Guyana Times - Thursday, April 25, 2024

UN Palestinian Committee lauds Guyana for $110M support for relief efforts

Gas-to-Energy, Harbour Bridge Projects

Over 240 properties being acquired by Govt

Vagrant shot while standing outside ECD bar

Region 8 cops boost security to deter criminals hiding out

1000 house lots distributed at Nonpareil, Enterprise …new applicants urged to be patient as Govt working on new housing schemes

Driver dies after crashing car into shop at Farm

There is no official title as “shadow minister” – Nandlall

Labour Minister reiterates call for Guyanese to prioritise workplace safety …as Ministry hosts 4th annual

Diamondto-Craig 4 lanehighway to be completed this year – Croal

Govt has not approved new speedboat fares – Edghill

…unauthorised

changes

will result in termination of licenses

The Government has not approved new fares for water taxi service being provided in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam), Vreed-en-Hoop and Parika, Region three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and Bartica Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni).

During engagements on Tuesday with speedboat owners and operators serving the routes aforementioned, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill sternly reminded that any unauthorized fare increases will not be tolerated.

The authorised fare structure provides for travel from Bartica to Parika or vice versa to be $2500 while

from Parika to Supenaam and vice versa is $1300.

However, in some cases, operators are charging passengers more. Some are imposing rates that were applied during the Covid-19 pandemic when there were restrictions to their load capacity in keeping with social distancing regulations.

But the Ministers have since urged the operators to desist from this practice, warning that failure to do so could result in their licences being revoked.

“The government has not approved any increase of fares and from tomorrow morning every passenger travelling from Supenaam or Parika using this service will pay the approved fare”.

“The government cannot be toothless and be taken advantage of, and within the next 24 hours MARAD will put up a sign board advising passengers of the fares,” he sternly asserted.

Compliance

Further, it was revealed that several operators were exploiting the turn system by not adhering to the turn system, which determines how passengers are loaded onto the water taxis.

According to reports, boat owners and operators have been marking spots with boats that are not operational, thus boycotting the system and preventing others from working more days.

In response, Minister Edghill tasked the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) with verifying the documents and operational status of all boat owners and operators in the various areas.

Further, the debunked claims that increased gasoline prices were driving fare hikes, therefore forcing boat operators to take action.

“The government of Guyana is foregoing taxes so that you can get gasoline at a reduced price. The government is foregoing the cost of electricity so that your light bill doesn’t go up and the government is foregoing the cost of water so that you don’t have to have an increased water bill”.

“We can’t have a mafia running the system where a few people own boats and they are manipulating the system, and other people who want to make an honest decent living can’t get in the system,” he added.

Additionally, measures

Impromptu inspections will also be conducted on all boats to ensure they are safe and river-worthy. Operators who fail to comply with inspections or lack up-to-date certification will be prohibited from operating until they rectify their status.

Additionally, operators were instructed to revive their association within two weeks to ensure compliance and order within the indus-

try.

Another key measure being implemented is the random testing of boat operators for alcohol and drug consumption, with licenses to be terminated for those who test positive.

These measures, according to the Minister, aim to safeguard the lives of passengers utilising public transportation services.

“I am not just doing it for the water taxis, I am doing it for all of Transport and Harbour Staff, all the captains and everybody who driving boat because we have had too many accidents and too many shortfalls. We got to improve safety,” the Minister explained. (G1)

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill engaging boat operators and owners

Chief Magistrate among 10 recommended as Puisne Judges

Commissioner Inland Revenue – International Taxation Law, Joy Persaud along with Secretary to Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI)

Board, Nigel Niles.

Based on information from a reliable source, Guyana Times understands that among those to be appointed to the top judicial post is Chief Magistrate Sherdel IsaacsMarcus.

Magistrates Peter Hugh, who is currently stationed in the Berbice Magisterial District, and Zamilla Ally-Seepaul, who is at the Leonora Magistrates’ Court, are also on the list.

Deputy Solicitor General, Deborah Kumar, and Commissioners of Title and Judges of the Land Court, Nicola Pierre and Priscilla ChandraHanif, were recommended to be appointed as puisne judges.

Also on the list are Head of Legal Department (Deputy-Commissioner) at the Guyana Revenue Authority, Hessaun Yasin, and GRA’s Deputy

(East Berbice-Corentyne) and at Suddie, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) were sworn-in. The newly appointed Land Court Judges selected by the

tion of the Judicial Service Commission in July 2023 paved the way for these critical judicial appointments to be made.

In addition, Guyaneseborn High Court judge at the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, Justice Jacquiline Josiah Graham, has also been named by the JSC for appointment.

JSC are Magistrate Renita Singh, Magistrate Esther Sam, and Magistrate Christel Lambert.

During his presentation in the 2024 Budget debates back in January, Nandlall had disclosed that at least 10 Magistrates will be appointed this year, bringing the total magistrates to 29. Additionally, the Legal Affairs Minister had also announced that new posts have also been created within the magistracy to accommodate for the large intake of cases. One of these new posts that were created is that of Deputy Chief Magistrate.

New magistrates

JSC search

For the Supreme Court of Judicature, which consists of the High Courts in each of the three counties and the Court of Appeal, the JSC has been looking to appoint Puisne Judges, Commissioners of Title (Land Court Judges), and a Deputy Registrar for the High Court in Berbice.

Back in January, Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall, S.C., had disclosed that at least nine Puisne Judges were going to be appointed in the High Court this year along with two Commissioners of Title and six Justices of Appeal.

Earlier this month, three new Commissioners of Title, who will be posted to serve in the Land Courts at Berbice, Region Six

Already, nine new magistrates have been sworn-in back in February: Tuanna Hardy, Teriq Mohammed, Abigail Gibbs, Tamieka Clarke, Orinthia Schmidt, Shivani Lalaram, Michelle Matthias, Omadatt Chandan, and Ravindra Mohabir.

AG Nandlall had noted that the reconstitu -

The new JSC was appointed by President Dr. Irfaan Ali on July 14, 2023. The Commission members are Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag), Justice Yonette CummingsEdwards; Chief Justice (ag), Roxane George; Chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC), Manniram Prashad; Retired Justice Carl Singh and Retired Justice Beasraj Singh (BS) Roy. The Chancellor sits as Chairman of the Commission.

The JSC is a constitutional body responsible for handling matters related to the appointment, discipline, removal, and promotion of judicial officers, including Judges and Magistrates.

Following its appointment, the Commission late last year published vacancies to fill the personnel gaps within the Judiciary and magistracy.

High Court Judge at EC SC, Justice Jacquiline Josiah Graham Magistrate Peter Hugh

Commissioner Nicola Pierre Magistrate Zamilla Ally-Seepaul Chief Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus Secretary to GWI Board, Nigel Niles

Deputy Solicitor General Deborah Kumar

GRA Deputy Commissioner –Legal Services, Hessaun Yasin GRA’s Deputy Commissioner – International Taxation Law, Joy Persaud

Commissioner Priscilla Chandra-Hanif

Guyana joined in celebrating World Book Day 2024 themed “Read Your Way”. Each year, this day is observed on April 23. This year’s theme emphasises nurturing a love for reading across all ages. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), this date was chosen as great writers have their birth anniversary and death anniversary on this date, including William Shakespeare, Garcilaso de la Vega, and Miguel de Cervantes. The significance of this day lies in its ability to introduce new authors and emphasise the importance of books in our lives. UNESCO also seeks to promote reading, publishing and the protection of intellectual property through copyright on this day.

Here in Guyana, there have been numerous book mobile libraries, and more so, there was one donated by Rotary Club to the National Library. A few decades ago, book mobile libraries, an extension service of the National Library, were scheduled fixtures in parts of the country. The targeted age group of children from out of town, who didn’t have access to the National Library, looked forward once a week in many instances to the arrival of the vehicle, laden with a variety of reading materials, be it a pop-up fairy tale, a simple fiction, or something considered more intense for that grouping.

Entering the vehicle evoked a tremendous sense of excitement, after having waited patiently in the orderly lines. The process, accommodated by courteous and helpful staff, was very simple: borrow a book, read and return by the next visit. Crucial to the success of the service was an interest in reading, developed by both the parents and children. Then there was a prevailing passion for reading, which was serviced by various bookshops within the city and by paid book-lending stalls in some municipal markets.

Access to books was, therefore, not a major issue; affordability was a different matter. Also, for many during that period, most, if not all, high school text books needed were provided free by the Government, making it easier for the children, and allowing for more focus. Friendly reading competitions became popular, and probably can be equated to a social media challenge today.

One can argue that the children then were not exposed to the plethora of technological devices evident today. A similar argument can be made about evolutionary advances and the impact on all, including children, and their passions. Some have put it bluntly: that as a result of these advancements, more distractions are, therefore, created today when compared to the past, citing the lack in variety then.

Others would posit that despite the absence of technologyrelated activities, the children in the past played a variety of folk games as part of the process of enjoyment and passing time. Obviously, while there are compelling arguments from both sides, there is the general concern that the passion for reading has drastically waned, and that today’s children are not reading – either enough or at all – when they do appear to be confined to just what needs to be done school-wise.

Again, this is not suggesting every child, as clearly some are involved in extensive reading. Technology, however, does facilitate reading, and even the option of listening to a book. Of course, many would be financially challenged to access these options, but the bottom line is: the option to read is part of the technological evolution. That said, some are adamant in their belief that the very technology is responsible for the seemingly scant interest in reading.

Many are of the opinion that one consequence of that said evolution is the reduction in the number of bookstores and book stalls in some markets. Given that it may not be inaccurate to state that fewer books are now available today for access, one can easily state that’s an indication of the decline of interest in reading; however, it may be as a result of the impact of technological advances on related businesses.

Whatever the reasons, the book mobile library is important, not just to reach persons who may not have access to books, but to inspire and drive interest in reading. While the library would be challenged by the more attractive technological options, it needs to be encouraged for possible expansion.

We should aim to encourage children to explore the pleasures of reading books.

Kill the zombies! Undead laws can come back to bite you

By Kate Cohen

Adultery is a crime in New York state, but no one pays much attention to the 1907 law that made it so. It is seldom enforced, and never since 2010 — perhaps not coincidentally the year that New York adopted no-fault divorce.

So why bother removing it from the penal code, as legislators are trying to do?

A bill repealing the law recently passed both state houses with bipartisan support, a few votes against (“I don’t support adultery in any way,” said Republican State Sen James Tedisco of Saratoga) and some grumbling about wasting time in the middle of the budget process.

The bill’s sponsor, Assemblyman Charles Lavine of Long Island (D), argued “any criminal law that penalises intimate behaviour between consenting adults does not deserve to be on the books.” Agreed.

And also: These days you never know when a “dead” law could come back to bite you. That’s the terrifying scene that confronts us in Arizona this week, with the resurrection of an antiabortion law from 1864 — a near-total ban on the procedure, a potential penalty of 2 to 5 years imprisonment for doctors, enacted decades before Arizona was a state and more than 50 years before women had the right to vote. There are laws — socalled zombies — that remain on the books though they’ve been found (or are assumed) to be unconstitutional or un-

enforceable, unless someone musters the political will to repeal them. Which is often never.

For instance, seven state constitutions bar atheists from holding public office, although the Supreme Court struck down those provisions in 1961’s Torcaso v Watkins. Roy Torcaso was a Maryland atheist whose refusal to declare a belief in God cost him a government appointment. He sued and won at the highest level. But because the state never changed its constitution, Maryland still technically discriminates.

