Dominican Republic on the right path according to poll
Dominican Republic is headed in the right direction, according to 58.3 percent of its citizens, while 39.9% say no way.
The results are from a survey of more than 1,200 Dominicansby pollster Asisa Research Group conducted from May 9 to 11 and published by El Caribe, in which 1.8% declined comment.
The survey sought to establish the population’s beliefs regarding the country’s advances, and its expectation on the future.
The poll, with 1,213 interviews and a margin of error of +/-2.83%, also found marked differences between youngsters and adults as to how they perceive the country’s direction, as well among men and women.
Last week a poll by Penn Shoen & Berland found nearly identical percentages.
Dunkley to be sworn in as Premier
Premier Craig Cannonier has quit over the political firestorm surrounding the long-running Jetgate row.
His deputy, National Security Minister Michael Dunkley, has been named the news Premier, and will be sworn in this morning.
Governor George Fergusson, said last night: “The Hon Michael Dunkley has informed me, following a meeting of his party colleagues, of his intention to form a Government. I am satisfied that Mr Dunkley is best able to command the confidence of a majority of the members of the House of Assembly.
“I have asked Mr Dunkley to continue in the role of Acting Premier, pending a formal swearing in as Premier of Bermuda tomorrow morning.”
Mr Dunkley last night called it “a bittersweet moment”.
“As you’re aware Craig Cannonier stepped down tonight as Premier,” said Mr Dunkley. “I’ve just had a meeting with my parliamentary colleagues and they have supported me to be Premier going forward.”
Speaking shortly before 11pm, Mr Dunkley said he’d taken the position of Acting Premier about an hour earlier, and would be signed in as Premier in due course.
“Obviously it’s very difficult - and perhaps it’s important for me to mention that Craig and I are good friends. It’s not only difficult for him; it’s very difficult for me.”
Mr Cannonier announced he was stepping down as leader amid mounting controversy of the Jetgate affair.
And this evening he left Cabinet Office for the last time as Premier to tender his resignation to Governor George Fergusson.
The move came after several hours of meetings at Cabinet Office, which ran late into the night.
Mr Fergusson confirmed the change: “I have asked the Deputy Premier, the Hon. Michael H. Dunkley, JP, MP, to carry out the role of Acting Premier on an interim basis.”
Mr Cannonier will continue to serve as an OBA MP.
Prior to the announcement, one source said that Mr Cannonier was “finished” as leader — and that there was “no way back” from the Jetgate controversy.
Earlier, the writing was on the wall as Mr Cannonier’s Parliamentary colleagues failed to line up behind their embattled leader — and took a “wait and see” approach as party chiefs carry out an internal investigation into the year-long row over a trip to see wealthy Maryland-based Nathan Landow aboard the tycoon’s private jet.
Leah Scott — who publicly apologised to her constituents over the affair — said she had “no comment” on whether Mr Cannonier should stand down.
She added she had no plans to quit the OBA whip or politics over Jetgate and said: “At this time, I’m not.”
But Ms Scott, the junior Education Minister, declined to voice support for Mr Cannonier to stay on at Cabinet Office.
OBA backbencher Susan Jackson said: “I really believe in the internal review. I know there are people looking into this in great detail and we know the chairman will report when the results are available and I’m going to wait for that.”
Ms Jackson also declined to say what her political future might be.
“I was elected by the constituents of Pembroke South West and I would have to speak to them and seek the direction of my constituency,” she said.
Former Environment Minister Sylvan Richards, now junior Home Affairs Minister, added: “I’m not making any comments on what’s going on with the OBA at the moment.”
OBA backbencher Suzann Roberts-Holshouser, when asked if Mr Cannonier should go, said: “I would prefer to answer that question later.”
She added: “One has to think long and hard and not take anything lightly — time is needed by me in order to be comfortable.”
Devonshire North West backbencher Glen Smith also declined to comment on Mr Cannonier — but said: “I would not drop out.”
Jeanne Atherden, the backbench MP for Pembroke West, added: “I’m not prepared to give any comment at the current time.”
When asked if she would consider her future with the party, she said: “I would have the same response. To talk about anything we’re doing right now is not productive.”
