Guyana Chronicle E-paper 08-19-2018

19th August, 2018

No.105371

Who will it be?

See page 11

– PNCR votes for chairman, vice-chairman today

Daughter of farmer tops Region Six at CSEC

Hetmyer roasts Tallawahs!

See page 3

Former UN Secretary-General

Kofi Annan dies

See page 4

Guyana Amazon Warriors on Saturday trounced the Jamaica Tallawahs thanks largely to a belligerent hundred from top-order batsman Shimron Hetmyer (see story on back page)

Woman busted with cocaine,ecstasy

See page 2

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

AG leads high-level CFATF delegation to St Maarten CHAIRMAN of the Caribbean Action Task Force, Attorney General Basil Williams, will lead a high-level

delegation to St Maarten later this week as the body pushes the island to become compliant with Anti-Money

laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism regulations.

Currently, St. Maarten

is the only CFATF member country that is still in the 3rd Round of Mutual Evaluations Process (MEP).

Following the adoption of St. Maarten’s Mutual Evaluation Report (MER) in 2012, they were placed in Enhanced Follow-Up by the Plenary.

At the same time, St. Maarten also met the requirements for the FATF’s International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) process. They were therefore also placed in CFATF’s ICRG so that the CFATF could directly monitor St. Maarten’s progress.

The CFATF’s ICRG Working Group for the 3rd Round dealt with ICRG matters and the follow-up process which begins after the approval of a MER. This was done with all CFATF members who were in the FATF ICRG process.

According to a CFATF release, based on a lack of significant progress in addressing the deficiencies noted in their 3rd Round MER (St. Maarten has been under review for five years. Plenary decided to apply the sanctions related to Enhanced Follow-Up. This resulted in a letter being sent by the CFATF Chairman Williams to St. Maarten in January 2017, discussing their lack of significant progress and

Chairman of CFATF and Attorney General of Guyana Basil Williams

encouraging them to move forward with their level of compliance. At the same time, St. Maarten was not making any significant progress in the CFATF ICRG. The CFATF ICRG 3rd Round Procedures provide that the CFATF ICRG will apply sanctions where upon review the progress by jurisdiction is insufficient. The first stage is a letter to the jurisdiction by the CFATF Chairman and the second stage is “A high-level mission to be arranged to the Member jurisdiction to reinforce this message. This mission would

meet with ministers and senior officials of the member’s government.” Additionally, a parallel provision exists under the CFATF 3rd Round Mutual Evaluation Procedures, which also provides that where progress is not being made, the second stage of Enhanced Follow-Up the action to be taken will be “A high-level mission would be arranged to the Member jurisdiction to reinforce this message. This mission would meet with ministers and senior officials.” Accordingly, the CFATF ICRG Working Group recommended and Plenary agreed that there will be a high-level mission to St. Maarten to discuss with senior officials, the outstanding deficiencies from their 3rd Round Mutual Evaluation Report.

The same recommendation was made regarding their follow-up report.

On the mission Williams, SC will be accompanied by the CFATF Secretariat’s Executive Director, Ms. Dawne Spicer, Legal Advisor, Ms. Ana Folgar and the CFATF ICRG Working Group Co-Chair, Mr. Glenford Malone of the British Virgin Island.

Woman ‘busted’ with cocaine, ecstasy

A SURINAMESE woman was arrested on Saturday morning at the Number 78 Foreshore, Corentyne, Berbice, after a search of

her person and that of her belongings revealed 247 grams of suspected cocaine and 100 grams of ecstasy (192 pills) in her brassiere.

The 27-year-old was arrested and is said to be a hairdresser of New Charlesburg, Paramaribo, Suriname.

Police said she arrived about 08:30hrs via the backtrack route when a routine search was conducted by officers manning the port and the prohibited substances were found.

The hairdresser is being processed for court.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Daughter of farmer tops Region Six at CSEC – taken to school on motorcycle by father for past 13 years

By Nafeeza Yahya JC Chandisingh Secondary School student Darshanie “Anjalie” Jadubir has secured 16 Grade Ones and one Grade Two at this year’s Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC) and has emerged as Region Six top student.

Her outstanding achievement has also placed her 11th in the country.

The quiet and content young lady was ecstatic at the news of her achievement which was relayed to her by a friend who called her around noon on Friday.

Jadubir, who credited her success to God, her parents and teachers for their support and encouragement, said her hard work and sacrifices over the past five years have paid off.

According to the young lady, she is averaged at pretty much everything she does, and as such, she challenged herself to write 16 subjects and to do well.

“I had to change my

Darshanie “Anjalie” Jadubir

mindset and try to not let other stuff happening around you affect you because as a teen, lots of things are happening but you have to be stable,” she said.

Jadubir urges her peers to work hard but find a balance with academics and leisure time.

“You need to work hard but you also need to find time for yourself to take care of your mental

health because it’s important.

You don’t need to overwork yourself, just give it your best shot and success will be yours…. I didn’t know I was going to do that well. I was anticipating something much lower, but I am very happy I worked hard and studied beyond hours and I am glad that I was able to reap the benefits,” the young lady said.

Her Parents, however, knew that their daughter would have done well, since she had topped her school at the National Grade Six Examinations in 2013 and was a top student throughout her years at secondary school.

Jadubir’s mother--Basmat Jainarine, a housewife, and father Narine Jadubir, a cash crop farmer--were emotional as they were told their “little girl” was among the top students in the country.

Her father was lost for words.

“I am very proud of my daughter. It was surprising but I always knew she had it in her.”

As he spoke, he pointed to his parked motorcycle which was used to transport his daughter to school for the past 13 years.

“Since nursery to secondary that man (motorcycle) been helping out,” he said, relating that he encountered many challenges to keep his daughter in school but never gave up, as he wanted her to have a bright future.

“Sometimes, it’s difficult but as parents you have to do your best regardless of what you are faced with, you have to put your child’s education first,” the proud father said.

Jadubir, who has a passion for science and technology, hopes to pursue a career along that path in the future.

Skeldon Line Path Secondary this year also produced several other high flyers.

Yugeeta Kumar obtained 14 Grade Ones and two

Darshanie “Anjalie” Jadubir with her parents Basmat Jainarine and Narine Jadubir

Grade Twos; Pravena Bhoge secured passes in 16 subjects with 13 Grade Ones and three Grade Twos; Sarveena Persaud attained 12 Grade Ones, three Grade Twos and one Grade Three while Melisa Rama

secured 12 Grade Ones.

The East Berbice Corentyne District continues to excel with Renee Bisnauth of Berbice High School achieving 13 Grade Ones and two Grade Twos.

Goldsmith robbed during home invasion A GOLDSMITH and his family were on Friday evening robbed when two men, one armed with a firearm, invaded their home which also houses a business place.

The men carted off a quantity of gold jewellery.

According to information reaching the Guyana Chronicle, Basdeo Seegobin, a 41-year-old businessman, was in his lot 97 Estate Housing Scheme, East Ruimveldt home when the incident took place.

He related that the men

took from him one pair of earrings valued $30,000, three gold rings valued $50,000 and one gold chain valued $108,000.

It was reported to this publication that sometime around 19.20hrs on the night in question, the two men showed up at the address and entered the man’s shop which is separated from his home. One of the suspects pulled out a hand gun, pointed it at him and demanded that he hand over his belongings and valuables,

which he did without putting up a fight.

After they received the items, the men escaped on a motorcycle. The businessman could not indicate which direction the men went as he was too traumatised. He said that he did not bother to chase after the men as they left the shop as he did not want to anger them.

The motorcycle the men escaped on was described as a red and black one but the registration number could not be recorded. When the po-

lice arrived on the scene they searched the area for CCTV cameras with the hopes of retrieving information on the registration of the motorcycle or the identity of the men but there were no CCTV cameras in the area.

Up to late on Saturday afternoon, the police who were still investigating the matter did not apprehend any of the suspects.

This is the second robbery for the week in ‘A’ Division where bandits robbed their

victim of gold jewellery.

Earlier in the week a vendor of the Bourda Market was shot dead after three men approached him and demanded that he hand over his jewellery which he was wearing.

The man reportedly resisted and the men wrestled with him, shot him and took his jewellery away.

Police sources who are close to the investigation told this publication that they were checking on the deceased’s past to see if he

might have had any misunderstandings and or conflicts with anyone who might have wanted to bring harm to him as they are not only treating the incident as a robbery at this stage.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

Kofi Annan death: World leaders honour former UN chief

(BBC) World figures have been paying tribute to former UN secretary-general and Nobel laureate Kofi Annan, who has died at the age of 80.

Current UN chief Antonio Guterres hailed him as “a guiding force for good” and Russian President Vladimir Putin described a “remarkable person”.

Ex-US President Barack Obama said Annan had always pursued “a better world”.

The Ghanaian national served as UN chief from 1997 to 2006 and is the only black African ever to hold the post.

Since then he has served as the UN special envoy for Syria, leading efforts to find a solution to the conflict.

The career diplomat died in hospital in the Swiss city of Bern. He had been living near Geneva for several years.

He “passed away peacefully on Saturday after a short illness”, the Kofi Annan Foundation said.

He was a “deeply committed internationalist who fought throughout his life for a fairer and more peaceful world”, the statement added.

Mr Guterres led the tributes to his predecessor. “In many ways, Kofi Annan was the United Nations. He rose through the ranks to lead the organisation into the new millennium with matchless dignity and determination,” he said in a statement.

had broken barriers, Kofi never stopped his pursuit of a better world.”

President Putin said the memory of Annan would “forever live in the hearts of Russians”.

Meanwhile, Indian PM Narendra Modi said “the world

Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (Daily Star)

UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said in a tweet he was grief-stricken over Annan’s death: Mr Obama, the first African American to win the White House, said: “Long after he

has lost not only a great African diplomat and humanitarian but also a conscience keeper of international peace and security”.

Remembering Kofi Annan Kofi Annan will be remembered for the way he drew

attention, over and over again, to the plight of those caught up in war, environmental disaster, or simply grinding poverty.

The way he quietly but firmly reminded world leaders, however powerful, that they needed to put their duty to their citizens above their political careers.

UK PM Theresa May and Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg were also among those who paid tributes.

UK PM Theresa May and Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg were also among those who paid tributes.

The diplomat’s career continued after retirement from the UN, and in 2007 he set up his own foundation aimed at promoting global sustainable development, security and peace.

A year later, his reputation was boosted after he successfully helped negotiate a power-sharing deal to end post-election violence in Kenya.

In a Facebook tribute, Raila Odinga, the opposition leader who signed the agreement, called Annan “the man who stepped in and saved the coun-

try from collapse”.

In an interview with the BBC’s HardTalk to mark his 80th birthday in April, Annan acknowledged the UN’s shortcomings, but said that “if it didn’t exist you would have to create it”.

“I was born an optimist and will remain an optimist,” he added.

In 2012 he was made chair of The Elders, a peace and human rights advocacy group started by South Africa’s Nelson Mandela.

The same year, he quit his post as UN envoy to Syria after only six months, citing the failures of world powers to fulfil their commitments. He was later quoted as saying: “I lost my troops on the way to Damascus.”

His most recent role was chairing an independent commission investigating Myanmar’s Rohingya crisis.

Annan’s wife, Nane, and three children were “by his side during his last days”, the Kofi Annan Foundation said.

Egypt internet: Sisi ratifies law tightening control over websites (BBC) Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has signed a new law that tightens controls over the internet.

The legislation on “cybercrime” means websites can be blocked in Egypt if deemed to constitute a threat to national security or the economy.

Anyone found guilty of running, or just visiting, such sites could face prison or a fine.

Authorities say the new measures are needed to tackle instability and terrorism.

But human rights groups accuse the government of trying to crush all political dissent in the country.

The Cairo-based Association of Freedom of Thought and Expression said more than 500 websites had already been blocked in Egypt prior to the new law being signed.

Sisi sworn in for second term with vow to fight terrorism Egypt detainees subjected to ‘assembly line’ of torture Paying the price for seeking freedom in Egypt Last month another bill was passed by parliament, yet to be approved by President Sisi, that would allow any social media accounts with more than 5,000 followers to be placed under supervision.

Correspondents says that with street protests in Egypt all but banned, the internet has been one of the last forums left for Egyptians to express dissent.

Human Rights Watch issued a warning last month that Egyptian authorities were increasingly using counterterrorism and state-of-emergency laws and courts to unjustly prosecute journalists, activists, and critics for peaceful criticism.

Those recently arrested include the well-known blogger and rights defender Wael Abbas; Amal Fathy, a political activist and the wife of the head of the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms; and the comic Shady Abu Zaid.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

EARLY DETECTION IMPORTANT (Barbados Advocate) Breast cancer remains the major cause of death from cancer for women in this country, and the number of new cases being diagnosed annually is on the rise.

That’s according to Dr. Shirley Jhagroo, Medical Coordinator of the Breast Screening Programme of the Barbados Cancer Society. She revealed that between June 2016 and June 2017 there were 28 positive cases of breast cancer diagnosed through the Breast Screening Programme, and most of those cases were between stage zero and one, while 10 of them were stage two.

She said while they are hoping not to see as many stage two cases in the future, the reality is not a daunting one, as she noted that in the initial stages of the programme 16 years ago the majority of cases diagnosed were in stages three,

four and five.

Delivering remarks at the media launch of the CIBC FirstCaribbean Walk for the Cure 2018 held yesterday at the Bou-

gainvillea Beach Resort, Dr. Jhagroo explained that while the incidence of breast cancer is on the rise, there is some good news – there has been no

Dr. Shirley Jhagroo, Medical Coordinator of the Breast Cancer Screening Programme.

rise in the mortality rate in this country.

Over the last decade, Dr. Jhagroo said, deaths from breast cancer have remained in the region of nine to 11 per cent, and she credits the Breast Screening Programme with helping to achieve that, stressing that early detection is one of the key factors to ensuring that persons survive their diagnosis.

“Unfortunately breast cancer remains the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women in Barbados and is the number of one cause of death from cancer among Barbadian women. In the US it is also the most common cancer in women, but the second most common cause of death; and in the UK it is the third most common cause of death. Statistics show however that in all three countries the number of new cases diagnosed per year continues to increase, with a notable increase

in younger women – that is below the age of 50,” she said.

Her comments came as she noted too that the percentage of self referred patient attending the clinic is continuing to increase annually and she thanked the sponsors of the event for helping to raise awareness about the programme. The medical coordinator made the point as she said that awareness increases early detection and with early detection, she maintained more lives are being saved.

