Mathematics training for primary school teachers Cummings Lodge land development being fast-tracked Norton calls for programmes already implemented by gov’t 17th August, 2022 WEDNESDAY No.106817 PAGE 14 PAGE 17 PAGE 10 $100PRICEVATINCLUSIVE PAGE 02 ' LGE likely before year end — Claims & Objections period opens next week PAGE 03 Rohee appointed GECOM Commissioner Clement Rohee taking the oath of office as a member of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) before President, Dr Irfaan Ali (Elvin Carl Croker photo)
By Shamar Meusa THE Guyana Fire Service, on Tuesday, re ceived a boost to its fire fighting capacity, with the addition of three new water bowsers to its fleet. The water bowsers were handed over by the Minis try of Home Affairs to the Guyana Fire Service offi cials to support the main assets in the service’s ar senal.
GregoryBennimprovement,”significantMinistersaid.Meanwhile,FireChiefWickhamexpressedgratitudeforthecapacitybuildingeffortsoftheHomeAffairsMinistry.Wickhamsaid,“Andsoweareparticularlygladforthesenewtendersorwaterbowsersthatareaddedtothefleet,andcertainlythey will assist us in having wa ter readily available when we have to do firefighting.” As it relates to the dis tribution of the tenders, one will be sent to Bartica in Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni), [and] another in Eccles to deal with fires that may happen within the oil-based areas, while the other will remain in Georgetown to lend sup port to firefighting in the city. Service receives $46.2M water bowsers donation
Rohee appointed GECOM Commissioner
2 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
WITH the passing of Guy ana Elections Commission (GECOM) member Bibi Shadick on Saturday, that va cant seat on the seven-mem ber constitutional body has now been filled by Clement Rohee. Rohee, on Tuesday, was appointed by President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, in keeping with the rules for appointing commis sion members. The simple but significant ceremony was held at the President’s Shiv Chan derpaul Drive, Georgetown office.Shadick occupied a seat on the commission which was constitutionally mandated to be filled by the President acting in his own direct judgement. In his remarks following the swearing in of the new GECOM Commissioner, Pres ident Ali said that Rohee was no stranger to public life, nor was he a stranger to the pur suit of free and fair elections, democracy, and building a country in which the rule of law is “I’mpreserved.surethat his experi ence not only at the national level but his previous experi ence at the elections commis sion will bring great value to the work of the commission. It will help to strengthen the commission, and definitely will benefit our country as a whole,” he Presidentexpressed.Aliwent on to say that government will spare no effort in supporting and advancing every opportunity that will strengthen Guyana’s democracy, improve the coun try’s adherence to the rule of law and foster an environment of respect.“Elections are important for the evolution and devel opment of countries. The will of the people is the most fun damental right that must be respected, and the Elections Commission is tasked with the serious responsibility of ensuring that everything they do secures and protects the will of the people and advances de mocracy and keeps our country within the realm of democratic nations,” President Ali noted. Rohee, the newly appoint ed constitutional office holder, said he considers his appoint ment an important one. “It’s a bedrock matter for the country in the sense that the whole question of official elections and the conduct of elections and the founding principles on which elections are held in the democracy are extremely important,” Rohee told the gathering during his remarks.He expressed that GECOM, as an electoral ma chinery, must demonstrate ut most professionalism, not only in its membership and staffing but also in the execution of its mandate of democracy and good“Wegovernance.knowwhen you go into a polling station or when you do registration, certain perceptions, which I would not wish to detail at this point, tend to emerge.“So,we need to have a staff that reflects what Guyana looks like and this is going to be extremely important,” Com missioner Rohee noted. He related that the face of GECOM is not so much the commission, but the staff. Additionally, GECOM Chairman, Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh expressed confidence in the appointment of Mr Rohee to the now-vacant position, noting his institution al knowledge and experience. “He knows politics well as a former Minister of Home Affairs, so I expect him to bring his institutional knowl edge here,” Chairman Singh said.
A moment of silence for the late Bibi Shadick, member of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) (Elvin Carl Croker photo) President, Dr Irfaan Ali (centre) with (from left) Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall, S.C; GECOM’s Chief Elections Officer, Vishnu Persaud; GECOM’s Chairman, Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh; newly appointed GECOM Commissioner, Clement Rohee; GECOM Commissioners Vincent Alexander, Sase Gunraj and Manoj Narine; and Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha (Elvin Carl Croker photo)
Delivering brief re marks at the handing-over ceremony was Home Af fairs Minister, Robeson Benn, who said the three new bowsers cost some $46.2 million of which each tanker has a capacity of 1,800 gallons of water with independent pumping systems.“Ithink in terms of wa ter bowsers, this would double the amount of car rying capacity in terms of the water bowsers we have instantaneously and from that aspect it’s a
Fire
The three new water bowsers that were handed over to the Guyana Fire Service (Adrian Narine photo)
“Objections against the inclusion of names in the PLE can be tendered to the Registration Officer of the Registration Area from Au gust 22, 2022 to September 15, “Objections2022. can be made by an Elector who is listed in the same Division list or Sub Division list in which the person being objected to is “Objectionslisted.canalso be made by approved Scru tineers of Political Par ties provided that any such Scrutineer has monitoring responsibilities for the Di vision or Sub Division in which the person being objected to is listed. “The relevant original documents such as an orig inal Death Certificate must be presented at the time of the hearing to support the basis upon which the objection is made.
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 3 AS the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) concludes its continuous registration process and moves on to the claims and objections exercise in the coming week, it is highly likely that Local Government Elections (LGE) will be held by the end of 2022. This was disclosed by Guyana Elections Commis sion (GECOM) Chairman, Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh, who was inter viewed in a media scrum following the swearing-in of the citizen31,andsonObjections“DuringAdministrativeistrationGECOM’swilltooftomencetionsshenotchanceandclaimsweifTheysupposedobjectgiveobjectionstheissaidvoters’ofForNationalposition,tionsvemberthemissionClementGECOMnewly-appointedCommissioner,Rohee.ShesaidthatthecomislookingtoholdLGEattheendofNoorearlyDecember.InresponsetoaccusabythepoliticalopAPartnershipforUnity+AllianceChange(APNU+AFC),therebeingabloatedlist,JusticeSinghanynameonthelisttherelegally,addingthatupcomingclaimsandperiodwouldpersonsachancetotothosewhoaren’ttobethere.“Theyweren’tbloated.werelegallythere…thelistisbloated,well,aremovingnowtoandobjections,peoplewouldhaveatoobjecttowhoissupposedtobethere,”said.TheClaimsandObjecExercisewillcomonAugust22,2022,produceanOfficialListElectors(OLE).Thisexercise,accordingaGECOMpressrelease,beconductedatallofpermanentRegOfficesinthetenRegions.Thestatementreads:theClaimsandperiod,anyperwhowillbe18yearsolderbytheOctober2022,andisaGuyanesebybirth,descent,or naturalisation, or is a citi zen from a Commonwealth country living in Guyana for one year or more, can make a Claim on or be fore September 11, 2022 to be included on the OLE, providing that he/she was never previously registered. “Persons desirous of making a Claim to be in cluded in the OLE are re quired to visit the GECOM Registration Office respon sible for their area of resi dence with the applicable source document such as original Birth Certificate, valid Passport, Adoption Certificate, or Naturalisa tion Certificate or Certifi cate of Registration to be registered for inclusion. “Persons who are re quired to update their reg istration records such as changes or corrections to their names and occu pation, or to apply for a transfer concerning their addresses are advised that those transactions would also be facilitated during this“Theexercise.relevant source documents such as an orig inal Marriage Certificate, Deed Poll with Birth Cer tificate, or a new Birth Certificate reflecting the changes must be presented in the case of an application for a change or correction.
This instrumental al location earlier this year followed the announce ment by Local Government and Regional Development Minister, Nigel Dharamlall, that LGE will be held this year.During his budget de bate presentation in Feb ruary, he told the National Assembly that the govern ment strongly supports the holding of the LGEs. “We believe in democ racy, we believe in people’s choices, we believe that for our country to continue to evolve for development to come flowingly to our people, we must have Local Government Elections. “We are going to have Local Government Elections this year. We have budgeted billions of dollars for LGEs and are going to have LGEs this year,” Dharamlall had announced.Hefurther noted that “We have budgeted billions for GECOM, over $4.1 bil lion, and LGE is on the card for the government during the course of this year.”
According to Dharam lall, there had been efforts by some of the APNU+AFC GECOM Commissioners to stymie the holding of the elections, which will see councillors being elected for the 80 local democratic or gans (LDOs), which include the 70 Neighbourhood Dem ocratic Councils (NDCs) and 10 municipalities, inclu sive of TheGeorgetown.government had repeatedly indicated that it was ready to hold the elections but was awaiting the guidance of
sector,”anddoWetionscountrythecaterswaysoftion,stillseniortionsGECOM’stoandingstitutionalsionElectionsmonthswereElections2020edployeescredibilityquestionsforinbillionindemocraticreadinessthewhichsultationsonlydatesibleernmentuedpoliticalNotwithstandingGECOM.this,theoppositioncontintopresstheissue.ThoughtheLocalGovMinisterisresponforannouncingthefortheLGEs,thiscanbedoneafterconwithGECOM,wouldpronounceonelection’smachinery’stofacilitatetheprocess.Theelectionsweredue2021,andsome$1.1hadbeenallocatedthe2021nationalbudgetit;however,thereweresurroundingtheofseveralemwhowereimplicatintheattemptstorigtheGeneralandRegional(GRE).Severaleventuallyfired.LastDecember,afterwithoutaChiefOfficer,adeciwasmadebytheconbody,followpublicadvertisementsinterviewsforthepost,hireVishnuPersaudasnewChiefElecOfficer.Severalotherposts,however,arevacant.MinisterDharamlall,duringhisbudgetpresentanotedthattheholdingLGEsisjustoneofmanythatthisyear’sbudgettothepopulationatcommunitylevel.“EveryvillageinthiswillhaveintervenfromBudget2022.havealotofworktointhelocalgovernmentregionaldevelopmentsaidtheminister. The ministry has been allocated $71 billion in the national budget this year, with $714 million going towards subventions for the LDOs. LGE likely before year end — Claims & Objections period opens next week Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh and GECOM’s Chief Elections Officer, Vishnu Persaud, on Tuesday, at the swearing-in ceremony of the newly appointed GECOM Commissioner (Office of the President photo)
“The Commission is urging all eligible persons to ensure that they use this opportunity to be registered for inclusion in the Revised List of Electors (RLE) and ultimately the Official List of Electors (OLE) to be eligible to “Personsvote.are also en couraged to object to the inclusion of the name of any person whom they be lieve should not be on the list, based on the legal pro visions. Persons who were registered in the recently concluded Cycle of Contin uous Registration need not reapply to be registered.” Some $783 million was approved for the holding of LGE, as part of GECOM’s 2022 budgetary allocation.
