Morning Bites: 5 things to know for Monday; Traffic Ticket rush, Clovis Toon; Breaking News and more

Morning Bites: 5 things to know for Monday, January 30, 2023 Traffic ticket rush With just 48 hours to go before the [new Road Traffic Act]( with its far more punitive fines for traffic breaches takes effect, [thousands of Jamaicans with outstanding traffic tickets]( will again descend on the traffic courts today in an effort to secure a date to pay their outstanding traffic fines. The traffic courts have been overwhelmed over the past two weeks as motorists have rushed to pay their outstanding fines ahead of the February 1 implementation date of the new act, in order to avoid prosecution, have their drivers’ licence suspended or be unable to licence their motor vehicle once the new digitized Traffic Ticket Monitoring System is enacted. Last week, the Government brushed aside efforts by the parliamentary Opposition to have the January 31st date for all outstanding fines to be paid, extended until April 30. While arguing against any extension, National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang stated that “they breached the law and disrespected the law” with their refusal to pay when they had the opportunity to do so. He was speaking in the House of Representatives during the debate on the Road Traffic (Reprieve and Nullification of Prescribed Notices) Act which [provides a period of relief for persons with unpaid traffic fines]( ahead of the new Road Traffic Act taking effect on February 1. The Bill was piloted by Transport Minister Audley Shaw who urged persons with outstanding tickets, in particular those with hundreds of tickets to make arrangements with the courts before February 1, with a view to working out a payment plan. Hanging in the balance: Seaforth High to determine fate of principal, bursar The board of the Seaforth High School in St Thomas will [convene for a “special meeting”]( today to determine the fate of principal Calbert Thomas, and the school's bursar, Noel Williamson, who were both sent on leave with immediate effect last week. "The board already met this (last) week, but there will be follow-up discussions on Monday (today) to determine the fates of both gentlemen, pending further action. The men will remain off the job pending the outcome of investigations by the school's Personnel Committee," said an OBSERVER source on Friday. The decision to send the principal and bursar on leave followed a board meeting last Wednesday. The flurry of meetings was triggered by the conclusion of a months-long investigation by the Ministry of Education, which uncovered several financial irregularities at the school, including the non-remittance of deductions. In November last year, [angry teachers staged a sit-in over two days at the school to protest the non-payment of deductions](. The deductions should have been remitted to the Accountant General's Department and Sagicor Life. The report pointed to a litany of irregularities and investigators allegedly uncovered irrefutable evidence that there was an unauthorised overriding of standard internal control mechanisms. The Financial Management report recommended that the failure of the principal and bursar to remit employees' personal deductions was a result of dereliction of duty which should be met with disciplinary action. According to the report, the school's administrators withheld employees' deductions and pension payments for the period September 2021 to September 2022. The total amount withheld for the period was reportedly more than $21 million. Williams to get report from Newell High after teacher threatens to kill student Education Minister Fayval Williams could get a report as early as today from Newell High School in St Elizabeth regarding the incident where a [male teacher was caught on a now viral video threatening to kill a student](. The irate teacher also told the boy he had killed before and even chased the youngster from the classroom. The school’s board met in an emergency session last Friday and [Williams now awaits its report](. Speaking on radio last Friday, Williams said she will not accept that the teacher was overwhelmed, as he had options available to de-escalate the situation. The minister noted that the teacher could have called for the school's dean of discipline, the vice principal or principal, and if the matter necessitated the intervention of the police, they could also have been called in. "We're trying to tell society that we have normalised violence and we need to move from that space where we recognise what we're doing to ourselves, our children, and that if we don't stop, we're going to get a society in which it will be unbearable to live. We have to condemn these things in our classrooms," said Williams. Children’s Advocate, Diahann Gordon Harrison has condemned the actions of the teacher. Advertisement Promoting climate-resilient infrastructure in the Caribbean Partanna Bahamas, pioneer of the world’s first carbon-negative concrete, will today announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding ((MoU) with the Caribbean Climate-Smart Accelerator (CCSA), an entity driving the Caribbean economy’s transition into a climate-smart zone. As part of the agreement, both parties will highlight the growing economic and social costs of climate change to the region, and call on governments and the private sector to invest in climate-resilient infrastructure. Partanna’s carbon-negative concrete has the potential to revolutionise the global construction industry – which contributes around 40 per cent of the world’s annual CO2 emissions. The CCSA will help Partanna to realise its mission and potential by identifying public and private sector collaborators throughout the region. The MoU is part of a drive by CCSA to champion Caribbean businesses which have the potential to create global impact through their climate innovations. The CCSA does this by matching entrepreneurs and businesses to its network of regional donors, investors, and philanthropists. The agreement comes shortly after Partanna announced the development of up to 1000 affordable homes with the Government of the Bahamas, a move set to meet shortages and revolutionise affordable housing in a nation at the frontline of the climate crisis. Paramount to the MoU is a commitment from both parties to make use of the region’s young talent. It is hoped that increased use of Partanna within the Caribbean can spark a green jobs boom, in a region where one in four young people are unemployed. Partanna will also provide training in the new skill sets required to establish the Caribbean as a global centre of a new sustainable building materials industry. Women only for ICC’s T20 World Cup The Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa will be the first global International Cricket Council (ICC) event to be [officiated entirely by women](. The 13 officials comprise 10 umpires and three match referees, with English umpires Sue Redfern and Anna Harris. "We have been building the pathways to ensure more women have the opportunity to officiate at the highest level," said ICC general manager Wasim Khan. The tournament begins on February 10, with England's first game a day later. South Africa will face Sri Lanka in the tournament opener, while England begin against West Indies on February 11 - defending champions Australia in action on the same day. Of the officials, Harris, 24, makes her ICC major debut as the youngest member of the team. ICC manager for women's cricket, Snehal Pradhan added: "When young women and girls see it, they believe that they can be it. That's just one of the reasons why having this match officials panel is so special." Match Officials at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2023 Match Referees: GS Lakshmi (India), Shandre Fritz (South Africa), Michell Pereira (Sri Lanka) Umpires: Sue Redfern (England), Eloise Sheridan (Australia), Claire Polosak (Australia), Jacqueline Williams (West Indies), Kim Cotton (New Zealand), Lauren Agenbag (South Africa), Anna Harris (England), Vrinda Rathi (India), N Janani (India), Nimali Perera (Sri Lanka). ICYMI: WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING WATCH: ‘Back to basics on our knees’ - Manchester police chief urges citizens to pray Head of the Manchester police, Superintendent Shane McCalla, is [urging citizens to go back to basics on their knees in prayer]( as part of the push to combat crime. Kingston Western police list 16 persons of interest The Kingston Western police have [listed 16 individuals as persons of interest,]( who are to report to the Denham Town Criminal Investigations Branch (CIB) by 6:00 pm on Monday, January 30. One killed, another injured in Arnett Gardens gun attack [One man was shot dead and another shot and injured]( on Lincoln Crescent, Arnett Gardens, on Sunday afternoon. CLOVIS TOON TODAY IN HISTORY Gandhi assassinated On this day in 1948, Indian political and spiritual leader Mohandas K Gandhi, 78, was shot and killed in New Delhi by Nathuram Godse (neh-too-RAHM’ gahd-SAY’), a Hindu extremist. (Godse and a co-conspirator were later executed.) 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