Madeira News Blog

(3rd July). Today’s main news headline : ‘Rats And Cockroaches Invade Formosa – The thicket in the zone near to the beach contributes to the plague that intimidates users and traders’. With the hot weather only just starting, the rats and cockroaches are already displaying a worrying level of activity in the area. Traders, bathers, and those who frequent the area, tell of appearances of the two creatures around restaurants, rubbish bins and even on the beach pebbles, and they fear the situation will worsen significantly with improving Summer breeding conditions. Part of the problem area is the old Shell installation, abandoned in 2007, and now overgrown. A rat extermination programme that covered public spaces finished 3 months ago in Funchal, but will be restarted soon to include the Praia Formosa zone.

The main photograph today shows jazz singer Vânia Fernandes at the opening night of the Funchal Jazz Festival : ‘Jazz Sells More – After the filling of the opening night, Funchal Jazz today hosts a musical legend’. The headline is referring to the ‘legend’ contrabassist Ron Carter, who performs tonight at 9.30 in the park of Santa Catarina in Funchal. Aside from being overflowing last night, ticket sales have been "pretty good", with three day passes tripling in sales compared to last year.

‘Eight Thousand Teachers Contest 295 Vacancies’. The internal application deadline is midnight tonight, and external applicants are able to apply from next week. They are competing for teaching posts through the regional Department for Education. This exercise happens every year, and I assume these are permanent full time positions, that are of interest to existing teaching staff that have lesser status or working hours.

‘The First Step Is Taken – Bernardo Trindade is confident that the agreement to resolve matters at Colombo’s Resort is going to work out’. The first stage in rescuing the incomplete and paralysed tourist complex on Porto Santo has now been taken, with the new partners signing an agreement in Lisbon yesterday. Trindade said he expects it to move forward, regardless of the election results in October, even though it is no more at this stage than a gentleman’s agreement. Work stopped on the construction some time ago when the original project ran out of money. It is interesting to also learn that the €5 million pledge by Porto Santo Council, is not in fact a pledge, but an exemption from municipal taxes. I know they are allowed to do this, but that might raise an eyebrow or two with other hotel owners past, present and future.

‘Ministry of health Announces Three More Cases – Two women and a child infected with gripe A virus’. That takes the total now to 23, and there were just a handful a week or so ago. One of the women has just returned from Spain, and is now being kept in Lisbon in the hospital called Curry Cabral (Goat Curry?). The other woman, in the Azores, came from Canada. The child is an eight month old baby, coming from Majorca. All 23 cases are confirmed as having H1N1 swine flu. I have seen no update on the two that came into Madeira Airport yet. I wrote that last night, this morning on the TV news it says there are now 27 cases.

‘Madeirans have the highest global rate of deficiency in the chromosome 14 gene – Researchers publish results of a study in an international scientific journal’. The study, managed by the Laboratory of Human Genetics in the University of Madeira (LGHUMa), will be published soon by the British scientific journal ‘Respiratory Medicine’. The deficiency exists in 4.1% of the population, and relates to the presence of glycoprotein, that functions to protect the lungs against dust, air pollution, and tobacco smoke. The deficiency can lead to the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (chronic bronchitis and pulmonary emphysema), or diseases such as cirrhosis of the liver. It has been well known for years that respiratory problems are a frequent problem for Madeirans, and a genetic problem was often mentioned. Perhaps now that the exact cause has been pinpointed an exact and effective remedy can be developed.

‘World Press Photo On Exhibition – The best photographs in the world of news are on display to the public until 23rd July’. I had mentioned it some weeks ago, but the exhibition starts today in the Salão Nobre of the Teatro Municipal Baltazar Dias (Funchal Theatre). The photos from 2008 will be displayed here, in a custom now in its fourth successive year. The entry fee is €1, but if you prefer you can send me the €1 and see the photos here (go to ‘Winners 2009′): WORLD PRESS PHOTO

‘Disgusted drivers leave TEAM MARÍTIMO – The walk out has already taken place in the rally club’. The drivers are fed up with internal politics in the club, and a broken promise of the club president over free inscriptions for the Coral Championship.

‘Nacional awaits €1.5 million from FC Porto for Paulo Assunção’. The ‘bonus’ will come as a result of the transfer of the ex-Nacional player from Porto to Athletico Madrid for €3 million, of which Nacional has the right of 50% under terms previously agreed with Porto.

(2nd July). And a few snippets left over from yesterday …

‘Hospital Already Performed Eight Operations by GPS – Computer assisted operations since May’. Funchal Central Hospital performed between 60 and 70 knee rebuilding operations per year over the last 10 years or so, to deal with wear and tear and other medical conditions, but a new procedure introduced in May using a computer navigation system is proving successful. The equipment used does not yet exist in other hospitals in Portugal. The eight patients so far are recuperating very well, and indicating an encouraging start for the new procedure, which can also be used for hip replacement operations.