GuySuCo officials attend rodent management training
4 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
Persaud told the Guyana Chronicle that rodents are major pests to sugar cane and can be devastating to the crop’s production. “Far too often, the dam age that rodents cause are [sic] underestimated. So, we are paying careful atten tion to the rodent infestation within our cultivation and we are trying to prevent it from occurring,” he said, adding that at the com pletion of the workshop, the workers will be better geared and equipped to manage rodents within the fields.Meanwhile, Director of Business Development at Pest Control Supplies, Raoul Persaud, stated that this is part of the company’s after-sales support which includes offering techni cal training to GuySuCo’s agronomists and technical managers.Thistraining, he said, focuses on the features and benefits of rodenticides, how rodenticides work against target rodents and all activities involved in successful rodent control. “If you don’t control rodents in the sugarcane fields, you end up in a sit uation whereby you could get significant crop loss, and then, obviously, the crop loss; you lose tons of money,” he said. He said his company brought Andrej Branc, the Americas Business Manag er for Pelgar International, a major supplier of rodenti cides to PersaudGuySuCo.toldthis news paper that Branc has vast experience with handling both urban and field rodents as he has worked in North, Central, Latin and South America in rodent control. He noted further that the two-day training is expect ed to be highly interactive. The workshop will address issues faced at various es tates.On the second day of the programme, slated for today, Persaud said that it will include field work with personnel venturing to the Blairmont Sugar Estate, where GuySuCo has experi enced some challenges with rodent population increases. He said, “So, we can address that issue in a prac tical way in the actual field. We might be even testing a new bait formulation.”
TWENTY-FIVE senior personnel from the four sugar estates across the country are currently ben efitting from a two-day workshop aimed at pre venting rodent infesta tions in sugarcane fields and estates across Guy ana. The two-day workshop began on Tuesday at the Guyana Sugar Corpora tion’s (GuySuCo) agricul ture research centre in La Bonne Intention, East Coast DemeraraAccording(ECD).to head of the Agriculture Research Centre, Ravindra Persaud, GuySuCo is partnering with the private company, Pest Control Supplies, to con duct the rodent manage ment training for the senior staff at the estates. The senior personnel, he said, include agriculture managers, agronomists.cultivationsuperintendents,managersand
Additionally, the di rector noted that both companies, Pelgar Inter national and Pest Control Supplies, are here to support the corporation with technical support necessary to ensure that operations are successful.
Pelgar International Limited Americas Business Manager and facilitator of the two-day workshop, Andrej Branc (Adrian Narine photo) Director of Business Development for Pest Control Supplies (Caribbean and Latin America), Raoul Persaud (Adrian Narine photo)
SEVERAL training programmes organised by the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) for persons in the tourism, hospitality and service industry are well un derway, just in time for the upcoming Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) games and Cricket Carnival. This was disclosed by the Deputy Director of GTA, Kamrul Baksh, during an interview with this newspaper on Tues day.The programmes were coined in 2021, as part of an ongoing effort to en hance the quality of ser vice expected by tourists and will see some 3,000 Guyanese receiving train ing in hygiene and sanita tion, mixology, tour guid ing, events management, financial management, culinary arts, housekeep ing, among others, by the end of 2022. To date, 1,065 per sons across the 10 ad ministrative regions have completed training pro grammes.During the inter view, Baksh explained that while the training is mainly theoretical at present, the GTA is in discussion to shift to wards a hybrid approach, where practical sessions can be integrated with the current ones for a more thorough learning experience.“People can’t learn only with theory. While you have to have the fundamentals, you need to get your hands dirty. If it’s [something] culinary, you can’t just read about it; you have to actually do it, in a kitchen,” he said.However, the main ly theoretical approach could, in part, be attribut ed to the COVID-19 pro tocols, most of which were still in place last year.“…we were still in recover mode. Last year, our focus was on repair ing. We had hygiene and sanitation training then. Now, it’s about getting businesses ready for the world. We believe that with these trainings, busi nesses will be prepared,” Baksh noted. He added that the pre vious focus was on re pairing the damage done to the tourism and hos pitality industry. Now, the GTA is zeroing in on the provision of tour ism-based services. As a result, the GTA has been in collaboration with immigration ser vices, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, as well as small business owners, proprietors, CJIA, taxi drivers, hotels, restau rants, and Guyana’sbars.
tourism industry has made tre mendous progress over the years, procuring nu merous opportunities to boost businesses in the sector, as well as provid ing training to anyone desirous of pursuing a career in hospitality. The GTA is responsible for developing and expand ing sustainable tourism through collaboration to maximise local so cio-economic develop ments and boost tourists’ experiences.WithGuyana hosting the country’s first-ever Cricket Carnival, visitors will have the opportunity to experience in abun dance a dynamic mix of entertainment and exqui site culinary experiences all wrapped around an in ternational sporting event that is the pride and joy of theCricketCaribbean.Carnival is geared to be a multi cultural annual event as Guyana is set to host the CPL finals for the next threeWithyears.Guyana boasting a unique ‘eco-tourism’ package, the country’s resorts and main tourist sites, like Kaieteur Falls, can expect increased traf fic.Baksh encouraged Guyanese to partake in the training programmes. The hotel rooms available in Guyana are all reportedly booked for this year’s CPL matches which will be played in September.
The Cricket Carni val promises to be an at tractive affair, considering the level of prepara tion, increase in private sector engagements, and the meaningful in clusion of stakeholders in Guyana and across the Caribbean. (Story by Media and Com munications Academy interns, Mesha Sealey, Lorenda Cuffie, Vivekanand Rajcoomar, Shamiah Grant, Kesi Henry)
Deputy Director of GTA, Kamrul Baksh
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 5
GTA preparing hospitality workers for CPL, Cricket Carnival
The PNC continues to shoot itself in the foot and head
6 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
Continued on page 7
The PNC and some members are not ashamed of their barefacedness and unabashed behaviour and attitude. This trend channeled its way from the days of Burnhamism and has not lost course, the only difference is that, it has grown more in frequency, ferocity and frivolity. A new leader has only reignited the flame and is all bent on cre ating more mischief through this medium. The modicum of lies, deceits and propa ganda are meant to intertwine their rationality to “try a ting” with the court at any given opportunity and at any given moment, regardless of time, cost and the damage. This DNA has to be kept alive in order to maintain its statuesque. Mr. Norton’s outlandish remarks about the Voters List and his primitive attack for the call for the res ignation of GECOM’s Chair, Justice Claudette Singh, only serve to undermine the integ rity of respectability and un derline his asinine regard for the election process. Again, refusing to shake hands in the open public simply demon strates cowardice, animosity and lack of diplomacy. This truancy reflects his lack of sportsmanship, ungentle manly aptitude and his poor sense of refined leadership quality. In hindsight, overall, he has portrayed his limited foresight of statesmanship, and, in so doing, he has en couraged the international community to consider him as an unfriendly, arrogant and conceited individual who is unworthy of setting any good example. Worse yet, his chance to govern this nation diminishes daily as he progresses to insult the integrity of this nation with his “Tom-foolery” behaviour andNoactions.wonder on a pro gramme aired Monday night, another Coalition member displayed such bombastic at titude to reinforce the PNC’s dogma of unprincipled te nets. It was disgusting to say the least, to describe such profanity and, in addition, his relentless continuity of cynicism, mockery and his fixed sarcasm, influenced viewers to want to distance themselves from him, his par ty and his colleagues. Many were challenged to continue to be part of the spectacle and were desirable to switch programme. His uncontrolled and pervasive diatribe imped ed his ability to converse with any deep commitment and responsibility for any positive analysis,Enactingclinically.ascene dom inated with the infusion of pollution, poison, and bi asness, this venomous at tack contributed towards the direct attempt to discredit the ruling government and party, its followers, and the many viewers and listeners, unsympathetic towards his alliance. An annoying smirk, fixed on his face, irritated all and sundry. All he succeeded to do during the entire pro gramme was to expose the fallacy of a weak, demented and confused party, averse to any degree of requesting peace among all races, want ing progress for the nation’s development and genuinely
GARVEY AND GUIANA
Dear ChiefEditor,Justice (ag), Rox ane George, ruled that President Irfaan Ali did not violate the Constitu tion when he appointed Deputy Commissioner of Police Clifton Hicken to act as Guyana’s Police Com missioner. This did not surprise anyone because, at the national, regional and international levels, all communities have grown accustomed to the PNC’s “vexatious and abuse of the process of the court”. This dishonourable reaction is now a norm and is an en grained expectation. The Honourable Attorney-Gen eral, Mr. Anil Nandlall, posited about the Opposi tion: “They have this wrong and strong attitude, this approach of attempting to bully their way through any given matter.” Guyana and the world at large are cog nisant of this PNC’s mantra and have seen through their misery and miserable ploy to deploy this dastardly tactic employed in each and every one of their manoeu vers. Mr. Nandlall summed up: “Each time they were caught red-handed, they became confrontational, rushing to the court.” Seems as if, whipped thrice in a row by the CCJ did not teach the Opposition any lesson. But then, we are dealing with a stubborn par ty, and, Minister of Human Services and Social security, Dr. Vindhya Persaud did say: “Bullying raises its head in so many spaces and places. Peo ple are bullied all the time.”
APPROACHING 85 years since Marcus Gar vey visited Guyana, his 135th birth anniversary today, August 17, allows the world to reflect on the legacy of one of the greatest Caribbean lead ers in history. Garvey’s visit to Brit ish Guiana in October 1937 came 16 years after he’d been banned by the British from including the colony on the itinerary for his earlier visit of 1921, that took him to 10 British West Indian colonies. But his Universal Ne gro Improvement Associ ation (UNIA) had a long and proud presence here during (and after) the co lonial period, playing an important role, alongside the British Guiana La bour Union (BGLU), in defending the rights of Guianese of African de scent to better wages and conditions of life. Garvey and the UNIA also tirelessly preached the need for racial uni ty and solidarity among peoples oppressed by the white colonial regimes in Europe and North Amer ica, Africa and Europe’s West Indian colonies. And in British Gui ana, he drew lessons from other parts of the world and encouraged better understanding between Guianese of the African descent, as well as with those of Indian descent, including statements of solidarity with progres sive forces in other colo nies fighting for indepen dence, especially India. The UNIA’s local branch became a perma nent target for observation and reporting by the Brit ish security forces. The British Guiana In spector-General of Police reported to his superiors (before Garvey arrived): “For the past five years Garvey’s disciples have been preaching in the col ony… the germ of racial prejudice has undoubtedly taken root in the Negro and perhaps to a lesser degree the East Indian sections of the commu nity…”But Garvey looked beyond racial segregation and promoted unity within and between oppressed races, including British Guiana’s people of Afri can and Indian descent. Garvey’s internation alism was stamped in 1917 when he welcomed the Russian Revolution; and again in 1924, when he dispatched a letter of condolences to Moscow on the death of Russian leader Vladimir Lenin, deeming him “probably the world’s greatest man”. For such statements and daring to promote the struggles of people of all races fighting for freedom from colonialism everywhere, Garvey was personally targeted for persecution, abuse, arrest and eventual prosecution, eventually sentenced on fraudulent fraud charges in the USA, where the UNIA had over 700 branches, with another 300Garveyabroad.died in 1940, three years after landing on the Bookers Wharf in Georgetown. But the UNIA left indelible foot prints here, organising social community forma tions to provide education and skills training for fam ilies of supporters in the seven branches scattered as far apart as Charles town and Lacytown, Pari ka and Pomeroon, as well as Vergenoegen.Garveylefta legacy of preaching self-awareness and pride to his followers, constantly urging them to better understand them selves and each other, and their unlimited power to match any race in the capitals that then ruled the colonialGarvey’sworld.many mes sages influenced millions in the USA and Africa, Europe, The Americas and the Caribbean; and his mantle was taken-up by the likes of Professor Walter Rodney and Dr Ivan Van Sertima, Guya nese of high international standing who helped the world better understand Africa’s role in its history. Garvey’s teaching and preaching on self-reliance is as relevant to Guyana today as back in 1937 and his eternal signifi cance goes beyond what’s being acknowledged by the heirs and successors of those touched by his groundings (back then) with his British Guiana brothers – and sisters. After all, Garveyism has always been – and continues to be -- about more than ‘Red, Gold and Green’ -- or Red, Black and Green, for that matter!
