McRae was shot about 3 a.m. in the Eagle Lounge in the 1600 block of Albany Street.
McRae was taken to Southeast Georgia Health System, where he died.
Police said the investigation was continuing and asked anyone with information about the shooting to call Detective Scott Harrell with the Brunswick Police Department Criminal Investigations Division at               912-267-5559       , or Silent Witness               912-267-5516       

Amid the growing level of indiscipline and violence in Jamaican learning institutions, a school activist yesterday called for boot camps to be installed nationally for delinquent students.

Lawman Lynch, safe schools ambassador in the Ministry of National Security, argued that secondary students should be actively involved in a uniformed group or a service club.

Failure to adhere to disciplinary procedures in these uniformed groups or service clubs, Lynch said, should result in delinquents being enrolled in boot camp.

Time for action

"We cannot be soft in our approach to crime and violence at this time, especially in our educational institutions. We simply cannot sit by and fathom excuses for these few ruthless students," said Lynch, who is also president of the Kingston and St Andrew Action Forum Youth Organisation.

Lynch continued: "What is factual is that the few are the main perpetrators; hence, let's deal with them - mandatory uniformed group enrolment or boot camp."

He told The Gleaner yesterday that the boot-camp programme would be similar to a military school, where students abide by the rules of the institution. He noted that while these delinquent students would be supervised by military personnel, teachers would be on board to continue the learning process.

Lynch noted that students' return to the formal school system would be contingent on significant behavioural improvement.

Truant label

But Sylvester Anderson, president of the National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica, said placing students in boot camps would tag them as truants.

"It can only hurt them if you take them and put them in that institution, they will be considered as truants," said Anderson.

He added: "I agree that they need to be separated from the regular students, but not in the context of a boot camp," the president told The Gleaner yesterday.

Meanwhile, Andrew Holness, minister of education, told The Gleaner yesterday that boot camps should be restricted to students who broke the law.

"The Ministry of Education considers boot camp to be a law-enforcement solution and we would reserve that for students who have broken the law and are no longer in the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education," said Holness.

Holness said the ministry is to develop an alternate student intervention programme (ASIP) for students who pose a real threat to the safety and security of the learning environment.

Intensive intervention

ASIP, he said, would be custodial in nature, with intensive intervention from specialists in the areas of psychology, behaviour- management counselling and law enforcement.

Holness also said the Ministry of Education was close to rolling out a behaviour-management strategy for secondary schools.

Part of that strategy, he said, would be bolstered by support from the Programme for Alter-native Student Support, which will provide specialised personnel and resources to assist schools in dealing with students who are beyond its resources.

On the matter of compulsory uniformed groups, Holness said while the ministry viewed extra-curricular activities as a key strategy in managing behaviour, it was averse to making such participation mandatory.

General secretaries of the People's National Party (PNP) and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) yesterday declined to divulge details of a recent meeting held between the two parties to discuss the controversial dual citizenship issue.

Those in attendance at last Friday's meeting were the parties' two general secretaries and other senior officers.

"We had discussions around that issue (dual citizenship)," Peter Bunting, general secretary of the PNP, told The Gleaner yesterday, adding that the discussions were "rather exploratory".

"We are not any stage to discuss anything (and) we can't have this discussion in the press," said the general secretary.

Meanwhile, Karl Samuda, general secretary of the JLP, said there was nothing to report at this time.

"I'd rather not comment," he told The Gleaner when contacted yesterday.

Election petition

Abe Dabdoub, the defeated PNP candidate for West Portland, had brought an election petition against JLP Member of Parliament (MP) Daryl Vaz, claiming that he was ineligible to sit in Gordon House because he had sworn allegiance to the United States (US).

The court, in April, ruled that Vaz was not qualified to be an MP by way of his US citizenship and ordered a by-election in the constituency.

However, Dabdoub last Wednesday filed an appeal against Chief Justice Zaila McCalla's April 11 ruling that a by-election be held in the constituency to determine the next MP.

A day later, Vaz filed a surprising appeal in the Court of Appeal, seeking to overturn the April 11 court ruling which ousted him from Parliament.

Vaz polled 944 votes more than Dabdoub in the general election and was declared the MP. Dabdoub, however, said he should have been declared the MP as Vaz has been found not to be qualified to be elected to the House of Representatives.

Mair's seat under threat

Meanwhile, PNP caretaker for St Catherine North Eastern, Phyllis Mitchell, last Friday received the green light from the Court of Appeal to challenge Gregory Mair's eligibility to sit in Parliament.

The ruling places another JLP seat under threat, presenting the potential for the Government's narrow four-seat margin to be even further reduced and for an early general election to be called.

Mitchell is expected to pursue an election petition in the Supreme Court in an attempt to establish that Mair was a Venezuelan citizen when he contested the September 3 national poll.

There are three other election-petition cases before the courts, two of which are alleging dual citizenship.

IN response to howling concerns about the out of control crime wave and soaring murder rate, Prime Minister Bruce Golding on Thursday formed a social intervention committee consisting of representatives from government departments and social groups.

Golding convened the meeting hours before leaving on a trip to the Latin American/ European Union summit in Lima, Peru.
The committee was formed a day after Golding promised to bring 'crime infested communities' back into the mainstream of society, minutes after the swearing in of newly-appointed minister of national security, Trevor MacMillan.

According to statistics obtained from police blotters, 675 persons have been murdered between January 1 this year and 7:00 pm on Friday. Three police officers have also been shot and killed so far this year.

In the first 16 days of this month 76 persons, an average of 4.75 persons per day, have been killed.

Golding has appointed himself head of the social intervention committee, which will be chaired by education minister, Andrew Holness, until his return on May 28.

The core group is drawn from representatives of the Ministry of National Security, the police, the Jamaica Defence Force, the Planning Institute of Jamaica, the National Centre for Youth Development, the Social Development Commission, Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Peace Management Initiative, Kingston Restoration Company and Reverend Al Miller.

