WEDNESDAY 21TH APRIL 2021 | ISSUE 218 | WWW.POINTVILLE.AG DEREK CHAUVIN guilty A STEADY PACE IN THE RACE FOR HERD IMMUNITY WIOC EXTENDS SHARE OFFERINGS PAGE 3 PAGE 5 COVID-19 public vaccine recommences WEDNESDAY 21TH APRIL 2021 PAGE 2 EDITORIAL A SEMINAL MOMENT IN US SOCIAL AND RACIAL JUSTICE HISTORY There are moments in the events of 1967 that case in the United States bring police officers human development led to the formation of where it is a nation to justice, have always when a single event has the Antigua Workers whose wealth was built ended in a predictable had the effect of chang- Union (AWU) and then on the backs of people outcome: not guilty! ing the course of human the Progressive Labour forcibly removed from Despite mountains of history, many times for Movement (PLM); the Africa and who were evidence, the white po- bad but quite often the attainment of political enslaved and forced to lice officers are always change is good. independence in 1981; live in conditions less freed on one pretext or Tuesday 20th April 2021 the death and burial of than human. The police the other. was one such moment, Father of the Nation, officers in the U.S. jus- Over the past year, sev- a moment when the Sir Vere Cornwall Bird tice system have always eral young black men world breathed a gigan- Sr.; Tim Hector’s funer- operated with a sense have lost their lives tic sigh of relief when al and the speech by of impunity. The police senselessly at the hands the jury in the Derek his now fallen comrade, have been the enforcers of police officers. Quite Chauvin murder case George Odlum. of the ruling class in the often, no charges are returned guilty verdicts These are all local events U.S. who are white and laid and where they are, on all charges against that shaped our lives who are males. the outcome is always the former Minnesota here in Antigua and Bar- Thousands of mainly an acquittal. policeman. Whether buda. But our nation is black men have been The case of George you are a history buff or not an island onto itself. murdered by police of- Floyd was different. not, there are moments It is part of the world ficers over the last cen- Even at the onset it dif- in time that you remem- that values democracy tury alone. There are the fered from other po- ber for the rest of your and where justice ought hangings (lynchings) for lice killings. Floyd was life. The seniors among to be dispensed fairly offences real and imag- murdered by Chauvin us talk of 1950/51 indus- and equitably, irrespec- ined to the extent that who placed his knee trial unrest that changed tive of one’s station in such events were staged on Floyd’s neck for nine the course of the trade life or ethnicity. for entertainment pur- and a half minutes. union movement in Unfortunately, that has poses. Attempts over Floyd at the time was Antigua and Barbuda; not always been the these many years to laying on the ground WEDNESDAY 21TH APRIL 2021 LOCAL NEWS PAGE 3 with both hands shack- up from Chauvin who Floyd was captured on but in many countries led behind his back. was seemingly intent on phone cameras and around the world. Chauvin had his hands committing a murder in other equipment from The fact that a jury of casually placed in his plain view of a pleas for multiple angels. It was twelve people returned pockets while pressing relief. shown repeatedly on guilty verdicts against on the neck of a man George Floyd died in all major newscasts and Chauvin should change screaming for help and May last year during the it went viral on social the US police’s view that relief. Nonchalantly, he height of the lock-down media. America was at they are above the law. ignored cries and offers forced by COVID and at home! America noticed Hopefully too, it will of assistance. a time when the world and there was a national usher in meaningful Floyd cried out, “I can’t observed the protocols. outcry. changes that will make breathe, I can’t breathe!” The entire interaction This led to protests not the US a better place for Yet there was no letting between Chauvin and only in the United States all its peoples. WIOC EXTENDS SHARE OFFERINGS The opportunity to offering came from ticipate in the share to meet and to make purchase shares in the a recommendation offering. That is be- recommendations to majority-state-owned from the brokers, cause many of their their various boards,” West Indies Oil Com- Bank of St Lucia. decisions to under- Bramble explained. pany (WIOC) is being “The brokers felt that take such investments The financial control- extended for an addi- there was not