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 7
Dear Editor, I HAVE been following with interest the elections in Kenya which has now been declared by the Chairman of the Elections Commis sion in favour of William Ruto, who served as the country’s Vice-President for 10 years but fell out with President Uhruru Kenyatta, who had backed Odinga Raila to succeed him. Odinga got 48.8 per cent of the vote while Ruto narrowly clinched victory with 50.5 per cent of the votes. This is indeed a big plus for Kenyan democracy, espe cially when seen again past elections violence and allega tions of voting irregularities.
From page 6
YoursHydarsincerely,Ally
It is no longer that easy to get away with rigged elections
The fact that Ruto has won over Odinga made the victory all the more significant given the latter past history and his ties with the establishment. The President-elect Ruto, in a short address following the declaration of the results, said he wanted to be a presi dent for all Kenyans. This is indeed a welcome gesture given Kenya’s past history of disputed elections during which hundreds of lives were lost. Given the thin margin of victory and the tense political situation, it is important that some form of political accommodation be hammered out to allow for political stability. The good news is that the internation al situation has changed in favour of democracy and it is no longer that easy to get away with rigged elections as our own experience in Guy ana had demonstrated. It remains to be seen whether or not the opposi tion will accept the election results. The Kenyan people have spoken with their bal lots. The will of the electorate must be respected and be the basis for governance.
The PNC continues to... wishing prosperity for all Guyanese.Onegood thing, if any, which Guyanese can as similate from that tragedy, is that, Guyanese are now more convinced that they do not want individuals with such characteristics to rule or govern them in any way in the near or far future. They became more determined to ensure that such derelicts are constrained from occupying any seat in the management of this country. All Guyanese are convicted in their beliefs that such maniacs are meant to be isolated in an institution far from the decency of sani ty. Anyone who subscribed to the fact that 33 is not the ma jor half of 65 is unqualified to be trusted with the safety and security of this nation. Anyone who ascribed to the attempt to rig the elec tion is untrustworthy to sit in Parliament. Anyone who approves of the behaviour of the eight banned Coali tion MPs and sees nothing wrong with their conduct lacks integrity and cannot be adjudged as a person of defending justice. Anyone who insinuated the violence at Mon Repos and support ed the criminal behaviour of the crowd or refuse to condemn such actions, con dones injustice and is unfit to be a representative of any electoral constituency. Guyanese are being fed daily what is good for them to digest and what is bad for them to digress from. The PNC continues to shoot itself in the foot and head incessantly with its mem bers’ outrageous behaviour. Yours respectively,JaiLall
Dear Editor, I WRITE to applaud your newspaper for the editorial on India’s 75th anniversary (Aug 15) as an independent nation. Yours is the only media house that acknowl edges India’s historic inde pendence. The 75th anniversary of a nation is an important milestone. It is a Diamond Anniversary that is usually acknowledged with all kinds of laudatory remarks. Lead ers usually send messages of congratulations. Media houses publishes commentaries. Sadly, they were missing in Guyana’s media except for GC and not for want of articles. I sent to three other media houses; only one carried a shortened form of my letter praising India for her achievements.Guyanaand India are im portant allies who share import ant commonalities not the least of which are freedom, ethnicity, culture, trade, and co-operation at international institutions and forums. India’s independence paved the way for Guyana’s. The method of struggle for Guyana’s freedom borrowed much from Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. Over half of Guyana’s population and her diaspora trace their roots to India. In Addition, Indian culture has significant influence over Guyanese. India has maintained an Embassy in Guyana since 1966 and a cultural office before. Guyana has been a major beneficiary of India’s development, achieve ments and rise in global status. Guyana conducts significant trade with India. And India has been very generous in devel opmental assistance, training thousands of Guyanese since 1966 for free. Dozens of jour nalists spread across all four newspapers were trained in In dia. And India sent us hundreds of thousands of vaccines in 2021 against COVID at a time when western markets were closed to Guyana for vaccines. No country has provided more assistance to Guyana from prior to 1966 thru now. Yet, apart from the Guyana Chronicle, no other newspaper has seen it fit to acknowledge India’s historic independence and to salute the emerging first world economy for her accomplishments and her enormous contributions to our relatively young nation. As your editorial noted, India was de-industrialised during British rule. Britain impoverished the colony trans ferring wealth and resources to the UK. India’s wealth helped to develop the UK while the colony experienced increasing underdevelopment.Indiastartedout at inde pendence in 1947 as among the poorest nations in the world. Poverty, famine, underdevelop ment, and high unemployment were some of the challenges. The government was able to meet all of the challenges. Today, India has become the sixth largest economy of over three trillion American dol lars and on the threshold of overtaking Germany and the UK. Measured in purchasing power parity, it is the third largest economy. Her per capita income is more than fifty times of what it was in 1947. And In dia has since transferred a huge amount of wealth and tech nology to countries including Guyana and other Anglophone nations. The West has pursued alliances with India which has become the leader in a variety of areas not the least in food production (grains), education, and technology. India ought to be saluted for her achievements and her financial support to Guyana. Thank you for support ing India with your editorial and news coverages. Your paper has come a long since the period of coalition rule when there was media bias and India hardly made news coverage (except for negative news) with no commenda tions, acknowledgements, and recognition of her indepen dence and accomplishments. Your staff is deserving of praise. Thank you for this new direction of the paper that began two years VishnuYoursago.truly,Bisram
8 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
India has been very generous in provision of developmental assistance
I was pleased to read about the Republic of Chi na’s Embassy in George town’s financial contribu tion to the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) to put it on a better footing, with expressed expectations of continuing related assis tance.But always at the back of my mind in times like these is the sterling contri bution of the Guyana Relief Council (GRC), a voluntary national organisation that has, since 1994, under the leadership of former First Lady Yvonne Hinds, es tablished a long-held rep utation for coordination of voluntary efforts and contributions from govern ment and private sectors for disaster victims, including providing temporary shelter for Increasedvictims.
Upgrading Disaster Preparedness in Down Time as Europe Confronts Blistering Heat
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 9
ACCORDING to an August 12 Associated Press (AP) report: ‘From dry and cracked reservoirs in Spain to falling water levels on major arter ies like the Danube, the Rhine and the Po, an un precedented drought is afflicting nearly half of Europe…’
It’s ‘damaging farm economies, forcing water restrictions, causing wild fires and threatening aquat ic species.’There’s been no signifi cant rainfall for almost two months in the continent’s western, central and south ern regions, including Brit ain, where the government officially declared a drought across southern and central England on Friday amid what the report describes as ‘one of the hottest and dri est summers on record…’ Long periods of dry weather have resulted in droughts and low water levels causing restrictions on use of tap water in most areas.The scientists explain that Climate Change is worsening continental con ditions as hotter tempera tures speed-up evaporation, plants suck-in more mois ture and less snow in winter limit freshwater supplies for irrigation during summer. Some countries have therefore decided to re strict water use and essen tial shipping routes along the Rhine and the Danube rivers.Rivers have simply stopped flowing. The Rhine, Germany’s biggest waterway, is at criti cally-low levels, with facto ries along its shores unable to move goods by barge like before; and on the Danube, authorities in Serbia had to dredge some sections to keep vessels moving. AP reported that ‘Some sections of the Po, Italy’s longest river, were so low on the weekend that barges and boats that sank decades ago are resurfacing.’ The drought is also af fecting England, ‘which last month registered its driest July since 1935 -and where the lack of rain in 2022 has depleted res ervoirs, rivers and ground water and left grasslands brown and Millionstinder-dry.’intheUK can no longer water lawns and gardens, with 15 million more around London pre paring for similar restric tions.Without rain, rivers con tinue to empty and fish are dying, with many species gradually disappearing. And there’s no relief in nearPossiblysight. Europe’s worst drought in 500 years is only worsening and the Europe an Commission (EU) Joint Research Center warned last week it can affect 47 per cent of the continent, with weather scientists warning it can worsen even more over the next three months.However, Europe isn’t alone, with drought condi tions also reported in East Africa, the western United States and northern Mexico. And in Australia, as well as parts of North America, the problems are also from floods -- and wildfires. Guyana and other Carib bean nations, accustomed to coping with extreme weather events (hurricanes, floods, landslides, drought, etc.) over decades before today’s level of Environ mental and Climate Change awareness, also experienced the region’s own gradual and accelerating changes in the last three decades, from El Nino to more fero cious hurricanes, increasing earthquakes and volcano eruptions.Iwell remember wit nessing the El Nino effect on the flow of water at Kaieteur Falls in the midto-late 1990s -- a graphic example, but only visible to those fortunate to be on a flight to Mabaruma (North WestTheDistrict).signs were clear back then, but the emphasis was more on the human aspect: taking emergency relief to disaster victims. The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and other en tities capable of facilitating quick response would co operate with volunteers to ensure victims got relief sooner than later. Guyana is as equally subject to the deteriorat ing Climate Change and changing environmental conditions being recorded and experienced global ly; and just as Europe has started feeling the worst of Nature’s wrath in ways never seen or felt, the need is to start adjusting and preparing for mitigation against such unexpected changes that are simply sure to come, but without notice. As the European expe rience shows, responses today must be at National, Regional and Community levels, embracing all effec tive approaches to meet the different needs dictated by the nature and location of the Publicdisaster.and private sec tors, non-governmental and community, voluntary and related entities should gearup to work across bound aries and within borders to respond quickly and effec tively, but also to engage in the necessary public ed ucation to ensure people understand what Climate Change means – and how it affectsClimatethem.Change knows no boundaries, even in a Caribbean region that con tributes less than one per cent to the effects of Cli mate Change but are paying 100 percent penalties, with out much support from the rich nations responsible. Guyana cannot wait for the rivers feeding Kaieteur Falls to start to dry, or for pontoons and river boats, barges and cargo ships to be unable to ply the Berbi ce, Demerara or Essequibo Rivers, or for Lake Main stay to become a parch of sand, or for taxi-boats to be unable to ferry people across the Georgetown har bour, or from Parika to the Essequibo islands. It’s always necessary to upgrade national readiness to one of expecting the un expected and that applies to all CARICOM nations.
frequency of disasters and related eco nomic costs over time, alongside other factors, have reduced the GRC’s ability to serve today like it did yesteryear, without incremental levels of public and private sector support. Be that as it may, its miles-long record of accom plishments and with tenta cles at home and abroad, the GRC will surely be willing to share experiences with the comparatively-new entities, to together share resources and strengthen national preparedness at regional, district and com munity levels.