A release from the Office of the Prime Minister said the committee is mandated to recommend strategies to assist in a community re-socialisation programme for the country.
The release quoted Golding as urging government agencies "that provide some of the basic but critical social services such as garbage collection and repairs to broken sewerage mains, should endeavour to respond more speedily to the needs of these communities, in order to help arrest the social decay and the feeling that no one cares."

The resources of the police is being severely tested with gang wars raging in more than a dozen Corporate Area inner city communities including August Town, Grants Pen, several sections of Waltham Park Road, Greenwich Town, Olympic Gardens, Payne Land, Parade Gardens, 'Samocan', Seaview Gardens and Red Hills Road.

But Golding, in a bid to ease fears that total anarchy is on the horizon asked for a more strategic approach "to drive a wedge between communities and criminals who do not necessarily enjoy the support of the residents, but nevertheless drive fear into them".

MANDEVILLE, Manchester - Against the backdrop of the escalating cost of chemical fertiliser, Agriculture Minister Chris Tufton, is promoting organic farming as a viable alternative.

"We need to encourage more Jamaicans to do organic farming because the cost of chemical fertiliser is just too high and will rule out some farmers," Tufton told reporters during a recent tour of the Northern Caribbean University (NCU) organic farm.

According to Tufton local farmers will have to up the ante and practice more environmentally friendly and cost effective farming methods.

"Unfortunately not many of the farmers understand it, so they don't want to use it, so part of the thrust forward has to do with promoting the alternatives that are there," Tufton said.

He praised NCU for what he described as a "very practical" programme and offered assistance from his ministry to help spread the benefits of organic farming.

"The challenge is going to be how do we commercialise your techniques and convince more farmers to engage in that type of farming," Tufton said, "It's a challenge that is present but it is something that I would certainly like us to collaborate on."

The NCU organic farm programme, which was funded by the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ), was implemented in August 2005.

According to Dr Vincent Wright, head of the Biological Sciences Department in the College of Natural and Applied Sciences at NCU, the project began as an initiative to reclaim bauxite mined land for agriculture.

Bauxite mining ravages top soil and valuable nutrients essential for good crop yields and mining companies usually dump about a foot of soil on land that has been mined of its ore.

Wright explained that organic farming could provide a boost in the nutrient quality of mined out lands as it reduces the need for consistent irrigation because of the high moisture retention capacity.

"Organic farming is different, it relies less on the nutrient value of the soil and it uses less water so I think it is a good way of bringing back the mined lands into effective production," said Wright.

Though the entire process of organically producing compost takes three to six months, the end result is a much cheaper fertiliser than store-bought chemical-based products and according to Wright 'a much healthier crop stimulant'.

A TEACHER had a huge heart attack after seeing a film on YouTube of himself being bullied by yob pupils.

Science master David Lewis has been in hospital since and is awaiting a triple bypass heart operation.

The 43-second mobile phone clip shows Mr Lewis struggling to remove a violent boy from a classroom of baying teens.

The film ends with the pupil being thrown into the corridor at Afon Taf High School in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales.

The shaky film titled Arron vz Lewi$ and set to rap music was apparently posted on YouTube by a girl called Natalie on April 25.

Sources at the school said the kids deliberately goaded Mr Lewis into losing his temper.

The source said: He feared he might lose his job and his pension and all because some yob decided to play him up.

School headmaster Michael Johns refused to comment yesterday.

One education insider said: It might seem like fun to these kids but it can get really serious.

Ashon Williams photo The authorities need to ensure that youngsters like these in Payne Land, St. Andrew, are given a chance to prevent them from enlisting in the ranks of the growing number of anti-social brigades in the capital city. Come and see the conditions for yourself and dont threaten us, was the call from Delacree Lane and Payne Avenue, one of the more impoverished inner-city communities dotting the Corporate Area.  There, the residents are making another call for the authorities to include poverty in their latest initiative to tackle the countrys spiraling crime wave. We want water, justice, work, food, medicine for the old and destitute, and decent roofs over our heads, says Machel, a popular 29-year-old community leader. Indignation deepens the lines on the faces of scores of young men sitting on the corner, venting anger about how they have been treated over the years.  Police abuses are rampant and although these areas are among crime-ridden communities, which account for much of the crimes in the South St Andrew Police Division, residents there feel they are neglected and disrespected.  The authorities, they say, believe that only brute force can work when dealing with them, a complaint repeated many times before.  Machel, who has been in and out of police custody, said he has become the target for the police every time a crime is committed in the area.  I try to convince them that Im only trying to hold the community together, but they think Im driving the crime, he said. But the existing conditions are not conducive to peace.  Many residents charge that they are not living, they are surviving like animals.  Living conditions written and spoken about on numerous occasions in the past remain the same no running water in most houses in the dilapidated, ramshackle neighbourhood of about 500 residents.    Most residents dont have steady jobs and those who work have small jobs paying measly salaries.  And the rising cost of basic food is taking its toll.   The narrow streets lined with corrugated zinc fences are littered with garbage.  Pot-bellied and barefooted children are running around empty lanes.  The only basic school built with assistance from Food For the Poor, is partially vandalised and closed, several weeks following a recent flare-up of gun violence in the area.   Fear factor Many young boys and girls who should be in schools, told the Sunday Herald that they had no money to buy lunch and pay bus fare, hence they were not in school.  The elders in the community express fear that if nothing is done, these youngsters are potential raw material for crime factories in the inner cities. After several unfulfilled promises from members of the political directorate and the business community along Spanish Town Road, to provide assistance with economic projects, residents say they are now frustrated.  According to them, they are not looking for handouts.  However, they claim they need assistance with income-generating projects, which would go a far way in making life easier for them. And while skills levels are low in the area, there are many unemployed high school graduates who say they are denied jobs because of the stigma attached to where they are living.   Then there is the fear factor.  Several years of internecine war has claimed scores of lives in the area, resulting in pent-up bitterness and mistrust among the residents.  Up to a few weeks ago, protagonists in Tavares Gardens, popularly called Payne Land, and Delacree Lane traded gunfire regularly, and residents from both communities could not walk along Payne Avenue, which divides both communities.   However, a truce is now on, due to the efforts of Machel and his counterpart from Tavares Gardens, popularly known as Wokerman.  Today, the residents, many of whom are still nursing wounds and mourning the loss of relatives and friends, are enjoying the peace. Both communities underscore the vast gap between the haves and the have nots in Jamaica, a country with one of the largest wealth disparities in the Caribbean.  Throughout the Sunday Heralds tour of the community, children and old women poured out their distress, including revealing that they had not had their first meal for the day. While conceding that there were troublemakers in their ranks, they were not convinced that the authorities were willing to separate law-abiding citizens from lawbreakers, in the fight against crime.