enough are informed by ad- ler said the shares that tional month. time for the institu- vice from their invest- have been purchased WIOC Financial Con- tional investors such ment committees. so far have been troller, Carlton Bram- as credit unions, Many on these com- brought by individu- ble, said the decision banks et cetera or cor- mittees are only now al investors. “We have to extend the share porate entities to par- having an opportunity been seeing an aver- Cont’d on pg 4 PAGE 4 LOCAL NEWS WEDNESDAY 21TH APRIL 2021 age of twenty-five per- tigua and Barbuda a commitment that In its original press sons per day showing government imple- one day he would statement, WIOC said up to purchase shares mented one of its key open up the company the offer runs until and over the twelve- promises to the peo- so that ordinary men 21st April 2021. In the day period that the ple of Antigua and and women in the event that the shares shares have been on Barbuda when shares country can purchase are oversubscribed, sale nearly five hun- in the majority-owned shares. one hundred and for- dred individuals have West Indies Oil Com- Effective 24th March ty-two thousand and participated,” he not- pany (WIOC) went on shares of the company eighty (142,080) addi- ed. sale that day. went on sale at a price tional shares will be According to Bramble, When the govern- of sixty Eastern Carib- made available. this has been one of ment purchased the bean dollars per share. This means those the main goals of the shares of WIOC from However, shares will in companies and in- divestment strategy: the previous owners blocks of no less than dividuals who were to broaden as widely – National Petroleum fifty. In a statement, not able to complete as possible the owner- Ltd. owned by the late the company said fifty arrangements to pur- ship of the company. Bruce Rappaport Es- per cent of the shares chase shares have an- On Wednesday 24th tate, Prime Minister have been reserved for other month to partic- March 2021, the An- Gaston Browne made public sector workers. ipate in the process. WEDNESDAY 21TH APRIL 2021 LOCAL NEWS PAGE 5 NEW ECCAA HEAD TO PRIORTISE CATEGORY ONE RESTORATION A new director gener- reaching out to key al is now on the job at stakeholders in the the Eastern Caribbean industry to give them Civil Aviation Authori- the assurance that the ty (ECCAA) headquar- restoration of Catego- tered in St John’s. ry One designation for Trinidad and Toba- ECCAA is a top priori- go national, Antho- ty for all concerned at ny Whittier, was ap- the regulatory author- pointed by the ECCAA ity. Board of Directors and OECS Heads of Gov- his appointment took ernment have em- effect from 1st April. phasised the impor- Just days on the job, tance of Category Anthony Whittier - Director General ECCAA Whittier is already One designation for Cont’d on pg 6 PAGE 6 LOCAL NEWS WEDNESDAY 21TH APRIL 2021 the sub-region as ECCAA and working of Management Ac- Standards at the Trin- it forms a vital part with the UN Interna- countants. He is a idad and Tobago Civil in the aviation sec- tional Civil Aviation qualified aircraft en- Aviation Authority. He tor. The ECCAA was Organisation (ICAO) gineer with extensive has over eleven years downgraded last year in advancing aviation training in Aircraft of airline experience by the US Federal Avi- safety and security in and Safety Systems at British West Indies ation Authority (FAA) the ECCAA sub-re- and is pursuing a PhD Airways (BWIA) and over matters related gion,” the ECCAA in Aviation Safety. National Helicopters to oversight and the board said in a media “Whittier joins the in Trinidad and Toba- independence of the release announcing ECCAA with twenty go,” according to the authority. Whittier’s appoint- years of Civil Aviation release. “It is expected that ment. Authority experience, He has assumed the among the priority The release said his including with the helm of the ECCAA, tasks of the new Di- qualifications include Qatar Civil Aviation following the retire- rector General will be an MSc in Project Authority where he ment of J. Donald the restoration of the Management, BSc was responsible for McPhail who served United States Federal Management Stud- Compliance Monitor- as Director General Aviation Administra- ies (First Class) and ing of the Air Safety from 2010 until De- tion (US FAA) Cate- a past student of the Department, and as cember 2020. gory One status to the Chartered Institute the Manager Flight Parents summoned after school’s fighting viral video A report on a fight between dents the reason for the fight.