Madeira baby Rodrigo, who received a bone marrow transplant a month ago as a result of being diagnosed with leukaemia at the age of 6 weeks, remains in hospital in Lisbon, but is doing well after liver and kidney complications were resolved after 15 days in intensive care. He will stay in hospital longer than was originally hoped, and will now have to spend his first birthday there on 7th July.

Discussions are underway in Gauteng in South Africa, where there is a Madeiran community, for a twinning relationship with Madeira.

Serra de Água has its first multibanco machine (ATM / Cash point) after years of asking. The population wanted it in a location where it could be accessed 24 hours a day, but eventually had to settle for it being located in the ‘Tasquinha da Poncha’ (Poncha Bar). What a dream excuse for a quick bevy … just popping out to the cash point dear … won’t be long!

(2nd July). Today’s main news headline : ‘Owes Millions But Wants To Buy Shares – The society that launched ‘Colombo’s Resort’ doesn’t pay the €70 million it owes to the creditors, but tries to buy shares of the associates. An option that arouses suspicion’. Just a couple of days after a rescue package to complete the tourist complex on Porto Santo was announced, it seems the original consortium that started and financed the project originally has called for an ‘extraordinary meeting’ for 7th July, to discuss the acquisition of its originating shareholders shares. The shares which belong to individual associates in the original project would be sold to the consortium, in order for the associates to recover their investment, but the consortium company seems to have money available for the move, and yet abandoned the project months ago owing €70 million. The consortium company, that is not technically bankrupt, claims that it own the assets that cover the liabilities. A bit tricky to follow this one, but it seems the rescue scheme organised by the Secretary for Tourism of Portugal did not foresee this coming, which is very odd if the assets (i.e. what has been built so far) still belong to the original consortium.

Two big photos on today’s front page : The first shows lots of cars in a compound : ‘Abandoned Cars Given Stickers – Funchal Council launches alert : Negligent owners have 8 days to avoid being towed away’. The council are putting notices on cars seemingly left abandoned on roads and in public places, warning owners that they have 8 days to remove the vehicle before it is towed off and taken to the pound at Vasco Gil. From June 2007 to March 2009 650 cars were towed away by the council, an average of 33 cars a month. Once the deadline has expired, there is no going back, and the vehicles are removed. Owners are able to retrieve their vehicles from the pound, and a notice of warning is posted in the newspaper, after which the cars are dismantled and sent to Portugal for scrap / recycling. Owners wishing to rescue their vehicles have to pay the towing fee (€71.48 – €125.04, depending on the vehicle size), and a fine which can range between €250 and €2,500, but according to the council very few people try to recover their cars. The ‘stickers’ must be having some effect, as the council say they have only towed away 38 cars so far this year, compared to 445 cars for the whole of 2008. It seems the Diário must have picked up this story long after the scheme was implemented, but it also seems odd that the fines only apply if you want to retrieve a car, when surely they should apply regardless?

‘Police Officers Gather Today To Boycott The Service’. This is a national story which also ties in the police on Madeira, about the government of the republic failing to recognise the professional status of the police. Organised by police trade unions, a protest has been organised for today outside of the official residence of prime minister José Socrates. The method of communication to notify police officers is by sms text message to mobile phones, with the message "The police were cheated. On the 2nd don’t go to work. Show your disgust. This is a radical fight". Little support is expected here on Madeira, particularly as yesterday was a public holiday when there was no administration working in the police force. The police can only legally boycott work through approved time off work or by booking holidays, and given the amount of notice given, they would have been unlikely to have been able to organise in time through the police administration office.

‘Street Sacrifices Heritage – The new road buried two water mills in Fajã da Ovelha’. The construction of the ‘via expresso’ (fast road) that connects Fajã da Ovelha to Ponta do Pargo has buried the two old water mills that are relics of the industrial heritage of Madeira, protected under regional laws. People wanted the new road, but are upset about the lack of respect for the mills. The contractors, AFA and Technovia, responsible for the new road, simply covered them over with concrete seemingly without any thought about preserving them. The regional office responsible for culture says it doesn’t understand how this could have happened.

‘Jazz In The Park Doesn’t Create Agreement – The 10th edition of Funchal Jazz gets going today in a location less intimate, but that also receives praise’. The new home of the Jazz Festival, previously in the gardens of Quinta Magnolia since 1999, has caused some upset with traditionalists, but pleased other fans. The Parque de Santa Catarina is the new venue. "It is important to highlight the presence of Ron Carter and also Benny Golson and Cedar Walton, living legends of jazz", said one musician. The event starts at 9.30pm with a tribute to the musician Tony Cruz, who passed away. That is followed by a concert by Vânia Fernandes at 9.45pm, and then other concerts through to the early hours.