The word “technically” surfaces often in reference to zombie laws — also “arcane”, “relic”, “antiquated” and “obsolete”. These laws have been left for dead under the assumption, I suppose, that the future is a road that leads toward social progress. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine anyone actually trying to bar an atheist from office — or arrest someone for adultery in any of the 16 states with anti-adultery statutes. After all, as Lavine said, “America is changing.”

But, if Dobbs v Jackson taught us anything, it’s that America could change back. The future might lead us backward, where the zombies can attack.

When Roe v Wade was overturned, Wisconsin’s 1849 abortion ban, some 50 years moribund, sprung back to life, shutting down Planned Parenthood’s clinics for more than a year. Arizona’s 1864 ban similarly wrought horror-movie havoc after Dobbs;

no one knew whether it or a more recent, less restrictive ban took precedence. As the Arizona Supreme Court just decided: the zombie lives.

Picture two menacing creatures in tattered 19th-century garb sending abortion providers scattering. Also picture women with scheduled abortions being turned away from clinic doors, sobbing.

Zombie lore is unclear about the mechanism by which the dead come back to life. Is it black magic? Weird science? Radiation from a space probe? A reconsideration of previously-settled law by an activist right-wing majority on the Supreme Court?

In his concurrence on Dobbs v Jackson, Justice Clarence Thomas called for overruling the “demonstrably erroneous decisions” of Griswold v Connecticut, Lawrence v Texas and Obergefell v Hodges — the court cases that made contraception, homosexual sex, and same-sex marriage (respectively) legal all across the country, no matter what state laws said.

Some states repealed the unconstitutional laws in question. But some let them lie dormant, with the potential to rise again. Today, Lawrence v Texas holds back undead laws in 12 states where sodomy is still technically against the law. In 13 states, Obergefell v Hodges is all that protects the right to marry a person of the same sex.

Meanwhile, right-wing activists are plotting to re-

animate the 1873 Comstock Act, which criminalises the mailing of abortifacients. The Comstock Act really is a relic, the legislative result of Victorian moral panic and an anti-vice crusader’s revulsion at the “wickedness” he witnessed in New York City.

But in last month’s Supreme Court hearing on FDA v Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, which seeks to limit access to the abortion drug mifepristone, Justice Samuel A Alito Jr called the Comstock Act “a prominent provision … not some obscure subsection of a complicated obscure law.” In other words, very undead.

Sen Tina Smith (D-Minn) has vowed to repeal Comstock, as legal scholars and The Post are urging. “Anti-abortion extremists will continue to exploit any avenue they can find to get the national ban they champion,” Smith wrote in the Times, “and I want to make sure my bill shuts down every one of those avenues.” But to do that she would need weapons: a Democratic majority in the House and a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate.

Zombie lore is unclear on what can actually kill the undead. Sometimes, it’s sonic waves or a blood transfusion. Sometimes, it’s a bullet to the brain.

Sometimes, it has to be voters rising up out of fear for their rights. (Washington Post)

(Kate Cohen, a Washington Post contributing columnist, is the author of "We of Little Faith".)

Ranks of the Guyana Defence Force interacting with students of the Richard Ishmael Secondary School during a career fair last week (GDF photos)

Intellectual authors of Brooklyn boycott are enemies of Afro-Guyanese progress

Dear Editor, Rickford Burke and Mark Benschop, under the guise of advocating for Afro-Guyanese rights, have consistently engaged in tactics that paradoxically erode those very rights they claim to defend.

Their recent demand for a boycott of Guyanese businesses in Brooklyn – simply because these businessown-

ers engaged with President Irfaan Ali underscores their narrow self-serving and destructive agenda.

A boycott against one’s own people, for the mere act of engaging in dialogue with their nation’s leader, strikes at the heart of the type of skewed democratic values and freedom of expression that underpin the political ideology being

cultivated by the unpatriotic anti-Guyanese activists.

Let it be clearly understood from this boycott call, that individuals who resist the allure of hollow rhetoric find themselves unjustly punished and tarnished, facing what can only be described as a public lynching orchestrated by the racists and propagandists.

This campaign of defamation and intimidation against those who choose to think independently or seek unity across divisions is a stark reminder of the dangers posed by those who wield misinformation and fear-mongering as tools of control in furtherance of their sophistry and divisive political aims.

These tactics are contrary

to the interests of the AfroGuyanese community, which Burke and Benschop claim to champion.

We must unequivocally reject this poisonous strategy of pitting our countrymen and women one against the other, and call on all leaders and activists at home and across the Diaspora to adopt and embrace approaches that truly

enhance justice, equality, and progress for all Guyanese.

Let us not be deceived by those who scampishly exploit genuine grievances for their personal gain.

Sincerely, Kwame McCoy Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister

Students must have the right to peaceful protest on their campuses

Dear Editor, Ivy League universities across the United States are on edge amid arrests of pro-Palestinian demonstrators this past week and mounting tension between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protesters over the war in Gaza. Columbia University has been thrust into turmoil in the last week, reeling from a congressional hearing on antisemitism with President Nemat Shafik and NYPD’s arrest of more than 100 protesters in support of Palestinians on Columbia University’s lawn, including Isra Hirsi, the daughter of Ilhan Omar, a Democrat in the United States House of Representatives. During a news conference following the arrests, the NYPD Commissioner, Edward Caban, said: “The students that were arrested were peaceful, offered no resistance whatsoever, and were saying what they wanted to say.”

On the Yale University campus, authorities arrested 47 protesters on Monday, the university said in a statement. Although, the students who were arrested have been referred for disciplinary action, the encampment at Yale has continued since Friday, with protesters demanding that Yale divest from military weapons manufacturers.

Several protesters were also arrested from NYU following an encampment organised by the NYU Palestine Solidarity Coalition. The NYU Alumni for Palestine website details a list of demands in an open letter to NYU’s leadership which was signed by 2410 alumni calling on NYU leadership to shut down NYU’s Tel Aviv campus which “bars Palestinian students, faculty and affiliates from accessing academic opportunities at the site because of their ethnicity”, contradicting “NYU’s principles of academic freedom and egalitarianism”. Additionally, the letter calls on leadership to re-evaluate the involvement of NYU, particularly its Tandon School of Engineering, in

The Ivy League school’s lush campus on the Upper West Side of Manhattan is known for many things. It’s where the popular TV show “Gossip Girl” was often filmed. It’s where Barack Obama finished his bachelor’s degree and Hilary Clinton is now a professor. And now, this past Monday in an unprecedented power move, Columbia University witnessed a massive faculty walkout, where educators condemned the institution for calling the Police on student protesters.

arms research and development, and to cease collaboration with arms manufacturers.

Inspired by protests at Columbia University, pro-Palestinian camps have been set up at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Tufts University and Emerson College. At MIT, protesters also have asked the university to stop what they say is funding from the Ministry of Defence in Israel to university projects with military objectives.

Students at Brown, Princeton and Northwestern held protests on Friday and over the weekend.

Other institutions that saw protest actions included Boston University, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Last week, the University of Southern California faced intense backlash after it cancelled the valedictorian speech of a Muslim student, Asna Tabassum. While the university cited security concerns for cancelling the speech, Ms Tabassum, a biomedical engineering major, said in a statement that she was “shocked” and “profoundly disappointed” by the decision. And she questioned the school’s motivation.

After the decision to cancel her speech, the administration has faced several days of protests calling for Ms Tabassum’s reinstatement as a speaker.

If the university can accommodate speeches by Ben Shapiro and Milo Yiannopoulos and host President Obama and the King of Jordan at its graduations, surely it can bear whatever burden comes with celebrating Asna Tabassum as its valedictorian.

It is concerning that schools might decline to select a qualified visibly Muslim student who advocates for Palestine, to avoid what happened at USC. Schools are going to do more harm than good if they try to censor and silence commencement speakers, and especially students who have received the honour of speaking at their graduation ceremonies.

These protests take place at a sensitive time on campuses, which have seen widespread protests, largely calling for ceasefire and divestment, over the last few months.

Throughout history, wars have begun and ended. Leave our educational institutions alone. Were we to join together in working toward a peaceful resolution to the slaughter and famine in

How to avoid the Dutch Disease

Dear Editor,

Developing countries such as ours need to avoid the Dutch Disease or else face the ignominy of wallowing in abject poverty while that same natural wealth abounds all around us. This is not an idle statement by any means, it is as real as noonday, and we do not have to go very far to witness the dire results of this failure.

The experiences of our neighbour Venezuela are ever before us, for a country that has the largest deposits of crude oil in the world; however, the path chosen by successive administrations have seen a downward spiral in the state of affairs of that country. The reason for this is a country stricken by The Dutch Disease!

Now, what is the dreaded Dutch Disease? Dutch Disease is an economic phenomenon, where the rapid development of one sector of the

economy (particularly a natural resource) precipitates a decline in other sectors.

Closer to home, that definition is reflective of what have started here in Guyana and for which we were well on the way to being bankrupt in a few years. We’ve seen the closure of four productive sugar estates and a huge downgrade in the agricultural sector overall. We are talking about a major contraction of traditional crops that have sustained this country throughout its formative years, only to shut them down to focus on the developing oil sector.

Placing so much emphasis on one sector virtually starves others, especially those in the income-generating or productive sectors. Other areas of gross mismanagement can be seen in the PNC-led coalition’s fuelling monies into non-productive areas such as a Ministry of Social Cohesion

and Durban Park. These were Ministries set up to siphon off monies into dubious avenues; in other words, these were “slush funds” set up to open the floodgates of corrupt Government transactions. To answer the question why many countries go down the crippling path of underdevelopment, the above data expresses this fact.

Even the use of first oil monies was shrouded in mystery during the coalition years, which was a clear sign to this nation of what was to come, with no vision as to where this country was going, meant that Guyana was in the welcoming arms of an economic disaster and headed for the dumps. The combination of poor planning and corruption was a recipe for disaster, and a sure curse of the Dutch Disease.

Contrast the coalition’s approach to that of the present-day PPP/C Government,

and we see a marked difference; there is the expansion of the traditional agricultural sector while there is the introduction of improved, genetically-adaptive animals and plants. This augurs well for the future as we are assured that we would not be under the curse of the dreaded Dutch Disease.

Further, every dollar earned from sovereign wealth is public knowledge, as well as the developmental works financed from that sovereign wealth, which are also in the national domain. It, therefore, increases public trust in the Government, that their interest is in good hands.

Finally, all sectors must develop at a simultaneous pace, no one sector being more highly favoured than another.

Respectfully submitted,

Neil Adams

Gaza, I can almost promise you: the rancour, the unrest, the division in academia is not a permanent situation that anyone expects or desires to perpetuate. It’s not conducive to learning.

Colleges and universities have long been hotbeds for activism, playing an important role in shaping public sentiment on controversial issues. University students should be supported and not prevented from participating in activism. Instead of punishing students for living up to the responsibility cast aside by leaders and lawmakers, they should be applauded.

Students must have the right to peaceful protest on their campuses. Let’s not forget that student-led protests and campaigns played a key role in supporting Mandela’s anti-apartheid movement in the 1980s. It is this resurgent student protest movement, on issues ranging from fees and cuts to fossil fuel divestment and work-

ers’ rights, which is now under threat.

The increasingly harsh and violent policing and intimidation tactics from campus security services, the punitive suspensions, bizarre bail conditions and mass arrests students have faced in recent weeks represent a complete lack of foresight from university managers and serve only to recruit more students to their causes.

Students want better representation of their views throughout their institutional structures and are willing to engage positively and constructively to this end. Instead of seeking to suppress this critical engagement with the key issues of our time – vice-chancellors should welcome and encourage their input. After all, isn’t that what their institutions were founded to do?