The crisis deepened last week after Mr Landow confirmed he and a group of other US businessmen had donated around $300,000 to assist the 2012 OBA election campaign — although the cash was reported to have been given to a group called the Bermuda Political Action Club and not directly to the OBA.
Three months after the December 2012 election victory, Mr Cannonier, along with Tourism Minister Shawn Crockwell and Attorney General Mark Pettingill, as well as the Premier’s business manager Stephen DaCosta, flew for a meeting in the US with Mr Landow and his associates.
Mr Cannonier repeatedly denied any wrongdoing — but the pressure on him and the party, elected on promises of clean and open government — proved too much to stand.
Source-Royal Gazette
Attorney banned for two years
Attorney At Law Arlean Beckford has been banned for two years from practising law as a result of what the General Legal Council (GLC) described as "professional misconduct".
The GLC, in a newspaper advertisement yesterday, announced that the licence of the St Andrew-based lawyer had been suspended after she was found guilty of professional misconduct for a second time.
The GLC said that after hearing evidence in the latest breach from a complainant identified as Winston Rowe, it ruled that the attorney had acted unprofessionally.
The ban became effective on May 1 and Beckford is not entitled to practise until her suspension has expired.
Prior to the ban, the GLC had taken disciplinary action against the lawyer in 2005 for professional misconduct regarding a real estate deal.
She was reportedly fined $250,000 and ordered to pay the complainant's attorney's fee of $50,000.
Following the 2005 disciplinary action, Beckford was twice accused of defrauding her clients, and, in both instances, was arrested and charged with fraudulent conversion and taken before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court.
She was first arrested and charged in February 2011 following allegations that she defrauded one of her clients of more than $5 million in a real estate deal. It is alleged that she sold a house for the complainant in 2008 and failed to hand over a cheque, which she had received for the sale of the house.
Beckford was later arrested and charged in March 2013 following fresh allegations that she failed to turn over $1.8 million given to her by a client in July 2012 to effect a land transaction in St Catherine.
Source-Observer
Cuba mobile email experiment causes chaos
On an island where most people have no Internet access, the arrival of mobile phone email service was embraced with joy.
Tens of thousands of Cubans began emailing like crazy in March - for days, until the service started to fail, taking much of Cuba's already shaky voice and text-messaging mobile service down with it
The island's aging cellphone towers became swamped by the new flood of email traffic, creating havoc for anyone trying to use the system. Users had to make eight or nine attempts to successfully send an email. Even voice calls by non-subscribers' began to drop mid-conversation. Callers sounded like they were phoning from the bottom of the sea. Ordinary text messages arrived days late, or not at all.
Since then, the state telecom monopoly Etecsa has issued a rare apology and the troubles have eased. But problems with the service, dubbed Nauta, offer a rare window into the Internet in Cuba, where the digital age has been achingly slow to spread since arriving in 1996, leaving the country virtually isolated from the world of streaming video, photo-sharing and 4G cellphones.
Cuba's government blames the technological problems on a U.S. embargo that prevents most American businesses from selling products to the Caribbean country. Critics of the government say it deliberately strangles the Internet to halt the spread of dissent. Other observers offer a less political explanation: a government desperate for foreign exchange is investing little in infrastructure improvements while extracting as much revenue as possible from communications services largely paid for by Cubans' wealthier overseas relatives.
Experts say that last explanation appears to be the primary culprit in the case of Nauta, in which the government tried to open connections with the world but floundered due to apparent poor planning and underinvestment.
"Cuba is extremely broke," said Larry Press, a professor of information systems and expert on Cuban telecommunications at California State University, Dominguez Hills. "If they had access to tons of capital they would probably expand (Internet service) further."
About 100,000 people - around 5 percent of Cuban cellphone users - had subscribed to the service even though it cost 50 times that of many U.S. data plans.
Radio scriptwriter Lisandra Ayala, 36, stood in line for hours in March outside an Etecsa office, dreaming of zipping emails back and forth with her favorite cousin in Canada. Like many Cubans, she has long had a smartphone - a status symbol frequently brought in by visiting relatives.