Most notable in the 2022 budget, the government al located some $5 billion for programmes to cushion the effects of the rising cost of living.Through this, the gov ernment has provided an ad ditional $25,000 cash grant to every household in the riverine and hinterland com munities of the country, which resulted in $800 million being pumped into the economy to cushion the impacts of the rising cost of living for that demographic.Towardsthe development of small businesses in the 2022 budget, $300 million was injected into the Small Business Development Fund. The government also an nounced a programme under which it will be purchasing and distributing, free of cost, $1 billion in fertilisers to farmers all across Guyana as a means of absorbing the rising global costs for the commod ity, and to prevent the costs being passed on to consumers at the market.
Speaking at his party’s weekly press briefing, which he chose to conduct virtually on Tuesday, the Opposition Leader read diligently from a prepared statement, and when questioned, trotted out a series of measures already imple mented by the government to address the increase in the cost of living not limited to Guyana, and due to a number of global factors, including COVID-19.Norton also said that he has no objection to the grants being given to citizens by the government to cushion the impact of the increase in cost of living. “We are not against handouts; we see such cash grants as resources that our people need,” he said. In his opening statement, Norton spoke on several ini tiatives, among them a call for free university education, which has already been prom ised by the government, and the need for school feeding programmes, another initiative that has been implemented by the Ministry of Education. Since 2020, the govern ment has been implementing a number of measures to curb and cushion the shocks or the unavoidable price increases.
Upon assuming office in August 2020, the government soon budgeted for the distribu tion of $25,000 to each house hold across the country. The government also safeguarded utilities against increases by removing the Value Added Tax (VAT) from water and electricity.Additionally, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali had announced a series of ground-breaking measures, ranging from cash grants to households in hin terland and riverine commu nities to the provision of free fertilisers for farmers, which are all aimed at improving the lives of citizens.
Norton calls for programmes already implemented by gov’t
10 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
The government is in jecting money back into the pockets of ordinary citizens via old-age pension and public assistance, which were both increased, putting $2.3 billion and $432 million, respectively, into the pockets of Guyanese. In other measures target ing construction and home ownership, interest rate for houses and buildings up to $9M was reduced to 3.8 per cent while for homes, home builders constructing homes costing $6M or less, the build ers will be provided with the steel needed for construction and one sling of cement. Homes that cost $6M to $25M, Government will provide two slings of cement. These interventions are geared at not only cushion ing the current cost of living that is beyond the Govern ment’s control but to em power ordinary Guyanese to improve their livelihoods and standard of living, sev eral senior Government of ficials have explained during their community outreaches.
OPPOSITION Leader Au brey Norton on Tuesday made a passionate call for the government to give loans and grants for small busi nesses, invest in agriculture, and increase pension and welfare assistance, all of which are measures that have already been imple mented.
Leader of the Opposition Aubrey Norton
China’s 5G achievements contribute to global development
“The advancement of technologies in China is also a process for China to further open up and expand coopera tion,” said Gong Ke, executive president of the Chinese Insti tute of New Generation Artifi cial Intelligence Development Strategies.
China releases white paper on Taiwan question, reunification in new era
A visitor experiences a 5G remote medical robot at the 2022 World 5G Convention in Harbin, capital of northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Aug. 10, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhang Tao)
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Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- In a restaurant in Phuket, Thai land, 5G cloud-based multitask robots lead guests to their tables to order, and then serve the dishes to them. These robots are made by CloudMinds Robotics, a Shanghai-based tech company which started its co-operation with Thailand’s digital service provider in Products2019.of CloudMinds Robotics have been replacing human crews in security patrol, hotel reception, caregiving, of fline retail, temperature mea surement and disinfection roles over the past three years, and are venturing forth in other markets in Asia and the Middle East. “In response to the de mands overseas, we continue to improve our technical merits and application capabilities, facilitat ing the transformation of local tourism intelligently through advanced technologies such as 5G,” Huang Xiaoqing, founder of the company said at the 2022 World 5G Convention that just concluded on Friday in Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang Province in the northeast of China. 5G mobile communication technologies are underpinning the digitalised, networked and intelligent transformation of economies and societies amid the new round of technological revolution.After three years of offi cial commercialisation, China has become the most steadfast supporter of and advocator for 5G. It has built some 1.85 mil lion 5G base stations supporting over 450 million end users, both accounting for over 60 per cent of the global total. With more than 20,000 5G application innovations, China endeavors to facilitate in ternational economic and social advancements with its latest 5G achievements.Recalling a case in 2019, when experts of China Mobile showed him the application of 5G on rare earth mining, Stephen Orlins, President of the National Committee on U.S.-China Rela tions, said it surprised him that even though the control room was more than 1,000 km away, it could still guarantee and monitor the safety of the miners. Such technologies might significantly promote economic growth and job creation in China and the United States, he added. In China, 5G applications have been deeply integrated into intelligent mines, smart factories and digital ports, providing new motivations for economic growth.According to the China Internet Development Report 2021, China’s digital economy reached 39.2 trillion yuan (about 6 trillion US dollars) in 2020, accounting for 38.6 per cent of the total“TheseGDP.advances highlight the role of the 5G value chain in promoting economic growth and sustainable development,” said Zhu Juwang, director of the Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. “If different regions have different standards, mobile com munication services will not be able to reach an ideal scope and scale, and the cost of telecom op erators and consumers will also be higher,” said Liu Jian, ZTE’s senior vice-president.Accordingto Liu, Chi nese enterprises are actively participating in the construction, application and promotion of the global 5G network, as well as carrying out scientific and technological co-operation in the digital sector with other countries.Qualcomm, a US compa ny also dedicated to international telecom standards, has been working with Chinese mobile communications companies for over 30“Despiteyears. the COVID-19 pandemic, we still maintained a 20-per cent increase in staff numbers per year in China over the past three years. The strong momentum we see in the Chi nese market reinforces our com mitment to further cooperation with our Chinese partners,” said Frank Meng, chairman of Qual comm China.As5G application en ters a critical phase of rapid development, it is now facing more complex cyber security challenges. Chinese companies are therefore consolidating the foundation for cyber security with their innovations. To promote the develop ment and industrialisation of 5G technology, global co-operation in production, education and research is of vital importance.
BEIJING, Aug. 10 (Xin hua) -- The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Coun cil and the State Council Information Office of the People’s Republic of China published a white paper titled “The Taiwan Ques tion and China’s Reunifi cation in the New Era” on Wednesday. The white paper was released to reiterate the fact that Taiwan is part of China, to demonstrate the resolve of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese people and their commitment to national reunification, and to emphasise the position and policies of the CPC and the Chinese government in the new era.Taiwan has belonged to China since ancient times. This statement has a sound basis in history and jurispru dence, according to the white paper. The UN General As sembly Resolution 2758 is a political document encapsu lating the one-China principle whose legal authority leaves no room for doubt and has been acknowledged world wide, says the white paper. The one-China princi ple represents the universal consensus of the international community; it is consistent with the basic norms of in ternational relations, says the white paper.“We are one China, and Taiwan is part of China. This is an indisputable fact supported by history and the law. Taiwan has never been a state; its status as part of China is unalterable,” says the whiteThepaper.CPC is committed to the historic mission of re solving the Taiwan question and realising China’s com plete reunification. Under its resolute leadership, people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits have worked together to de-escalate tension across the Straits. They have set out on a path of peaceful development and made many breakthroughs in improving cross-Straits relations, ac cording to the white paper. Under the guidance of the CPC, great progress has been made in cross-Straits relations over the past seven decades, especially since the estrangement between the two sides was ended. Increased exchanges, broader co-operation and closer inter actions have brought tangible benefits to people across the Straits, especially of Taiwan. This fully demonstrates that cross-Straits amity and co-op eration are mutually benefi cial, says the white paper.
External forces have encouraged and instigated provocative actions by the separatist forces; these have intensified cross-Straits ten sion and confrontation, and undermined peace and sta bility in the Asia-Pacific re gion. This runs counter to the underlying global trends of peace, development and win-win cooperation, and goes against the wishes of the international community and the aspiration of all peoples, says the white Relyingpaper.onexternal forces will achieve noth ing for Taiwan’s separatists, and using Taiwan to contain China is doomed to fail. The wheel of history rolls on to wards national reunification, and it will not be stopped by any individual or any force, says the white Peacefulpaper.reunifica tion and “one country, two systems” are our basic prin ciples for resolving the Tai wan question and the best approach to realising national reunification. Embodying the Chinese wisdom -- we thrive by embracing each other -they take full account of Tai wan’s realities and are con ducive to long-term stability in Taiwan after reunification, according to the white paper. “To realise peaceful reunification, we must ac knowledge that the mainland and Taiwan have their own distinct social systems and ideologies. The ‘one country, two systems’ principle is the most inclusive solution to this problem. It is an approach that is grounded in democrat ic principles, demonstrates good will, seeks peaceful res olution of the Taiwan ques tion, and delivers mutual benefit. The differences in social system are neither an obstacle to reunification nor a justification for secession ism,” says the white paper. “We are ready to create vast space for peaceful reuni fication; but we will leave no room for separatist activities in any form,” it says. “We will work with the greatest sincerity and exert our utmost efforts to achieve peaceful reunification. But we will not renounce the use of force, and we reserve the option of taking all necessary measures. This is to guard against external interference and all separatist activities. In no way does it target our fellow Chinese in Taiwan. Use of force would be the last resort taken under compelling circumstances,” it adds. The future of Taiwan lies in China’s reunification, and the wellbeing of the peo ple in Taiwan hinges on the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. “We will join hands with our fellow Chinese in Taiwan to strive for national reunification and rejuvena tion,” says the white paper. Once peaceful reunifi cation is achieved under “one country, two systems,” it will lay new foundations for Chi na to make further progress and achieve national rejuve nation. At the same time, it will create huge opportuni ties for social and economic development in Taiwan and bring tangible benefits to the people of Taiwan, it says. Peaceful cross-Straits reunification is of benefit not only to the Chinese nation, but to all peoples and the international com munity as a whole, says the white paper.
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“The realisation of complete national reunifica tion is driven by the history and culture of the Chinese nation and determined by the momentum towards and circumstances surrounding our national rejuvenation. Never before have we been so close to, confident in, and capable of achieving the goal of national rejuvenation. The same is true when it comes to our goal of complete national reunification,” says the white paper. China’s development and progress -- in particu lar, the great achievements over four decades of reform, opening up and modernisa tion -- have had a profound impact on the historical pro cess of resolving the Taiwan question and realising com plete national reunification, according to the white paper. The actions of the Democratic Progressive Party authorities have resulted in tension in cross-Straits rela tions, endangering peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits, and undermining the pros pects and restricting the space for peaceful reunification. These are obstacles that must be removed in advancing the process of peaceful reunifi cation, says the white paper.