‘Police Recover Stolen Material Worth €13,000 – The two individuals detained are aged 15 and 18′. The robbery happened last month in a shop in São Martinho that had the door forced. Police recovered six laptop computers, a PDA, and a mobile phone. They were also believed to have been responsible for a robbery in Rádio Clube, as further stolen property was also recovered.

‘Protecting The Tarantulas Of The Ilhas Desertas – The PHARALIS has lead to fragmentation of the endemic species of spiders’. This particular species of tarantula spider, that can only be found on the Desterta Grande of the ‘Deserted Islands’, is under threat from a type of grass plant, which has already spread over an area of 20 hectares. The problem was discovered after culling work on goats and rabbits on the island. The Valley da Castanheira, which the spiders favour because it is protected from the wind, and has good conditions for water and humidity, is being taken over by the Pharalis aquatica plant, which is affecting the food resources for the spider, such as snails, and reducing the places for the spiders to live. That is resulting in fragmentation of the population, which according to an expert "in a population of a few specimens, the fragmentation is the worst that can happen, as it increases the risk of extinction". Experts are now looking into ways to reduce and control the invading plant, and without using herbicides that could cause even more problems, it may be that the work is done by hand.

(30th June). ‘Chaos Around The Bazar do Povo – The first day of the bridge closure was chaotic for the traffic in the vicinity’. The project to demolish and rebuild the bridge, which was given plenty of publicity, caused immense problems and tailbacks for drivers yesterday, and caught the council by surprise. Funchal council tried various initiatives throughout the day to try and resolve the problems, including switching off traffic lights, which seemed to make matters even worse. The work is scheduled to continue through until 12th September.

The council of Santa Cruz used it’s ‘right of reply’ to clarify matters, after it was reported yesterday in the Diário about the plans to build a new building of shared service, ‘Loja do Cidadão’, in the process making an investor very rich (see yesterday’s blog). The response says that the Diário’s facts were wrong, and the lease will not be for 30 years, just 16, after which time the building will be fully paid and will start generating revenue for the council through subletting income. It also says that the monthly rent payable by the council will be offset by savings in the release of premises elsewhere. In addition "The solution proposed will allow the creation of many jobs in the area of construction and related services, bringing more dynamism to the local economy". In fact the statement from the president of the câmara totally reverses the negative report given by the Diário, and makes the project sound like a dream for everyone. One of the hazards of my work I suppose, but I reserve judgement until I see the ‘right to reply’ to the ‘right to reply’.

‘Colombo’s Resort’ with a solution in sight. Continuing with the earlier story, more details have now been released on completion the tourist resort on Porto Santo, where work was stopped because of a lack of funding. The Secretary of State for Tourism has put together a memorandum of understanding, with the support of venture capital companies, which should take a very important role in moving the work forward. The Portugal government is to take a small share (€10 million), compared with the other partners, and Porto Santo council itself is to stump up €5 million (and I think the Madeira government €1m). Another €10 million will come from the banks BCP Millenium and Banif, and €15 million from the construction company. Estimates are that the construction will need €40 million to complete, so that just about does it. The protocol is to be signed by all parties on Thursday in Lisbon. If all goes to plan, the complex will be complete next Summer, creating over 300 jobs, some way short of the 400 originally planned, but governed by seasonality and the standards of service planned for the new resort.

‘PSD-M Say That Autonomy Brings Savings To Portugal – The parliamentary group accuses the government of the republic of transferring just 20% of what Madeira spends on health and education’. The group say that through the regional finance law the government is providing less money, and based on a calculation using the year 2007, it transferred just €139 million, when on a per-capita basis it would have been €495 million. The social democrats say that for 2009 Madeira has a budget of €718 million for health and education, but that the state only transfers €147 million, "which represents only about 20%, therefore not fulfilling their responsibilities", accused Jaime Filipe Ramos. That’s a pretty hefty shortfall! So how is it being paid for ?

‘Regedor Of Tabua Leaves The Council – The senior of the parish claims that 88 years don’t permit more’. The 88 year old leader of the parish council is not going to stand again for election, after six decades of service to the community of Tabua, finally leaving his active political life due to his age. It was in 1947 that António Ramos took over as president, the position he still holds now, passing through the periods of dictatorship in Portugal, and the revolution of 1974. He has won nine elections since democracy, a feat unrivalled in local government. His successor, a candidate  from the social democrats, has not yet been determined.

‘PS Admits To Want Victory In Ribeira Brava’. But the socialist candidate at the top of the candidate list, Alano Gonçalves, admits it could be difficult "but not impossible". It got on the front page, I don’t know why, but he was hardly going to say he wanted to lose was he. Anyway, he is very likely to lose, and the PS in Ribeira Brava will be lucky to keep the one council seat they currently have (the PSD social democrats have 6), if the European election results are of any guidance.