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A Court of Appeal ruling last Friday, cleared the way for Peoples National Party (PNP) candidate, Phyllis Mitchell, to ask the court to unseat North East St. Catherine Member of Parliament (MP), Gregory Mair, and other party figures to go after four of Mairs colleagues who are said to holding dual citizenship. Members of Parliament Shahine Robinson, Gregory Mair, Michael Stern and Laurie Broderick are reportedly in the same boat as their colleague Daryl Vaz, who was declared ineligible to serve in Parliament after Chief Justice Zalia McCalla ruled that he was in breach of the Constitution because he was a holder of US citizenship.  The Court of Appeal on Friday reinstated an election petition, which had been struck out by the Supreme Court last October.  Lawyers representing Mair argued at the court hearing that documents that had been served on their client during a sitting of Parliament had been improperly served.  But the Appeal Court found that the documents, which were also sent by registered mail, were properly served.  Lawyers representing defeated PNP candidate, Phyllis Mitchell, who is seeking to have Mair, who is said to be a Venezuelan citizen, disqualified from sitting in Parliament, served the petition documents.  The latest court ruling has cleared the way for cases seeking to removed Mair and his other colleagues to be heard in the courts. Clear precedent Last week, both Vaz and his opposition counterpart, Abe Dabdoub, filed appeals challenging the April 11 ruling by the Chief Justice.  Dabdoub, who filed an election petition seeking to unseat Vaz, is asking the Appeal Court to overturn Justice MaCallas decision that a by-election should be held to determine the Member of Parliament for the West Portland constituency.  Within 24 hours after Dabdoubs filing, lawyers representing Vaz followed suit and filed a suit seeking to overturn the ruling, which disqualified him as a Member of Parliament. Legal pundits argue that the ruling against Vaz had set a clear precedent for the removal of all members of Parliament with dual citizenship, who are not Commonwealth citizens. Shahine Robinson, who is serving her second term as MP for North East St Ann, reportedly became a US citizen during her second term. Reports indicate that Michael Stern, who flogged the PNPs candidate, former junior minister Richard Azan, in North West Clarendon, served in the US army for over five years. And Laurie Broderick, a son of late PNP stalwart, Percy Broderick Sr., who defeated former Health minister, Horace Dalley, in North Clarendon, is also reportedly a US citizen.    Speculations Fridays ruling and Dabdoubs appeal have intensified speculations of elections this year, against the background of Prime Minister Bruce Goldings pronouncement that he would not allow anyone who lost at the polls, to sit in Parliament as a result of legal technicalities. From all indications, the government, facing the likely erosion of its slim four-seat majority in Parliament, is heading for the polls.  But the opposition PNP, still smarting from the September 3, 2007 defeat by the JLP does not welcome indications of an early poll.  The PNP, preparing for its 70th birthday in September, could also see a challenge to its top leadership, as vice president and former security minister, Dr. Peter Phillips, has been mobilising for a political showdown with party leader, Portia Simpson Miller.  Simpson Miller, who defeated Phillips in the four-candidate runoff for party leader in February 2006, to become Jamaicas first female Prime Minister, is facing what party insiders say, will be a stiff challenge at the next annual conference. Apart from the political challenges, the party is broke and several candidates are planning to hang up their political gloves, creating vacancies, which could prove hard to fill if an election is called shortly.

Just about a month ago the Doctor Beenie Man in a one- and-one interview with the Jamaica Star was asked how things were between himself and the Warlord and he was quoted as saying he's convinced that Bounty Killer has something against him.

Bounty Killer and Beenie Man have been arch-rivals in dancehall music for several years and, over time, one would think that the two would have been able to put aside their differences.

However, things seem to have only taken a turn for the worst, as Beenie says he is convinced there is no hope of a resolution.

"Mi use to tek it fi joke, sey Killer nuh like mi, but afta suh long, mi a get fi realise sey him really nuh like mi," Beenie Man said.

But according to Beenie, "Mi sorry fi Bounty Killer, a good yute still cause him bring whole heap a people inna di music. But him need fi adjust and change wid di times an stop badmind mi. Why him a guh come pon TV an sey mi nuh deserve fi get artiste a di year? A nuh him sing Back It Up an dem song deh? I think di Range Rover a get inna him head. Memba dat a him an Mavado a drive di same vehicle, but a me buy Range an give Angel, a me sey Humma two time, a red an a black one."

"A nuh my fault that Bounty Killer is not where I'm at. Look at Mavado, him have a song wid Jay Z an di one chance wey Bounty get is a naked man come inna him video."

Yesterday when 876radio.com caught up with the Warlord at a studio session and posed the question to him about him and Mavado driving the same vehicle in an exclusive interview he said.

"Yes mi an Mavado ah drive di same vehicle suh what, mi see dat as a good ting because it show seh di yutes dem a rise, ah nuh me and di singer alone drive Range Rover, but it nuh mean seh everybody weh drive ah Range inna di same class, it only mean seh we drive di same class of vehicle. Beenie not in my class, suh I guess since him ah talk bout vehicle, how him nah talk seh him an Peter King a drive di same Kingfish, suh I guess di two a dem in di same class, how him nah talk bout dat."