Norton ‘dances around’ clean voters’ list comment
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— chair affirms her decisions are grounded in law Leader of the Opposition Aubrey Norton
Speaking at his week ly virtual press conference, Norton faced questions to explain his continuous call for “a clean voters list”, and how his party, the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), expects this to be achieved. However, the pol itician could not give a clear answer.“As we deal with this issue, we will unveil what we think should happen to get a clean voters list,” Nor ton said.
When further pressed on his thoughts on how this will happen in keeping with the court’s ruling, Norton dismissed the issue. “The court’s ruling, as I understand it, is in a particu lar context; we will deal with those issues,” is all that he would offer. In 2019, the High Court ruled that “the removal of the names of persons on the list of registrants, and who were not, or have not been, or are not registered in the current house-to-house registration exercise would be unconsti tutional.”Hence, even if a house-tohouse registration process is done by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), it is barred from removing the names of anyone from the NRR, except in the case of death.GECOM Chairman Clau dette Singh, speaking at a separate event on Tuesday, also addressed the issue, noting that there will be a suf ficient claims and objection period, whereby issues with the OLE can be dealt with. She maintained that in keeping with the court’s rul ing, everyone present on the NRR is legitimately there. “I am saying everyone on the list the people were there; they were legally put on the list. If the list is bloated, we are moving now to claims and objections, and people will have a chance to object to whose not supposed to be there,” Singh commented. GECOM is currently pre paring to hold Local Gov ernment Elections (LGEs), and as such, the Commission will be holding a claims and objection period, whereby persons can highlight any concerns or discrepancies on the OLE for the purpose of addressing them. The claims and objec tion period begins on Au gust 22, 2022 and concludes on September 15, 2022, while LGEs could possibly be held as soon as Novem ber.
LEADER of the Opposi tion, Aubrey Norton on Tuesday side-stepped ques tions on what his party’s call for a “clean voters list” will entail, given the High Court’s ruling that names cannot be removed from the National Register of Registrants (NRR), from which the Official List of Electors (OLE) is made.
GECOM
Mathematics training programme for primary school teachers launched
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A section of the teachers that will be part of the Specialist Mathematics Teacher Training Programme (Elvin Croker photo)
THE Education Ministry, in collaboration with the High Commission of Canada, on Tuesday, launched the Spe cialist Mathematics Teacher Training Programme at the National Centre for Educa tional Resource Development (NCERD) in Kingston. The training programme is the first initiative under the Can ada-CARICOM Expert Deploy ment Mechanism (CCEDM) in Guyana, which is being funded by the government of Canada and implemented by the Cana dian Executive Services Organ isationUnder(CESO).thefour-day training programme, 30 primary school teachers from Region Four will be trained to act as resource specialists in their particular catchment area. The programme prepares the primary school teachers to serve as Specialist Mathematics Teachers of the “Numbers and Operations” strand of Grade One to Four curriculum and to develop a repository of resources for them to use as they plan and implement their sessions with teachers in their school. “This is significant because, as an agency and education sector, we have undergone to develop a renewed curriculum anchored in best practices. [It is] our vision, our goal to do something different to engender different results,” NCERD Di rector, Quenita Walrond-Lewis, said as she made remarks at the launch.Walrond-Lewis explained that the development which the programme will bring about aligns with the government’s plans for the advancement of the country’s human resource, through the schools. The improvements in mathe matics are expected to contribute to development of critical think ers and problem solvers, among the populace.Facilitators for the training include Hylin Mclaren, a spe cialist from Red River Valley School Division in Canada, along with NCERD Specialists, Leslin Elliot, Kathleen Parasnath and Vishnu Panday, who is also Head of Mathematics at NCERD.Panday explained that while the programme is starting in Region Four and with only one
section of the curriculum, the ultimate aim is to train specialist teachers in all of the education districts for all of the various strands of the primary school Mathematics curriculum. This is envisioned to lead to better teachers, which will ulti mately lead to better students.
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programme for...
Mathematics training
“The real deal is to make an improvement in student learn ing,” commented Panday. Also making remarks at the event was the Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana, Mark Berman, who conveyed Cana da’s enthusiasm to be part of the development programme. Berg man noted that with Guyana at a critical juncture of development as a young oil and gas producing nation, the growth of human ca pacity is of pivotal importance. “We’re delighted to be able to organise this and bring an expert here to work with you all; it couldn’t have come at a better time. Guyana is at a significant point in history and growth, so we are extremely proud that at this pivotal time CCEDM is here to help,” Berman said. CCDEM is a four-year project covering nine coun tries, which focuses on offering demand-driven capacity build ing assistance to government agencies, with education being just one of a wide variety of sectors that the assistance is offered in.
Canadian High Commissioner, Mark Berman (standing) interacting with the teachers (Elvin Croker photo) Canadian High Commissioner, Mark Berman; Director of NCERD, Quenita WalrondLewis and NCERD Head of Mathematics, Vishnu Panday (Elvin Croker photo)
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POLICE have arrested a 24-year-old suspect in the mur der of 18-year-old Donald Gib son, who was fatally stabbed during a fight at Parika Façade, East Bank Essequibo, on Mon day. In a press release, the police said that at about 17:30hrs, the two were at a liquor restaurant when Gibson accused the suspect of assaulting his friend. This led to an argument, during which Gibson allegedly assaulted the suspect, physically, before leav ing theAccordingbar. to the police, the suspect subsequently left the bar and was again accosted by the deceased. There was an argument which led to a scuffle. The suspect, who was armed with a knife, reportedly stabbed Gibson, once, under his left arm, causing his friend, 19-year-old Wazim Mohamed, of Lot 1818 Parika, East Bank Essequibo, to attempt to part them. However, he became involved in the scuffle. The release added that the suspect reportedly stabbed Mo hamed with the said knife in his back and buttocks, before the fight was quelled by public-spir ited persons. The suspect then threw the knife into a nearby trench. The police were summoned, and the deceased was taken to the Leonora Cottage Hospital, where he died while receiving medical attention. Mohamed was later treated at the said hospital and is presently a pa tient there. Lusignan accident
Pedestrian dies in
Teen stabbed to death during scuffle at Parika
PRAHALAD Sawh, 53, of Lusignan, East Coast Demerara (ECD), died on Monday night in an accident on the Lusig nan Public Road. The police, in a press release, said a motorcy clist identified as Leon Lewis, 31, of Annad ale, ECD, and motorist Wavell Lamatt, 43, of Beterverwagting, ECD were involved in the ac cident.According to reports, the motorcyclist was be hind a minibus when he suddenly saw a shadow. After the minibus passed, he saw a pedestrian in front of him crossing the road. However, he was so close that he collided with him and they both fell.The release said that the motorcyclist picked up his motorcycle and fled the scene, but was later taken to the Bala want Singh Hospital to seek medical attention, and was located there by the police. He is present ly under police guard. The driver of the mo torcar told the police that while he was proceeding at a normal rate of speed behind the motorcycle, he saw someone lying on the road and tried to avoid a collision, but de spite his best efforts, he ran over the person, the release said. On pulling over to investigate, he reportedly discovered that it was a male lying motionless on the road. The body was examined at the scene by a doctor who pronounced himThedead.body is awaiting a post-mortem examina tion at the Georgetown Hospital Mortuary. The driver of the motorcar is in custody assisting with the inves tigation.
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THE Ministry of Housing and Water, through the Cen tral Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA), is work ing to fast-track the develop ment of Plot 1767 Cummings Lodge, Georgetown, a report from the ministry’s public relations department noted on Tuesday.According to the state ment, the portion of land has been allocated to a number of persons, who are awaiting the completion of the infra structure works such as land clearing and road networks in order to access their house lots.Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal, during a recent site visit with CHPA’s Director of Projects, Omar Narine and team, explained that the developing area is clustered with large trees and has presented many hurdles. “It is one of the toughest challenges the engineers have encountered regarding land clearance and creating access routes.“Even before we started, we had a lot of hiccups in terms of persons who were squatting and persons who claimed they were farming,” said the However,Minister.those issues relating to the illegal occupa tion of lands have since been resolved through a series of engagements with the infor malMinistersettlers.
Thearea.expansion of the road will also unlock a commer cial and medical zone leading all the way to Eccles, East Bank Demerara (EBD). The ongoing works are pegged at some $3 billion. Within the next two-three months allottees of Plot 1767 Cummings Lodge are expect ed to start accessing their lands and commence con struction of their homes.
The Housing and Water Minister, in his remarks, also lauded the leadership of President, Dr. Irfaan Ali in supporting the housing sector and the provision of resources to aid in the delivery of 50,000 house lots by 2025.