According to Jhagroo the clinic has seen slightly higher number of women coming for mammograms this year than last year and she is pleased with this turn of events. She revealed that for the first six months of the year, 3468 mammograms were done and 337 ultrasounds were performed and she is hopeful that this trend will continue. (JRT)

Cop among six held for kidnapping fisherman

(Trinidad Newsday) POLICE arrested six people, including a policeman and a woman, after Monday’s kidnapping of La Brea fisherman Kenny Soogrim, 46.

Monday under the pretext of arresting him for marijuana possession. Soogrim, the father of two from Union Road, was handcuffed and taken away in a car. Sometime later

later demanding TT$100,000 instead.

But on Wednesday at about 2 pm, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit (AKU) and the Eastern Division rescued

The house at Carib Circular, La Platta, Valencia where Marcus Samuel was shot dead on Friday night. PHOTO COURTESY TTPS

The Sangre Grande cop, who is a member of the municipal police, was detained late Wednesday by police from the Eastern Division.

The suspects, five of whom are from Mayaro, are between 25 and 60. They remained in custody up to late yesterday.

ASP Anderson Pariman led an exercise which ended in the arrests.

Reports are that three men, two dressed in police tactical uniform, took Soogrim from the family’s home at La Brea at about 3 am on

the kidnappers telephoned a relative demanding US $50,000 for his safe release, then called back 20 minutes

Soogrim in Mayaro. They found him handcuffed in an abandoned shack in a forested area, off Ocean Sand

Road. Police took him to the Mayaro health facility for a check-up and he later reunited with relatives.

Relatives said that no ransom was paid and that he remained traumatised over the ordeal. His wife and their

two children and were not at home on Wednesday when the kidnappers took him away. This is because they are on vacation in Venezuela.

Police from the AKU are expected to take statements from the suspects.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

Giving praise where praise is due

G

U YA N E S E who live on the coast would have noticed the solar panels being installed atop the roofs of government buildings.

Many hinterland residents would be aware of, and continue to benefit from, ongoing initiatives to provide electricity to all Guyanese. Those developments occur within the framework of the administration’s Green State Development Strategy; a strategy which must be recognised and applauded.

The Green State Development Strategy is a national developmental framework which includes preservation of our environment, conservation of wildlife, protection of waterways, wetlands, lakes, and protected areas, and – importantly – promotion of energy generation from renewable sources.

The administration’s

goal to move towards 100 per cent renewable power supply by 2025 is both commendable and ambitious.

Commendable because government has obviously perceived the need for renewable power; we cannot and need not continue to spend some 24 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on the purchase of power-generating petroleum products. And while the objective is ambitious, it is achievable. The administration has displayed the political will to make it a reality, and Guyana is blessed with an abundance of sources of renewable energy.

The will to implement a green development strategy was demonstrated by President Granger’s signing of the Paris Agreement on April 22, 2016. The agreement is the most ambitious environmental agreement in history. The agreement obligates signatories to ap-

propriately respond to the challenge of climate change.

A green economy is central to that response. And harnessing of renewable energy is, in turn, pivotal to a green economic development strategy.

Having decided to pursue such a developmental path, the administration has moved into action.

The solar panels being installed on government buildings will provide electricity, making those buildings less dependent on power from fossil fuels.

About 90 buildings will be outfitted by year-end.

Those panels alone will generate almost 2,000 watts of power.

Generating power from a renewable source (sunlight) is one side of the equation; government is also working on the other side: Reducing wastage.

Presently, over 11,000 LED lights have been installed

in those buildings. LEDs use tiny amounts of power to produce light. Additionally, about 1,030 motion sensors have been installed.

Those sensors automatically switch off lights, fans, AC units, and other appliances when no one is in a room, thereby saving energy.

It is encouraging, too, to see that private businesses and even homes are now installing solar panels and heaters. Obviously, Guyanese are coming to realise the fact that investing in renewable energy sources now will result in long-term savings.

But the installation of solar panels on buildings is not all; government is working on far bigger projects.

In its quest for energy sustainability, government has committed to building solar farms – large arrays of solar panels – intended to power entire communities. The administration

says that the first of those will be operational by the end of August. That solar farm at Mabaruma will allow residents to get eight more hours of electricity per day. Solar farms are also planned for Kwakwani, Mahdia, Matthew’s Ridge, Port Kaituma, Bartica, and Lethem. In fact, the feasibility studies have already been completed.

Of course, solar power is not the only source of clean energy. Government has, so far, identified about 100 locations across Guyana where hydroelectric power systems may be feasible. And work on this power-source is underway.

Specific studies of our hydro-electric potential are due to begin within a few months at Moco Moco and Kumu.

This integrated approach of phased-implementation accompanied by feasibility studies will result in contin-

uous planning and development. For example, even as government contemplates the building of wind farms, 6,000 residents of some 25 hinterland communities are receiving solar home systems under the Sustainable Business Models for Rural Electrification and Energy Access Project. In this way, the administration is progressively narrowing the gap between the quality of life along the coast and that in the hinterland.

The administration’s evident commitment to equal opportunity for all is to be applauded. The government’s approach to sustainable development deserves our admiration.

As the citizens who will benefit from such programmes, we have a duty to support those efforts, and give praise where it is due, as we make progress along the path of green state development.

Annan: A guiding Remembering Kofi force for good Kofi Annan T --UN Secretary-General, António Guterres

Dear Editor

HE former UN secretary general Kofi Annan has died at the age of 80 after a short illness, his family and foundation announced.

The Ghanaian was the seventh secretary- general, and served for two terms between 1997 and 2006.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his humanitarian work jointly with the UN as an organisation in 2001.

He died in hospital in Bern, Switzerland in the early hours of Saturday, with his wife, Nane, and three children Ama, Kojo and Nina, by his side. He had retired to Geneva and later lived in a Swiss village.

Annan’s foundation issued a statement on his Twitter account on Saturday that described him as a “global statesman and deeply committed internationalist who fought throughout his life for a fairer and more peaceful world”.

Regards Rooplall Dudhnath

“KOFI Annan was a guiding force for good. It is with profound sadness that I learned of his passing. In many ways, Kofi Annan was the United Nations. He rose through the ranks to lead the organization into the new millennium with matchless dignity and determination.

“Like so many, I was proud to call Kofi Annan

a good friend and mentor.

I was deeply honoured by his trust in selecting me to serve as UN High Commissioner for Refugees under his leadership. He remained someone I could always turn to for counsel and wisdom — and I know I was not alone. He provided people everywhere with a space for dialogue, a place for problem-solving and a path to a better

world. In these turbulent and trying times, he never stopped working to give life to the values of the United Nations Charter. His legacy will remain a true inspiration for all us.

“My heartfelt condolences to Nane Annan, their beloved family, and all who mourn the loss of this proud son of Africa who became a global champ.”

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

Why Dr Mangal?

Dear Editor,

Q

UESTION: Is/ was Sir Shridath Ramphal an adviser to JHI or Mid-Atlantic (who are now Joint Venture partners with Exxon and Total in the Canje Block offshore Guyana)? Is/was he associated with any oil company in Guyana? If so, did he disclose this to Cabinet or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and when?

A N S W E R : G u y a n a ’s team of international lawyers led by Sir Shridath Ramphal has been retained 2015 by the Government of Guyana (GoG) since to assist in the defence of Guyana’s territorial integrity. That task is of the highest priority among the responsibilities of the government, and is the mandate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

The commercial commitments of all members of the legal team have been disclosed and have been known to the Government of Guyana since the team’s engagement.

None of the team has been engaged in any paid work for

any company that benefited from the contracted work or advice provided by the legal team.

Having said that, I wish to make two further observations by way of commentary as regarding the GoG position. First, I would not be so presumptuous as to purport to write in Sir Shridath Ramphal’s defence. He needs none, since his outstanding record of service to Guyana, the Caribbean and the international community is famously known.

Secondly,the legal team has been contracted to advise the Guyana MoFA group led by the MoFA. Initially, they were involved in supporting the dialogue with the UN Secretary-General and his Personal Representative, Mr Dag Nylander. Subsequent to the conclusion of the process of enhanced mediation, they have been advising on the preparation of the case to the ICJ and in preparing the memorial for submission to the court.

None of these roles involves any conflict of interest, meaning that at no point in the process of carrying out

these tasks did Sir Shridath Ramphal gain, or stand to gain, any financial advantage beyond the fees paid by the Government of Guyana.

Fourthly, neither Sir Shridath Ramphal nor the team has been advising the GoG on the contracts with any oil companies, be it JHI, Mid-Atlantic or Exxon. Furthermore, advice about the desirability of disclosure of the information pertaining to petroleum contracts with the consortium led by Exxon was not provided to Cabinet by the international team of lawyers.

Since the work of the legal team has been exclusively on the case against Venezuela, one is left to wonder why Dr Mangal would have found it necessary to add the following commentary to what is supposed to be a question: “Guyanese will be aware that Sir Shridath Ramphal advises the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and government on the border issue with Venezuela.

“Guyanese will recall that there was general consensus among ministers not to release the Exxon contract (Stabroek Block) to the public prior to December 2017.

“It is well known that oil companies do not like transparency, and prefer for contracts to be kept secret from the people.”

The question I wish to ask is: what is the connection between these things, more especially between the legal advice and the so-called secret?

In 2017, Cabinet took a decision to release or publish the contracts with the oil companies. They have been published and yet Dr Mangal returns to it. So, at this stage, his purpose is not transparency as he claims. We have here an attempted assassination by innuendo. There is an inference to be drawn about a concocted conflict of interest arising from the relationship between one of a team of legal advisers and oil companies. This brazen approach is intended to undermine the standing of one of Guyana’s most distinguished lawyers; one of its most prominent politicians; and one of the most renowned international public servants.

But how committed is Jan Mangal to transparency?

Many observers would like

Jagdeo should be the last one to talk Dear Editor

S

INCE 2015, with the defeat of the Peoples Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government, and the party assuming the constitutional status of Parliamentary opposition party, Guyanese have been fed with what can only be described as a daily diet of the fundamental lessons from the pot of the classical mould of opposition party politics: The politics of NO. Editor, I cannot recall one instance of this current opposition leader, Bharrat Jagdeo ever submitting or offering a contribution to the many urgent matters that have been engaging the Coalition government since it

took office, beginning with the GuySuCo crisis, wholly created by the PPP/C’s selfish political agenda and criminal mismanagement, which presented the nation’s biggest socio-economic challenge because of the thousands of workers whose tenure became affected by an institution that declared itself broke.

Despite the many calls from the Granger Administration for a collaborative effort towards a solution, all that has ever been received from opposition leader Bharrat Jagdeo were a daily deluge of lies and crooked excuses, behind which he sought to absolve himself and his former government colleagues from responsibility for the debacle of the sugar industry.

As was only to be ex-

pected, he resorted to the dangerous race card by which he had hoped to whip up ethnic fear among the workers, because of their economic vulnerability.

What he and his dishonest cabal of party leaders had hoped to see materialise, civil unrest, did not. Instead, the government not only devised a plan to salvage the workable sections of this once mighty industry and contributor to the national coffers, but also developed socio-economic survival plans for the many terminated workers who are now in the process of re-building post-sugar lives through many initiatives created by the administration.

This particular challenge, which tested the nation’s ability and resolve, exposed

the abysmal mindset of an opposition party leader and cohorts as they sank to what can only be described as the lowest depths of political immorality ever seen in this country.

We must now come to the discovery of oil and gas, the seminal economic discovery in the history of this nation, which will change the development path of Guyana, and socio-economic lives of all its citizens, and for which the preparatory groundwork in the form of legislation, regulatory bodies, and relevant infrastructure are being prepared for first oil in 2020.

One would have thought that given the opposition leader’s constitutional role, and its many functions, which includes participating in a

him to explain how he would answer Kaieteur News’ allegation about his alleged conflict of interest.

Dr Mangal’s attitude to Guyana and Guyanese also needs explanation. He hardly ever refers to the people, and more particularly the political leaders and Public Service of Guyana, without qualifying it with the adjective, “corrupt”.

To establish just how balanced he is in this context, he has claimed that the PPP was even more corrupt than the APNU administration.

Somehow, he never managed to summon the courage to say so publicly whilst they were in office!

I suppose that his assumption about the nature of Guyanese has led him to conclude that no security imperative can and has informed decisions about our petroleum exploration and licensing policy. Being an engineer, however gifted, does not automatically endow one with insights in every other arena, even in the area of security. He does not deign to offer any evidence in support of his argument.

On the other hand, all responsible manner in national discussions and offering workable suggestions on matters that affect the national interest, that there would have been proper and meaningful contributions on the many issues that have to go towards the establishing of a national oil industry.

But as usual, it has been the vintage posturing of seeking to score cheap political points at weekly press conferences on a matter which has groundbreaking consequences for all Guyana.

In fact, he is part of a phalanx of so-called experts, and commentators of all shades, whose aim is to embarrass the government.

The Kaieteur News of August 18, 2018 story captioned, “SWF mechanisms not strong enough to prevent government raiding oil revenues – 0pposition leader”, is another page in this on-going

Guyanese should know that since Venezuela repudiated the 1899 Arbitration Award in 1962, the only oil companies showing an interest in exploring Guyana’s territory or maritime space either found themselves acquired by another company (Home Oil which, on being acquired had all its wells and operations in the Takutu Basin of the Rupununi immediately capped and closed, respectively), or seized by Venezuelan (Technic Perdana belonging to Anadarko) or Surinamese (CGX seismic vessel) gunboats, or without sufficient funds and technical expertise to continue work when they did find positive indications.

When I reflect on all of this, I am forced to ask whether the intent of Dr Mangal’s contribution is not to undermine the credibility of the legal team working in defence of Guyana’s territory and consequently, the credibility of our case.

I am forced to ask myself, ‘why?’

Carl B Greenidge, MP Vice-president and Minister of Foreign Affairs crusade against the government. This is a comment, from a statement relative to the Green Paper on the National Resources Fund, now before the House.

Editor, as should be known, a Green Paper is a document with proposals which are slated for public discussions among the political principals; civil society, and other interested parties and citizens, usually on a matter of national import.

It is not one that is for legislative action at this stage.

In fact the latter, though the intended final destination, usually occurs when all the suggestions/counter proposals are made, and taken into consideration, before a definitive position in the form of a White Paper is taken for final debate. The way would then be cleared for legislation.

Turn to page 8

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OP-ED

SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

A response to Kaieteur News T

“China’s Belt & Road initiative is a yet another debt trap! Three years into the project, Pakistan finds self waist deep in debt” by Abena Rockcliffe-Campbell, August 5th, 2018

HE writer does not seem to be aware that an M O U ( M e m orandum of Understanding) is not a loan agreement. It is usually very general and without specifics, even as to projects or terms, and represents an intention embraced by two parties.