Sincerely,

Hana Mohamed-Dmitriyev

Page Foundation

◄ Module test 2

Complete the following test items

1) Robby bought a scale that records weight digitally. His small luggage bag weighs 10.49 kilograms, his laptop bag (laptop included) weighs 5 kilograms and his suitcase weighs 35.554 kilograms. What is the total weight of his items, in grams? If a passenger is only allowed to carry 55 kilograms of luggage onto a flight, will Robby’s luggage exceed the limit?

2) Which city is wetter? On which day is the difference in precipitation greatest?

3) Which pastry is most popular? On which day was the most pastries sold?

In this fun and easy human body science experiment, we’re going to explore and investigate seeing things when they are actually gone.

Materials:

Scissors

Coloured pencils

3 x 5 index card

Tape Pencil

4) Paul is looking at a solid figure that has no faces, no vertices, and no edges. What solid figure is he looking at?

5) Julie puts 6 $5 coins, 13 $10 coins and 4 $20 bills in a hat. If you were to reach into the hat, what is the probability that you pick

A) A $5 coin?

B) A $10 coin?

C) A $20 bill?

Invisible images

Instructions: Cut the index card into halves.

On one side, draw a bird in the middle of the card.

On the other side, draw a bird cage in the middle of the card.

Tape the cards back to back at the end of the pencil. Now rub the pencil very quickly between the palms

of your hands until the bird seems to appear in the cage.

How it works: The device we have created is actually called a thaumatrope. As the device spins quickly back and forth from image to image, the image persists as there are no significant interruptions to the light entering the eye.

This creates the illusion that the bird is in the cage.

Make this a science project: Try different colours, sizes, and shapes of drawings. Try drawing images on different background colours. Try using glow paint to create images to see if the illusion works in the dark. (sciencefun.org)

BY CHARLES E CARRYL

People would laugh if you rode a giraffe, Or mounted the back of an ox;

It’s nobody’s habit to ride on a rabbit, Or try to bestraddle a fox.

But as for a Camel, he’s

Ridden by families—

Any load does for me!

“A snake is as round as a hole in the ground,

And weasels are wavy and sleek;

And no alligator could ever be straighter

Than lizards that live in a creek.

But a Camel’s all lumpy

And bumpy and humpy—

Any shape does for me!”

WORD SEARCH

Guyana took credible steps to identify & punish persons for human rights abuses – US State Dept

…says no significant changes in human rights situation in Guyana for 2023

The United States (US) State Department has given Guyana a green light when it comes to the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government’s human rights record last year, noting in its latest country report that the government “took credible steps” to identify and punish those accused of human rights abuses.

In its 2023 Human Rights Report on Guyana, the US State Department identified significant human rights issues as the “arbitrary or unlawful killings, including extrajudicial killings; extensive gender-based violence, including domestic or intimate partner violence and sexual violence; laws criminalising consensual samesex sexual conduct between adult men, which were not enforced; and existence of the worst forms of child labor.”

The report noted that there were no significant changes in the human rights situation of Guyana last year from the government. Further, the report explained that the government “took credible steps to identify and punish officials who may have committed human rights abuses.”

According to the report, there were no allegations of disappearances by, or on behalf of the government, nor were there any credible reports of torture or any other form of “cruel, inhuman

or degrading treatment or punishment” being made.

It explained that arbitrary arrest and detention is prohibited by the constitution and that persons had a legal right to challenge the lawfulness of their arrest or detention in court.

According to the report, these requirements were generally observed by the government.

The report did reference the case of the New Year’s Day fatal shooting of a Police corporal and a fisherman, which resulted in two Police ranks being placed on open arrest. Police Corporal Dwayne McPherson, 31, who had been stationed at the Mahaicony Police Station, and 20-year-old fisherman Kishan Budburgh of Grove, Huntley, Mahaicony, were both killed. Eventually, charges were filed against Officer Shane James.

The report’s other observances were that “the constitution provided for the right to a fair and public trial, and the judiciary generally enforced this right. While the law recognised the right to legal counsel, this right was lim-

ited to those who could afford to pay, except in cases involving capital crimes. Although there was no formal public defender system, a defendant in a murder case that reached the High Court could receive a court-appointed attorney.”

Only last month, Guyana participated at the United Nations 140th Session of the Human Rights Committee held in Geneva, Switzerland. Accompanying Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Minister

Gail Teixeira on the Guyanese delegation before the UN Human Rights Committee were representatives from the Ministries of Health; Home Affairs; Human Services and Social Security; Natural Resources; Amerindian Affairs; and Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; Guyana Prison Service; Guyana Police Force; Guyana Geology and Mines Commission; Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions; and

the Permanent Mission of Guyana to the United Nations Office at Geneva. The Human Rights Committee’s 140th session was held from March 4 to March 28, 2024.

In January, it was revealed that there are nine human rights complaints that were filed by local organisations against the Guyana Government to international bodies –Government views as the confidence of these local entities in the reporting system rather than a human right violation.

Between 1999 to 2015, only four Petitions were filed against Guyana at the various international agencies such the United Nations’ (UN’s) Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), an arm of the Organization of American States (OAS). On the other hand, none was filed from 2015 to 2020. (G3)

Chief Magistrate among 10...

Justice CummingsEdwards disclosed in January that the JSC had begun the interviews for these vacant positions.

The JSC was appointed last year after a sixyear hiatus, and the acting Chancellor had said the Judiciary was “deeply grateful” to the Head of State for reconvening this very important Commission to help the court in the discharge of its functions.

Since the reformation of the JSC, Justice Cummings-

Edwards said, its members have been tackling the backlog in cases and staff matters.

“It is obvious that after an absence of the Commission, there would have been lots of outstanding work. The members have been working assiduously to build the secretariat and to create positions for the better functioning of the Judiciary,” she had explained.

Based on the Constitution, a Puisne Judge shall hold office until

he/she attains 65 years, and the basic salary for this position is $1,425,065 monthly, along with allowances.

A Land Court Judge holds office until he/she reaches 55, and is paid $1,167,923 monthly, together with allowances.

A Magistrate shall hold office until he/she attains the age of 55. Salary and benefits include a total basic salary of $880,885 per month plus allowances. The Deputy Registrar will remain in office until the age of 55. The

position’s total base pay is $754,284 a month and also includes allowances.

Persons appointed will be required to serve a probationary period of at least six months. On satisfactory completion of the period of probation, the appointees will be confirmed.

Reports state that an additional advertisement will be made for Appeal Court Judges, of which there are now just three in office, despite the law providing for nine. (G8)

Driver dies after crashing into shop at Farm

A27-year-old driver lost his life on Wednesday morning after the car he was driving crashed into a shop on the Farm Public Road, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

Dead is Derek Kisoon of Lot 2192 Tuschen, EBE. The incident occurred at around 02:15h, Police said.

Reports are that that Kisoon was driving motorcar, PVV 8589, with another occupant Shazim Hanif, 25, of Zeelugt, East Bank Essequibo.

Investigations revealed that Kisoon was proceeding west along the southern drive lane of the said public road, allegedly at a fast

rate of speed, and while approaching a turn, he lost control of the vehicle, collided with a shop, and ended up in a trench on the southern the public road.

Video recordings seen by this publication showed public-spirited citizens breaking the windshield of the car to rescue Kisoon

and Hanif. They were later placed in the back of a police vehicle and taken to the Leonora Cottage Hospital, West Coast Demerara.

At the hospital Kisoon was pronounced dead on arrival while Hanif was admitted as a patient.

Meanwhile, Kisoon’s body was escorted to Ezekiel Funeral Home awaiting a post-mortem examination. Investigations are ongoing. (G9)

Essequibo

Twenty-six-year-old Kwesi Griffith, a miner of Westbury Village, Essequibo Coast, Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) was remanded to prison on Tuesday on a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.

This offense is contrary to Section 16(2)(a) of the Firearms Act, Chapter 16:05, and 'unlawful possession of ammunition without license', contrary to Section 16(2)(a) of the Firearms Act, Chapter 16:05.

Griffith appeared at the Bartica Magistrate's Court before Magistrate Teriq Mohamed. He pleaded not guilty to both offenses and was remanded to prison. The case will continue on May 15.

Telling it…

…as Mad Maduro is

If Guyanese needed to learn about the danger that Mad Maduro represents not only to Guyana but the region and the world, they didn’t have to go farther than the “Eighth Concordia Americas Summit” held at the University of Miami last Monday and Tuesday, focusing on sustainable and inclusive growth and strengthening democracy. At that meet were OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro; former President of Colombia, Iván Duque; Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, Terrance Drew; Combatant Commander of US Southern Command, Gen Laura Richardson, and our Foreign Secretary, Robert Persaud.

Iván Duque, a lawyer, was at the helm of Colombia from 2018-2022 and before that integrally involved in its politics at various levels – including the IDB. He has good reason to observe and evaluate Mad Maduro and for years has been insisting that the latter was a war criminal for what he’d done to the Venezuelan people – and a drug trafficker to boot. Colombia had borne the largest burdens of dealing with the tsunami of refugees fleeing Mad Maduro’s mayhem. He’d tried to destabilise Colombia by supporting rebels in that country. Not coincidentally, as Duque just finished making his presentation, Mad Maduro was grilled by the Head of the International Criminal Court as he faces an ongoing investigation by the tribunal into crimes against humanity for his crackdown on anti-government protests. Back in 2019, Duque had submitted a dossier to that effect to the UN.

Late last year, he reiterated: "I think the tragedy of Venezuela is evident. More than six million people have left the country. The economy has been absolutely destroyed… and the migration is going to continue. And sadly, I believe many people look at Maduro as a hot potato that nobody wants to handle. So that's sad, because he's going to use that sentiment of being a hot potato to keep himself in office. And try to keep on brutalising the Opposition and consolidating his power. I think the international organisations, the international community needs to put more pressure on the regime and obviously needs to put more pressure to guarantee imminent, rapid, trustworthy — with international scrutiny — democratic elections." At Concordia Americas, he warned: “We have seen that every single step to loosen the sanctions has been taken by Nicolás Maduro to affect the democratic resistance.”

While not calling Mad Maduro by name, OAS’s Almagro was clear: “If you see dictatorships in the region, they are complete failures. Social failures. Migration failures. Humanitarian crises. Migration crises. They have the whole package. So, we need to address the basics and democracy is point one.”

It’s your Eyewitness’s hope the US and others are listening – their turn to be destabilised by Venezuela might be next!!

Forewarned is forearmed??

…about US

The US is circling the wagons as its hegemony in the postWWII world is increasingly challenged by China and others in the latter’s camp. So we see in the Bill just passed by the US Congress – US$61 billion was for Ukraine to continue the war against China’s ally Russia’s onslaught. Most analysts feel this is a lost cause and Putin’s simply waging a war of attrition to wear out the US and the NATO allies!! He’s done a good job up to now, and it was only by the hair on Biden’s chinny chin-chin that the Bill was passed.

The sweetener was that Israel got US$26 billion for its genocidal onslaught against Hamas in Gaza; there was US$8 billion for Taiwan and allies in the Indo-Pacific – all in China’s sight. The US took its hybrid war against China to another height with its direction that Chinese Tik Tok must sell its US operations or be banned thereafter!!

How about funds for that base and arming Guyana??

…on being deprived

Hamilton Green heard Ex-PM Naga was prevented from getting into the VIP lounge at CJIA – with free snacks –and fears he’ll be next!! With that huge pension Granger bestowed, can’t he buy plantain chips at the stand?? Or it’s a status thing??