Unfortunately the interview was cut short due to other pressing engagements on the Warlord's roster, but one cannot help but wonder if there is even a glimmer of hope that these two dancehall giants may one day decide to call a truce again.

d'ANGEL makes promise to fans

Krista Henry, Staff Reporter

Star of the Month, D'Angel, raps with some of her fans at Ferncourt High School in St Ann recently. D'Angel was there for the FAME School Rules. - Contributed

For THE STAR of the Month, D'Angel, her fans are very important as she considers herself a role model to the teenagers who admire her.

D'Angel says she is always careful about what she says in her songs, promising never to slip out of line in being a mentor to the kids.

"Kids are the next generation, they are the ones growing up to my music and they will be the ones who go out and buy my CDs, so I need to make sure I'm a good role model," she said.

Whenever D'Angel is at her store on weekends, she says that it is always packed with kids wanting to take pictures with her and sign autographs for them.

While she has lots of fans, there is one in particular who has been showing that he considers himself her number one fan. 'Kevin' goes to almost all of D'Angel's local shows and even calls her road manager, Jodi, every day.

"I met Kevin at Macka Diamond's birthday bash, he came up to me and told me he was my biggest fan. He's been following me ever since, he was at my birthday party. He shows up everywhere I'm performing, Kevin is always around," she said.

D'Angel also spoke about one of her young fans, a four-year-old boy who is the son of a friend of hers. She recently met the youngster at the staging of Miss Jamaica Universe 2008.

She explained, "A friend of mine told me his son wanted to marry me and that he's in love with me, it was really cute."

In the meantime, D'Angel continues to develop her fan base, making appearances and music that they will love forever.

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BLAZE!!!

Portia stands firm: Plans to lead PNP back to victory
published: Sunday | May 18, 2008

Daraine Luton, Sunday Gleaner Reporter

People's National Party President Portia Simpson Miller is in no mood to set a departure timetable

ADAMANT that she still enjoys the support of the majority of the People's National Party (PNP) members, President Portia Simpson Miller is in no mood to set a departure timetable.

Simpson Miller, who turns 63 in December, says she is working towards taking the PNP back into state power and returning to Jamaica House as prime minister. P.J. Patterson, Simpson Miller's predecessor, retired from representational politics at age 70.

"I will know when and what time to go. I am going to work hard, reorganise the party, and take it back to victory," she told The Sunday Gleaner.

failed at the polls

Simpson Miller was held up as the PNP's only hope of securing a fifth consecutive term in government, but failed last year when she faced the electorate for the first time.

The Bruce Golding-led Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) won last September's general election by a four-seat majority in the 60-seat House of Representatives. Simpson Miller believes the party has not distinguished itself after eight months in government.

"When I go on the streets now, the people are shouting, 'Portia! Wi want you back!'," Simpson Miller says, claiming this as a signal that the Jamaican people want to see her return as prime minister. "They want to see me back at Jamaica House," Simpson Miller states.

best choice to lead

Simpson Miller became PNP president when 47 per cent of the PNP delegates voted for her as the best choice to lead the party during a bruising four-way race. If Simpson Miller is to lead the PNP in an election against the Bruce Golding-led JLP, she will have to hold off a potential leadership challenge from PNP senior vice-president, Dr Peter Phillips. There have been reports that party interests allied to Phillips are instigating a challenge on Simpson Miller. Phillips has not admitted to being a part of any such move, but if one takes place, Simpson Miller says she is not worried.

"I think presently, I do enjoy the support of the majority of the party members, enjoy a high level of support from a number of leaders of the party, and I enjoy great support from the party members out there," she states confidently.

When Simpson Miller assumed office as prime minister, she had a phenomenal 78 per cent approval rating. That, however, has plummeted to 41 per cent, according to the Bill Johnson polls which were conducted last November. Her unfavourability rating was 39 per cent. Conversely, Golding's favourability rating was 46 per cent when the poll was conducted.

'I will be Prime minister again'

Simpson Miller says she will turn that around soon. "Mr Golding was behind me. He is prime minister now and he is ahead of me. But I am going to get ahead of him and be prime minister again," she asserts.

"If Mr Golding calls the election, trust me, I am going to work so hard, when I am finished I hope you will come back to me for an interview because you would be interviewing me as prime minister," says Simpson Miller.

She says the JLP has been a failure and has disappointed Jamaicans.

not leaving politics now

"A lot of Jamaicans, particularly the young people, were saying they have never experienced a JLP government," remarks Simpson Miller. "I think they have got a good taste of the JLP now, and I am sure that those who were saying 'mi and mi neighbour a vote fi Labour' are now saying 'mi and mi neighbour a suffer under Labour'. I can tell you that I am going to take the party back to victory," adds Simpson Miller.

"I just feel it in my bones. I am not leaving politics now; I have no intention to leave politics now; only God almighty can move me from politics now. I am not leaving to go anywhere, not yet. I have more energy, I have more determination, more strength, more conviction than ever before," asserts Simpson Miller.

Danville Walker  Is the government preparing a top post in the islands Customs Department for Danville Walker, the former director of elections?  Efforts to find out from Walker if the reports were true, failed, as his telephone rang without an answer.   Walker quit as director of elections after admitting under cross-examination that he was a US citizen, which forbids him to hold the post of director of elections under existing laws. Arising from the fact that Walker was called as a witness to support Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate, Daryl Vaz in the latters dual citizenship case, critics argue that it was perceived that the reported offer to Walker was an attempt to compensate him for his loss consequent to the outcome of his court appearance. Walkers admission was made during testimony in the election petition case between Peoples National Party (PNP) candidate, Abe Dabdoub, and JLP candidate, Daryl Vaz.  As a result of the petition, Vaz, who triumphed at the September 3, 2007 polls, was disqualified from holding the post of Member of Parliament for West Portland, on the grounds that he was a US citizen. By describing as gimmickry Dabdoubs efforts to inform the voters of the disqualification of various candidates, including Vaz, ahead of the elections, Walkers action was widely seen as political interference in the electoral system.  Trial judge, Chief Justice Zalia McCalla, relied on the gimmickry statement from Walker in not awarding the seat to Dabdoub. Walker also admitted under cross-examination that he had borrowed a bike from Vaz for his son some time prior to the elections. Walker quit his post on May 5, after the court disqualified Vaz.  The court matter of Dabdoub vs. Vaz has determined that a person simply holding a United States of America (USA) passport, renewed when over 18 years of age, would be an acknowledgement of allegiance, and, as the USA is considered a foreign power, my holding that countrys passport would cause me to be disqualified from holding the post of the Director of Elections, Walker said in a statement.

