Moontown

SPLIT PEAS AND RICE; MASHED POTATOES

MACARONI PIE; GRILLED BARRACUDA

STEAMED FLYING FISH; BAKED CHICKEN

BAKED PORK; BEEF STEW; PLAIN GRAVY

STEAMED VEGS; TOSSED SALAD

Crop Over 2009 ended yesterday with the parade of 22 bands from the National Stadium along Bank Hall, Eagle Hall, Black Rock and on  to Spring Garden Highway. Thousands of revelers gyrated to the pulsating rhythm of the best of the Crop Over 2009 music, braving the sweltering sun and often times downpour of rain to make the last lap memorable.

It was a sea of colours along the routes as can be seen in the following photos.

Jamaica Gleaner

Stacy-Ann Smith, Gleaner Writer

LEIBA-BARNES

This is the fifth instalment of a feature sponsored by Capital and Credit Financial Group.

Moya Leiba-Barnes, general manager at Capital & Credit Merchant Bank, outlines some basic steps parents can take to begin the process of building a fund to cover the cost of their children’s education, even in challenging economic times.

She is responding to a question from a reader: I have two children in school - one goes to a primary school and the other is in third form at a high school. My partner (who is not their father) and I earn just about $75,000 per month. He is a mason and I work as a secretary in a small establishment. My children are very bright and I want to provide them with the best education possible. How can I save to ensure that they can go on to college/university when the time comes?

According to Leiba-Barnes, “A mantra we have at Capital & Credit is ‘Every mickle mek a muckle’. It matters not how much you earn, there is always something you can put aside,” she asserts.

The seasoned banker advises:

1. Begin by establishing how much money you take home.

2. Then determine how much you need to spend. Remember how much you spend and how much you need to spend is usually not the same. Persons often complain that there is nothing left over, no excess. But there is usually something you can cut back on - like the electricity bill, buying produce at the market rather than at the supermarket - that will give you a little extra money every month.

3. Make a commitment to save this amount every month, no matter what. Think of it as a partner. Every month you must ‘throw your hand’. In this instance, however, Capital & Credit is your banker. The difference is, you won’t be paying the banker anything at the end of the partner. Instead, the banker will pay you in the form of interest earned.

4. Once you have established a routine of saving monthly, you must now begin to consider how to grow those savings in the years leading up college/university. First, you need to determine how much time you have left before college/university or maybe skills-training school. The reader said the older child is in third form, which means he/she has about four years left in high school. The other is in primary school and won’t be ready for tertiary education for at least another six years.

5. Consider an instrument that helps you achieve your goal faster. At Capital & Credit, we have the Capital Investor Plus (CIP) where, as your balance climbs every month, you can earn higher rates of interest. You may open an account with as little as $1,000 and earn as high as 13.5 per cent.

6. After a year or two, consider diversifying your funds. You may take some of the money you have accumulated in your CIP and buy highyielding Govern-ment paper, for example. At this time, interest rates go as high as 21 per cent and you could keep that there for two years. Once you get the interest you may add it to your savings.

7. Add any surplus you might receive (bonuses, gifts, etc) to your account.

8. Stay focused. No matter what life throws at you, remember to keep your eyes on your goal. But if circumstances arise and you need money, the CIP allows you to borrow up to 85 per cent of your balance. That way, you get the money you need for whatever eventuality and your balance is still there earning interest.

For more information and advice on how you can save for your children’s education, send your questions to editors@gleanerjm.com. Moya Leiba-Barnes and the rest of the team of experts at Capital & Credit will answer online, in print and on air. Read The Gleaner next Tuesday. Log on to the Gleaner’s website www.go-jamaica.com. Tune in to ‘Real Business’ on Power 106 at 9:35 am. on the last Tuesday of every month.Real money business, in real time, for real people!

 Jamaica Gleaner

Carl Gilchrist, Gleaner Writer

Police personnel survey the wreckage of a crashed United States-registered twin-engine aircraft on a private road owned by Windalco Bauxite Company in Schwallenburgh district, near the St Ann-St Catherine border yesterday. - Contributed

A United States-registered twin-engine aircraft believed to be on a drug mission to Jamaica crashed yesterday morning on a private road owned by Windalco Bauxite Company in Schwallenburgh district, near the St Ann-St Catherine border, killing its two occupants.

The crash occurred around 15 miles south of the resort town of Ocho Rios in St Ann, at nine o’clock, deep in the hilly region of the bauxite mining operations where the company-owned road stretches for more than 20 miles.

The police said they had intelligence the plane was to pick up a shipment of compressed ganja when the crash occurred.

Four men were later taken into custody by the St Catherine police, after nearly 2,000lb of ganja was discovered in a vehicle in which the men had been travelling.

The police claimed the weed was the alleged shipment.

“Investigators from the Transnational Crimes and Narcotics Division are piecing together the circumstances that led up to the event of a plane crash at Schwallenburgh,” Detective Sergeant Jubert Llewellyn, spokesman for Operation Kingfish, told reporters at the scene.

Llewellyn said when investigators arrived, they found the burnt-out remains of the aircraft with charred remains inside.

Trapped

“They were apparently trapped in the aircraft that was registered in Florida in the United States,” he said.

“We had intelligence the plane would have come to this area for compressed ganja. We have recovered a significant portion (of the ganja) by a team of police augmented by the Jamaica Defence Force. The Area Two police also participated. Four men were taken into custody.”

He said the men were nabbed after the vehicles in which they were travelling was found with the drug and that it was to be transported to the Transnational Headquarters.

Llewellyn said intensive police investigations would include partners in the United States.

Up to 3 p.m., the forensic team was still combing the scene.

A Euclid truck, owned by Windalco and used to transport bauxite ore, was parked around 120 metres from the crash site. It was within the area cordoned by the joint police-military team.

The crash drew scores of residents from the nearby district of Clapham, and other areas, who waited in vain for several hours to get a close glimpse of the plane.

The plane crashed on the roadway used by the bauxite company in its day-to-day operations.

Dwayne, a resident of Clapham, who lives approximately 500 metres away, told The Gleaner he was at home when he heard the aircraft circle the area about four times, after which he heard a loud noise “like it drop”.

This was followed by an explosion. Shortly afterwards, he saw thick, black smoke rising from the vicinity.

He and several others rushed to the scene, getting there before anyone else, he said.

“A four ah we go down there. When we reach, we see the plane a burn but we couldn’t go near because ah di smoke. Wi could a see two people inna di front,” Dwayne related.

No security personnel

He said at the time, no security personnel were yet on the scene. However, shortly afterwards, several soldiers arrived and ordered them to lie on the ground.

Later, police personnel arrived at the scene.

The alleged eyewitness said before the police arrived at the scene, he saw two company trucks making their way towards the scene. He stopped the drivers and told them what had happened. The soldiers arrived shortly thereafter.

The driver of the truck was questioned by the police and later released.