We live in a world in which the major states are ideological rivals. When dealing with criticisms of any major player and projects, it is imperative to recognise this. Furthermore, the main causes of failed or problematic projects in the Third World is not the source of the funds but often the concept or design of the project. Every loan and every project has the potential to go wrong and in most cases they go wrong for specific reasons rather than the nationality of the donor/ source. Sometimes they are badly concerned planned, sometimes they are badly executed and in other cases they may incorporate out-ofdate technology. In yet other cases they may, for example, be overambitious and be too large for the market. Failure to recognise this basic fact is likely to convert well-meaning commentary into useless propaganda.

Guyana is not without experience of scandals and failures as regards failed foreign projects or loans from either the private sector or Governments. Before independence, the British

built the Torani canal linking the Canje with the Berbice River but which, unfortunately, flowed in the wrong direction! We had in the early 1960s, under Dr Jagan, a road intended for Region 3 which was never built although money borrowed was paid over to the contractor, Del Conte. There was subsequently the case of the glass factory at Yarrowkabra along the Linden-Soesdyke Highway. Due to its relatively large size compared to the regional market and outdated production technology– plate glass – it turned out to be a financial disaster.

A major project in its time, a wood--LAS PLANT-- acquired from West Germany could not handle the resins from our hardwoods and the consequential breakdowns and unreliability helped to bankrupt the state company, DWL. To bring us right up to date there is the US$32M fibre optic cable, part of the E-Governance project managed by Mr Alex Ramotar, son of the former President.

It cost so much to fix that it had to be given away.

At the same time, in the KN contribution, aid takes different forms, including grants. Much of the commentary focusses on what is called tied-aid without realising that all countries use this mechanism to ensure that their firms benefit when aid is granted to a foreign state. Contrary to the impression given by the writer, tied aid is not unique

to the Chinese Government programmes. Only in recent years has the US Agency for International development, USAID, United States of America’s main aid-giving institution, has been permitted to move away from tied funds. The US spent $30.4B in official development assistance in 2010, and under the policy of “tied aid” – foreign aid that had to be spent on goods and services purchased from American companies and they could only “buy local” on an adhoc, case-by-case basis. It is widely acknowledged that this led to USAID paying higher prices for crucial goods and services, and that it had implications for the recurring states. Later, shrinking staff numbers and increasing aid budgets over the last decade falling, staff levels officers opted to employ large, experienced contractors at the expense of developing relationships with smaller firms. Happily, USAID has since revised its procurement regulations and the agency can now purchase most goods and services from developing countries, with notable exceptions including US-funded food aid, motor vehicles and US-patented pharmaceuticals.

WHY COUNTRIES TURN TO CHINA FOR AID? The first and most basic reason [is] availability.

Many developing states feel

Jagdeo should be the ...

Therefore, for the Leader of the Opposition to openly make such a statement, is tantamount to leveling corrupt accusations against the government. This is another of Jagdeo’s willful distortions, this time on an official position taken by the government, which is quite legitimate and normal.

Should we be surprised? No. We all know, that has been his line of political

attack from the inception of this government; and it puts on show a sorrowful immaturity of a leader who is still in mourning for not only his party’s defeat in 2015, but also for his defeated third term bid.

It reflects a moral decrepit in terms of the calibre of leadership of such an important constitutional office.

This is a time when all hands ought to be on deck,

for guidance towards an oil and gas industry. Instead, it is about a daily pottage of sick, sorry, and grudging positions that are filled with no good intent for a nation in which ought to be joyful and ready for the blessings to come.

This is not what a proper and fit leader of the opposition is all about.

Again, Bharat Jagdeo should be the last person in this particular country

that Western aid has too many conditions-- overall political conditions, sometimes completely irrelevant conditions such as legislation on capital punishment or relations with a third state. This is additional to project conditions. Together, these may constitute very onerous burdens and impose a high degree of uncertainty on the outcome of applications for loans. China is prepared to lend without these multiple-layered political and other conditionalities of the West. Where Chinese assistance exists, though highly political, it is limited.

Secondly, Infrastructure is both costly and visible, so it has certain attractions for DCs. China is keen to fund infrastructure, especially where it can feed into an international network; China views infrastructure projects in the context of a bid to build regional and global networks. China views such projects in the long term and the B&RI is a means of laying a claim to such ‘arteries’. China often subsidises their companies in order to win contracts for major infrastructure. As one author put it, ‘China is apparently investing in a future world where all roads run through Beijing, and only once that’s set up will talks of profit and loss be applicable’. While not sexy to Western lenders, ports, roads, rail lines and logistics zone up the circulatory system of the world.

Latterly, the areas in which

Continued from page 7 to talk about “raiding” any kind of financial fund; for he and his government’s record on such a matter, are as unenviable as the criminal record that they have established, where criminal theft of state resources were the hallmark of their stewardship of Guyana.

Regards Earl Hamilton

the Chinese have shown a growing interest is the development of what could be called soft infrastructure which is carried out in the realm of politics: intergovernmental agreements, trade deals, customs pacts and aid deployments.

Thirdly, it is frequently Developing States that approach China to assist in the funding of infrastructure and often they do so within the framework of a national plan. The KN article, like KN’s subsequent cartoons, gives the impression that officials from China are lying in wait trying to ensnare leaders of developing states who are wondering around mindlessly. On the contrary, most of our states such as Guyana have a bundle of physical infrastructure projects which need financing. Each of our Ministers of Finance and of Planning can tell a tale of the frustration experienced in trying to secure finance from IDB, IBBD, CDB etc.

So, the queues outside the ‘offices’ of the Chinese Belt and Road as well as to the CELAC-China Fund are long. For that reason there has been a certain turning away from or loss of enthusiasm for the traditional multilateral banks, hence the establishment of a BRICs Development Bank.

The Kaieteur News piece suggests that there has been some comprehensive failure of the B&RI. Whilst it is true that there have been some problems, the latter have undoubtedly been exaggerated by EU and US critics in particular. Some commentaries for example claim that the B&RI is about to run out of money and that this B&RI is a “rogue” fund, but comprehensive and careful examinations do not support this view. Work undertaken

by William & Mary College recently, for example, suggest that developing states have received significant

additional responses, thanks to the B&RI and that few of the 68 states which have accessed it have suffered the kind of horrors that the KN revels in listing; those with problems include Sri Lanka and Pakistan, and all the blame cannot be laid at the door of the B&RI. CONCLUSION I will close with two sets of comments intended as overall assessments of the B&RI in the West. The first is by John Hurley, a visiting Fellow at the Center for Global Development who concludes that, the “Belt and Road provides something that countries desperately want — financing for infrastructure. But when it comes to this type of lending, there can be too much of a good thing.”

You may not agree with all of this but it is a defensible view. In a similarly cautious vein David Dollar, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, conference paper October last said that, “there are certainly things to worry about, such as growing indebtedness of some of China’s big clients ... But there are signs of evolution.” In any case one estimate suggests that the latter may apply to only eight (8) states, some of whom were heavily indebted even without B&RI inputs.

My own observation is that countries will turn to bilaterals who share their goals at particular points in time and are willing to put in place instruments that can help them achieve those goals. It is for each state to determine how far their individual (national ) goals are likely to be met and how much they are being called on to pay politically.

Carl B. Greenidge Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs

SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Episodic return of America IN post-independent Guyana, every new decade, it seemed, has been marked by an episodic return of a significant American presence. With the upcoming visit by a high-level Congressional Delegation, expectations are high that something big is about to happen that would positively impact the lives of Guyanese.

The 25-member American delegation comprises nine representatives of the US Congress from several States, including the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, a component of military officers, and some family members. Minister of State Joseph Harmon, in making disclosures about the visit, noted that this single largest congressional delegation would be on a familiarisation tour, testifying to the strengthening of Guyana/U.S. relations.

PROSPECTS FOR FIRST OIL It could hardly miss anyone’s attention that this visit coincides with prospects of first oil by the American giant, ExxonMobil, from reserves it estimated at four billion barrels off Guyana’s Atlantic economic zone. Independent of Exxon’s find, a United States geological survey has estimated that the Guyanese coastal area holds recoverable oil reserves of about 13.6 billion barrels, and gas reserves of 32 trillion cubic feet.

The huge vested interests have not only attracted

high-profile, albeit controversial, coverage from the New York Times but has also raised an enhanced security profile of Guyana and presented a new geopolitical and strategic reality in the western hemisphere.

The Government of the United States of America was quick to connect with this reality on the occasion of the 52nd Independence Anniversary of Guyana. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo reinforced “strong connections” with Guyana, and committed the United States to the advancement of our prosperity by helping Guyana to develop her emerging oil sector “in partnership with U.S. business”.

SUPPORT FOR SOVEREIGNTY It didn’t take long for the launch in Guyana of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM), which would rank among the biggest successes of US Ambassador Perry Halloway in bridging American-Guyanese business cooperation.

Its start-up members include ExxonMobil and GT&T. With the expected oil bonanza came renewed but overt diplomatic support for Guyana’s territorial sovereignty against a spurious claim by Venezuela. The U.S. Government declared recognition for the entire “Land of Many Waters” from “the Corentyne to the Pakaraimas, from the Takutu to the Amakura…”

The U.S. State Department hosts a Guyana Page,

last updated on February 9, 2018, with a Fact Sheet that outlined the shifts in political-ideological and trade relations between our countries. It stated:“Beginning in the late 1980s, Guyana sought to improve relations with the United States as part of a decision to shift toward political nonalignment, moving from state socialism and one-party control to a market economy and greater freedom of the press and assembly. This shift, recent free and fair democratic elections, closer security cooperation, and expanding trade and investment have helped place U.S-Guyanese relations on excellent footing.”

This only English-speaking Republic on the South American continent has at home less than 800,000 inhabitants, but she has a larger Diaspora population that is scattered mostly in North America and the Caribbean.

It is estimated that some 500,000 Guyanese live and work in the United States, which account for remittances in 2016 of US$264.6 million, in a year when the country’s export earnings from the United States stood at US$286 million.

AMERICANS ARE COMING With growing expectations of the country’s opening up and new-found wealth, Guyanese are looking at their Motherland with fresh hope.

The inauguration, from November, of flights to Guyana

by American Airlines would

see more arrivals from the United States from which Guyana would benefit financially.

I wanted to use “The Americans are Coming” as the caption for this article, but decided not to sensationalise the beginning of this exciting, glowing era in U.S-Guyana cooperation.

Already, resource nationalism in some quarters is distorting this image as that of a blood-sucking empire descending on Guyana.

There have been previous episodic decades that could give justification for this negative nationalism, going back to the late 1950s when the then British colony became a pawn in the Cold War. She was subsequently converted into a laboratory for every conceivable ideological stratagem of American imperialism, which has since been well documented.

The role of an American company in voter registration for the 1968 elections had spawned a legacy of electoral malpractices, once described

by Lord Avesbury, head of a UK Observers’ Mission, as “Something to Remember”. Ten years later, in 1978, Guyana saw what has been notoriously inscribed in

history as “the Massacre of the Century” when just under 1,000 American citizens were murdered by the fanatical Reverend Jim Jones who lured them into a macabre mass murder/suicide ritual.

The first ever American Congressman, Leo Ryan, was also murdered by assassins of the American cult leader at the infernal place, since known as “Jonestown”.

By 1988, the “wind of change” was blowing in the direction of Guyana. Five American senators petitioned their government to embrace electoral democracy.

Ambassador Fleming Jones and former President Jimmy Carter played key roles in promoting bipartisan cooperation ahead of electoral reforms. Not widely known is the role of then President George Bush Snr. in supporting “free, fair and credible elections”, which assurance was conveyed to me at the State Department by then Assistant Secretary of State, Sally Cowal.

OPEN FOR BUSINESS It was during that period that I met the late V.S. Naipaul who visited Guyana for his column, “In the Red Corner” which was published in

9

the Guardian (UK), more or less painting Cheddi Jagan as a reformed “pure” Marxist, to woo acceptance of him by the Western democracies.

When the Cold War came to an end, Guyana was again opened for business from the West. By 1999, Beal Aerospace Technologies Inc. entered into an agreement with the Guyana Government to install a US$50 million rocket launch site on a 100,000 acre landscape in the Waini River area, which was closer to the Venezuelan border.

That project would have seen the early involvement of Guyana in a space-economy business whereby satellites would have expanded Internet connectivity since then.

But Venezuela deemed the proposed aerospace project “an unfriendly act”, and pressured that it be shut down.

It was also in that year that ExxonMobil was granted an oil exploratory concession, which today has blossomed into an industry that is running full steam towards first oil. The Americans, this time around, have every justification to be back, as friends, as partners.

Yes! The Americans are coming!

Alleged breach of Procurement Act engaging police attention THE Guyana Police Force has been notified of an alleged breach of the Procurement Act by the Government when it awarded Dutch firm, LievenseCSO, a contract to do a feasibility study for the second Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB), Head of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) Sydney James said.

In an acknowledgement note to the Opposition Peoples Progressive Party (PPP), James acknowledged receipt of correspondence from the party which requested that an investigation be launched into the alleged breach of the Procurement Act by the Government.

“The matter is now engaging the attention of the Guyana Police Force,” James stated.

In a missive dated Thursday, August 16, 2018, James also said Minister of Public

Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, acting Police Commissioner, David Ramnarine and Police Legal Advisor, Justice (ret’d) Claudette Singh, have been informed of “your submission and request for investigation.”

James’ response comes one day after the PPP through Opposition Chief Whip Gail Teixeira, wrote the entity on the matter.

The Public Procurement Commission (PPC), in an investigation report on the award of the contract, said the Ministry of Public Infrastructure contract with the Dutch firm breached the country’s Procurement Act. “We are in the process of sending a letter to SOCU to ask for criminal charges to be laid against people in the Demerara Harbour Bridge corruption scandal,” said Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, during a press conference

on Thursday.

DENIED BREACH THE Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) on Monday denied breaching the Procurement Act when it awarded Dutch firm, LievenseCSO, the consultancy services for the feasibility study and design for the new Demerara Harbour Bridge.

“MPI rejects and strongly condemns the misinformation campaign by the Opposition Leader and what amounts to unwarranted attacks by him on the integrity of dedicated public servants,” the ministry said in a statement on Monday.

It added that around the same time of reaching an agreement with the National Tender and Procurement Administration (NPTA) on the annulment of the process, an unsolicited proposal was received from LievenseCSO

Infrastructure & Environment with Econovision and Ace Consultancy, one of the shortlisted firms.