Minister of Housing CollinWaterandCroal
Cummings Lodge land development being fast-tracked — access to lands likely in two to three months
Croal further stated that the provision of basic infrastructure is crucial to the socio-economic ad vancement of occupants and the creation of sustainable schemes.Asthe ministry pushes ahead with the land clearing, works are simultaneously ongoing at Aubrey Barker Road, Georgetown, which is being upgraded and expanded to serve as a new access point for the
A section of land being cleared land at Cummings Lodge 1767 photo)(CH&PA Works ongoing for the expansion of Aubrey Barker Road (CH&PA photo)
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A GROUP of 38 migrants, including a heavily preg nant woman, have been found stranded on a tiny, unnamed island along the Turkish-Greek border. The 22 men, nine women and seven children say they have been on the Evros River islet since mid-July. After being located on Monday, they were taken to mainland Greece. The country’s migration minister said the group were all in a “very good condi tion” and the pregnant wom an had been taken to hospital as aHowever,precaution.at least one child died on the islet, which is near the Greek town of La vara, according to the group and human rights agencies. Greek police have yet to confirmMigrationthis. Minister Notis Mitarachi visited the Evros region on Tuesday. While he did not confirm the child’s death, he said the govern ment would work with the International Red Cross and Red Crescent to retrieve the body to ensure a dignified burial.There had been some uncertainty over the group’s location and therefore over whether Turkey or Greece should have stepped in to help.Greek authorities initially said the people - who police say all identify themselves as Syrian - were in Turkish territory.They were eventually found about 4km (2.4 miles) south of the coordinates out side the Greek territory that was initially reported some days ago. This is why, Greek police suggest, the migrants had not been found earlier. Baida, one of the women in the group, described being treated like “a football game between the two sides” - Tur key and “No-oneGreece.wants us. Noone hears us. No-one wants to help,” she added. Greece’s treatment of mi grants trying to reach Europe from Turkey has been high lighted for a number of years. Human rights groups al lege thousands of people seeking asylum have been pushed back before being given the chance to apply for asylum. It’s also caused rows within the EU after a senior official claimed last year that the country was breaching European funda mentalSomerights.refugees say they have been forcibly returned to Turkish waters. The Greek government has always denied these claims and insists it complies with European and interna tionalThislaw.incident on the Ev ros river “highlights the bru tality of pushbacks”, said Dimitra Kalogeropoulou, the Greece director of the Inter national Rescue Committee. Between January and June 2022, 232 Syrians arrived in Greece by sea according to the UN. (BBC)
The islet is near the Greek town of Lavara
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Turkey-Greece migrants: 38 people found stranded on tiny, unnamed island
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Touchstone to launch T&T’s first onshore natural gas project in 20 years
What’s next for Coho? According to Baay the facility is built for about 20 million cubic feet a day, noting the initial well should be around eight to 10 million cubic feet a day. “So we will wind that out for a little while and we do have an approval to drill a second well there and we will look to get back in there at some point,” Baay said. He noted the company “really wants” to ramp up production at Cascudura, adding the new permit will enable to drill up to eight more wells.“I don’t think we will need that many to fill the facility. We will drill enough to fill that up and end up about 200 million a day in 2023 and then we will look at Coho after that,” Baay said. Baay was also asked how this government viewed the announced production from the Ortoire block. Saying there has been a lot of support, Baay however, added, “I think there has been a lot of concern. This EIA has taken much longer than certainly we anticipated. I think a lot of people sort of questioned the authenticity of the government but in fairness this is the first new gas brought on in 20 years and we are talking about a facility that’s about 200 million cubic feet a day. “We had to go through the process to make sure all the public consultation was done, the design was correct. But they (government) are really excited to get this on and we are going to do as quick as we can,” Baay Additionally,explained.hesaid this is an opportunity for job creation as the expertise of local contractors will be used.Energy Minister Stuart Young met with Baay on Wednesday at the Ministry’s Head Office where discussions focused on Touchstone’s work programme and specifically the Coho and Cascadura wells. The parties also spoke about potential future exploration and production.Cohoand Cascadura wells are conventional gas developments located onshore T&T, both of which lie in block Ortoire. A statement from the ministry said Baay estimated both blocks will flow both liquids and gas for manyTouchstoneyears. Exploration is an oil and natural gas exploration and production company active in T&T. It is currently one of the largest independent onshore oil producers in Trinidad, with assets in several large, high-quality reservoirs that have significant internally estimated total petroleum initially-in-place and an extensive inventory of oil and natural gas development and explorationTouchstoneopportunities.Exploration has achieved quarterly average crude oil production volumes of 1,420 barrels per day representing a two per cent increase relative to the preceding quarter and a one per cent increase from the 1,402 bbls/d produced in the second quarter of 2021. This was among the achieve ments outlined in the company’s operating and financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2022.Touchstone achieved realised petroleum sales of $12,596,000 from an average crude oil price of $97.48 per barrel compared to petroleum sales of $7,586,000 from an average realised price of $59.06 per barrel in the comparative quarter of 2021. It also generated an operating netback of $44.99 per barrel, a 19 per cent increase from the first quarter of 2022 and a 71 per cent increase from the $26.30 per bar rel reported in the second quarter of 2021. (Trinidad Guardian)
TOUCHSTONE Exploration is excited to ramp up its produc tion now that the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) has confirmed the environmental impact assessment is completed. The Alberta-based company is also preparing to launch T&T’s first onshore natural gas project in 20 years.Last week, the EMA confirmed that no further information was required regarding the Cascadura Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).The Cascadura EIA supports the company’s application for a Certificate of Environmental Clear ance (CEC) to conduct development operations within the Cascadura area of the Ortoire block. The EMA confirmed the fol lowing designated activities of the CEC have been deemed applicable to the proposed Cascadura project: exploration for crude oil and natural gas; establishment of a facility for primary or secondary production of crude oil, condensate or associated gas; establishment of a facility for natural gas or condensate produc tion; establishment of infrastructure for pipeline systems; and establish ment of infrastructure for storage of petroleum or liquid petroleum gas or theirThesederivatives.represent all of the nec essary activities for commercial production at Cascadura pursuant to Touchstone’sTouchstoneapplication.submitted the re maining EIA documentation on August 3, 2022, and the EMA re sponded on August 5, 2022 stating that the submitted information was reviewed and was deemed adequate to determine the outcome of the company’s CEC application. Pursuant to statutory CEC rules, the EMA confirmed that a fi nal CEC determination will be made by September 15, 2022. President and CEO of Touch stone Paul Baay during a recent discussion with “DirectorsTalk Interviews”—a UK company— explained what this signals for the Cascadura well, effects on the production timeline and the process of pre-commissioning and com missioning starting at Touchstone Exploration’s Coho facility and the view of T&T Government on the imminent production from the Ortoire“Thisblock.isreally significant for us. It is something we have been waiting for a long time. It’s basically the environmental permit for us to proceed with the project. It’s been something we have been working for about a year. “It’s a really thorough project and what it will do for us is outline the next five years of operations. Although it has been sort of painful to get us to this point, it allows us to drill wells, it allows us to build our gas facility, it allows us to build roads and pipelines so now we can really lay out a really firm and clear plan for the next five years,” Baay outlined, reiterating the process has been “very thorough and time consuming.”Onwhether there are expected to be effects on the production timeline of Cascadura because of the delays, Baay remained hopeful Touchstone will achieve production between now and the end of the year, saying this will depend also on how quickly the company can move and also on the weather. “It’s definitely been delayed and we have been pushing on two fronts. We have been continuing to fabricate various things that we could without actually going on the site. Everything is going to push forward as fast as we can. The next couple of weeks we will firm that timeline up. It may push things by a couple of months but it’s not going to push us into 2023,” Baay said. Touchstone also recently an nounced pre-commissioning and commissioning will be commencing at Coho.“This will be the first onshore gas in 20 years. It’s a big deal for us and also the country,” Baay added.
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30 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 RACING TIPS American Racing Tips RaceSaratoga1Song Of Someone Race 2 Greely And Ben Race 3 Mommasgottarun Race 4 I’m Buzzy Race 5 Padma Race 6 Maritime Wings Race 7 Crypto Mama South Africa Racing Tips 08:25Greyvillehrs Napoleon 09:00 hrs Willow’s Wish 09:35 hrs Magicalle 10:10 hrs Drogarati 10:45 hrs Lady Heist English Racing Tips 08:50York hrs Dakota Gold 09:25 hrs Local Dynasty 10:00 hrs Secret State 10:35 hrs Mishriff 11:10 hrs Themaxwecan 11:45 hrs Pink Crystal 12:20 hrs 15:3015:0014:3014:0013:3012:5512:25SligoIrish15:2014:5014:2013:5013:1512:4012:05Kempton15:1014:4014:1013:4013:0512:3212:0011:29WorcesterRamazanhrsPrincessMidnighthrsChessPlayerhrsPeregrineRunhrsNibrasGoldhrsAccidentalRebelhrsDameDeFortunehrsBaganhrsSheilaNashhrsThreeDonshrsStoryinthesandhrsShe’sHothrsWardCastlehrsUzinesohrsProfiundAlexanderhrsFantasyNavigatorRacingTipshrsGetMeToTheParkhrsMaryMeehanhrsTheGreyMontyhrsHe’sLeadingMeOnhrsTheGreyLadhrsFrazelExpresshrsWesternCommander
IN light of the expansion of lucrative domestic Twenty20 tournaments throughout the world, former India captain Kapil Dev has urged cricket’s regulatory body (ICC) to take action to defend the Test and One-Day International formats. With new contests in the United Arab Emirates and South Africa scheduled to start early next year, the growth of T20 leagues has further squeezed cricket’s already overstuffed calendar.Theground-breaking Indian Premier League (IPL) is ex pected to receive an expanded window in the ICC’s upcoming international schedule, and dedicated periods for England and Australia’s domestic franchise-based leagues are also anticipated.BenStokes of England retired from ODIs last month due to the demanding schedule while South Africa cancelled an ODI trip of Australia in January because it conflicted with the start of their T20 league. To better control the strain of players, ICC has put the onus on member boards to strike a balance between domestic and bilateral cricket. However, Dev said that the ICC has a “greater responsibility” to administer the sport. “It’s going the way as football in Europe,” Dev told the Sydney Morning Herald on Monday. “They don’t play against each country. It is once in four years (during the World Cup). “Is this what we’re going to have, the World Cup. And the rest of the time playing club (T20 franchise) cricket? In a similar way, will cricketers eventually be playing mainly the IPL or the Big Bash or something like that? “The ICC have to put more time into that to see how they can ensure the survival of one-day cricket, Test match cricket, not only club cricket,” added Dev, who lifted the World Cup as India skipper in 1983. (Telegraph)
The limpet … A clingy crab is born ICC must protect Test, ODI formats amid rise of T20 leagues: Kapil Dev
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 31
1974: BIRTH of Shivnarine Chanderpaul. When he made his debut against England in Georgetown in 1993-94, he was the first teenager to play in a Test for West Indies since Elquemedo Willett in 1972-73.Chanderpaul’s slim frame encases the ideal temperament for a Test batter. He scored only two hundreds in his first 53 Tests, but improved that ratio significantly after that. His career run graph took a turn upwards from India’s tour in 2006 - he scored seven hundreds, 14 half-centuries and averaged 73.09 from 23 Tests in the next three years. In 2005 he had been appointed captain and celebrated with a double-hundred on his home ground in Guyana. But he quit the next year to concentrate on his batting. From then on, Chanderpaul became a run-machine, reaching 10 000 Test runs in his 140th Test, in 2012 against Australia - in characteristic fashion, while trying to save the match. He averaged 98.7 in 2012, scoring three hundreds, including his second double. He hung at the crease like a limpet during the many times the side was in trouble, and churned out hundreds, seemingly at will. But three years later the unthinkable happened - Chanderpaul, at the age of 40, was dropped from the West Indies side after scoring only one half-century in ten innings. And after he was overlooked for a contract in December, Chanderpaul announced his retirement from international cricket. (CricInfo)
August 16 down the years
Will, however, England’s top flight remain the world’s most watched for the next 30 years?Wenger believes the only threats to Premier League dom inance would come from others following the example of 30 years and breaking away from established structures - such as last year’s attempt at a Europe an Super“WhereLeague.isthe threat? It’s the Super League. I was sur prised that six (English) teams signed up,” he told Sky Sports. “Maybe they could move a league to the States. That’s where the threat can come as well. If, one day, America is successful in football then it can be a problem for the league.”
Premier League celebrates 30year rise to global dominance
MANCHESTER: (Reuters) The Premier League cele brated its 30th anniversary on Monday (August 15), mark ing three decades that have seen English club football transformed into the world’s leading sports entertainment product. In 1992, the top clubs broke with 104 years of tradition by splitting from the Football League and controversially creating a “super league” which would keep its own income rather than share it with the clubs across all four divisions of the professional game. The move only became a reality because it was backed by the governing Football As sociation - a decision that was viewed as a betrayal by many of the smaller teams - and by domestic television companies viewed with suspicion by scep ticalRupertfans. Murdoch’s Sky Television then secured the rights and set about heavily pro moting the league which since its inception has been driven by broadcast revenues. The American-style ap proach, evident in mimicking the NFL’s Monday Night Foot ball, pushed the popularity of the national sport to new levels but at first some baulked at the razzmatazz.“Idon’t think we all re alised quite what the Premier League was going to become 30 years ago,” said Teddy Sher ingham who scored the first televised goal in the league for Nottingham Forest against Liverpool.“Itwas a new thing and ex citing times. There were danc ing girls on a Monday night and it was all fan-dabby-dozy,” he added.Intime though, the TV income allowed clubs to attract top players from around the world which in turn drove in terestThereabroad.were only 13 players from outside the British Isles on the opening weekend of the first Premier League season in 1992 but in the 30 years that followed players from 120 countries have featured in the league with 63 nationalities represented last season.Now broadcast to 800 mil lion homes in 188 countries with 90 broadcasters and more than 400 channels showing games, the Premier League and its clubs count almost a billion followers on social media. This year, for the first time, the league will generate more revenue from foreign televi sion deals than the established domesticWhenmarket.alldeals are conclud ed, the league expects foreign rights sales to generate £5.3 billion (US$6.40 billion) over the next three seasons with 5.1 billion raised from UK broad casters.