"">a>FARGO, N.D. A flight attendant angry about his work route smuggled a lighter aboard an airplane and set a fire in a bathroom, forcing an emergency landing, authorities said Thursday.

The Compass Airlines flight carrying 72 passengers and four crew members landed safely in Fargo on May 7 after smoke filled the back. No injuries were reported. The plane was flying from Minneapolis to Regina, Saskatchewan, authorities said.

Eder Rojas, 19, appeared in court Thursday, following his arrest a day earlier in Minneapolis, and ordered held without bail, prosecutors said. The charge of setting fire aboard a civil aircraft carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

His public defender did not return a phone call seeking comment. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lynn Jordheim, who is prosecuting the case in Fargo, would not comment.

Court documents said Rojas, of the Twin Cities suburb of Woodbury, told authorities he was upset at the airline for making him work the route. He is accused of taking a lighter with him through the security checkpoint, authorities said.

"Rojas further stated that he was preparing his cart to serve the passengers, he set the cart up, went back to the lavatory and reached in with his right hand and lit the paper towels with the lighter," court documents said.

Pilot Steve Peterka told authorities that an indicator light came on about 35 minutes into the flight, showing smoke in the rear bathroom.

Peterka called Rojas, who was assigned passengers in the back of the plane, and asked him to check the bathroom, documents said. Rojas, another flight attendant and a passenger were credited with quickly putting out the flames with fire extinguishers, authorities said.

Investigators later found a lighter in one of the overhead bins. Rojas confessed after authorities interviewed him, the complaint said.

Compass is a subsidiary of Northwest Airlines, based in Eagan, Minn. Rojas has been fired, said Northwest spokesman Rob Laughlin. Northwest did not say how long Rojas worked for the airline.

FBI agent Ralph Boelter said Compass Airlines officials showed "extraordinary cooperation" in the investigation.

jus tell me what unu think

NEW YORK (AP) Police said an 8-year-old boy was severely burned at a birthday party in Manhattan when an adult host poured flammable liquid onto a grill.

The boy is listed in critical condition at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Police said the woman was hosting a party for her son Friday at her home dentistry office on East 36th Street and had planned to grill in a courtyard outside. But rain led her to take the grill indoors.

Police said she poured the liquid on the grill to get it hot enough to toast marshmallows. Flames shot out and burned the boy.

The woman has not been charged in the accident.

WAYNE, N.J. - She wraps her arms around her son, gently raising the spindly 14-year-old boy off a couch to his feet. She hugs him and rubs his back, whispering "I love you" over and over.

Steven Domalewski moves his head to kiss his mother, but all he can manage are slurping sounds in front of her lips. His head flops onto her shoulder, spent from the effort.

Less than two years ago, Domalewski was a happy, healthy star pitcher on a youth baseball team coached by his father. He loved martial arts, climbed every tree on the block and zoomed down his street on inline skates. He once shot an arrow into the wall of his basement rec room.

Now Domalewski is severely disabled, left with brain damage after being struck in the chest by a line drive that stopped his heart while he was playing in a youth baseball game.

His family plans to file a lawsuit Monday against the maker of the metal bat that was used in the game, against Little League Baseball and a sporting goods chain that sold the bat. The family contends metal baseball bats are inherently unsafe for youth games because the ball comes off them much faster than from wooden bats.

There has been a string of injuries the past two decades involving metal bats launching balls that have killed or maimed young players across the country. The Domalewskis' lawyer claims bat manufacturers put speed ahead of safety; one even advertised a bat so powerful it is capable of "beaning the third baseman" with a line drive.

Attorney Ernest Fronzuto says Domalewski will needs millions of dollars worth of medical care for the rest of his life.

Other than the word "Yeah," which he repeats over and over, or "Dadada" which he sometimes utters when he sees his father, Steven cannot speak. He also can't walk or stand on his own, and needs help with everything from using the bathroom to eating.

"My son is serving a sentence, and the only thing he did was pitch to an aluminum bat," said his father, Joseph Domalewski.

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Steven Domalewski's life changed forever on June 6, 2006, an overcast evening in which his Tomascovic Chargers were playing the Gensinger Motors team on the Wayne Police Athletic League field.

Domalewski was pitching, on the mound 45 feet from home plate. He wasn't a hard thrower, but he had excellent control. In the fourth inning, the first two batters reached base. He went to a full count on the third batter.

What happened next unfolded in a flash, but has resulted in an agonizing, slow-motion purgatory for Steven and his family.

The batter rocketed a shot off a 31-ounce metal bat. The ball slammed into Steven's chest, just above his heart, knocking him backward. He cl**tched his chest, then made a motion to reach for the ball on the ground to pick it up and throw to first base.

But he never made it that far. The ball had struck his chest at the precise millisecond between heartbeats, sending him into cardiac arrest, according to his doctors. He crumpled to the ground and stopped breathing.

His father, a school teacher who had been on the sideline, and a third base coach from the other team ran onto the field. Steven already was turning blue.

Someone yelled, "Call 911!" Within 90 seconds, a man trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation who had been playing catch with his 9-year-old daughter jumped the fence and started to work on Steven.

Paramedics, who were a quarter-mile away doing a CPR demonstration, arrived within minutes. They placed an oxygen mask over Steven's face and rushed him to a hospital. But the damage had been done; his brain had been without oxygen for 15 to 20 minutes.