Jagdeo contended that it was not a lengthy procurement procedure, but standard process which involves bids, negotiations and awarding contracts. He believes that if the process failed, they should have re-tendered instead of going ahead with an unsolicited bid.

“Cabinet should have sent the request back immediately to the minister because nothing in our laws say that the minister can bypass NPTA to take a contract to the Cabinet for approval,” said the Opposition Leader. Under those circumstances, the Opposition believes that SOCU should move fast with the request so that Turn to page 15

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Taking Charge of Local Energy NAPOLEON is credited with saying: “Never ascribe to malice that which can be explained by incompetence.” When I imagine the Amaila Falls Hydro Project, I can’t help but think this applies closely. Often, commentators ascribe only evil intentions to the PPP/C, refusing to acknowledge the positive ideas that do sometimes stem from the party’s thinkers. But Amaila was mismanaged in many ways, and at the very least I believe we can all agree, corrupt allegations aside, that the hiring of the unqualified contractor “Fip” Motilall was a critical error.

I believe this project was

the catalyst for a true national debate on sustainable energy, however, and that we are still in the midst of it several years later. Frequently, it reignites, as a new onshore natural gas pocket surfaces or environmental scrutiny of the offshore oil wells is raised. I want to advocate now not just for particular sustainable energy policies, but a national cultural approach to energy, highlighting the numerous strategic advantages Guyana has in this industry.

Even further, I want to emphasise that European experts commenting on Guyana’s hydroelectric capacity may not be in a very good position to offer

advice, due to a long-standing historical bias. This bias manifests itself in multiple ways, sometimes bordering on the comical, but largely this is due to an adversarial approach to nature. One simple example of this is the cane toad -- exported to European descendants in Australia to act as a natural predator for cane beetles, it neither ate cane beetles nor could be eaten by local species.

As a result, Australia is overrun with these pests, and while Guyanese are all too familiar with the simple solution of sprinkling salt on them to kill them, Australians have battled for years

to eradicate them through brute force, going as far as shooting them one by one.

That’s what happens when you only vaguely understand something that local people have lived with for centuries. To demonstrate what our national energy debate is missing by relying on such foreign experts, I will draw on an African leader, whose simple technology bested the might of England, Shaka Zulu.

According to historical accounts of the Zulu people, Shaka’s opponents in the early 1800s were used to fighting in which long spears were hurled at enemies and actual close combat kept to a minimum.

Shaka recognised that not only did such spears hardly ever kill, his lightly armoured troops could quickly reach the enemy; as a result, close-quarter weapons were far more effective on Zimbabwe’s plains.

When confronted with British troops at the battle of Isandlwana, Zulus using Shaka’s methods simply ran through and around the invaders, weathering the slow gunshot fire and annihilating virtually the entire force. Single-shot guns with bayonets, standard army issue at this time, were no match for short Zulu stabbing spears.

Ironically, Shaka was using pretty much the same battle tactics as the mighty Roman army, at precisely the time that guns were minimally effective.

I say all this to say that European methods, while they may seem state-of-theart, can occasionally totally misunderstand local advantages. Of course, Europeans will recommend hydropower deep in the Amazon, requiring massive infrastructural investments, because they view nature as something to be subdued through brute force, rather than accommodation.

Instead, why haven’t we explored working with our many, many waterways to generate electricity through watermills? To carry this one step further, isn’t every single koker basically a dam at low tide? If we can gradually retrofit them to make use of water flowing out of the coastal plain, we can over a few years power the entire coast, as virtually every coastal village has it’s own canal and koker.

This is merely one raw idea, which certainly would require a feasibility study, but the point is that we need to be open to looking within for our energy solutions.

Wind, solar and hydro-electricity generation are all possible locally, and if we are to meet our sustainable energy goals by 2025, we need to be creative. I imagine that critics of such inward reflection will say that the very builders of our sea defences were Europeans, the Dutch, renowned experts at keeping the ocean at bay. Shouldn’t we defer to their advice and be grateful we even have a coastal plain?

I completely agree we

should be thankful, but that doesn’t mean the Dutch are the sole experts on living with water, as only after the floods of 1995, in which 200,000 Dutch citizens had to be evacuated, did they advocate for policies that worked with, rather than against, the flow of water (under their Room for the River policy).

Oil and natural gas remain the easiest sources of electricity generation and Minister Harmon’s proposal for a natural gas plant is certainly intuitive and potentially hugely beneficial.

Even this week, reports surfaced that the natural gas at Diamond is of commercial quality and further study will surely now take place.

But if we are to build a truly renewable future, we need to take a closer look at our local capabilities. Duly, the minister was able to successfully advocate for a solar farm when visiting Norway recently, and the funds that might have been wasted on Amaila will now be put to good use.

In the end, Shaka’s greatest contribution to the Zulu wasn’t the short spear, but encouraging his soldiers to make use of it, to develop a culture that would maximise its potency. So maybe decentralised koker-dams will solve our energy needs and then again, maybe not. The point, really, is just to encourage the search.

Understanding Energy...

Exploring the government’s new ‘Green Paper’ GUYANA’s long-discussed Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) is one step closer to reality, with last week’s release of a government “Green Paper” outlining the proposed plan for managing oil revenues. The new draft plan outlines how petroleum revenues will be incorporated into the budget, how they will be saved and invested, and what agencies and ministers have authority over how and when funds

are spent.

The plan was created with inputs from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Commonwealth Secretariat and is in line with the Santiago Principles—24 generally accepted practices for good governance of resource revenues created by the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds.

The plan would hold

petroleum and excess mining revenues in a “Natural Resources Fund”—a U.S. dollar denominated Sovereign Wealth Fund at the Bank of Guyana. Holding funds in an international currency like U.S. dollars is a common practice with Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs), since it prevents inflation and distortion in the local currency. Housing-fund management responsibilities within the

central bank is done by most countries with SWFs, such as Norway and Malaysia, as a way to prevent revenues from being used for political purposes.

As stated in the Green Paper, the three goals for the fund are: stabilisation, inter-generational savings, and domestic investment, “in keeping with the vision of the national development plan.”

These three are standard goals for SWFs all

over the world and help prevent the impacts of “Dutch Disease” by setting aside money to stabilise the Guyana dollar and help increase the competitiveness of other sectors, as well as reduce budget and revenue fluctuations caused by the changing price of oil.

By setting aside funds for inter-generational savings, Guyana is putting itself on the path of countries such as Norway, who saved enough

during the first few decades of their oil booms that they now have massive funds that can finance continued development through the interest they generate alone.

Domestic investment in keeping with the national development plan is also a key and sometimes overlooked goal for revenue management. Though the exact priorities Turn to page 11

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Who will it be?

– PNCR votes for chairman, vice-chairman today

Joseph Harmon

By Alva Solomon THE chairmanship of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) will be decided today at the party’s 20th Biennial Congress and voting is expected to be competitive, as several top figures in the party are vying for key positions.

The congress, which is being held under the theme ‘Better together for a Brighter tomorrow,’ continues today and will culminate with a rally at Stabroek Square shortly after sunset.

Joseph Harmon, the current Minister of State and Volda Lawrence, Minister of Public Health are challenging Basil Williams, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs for the post of chairman of the PNCR. In 2016, Williams was unchallenged at the 19th edition of the conference for the chairmanship of the 60 -year-old party.

This time around, he is expected to face stiff competition from both Harmon and Lawrence, both of whom have launched social media campaigns, with Harmon upping the ante on his campaign with meetings being held with supporters in the

Annette Ferguson

Basil Williams

Volda Lawrence

Aubrey Norton

Christopher Jones

diaspora.

Lawrence, for her part, has taken her campaign across the country to venues on the coastland as well as several hinterland locations including Regions Eight, Nine and 10.

Earlier this month, she met with supporters in the Rupununi, including representatives from the town of Lethem and several villages including Karasabai, Katoonarib and Sawarinau. In July, Lawrence received several youths whom she noted “refuelled” her by placing their faith, hope and trust in her.

Harmon, who announced his candidacy on May 21, 2018, via press release, has been holding meetings at various venues across the country including Bartica, Mahdia, Parika , Linden, the Essequibo islands of Leguan and Wakenaam as well as several locations in Georgetown and along the coastland.

He also met with supporters in New York, Canada and recently, Atlanta, Georgia.

ly on his social media platform page that he intends to make the National Congress of Women more meaningfully engaged in the policy direction of the party as well as an integral stakeholder on women’s issues.

“This means addressing women’s issues from three main perspectives - poverty alleviation, civic participation and in the access to and exercise of power,” he said.

Williams in recent months has been meeting with supporters along the coastland including at Agricola, the Essequibo Coast, Berbice and Linden. He also held discussions with supporters from the diaspora.

Most notably, Williams in his address at the opening of the congress on Friday, urged that President David Granger be given a ‘winning team’ that will help him deliver the good life to Guyanese.

He told the congress that the party is at a juncture where it must reflect on what it has achieved over the last two years, “where we are presently and where we are taking Guyana in the future.”

According to him, it is only when they would have taken account of their achievements as well as fail-

ures that “we would be able to position ourselves to do better.”

one group elections I was elected the youngest member, as the secretary of the group,” she recalled during an interview with this publication earlier this month.

During her younger years, Ferguson had graduated from St. John’s College with five CXC passes, later acquiring two diplomas and degrees in Social Work and Public Management; a postgraduate degree in Administration and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy and Management.

Christopher Jones, another product of the youth arm of the PNCR is also vying for the post of vice-chair. The 38-year-old told the Guyana Chronicle earlier this month noted that since joining the party some 19 years ago, it has been his desire to see more youth actively involved in the leadership of the party.

He explained that with over 240,000 youths across the country between the ages of 18 and 43, there is a need for them to be adequately represented in the Central Executive Committee of the party.

“More young people are needed at the leadership level of the party and I think that is what is going to attract more young people to the party,

because they see a reflection of themselves there,” Jones shared with the Guyana Chronicle.

Long-serving member, Aubrey Norton is also vying for the post of vice chair. His decision to contest for the post appears last minute as he made the announcement on Wednesday of last week on his Facebook page.

“At the urging of many party comrades I wish to agree with their request and offer myself as candidate for the vice chairman of the PNCR,” he said.

In 2014, Norton, another party stalwart, was contender for the leadership of the party but dropped out of the race citing problems with the electoral process. President David Granger was later elected head of the party.

During congress scheduled to be held from August 17 to 19, party groups will choose their top leaders from a list provided by the party’s secretariat. In the electoral process, persons are placed on the list after nomination and acceptance of such. On the day of congress, all party members in good financial standing will cast their vote for the candidate of their choice.

investment and can be an opportunity for corruption and political favouritism.

The Green Paper shouldn’t be viewed as a final piece of legislation. Instead, it’s meant to stimulate discussion and act as a starting point.

The government has heard from global experts, now it’s time to listen to local voices and ensure that the needs of Guyanese are incorporated

as well, while ensuring that global best practices are not just heard but also followed.

The Green Paper represents a strong but initial step in the right direction.

Now it’s up to the government and the people to ensure that the job is finished before 2020, so that Guyana can take full advantage of this incredible opportunity.

MORE MEANINGFUL ROLE Harmon also enjoys support from the women’s arm of the PNCR. He said recent-

A STRONG BELIEVER Making a pitch to his supporters who welcomed him with thunderous applause, Williams said he believes in the PNCR. “I believe in you, and the work you have done for this party. I believe that the vision and shared values of Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham resonate in us. It is because of those shared values of country first, that we are here.”

Meanwhile, the post of vice-chair of the party is also competitive with several candidates announcing their candidacy for the position in recent weeks.

Among those vying for the post is Annette Ferguson, junior Minister of Public Infrastructure. Ferguson, who has endorsed Harmon in his campaign, has noted in her social media campaign that she stands ready to fulfill her duty to the PNCR. “I recall being around the PNC in my younger days.

My mom was a member of the Alberttown/Bourda group and every Tuesday night I would accompany mom to that meeting and I recall at

Exploring the government’s ... for domestic spending are always going to be fiercely debated, there is broad agreement in Guyana that investments in health, education, and infrastructure, like new bridges and roads, are needed to build a diverse economy and a healthy society.

Despite these clearly positive steps towards responsible revenue management, one provision in the Green

Paper has stirred up significant debate: the power vested in the Finance Ministry to manage requested withdrawals and to appoint the five-member Macroeconomic Committee, as well as the Sovereign Investment Committee. A central role for the Ministry of Finance is not unusual and as structured, the Green Paper ensures that Parliament has a

key oversight role through the annual budget process, which will include approval of the amount to be withdrawn from the Natural Resource Fund.

The Macroeconomic Committee will have the crucial role of setting the economically sustainable amount—the level of funds that can be safely and reasonably withdrawn each year

from page 10

and fed into the budget without compromising the fund’s long-term integrity.

The Green Paper also omits the controversial idea of direct cash payments to the poorest in Guyana. Direct payments are relatively rare.

Other countries have found that direct cash payments can cause harmful inflation, tend to be spent on imported products rather than local

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Bholo does Region Two proud – cops 21 subjects at CSEC, including 18 grade ones

By Indrawattie Natram SEVENTEEN-YEAR-OLD Shakira Bholo from the village of Cotton Field, Region Two, has done herself, family, school and region proud at this year’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

The young lady secured 21 subjects at CSEC, 18 of which were grade ones, two grade twos and one grade three.

“I feel very happy, I knew I would have done well, but never expected to top my school. I cannot go on without mentioning and giving my success to God,” Bholo said when she was told of her results.

She added: “I thank God wholeheartedly, for his strength and his guidance throughout the examinations.”

The former Anna Regina Multilateral Secondary (ARMS) student, who wants to become an economist, said she was never a high flyer in her class, but always strove to do well.

Having graduated from

Shakira Bholo obtained 18 grade ones

Vishal Narine obtained 14 grade ones

C. V. Nunes Primary, Bholo related that she ended up in a class with brilliant students and learnt a lot from her classmates during her time at secondary school.

Her parents Carlos and Marian Bholo, were super excited about their daughter’s achievement.

They said although Bholo came from humble beginnings, she managed to make her home circle proud and took the opportunity to thank the hard-working teachers at

Anna Regina Multilateral for the patience and time spent with their daughter.

Another Anna Regina Multilateral student, Camecia De La Cruz, also from Cotton Field, said she aims to become a surgeon with a focus on tackling cancer.

La Cruz said throughout the examinations she was determined and remained focus. Placing second in the region, the young lady gained 17 grade ones, two grade twos and one grade three at

Camecia De La Cruz scored 17 grade ones

the examinations.

Her success came through many long hours of late-night studies and she thanked her dedicated teachers and parents for their support.