She paid $1.50 to sign up for a Nauta contract that was supposed to let her send emails with the ability to attach photos, but not send video or check the Web. Even the price of $1 per megabyte, many times higher than in virtually any developed country, didn't deter her.
"I was so excited at first, but then the experience turned into a total disaster," Ayala said. After a week of decent service, she found it impossible to open the icon for Nauta without trying at least six times; voice calls dropped or didn't go through and text messages disappeared mid-air.
"We have been preparing for more than a year," Hilda Arias, director of Etecsa, told official media late last month. "Customers' expectations really exceeded our vision ... this provoked an overload."
She promised that the situation would improve, albeit slowly.
With cellular rates as high as 35 cents a minute for domestic calls, Etecsa earned roughly $500 million last year, revenue that's been rising slowly since 2008, according to Emilio Morales, a systems engineer who heads the Miami-based Havana Consulting Group, a private consultant that analyzes Cuba's scanty public information about government revenues and operations to produce estimates widely considered reliable by Cuba-watchers.
"There are few businesses in Cuba that work as well as Etecsa," he said.
The group's studies show that 54 percent of payments to Etecsa come directly from the Cuban diaspora. Morales believes Cubans pay much of the rest out of the estimated $2.6 billion a year in remittances from abroad. And, while most state workers only make $20 a month, a new class of roughly 400,000 independent businessmen and their employees also make heavy use of cellphones for advertising with text-message as well as ordinary business calls.
Authorities here say they are trying to offer a range of new Internet services by year's end, including mobile Web access and unrestricted home Internet access, currently limited to select government officials and employees of foreign businesses and embassies.
But customers remain wary.
"Nauta failed and stopped the whole mobile communication system from working properly," said Indira Perez, a 24-year-old university employee "If they don't prepare themselves better when they want to broaden Internet access, it's going to be total chaos."
Source-AP
Jackson, Timberlake own Billboard Music Awards
The King of Pop and a likely successor, prince of pop Justin Timberlake, ruled the Billboard Music Awards - though Michael Jackson made a splash via hologram and Timberlake accepted his awards via video from overseas.
A hologram of Jackson made its debut Sunday, mirroring the late icon's signature slick dance moves as some members of the audience became emotional, while Timberlake won seven prizes, including top artist and Billboard 200 album, and accepted the honors outside of the country where he was on tour.
"All the other finalists, Miley, Imagine Dragons, Bruno, Katy, I love you guys, it's not a competition, but if it is, I won!" Timberlake exclaimed, dancing with his band. "I want to thank everybody on Earth, everybody on Earth, except, except Donald Sterling."
Timberlake's idol was featured in hologram form, and it performed "Slave to the Rhythm," a song from Jackson's new posthumous album "Xscape," along with a plethora of background dancers, beaming lights and fire blasts. It was easily the biggest moment at the awards show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
"We tried to do as best we could what we thought Michael would have loved, and those of us who knew Michael really well, we had a good perspective on it," Epic Records CEO L.A. Reid said backstage. Reid worked on the album and released it. "But the truth is, you can't ever really know because he wasn't there."
Robin Thicke, who won four awards including top Hot 100 song for "Blurred Lines," debuted a new song called "Get Her Back," aiming to win over his actress-wife Paula Patton after they announced in February they were separating. He sang on bended knee and ended with the line: "I gotta get her back tonight."
"And most importantly I'd like to thank my wife for her love and support and for putting up with me all these years," Thicke said onstage when he accepted top R&B song.
The night featured a number of collaborative performances, including an explosive duet from Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert, while double winner Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line were crowd favorites when they performed "This Is How We Roll." Even Underwood and her hockey player-husband Mike Fisher sang along.
Miley Cyrus performed The Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" with Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips remotely from the United Kingdom, where she was on tour.
"I have to of course thank all of my amazing fans. ... Thank you everybody for making this (expletive) possible - oops. I'm on ABC, sorry," she said when accepting top streaming artist, sticking out her tongue at the end.
Katy Perry, who won top female artist, also performed remotely. Imagine Dragons, however, was present in Las Vegas, where the Billboard Music Awards marked a homecoming for the band. The Las Vegas-based rockers won five honors, including top duo/group and rock artist.
