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Morning Bites: 5 things to know for Friday, January 13, 2023 Teachers await compensation review update The 25-thousand strong Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA) is [awaiting a promised update]( today from the Minister of Finance, Dr Nigel Clarke, regarding the Government's position on its concerns over the compensation scheme for public sector employees. JTA President LaSonja Harrison and her team met with technocrats in the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday and are slated to meet with the union's membership to discuss the way forward. "We met and we continued to speak on the matters pertaining to the teachers transition to this new compensation, this new wage structure and we engaged further clarification, and we are awaiting a written response from the Ministry of Finance as to their position to us at this time," Harrison told the Jamaica Observer on Wednesday. However, she declined to divulge the current state of the wage talks given the delicate nature of the negotiations. Teachers and the Jamaica Constabulary Force are the two major public sector groups for which negotiations under the Government's new compensation scheme have not yet been finalised. Prime Minister to open new Port Maria Fire Station Prime Minister Andrew Holness is scheduled to officially open the [newly-built Port Maria Fire Station]( in St Mary at 11:00 am today. He will be joined by the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Desmond McKenzie; Member of Parliament for St Mary Central, Dr Morais Guy; the Mayor of Port Maria, Richard Creary; and Commissioner of the Jamaica Fire Brigade, Stewart Beckford. Also down to attend the handover ceremony is Omar Sweeney, Managing Director of the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF). Through funding from the JSIF-implemented Jamaica Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project, work was undertaken to construct new facilities to house the Port Maria Fire Station. At a total contract value of J$257.7 million, the scope of work undertaken included the construction of a four-building compound which includes an administrative block, apparatus bays and two residential blocks that were designed to accommodate a complement of 80 firefighting personnel and administrative staff. The compound occupies 9,788.99 square metres of land, with the total floor area of the buildings covering 1,162.70 square metres and consisting of office areas, common spaces, a conference room, and dormitories. In accordance with the JSIF’s Environmental Management System policy on the implementation of sanitation projects, an onsite tertiary level sewage treatment system was installed at the facility. Caribbean aims for global environment prize The Caribbean Climate-Smart Accelerator (CCSA) is inviting Caribbean entrepreneurs, organisations and countries to submit projects for a shot at the [£1 million Earthshot Prize]( a global environment award founded by the Royal Foundation and led by the Prince of Wales to incentivise widespread change and repair the planet this decade. The CCSA is once more an official nominator for the 2023 Earthshot Prize, having selected nominees from the region for the 2022 prize. Director of Public Sector Projects, Kiesha Farnum says, “This is an excellent opportunity for those with ready initiatives that fit into any of the five categories of the Earthshot Prize: clean our air, protect and restore nature, revive our oceans, build a waste-free world, and fix our climate.” The prize is awarded to a winner in each category and along with the money receives other support to scale their project. Farnum noted that in 2021, Costa Rica was a winner with its reforestation initiative and a team from the Bahamas also received the prize for its coral replanting project. “We’re certain that there are other projects in the region that will not only be eligible for nomination but have the potential to win, and we want to see submissions for consideration coming into our online portal from across our 28 member countries,” said Farnum. Submissions for nomination by the CCSA for the Earthshot Prize close on January 23. For more information and to submit a project visit: [caribbeanaccelerator.org](. Advertisement Japan: Suspect in Abe assassination to face murder charge Japanese prosecutors are expected to formally charge the suspect in the [assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe]( with murder on Friday, his lawyer said. Tetsuya Yamagami was arrested immediately after allegedly shooting Abe with a handmade gun as the former leader was making a campaign speech in July outside a train station in Nara in western Japan. Later that month, Yamagami was sent to an Osaka detention centre and given a five-month mental evaluation, which ended Tuesday. Yamagami is now back in police custody in Nara after reportedly being deemed fit to stand trial. One of his lawyers, Masaaki Furukawa, told The Associated Press on Thursday that he expects prosecutors to charge Yamagami with murder and gun control law violations. Given the complexity of the case, it will take months before his trial begins, he said. Rap icons De La Soul finally stream albums after years of legal woes Hip-hop pioneers De La Soul are finally releasing their classic early hits on [streaming platforms]( from Friday after decades-long battles over their samples. The roll-out starts with the single "The Magic Number" from the platinum-selling 1989 album "3 Feet High and Rising". It got a new lease of life when featured on the soundtrack to 2021's "Spiderman: No Way Home". The New York trio's first six albums, dating from 1989 to 2001, have not appeared on streaming platforms because their label, Tommy Boy, never tackled the huge legal task of clearing all the samples (there are some 60 to 70 on "3 Feet..." alone). The group cleared the rights for sales of vinyl and audio cassettes, but streaming offers a much more lucrative and ongoing source of revenue that requires specific deals with each rights-holder. De La Soul are well aware of the dangers of unlicensed sampling, having been at the centre of a landmark case in 1991 when little-known band The Turtles sued them for sampling one of their songs and won a reported $1.7 million. ICYMI: WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis, dies at 54 Lisa Marie Presley, a singer-songwriter, Elvis’ only daughter and a dedicated keeper of her father’s legacy, [died Thursday after being hospitalised for a medical emergency](. She was 54. St Mary businessman shot dead A [72-year-old St Mary businessman is dead]( a suspected case of murder believed to have been committed in a district called Broadgate in the parish on Thursday evening. Truck driver hospitalised following Mandeville crash A truck driver has been hospitalised following a [two-vehicle crash on the Winston Jones Highway]( in Mandeville on Thursday night. CLOVIS TOON TODAY IN HISTORY Donald Trump impeached a second time On January 13, 2021, US President Donald Trump was [impeached by the US House over the violent January 6 siege of the Capitol]( becoming the only president to be twice impeached; 10 Republicans joined Democrats in voting to impeach Trump on a charge of “incitement of insurrection.” (Trump would again be acquitted by the Senate in a vote after his term was over.) For more stories, visit our website at www.jamaicaobserver.com or [sign up for our e-paper](. [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Website]( Copyright © 2023 Jamaica Observer, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: 40 - 42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue Kingston 5 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](.