Begum Baksh, another top performer from Region Two who secured 15 grade ones and two grade twos, said she was elated.

Baksh, also a student of the Anna Regina Multilateral Secondary School (ARMS), thanked her parents

Begum Baksh secured 15 grade ones

and teachers for their support which was instrumental in her success.

“I had studies late in the nights, I did my researches and I was focused, I also had my mother’s guidance which led me through. I must say also I had distanced myself from social media and focused on my studies” said Baksh, who wants to become an entrepreneur.

Her mother Nanda Baksh of Sparta Village, said she has always admired her

daughter’s dedication towards her studies.

Anna Regina Multilateral headteacher Lalljeet Rooplall said he was happy the school has maintained its proud tradition of doing well as the CSEC examination.

He congratulated his hard-working and dedicated teachers for a job well done.

“As educators, it’s our motto to ensure our children excel at any examinations.

We at ARMS are very proud of the examinations and we have seen a significant improvement this year, especially in English and Mathematics,” the headteacher said.

Other Region Two top performers include Vishal Narine and Alexander Westford of the Anna Regina Secondary School and Lariel Narain from Abram Zuil Secondary School.

Vishal Narine obtained 14 grade ones and one grade two, while Westford scored 12 grade ones and three grade twos. Narain of Abram Zuil Secondary School secured 12 grade ones, three grade twos and one grade three.

GDF completes exercise ‘IRONWEED’

THE Guyana Defence Force (GDF) exercise “IRONWEED” culminated recently with the “Final Attack”, in the savannah of the Colonel John Clarke Military School at Tacama.

Over 1500 troops participated in the 10-day exercise, which was designed to assess the force’s operational capability and readiness in the closed-country and open-country warfare theatres.

Congratulating the troops after the exercise, Chief-of-Staff Brigadier Patrick West announced that the activity will be done on an annual basis.

“In this exercise, we have tested and assessed our coordination, synchronisation, and standardisation of [battle-ready] operational procedures,” he said.

“We have demonstrated our capacity for mobilisation, deployment, concentration of force, battle procedure,

fire and assault support, among other things. I am proud to announce that this is the first time that we have had so many troops involved in this type of exercise. This was because of the embodiment of more than 200 reservists from the Guyana People’s Militia,” he added.

Brigadier West congratulated the reservists, and noted that they understood their roles. He expressed the hope that the lessons learnt would be implemented across their spectrum of training.

The chief-of-staff also noted that as the exercise continues each year, various adjustments to format and operational procedures would be initiated as necessary.

This, he said, would be in keeping with the need to ensure sharper and more precise focus in battle-readiness and operational efficiency.

Some of the scenes from the operation

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Cubans flock St Joseph Hospital – to get medical check-ups for immigration visas

IT is a hot August morning. Amelia Canseco sits quietly with a relative at the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital (SJMH), Kingston, Georgetown, outside the Guyana Laboratory Department. The heat does not bother her at all, as her thoughts are focused on one mission — to collect the results of medical tests she had done the day before.

Amelia is in unfamiliar surroundings. She is not from Guyana and this is her first visit to the South American country. The laboratory tests she has undergone at the hospital are a crucial part of the reason for her trip to Guyana.

She speaks English reasonably well; however, it is clear that Amelia is one of the many Cubans journeying to Guyana for interviews at the United States Embassy as they anxiously seek their immigrant visas.

Cubans have been flocking to Guyana in droves to get such visas, because the USA has not only relaxed its position on visitors and immigrants from Cuba, but it has also decided to transfer the processing of visa applications for Cubans from Colombia to Guyana.

Amelia turns to the hospital’s Clinical Associate Administrator, Terry Mohamed and exuberantly declares, “It has been great service… they are doing a fantastic job! I don’t know how you guys do it!” she tells him.

They are also thronging the private hospital because it is the only medical institution in Guyana approved by the U.S. Embassy at this

Clinical Associate Administrator Terry Mohamed

point in time to provide this service. The 73-year-old hospital has risen to the challenge of living up to the trust of the U.S. Immigration Service to provide professional medical screenings to facilitate their scrupulous system of visa-processing.

Currently, only two doctors are certified by the United States’ Immigration Board and, coincidentally, the two are also stationed at SJMH. UNPRECEDENTED The hospital’s Chief Executive Officer Enoch Gaskin explained that even though the hospital now has an unprecedented influx of Cubans seeking medicals, there is no partiality and no distinction in the services the institution offers them.

They get the same treatment as anyone else.

“There is no distinction in what is done for any population… it’s the same board physician… same lab test, everything is the same,” he said, adding, “What is new is that we have a significant group of people doing these

Deputy Chief Executive Officer Deborah Ramsay

tests from a different culture…”

But the steep increase in Cubans seeking medical services is not without its challenges. Gaskin said the hospital is including Spanish signage around its building and compound to guide their clients.

“If there are any perceptions that the Cubans are getting special treatment or that the hospital has to do something different for Cubans, the answer is no.

But we do recognise that our signage has to be bi-lingual because every day … a significant clientele who pass through speak Spanish,” he explained.

Gaskin noted that, above and beyond everything, the standard policy of the hospital’s staff is to maintain sustained, high-quality professional service for everyone who seeks their intervention.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Executive Officer Deborrah Ramsay endorsed the CEO’s statement and added that doing medicals up to the standard required by U.S.

consular services is nothing new for SJMH. “It has been going on like this for many years.”

“Of course, we benefit from it because we are a well-established hospital and we have all the services that actually assist in getting the immigrant visas,” Ramsay said.

TOP-QUALITY PERSONNEL There seems to be little doubt that the hospital’s long association with the U.S. Embassy is based on its top-quality medical personnel and facilities, including an award-winning laboratory fully certified by the Guyana National Bureau of Standards.

And the U.S. embassy does not leave anything to chance; its staff conducts a comprehensive annual audit of the hospital. “They [audit the hospital] at least once a year to pronounce on the professionalism and status of the services we provide,” Gaskin said.

“The fact that the [U.S.]

Chief Executive Officer Enoch Gaskin

board’s physicians are all resident Mercy Hospital physicians and our services are totally used—every service needed for the process is provided by the hospital—is testimony alone to the fact that we have been able to sustain the high quality expected of us and we intend to continue in this vein,” Gaskin asserted.

“So, rest assured that the U.S. Consular system would have chosen us because of our track record. So you are coming into an approved establishment with a history that is recognised. The hospital will do nothing to compromise that status.

“I would like to think St Joseph Hospital is the standard-bearer… we are the standard by which other services provided will be judged, and we are up to the challenge to ensure that we remain the standard- bearers,” he added.

Ramsay explained that the hospital does corporate medicals as well, noting, “We welcome the opportunity to serve everybody and we continue to [provide] that

service in our normal professional way.”

Gaskin said the number of Cubans seen at the hospital is often not an accurate reflection of the numbers actually there for their medical screening, because families or individuals are often accompanied by others who are not seeking any service at the hospital.

“So you may see a busload of 15 persons turn up, but only four of them are doing the medicals,” he remarked, adding, “Even if the total numbers you see were to access our service, it’s still way below our capacity.”

Often, he is bombarded with one question: how is the hospital coping with the influx of Cubans?

“For us it’s not an influx.

For us it’s a normal day, because we can accept way more than the total numbers you see and dispense with them in the same professional manner in which we are dealing with our regular clients,” he noted.

Mohamed supported him, saying that the large numbers of Cubans seen waiting in the mornings are efficiently dealt with by midday.

Ramsay maintained that the hospital, over the years, has kept pace with modern systems and equipment in the medical industry to ensure that the hospital always provides high-quality service as a top medical institution in Guyana.

Other hospital professionals agreed that SJMH has been handling the increased volume of medical-seeking Cubans quite well.

Simple larceny leads police to unlicensed shotgun A 33-year-old gold miner was the victim of alleged simple larceny of a quantity of raw gold at Takutu Backdam, Puruni Main Road, on Friday about 11:00hrs.

According to reports, police ranks from the Barti-

ca Police Station responded and while investigating the alleged robbery, found an unlicensed, single-barrelled shotgun.

Five persons, including a female, are in custody assisting with the investigation.

The shotgun that was found

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Marics launches Isuzu vehicle brand

MARICS and Company Limited on Friday afternoon launched the Isuzu brand of vehicles in Guyana at the Guyana Marriott Hotel Lobby/Bar which saw a large turn-out with much fanfare and glitz.

In August 2018, Marics pursued a new business venture in becoming the dealer for ISUZU in Guyana.

Isuzu is the world’s leading commercial diesel engine manufacturer with over 100 years of experience in diesel engines. Yesterday, August 17, 2018, MARICS introduced the ISUZU D-Max engineering innovation with a fresh new design.

The D-MAX is still the only pickup in the market which is produced by a commercial vehicle manufacturer.

The new ISUZU mu-X was also launched and was developed to stand out and stand apart in every aspect.

Designed with extra attitude, expressing a true interpretation of an SUV, combined

with a luxurious versatile cabin and excellent all-terrain performance.

President, Isuzu Motors International Operations Panama, Shinichiro Otatsume said Isuzu is one of the oldest vehicle manufacturers in the world and they supply their products to about 140 countries around the world.

The dealership at the launch, introduced two models of Isuzu vehicles to the Guyanese market.

Chief Executive Officer of Guyana Office for Investment, (GO-INVEST) Owen Verwey said the launching is a very good indicator for Guyana to see international companies and international brands choosing to partner and or establish viable operations here.

He said, “It speaks to the business confidence, and customer confidence, of its sustainability, and while I do not like to speak about the emergence of oil and gas in Guyana, I am sure this was

President, Isuzu Motors International Operations, Shinichiro Otatsume, addressing the gathering at the launching on Friday at the Marriott.

just about one of the variables influencing this decision by the investors.”

He added that as Guyana expects to see more and more cars on the roads in the coming years, it is expected that with newer cars, these would be safer, more reliable, cleaner, greener and more energy efficient.

The ISUZU mu-X pickup vehicle which was launched on Friday.

Verwey stated that these newer vehicles will also help to reduce carbon emissions and contribute to the global fight against climate change.

The CEO of GO-INVEST pointed out that the ISUZU name is not new to Guyana, however this launch makes for an easier opportunity for persons, companies, organ-

isations and government to own and benefit from the brand’s advantages.

Making remarks, Managing Director, Marics and Company Limited, Mrs. Diana Permaul said that for the past 50 years the company has been serving the Guyanese market with its diverse line of products which provided transportation at a fair market price.

She related that over the years they have managed to build a long lasting customer base which stands out because of their products.

Mrs. Permaul pointed out that the company’s aim is to build strong relationships for the development of the automobile market in Guyana as such, Marics remains committed to satisfying the automobile needs of Guyana.

Meanwhile, Maurice Brahim Director, Fernandes Autohandel N.V. told the gathering on Friday that they have been preparing for the launching and they will con-

tinue to lend support for future success of the company.

Marics and Company Limited (“MARICS”), which was established on June 23, 1966 as a limited company, experienced a modest start, selling mainly motorcycles, automobiles and power products.

Marics has been supplying the Guyanese market with durable and reputable products for over 50 years.

Its passion for the development of the automobile market in Guyana only gets stronger as it pursues opportunities that will bring major benefits to fellow Guyanese.

Marics remains committed to satisfying the mobility needs of the Guyanese nation, while being customer focused and value driven.

Providing business stability aids the company in becoming the most progressive enterprise in serving the automobiles, power products, motorcycles, ATVS and outboard markets in Guyana.

A section of the gathering at the ISUZU launching at the Marriott.

Contraband unearthed at New Amsterdam Prison – marijuana, cellphones and lighters among items

A JOINT Services raid in the wee hours of Saturday morning at the New Amsterdam (NA) Prison unearthed five grams of marijuana, five cellphones, a quantity of improvised weapons, lighters and phone chargers.

This search comes on the heels of one conducted on Friday at the Lusignan Prison, where officers unearthed yet another set of contra-

band items, including pepper sauce and syringes.

Among the illegal items found at the East Coast Demerara penitentiary were six earpieces; a quantity of razor blades; 17 chargers; 24 lighters; five cellphones; a quantity of wire; 10 improvised weapons; eight metal spoons; two pairs of scissors; one plastic knife; two nail clips; six syringes with needles;

a quantity of Ziplock bags; six bottles of pepper sauce; one pack of cards; three bottles of medicine; four bottles of oil with suspected cannabis seeds; one memory card; three mirrors and one wrist watch.

Authorities are trying to curb the smuggling of contraband items into prisons, which remains a recurrent problem within the prison system.

The items that were seized

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Infrastructure Ministry, DDL discuss major projects SEVERAL projects , including the construction of a road link between Ogle, East Coast Demerara and Diamond, East Bank Demerara (EBD) were discussed when Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson met with officials of the Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) during a tour of the manufacturing facility on Monday last.

According to a release from the Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MoPI), Minister Patterson and Permanent Secretary Kenneth Jordan toured the operations of DDL, as well as surrounding areas at Diamond, where both entities embarked on major development projects.

These include the construction of a new highway from Ogle to Diamond and re-routing of traffic arrangements to be undertaken by the ministry. It was noted that the expansion and diversification of DDL’s operations require adjustments to previous land-use plans to which both the ministry and the company have agreed.

It was noted that the visit by the minister and team follows a previous meeting between the government

official and a team from DDL headed by its chairman Komal Samaroo, at which the land-use issues were discussed and agreed upon in principle.

It was noted that Minister Patterson subsequently reported to Cabinet, while Samaroo reported to the company’s board of directors, the outcome of the discussions.

The ministry said the visit facilitated on-the-spot examination of the areas identified for the various projects, as well as specific works to be undertaken to improve drainage, reduce traffic congestion and enhance road safety.

Among DDL’s expansion plans are the construction of a new packaging facility, a new headquarters building, the establishment of a solar farm for energy generation and relocation of the Topco juice plant.

Monday’s discussions also addressed issues such as future development of the area when the road from Brazil and a deep-water harbour eventually come on stream, the use of liquid natural gas (LNG) and the efficient transport of products for export to ports in the cap-

From page 9

Alleged breach of... criminal charges could be laid.

MPI EXPLANATION

The MPI in an attempt “to set the record straight” had said advertisements were placed in November 2015 for the feasibility study for the new Demerara Harbour Bridge. An Evaluation Committee was established by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) and that committee comprised Balraj Balram (coordinator) Permanent Secretary, MPI; Patrick Thompson, Chief Transport Planning Officer, Work Services Group, MPI; Rawlston Adams, General Manager Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation; and Omar Bispat, senior engineer, Central Housing & Planning Authority, Ministry of Communities.

