Madeira News Blog

TODAY’S PHOTO : Thanks to Jaquine … who kindly obliged my request with this photo of the cherry blossom in it’s prime, in the orchards of Jardim da Serra, where new cultivating methods have been adopted.

Front Page News : source : Diário de Notícias 28/3/2009

In yesterday’s main headline, the Court of Appeal of Lisbon (TRL) has declared insolvent the Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Madeira (AMME). The decision of a Funchal court was overturned, despite the complete debts amounting to only €26,000, which was the reason given for not justifying earlier bankruptcy. The appeal action was started by a Brazilian  resident who claimed she was owed €16 thousand. The article doesn’t tell you anything about the organisation, except that is had subscribing members, so what this means for the good businesswomen of Madeira I don’t really know.

The regional government here, and the equivalent for the Canary Islands, yesterday arranged a team of ‘inter regional’ representatives, with the objective of identifying and studying areas of potential cooperation in terms of the economies and institutions. Vice president Cunha e Silva represents Madeira, with his opposite number for the Canaries, so it is being taken seriously. The Diário promises more detail in Sunday’s newspaper. In my opinion this really is an excellent idea for Madeira. The two ‘regions’ have worked together in the past couple of years in areas such as emergency response, conservation, and fishing, and this is a very logical step forward, in something that could provide a real boost to our stagnating economy. Tourism of course would be the top of my list, with two centre holidays, with the Armas ferry playing a big part, and I reckon Madeira has more to gain than the Canaries do.

There is a big picture of Cristiano Ronaldo and his Portuguese team mates, in preparation for last nights crucial world cup qualifying game against Sweden. That headline reminds us that it was after a the previous unsuccessful encounter between these two teams, that manager Big Phil Scolari got the chop. The game was a drawn 0 – 0, but Portugal easily deserved to win. They now have a real battle to qualify, with second place in their group being the most realistic possibility.

‘Police Searches In All Of Madeira – Bars, Discos, Marinas,  Neighbourhoods : Police (Security, Justice, & Maritime), SEF (Foreigners and Border Controls), SPA(?) and council inspectors rummage everything’. The two pictures shown in the Diário show police frisking people in the street. I thought originally that they were all wearing ‘afro’ wigs, but this was censorship by the Diário in not revealing the identities of those being searched. This was a mega-exercise at national level that began at around 7am on Friday, and went through to dawn yesterday. The results of the operation here won’t be known until Monday, but nationally, by yesterday afternoon, 39 arrests had been made and 3 illegal weapons seized. 5 of the arrests were for drug trafficking. It is not entirely clear what the overall objective was except to mention ‘monitoring civic behaviour and conduct’, but the arrests made perhaps give a more specific indication. Anyway, they didn’t call around here and seize the blog, so it looks like I am OK for the time being.

‘João Carlos (Abreu) Buys A Cocktail For a Madame’, tells the story of the ex minister for tourism for Madeira making his debut on the TVI series, ‘Flor do Mar’, set on Madeira. He is pictured as a “seductor” sitting next to Rafaela, who recently turned from a banana growers daughter with some rather naughty habits, into a bit of a ‘madam’, in a seedy nightclub in Funchal (filmed in club ‘Kool’, up by the Savoy Hotel). I missed that particular episode unfortunately. I was going off the series, but the last few weeks it has really come back to life. In one particular bar I go in, the owner is always happy to fill me in one any missed episodes or events, which is just as well as I don’t know anyone else who watches it anymore, despite it still being the top rated program for viewer number in Portugal.

‘Nurses Criticise The Power Of The Assessors’ – It is their very own nurses association saying that the health service is in the hands of the assessors, and is creating discontent in the Health Service of the Region through actions that show less and less respect for the nurses, and to the health service users. Part of the problem is that the assessors, who travel from Lisbon, are under strict instructions to meet only with doctors.

Other News :

A twelve year old boy was run over by a car in Caniçal on Friday morning, and is now in hospital in a coma in a very serious condition. Witnesses said that the child crossed the road without looking and the driver was surprised by the appearance of the boy, and was unable to stop in time.