Former BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary passes away
32 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
AMITABH Choudhary, the former BCCI acting secretary and president of Jharkhand State Cricket Association died of heart attack yesterday morning. Choudhary donned dif ferent hats in BCCI hav ing served as a member of the IPL Governing Council in 2013, as Jt. Secretary of Junior Cricket Committee, Umpire Sub-Committee and NCA Board among others in 2014-15. He was elected the Honorary Jt. Secretary in 2015 and was later the Acting Secretary of the BCCI. “I am shocked and sad dened to learn of the sad demise of Mr Amitabh Choudhary,” BCCI president Sourav Ganguly said. “I had a long association with him and have always cherished our meetings. I got to know him first on the tour of Zim babwe when I was leading India, and he was the Team Manager. “Over the course of time, our interactions grew and his passion for the sport was evi dent. Today, we have a worldclass stadium and complex in Ranchi and it is thanks to his vision and relentless efforts. Jharkhand has come up the ranks in quick time and I am sure he will be happier when more cricketers from the state play for India. My thoughts and sympathy are with his friends and family in this hour of grief.”
Former BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary
While 50 clubs have fea tured in the league, unsurpris ingly given its origins, the league has been increasingly dominated by the big city clubs. There have only been seven clubs who have won the league with only Blackburn Rovers and Leicester City coming from outside of the major cities. The early years were dom inated by Manchester United who won seven of the first nine titles under Alex Ferguson in an era in which they enjoyed epic battles with Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal team - winners in 1998, 2002 and Another2004.London club, Chel sea, backed by Russian Roman Abramovich won back-to-back titles under Jose Mourinho in 2005 and 2006 before United returned to dominance with the likes of Wayne Rooney and CristianoManchesterRonaldo.City, under Pep Guardiola, have dominat ed in recent years, winning four of the last five titles, only interrupted by Liverpool in 2020 - their first title since the breakaway.Forallthe talk of “market ing geniuses”, from Arsenal’s unbeaten “Invincibles” season in 2003-2004, to Sergio Ague ro’s last minute title winning goal for Manchester City eight years later, it has been the drama on the field that has constantly pushed the growth in popularity.“Theleague is full of com pelling characters, whether it be the players or increasingly the managers. It constantly pro duces engaging storylines that capture the imagination of fans across the world,” says sports marketing expert Chris Cook of Fancurve.“ThePremier League creat ed the ‘product’, or at least pro fessionalised it and marketed it properly to a global audience, but the individual teams and players themselves are actually bigger brands than the Premier League as an entity.”
BIG CITY DOMINANCE
General view of the Premier League trophy before a match on September 16, 2016 (Photo: Reuters/Dylan Martinez)
As part of the 2022-25 Women’s Championships, teams will play three-match bilateral ODI series before the 2025 World Cup (Getty Images)
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 33
THE first women’s Future Tours Programme (FTP), announced by the ICC yesterday, contains a total of 301 international matches between 2022 and 2025. The cycle has al ready begun - in May this year - and runs until the conclusion of the ODI World Cup in 2025. The calendar for women’s cricket in the three-year cycle com prises seven Tests, 159 T20Is and 135 ODIs, which include fixtures for the 2022-25 ICC Women’s Champi onship, the qualification pathway for the next ODI World Cup in India. Among the highlights of the FTP is the standalone Ashes, starting with England’s tour of Australia in 2024-25. England play the most Tests (five), followed by Australia (four), South Africa (three) and IndiaIndia(two).are scheduled to play one Test match each against England and Australia at home. England last played a Test in India in 2005, while Australia’s Test in 2023-24 will be their first in the country since 1984. As part of the 2022-25 ICC Women’s Championship, teams will play three-match bilateral ODI series to try and qualify the 2025 World Cup. The addition of Bangladesh and Ireland makes the ICC Women’s Championship a 10-team tournament this time, compared to eight in the previous cycle. Each team will play eight ODI series (four home and four away) and the top five in the stand ings will earn direct qualification to the 2025 World Cup, along with hosts India. The bottom four teams in the ICC Women’s Championship will play four other teams in a qual ifying tournament for the final two spots in the 2025 World Cup. “This is a huge moment for the women’s game,” ICC general man ager of cricket, Wasim Khan, said. “This FTP not only lends certainty to future cricket tours but also sets the base for a structure that is sure to grow in the coming years.” Bangladesh, for example, will have 24 international matches in the new three-year cycle, compared to 11 in the previous cycle. Ban gladesh, who had played Australia, England and New Zealand for the first time ever at the 2022 World Cup in New Zealand, will play each of these teams in a bilateral series comprising three matches apiece. Ireland will also have an increase in games because of their inclusion in the women’s FTP. All the bilateral T20I matches in the FTP will count towards team rankings, which will serve as the primary mechanism to determine the teams that qualify for ICC global events. There is a clear window in the women’s FTP in March 2023, which has been earmarked for the inaugural Women’s IPL. First Test at Lord’s Can South Africa stop the ‘Bazball’ juggernaut?
The programme runs till the end of April 2025, leading up to the 50-over World Cup in India
England captain Ben Stokes South Africa captain Dean Elgar
SOME of South Africa’s favourite words start with B. ‘Bazball’ is not among them. England’s frenetic bat ting under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum is, for the South Africans, nothing more than that: England’s approach to batting as designed by their new captain and coach. But, considering the number of questions the visitors have been asked about ‘Bazball’ since they arrived in England, you would have thought it was all their idea. Even Stokes got it wrong at a press conference yesterday: “The opposition seem to be doing a lot of talking at the moment about it. We don’t really speak about it that much. “We just concentrate on what we do. We’ve got a style of play, they’ve got a style of play. At the end of the day, it’s bat against ball. Whoever plays best over a Test match is more than likely to win. We don’t dive into it too much, but we’re happy for Dean (Elgar) and the South African team to keep saying they’re not interested but then also keep talking about it. So, yeahCloser...” to the truth is that the South Africans wouldn’t have to keep talking about ‘Bazball’ if they weren’t asked about it endlessly. Consequent ly, Elgar could hardly be faulted for running out of patience on the topic. “With all due respect I’m not going to entertain that anymore,” he told a press conference“We’veyesterday.chatted about it long and hard. I just want to crack on with the cricket. The game deserves that respect. Mud-slinging is a thing of the past for me. We’re not going to go back and forth anymore about that.” So, what else is there to talk about ahead of the start of the Test series at Lord’s today? For one thing, whether England will pull off a fifth consecu tive win in the format under the new regime! For another, whether South Africa will chalk up a fifth consecutive series without defeat under Elgar! For still another, whether the change in London’s weather from stinking hot, which it has been for weeks on end, to grey and soggy on the eve of the match will change much in terms of tactics and team composition! The latter isn’t a significant con sideration for the home side with Jack Leach the only specialist spinner in their squad. But the likelihood of South Africa deploying both Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer - a serious possibility on sun-baked late summer pitches - would seem to be receding. Another question is: how South Africa’s lack of experience of the con ditions - in their dressing room only El gar, Maharaj and Kagiso Rabada have played Tests in England before - will stand up to the scrutiny they are sure to face from perhaps the most aggressive team in the game? But Elgar’s team know plenty about dealing with pres sure, having recovered from defeats to draw in New Zealand in February and beat India at home in March. As always before the start of a series, and particularly a rubber involving opponents who last met in these conditions four years ago, there are more questions than answers. In the choice words of former US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld, “Reports that say that something hasn’t happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns - the ones we don’t know we don’t know. And if one looks throughout the history of our country and other free countries, it is the latter category that tends to be the difficultNothingones.”hasyet happened in this Test series. But that doesn’t mean the wheels are not in motion. Far from it! Yesterday’s rain put itself in the way of the teams’ final preparations and seems set to delay or interrupt, or both, proceedings today. Happily, one rainy day, if indeed it pans out that way, does not a dull series make. Many other opportunities will present themselves at Lord’s, Old Trafford and the Oval to answer all sorts of questions - not least whether cricketers and ‘Bazballers’ belong on the same field playing the same game for the same audience. A hot summer is about to get hotter still. (Cricbuzz)
Seven Tests, 135 ODIs, 159 T20Is in first women’s international FTP
Fakhar Zaman hit a run-a-ball 109. © Getty
OF all the mails that the In dian broadcasters have sent to the International Cricket Council (ICC), Star Sports’ letter may be the most sting ing of the missives. The current ICC broad caster has outlined a series of objections in the media rights tender, including on the multiple for the four and eight-year bids. In a strongly worded let ter, Star has not exactly used the word boycott, but made it distinctly clear that some of the clauses in the Invitation To Tender (ITT) document are not encouraging enough for them to participate. Star has been the ICC’s media rights holder for 15 years, sinceThe2007.main question that the leading broadcaster has asked is about the multiple. The ICC has steadfastly rejected the broadcasters’ demand to see how it would arrive at the value of four and eight years and what is the formula to be used. Star has said that it can comprehend ICC’s reluctance to share the exact formula but it insisted that Dubai should indicate what would be the floorIndustrymultiple.insiders say that before writing the letter Star had consulted its Disney boss es at its headquarters in Cal ifornia. Besides, it had also engaged with a few lawyers before dashing the mail. Another point that Star has highlighted is why the ICC is talking of a second round when it asks the partic ipants to put the best possible bid in the first round, which is closed bidding. The highest bid should win the auction, it has Secondly,contended. it wanted to know what qualifies for the second round. The ICC has said that if two or more bids are close, it will go for the second round, which is an e-auction. Star has demanded to know what should be the difference between bids that will determine the ‘close gap’ that will result in a second round.Finally, like everyone, Star has also asked why should the bids be submitted on August 22 if they are to be opened four days later, on August 26. What will the ICC do with those envelopes, it has sought to know. As is being reported by this website, all four Indian broadcasters - Sony, Viacom and Zee besides Star - have made it clear to the ICC that they are not happy with the conditions. But the ICC seems determined that there will not be any changes to the ITT clauses. The heat is on, on all parties. (Cricbuzz)
HEADLINED by a brisk ton from opener Fakhar Zaman, Pakistan clinched a convincing victory in the first ODI against Neth erlands at Rotterdam on Tuesday, even as the hosts put up a stiff challenge. After opting to bat first, Pakistan lost Imam ul Haq early but managed to recov er well through a 172-run stand for the second wicket between Zaman and Babar Azam. The former led he counterattack initially hitting the wicket-taker Vivian King ma for three boundaries and spoiling an otherwise miserly firstZamanspell. brought up his fif ty off 66 balls before shifting gears once again. The last 43 balls he faced fetched him 59 runs as the partnership helped lay a strong foundation for Pakistan. Azam, who stuck to a steady pace all through his innings earned his 20th ODI fifty with three boundaries in an over off Tim Pringle. Scores: Pakistan 314/6 (Fakhar Zaman 109, Babar Azam 74, Shadab Khan 48*) beat Netherlands 298/8 (Scott Edwards 71*, Vikram jit Singh 68, Tom Cooper 65; Naseem Shah 3-51) by 16 runsThe duo, however, fell in quick succession after Azam miscued a big hit, and Zaman was run out soon after going for a second run. Pakistan were given an other boost at the death when the last 25 balls fetched 48 runs. Shadab Khan and Agha Salman hit seven boundaries and two sixes in the rousing stand that helped Pakistan to 314.In the chase, Nether lands were helped along by three fifties, and were kept in the hunt through quickfire knocks from Tom Cooper and Scott Edwards. Needing 48 from the last four overs, with the innings already in the midst of an upsurge, Nether lands faltered in the last lost two wickets in as many balls derailing the chase. Earlier, the innings had got a foundations with opener Vikramjit Singh’s watchful 68 even as they lost three wickets at the other end. His 97-run association with Cooper first got the innings back on track. But with both falling the space of 12 balls, there was another wobble which was steadied by Ed wards’ unbeaten 71. His useful associations with the lower order took Netherlands within touch ing distance of the total be fore Pakistan pulled things back in the death overs as Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf finished with three wickets apiece.(Cricbuzz)
THE NBA will schedule no matches on November 8, the date of the US midterm elections, in order to encourage voter turnout. Ahead of today’s full schedule disclosure, the organisation confirmed all 30 teams will instead play on November 7, the day before polling booths open. The move marks a significant break from tradition for the governing body, which typically avoids matches on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. It comes on the back of increased political involve ment from within the league during the 2020 election cycle.“The NBA today announced that no games will be played on Election Day, Tuesday, November. 8, 2022,” the league said in a statement. “The scheduling decision came out of the NBA family’s focus on promoting nonpartisan civic en gagement and encouraging fans to make a plan to vote during midterm elections.”