The report said too that Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, by a memorandum dated November 18, 2016, called on Cabinet to consider and approve the use of funds from the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation (DHBC) (Asphalt Plant Accounts) “to study the feasibility and to commence a contractual engagement with Lieven-

seCSO, as of the 1st January, 2017”. Cabinet considered the memorandum and on November 25, 2016, approved $161.5M to be used from the DHBC (Asphalt Plant Accounts) to cover costs of the feasibility study for a new bridge across the Demerara River.

“MPI reiterates that lengthy procurement procedures were faithfully followed which did not yield suitable results. Having, thereafter, received a proposal which satisfied the Government’s requirements for this project of national importance and given the relevant time constraints, it was felt that it was in Guyana’s interest to take advantage of the proposal. It is for this and other stated reasons that Cabinet’s approval was sought,” the statement noted.

“There is and has been an urgent need for a new bridge across the Demerara River and Government is cognisant of this and has taken every decision, within the law, to ensure that the realisation of a new bridge is not unduly delayed.

The people of Guyana deserve nothing less,” the statement added.

ital, Georgetown.

Minister Patterson and Samaroo indicated their pleasure at “the meeting of the minds” of both the government and DDL on matters that needed to be addressed and indicated that teams from both sides will immediately begin work on a number of action items agreed upon.

The ministry said the tour included visits to DDL’s bottling plant, warehouse, distillery, Topco juice plant, head office and the Heritage Centre where the visitors were hosted to a working lunch.

Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson looks at a Diamond landuse map as DDL Chairman Komal Samaroo makes a point. DDL’s Finance Comptroller Vasuedo Singh looks on

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Gov’t slams GGDMA THE Ministry of Natural Resources (MoNR) has taken issue with a statement from the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) on Wednesday regarding the current state of affairs in the gold-mining industry and the killing of the Brazilian miner in Puruni.

The ministry in a statement said, as does all of government, it is concerned by the recent killing of the miner by a member of the police force and is satisfied that charges have been laid against the offending officer.

“We trust that there will be an expeditious and fair hearing to determine all of the relevant facts and that justice will be served.

“On the issue of the purported failure of government to address the concerns of the industry, this is farthest from the truth. The miners in particular, and the public in general, will recall the numerous efforts made by various ministries to support the mining community by providing greater incentives for fuel and spares, granting duty-free concessions, assisting with the establishment of the National Mining Syndicate (NMS) and providing mining lands to name but a few of the initiatives that have been introduced and are ongoing,” the ministry said.

On June 20, 2018, several Cabinet ministers met with members of the GGDMA, the Guyana Women Miners Organisation (GWMO) and the MoNR to discuss concerns and hindrances to production and agreed a menu of measures to be implemented, the ministry said, noting that even now, Cabinet is considering one such proposal raised by the GGDMA. “The GGDMA speaks of respect and yet has publicly

challenged the President on issues such as mercury eradication following his attendance at the First Conference of Parties for the Minamata Convention, and given ultimatum for a meeting to be held.

The Government of Guyana takes issue with the insinuation that the GGDMA has been disrespected by it and wishes to place on record that it endeavours to treat respectfully, all persons, group and organisations in its interfaces.

Respect begets respect and if respect is demanded, it first has to be given and [be] deserved,” the Natural Resources Ministry said.

The statement noted that the Ministry of Natural Resources and all other ministries, agencies and departments of government that are directly and indirectly related to the mining industry have a duty to work with the miners , be they small, medium or industrial scale, to achieve high and sustainable yields, whilst paying due regard to good and safe mining and environmental practices.

“Government can well appreciate the nervousness of some miners that the emerging green economy and imminent oil production will displace their standing and wishes to assure that the gold-mining industry will remain an indelible feature of Guyana's economy and culture. It is time the GGDMA decided whether it is a political pressure group and a body representing the interests of an elite group, or a partner in national development. The Government of Guyana waits with great expectation for meaningful and respectful engagement, and meanwhile, will continue its efforts to ensure a better organised and regulated mining industry,” the ministry said.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

Youth conference aims to empower young people

From left, General Manager, Masterclass Instistute (Collaborating Partner) Dennon Lewis, Assistant Director of Youth, Leslyn Boyce, Director of Youth, Melissa Carmichael, Senior Research and Planning Officer, Adeti De Jesus, Project Officer, Germaine Watson

THE Department of Youth, which falls under the umbrella of Ministry of the Presidency – Department of Social Cohesion, Culture, Youth and Sport, on Friday, launched their Inaugural Guyana Youth Conference 2018, under the theme ‘Youth Perspective for Empowerment and Development for better Guyana.’

This conference is slated for September 24th, 25th, and 26th at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre and caters for young people across Guyana between the ages of 18-35. It will begin with a State youth reception and tour for young people from the outlying regions and continues with two days of discussions by our young people.

Director of Youth, Melissa Carmichael, shared that the Department of Youth has been working assiduously to ensure the development and involvement of youth through various programmes and initiatives and this conference aims to assist in the empowerment of our young people. “This conference is an initiative focused on creating a platform for young people to learn, share and express their views on topical, relative issues that they face within their communities, regions and country as a whole,” she said.

She added that it is geared to have some 300 attendees comprising of youth from all ten administrative regions. And they all will hear from agencies, Ministries and NGOs as well

as experts on various pertinent areas for youth empowerment and development.

These presentations she said, will be followed by plenaries, with an aim of creating action steps for the attendees.

Senior Research and Planning Officer, Adeti De Jesus, echoed Carmichael, adding that this conference is aimed to ensure that they capture young people to foster participation and inclusion of Guyanese youth to aid in nation building.

The Department commits to continue serving the young people of Guyana and provide opportunities for them to be heard and participate in decision making processes and continue to ensure that their empowerment is priority.

The Department of Youth

encourages all young people across the length and breadth of Guyana to register for the event by uplifting a registration form from the office

located at 91 Middle Street Georgetown or by completing the online registration by going to www.youthconferencegy.com or their

Facebook page.

For further information feel free to contact the Department of Youth on 226-7144

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, August 19, 2018

GNBS presses on with scales and measures verification VERIFICATION exercises conducted during the first half of 2018 (January to July) continued to show that a relatively large quantity of new devices are being imported or

manufactured for use in trade.

For that period, these new devices totalled 310 scales, 840 masses and 1200 electricity meters, according to Public Relations Officer (PRO) of

the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS), Lloyd David.

David said usually, verification exercises are conducted twice yearly to ensure all devic-

es including scales, masses, measures, fuel pumps, and bulk meters, initially and continuously used in commercial trade, are accurate and fit for use.

Similarly, he said unverified or illegal devices are seized, removed and in some instances destroyed to prevent defaulters from taking advantage of consumers through their unscrupulous practices. These defaulters can be prosecuted for infringements of the Weights and Measures Act. He explained that the GNBS coordinates and spearheads the National Legal Metrology Programme which ensures that weighing and measuring devices used in trade are accurate and reliable.

So far for this year, he said inspectors of the GNBS and Weights and Measures Officers from the various administrative regions have managed to verify a significant majority of the devices used in trade.

Meanwhile, he said, the bureau continued to verify devices already in use for the corresponding period. These devices totaled 3437 scales and 7416 masses used by vendors, shopkeepers and other users throughout the various sectors including manufacturing, transportation and health.

In addition, he said the Guyana Power and Light Company submitted 205 electricity meters which were already put into use but required re-verification before reinstallation. In order to ensure reliable measurements at the bulk level, 82 large capacity weigh bridge scales and four large capacity storage tanks were verified for the first half of

the year.

As it relates to the petroleum industry, the PRO said the bureau continued to ensure confidence in the measurements offered at all levels, from importation at the terminals to dispensation into the vehicles of consumers.

A total of 940 petrol pumps at gas stations countrywide were tested, 135 bulk meters at terminals were verified, and 89 tanker wagons were inspected and verified.

“Currently, verification of devices is ongoing for the second half of 2018.

For the period, July to September, inspectors of the GNBS will be facilitating the verification process by making themselves available at various locations including markets, NDCs and community centres across the country,” he explained.

“Efforts will also be made by inspectors to visit the larger companies, health facilities, cargo agencies and airports to have all devices in use verified and sealed. Users of weighing and measuring devices are encouraged to take advantage of this verification period by submitting their devices or arranging with the GNBS early. By doing this, they will avoid their devices being confiscated by inspectors during the surveillance period later in the year.”

Meanwhile, the Bureau noted that early verification guarantees that users are not over delivering or under delivering or over charging or undercharging for products and services they are offering to their respective customers.

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Students graduate at ‘Gurukula’ Hindu youth camp

ONE hundred and forty students graduated from a Hindu religious youth camp on Saturday hosted by the Maharishi Dayananda Gurukula (Guyana Chapter) in collaboration with the Windsor Forest Arya Samaj.

The diplomas were handed out to students at the Arya Samaj Temple, Windsor Forest West Coast Demerara.

According to Camp Administrator Vedkumar Bowan, it is the 62nd training camp and the focus this year was on discussing critical questions on Hinduism.

He explained that the event was facilitated by Dr. Satish Prakash who is the executive director of the New York arm of the chapter.

“The 140 students were from across the country and two of our young leaders were sent to India for nine months for musical training and they taught some of the students who were interested in various instruments,” Bowan explained.

In service to humanity, Dr. Satish Prakash, who is also a Pandit and the spiritual head of the movement in Guyana, said his intention is to complete the Gurukula building at Uitvlught, West Coast Demerara with a full residential facility.

He explained that the Gurukula complex will be made up of an L-shaped three storey building.

“We have already erected a concrete fence around the perimeter of the land.

The foundation for the auditorium is currently being laid. The expected date of completion of the auditorium is September, 2018. The entire Gurukula complex is expected to be complete in September, 2020,” he said.

Further, he explained that two programmes will be taught side by side in the Gurukula - one for those students who need

a second chance at acquiring their high school diploma, and the other for youngsters who wish to train to become Vedic-Hindu missionaries.

All students will be taught Hindi, Sanskrit, Music, and Yoga. Teachers will be recruited from both Guyana and India.

“I have been on the platform of the Arya Samaj. I have been travelling worldwide, providing support services by way of lecturing, Vedas and allied Sanskritic subjects to Arya Samaj/ Sanatani groups in many countries of the world – in India, in Trinidad, Guyana, Suriname, Canada — as well as various cities of the United States, preaching from Vedas, Ramayana, Bhagwat Gita, and other holy books,” he noted.

Born at Uitvlugt on the West Coast of Demerara in Guyana, Dr. Prakash attended St. Stanislaus College before pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in modern languages, specifically French and Spanish, at the University of Guyana. After graduating in 1974, he worked as head of the Arya Samaj Youth Movement until 1997; when, in January of that year, he left Guyana’s shores to pursue religious studies in India.

Dr. Satish attended the Gurukula, a school of Sanskritic studies located in Haryana, India, where he studied advanced Sanskrit grammar for three years, which he described as very intense and advanced; and this attached a Sanskrit component to his Bachelor’s degree in Modern Languages. This qualified him for admission to the Master’s degree in Vedic Sanskrit in Gurukul Kangri University, located in Haridwar, India, which is known as a Sanskritic city in Eastern Utter Pradesh.

In 1985, Pt Satish received his PhD in Vedic Sanskrit Literature.

(At Centre) Dr. Satish Prakash flanked by students who display their certificates at the Maharishi Dayananda Gurukula at the Arya Samaj Temple, Windsor Forest West Coast Demerara. (Delano Williams Photo)

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Top field confirmed for today’s 12th Annual Guyana Cup horse race meet … Organisers anticipate huge turnout

By Rajiv Bisnauth

D

ESPITE years of neglect by authorities, which have slowly pushed thoroughbred racing – the sport of kings – to the margin locally, organisers of the 12th annual Guyana Cup are anticipating an action-packed day of racing.

Surely the lack of proper legislation to govern the sport has continued to affect the horse racing industry, and there was a worry that horse racing was struggling to stay relevant but these concerns appear to be misleading.

While sports fans are spoiled for choice these days with more televised events than ever before, horse racing continues to attract huge crowds, and come today at the Rising Sun Turf Club on the West Coast Berbice, organisers, the Jumbo Jet Thoroughbred Racing Committee, anticipate another packed venue.

In an invited comment yesterday, chief coordinator Nazrudeen Mohamed Jr disclosed that all systems are in place for the mega event.

Mohamed Jr pointed out that the track is in superb condition and some fast times are expected to be recorded in the grand showdown.

Regarded as the biggest horse race meet in Guyana,

An action-packed day of racing is in the making.

the event is once again tipped to attract the leading animals, jockeys and trainers in the sport, providing lucrative prizes for the champions of the various races.

The 10-race programme will gallop off at noon, but gates will be open from 10:00hrs.

The C Class and Lower 1600m event is the feature race of the day, with a top purse of $3 875 000. This race is open to all imported and locally bred horses of any class, age and sex.

A star-studded field will include a full gate of seven

horses breaking-even in the feature race.

Those animals registered are: Princess She’s Not, Dublin Fashion, Vera’s Finally, Just Call Me Boss, K&K, Settling Star and Good Will Boy. The main supporting race is the Three-year-old Derby, an 1100m event with a top prize of $2M. This race will feature only Guyana-bred horses.

The G1 and Lower 1400m race will see the winner carting of $1 550 000. Guyana and West Indian-bred horses classified G1 and Lower and imported horses classified E3

and Lower who did not earn in their last race are eligible to compete in this race.

The other races, distance and top prize are: H3 and Lower (1100m; $1 350 000); Two-year-old Guyana-bred (1100m; $680 000); I Class and Lower (1400m; $581 000); J3 and Lower (1400m; $485 000); L Class (1400m; $390 000); L Class (1400m; $390 000); and L Class (1100m; $290 000).

Tickets cost $2 000 for adults, children under 10 years old will be admitted free. while VIP tickets cost $6 000. Parking is $1 000 and the programme is $500.

Ramnaresh Sarwan Under-17 tourney

Albion, Port Mourant and Rose Hall Town Bakewell advance to 2nd round

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HE Ramnaresh Sarwan Under-17 50 overs cricket tournament, organised by the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), bowled off last Tuesday at several grounds across the Ancient County.

Some of the matches were affected by the weather but play was possible in three matches. Albion Cricket Club, Port Mourant Cricket Club and defending Berbice Under-17 champions Rose Hall Town Bakewell have all advanced to the second round, after recording victories against Tamarind Root Cricket Club, No. 73 Cricket Club and Rose Hall Canje respectively.

At the Port Mourant ground, the home team defeated No.73 by nine wickets.