"We wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for people that believed in our band, in our small band that started here in Las Vegas from the very beginning," leader Dan Reynolds told the audience. He then thanked radio, family and management for their support, adding with a yell at the end: "And Billboard!"
Lorde was a double winner, taking home trophies for best new artist and rock song for the ubiquitous hit "Royals."
"This whole thing started for me with a song that was written when I was 15, which I know everyone knows, but what I want to say is I am 17 and a half now and I'm so thankful," she said as some of the crowd laughed. "That wasn't a joke. I'm so thankful that I've had the opportunity to learn and grow as a new artist in the spotlight."
Lorde performed her new hit "Tennis Court" in her signature black - and showcased her signature twitchy dance moves. Other performers included John Legend, who sang his current No. 1 hit "All of Me" on piano, a semi-racy Ariana Grande, a sultry Shakira and Jennifer Lopez, who received the icon award and performed at the beginning and end of the three-hour show.
While musicians dominated the awards show, Kendall Jenner turned some heads when she fumbled over her words - almost pulling a John Travolta - when introducing Australian pop group 5 Seconds of Summer.
"And now we welcome ... One ..." the 18-year-old reality star said, seeming to almost say One Direction, as she put her head down.
"Guys, I'm the worst reader."
Jason Derulo for Sumfest
American pop singer Jason Derulo is one of the headliners for the 22nd Reggae Sumfest, scheduled for Catherine Hall in Montego Bay from July 13–19.
Derulo is set to perform on July 18, International Night I. His song, Take me to The Other Side, is currently number two on the American pop chart.
Derulo has been in the music business since age 16. He started his career as a producer and writer for acts such as Danity Kane, Sean Kingston, Lil Wayne, Cassidy, Iyaz and Lady Gaga.
As a singer, he is known for hits such as Talk Dirty, Ridin Solo, In My Head, and Whatcha Say. Executive producer of Summerfest Productions, Johnny Gourzong, says following strong performances from Usher, Chris Brown, Nicki Minaj and Flo Rida, Derulo was a natural choice for Sumfest.
“We have received overwhelming requests for Jason, so we are pleased to announce his confirmation on our lineup. It’s going to be another great show this year,” Gourzong told the Observer.
Born to Haitian parents in Florida, Derulo's third album, Tattoos, was released last September. His latest set, Talk Dirty, was released last month.
Reggae Sumfest kicks off with its traditional beach party on July 13 at Aquasol Beach, followed by the All White Party on July 15 at Pier 1, both in Montego Bay.
Con man posing as my manager in T’dad, Buju warns
Incarcerated reggae star Buju Banton is warning concert promoters in Trinidad to be wary of an unscrupulous individual who has been attempting to scam them out of cash under the guise that he is an authorised agent for the artiste.
In a joint press release the Buju Banton Defence Support Committee and his attorney Professor Charles Ogletree warned against anyone handing over money to the unnamed individual.
“A certain individual in Trinidad has approached promoters with the false claim that he is the local agent for renowned reggae musician Buju Banton. He has further sought to swindle monies by stating he is authorised to collect funds for a concert being held for Buju Banton in Trinidad during this year. We wish to warn the public that it is totally untrue. Buju Banton has not given such rights to anyone in Trinidad. Nor is a concert being organised at this time,” the release stated.
The artiste’s interests warned of legal action if the alleged scammer is caught.
“Anyone seeking to do this would suffer legal conse-quences. We urge that you immediately inform the authorities of anyone who solicits monies from you for that purpose,” the release stated.
Buju Banton is currently serving a 10-year sentence on drug-related charges.
He was arrested at his South Florida home in December 2009 and charged with conspiracy to distribute five or more kilogrammes of cocaine.
His arrest came on the heels of a sting operation at a Drug Enforcement Agency-controlled warehouse in Tampa, which also resulted in the arrest of James Mack and Ian Thomas, who were attempting to purchase co-caine from undercover agents.
After two trials he was sentenced in a Tampa, Florida court.