"Pretty much, he died," Joseph Domalewski said, wiping away tears. "It was just so fast. The thud, you could hear. When it hit him, that seemed to echo."

___

The lawsuit is to be filed in state Superior Court in Passaic County, naming Hillerich & Bradsby Co., maker of the Louisville Slugger TPX Platinum bat.

The suit also will name Little League Baseball and the Sports Authority, which sold the bat. It claims the defendants knew, or should have known, the bat was dangerous for children to use, according to the family's attorney.

Hillerich & Bradsby said Domalewski's injury, called commotio cordis, happens more often in baseball from thrown balls than batted ones.

"Our 124-year old, fifth-generation family-owned company never wants to see anyone injured playing baseball, the game we love," the company said in a statement. "But injuries do occur in sports. While unfortunate, these are accidents. We sympathize with Steven and his family, but our bat is not to blame for his injury."

Stephen Keener, president and chief executive officer of Little League Baseball, declined to comment on Domalewski's case, but said in a statement, "Little League will continue its strong commitment to player safety, and we feel our well-documented record of safety in youth baseball speaks for itself."

On its Web site, Little League denied that metal bats are inherently riskier.

"Little League International does not accept the premise that the game will be safer if played exclusively with wood, simply because there are no facts none at all to support that premise," the organization wrote.

Representatives of The Sports Authority did not return repeated telephone messages.

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The suit touches on a hotly disputed issue that has been roiling youth and scholastic baseball programs for years.

In 2003, Brandon Patch, an 18-year-old pitcher for an American Legion team in Helena, Mont., was hit in the head by a line drive off an aluminum bat and died several hours later. In Pennsylvania, 15-year-old Donald Bennett was struck in the face by a line drive from a metal bat while pitching in a 2001 game, causing him to lose an eye.

New York City and North Dakota have banned metal bats for youth and school sports, and New Jersey is considering a similar ban.

Several states are studying the issue. Pennsylvania rejected a proposed ban, and Massachusetts did likewise last year two months after a high school freshman throwing batting practice was hit in the head by a line drive that fractured his skull. He survived and is expected to make a full recovery.

The National Federation of State High School Associations lets its members choose whether to use metal or wood; most colleges use metal bats.

Metal bats are priced at as much as $300 but are considered more cost-effective than wood bats which sell for under $100 because they are far less likely to break and can last for years.

Domalewski was playing in a Police Athletic League game, but Little League was sued because the group certifies that specific metal bats are approved for and safe for use in games involving children.

Little League reached an agreement with the major manufacturers of metal bats in the early 1990s to limit the performance of metal bats to that of the best wooden bats. On its Web site, the league said injuries to its pitchers fell from 145 a year before the accord was reached to the current level of about 20 to 30 annually.

The league said that since it started keeping records in the 1960s, eight players were killed by batted balls, six of which were hit by wooden bats. The two metal bat fatalities occurred in 1971 and 1973, before the new standards were adopted.

In 2002, the U.S. Consumer Safety Product Commission ruled that there was inconclusive data to support a ban on metal bats in youth and high school baseball games. Its own study found that from 1991 to 2001, there were 17 deaths nationwide because of batted balls eight from metal, two from wood, and another seven of unknown origin.

Joseph and Nancy Domalewski pray that their son will return to what he was before the injury. But no doctor has told them that is likely.

"I miss my boy, the way he was," his mother said. "You can't take away our hope."

"We describe our days as painful, and somewhat less painful," his father added. "Our hope is that he walks and talks and becomes a functioning member of society and has kids."

The Domalewskis have purposely left unfixed the arrow hole that Steven made in the basement.

"We're saving that for him to spackle when he gets better," his father said.

ANGELS CAMP, Calif. - State investigators were trying to determine what caused a spinning carnival ride at a county fair to collapse and injure all 24 people aboard.

The carnival ride, called the Yo-Yo, collapsed shortly after 6 p.m. Friday at the Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee, about 80 miles southeast of Sacramento.

The ride has metal arms, each with a seat at the end attached by a chain, that swing outward as the ride picks up speed. The arms rise and fall as they spin around a center pole, putting the seats horizontal to the ground.

The pole apparently collapsed, causing the arms to crash back toward the center, said Dennis Townsend, a chief in the Calaveras County unit of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention.

The riders mostly children were hurt when their seats struck the ground or other parts of the machine, he said.

Three riders were airlifted to hospitals in Modesto and Sacramento, but the extent of the injuries was not immediately known, said Sgt. Dave Seawell, a spokesman for the Calaveras County Sheriff's Department.

Representatives from several area hospitals said they had treated teenagers for minor injuries including knee pain. Modesto Memorial North Hospital, where a victim was airlifted, said it was treating a patient who was in stable condition.

Authorities could not immediately determine what might have caused the accident, Townsend said.

The fair remained open but the carnival area was shut down, said Laurie Giannini, the fairground's marketing director. She said there were no fatalities.

The Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee opened Wednesday and is held each year in late May. It was inspired by a Mark Twain story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County."

Last year's jumping frog contest drew 4,000 entries. This year's final is scheduled for Sunday.

The fairgrounds is located just outside the Gold Rush-era town of Angels Camp in the Sierra Nevada foothills. It bills itself as an "old-fashion county fair" with exhibits and a variety of entertainment.