Batting first, No.73 were bowled out for 74 off 22 overs. Vettori Latchman (12), Zameer Shaw (26) and Niraj Singh (10) reached double figures.

Bowling for Port Mourant,

Doorsammy Mahadeo

leg-spinner Doorsammy Mahadeo had remarkable figures of 7-14. Port Mourant Cricket Club in response reached 75-1 in 21 overs, with Rampertab Ramnauth and Dave Ramgoolam, remaining unbeaten on 19 each.

Albion Cricket Club crushed Tamarind Root Cricket Club of Hampshire by 10 wickets at the Albion ground.

Tamarind Root Cricket Club took first strike and were bowled out for a paltry 40 off 17.2 overs. Sarwan Chaitnarine claimed 5-12.

Chaitnarine then returned with the bat to score 29 not out along with Hemendra Goordial 10 not out, as Albion reached 42 without loss in 8.3 overs.

Rose Hall Town Bakewell defeated Rose Hall Canje Cricket Club by 30 runs at the Area ‘H’ ground. The defending champions had to dig deep after being reduced to 40-4. Jonathan Rampersaud and Mahendra Gopilall scored

28 apiece, as Rose Hall Town Bakewell reached 132 all out in 30 overs.

Tyrese Sealey supported with 19 while Lucas Arthur supported with 15. Pacer Isiah Thorne had 3-27, off-spinner Ricardo Ramdehol 3-24 and Bhaskar Dhanai 2-31 were the best bowlers Rose Hall Canje Cricket Club.

In reply, the visitors were given a solid opening stand of 49 from 18 overs by Ricardo Ramdehol and Avishkar before Ramdehol was dismissed by Jeremy Sandia for 19.

The Rose Hall Town Bakewell spinner then claimed the next nine wickets for 53 runs, as Rose Hall Canje Cricket Club were bowled out for 102.

Sandia claimed 3-19, Rampersaud 2-20, Matthew Pattaya 2-18 and Tyrese Sealey 2-20 were the principal wicket-takers for the winners.

FIFA Director to participate in North Pakaraima’s football tournament

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IFA’s Director of Member Associations, Veron Mosengo-Omba, is in Guyana to participate in the North Pakaraima’s Football tournament scheduled to open today at Kato, Region 8.

Mosengo-Omba is on invitation from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and will be accompanied by President Wayne Forde, Hon. Minister Within The Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs and Patron of Women’s Football in Guyana, Valerie Garrido-Lowe and a video documentary team as they capture the tournament and the challenges of hinterland football development.

In an invited comment, Mosengo-Omba said he was happy to be in Guyana and to support the work of the GFF and ensure football is accessible across Guyana: “President Gianni Infantino is determined to ensure that everyone has a fair and equal access to football. In fact, that is the true spirit of the FIFA Forward Programme.

The FIFA Forward Programme allows MAs to create hope and new opportunities in some of the most remote corners of the world. I am here to support the efforts of President Forde and the Executive Committee to extend the reach of the

game in Guyana.”

President of the GFF Wayne Forde said while the population of the hinterland is eager about football and the talent is expansive, football development is challenged, in part, by the rough geographical terrain: “The hinterland is diverse but the people are extremely passionate about football.

While raw talent is in no short supply, access to the communities to foster sustainable football development has been extremely challenging. This has placed a tremendous burden on the Federation’s logistical and financial capacity to respond to these challenges and advance football development in the various communities.

However, we are confident with FIFA’s support we will be able to accomplish this goal.”

This is the second time the GFF is participating in the major annual tournament held in Region 8.

Last year, President Forde accompanied Minister Garrido-Lowe and he donated football gears to the participating teams. The North Pakaraimas Football Tournament is scheduled to have the participation of over 20 teams, consisting of both males and females, from Kato and surrounding villages.

Trophy Stall rides with Guyana Cup 2018

… Thrilling encounters anticipated today

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UYANA’S leading distributors in silverware, the Trophy Stall, continued its support of horseracing by committing sponsorship to the 12th edition of the lucrative ‘Guyana Cup’ horserace meet which gallops off at the Rising Sun Turf Club today, with over $15M in cash and prizes up for grabs.

Rohan Oudit’s Construction Company as well has added its name to the list of sponsors supporting the mega horseracing event, the biggest of the year on the local calendar.

At the South Road location of the Trophy Stall, proprietor Ramesh Sunich, presented organiser Nazrudeen Mohamed, with halfa-dozen trophies which will be awarded to top performers at this Sunday’s race meet at Number 6 Village, West Coast Berbice.

Mohamed expressed gratitude for the generous gesture by Sunich, while the owner noted that he is always ready to support horseracing which attracts fans from all walks of life.

Today’s event is regarded as the most lucrative horserace meet the nation has ever seen.

Many fans and turfites prepare for the highly anticipated rivalry between the jockeys in the Jumbo Jet Thoroughbred Racing Committee and Rising Sun Turf Club collaborative initiative.

The one-day meet set for Berbice is gaining momentum

both locally and overseas with a lot of sponsors ready to saddle up with the mega event; Trophy Stall and Rohan Oudit’s Construction Company join a long list which includes Mohamed’s Enterprise, Impressive Signs of New Amsterdam, Berbice, Discount Store, Hand-in-hand Insurance, Superbet, Gizmos and Gadgets, BM Soat, Mazi Night Club, Hyper Malt and Rohan Auto Spares, Big L Lumber Yard, Banks DIH along with Elvis and D’ Emperor Trucking Services.

The programme of events for the day will see the C Class event as the main attraction.

THE DAY’S FULL RACE PROGRAMME READS AS FOLLOWS: 1) C Class and Lower, 1600m. Total Purse: $3,875,000 2) 3-year-old Derby 1100m – Purse: $2M. 3) G1 and Lower 1400m – Purse: $1,550,000.

4) H3 and Lower 1100m – Purse $1,350,000.

5) 2yrs old Guyana-bred 1100m – Purse: $680,000.

6) I Class and Lower 1400m – Purse: $581,000.

7) J3 and Lower 1400m.

Purse: $485,000.

8) L Class 1400m – Purse $390,000.

9) L Class 1400m – Purse $390,000.

10) L Class 1100m – Purse $290,000.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

Kohli, Rahane half-centuries boost India on day one A

BCB/Mike’s Pharmacy U-15 cricket tournament Albion, Blairmont through to semifinals

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OTTINGHAM, England (Reuters) - Virat Kohli was frustrated to be dismissed three runs short of his century but another fine captain’s knock inspired India on their best batting day of the series in the third Test against England at Trent Bridge yesterday.

Kohli looked poised to mark the first Test for 63 years in England to start on a Saturday with a serene ton until Adil Rashid’s spin beat him, but India’s champion batsman did most to guide them to 307-6 by close on a fascinating first day.

With England 2-0 ahead in the five-match series, Joe Root decided to launch another assault on India’s brittle top order after winning the toss and Chris Woakes obliged with three wickets in the morning session to reduce the tourists to 82-3.

Yet Kohli, who has shone amid his side’s batting ruins, once again dug deep and, ably assisted by Ajinkya Rahane in a superb 159-run fourth-wicket partnership, led his side out of another perilous situation.

The pair batted throughout the afternoon session when the ball stopped jagging around, compiling by far India’s best partnership of the series until Rahane was snapped up after tea for 81 by Stuart Broad, courtesy of Alastair Cook’s dazzling left-handed slip catch.

Kohli, having compiled his

18th Test fifty, carried on confidently and looked set for his 23rd Test hundred, and second of the series, until he attempted to drive at a rare Rashid turner which Ben Stokes gobbled up at slip.

It was Stokes’ major contribution on his return to the side four days after being cleared of affray. He had been given a ripple of applause as he came on to bowl in the morning but, not at his best, delivered 15 wicket-less overs for 54 runs.

Instead it was England’s less heralded all-rounder Woakes, centurion and manof-the-match in the second Test win at Lord’s, who took centre stage.

Shikhar Dhawan, restored to the side in place of Murali Vijay, and Lokesh Rahul had started well enough with India’s highest partnership of the series - 60 - until the Kohli-Rahane link-up, as England’s pacemen had failed to make a breakthrough.

Woakes looked the potential game-changer again, having Dhawan caught at slip for 35, trapping Rahul lbw for 23 and tempting Cheteshwar Pujara (14) into a hook on the stroke of lunch which went straight into the hands of Rashid on the boundary.

Kohli was doubtless unimpressed as he faced the prospect of having to bail out a sinking ship again but he found an assured partner in 30-year-

old Rahane.

After Kohli’s 152-ball stay, 20-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant made an assured unbeaten 22

on debut alongside Hardik Pandya, who became James Anderson’s 100th Indian Test victim to leave the match delicately poised.

LBION and Blairmont have advanced to the next round of the Berbice Cricket Board/Mike’s Pharmacy Under-15 cricket tournament, after recording victories last Thursday.

Cyril and medium pacer Naresh Veerasammy did the damage with figures of 3-3, 3-4 and 3-4 respectively.

Meanwhile, Blairmont, one of Berbice’s top junior cricket clubs had a tough task in defeating the No. 73 Cricket Club. Heavy early morning rain forced a reduction of overs from 50 to 25.

Blairmont, after losing the toss, were invited to bat first and were restricted to 64 all out in 18.1 overs.

S. Rupnarine top-scored with 17.

Leon Cecil

Virat Kohli (left) and Ajinkya Rahane’s century stand guided India to 307/6 on day 1. (Reuters)

SCOREBOARD

INDIA 1st innings Shikhar Dhawan c Jos Buttler b Chris Woakes

35 Lokesh Rahul lbw Chris Woakes

23 Cheteshwar Pujara c Adil Rashid b Chris Woakes

14 Virat Kohli c Ben Stokes b Adil Rashid 97 Ajinkya Rahane c Alastair Cook b Stuart Broad 81 Hardik Pandya c Jos Buttler b James Anderson 18 Rishabh Pant not out

22 Extras: (b-12, lb-4, w-1)

17 Total: (six wkts, 87.0 overs)

307 Fall of wickets: 1-60, 2-65 l, 3-82, 4-241, 5-279, 6-307.

Bowling: Anderson 22-8-52-1, Broad 21-6-64-1, Stokes 15-154-0 (w-1), Woakes 20-2-75-3, Rashid 9-0-46-1.

Albion crushed the hapless Achievers Cricket Club by 255 runs at the Albion ground, while Blairmont had to dig deep to defeat No.73 Cricket Club by just three runs in a rain-affected game.

At the Albion ground, 14-year-old Leon Cecil stroked a composed 104 to lead Albion to 293-6.

Cecil, a solid right-handed batsman struck five boundaries, and received support from Tavendra Mangal 54, Meaaz Khan 25 and his young brother, Damon Cecil 24.

D. McPherson and D. Joseph had figures of 2-33 and 2-28 respectively. Achievers Cricket Club, in response, were bowled out for a meagre 38 with extras top-scoring with 23.

Leg-spinner Pavendra Ganesh, off-spinner Leon

Vickendra Singh

Left-arm spinner Rawl Jabbar took 5-19 runs off his five overs. Suraj Chatterpaul supported with 2-13 from five overs. No.73 Cricket Club then suffered a major setback in the sixth over when their best batsman Vettori Latchman was dismissed for five.

Abbas Khan (18) and Rawl Jabbar (12) tried desperately, but they fell short of the winning target.

Medium pacer Vickendra Singh was the main destructive force, claiming 7-10 in 4.4 overs.

Chelsea edge Arsenal in thriller, Kane scores in Spurs win

By Neil Robinson

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ONDON, England (Reuters) - A second successive Chelsea win under Maurizio Sarri, 3-2, over an Arsenal side who have suffered backto-back defeats under Unai Emery, gave both managers a crash course in the unpredictability of the Premier League yesterday.

Marcos Alonso pounced on Eden Hazard’s cross to settle the game in the second half after the visitors fought back from two down but spurned further chances in a game that lifted Chelsea joint top of the table alongside Tottenham Hotspur, who beat Fulham 3-1, and Bournemouth, who won 2-1 at West Ham United.

Elsewhere, Leicester City and Everton posted their first victories, against Wolves and Southampton respectively, while the day’s other game between league newcomers

Cardiff City and Newcastle United ended goalless.

That sort of scoreline was never a possibility at Stamford Bridge, where the visitors raced into the lead through Alvaro Morata and Pedro, but were lucky to go into the interval level after Arsenal squandered opportunities either side of goals from Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Alex Iwobi.

Chelsea brought Hazard off the bench midway the second half and were rewarded when he broke free on the left and crossed for Alonso to shoot low under Petr Cech’s body.

“It is better to be on the pitch than watching on the bench, but the boys when they are playing they did well so I am just happy for the win,” Hazard said.

Chelsea’s Pedro celebrates scoring their first goal.

(Action Images via Reuters/John Sibley)

In the week that Spurs apologised to their supporters for further delay in their return to White Hart Lane, their victory gave a reminder of how accustomed they have grown to Wembley, with two of their England internationals leading the way after Fulham equalised Lucas Moura’s opener.

IMPRESSIVE WIN Kieran Trippier replicated his free-kick goal for England in the World Cup with another superb strike before Harry Kane rounded off an impressive win by scoring his first-ever Premier League goal in August.

“It is one of those things that you can’t explain,” Kane said of his previous slow starts to seasons. “I am not silly and I know people talk about it, but it is nice to put it to bed.”

Bournemouth took full advantage of comic home defending to strike twice in six

second-half minutes through Callum Wilson and Steve Cook, inflicting Manuel Pellegrini’s second successive defeat since returning to the Premier League with West Ham. Everton also changed managers in the summer but Marco Silva has enjoyed a more promising beginning and secured a 2-1 win in his first home game with new signing Richarlison scoring his third goal in two games since his move from Watford.

The Brazilian only managed five in total last season but looks a different proposition since reuniting with his former manager.

Richarlison headed Everton’s second after former Southampton forward Theo Walcott had opened the scoring after a well-worked freekick move from Leighton Baines and Morgan Schneiderlin.

Another Brazilian, Newcastle United’s Kenedy, had a less memorable day, missing a stoppage-time penalty which would have given the 10-man visitors victory at Cardiff City, who were playing their first home Premier League game for four years.

Cardiff’s hero was keeper Neil Etheridge, who saved his second spot-kick in successive games to spark wild celebrations at the Cardiff City stadium.

Leicester also ended their 2-0 win over Wolves with 10 men after their England striker Jamie Vardy was dismissed for a reckless tackle on Matt Doherty.

The challenge that was all the more needless because Leicester were in control through a Doherty own goal and a strike from James Maddison, his first Premier League goal since his £24M ($30.6M) move from second-tier Norwich City.