Public-spirited citizens breaking the windshield to get the injured men out

The car that was involved in the accident

Dead: Derek Kisoon

Gas-to-Energy, Harbour Bridge Projects

Over 240 properties being acquired by Govt

The Government is in the process of acquiring over 200 private properties in order to facilitate the construction of the Gas-to-Energy (GtE) project on the West Bank of Demerara.

Additionally, more than 48 private properties are to be acquired to facilitate the connecting highways associated with the new Demerara River Bridge.

This is according to Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall whose office joined the negotiations with the private owners last year.

During his weekly live programme ‘Issues in the News’ on Tuesday, Nandlall said those citizens have all been cooperating with the Government.

The GtE pipeline to transport natural gas to the Wales Power plant will be constructed from Crane foreshore to Wales, West Bank Demerara (WBD), passing through several villages. Nandlall said the owners are all cooperating with the Government.

“We have over 200 private properties we have to acquire and we are acquiring it in Canal No. 1 and Canal No. 2, Wales, Viva La Force, La Grange, Bagotstown and other villages. Everyone is cooperating because they understand the importance and

nature of the project… They are sitting and negotiating with the government who is giving land in some cases, money in some cases and, land and money in some cases; they have no problem,” he said.

The offshore pipeline is approximately 220 kilometres of a subsea pipeline that will run from the Destiny and Unity Floating, Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels in the Stabroek Block. Upon landing on the West Coast Demerara shore, the pipeline will continue approximately 25 kilometres to a natural gas liquids processing plant (NGL Plant) at Wales.

As it relates to the Demerara Harbour Bridge,

Nandlall reported that the administration acquired over 48 land/properties to construct the bridge and the connecting highways.

It was reported in October 2023 that the Government has to acquire lands at Nandy Park and Continental Park on the East Bank Demerara, where the alignment eastern side of the US$260 million Bridge will end.

Nandlall said on Tuesday evening that those properties were purchased. “We have bought out their properties, give them land, give them houses, bought out their land so that the bridge can be constructed, they included Indo-Guyanese, Afro-Guyanese and some Chinese Guyanese,” the

AG said, as he responded to comments of AfroGuyanese being “thrown off” their lands at Mocha, EBD.

The Mocha residents refer to seven squatters in

the path of the East Bank Highway who were removed by the Government to allow the road works to continue.

The attorney general referred to other proj -

ects completed by the Government in the past including the Hope Canal and the Berbice Bridge where private lands had to be acquired to facilitate developmental projects.

Vagrant shot while standing outside ECD bar

Aman, whom police identified as a vagrant, is currently hospitalised after being shot in the leg while standing in front of a bar in East Bank Demerara (EBD).

Detectives from Regional Division 4’B’ (EBD) are investigating the incident, stated that the shooting occurred on Monday at the Lambada Bar, Providence Public Road, EBD. The injured man has been identified as Raj Mohammed.

Reports are that at about 11:45h., Mohammed was standing in front of the bar when someone approached and shot him in his left lower leg. The perpetrator then fled the scene.

The incident was reported to the police, who visited the scene and found the injured man.

He was subsequently taken to the Georgetown

Public Hospital, where he is currently hospitalised. Investigations are ongoing.

Earlier this month, another 49-year-old vagrant was found stabbed to death at Water and Holmes Streets, Georgetown. Police identified him as Edward Bramnarine, better known as ‘Eddy’.

A female vendor discovered the man dead around 11:30h while walking home. Police reported that

the woman, who had known the man for 18 years, noticed him lying motionless and bleeding from a wound to the left side of his chest. She immediately called for an ambulance, and upon arrival, a doctor pronounced the man dead at the scene.

Detectives were summoned and described the wound on the left side of his chest as a stab wound. They also noted a cut to his right wrist . (G9)

Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall

There is no official title as “shadow minister” – Nandlall

Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall has made it pellucid that there is no official title as “shadow minister”.

In this regard, he has ridiculed Opposition Members of Parliament, who attribute the term ‘shadow minister’ to their official titles.

“In the British system, there is a tradition…you are assigned responsibility and they loosely call it ‘shadow’, you are shadowing this minister. In Guyana, these people take it and make it

a title, they have it on their cards, they sign their names. I saw Amanza Desir signed her name and below it, has ‘Member of Parliament’ and ‘Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs’. These people think that this is real thing, that it is an actual title,” Nandlall expressed.

Moreover, he explained that during a parliamentary sitting, if he is not present, there cannot be a “shadow attorney general”. “Check the definition of what ‘shadow’ means. I have to be there to cast the

shadow, because I’m the real thing, I’m the object. So, when they say there’s a ‘shadow attorney general’, if I am not there, there is no shadow…if I am not in the Parliament, they cannot have a shadow attorney general because my object is not there to reflect a shadow…”

It has been common practice for Opposition Members of Parliament to be assigned portfolios alongside that of sitting Ministers of Government, when attending sittings of the National Assembly.

Region 8 cops boost security to deter criminals hiding out

Police in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) are taking a firm stance against criminals, who seek to utilise their communities are hideouts. According to Commander Superintendent Khalid Mandall and Deputy Commander Superintendent Marlon Taylor, plans have been devised to weed out such criminal elements and further, thwart the incursion of criminals from other areas into their communities.

Speaking on the police program ‘Traffic and You’ the Commanders unveiled the robust security plan aimed at dissuading criminals from seeking refuge within the region’s borders.

Pointing to recent incidents whereby criminals had escaped to Region Eight in a bid to evade arrest, Commander Senior Superintendent Khalid Mandall and Deputy Commander Superintendent Marlon Taylor have made it clear that they are clamping down on these practices.

Their intensified vigilance, they claim, will make it increasingly difficult for offenders from neighbouring regions to find safe harbour within Region Eight.

Recognising the significance of cooperation in upholding law and order, Mandall and Taylor highlighted their active cultivation of relationships with neighbouring law enforcement agencies and community organisations. They emphasised that these alliances have proven vital in augmenting intelligence sharing and enabling concerted actions to combat emerging threats.

Deputy Commander Taylor emphasised that,

Region 8 is not a sanctuary for criminals. He remarked, “You have to pass Mango Landing, at some point, you have to pass Karasabai to get to Monkey Mountain at our Southern end, and at our Northern end, we would have enjoyed an 83,000 KM outpost with Region Seven… it’s all four borders of our administrative region. In addition to that, we have a good working relationship with the Regional Democratic Council, which has resulted in a lot of apprehensions…”.

“If you are a criminal and you have studied the Police’s operation, you cannot stay ahead of the police. Our Region boasts the highest return of community outreach. And we have a good community relationship; these communities are more family-like,” Taylor added.

Meanwhile, Commander Mandall echoed sentiments, stressing the collaborative effort among law enforcement agencies to bolster security along regional borders. He noted that one of the challenges they face in the Region is the distance they must travel to respond to certain crimes.

“We have developed a solid relationship with everyone to the extent that when some-

thing is happening, the flow of information is very rapid... and with that, we can proudly announce that we’ve achieved a 100% decrease in serious crimes, which I doubt any other region can claim, and we’ve seen an 84.3% decrease in traffic offenses compared to last year,” Mandall declared.

“Sometimes the Amerindian villages are farflung…one of the main challenges we are facing is the distance we would have to travel to respond to reports. But I am proud to say that we have developed good relationships with everyone in all those villages to the point where something is happening the information flow is very quick”.

The announcement follows mounting concerns among Guyanese citizens regarding the influx of criminal elements from neighbouring regions. Recent incidents have underscored the need for proactive measures to prevent the Potaro Siparuni from becoming a haven for fugitives and lawbreakers.

The implementation of heightened security measures, according to the Commanders, underscores the Police’s commitment to maintaining order and safety within Region Eight. (G9)

File photo: Members of the Opposition in Parliament during the 2024 Budget debate

Region Eight Commander, Senior Superintendent Khalid Mandall and Deputy Commander, Superintendent Marlon Taylor

UN Palestinian Committee lauds Guyana for $110M support for relief efforts

President Dr. Irfaan Ali on Wednesday received a courtesy visit from representatives of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP), a committee mandated by the United Nations General Assembly in order to promote the rights of the Palestinian people, support the peace process and to mobilise assistance to the Palestinian

people.

According to a brief statement from the Office of the President, the Committee members, during their engagement with the President at State House, expressed their gratitude towards the Guyanese leader and the people of Guyana for their voice in support of the people of Palestine, especially during its presidency of the UN Security Council.

They also expressed their

gratitude to the Guyanese people for raising over $110 million to support relief efforts.

"During the meeting, the President reiterated Guyana’s commitment to the principles of justice, fairness, peace and equity. He also reaffirmed the country’s hope for a two-state solution," the statement from the President's Office reads.

The delegation was

led by the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Guyana, Yeşim Oruç and featured Permanent Representative of Senegal to the UN and Chair of the Committee, Ambassador Cheikh Niang; Permanent Representative of Cuba to the UN and Vice Chair of the Committee, Ambassador Ernesto Soberón Guzmán; Permanent Observer of Palestine to the UN, Ambassador Riyad Mansour

and Senior Political Officer and Secretary of the Committee, Patrice Chiwota.

Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary of the Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ministry, Ambassador Elisabeth Harper; Guyana's Ambassador to Caricom, George Talbot and Director of Presidential Affairs, Marcia Nadir-Sharma were also a part of the meeting.

$110M in funds

Upon the culmination of the holy month of Ramadan 2024, a total of $110,815,105 in humanitarian aid was raised by Guyana for the people of Palestine.

The fund-raising initiative was launched by President Ali on the 27th night of Ramadan, which Muslims believe to be the “Night of Power”.

The funds raised have since been handed over to President Ali where it will be delivered to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) to assist

those affected by the ongoing war.

"While Guyana’s Muslim community is a small percentage of the overall population of the country and it is certainly not a community with great means, the amount raised is a testimony to their spirit of generosity and willingness to sacrifice wealth to help the Palestinian people. It was heart-warming to see the overwhelmingly positive response of Guyanese citizens from all walks of life to the images of death and destruction in Gaza, the West Bank and those living in the remarkable city of Jerusalem, home of Al-Masjid AlAqsa, Islam’s third holiest site," the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) had expressed in a statement on the initiative.

"We commend President Ali for his astute leadership and public position he has taken on the ongoing war in demanding an immediate end to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and the brutal occupation of Palestinian lands," the CIOG had added. (G11)

1000 house lots distributed at Nonpareil, Enterprise …new applicants urged to be patient as Govt working on new housing schemes …pre-2019 applicants urged to use online portal to update info

The Housing and Water Ministry, through the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), on Wednesday hosted their Dream Realised Housing Drive on the East Coast of Demerara, where one thousand individuals representing the pre-2019 backlog, were given the chance to become landowners.

The front lawns of the Arthur Chung Conference Center (ACCC) were transformed as approximately one thousand prospective landowners gathered to pull lot numbers. The beneficiaries are being allocated lots at Nonpareil-Phase 2 and Enterprise-Phase 2 on the East Coast of Demerara.

According to Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal, the government has big plans for these two housing schemes, which will together accommodate approximately 3,000 house lots. He also noted the importance of these allocations, which will help clear the over 40,000 house lot backlog that has been in the system since before 2019. Croal revealed that $18.2 Billion is being spent on infrastructure this year by the ministry, including in Nonpareil and Enterprise.

“This year, we have about $18.2 Billion being spent for infrastruc-

ture development. And these include areas such as Good Hope, Nonpareil and Enterprise, various phases and blocks. More than 25 acres of land being catered for 7,582 residential lots.”

“For Region Four, we have also begun the construction of over 2,307 houses that are at various stages. Which means some have been completed and persons are already living there. Some are nearing completion. And some, obviously, construction has now commenced,” he further explained.