Twenty-two-year-old Shushania Young, also called Rudy, who was chased and murdered by a gunman in the busy York Plaza in Half-Way Tree, St. Andrew, last Monday. While the number of rumours continues to increase as to why 22-year-old Shushania Young was murdered last Monday, the police are continuing their investigations into the brutal death, which is still a subject of discussion in almost every major town.  Young, also called Rudy, was slaughtered in the busy York Plaza in Half-Way Tree, St. Andrew.  Reports are that after receiving a phone call, she went to meet a man in the plaza.  She was seen exchanging words with the man, who later pulled a gun and Young ran.  It is alleged that the man fired several shots at Young, who tried to make her escape by running into two stores in the plaza.  The man chased her, however, and she tripped and fell.  It is alleged that the man went over Young and shot her twice in the head.  They said when he stood over her, she said, You really a go kill me? said a family member of Young, who spoke with the Sunday Herald.  The incident took place in front of scores of persons in the busy plaza, many of whom scampered for cover.  The shattered glass of one of the stores Young ran into bears memory of the extremely violent act.  No suspects have been identified so far and the police, as well as family members, have been left in a maze as to why the cosmetologist was killed.  I dont know why.  I would like to know too, said Youngs elder sister, who was obviously shaken up by the incident. Rumours Several rumours have been floating on the streets since the death.  Theories have evolved that Young was a witness to a murder; was involved in questionable activities; and that she had broken off a relationship, upsetting her partner.  But her family has rubbished the rumours. If she saw somebody being killed, she is not the kind of person who is going to tell anybody that, one family member said, adding that, People are saying all kinds of things, (including) that she used to carry drugs.  Everybody calling my phone to ask me, but I just hang up my phone, because I dont know anything.  The police have also dismissed the rumour that Young was a witness to a murder. The family member said Young was secretive and never shared many details of her personal life with her family.  If she look a way and you ask her what is wrong, she said nothing, the woman said.  She described Young as jovial, but also straightforward and direct. If she had something on her mind, she would tell you direct to your face.  Many people never liked that, but that was how she was, she said.   The woman said Youngs directness many times caused her to get into arguments with others, but said the deceased woman was a very kind person. She was always doing things for people even when they were cutting her throat.  Sometimes I tell her that, Rudy, the friends that you have, they dont mean you any good, them just want things from you, the family member said.   Achiever She, however, said Young was an achiever who strove to get whatever she set her mind to.  She always like the best and expected the best from other people, she said. Young is a past student of Clan Carthy High School who later studied cosmetology.  Her sister said after leaving cosmetology school, Young worked at two salons in the Half-Way Tree area, before opening her own shop, where she rented booths to different cosmetologists. Her reputation as one of the best hair stylists in the Half-Way Tree area, as well as her party girl lifestyle, made Young very popular.   She was a frequent patron at many nightclubs and street parties in Kingston, where her fame also grew rapidly for her exceptional dancing skills.  Youngs family said she loved the hype life. She was the second of three girls for her mother, who has been torn up by the incident. She (mother) is worrying about us and trying to hold up, but I know that she is not alright.  I know she is just putting the best outside, said Youngs elder sister.  She said her younger sister, who recently gave birth, has been taking the death very hard and frequently breaks down.  But the sister said she is in no better state than the rest of her family. Even now I dont accept it (death).  I am just trying to hold up because somebody has to stand up, she said, adding that since Monday she has not eaten anything much.  I try to eat and people force me to eat, but I cant eat, she said.  I dont feel hungry and I know I am supposed to eat, but I cant.  She said she was also having difficulty sleeping at nights and coming to terms with the death.  Sometimes I call her number just to see if its true.  Just to hear her say something, the sister said.

10-year-old girl, senior citizens die in blaze set by arsonists

Clothes still hang on the line behind the spot where Norma Richards' house once stood in the lane at 31 St John's Road, Spanish Town. Richards and two relatives were killed in a fire that destroyed the wooden house about 12:30 am yesterday. (Photo: Joseph Wellington)

JODEX Ferron would have turned 11 at the end of this month, and she was really looking forward to her birthday. She would have enjoyed it too, since her family planned to surprise her with the one thing on her wish list - her very own cellphone.

But the little girl, described as loving and jovial, will never get to rip open the package to see her present. She will never get to jump and squeal with excitement, and she will never get to call her father whenever she feels like it.

The Grade 5 St John's Primary student and two of her relatives were killed in a fire in a lane at 31 St John's Road, Spanish Town, early yesterday morning, leaving her friends and family hurt and in shock.

This was the way Zipporah Garrick was holding her cheek the last time she saw cousin Cynthia Johnson alive around 5:00 Friday evening. (Photos: Joseph Wellington)

The hurt is even more palpable as the fire that claimed Jodex, her 63-year-old grandmother Cynthia Johnson and another relative, 65-year-old Norma Richards, is believed to have been set by arsonists. The police say residents reported hearing explosions that sounded like gunshots coming from the direction of the occupants' house around 12:30 am, shortly after which they saw flames.

"We are investigating murder, and we are probing several leads but at the moment we have no motive," Constabulary Communication Network liaison officer for St Catherine north told the Sunday Observer yesterday.

Howard Ferron grieves the loss of his daughter, 10-year-old Jodex Ferron and his mother, 63-year-old Cynthia Johnson who, along with 65-year-old Norma Richards, died in a fire early Saturday morning.

Family members, however, allege that it was an act of reprisal, because it has been said that the son of 65- year-old Norma Richards, was involved in the shooting of another man last week. The police say they could not confirm that incident.

The reality of the incident is especially hard on Jodex' father, Howard, who lost his wife two years ago and who has now lost both his mother and his only daughter at the same time.
"She was everything to me because she look like and act like har mother so much. Nuff time all when mi feel bad bout mi wife death, mi just look on har and si how she grow," he told the Sunday Observer.

"Mi feel really awful because har mother was buried on Mother's Day, and last week at church, she (Jodex) cried so much...I'm devastated. I feel the same way like when my wife died but my Christian belief gives me strength," he said.

A s****re Patrick Douglas, Mr Ferron's brother, had difficulty finding the words to express his grief: "It's so pressuring I can hardly explain," he managed.

When the Sunday Observer visited their home yesterday, the
Ferron boys spoke of the last time they saw their sister.
"The last time mi see har was yesterday. Mi memba when she bathe and put on har clothes and mi ask har weh she ah go an she sey she ah go dung ah har grandmother," said 13-year-old Sheldon.