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ROS ISLET, St Lucia (CMC) – St Lucia Stars captain Kieron Pollard scored his first ever T20 century to lead his side to their first victory in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) since 2016 by defeating the Barbados Tridents by 38 runs here Friday night.

Pollard smashed 104 from only 54 balls to guide the Stars to 226 for six in their 20 overs – the highest ever total in the CPL’s history.

Qais Ahmed (2-29) and Obed McCoy (3-28) then produced brilliant bowling spells to limit the Tridents to 188 for six.

The win snapped the Stars’ 15-game losing streak and was their first since July 31, 2016, when the-then St Lucia Zouks defeated the Jamaica Tallawahs by 17 runs in Florida.

One night earlier, the Stars had failed to defend 212 against the Trinbago Knight Riders, but this time around Pollard, Andre Fletcher and Rahkeem Cornwall ensured

they went one better.

Fletcher set the tone from the very first over, dispatching Mohammad Irfan over the ropes twice and to the boundary two more times in an over that cost 20 runs.

After David Warner was dismissed for a duck, Fletcher and Cornwall added 37 quick runs in three overs to keep the Stars’ run rate at over 10 an over.

Cornwall’s quick-fire 30 from just 11 balls inclusive of two boundaries and three sixes ended soon after, but not before he had given the Stars the perfect launching pad.

Lendl Simmons’ firstball dismissal immediately after proved to be a blessing in disguise, as it brought Pollard to the crease with the score 57-3 in the fifth over.

For the next 14 overs and 148 runs, Pollard and Fletcher carted the Tridents bowlers to all parts of the ground.

Fletcher brought up his 50 in the 12th over off 34 balls and looked well set to become the sixth batsman to cross three figures in the CPL

SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

Pollard ton ends St Lucia Stars win drought However, after progressing to 80, he attempted to scoop Wahab Riaz over fine leg, but could only pick out Irfan.

His 52-ball knock contained six boundaries and six sixes.

From thereon it was the Pollard show, as he took a particular liking to pacer Raymon Reifer, whose four overs went for 67 runs.

He eventually brought up his 100 in the final over with his eighth six driven flat over long-on, before departing one ball later. His knock also contained six boundaries.

Trid e n t s opener Dwayne Smith blazed his way to a half-century in pursuit of a historic chase, as the Tridents marched to 75-1 at the end of 10 overs.

But once he was dismissed by Qais Ahmad for a 45-ball 58 after top-edging to deep square leg, the chase fell flat.

Ahmad then struck two balls into his next over, having Hashim Amla stumped.

Steven Smith and Shai

BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Cohesion Football League

But it was all too little too late, as the run rate required A triumphant Kieron Pollard led the Stars to a well-needed victory with his maiden T20 hundred in St Lucia on Friday night.

(CPL photo)

Hope kept the Tridents’ slim chances alive as they scored 46 runs combined from the 16th and 17th overs.

ballooned to more than 20 runs in the final overs - a requirement which proved too much for the Tridents.

Ronaldo makes winning

Eastveldt, Mahaica, BV and Tucville start on dramatic Juventus debut through to today’s semi-finals

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HE BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Emancipation Cohesion Football League conclude its preliminary rounds in fantastic fashion on Friday at the BV Playground.

South Africa Racing Tips Scottsville 08:30 hrs Simply Scrumptious 09:05 hrs Macduff 09:40 hrs New Fort 10:15 hrs Warfarer 10:50 hrs Cause And Effect English Racing Tips Pontefract 09:00 hrs World Order 09:30 hrs Lynwood Gold 10:05 hrs Dagueneau 10:35 hrs Dance Diva 11:05 hrs Georgian Manor 11:40 hrs Hareeq 12:10 hrs Van Gerwen Southwell 09:20 hrs Martha’s Benefit 09:50 hrs John Constable 10:25 hrs Too Many Diamonds 10:55 hrs Zebi Boy 11:25 hrs Sheelbewhatsheelbe 12:00 hrs Baron Von Chill 12:30 hrs King’s Reste Irish Racing Tips Tramore 09:10 hrs Karl Der Grosse 09:40 hrs Humps And Bumps 10:15 hrs Getareason 10:45 hrs Good To Flow 11:15 hrs Theatre Dreams 11:50 hrs Native Lass 12:20 hrs Ranger

In an evening full of excitement, flowing mainly from the teams’ final opportunity to positively impact on the determination of the semi-finalists, country team Mahaica gave themselves every possible chance when they posted eight goals in a clearly one-sided affair over St John Bosco Orphanage.

Mahaica’s Kirt Roberts scored four goals, in the 1st, 20th, 29th and 30th minutes of the match, while Eion Abel booted goals in the 4th and 40th minutes of the encounter.

Mahaica’s Neil Lynton also bored the goal net in the 10th and 21st minutes of the match. Mahaica demolished St John Basco Orphanage 8-0.

In the second match of the evening, the expertise of Tucville overshadowed the apparent mixture of youth and seasonal veterans of GWI, to hand GWI a devastating defeat 4-0.

Tucville wasted no time in scoring three goals within the first half, specifically in the 13th and 24th minutes off the boot of Leon Richardson and inthe 17th minute by Kenrick Lewis.

In the second half, GWI failed to recover from their first-half bewilderment when Leon Richardson again scored in the 49th and 55th minutes to finish with four goals in the match.

In the third match of the evening, between Plaisance and Eastveldt, the latter won 2-0 compliments of goals from Mario Eastman and Oneil Glasgow in the third and 13th minutes, respectively.

Mahaica goalscorer Neil Lyton

In the final match of the evening, Mahaicony needed to achieve the mammoth objective of defeating league favourites, BV, by a margin of 8 goals to be assured of a place in the semi-finals.

However, they could manage only a 2-2 draw at the conclusion of the 60-minute engagement.

B V ’s M a l c o l m Wi l s o n scored the first goal in the

10th minute of the match, which was eventually negated by Mahaicony’s Zachree Francis, five minutes into the second half, to leave the score 1-1.

In the 46th minute, it had appeared that Mahaicony may have upset BV, when Leroy Halley scored, to give Mahaicony the edge 2-1. However, Steven Miler equalised for BV in the 52nd minute with the game petering out to a draw.

The inaugural BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Emancipation Cohesion Senior Cup Football League, Semi-final action, will be played today under floodlights at the BV Playground.

Group A preliminary points leaders Eastveldt will battle with Group B runners-up Tucville from 19:00hrs, while Group B leaders, BV, will tackle Group A runners-up, Mahaica from 21:00hrs. All semi-final matches will be played for 90 minutes.

The Junior Shield Semi-final matches will be played from 15:15hrs and 17:00hrs today as well at the said venue.

The BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement encourages the general public to attend the activities. Gates open at 14:30hrs today for both the Junior Shield and Senior Cup Semi-final action.

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RISTIANO Ronaldo made a winning start to his Juventus career as his new club came from behind to beat Chievo 3-2 in a dramatic start to the Serie A season.

Federico Bernardeschi scored a 93rd-minute winner, moments after Juve had a goal ruled out by VAR with Ronaldo at the centre of the incident.

The Portugal captain, a £99.2m signing from Real Madrid, handled the ball before colliding with Chievo goalkeeper Stefano Sorrentino in the build-up to Mario Mandzukic’s goal, which referee Fabrizio Pasqua ruled out on review.

Sami Khedira had put Juventus, who have won the past seven Serie A titles, ahead from close range in the third minute, before Mariusz Stepinski headed in the equaliser.

Emanuele Giaccherini won and scored a penalty to put Chievo in front on 56 minutes, but a Mattia Bani own goal pegged them back before Bernardeschi struck late on.

Ronaldo forced several saves from 39-year-old Sorrentino, who left the match on a stretcher after his late collision with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.

(BBC Sport)

CRICKET QUIZ CORNER (Sunday August 19, 2018) COMPLIMENTS OF THE TROPHY STALL-Bourda Market & The City Mall (Tel: 225-9230) & CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL COMPANY LTD-83 Garnett Street, Campbellville, Georgetown (Tel: 225-6158)

Answers to yesterday’s quiz:

(1) (2)

Roger Harper, Carl Hooper & Johan Botha Chris Gayle-111* (Tallawahs vs Zouks, Grenada, 2014)

Today’s Quiz:

(1)

(2)

How many matches were scheduled in the first CPL season?

Chris Gayle struck 86 for the Patriots against the Warriors in this season’s first CPL game at Providence. How many fours and sixes he struck?

ANSWERS IN TOMORROW’S ISSUE

31

SUNDAY CHRONICLE August 19, 2018

Ramdhani through to Girls’ U-19 semi-final in CAREBACO Junior championships

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Priyanna Ramdhani in action

HE Caribbean International & Regional Junior & Senior Badminton Championships is currently taking place in Paramaribo Suriname, August 16-29, 2018.

The Under-19 International Championships continued yesterday August 17, 2018 at the Ring Sports Center in Ringweg Noord Paramaribo Suriname.

Guyanese top junior and senior champion 16-year- old Priyanna Ramdhani continued her impressive performance to reach the semi-finals and medal round in the Under-19 Girls’ Singles.

She was seeded No.2 in the draw and gained a bye in the first round to reach into the quarter-finals where she defeated Sion Zeegelaar of Suriname 21-8, 21-13 to reach into the

semi-finals.

In the Boys’ Under-19 Singles & Doubles quarter-finals, Guyana lost both and missed getting into the medal rounds by a close margin.

In the Boys’ Singles Tyrese Jeffrey lost to Kodie King of Barbados 21-15, 21-15 while in the Boys’ Doubles Tyrese Jeffrey & Akili Haynes lost to Jun Lim Cheung & Jason Cheung, 21-10, 21-9.

The tournament continues today at 18:00hrs where Priyanna will be playing in the semi-finals to get into the finals in both singles & doubles events.

The GBA is also pleased that all three Guyanese players, who are participating in the Championships, have passed their CSEC/CXC examinations with high marks.

Regional Under-19 50-over Championship results – 2nd round

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Colours Boutique supports Ninvalle

INGSTOWN, St Vincent, (CMC) – Summarised scores from the second round of matches in the Regional Under-19 50-over Championship here Saturday.

Scores: At Arnos Vale Playing Field: Barbados defeated Trinidad and Tobago by 60 runs via the Duckworth Lewis System.

BARBADOS 193 for seven in 43 overs (Shian Brathwaite 72, Mekhail Marshall 29, Matthew Forde 24 not out; Avinash Mahabirsingh 2-47, Teron Jadoo 2-57) TRINIDAD & TOBAGO 149 in 36.2 overs (Leonardo Julien 38, Mbeki Joseph 37, Crystian Thurton 31; Camarie Boyce 5-33, Shemar Persaud 2-32).

At Sion Hall Playing Field: Jamaica defeated Canada by seven wickets.

CANADA 91 for eight in 30 overs (Eshan Sensarma 23; Sanjay Brown 3-12, Roberto Simpson 2-13) JAMAICA 99 for three in 20.5 overs (Carlos Brown 37 not out, Andre McCarthy 36 not out; Randhir Sandhu 2-19).

At Cumberland Playing Field: Windward Islands defeated the Leeward Islands by six wickets.

LEEWARD ISLANDS 155 for nine in 43 overs (Uri Smith 50, Zawandi White 40; Micah Joseph 3-18, Jeron Noel 3-23, Jahseon Alexander 2-29) WINDWARD ISLANDS 156 for four in 33.3 overs (Kimani Melius 65, Johnel Eugene 29; Mikyle Louis 2-36).

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Colours Boutique Sales Representative Creanna Damo (left) presents Kaysan Ninvalle with new tennis gear.

AYSAN Ninvalle, a member of the Guyana team for the Caribbean Mini and Pre-Cadet championships, yesterday was once again supported by Colours Boutique.

The championships, to be hosted in the Dominican Republic, will run from Sunday August 26, to Friday August 31, where Nin-

valle is hoping to add to his legacy in the sport.

Ninvalle, 13, the youngest to be named Junior Sportsman-of-the-Year, will compete in the 13-and-Under category in Santo Domingo and told reporters that he was happy to once again receive the support from Colours Boutique.

According to Ninvalle who has been receiving overwhelming support from

the Robb Street, Georgetown establishment over the years, Colours Boutique’s role in helping him with gear as a player is unmatched and his best way of repaying them is continuing to excel in the sport he loves - table tennis.

Meanwhile, Colours Boutique Sales Representative Creanna Damo, said her company is no stranger to supporting Guyana’s

sports men and women, but Ninvalle’s support means a lot to them, since they have been witnessing his steady progression in table tennis, where he is now Guyana’s leading junior player.

Damo noted that the entity will continue to support the table tennis player in the sport and she also wished him well at the up-coming tournament.

ISKF-Guyana off to Pan American Karate Championship

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Some of the ISKF-Guyana team members prior to departure for the 13th ISKF Pan American Karate Championship in Panama.

AST Wednesday, a 20-man ISKF-Guyana team left our shores to represent Guyana at the 13th ISKF Pan American Karate Championship.

This year, the championship will be held at the spectacular Sheraton Bijao Beach Resort in Panama

City, Panama, from Thursday, August 16 and will culminate on Sunday August 19.

Parents and supporters of the organisation accompanied the Guyana delegation (now totalling 46) to cheer the players on, well equipped with their Guyana flags and in the colours.

The team is headed and coached by ISKF-Guyana Country Director Sensei Christopher Chaves, under whose guidance the players have been training extensively since January. The players are pleased to be representing Guyana at this level and are optimistic of attaining top placements in

their division.

The 13th ISKF Pan American Karate Championship is open to all ISKF member territories and will feature Master Hiroyoshi Okazaki- 9 Dan. The contest will include both Kata and Kumite and will have divisions that involve boys and girls, male and female

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Ramesh Sunich (right) and Nazrudeen ‘Junior’ Mohamed of the organising committee display the trophies sponsored by the Trophy Stall.

competitors from the age of seven.

The 20-man team, who will be representing Guyana, hold the following ranks: Green Belts: Oliver Hoke, Silvia Perozo, Sylvie Hershberger, Tamirand De Lisser and Zodok Yehudah.

Purple Belts: Abdul Hackim, Aiden Persaud,

Gael Mc Pherson and Gia Ramischand.

Brown Belts: Bianca Campbell, Reia Lee and Richard Lee. Black Belts: Akeem Morgan, Alex Rodrigues, Jordon Denny, Kristalia Chaves, Kristian Chaves, Mikasi Warde, Shaqueel Amin and Troy Parboo.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, AUGUST 19, 2018