Meanwhile, Minister within the Housing Ministry, Susan Rodrigues, also stressed the need for persons waiting on house lots to be patient, as the

government is hard at work making land available. Rodrigues also noted that there is an online portal designed to make the house lot allocation process more transparent. She encouraged persons to make use of it.

“Whenever we pull names or applications from our system to call people for allocations, many times a large amount of the phone calls we make we can’t reach people. People are constantly moving and changing their telephone numbers.”

“And that poses a very significant challenge for us

at the Ministry when we need to get you. And some people say, when they come in, that they know somebody who was called. They applied the same year as them, but they didn’t get a call.”

The minister noted, however, that when the Ministry does check its records, it is to see that such applicants were indeed contacted with the offer of a house lot, but could not be reached due to incorrect information. She noted that this is a daily occurrence at the Ministry.

“And that’s why, as a fur-

ther installment of our commitment, we launched 10 or 12 days ago, an online platform. We set up this platform for people who have applied at the Ministry 2019 and prior. Because as we said, we’re treating the backlog with priority. So, if you have an application, 2019 and prior, you can use this online platform, enter your information, update it if it has changed. And we’ll be able to reach you,” Minister Rodrigues said.

Earlier this month, some 1,500 residents of Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara) received their house lots during the Housing and Water Ministry’s first ‘Dream Realised’ housing drive for 2024 at the Guyana Water Incorporated’s (GWI) compound at Klein Pouderoyen, West Bank Demerara

The recipients were allocated lands at Wales Phase Two housing development, which is scheduled for massive upgrades this year. The new scheme would accommodate about 5,000 residents and would be outfitted with a nursery, primary and secondary schools; a post office, a playground, a police station, a daycare center, a magistrate’s court, and other amenities.

As part of its manifesto, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had promised to deliver 50,000 house lots by the end of its first term in office; the Government has allocated $75 billion in its 2024 budget to continue the housing programme. Some 10,000 house lots are scheduled to be distributed this year. (G3)

UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) meeting with President Dr. Irfaan Ali; Ambassador Elisabeth Harper; Guyana's Ambassador to Caricom, George Talbot and Director of Presidential Affairs, Marcia NadirSharma

(WBD).

One of the many recipients of house lots at the exercise Housing and Water Minister Colin Croal

A section of the attendees

Diamond-to-Craig 4 lane-highway to

be

completed

this year – Croal …tenders out for highway from Craig to Land of Canaan

Government’s road projects are moving rapidly ahead, among them the Diamond to Craig, East Bank of Demerara (EBD) four-lane Highway which Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal expects will be completed this year.

Last year, the government awarded contracts totaling $11 Billion for the continuation of the new East Bank Demerara four-lane highway from Diamond to Buzz Bee Dam, Craig. During Wednesday’s Dream Realised Housing Drive at the Arthur Chung Conference Center, Housing Minister Collin Croal assured that this project was on track to be completed this year.

“Our other critical projects include, as you see if you go on the East Bank, the extension of the four lanes from the Eccles landfill road from Windsor Estate junction that goes to the East

Bank public road.”

“Then you also have, on the periphery, widening or enhancement works that are being done on Massy Road. Windsor Estate Road. And Greenfield Road. We also have the completion of the Diamond to Craig four lane highway, which will be completed by the end of this year.”

The Diamond to Buzz Bee Dam Road bypass road project involves the construction of concrete drains at Grove, the widening of Back Street, Diamond; Third Avenue, Diamond; and First Bridge, New Grove.

The project is divided into 12 lots and includes the construction of more than 30 reinforced concrete bridges, 8.6 kilometres of reinforced concrete highway road, and two roundabouts. Other phases include the building and widening of bridges to link New Grove to Kaneville and Grove to Good Success. These projects are fund-

ed by the Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) US$100 million loan under the Support Climate Resilient Infrastructure Development programme.

Minister Croal also referenced the Craig to Land of Caanan four lane Highway, for which tenders were recently issued by the Ministry of Housing. In this year’s budget, the government had allocated $69.3 Billion for the highways being built under the Ministry of Housing. This was one of the highways.

“And also, you will see the continuation of the Craig to Land of Caanan four lane highway, for which the tenders are out now. So, it means the construction will commence, this year in 2024,” Minister Croal added.

The first phase of the new East Bank Demerara fourlane highway was the $2.6 Billion Mandela Avenue to Eccles Road, which was

Police to expedite reactivation of inactive traffic lights …collaborating with Public Works Ministry

In response to mount-

ing concerns over the increasing number of inactive traffic lights across the country, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) has initiated discussions with the Public Works Ministry to expedite the reactivation process.

According to officials during an episode of a police programme named “Road Safety and You”, the inactivity of several traffic lights have been attributed to ongoing road works across the country.

Sergeant Winston White, attached to the traffic headquarters in Georgetown, has emphasised the urgency of the situation, stating, that they have seen a significant rise in traffic incidents and congestion due to these inactive traffic lights.

“Recently with the increase of road work, and construction work that has been going on around the country, primarily in Georgetown, some of the regular intersec-

tions that used to be manned by traffic lights, because of the expansion and widening of these roads, some of these traffic lights have become inactive… as recent as last Wednesday, the administration of the Guyana Police Force through the traffic officer had a meeting with the Ministry of Infrastructure...”, he said.

He said that while the Police Force is awaiting the implementation of these lights, the areas where the traffic lights are inactive will be manned by their traffic officers.

“The implementation of the lights is a work in progress… from time to time, you will find police officers even on motorcycles checking these areas to ensure that they are manned properly”, he explained.

Meanwhile, also on the same programme, Sergeant Williams of the Providence Police Station, stated that even with the traffic lights

posing a challenge, there are motorists who contribute to traffic build-up.

As such, he pleaded with motorists who have been involved in minor incidents on the roadway, to promptly clear off the road, to avoid an unnecessary buildup of traffic.

“If you are involved in an accident and your vehicle is on the road, what I will advise you to do, is to mark where your wheels are, and put your vehicles to the corner of the road. You do not have to wait for the traffic rank to arrive on the scene. You being there will cause some amount of obstruction. You and the driver can exchange license and insurance information and drive to the nearest station to report the accident”, the Segreant explained.

In recent years, commuters have expressed concern about malfunctioning traffic lights. In addition to roadworks causing some lights to be inoperable nationwide, instances of vandalism have also been reported.

The government has noted cases of theft and vandalism targeting solar-powered batteries for traffic lights in the capital city, costing millions of dollars to replace. As such, officials emphasize the importance of public cooperation in addressing these criminal acts, highlighting that law enforcement cannot tackle the issue alone. (G9)

commissioned by the PPP/C government back in April of 2022.

The second phase of the road was extended from the Eccles Dumpsite Road all the way to Diamond to the tune of $13.3 billion. The goal is to connect this new highway all the way to Timehri.

Simultaneously, works are ongoing to connect the East Bank of Demerara to the East Coast of Demerara with a bypass road running from Ogle to Eccles.

Region

6

It was announced in January 2022 that Ashoka Buildcon Limited won the contract to construct the Ogle to Eccles Road, ahead of two other Indian companies. Ashoka has built a number of bridges and roads. RITES Limited, also out of India, secured the US$3.2 million contract for the provision of supervisory services for this bypass project.

Since the road construction is being financed by the EXIM Bank of India, it is a condition that companies

from that country execute the various types of works, with assistance/support from local firms.

This project will see the construction of some 7.8 kilometres of road from the East Coast to the East Bank with each of the four lanes being 3.6 metres wide. The Highway will also feature a median in the middle and sidewalks as well as several connector roads especially at the East Bank end to allow for further diversion of traffic. (G3)

preparing for rainy season, Chairman cautions flooding may still occur

Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) is preparing for the upcoming rainy season but Chairman David Armogan is cautioning residents that flooding may still occur, especially if there is high intensity rainfall.

AccuWeather, a private-sector American media company that provides commercial weather forecasting services worldwide, has forecasted that there will be 21 rainy days in Region Six during the month of May with thunderstorms for 12 days.

The current system in the region is geared to take off about one and a half inches of water within a 24hour period.

Armogan on Wednesday said that preparations are ongoing to prepare communities for the rainy season, but he explained that flooding may still occur during times of high intensity rainfall.

“So, if you have very heavy rainfall, you will expect some degree of flooding to take place but we are putting systems in place. We are trying to make sure that all of the drainage systems are cleared and we had discussions with all of the NDCs [Neighbourhood Democratic Councils] to make sure that they clean

the drains and ensure that it is not clogged up.”

However, even as the regional chairman speaks of systems being put in place to negate a negative impact of heavy and continuous rainfall, the main outlets for the water to be sent to the ocean and rivers are all still silted.

“All the outfalls are blocked up at the moment. We cannot really clean the outfalls unless we have heavy rainfall because we will have siltation again and we will have to spend more money because if you dig it out today and then there is no rain for the next two weeks then you will have the same amount of siltation blocking up the outfalls. Once we noticed that the rain begins to fall with some amount of intensity we will start. The contracts have already been awarded. The NDIA [National Drainage and Irrigation Authority] is waiting not to tell the contractors when to start the work because if they start it too early, we would get back siltation and we would be back at square one again,” Armogan explained.

While acknowledging that incessant rainfall will result in water accumulating on the land, Armogan says the regional administration has also made all

preparations based on the current drainage infrastructure.

He explained that they are being cleaned and pumps have been installed at key locations to ensure even during the high tide drainage can still take place if needed.

“All of our pumps are functioning at the moment and so we do not anticipate any great degree of flooding unless we have terrible rainfall.”

Pumps are situated in two of the three towns; New Amsterdam, and Rose Hall Town. There are two in New Amsterdam and two more in Rose Hall Town to cover the Port Mourant to Albion area on the Corentyne. Pumps are also situated at Bolem and Fyrish.

Additionally, pumps have been installed at several other villages along the Corentyne where farming takes place including Number 43 Village, Eversham and Adventure. There are also two pumps in the East Canje area to assist with drainage.

“We have adequate amounts of pumps,” Armogan assured. He said Agriculture Ministry through the NDIA can make more pumps available to the region if needed. (G4)

Sergeant Winston White Sergeant Williams

News

Work ongoing to increase production of corn, soy, onion – Mustapha

The Agriculture Ministry and entities under its guidance are working assiduously to ramp up the production of lucrative crops such as corn, soya, onion and wheat.

During a recent interview, Minister Zulfikar Mustapha disclosed that Government’s collaboration with the private sector to implement the development of corn and soya bean has been very successful.

Some $967.8 million has been budgeted in 2024 to increase the capacity of the Tacama facility which will include the installation of a conveyor system.

Additionally, the agriculture minister further revealed that the 12,000-tonne silo which was built will be extended to a 18,000-tonne silo to process the corn and soya.

He explained that Guyana can save almost US$60 million annually if corn, soya are grown twice per year.

“By the end of this year, we will move corn and soya production roughly to about 12,000 acres. If we do that two times per year, we will produce all the livestock feed and we will save approximately US$60 million annually. At the same time, we will be a net exporter,” he further divulged.

Minister Mustapha continued, “We are now going into large-scale production of corn and soya…We are hoping that, by the end of next year, we can cultivate 25,000 acres of corn and soya”.

Onion Meanwhile, with promising results from onion-cultivation trials, Guyana is poised to fulfil local onion demand by expanding production at the National Agricultural Research and

Extension Institute (NAREI) at Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara.

The government has already developed 10 acres of land for another trial in onion production, following the success of the first crop. The onion project spans 2.6 acres of land and land space for the project continues to increase.