"Mi tell har fi hurry up and come back before daddy come home, but she neva come back. She sleep down there and that's why she dead," he said.

"Mi feel bad down inside cause mi love har," added Howard, 14. "All yesterday wi did ah play wid har and when him (Sheldon) lick har mi tell him nuffi lick har because if mommy did deh here him couldn't lick har."

Family friend, Pearlita Chapelton also had fond memories of Jodex. "You don't have to see her to feel the hug," Chapelton said. "Anywhere you are, she comes and hugs you. She was just a nice, sweet little girl.

"I am the one who takes care of them since their mother died and she (Jodex) always writes me letters to say she loves me and thanks for all that I do for them," she added.

Jodex' death brings the total number of children to have been killed here since the start of the year to almost 40, according to police statistics. Twenty-four of those have been murdered, nine were as a result of motor vehicle crashes and six were due to fires.

Ferron, Richards and Johnson were among six persons who were slain between Friday night and Saturday, bringing the murder toll since January 1 to 673.

To you what is the best thing that ever happen to dancehall music? state your reason why.

Curious onlookers gather outside York Plaza in busy Half-Way Tree, St. Andrew, where 22-year-old cosmetologist Shushania Young was chased and shot dead last Monday. The brutal murder of two women in the past week has brought into sharp focus the plight of women in Jamaica, who are increasingly becoming the victims of violence.  With just a little over four months into the year, already 67 women have been murdered, an average of 16 women per month.  If the current trend continues, this year could record the highest number of females murdered in the last six years. The highest number of recorded female murders over that period was in 2005 when 186 women were killed.  Since then the figure has remained steady for a while, with a decline to 152 in 2006 and 150 last year.  Only in 2003 was the number of women killed for the year under 100.  In that year 87 women were murdered.   Last weekend, the body of 41-year-old Special Corporal Cynthia Patterson was found in North Parade in downtown Kingston with gunshot wounds.  Two days later, 22-year-old cosmetologist, Shushania Young, was chased and murdered in front of many persons in the busy York Plaza in Half-Way Tree, St. Andrew. The two murders, which have drawn the ire of several womens organisations that have condemned the vicious attacks on the nations women, brings to 783 the number of women murdered in Jamaica since 2003. I am alarmed and despondent, said Hermione McKenzie, president of the Association of Womens Organisations in Jamaica (AWOJA).  It is really hard to see women who are the backbone of society just being wiped out, she said. McKenzie said many women have been killed as scapegoats in their communities. "When you have conflicts in communities, women are often used as victims.  They are vulnerable and are sometimes deliberately targeted, McKenzie said, adding that, People feel that killing the women and children is a way of punishing the men. Secondary victims Police statistics have confirmed that a significant number of the women killed were secondary victims caught between warring gangsters.  Between 2003 and May of this year, at least 123 women were killed in gang-related violence and so far this year, gang war has topped the list of motives, accounting for 27 of the 67 female murders recorded so far.  The situation was similar in 2006 and 2007, when gang-related hits were second on the list of motives for female murders.   Gang-related motives were second only to domestic violence, which was responsible for a whopping 179 female murders for the five-year period.  The police have not established motives for 94 of the murders, while 368 were related to other criminal activities.  Drug-related murders among women were the least common, with only 19 recorded between 2003 and May of 2008. McKenzie said the wanton slaying of women had made it more difficult for womens groups to spread the message of non-violence against women.  Violence against women has been the focus of several womens groups, which have condemned the practice, whether it is murder, less deadly domestic violence or sexual abuse. When you kill a woman, you kill a family, McKenzie said.

WITTER... will be asked to review police findings

BIGWOODS, St Elizabeth - Not satisfied with the outcome of a probe into the recent fire which damaged agricultural crops valued at $26 million in sections of St Elizabeth, Agriculture and Lands Minister Dr Christopher Tufton said he will be asking Public Defender Earl Witter to review its findings.

"On Monday morning I am going to prepare a letter, attaching a copy of the police report that was sent to me, and send it to the Public Defender, asking for his intervention," Tufton told the affected farmers at the Bigwoods Primary School yesterday.

The farmers had gathered in the schoolroom to hear from Tufton, who is also their member of parliament, the findings of the police probe into the massive fire, which ravaged 64 hectares of crops in the communities of Ivor Cottage, Bigwoods, Retreat and Retirement, just over two months ago.
Approximately 90 farmers were affected by the blaze, which also left 64 goats, valued at $200,000, dead.

The farmers in the affected communities have alleged that the fire was caused by the burning of ganja fields by narcotics police during an operation in Bigwoods.

At Tufton's request, the Police High Command - less than a week after the fire - launched a probe to ascertain the cause of the blaze.

Tufton had made it clear then, that if at the end of the probe the narcotics police are found culpable, then he would be making representation to the Ministry of National Security on behalf of the farmers for compensation.

Yesterday, the agriculture minister told the farmers that the investigations into the fire, conducted by the Black River Police, have concluded that there is no evidence to suggest that the fire had resulted from the actions of the narcotics police.

He said the report stated, however, that the narcotics police had lit a fire on the day of the blaze to destroy ganja plants, but according to the findings, it was done "some distance" from where the fire that ravaged the crops started.

"They continued by suggesting that because they were two separate fires - although in the same vicinity - there is no evidence that the operation of the narcotics police was the cause of the fire that destroyed the crops and livestock of the farmers in the area," the MP said.

But Tufton said the findings of the probe have raised a number of questions.

"... for example, everybody knows that in drought conditions where you have a lot of flammable materials, sparks can create fires and can travel distances and create separate fires, but originating from the same source," he explained.

"The report, however, did not speak to that," he stressed.
He told the farmers that the probe did not "determine liability", and asked them whether they wanted to accept the report or take the matter to the Public Defender.

But the angry farmers told the agriculture minister to ask the Public Defender to intervene.

Tufton told the farmers that he was convinced that more can be done to determine liability and promised to challenge the findings of the report.