The Lido bathing complex (Funchal) was vandalised in the early hours of Friday morning, with fixtures and equipment getting smashed and thrown in the children’s pool, and a bar was also a target. The police are on the case, aided by the whole event being captured on security cameras. The Lido facility was previously attacked and damaged twice in 2008. Sounds like a case for CSI Funchal and their new forensics outfit.

Those dreadful looking electronic display boards in Funchal are to be used to provide information to motorists in a new road safety campaign. In a joint initiative between police and Funchal Council, the objective is to be proactive in reducing road accidents, in particular focusing on drug/drink-driving, excessive speed, and aggressive driving. It’s ironic that accidents are most likely to occur, when speeding drunk drivers are craning their necks to read what an electronic display board says … that’s my opinion anyway.

Two people were injured yesterday afternoon after a brutal head-on car accident occurred on the main road of Madalena do Mar. The frontal crash occurred around 18:15, causing injuries to a man and a woman in different cars. The female victim was trapped in the car, forcing the Firemen of Calheta to use cutting equipment to remove her. Both victims had multiple injuries and were subjected to various tests in Funchal hospital, where he remains. That’s for you Alan, as you emailed me Friday about the gridlock in your road. In fact yesterday’s newspaper was full of stories about road accidents aside from the ones mentioned, some were pretty serious too.

The socialist party (PS-M) have called for an enquiry into the government decision to pay €25 million to the consortium, that managed the solid waste plant at Meia Serra. They want to know how the government can “blow in less than a month, half the capacity of indebtedness authorized by the Republic … on resolving a problem that was caused by the government”. I can almost hear those PS-M politicians whistling from here in Rib. Bra.

After a meeting between President Jardim and the ambassador (from Lisbon) for Turkey, AJJ has publicly given his support for Turkey’s application to join the EU, and is in fact a “big supporter”. It was the first visit to Madeira for the ambassador, who has been in post since 2007, who was generously sharing his time between the 200 Turks who live in Portugal, and the solitary one that lives on Madeira. Auntie Bertinha was seen sat out on her balcony that very afternoon, tucking into a very large tin of some juicy square reddish jelly sweets, dusted with icing sugar … but I digress … I was going to say something about corruption in politics, but I forgot what it was.

I read that the Italian cruise ship ‘Costa Fortuna’ was in Funchal early yesterday bringing in over 3
thousand passengers. I went on a cruise ship from the same company a couple of years ago (yes really!). I forget the exact name, but it could have been the budget sister ship ‘Costa Mucha Lessa’, if I recall, where a small beer cost a mere €8, and one had to spend all day in bed in order to avoid bankruptcy on returning to land. Who on earth named that ship ‘Costa Fortuna’? Perhaps there was a twist of reverse psychology in the naming, and it actually brings in more punters.

The new 5 star Hotel Meliã Madeira Mare in Funchal Lido was inaugurated on Friday, by what’s his name again … President Jardim. The hotel has 220 rooms, cost €32 million, and created 100 jobs. AJJ was said to be very surprised by high quality of the establishment, and the architecture, and he congratulated the management team on their achievement. Another new hotel at this moment is about as useful as a poncha served underwater, but has anyone else noticed that Uncle Bertie is now rapidly stepping up his public appearances with just over two months to the European elections.

———————————

I am sorry that I am still unable to say what is going to happen with the blog next week, and it may not be until Tuesday that a decision is made. Several people are doing things that will all have an influence on the final decision, and it has all turned out more complicated and less clear cut than I was hoping.

DID YOU REMEMBER TO PUT YOUR CLOCKS FORWARD ONE HOUR?

www.madeira4u.com

Aside from your valued blog responses (you can reply direct using the form at the bottom of each blog comments page), please send any unreported Madeira news, topical photos, events information, or snippets for the madeira4u blog to blog@madeira4u.com – anyone can join in! Thank you!