The Brazilian variety of onions, which was imported to reduce the country’s dependence on imports, demonstrated a harvest of about 9.5

tonnes per acre across the 12 beds.

According to Minister Mustapha, onions could be produced twice a year with favourable results.

“We have already started the trial. Last time, we had 18 tonnes per acre. We are looking to increase that. We have started a 10 acre [plot] for another trial in onion production” he said.

During an assessment of the cultivation of high-value crops and the onion project in November, 2023, President

Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali emphasised the importance of strategically focusing on regional markets, anticipating lower import costs and a major boost to national food security.

Wheat

Moreover, the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) has also started the trial for wheat, following the importation of several varieties from Argentina and India.

More strains of wheat are currently being examined for the Guyana Market.

Minister Mustapha emphasised the importance of diversifying markets and reducing dependence on any single region, citing ongoing efforts to explore opportuni-

ties beyond North America.

He noted that the exploration of new wheat varieties aligns with the government’s commitment to advancing the agricultural sector and ensuring sustainable development.

This is why Guyana has also diversified into the cultivation of other crops such as citrus, spices, cocoa, coffee, hemp, millet, wheat, and barley.

These are some of the new crops that are at experimental stages that Guyana intends to add to its crop production in the coming years. The undertaking of traditional and non-traditional crops is all part of efforts geared towards Guyana and the Caribbean region achieving food security by the year 2025. (G1)

Labour Minister reiterates call for Guyanese to prioritise workplace safety …as Ministry hosts 4th

annual OSH expo

The Labour Ministry on Wednesday hosted its fourth annual mini-exhibition and demonstration at its Brickdam Office.

The event, which featured over ten public and private sector agencies and organisations, forms part of activities in observance of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Month being celebrated under the theme, "We are running out of time: Ensuring safe and healthy work now in a changing climate."

Mines.

dents and fatalities.

The event saw the support of the general public, staff from the various entities, and students from multiple schools, including the Tucville Secondary and the North Ruimveldt Multilateral Secondary Schools.

Visitors were sensitised on OSH roles and functions, basic guides to the agriculture, construction, mining and service sectors, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Identification of Workplace Hazards, Safety and Health in Small-Scale Surface

Among the companies who participated in the exhibition was the Ministry’s Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) department, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, Guyana Forestry Commission, Guyana Fire Service, and Guyana; National Insurance Scheme (NIS).

They also received brochures containing information about the role and functions of inspections, overtime and leave, termination & severance, the probationary period, the national minimum wage order and Child Labour.

During his address to the gathering Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton reiterated his call for Guyanese to prioritise safety within the home, workplace, school and public settings.

He noted that Guyana cannot afford to lose another life senselessly, and underscored the importance of wearing safety gears and taking the necessary precautions to prevent harm to oneself.

“It is not just the responsibility of the ministry of la-

bour and the Occupational Safety and Health department… So, mining, construction, my good friends from the forestry commission we have to work together to ensure that foresters do it in a safe way. No more can they just go in there, and all they’re concerned about is a tag to cut the wood and to get it out to make some money,” Hamilton said.

Further, the Labour Minister reminded that safety in the workplace is a fundamental right for all employees and as such, employers must take responsibility to ensure a safe and healthy work environment.

On this point, he stated that his Ministry will continue to educate employees and employers about safe workplace practices to reduce the number of workplace inci-

“No more employers must believe that this is an expense they cannot bare because failure to bare this expense you will have greater expense to deal with when people die or lose limbs or are incapacitated at workplaces,” the labour minister added.

The Labour Ministry kicked off Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Month with a series of activities aimed at promoting workplace safety, raising awareness, and improving health standards across various sectors throughout April.

The official launch of OSH Month took place earlier this month at the Ministry’s headquarters on Brickdam, Georgetown, where a banner was unveiled to mark the occasion.

At the launch, Minister Hamilton announced col-

laboration with the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association to conduct targeted awareness programs in mining and agriculture sectors.

These programs will involve visits to agricultural and mining sites, training sessions, and engagement with stakeholders.

In addition to collaborative efforts with mining and agriculture sectors, various activities including awareness walks, poster-making competitions, and debate competitions will be organized in all ten administrative regions in partnership with the Ministry of Education.

The culmination of OSH Month will be observed on April 28, which is observed as OSH Day. (G1)

Production of corn and soya in the Tacama area

A harvest from the onion trial at NAREI back in January

Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton addressing the exhibition

Around the World OIL NEWS

Oil settles lower as US business activity cools, concerns over Middle East ease

Oil prices fell on Wednesday as worries over conflict in the Middle East eased and business activity in the United States slowed, although a fall in US crude oil inventories put a floor on those losses.

Brent crude futures fell 40 cents, or 0.45 per cent, to settle at US$88.02 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures slipped 55 cents, or 0.66 per cent, to US$82.81.

That reversed some of Brent’s gains earlier in the week, buoyed by a weaker US dollar.

“It appears the fundamentals that we trade with are leaning towards a little settling down in the Middle East,” said Tim Snyder, economist at Matador Economics.

Perceived de-escalation between Iran and Israel could remove another US$5-US$10 a barrel in coming months, Goldman Sachs analysts said in a note. These analysts estimated a US$90 per barrel ceiling on Brent.

US crude stockpiles fell by 6.4 million barrels to 453.6 million barrels in the week ending April 19, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for an 825,000-barrel rise.

The large crude draw was the result of very high crude exports, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo. But it could be a one-off, he said, as preliminary tanker tracking data this week shows lower exports.

US business activity cooled in April to a four-month low, with S&P Global saying on Tuesday that its flash Composite PMI Output Index, which tracks the manufacturing and services sectors, fell to 50.9 this month from 52.1 in March.

The US central bank is expected to start lowering rates this year, which could bolster economic growth and, in turn, stimulate demand for oil.

Elsewhere, Germany’s business morale improved more than expected in April, according to a survey on Wednesday, boosting hopes that the worst may be over for Europe’s biggest economy.

Even as concerns about geopolitical tension in the Middle East eased, the Israel-Hamas conflict continues to rage with some of the heaviest shelling in weeks on Tuesday. Sources on Wednesday said Israel was preparing to evacuate Rafah ahead of a promised assault on the city. (Reuters)

Israel says Rafah assault looms; massive Gaza air strikes end weeks of relative calm

Israeli warplanes pounded the northern Gaza strip for a second day on Wednesday in a fierce assault that has shattered weeks of comparative calm, and Israel said it was moving forward with plans for an allout assault on Rafah in the south.

After an abrupt Israeli pullback at the start of this month, Palestinians at both ends of the Gaza Strip were again fleeing for their lives from bombing they described as some of the war’s worst.

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government said Israel was “moving ahead” with its plans for a ground operation on Rafah but gave no timeline.

Displaced

Western countries, including Israel’s closest ally, the United States, have pleaded with it to hold back from attacking the city on Gaza’s southern edge, which is sheltering more than half the enclave’s 2.3 million persons.

At the White House,

Biden signs Ukraine aid, TikTok ban package after Republican battle

President Joe Biden signed a hard-fought bill into law on Wednesday that provides billions of dollars of new US aid to Ukraine for its war with Russia, notching a rare bipartisan victory for the President as he seeks re-election and ending months of wrangling with Republicans in Congress.

“It gives vital support to America’s partners so they can defend themselves from threats to their sovereignty,” Biden said.

The bill includes US$61 billion in aid to Ukraine and US$26 billion for Israel, as well as US$1 billion in humanitarian assistance to Gaza and US$8 billion to counter China’s military might.

The impact of the legislation was immediate. Biden said he had approved an initial US$1 billion in weapons supplies for Ukraine and that the flow of these arms would start within hours.

The initial aid package includes vehicles, Stinger

air defence munitions, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems, 155-millimetres artillery ammunition, TOW and Javelin anti-tank munitions and other weapons that can immediately be put to use on the battlefield.

Biden, a Democrat who is expected to face Republican former President Donald Trump in the November election, had pressed lawmakers for six months to approve more funding for Ukraine, which has been fighting a full-scale Russian invasion for more than two years. Trump objected to the Ukraine aid, and some Republicans in Congress refused to back it, questioning whether Ukraine could ever prevail.

Biden thanked House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, the top Republican in Washington, for breaking the deadlock on the legislation and vowed to return soon to addressing border security, a top issue for Republicans.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Barbados 'pauses' acquisition of former slavery plantation owned by Tory MP

Barbados will halt the acquisition of a former slavery plantation belonging to a British Conservative Member of Parliament after locals said he should transfer land ownership to the State as a "reparations gesture" for historical wrongs.

Multiple generations of people were enslaved at the 250-hectare Drax Hall plantation in Saint George, Barbados, a Caribbean na-

tion that received at least 600,000 Africans between 1627 and 1833. They were forcibly put to work in sugar plantations, earning fortunes for English owners such as the Drax family. The Drax Hall plantation has belonged to the family since the 17th century and is currently owned by Richard Drax, MP for South Dorset. Barbados' Government has been considering buy-

ing around 21 hectares of the Drax Hall plantation to build homes for low- and middle-income families, according to Prime Minister Mia Mottley.

David Comissiong, Barbados Ambassador to the Caribbean Community (Caricom) and a well-known reparations advocate, said in a statement Drax, a wealthy British MP, was set to receive around £3 million if the deal was to go ahead.

Comissiong said the land of the Drax Hall plantation was "soaked in the blood, sweat and tears" of 30,000 enslaved people who were "worked to death" there and that the MP could take the opportunity to address some of the damage caused by his ancestors by giving up ownership of the plantation.

Comissiong is one of the many advocates calling on Drax to hand over the land.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Washington was still talking with Israel about Rafah and officials from

both countries expected to meet again in person soon.

“We’ve had very detailed discussions ... to talk through not just our concerns, but our view that there is a different way to go about dealing with the Hamas threat in Rafah,” he told reporters.

A senior Israeli defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Israel was poised to evacuate civilians ahead of its attack and had bought 40,000 tents that could house 10-12 people each.

All that remained was for Netanyahu to give the order. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Members of Haiti’s CPT to be sworn in today

The members of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT) will be sworn into office today, a member of the council has confirmed.

Lesly Voltaire said that the ceremony, which was originally scheduled for the National Palace, will now take place at the Villa d’Accueil (Musseau) at 10:00h (local time).

Media reports said that the daily attacks in the Champs de Mars area by criminal gangs and the need to keep the bandits out of the perimeter were the reasons behind the change in venue.

Following the inauguration, the CPT will proceed to the election of the president-coordinator of the transition council, with at least four persons – Louis Gérald Gilles, Lesly Voltaire, Edgard Leblanc Fils and Fritz Alphonse Jean – being among the names earmarked for the position.

The media reports said that the number of guests has been considerably reduced, with each CPT member being allowed to invite 10 people in addition to the diplomatic corps and the consular corps.

Prime Minister Dr Ariel Henry, who was sworn in as Prime Minister with the backing of the international community shortly after the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, has already indicated that he would step down once the CPT is officially installed and a new Prime Minister sworn in ahead of the fresh elections.

Henry is stranded in Puerto Rico having been unable to return home from Kenya where he witnessed the signing of an agreement that would allow the African country to lead a United Nations Security Councilsanctioned Multinational Security Mission (MSS) to

restore peace and security in Haiti.

Earlier this month, both the UN Secretary General António Guterres and the 15-member Caribbean Community (Caricom) grouping welcomed the establishment of the CPT.

For his part, Guterres urged all Haitian stakeholders to continue making progress in putting in place transitional governance arrangements, including the timely appointment of an interim Prime Minister and Government, and the nomination of the members of the Provisional Electoral Council.