However, Ogletree has filed a second appeal in the 11th US Circuit Court on February 4 claiming his client was denied a fair trial due to juror misconduct.
After Banton was sent to prison, jury foreman Teri Wright told a reporter that she had defied the order of Judge Tim Moody and studied aspects of the Pinkerton Law.
She was then ordered to hand over her computer for forensic perusal by experts hired by Banton.
However, it was discovered that she turned over an old computer and not the one she had used to study the law.
Banton has maintained his innocence and says he was entrapped by the US Government.
He is currently serving his sentence inside the Miami FCI penal facility and is set for a January 2019 release if his appeal is unsuccessful.
Company Wants To Sue Rick Ross For $200k But Can’t Find Him
British promoter Christian Ezechie of Executive Decision is looking for Rick Ross in order to serve him papers, but he cannot seem to find him, according to a recent report.
Ezechie allegedly booked Rozay and the MMG crew for a show in the UK, but claims the entertainers took his $200,000, never to perform.
Page Six reports:
During the promoter’s attempts to find Ross, a registered address for Rick Ross Touring in Miami turned out to be “a UPS store,” lawyers for Ezechie claim. A process server sent to Ross’ Miami home this week was told by a man inside, “I don’t know,” when asked how to reach him. And at Ross’ gigs, “process servers are hesitant to serve him while he is surrounded by security guards,” papers claim. Ironically, Ross is a former Florida correctional officer.
“It’s blatant robbery he’s doing, and he’s an artist worth $50 million,” exclaims Ezechie, who alleges he advanced Ross $100,000, plus about the same amount for the other Maybach acts.
He added he’s promoted gigs for Usher, Busta Rhymes and Missy Elliott, but that “the Rick Ross Maybach Music tour was the biggest we have carried out.” Ezechie’s lawyer, Robert Hantman, said of Ross, “We are prepared to track him to the ends of the earth.”
The Mayback Music honcho was not available for comment.
Chris Tucker Explains Jay Z and Solange’s Elevator Fight
There are certain inevitabilities of life that must be accepted, and Solange’s fight with Jay Z in the Standard Hotel elevator being the subject of comical ridicule is one of those inevitabilities. Earlier this week, Chris Tucker spoke on the incident in a recent stand-up gig.
According to Tucker, that the only difference between Jay Z and Solange’s fight and that of the average “Black family” is that “they got caught on tape.” However, that does not stop the Rush Hour actor for jokingly criticizing Beyoncé for her reaction to her sister’s assault of her husband:
Beyoncé did’t do nothing. Everybody got a crazy person in the family. ‘Let her calm down. Let her calm down. She’ll calm down in a minute. I hope she ain’t got that gun on her, god damn. We all gonna get shot up in this elevator.
Tessanne Chin to perform on Memorial Monday in New York
Tri-state area music fans will get to see Jamaican songbird Tessanne Chin perform live on Memorial Day, Monday, May 26, when The Voice Season 5 winner headlines the inaugural Oracabessa Festival at the Roy Wilkins Park in Queens, New York. Other performers at the festival include Beenie Man, Konshens and Assassin.
"We are thrilled to have Tessanne perform live in New York for the very first time since she won The Voice," said event organiser Bobby Clarke, CEO of Irie Jam radio. "Her performance is expected to attract large support from her Jamaican/Caribbean fan base as well as garner mainstream attention."
Tessanne's march to victory on The Voice included an emotional rendition of Simon and Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’, which earned her the #1 spot on iTunes USA Top 100 charts, and a mesmerizing rendition of Bob Marley's ‘Redemption Song’. She also topped the iTunes singles chart with Whitney Houston’s ‘I Have Nothing’ and cracked the top ten singles chart in a duet with Adam Levine -- The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’.
Since appearing on the Voice, the ‘Hideaway’ singer has been a regular fixture on American television. She was interviewed by Matt Lauer of NBC's Today Show; appeared on the Kathie Lee & Hoda show; Live with Kelly & Michael; Access Hollywood, and New York Live.
Last week she returned to the NBC Voice stage, delivering a spirited rendition of her debut single ‘Everything Reminds Me of You’, from her soon to be released album.