Caricom, in welcoming the publication of the decree establishing the CPT, had earlier this month, said it “signals the possibility of a new beginning” for the French-speaking Caricom country.

“Caricom has supported Haiti, its sister nation, through the challenging process of arriving at a Haitianowned formula for governance that will take the troubled country through elections to the restoration of the lapsed State institutions and constitutional government.”

In its statement, Caricom said the CPT “has devised a framework setting out the creation, organisation and functioning of the council, and arrived at a Political Accord that articulates the way forward”.

”The Caricom Heads of Government fully endorse the principles of the Political Accord, and in particular take note of Article 16 which states, “The mission of the presidential council is to put Haiti back on the road to dignity, democratic legitimacy, stability and sovereignty and to ensure the proper functioning of the State’s institutions,” the statement added. (CMC)

Palestinians, who fled their homes owing to Israeli strikes, shelter in a UNRWA-affiliated school, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Deir Al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, April 23, 2024 (Reuters/Ramadan Abed photo)

(March 21-April 19)

(April 20-May 20)

(May 21-June 20)

SOLUTION

(June 21-July 22)

(July 23-Aug. 22)

(Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

(Sept. 23-Oct. 23)

(Oct. 24-Nov. 22)

(Nov. 23-Dec. 21)

Focus on making a difference. Refrain from displaying your actions; you’ll accomplish more if you work quietly behind the scenes. Know your destination and plan your journey.

Act on your behalf and make things happen. Share your concerns with a passionate display of your willingness to go the distance. Make the first move, and opportunity will follow.

Give yourself time to think, get the lowdown and devise a plan. Question anyone using force to push you. When you don’t have clarity, take a pass. Be safe, not sorry.

DAILY HOROSCOPES PEANUTS

Venture down avenues you’ve never been before. Trying something exciting will encourage you to use your skills uniquely. A position or opportunity looks inviting. Network and expand your circle.

Gather the facts and stick to the truth; you’ll deter anyone from pressuring you into doing something unnecessary or detrimental. Let your generous spirit lead the way.

It’s up to you to make the moves that suit you. A lifestyle change can lift your spirits or point you in a better direction. Engage in insightful conversations that offer hope.

Finish what you start. Put more thought into relationships, clear up misunderstandings and share feelings. A financial discrepancy will cause a problem. Get the facts and figures.

Consider your options and you’ll develop a stellar plan to turn a negative into a positive. Follow your heart, use your imagination and direct your energy into whatever brings the best returns. Live life your way.

Keep busy and you’ll deter anyone who wants to interfere in your business. Put more thought into how you earn and spend your money. Don’t give in to anyone dumping unwanted responsibilities on you.

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Make changes to your daily routine that make life convenient. Don’t waste time on the impossible. Personal improvement and opportunity are within reach and will encourage positive results.

(Jan. 20-Feb. 19)

Listen to your heart, intuition and experience; you will get a clear picture of what to do next. Set high goals and discover what to do and say to get what you want. Personal growth is favored.

Personal, financial and emotional gains are within reach, and an opportunity will change your actions. Let go of the past and hope for a better future. Embrace new beginnings.

FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

Pant and Axar star as Capitals cling on to win topsy-turvy thriller over Titans

In a thrilling Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 finish, Rashid Khan nearly took Gujarat Titans home in pursuit of 225 against Delhi Capitals. But Mukesh Kumar held his nerve to defend 19 off the last over as DC completed a thrilling four-run victory. For Rashid to have a shot at chasing down the tall target, GT had B Sai Sudharsan (65 in 39 balls) and David Miller (55 in 23) to thank. They kept GT within touching distance of the climbing required runrate, and for a brief moment in the end, it felt like they had timed their chase perfectly. However, it wasn’t to be, and GT went down to DC for the second time in seven days.

DC themselves had to climb out of a hole to post 224 for 4 after being asked to bat first. Sandeep Warrier’s 3 for 15 in the powerplay had left them struggling at 44 for 3, but Rishabh Pant’s masterful 43ball 88 and Axar Patel’s 66 in 43 from No 3 resurrected their innings. Axar then took three catches and a wicket, and also ably supported Kuldeep Yadav (2 for 29) with the ball to ensure DC did just about enough on the night.

Sudharsan and Miller make it a contest

Shubman Gill fell early to Anrich Nortje, for the fourth time in seven innings, but that did not slow GT down. Wriddhiman Saha struck 30 in his first 12 balls by expertly clearing the infield, while Sudharsan made full use of an early reprieve off Rasikh Salam’s bowling to race off the blocks. They did not let Nortje or Khaleel Ahmed settle in and collected 67 in the powerplay.

But the spinners then bogged Saha down, and Kuldeep dismissed him for 35 in 29 balls. Sudharsan, though, dominated through the middle overs, hitting both seamers and spinners through the off side with cuts both in front and behind square.

He also came down the pitch on occasion before falling to Salam in an attempt to clear long-off.

With Azmatullah Omarzai, Shahrukh Khan, and Rahul Tewatia all falling for single-digit scores around Sudharsan’s dismissal, GT appeared to have lost steam, needing 73 in 24 balls. However, Miller mauled Nortje for three sixes and a four in a 24-run 17th over to give them hope, completing his own half-century off 21 balls along the way.

But Mukesh dismissed Miller in the 18th over and, at the time, it seemed like DC had done enough. But Salam leaked 18 runs in the 19th over to make it a shootout between Rashid and Mukesh in the last over.

Mukesh conceded two fours off the first two balls and then another six off the penultimate delivery, but held his nerve to get the last ball to land so full that Rashid could not find the elevation he needed.

Titans’ spinners neutralised After Warrier’s three-wicket burst had given GT the early advantage, the expectation was that Rashid, Noor Ahmad and R Sai Kishore would strangle DC through the middle overs. But Axar and Pant kept all three at bay with different strategies.

Against Rashid, they only attacked the loose balls,

half-trackers or wide deliveries, and eked out 37 runs off him in four wicketless overs. Against Noor, they attacked to leave him with an economy of 12 in three overs.

the off side. When Mohit went short or slow, Pant hung back and deposited him over the leg side. And when Mohit missed his yorker, Pant sent him over midwicket. Pant got to 88 after helping DC score 31 in the final over, and his assault left Mohit with the worst bowling figures in IPL history – 0 for 73 – and GT needing 225 to win.

Axar’s many contributions

With Warner sitting out, and DC not keen for Pant to bat too early, they pushed Axar as the left-hand batter to bat in the top three. He struck Rashid for slog sweeps over the leg side initially before hitting both him and Noor through the covers off short balls.

Part-timer Shahrukh also faced the same fate before Axar reached his fifty with

Such was Pant and Axar’s domination in their 113-run stand that Gill did not go to Sai Kishore – their Player of the Match from the last outing – till the 19th over, fearing the match-up of two left-hand batters against a left-arm spinner. When Sai Kishore did come to bowl in the penultimate over of the innings, against righthand batter Tristan Stubbs following the dismissal of Axar, he was hammered for six, four, six and four in a 22run over.

Gill then went with the experienced Mohit Sharma instead of Warrier for the 20th, and Pant owned that matchup. When Mohit went full and wide, Pant slapped him over

a boundary off Rashid in the 15th over. He was the majority contributor in the 68-ball 113-run stand with Pant, and it was only in his pursuit of a third six in a row against Noor in the 17th over that he fell on the boundary line, but by then his 66 was already his highest IPL score.

Axar was then a livewire in the field, first back-pedalling at mid-off in the second over to hold on to a catch to dismiss Gill. He was in action again when Saha tried to cut Kuldeep over cover, jumping high and sticking his hands out to pluck the catch. Then, after dropping Sudharsan early in the powerplay, Axar got a

chance at redemption by being at long-off late in the chase to take a tricky one.

With the ball, Axar conceded only two fours and a six in his three overs. Neither Saha nor Miller, both in great touch otherwise, failed to put him away in his spell, and it was

only Sudharsan’s three boundary shots that made him concede 28 in three overs. Axar also dismissed Omarzai in the 11th over, but it was not enough to claim the Player-ofthe-Match award, with that one going to his captain instead. (ESPNcricinfo)

Patel b Kuldeep Yadav 39

Shubman Gill (c) c Patel b Nortje 6

Sai Sudharsan c Patel b Rasikh Salam 65

Azmatullah Omarzai c Fraser-McGurk b Patel 1

David Miller c Rasikh Salam b Mukesh Kumar 55

M Shahrukh Khan c †Pant b Rasikh Salam 8

Rahul Tewatia c †Pant

b Kuldeep Yadav 4

Rashid Khan not out 21

Sai Kishore b Rasikh Salam 13

Mohit Sharma not out 0

Extras (lb 4, nb 1, w 3) 8

TOTAL 20 Ov (RR: 11.00) 220/8

Did not

1-13

Gill, 1.3 ov), 2-95 (Wriddhiman Saha, 9.4 ov), 3-98 (Azmatullah Omarzai, 10.1 ov), 4-121 (Sai Sudharsan, 12.4 ov), 5-139 (M Shahrukh Khan, 14.1 ov), 6-152 (Rahul Tewatia, 15.6 ov), 7-181 (David Miller, 17.3 ov), 8-206 (Sai Kishore,

Khan 1-0-8-0

Sai Kishore 1-0-22-0

Gujarat Titans (T: 225 runs from 20 ovs)

BATTING R Wriddhiman Saha † c

Axar Patel 3-0-28-1

Kuldeep Yadav 4-0-29-2

CWI names 15-man Windies Academy squad for Ireland tour

Cricket West Indies (CWI) recently unveiled the squad selected for the upcoming West Indies Academy tour of Ireland, slated from June 8 to June 29, 2024.

This tour will comprise five matches, encompassing three 50-over matches and two four-day matches against Ireland’s Emerging Men’s Team. It signifies a reciprocal tour following Ireland’s visit to the West Indies in November 2023.

“We continue to be methodical in our approach by exposing our academy players to various opposition and conditions across different formats. This is key to their development and fos-

ters resilience and adaptability,” said CWI Director of Cricket, Miles Bascombe. Nyeem Young will continue as Captain, with Teddy Bishop as Vice Captain for

both formats. “Nyeem’s leadership qualities have been evident throughout his tenure, notably steering the Academy team during the Super50 and West Indies

Championship campaigns. His continued captaincy is a testament to his exceptional leadership skills and contribution to the team,” noted CWI’s High-Performance

Manager, Graeme West, in reference to Young.

Regarding Bishop’s selection as Vice Captain, West highlights, “Teddy Bishop’s elevation to vice captaincy underscores his growing stature within the team. His adept handling of leadership responsibilities during Young’s absence and his invaluable experience with the West Indies A Team and Senior Teams make him an ideal choice for the role.”

Full squad: Captain Nyeem Young, Vice Captain Teddy Bishop, Kadeem Alleyne, Jewel Andrew, Ackeem Auguste, Joshua Bishop, McKenny Clarke, Joshua James, Jordan Johnson, Leonardo Julian,

Johann Layne, Ashmead Nedd, Kelvin Pitman, Ramon Simmonds, and Carlon Tuckett.

It is important to note that Matthew Forde is the only contracted academy player not selected. Forde is vying to be selected for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The coaching and support staff accompanying the squad are as follows: Head Coach: Ramesh

Subasinghe Assistant Coach: Rohan Nurse

Physiotherapist:

West Indies Academy recently defeated Ireland when they toured the West Indies

Back to his best? Rishabh Pant was hitting his trademark shots again

Axar Patel tried to go after the spinners

Rasikh Salam hugs Rishabh Pant

The Ministry of Education (MoE) Ground, Carifesta Avenue will come alive this af - ternoon when the Milo Schools’ Under-18 football tournament semi-finals are contested. Four teams, namely President’s College, Chase’s Academic Foundation,

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced Olympic legend Usain Bolt as an ambassador for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which will be played in the West Indies and USA from June 1-29, 2024.

The announcement comes a few weeks ahead of the start of the biggest cricket carnival spectacle ever that will inspire a new generation of fans. Bolt’s global appeal alongside his out-ofthis-world athletic achievements and ability to transcend boundaries makes him a perfect fit for the biggest T20 World Cup ever.

Bolt created history at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio when he achieved the ‘Triple-Triple’, three gold medals at three consecutive Olympic Games. His journey to worldwide stardom started at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing where he won the 100m, 200m and 4x100m, all in world record times.

Bolt currently holds world records in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m with times of 9.58 secs, 19.19 secs and 36.84 secs. His first world record was in

Dolphin Secondary and Waramuri Primary Top will have the opportunity to book their spots in Sunday’s final, beginning at 16:30h. Guyana Times Sport caught up with the semi-finalists who all exuded confidence.

For President’s College’s Captain, Shemar Barrington, Chase’s Academy is not a fearsome opponent, since anything can happen in the “beautiful game”.

Barrington said, “Yeah, there’s a lot that we have to work on, because, at the end of the day, no team is per-

fect, no player is perfect, no coach is perfect, but I think that we have to argue less, keep composure. Besides that, everything is going good.”

He added about today’s clash with Chase’s, “In football, anything could happen. So, even though they’re a strong team, I think we could do it.”

On the other hand, Chase’s Captain, Bryan Wharton says his team will be taking it one game at a time.

“We need to work on finishing, because we throw

away a lot of goals today [Sunday last}. The team supposed to get beat by like 11, but we didn’t put we chances away,” Wharton shared with this publication.

The Chase’s Academy Captain went on to say, “We ain’t really studying nobody. We just taking a game at a time. We treating every game like a final.”

The second semifinal

Captain Odell Holmes.

Captain Holmes related, “Well, I think my team need to work on bettering their throws and finishing.”

The youngster went on to state, “Yes, I’m 100% sure we’ll take this back to Region One. Confident.”

Taking on Waramuri will be Dolphin Secondary, whose Captain Jamal Williams believes his team has what it

has what it takes. Essentially, we can go all the way if we can put in the works and come out hard,” Williams shared.

In today’s semi-finals, Chase’s Academy and President’s College will battle at 16:30h, while Waramuri and Dolphin go at it from 18:30h. The final is set for Sunday, April 28.

the 100m in 2008 when he posted a time of 9.72 secs in New York. He lowered it to 9.69 secs at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and then to 9.58 secs at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin. He holds the three fastest times ever run: 9.58, 9.64 and 9.69 seconds.

As an ambassador, Bolt will play a key role in promoting the event, starting with a cameo appearance in next week’s release of the event’s official anthem music video alongside iconic artists Sean Paul and Kes. The eight-time Olympic gold medallist will also attend T20 World Cup matches in the West Indies and be part of fan engagement events promoting the sport within the United States.

Bolt expressed his excitement about his new role, saying: “I am thrilled to be an ambassador for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Coming from the Caribbean where cricket is a part of life, the sport has always held a special place in my heart, and I look forward to attending West Indies matches at the World Cup and making a contribution to the growth of cricket globally.”

“While I will, of course, be supporting West Indies at the World Cup, getting the sport into the US is big for cricket. It’s the biggest sports market in the world and the energy that we will bring for the T20 World Cup is a huge opportunity leading towards cricket’s inclusion in the LA Olympics in 2028.”

ICC Chief Executive Officer Geoff Allardice said: “Usain Bolt is a global icon; we are thrilled to have him

on board as an ambassador for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 to engage with a new generation of fans. His passion for cricket is well known, making him the perfect fit for this role. Alongside his world record-breaking achievements and energetic personality, he will add another exciting element to the World Cup.” The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 is set to be action packed with Bolt’s presence

GOA, UNICEF, French Diplomatic Office unveil Paris 2024 exhibit

The Guyana Olympic Association (GOA); the French Diplomatic Office and UNICEF have collaborated to establish an exhibition on the Paris Olympic Games 2024, which are approximately three months away.

The exhibition, which will be housed at the National Library in Georgetown, will be open to public viewing, with a target audience of school-aged children and youth.

As he declared the exhibition open, Prime Minister, Brigadier (Retired) Mark Phillips highlighted Guyana’s alignment with the Olympic values, while expressing a hope to see our athletes on the big stage this year.

“Guyana enthusiastically embraces the spirit of the

Olympic Games. Guyana will be represented in Paris, our athletes will showcase our athletic prowess and do so in the spirit that reflects the Olympic ideals of peace, friendship and respect. In doing so, Guyana plays a vital role in creating a better world, where the Olympic ideals of peace, friendship and respect are upheld and celebrated on the world stage,” Guyana’s Prime Minister articulated.

Earlier, GOA President Godfrey Munroe divulged why the partnership was such an easy one, highlighting that it will build pillars for acceleration of sport involvement.

“As an Olympic Committee, we were quite pleased to partner with the French Embassy. Last year when Chargé D’affaires came for a visit, it was an

easy decision because it fulfils our mandate, which is to mould the values of the Olympics, fair play and all those intrinsic values we would want our kids, our citizens and everyone in our nation to have,” Munroe shared.

He went on to divulge, “The central thrust of this is to ensure that we inspire new generations. So, that they could inspire and aspire because as a developing nation, I think that we are quite poised at this time to leapfrog and to set the foundation and pillars for us to accelerate.”

Nation-wide Blue Water Girls’ U15 tournament set for May 4 kick-off

Next Saturday, May 4, will mark the commencement of three months of female and youth football action as the Guyana Football Federation (GFF)Blue Water Girls’ Under-15 National Secondary School Championship kicks off.

The tournament will reportedly reach some 60 secondary schools across the country, with the exception of Region Eight.

“Our aim is to create an opportunity for people to come together and enjoy the beautiful game, thereby promoting female football development in the short to medium term. We believe that mass participation should be the foundation of our developmental pyramid, as we strive to make more games accessible to everyone, especially young girls,” GFF Technical Director Bryan Jospeh shared in front of prospective players and teachers, gathered at the GFF National Training Centre (NTC), Providence, East Bank Demerara (EBD) for the launch on Wednesday afternoon.

According to Joseph, the upcoming tournament will take on a 9v9 format with the female players competing on a half-pitch every Saturday.

Blue Water Shipping, in keeping with its Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) entered into with the GFF, will be the title sponsor of the developmental tournament. As such, Senior Vice President of Sales at Blue Water, Richard De Nobrega spoke of why the company

continues to support such initiatives.

“I see future football stars sitting among us. I see a huge amount of potential here and it is our duty as a member of the Private Sector, as a company, a partner of the GFF to ensure that the potential that is sitting right here ends up on the world stage, representing Guyana,” DeNobrega expressed.

The Blue Water official went on to share, “We at Blue Water, we’re extremely excited to be here and to be part of this very, very long-awaited and anticipated launch of the Girls’ Under-15 League. We at Blue Water hold sport extremely dear to us. We’re 51, almost 52 years old as an entity globally, and sport has been one of our long-standing values.”

After competition in nine regions across Guyana, each regional winner alongside four other teams will make it to the Round of 16. Contrary to the customary

practice, the Round of 16 will be played in a round-robin format, after which losing teams will continue playing for positions, while winners advance.

GFF President Wayne Forde, while discussing the tournament’s current reach, promised its further expansion in years to come.

“I know we have 116, I believe, secondary schools. I was just reminded by my good colleague and only 60 will be involved in this year’s competition. But I can tell you, over the next four years, we intend to increase the number of participating schools by 10 to 15, each time the tournament rolls out,” Forde explained.

An uncommon feature that will also be employed for the Blue Water U-15 tournament is the ‘Sin-Bin’, which eliminates the use of red cards in a game, rather forcing a player to sit out of the game for three minutes after an offence. The team will play for the three minutes without the player.

As UNICEF’s Deputy Representative Gabriel Vockel touched on how the shared values align with UNICEF’s work, Sport Minister Charles Ramson Jr labelled the activity as the perfect platform to instil such values.

“The Olympic Games are coming up and France is hosting them, so, it’s a pleasure to be part of this partnership with the Association and with the French Embassy here, because it’s all about shared values, which we’ve already mentioned just now. And values, I hope, we would say are really universal. Respect, integrity, trust, accountability, care and sustainability. I was just reflecting: in 2024, it will be the first gender-parity games, it’s kind of about time I think,” Vockel expressed.

On the other hand, Ramson Jr stated, “To achieve global objectives where those objectives are so difficult and challenging, but at the same time, there’s also movements or objectives that are not in alignment, it is important that the partnerships are formed and fortified. The Games represent one of the vehicles by which that representation of who we are as a nation, but also this global movement to advance what is important to humankind. This is the perfect platform, where we get to show why it’s important.”

According to the GOA President, other activities such as an essay competition and public sport engagements are planned alongside the intended movement of the exhibition across the country.

Anacondas, Jaguars taste victory as GCB T10 Blast bowls off

Initially slated to commence on Tuesday, the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) T10 Blast finally got underway on Wednesday after rain played spoilsport on Day 1.

When the second day’s action unfolded, the Essequibo Anacondas defeated Berbice Piranhas by six wickets, while the Essequibo Jaguars romped to a seven-wicket win over Berbice Caimans.

At the Enmore Ground, East Coast Demerara (ECD), Anacondas ended on 49-4 chasing 48, thanks to Man of the Match Kwesi Mickle, who led the chase with 21 off 12 (2x4s).

National youth batsman Thaddeus Lovell was the next best scorer with seven not out, as Piranhas left-arm spinner Garfield Phillips starred with 3-15.

Chandrapaul Hemraj (18) gave the Jaguars a good start.

Harpy Eagles fast bowler Nial Smith (1-10); spinner Ashmead Nedd (1-15) and Joemal LaFleur (1-17) were the wicket-takers for the Jaguars.

It took a brilliant innings of 29 not out including two fours from national wicket-keeper and Jaguars Captain Kemol Savory to help his side acquire the final run required for victory, with one ball to spare.

The experienced opening pair of Shemroy Barrington (22) and

Earlier, Berbice Captain Veerasammy Permaul led with an aggressive 22 off 9 featuring two sixes and two fours, coupled with 13 from Rivaldo Phillips. Mickel returned to capture 3-22 while Guyana Harpy Eagles opening batsman Raymond Perez had a good game with the ball snaring 3-4, along with left-arm spinner Anthony Adams (1-3) and Jonathan Foo (1-14). Later in the afternoon, despite knocks from Harpy Eagles trio, all-rounder Kevin Sinclair smashed 20 off 12 (2x4, 1x6); Vice Captain Kevlon Anderson, 26 off 18 (1x6) and spinner Steven Sankar, 10 as the Caimans only managed 81-6.

While national U19 batsman Mavindra Dindyal (10), and his captain finished the match as the other top scorers. Sankar picked up 2-11 while Sinclair chipped in with 1-12.

Round three continues today at Malteenoes Sports Club Ground, with the Anacondas and Pitbulls playing each other from 12:00h, while the Piranhas and Hawks do battle from 14:30h.

UNICEF’s Deputy Representative for Suriname and Guyana, Gabriel Vockel

Senior Vice President of Sales at Blue Water, Richard De Nobrega

Kemol Savory played a captain’s knock to lead his team to victory