Pakistan’s 1-0 series lead
USclashNovemberout8games,avoidingwithmidtermelections
NBA
Star expresses strong objections to ICC’s media rights tender rules
34 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022
(2) Which NZ player compiled most runs?
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All 435 seats in the US House of Representatives will be contested this November, while more than 30 Senate seats and gubernatorial races will also be in the mix. It marks the first widespread elections since 2020, when Democrat Joe Biden defeated then-in cumbent Republican Donald Trump for the US presidency.CRICKET
QUIZ CORNER (Wednesday August 17, 2022)
Answers in tomorrow’s issue
Fakhar, Babar set up
Answers to yesterday’s quiz: (1) NZ 2; WI 1 (2) Glen Phillips (NZ) Today’s Quiz: (1) Who scored most runs for the WI in the recent T20 Int’l series against NZ?
GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 35
GUYANA Under-19s had a batting meltdown that resulted in a 10-wicket defeat to the Leeward Is lands inside two days in their second-round clash of the Regional Under19 tournament in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. When play ended Monday afternoon at Park Hill, as Guyana were bowled for 73 (48 overs) in their first innings and then 90 (31.2 overs) in their second innings.Inthe first innings, Tomani Caesar, who scored 59 in the first match, top-scored with 26 while Mavendra Dindyal and Shamar Yearwood were the only other batsmen to reach double figures, both making ten. Micah McKenzie with 4-9 from six overs led the damage of the Guyanese and got support from Chamiqueko Landerfort (2-7) and Onaje Amory (2-19). Jewel Andrew led the islanders’ response with a compact 56 (4x4s; 3x6s) from 92 balls while Nathan Edward (26) and Malik Walsh (25) chipped in the fight to repel the fiery West Indies Under-19 pacer Isai Thorne, who took 6-36 from 12 overs. The in-form off-spinner Jonathan Rampersaud took 2-21 while Bruce Vincent (1-19) and Dindyal (1-23) got in the action. In the second innings, McKenzie once again tormented Guyana with 5-18 from 7.2 overs while Edward (2-5) and Amory (2-25) were well in support in limited the Guyanese to 90.
GuyanaIslandsLeewardbutbeatby10wickets
Under 19 pacer Isai Thorne bagged 6-36 from 12 overs
BRIDGETOWN, Bar bados (CMC) – Several changes have been made to the West Indies squad for the three-match One-Day International (ODI) Se ries against New Zealand starting today, with Keemo Paul and Gudakesh Mo tie out due to injury and Shimron Hetmyer unavail able to play for the men in maroon. Cricket West Indies (CWI) Senior Men’s Selec tion Panel announced on Tuesday that left-handed batter Hetmyer is unavail able “due to personal rea sons”, all-rounder Paul was ruled out with an injury, and left-arm spinner Motie has failed to recover from the hand injury sustained during the series against India last month.“Hetmyer has to attend to a family matter in Guyana. Unfortunately, Motie is not yet able to rejoin the squad and Keemo is struggling with an injury,” explained CWI’s Lead Selector, The Most Hon Dr Desmond Haynes.The replacements are middle-order batter Jermaine Blackwood, who has been called up for the ODI squad for the first time since 2015; and leg-spinning all-rounder Yannic Cariah who earns his first squad call-up for the West Indies after being promoted from the West In dies A squad who have been playing against Bangladesh. Cariah captained the West Indies Emerging Play ers team that won the CG United Super50 Cup (then the Colonial Insurance Su per50 Cup) in 2019. “He is someone who has been performing well on the regional circuit and we feel now is the right time to integrate him into the senior team set-up,” Haynes said. Odean Smith, the seam-bowling all-rounder, has been added as a reserve. Haynes said he had been picked on the back of some notable performances in the T20I“HeSeries.has displayed the all-round ability to change games and we look forward to his continued develop ment,” the lead selector said. All three ODIs will be day/night matches played under floodlights at Kens ington Oval with the 2nd and 3rd CG United ODIs on August 19 and 21. The three matches are West Indies’ last remaining fixtures in the ICC ODI Su per TheLeague.Caribbean side will be seeking to win the CG United ODI Series to secure one of the automatic quali fication places reserved for the top 7 teams in the ODI Super League table, exclud ing hosts India.
The Leeward Islands then breezed to 14 without loss in 1.5 overs. Guyana, who defeated Trinidad and Tobago in the first round, will now play Jamaica at Arnos Vale from August 19.
Regional Under-19 cricket-Day Thorne bags 6-36
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World javelin champion Anderson Peters Hetmyer, Motie, Paul replaced for ODI series against New Zealand
Gudakesh Motie has not recovered from an injury he sustained during the recent India series
ST GEORGE’S, Grenada (CMC) – World javelin champion Anderson Peters says while he is feeling bet ter after being assaulted on a party boat last week, he faces ‘a long road to full recovery”. Breaking his silence on Sunday, four days after the physical altercation between him and crew members on board the Harbour Master, Peters stated in a Facebook post that he had been left in pain and discomfort follow ing the incident. “I know that you’re all concerned about my well-be ing, so please, know that I’m feeling better than I was in the immediate aftermath, but it will be a long road to full recovery,” he said, although not giving details about the extent of his injuries. Four Trinidad and Tobago nationals, all crew members of the Harbour Master, on Monday pleaded guilty in Grenadian court to causing grievous harm with violence to the two-time world cham pion and his brother, Kid don Peters, who is a police officer, during the brawl on board the vessel last Wednes day.The four – captain of the Harbour Master, Noel Coo per, 42; sailor Mikhail John, 35; sailor Sheon Jack, 28; and deckhand John Alexander, 55 – will be sentenced on Wednesday.Theyface the possibility of up to five years in prison. Two other Trinidadians who were charged in con nection with the incident were freed of the charges. State prosecutors dropped the charges against 40-yearold Abiola Benjamin, who was described as the cruise operations manager on the vessel, after reviewed video footage showed he was trying to separate the men who were involved in the scuffle. The other individual, Lance Wiggins, 45, pleaded not guilty and Chief Mag istrate Teddy St Louis ruled that he was free to leave the court.Videos circulating on so cial media had shown crew of the party boat beating Peters before he went overboard. The incident occurred just a day after Peters returned home following his silver medal-winning performance at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, En gland.
Prime Minister Dick on Mitchell, the opposi tion New National Party, and several sporting and other organisations had condemned the assault on Peters and called for swift justice.
World javelin champion faces ‘long road to recovery’ after assault Four Trinidadians plead guilty to causing grievous harm in Grenadian court
FULL NicholasSQUADPooran (cap tain), Shai Hope (vice-cap tain), Jermaine Blackwood, Shamarh Brooks, Yannic Cariah, Keacy Carty, Ja son Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Jayden Seales, Kevin OdeanTravellingSinclairReserve:Smith.
Hetmyer, Motie, Paul Zealand
Kapil Dev
36 GUYANA CHRONICLE, Wednesday, August 17, 2022 Printed and Published by Guyana National Newspapers Limited, Lama Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown. Telephone 226-3243-9 (General); Editorial: 227-5204, 227-5216. Fax:227-5208 | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 17, 2022
Balram Auto Mechanic/Team Trans Pacific to field five cars Pacific India captain
replaced for ODI series against New
GMRSC International Drag Race Meet
Story on page 35 Story on page 31 Story on page 31
BALRAM Ramdeo, the principal of Balram Auto Mechanic, has declared that he will walk away with the accolade for ‘Best Mechanic’ when the curtain falls on the 2022 Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMRSC) International drag race meet. Drivers from at least four countries will be conpeting. The former ‘Best Mechanic’ winner, Ramdeo, during an invited comment with Chronicle Sport, disclosed that his camp, in partnership with Team Trans Pacific Motor Spares & Auto Sales, will be fielding a total of five cars come Sunday at the South Dakota 1320 strip. Ramdeo has confidently predicted that his machines will dominate their respective classes. His garage boasts a formidable lineup, all locally built, and includes an unlimited class Alteeza with a 2Jz powered engine that will be driven by Rameez Mohamed. Principal of Team Trans Pacific, Krishna Ramsewack, will be behind the wheel of the 2Jz Toyota Verossa while Romeo Singh will take control of one of two 5e Toyota Glanza. The fifth car is a Mark II 1Jz. “As long as everything goes well, we will get a good race and a good showdown,” head mechanic Balram Ramdeo shared with this publication during a visit to his garage located at Lusignan, East Coast Demerara. Ahead of most drag racing meets, Balram often touts exceptional performances with the Trans Pacific-sponsored Toyota Altezza. Unfortu nately, mechanical issues have curtailed the machine unleashing its true power. However, Balram ensured that will not be the case this outing as Team Guyana look to aggressively defend their turf against the T&T and Suriname invasion. Meanwhile, competitors are advised that the registration for this weekend’s event closes today. Tickets for fans cost $2 000 for adults; $1 000 for kids, and are on sale at the club’s Thomas Lands office.
Balram’s Trans
Altezza August 16 down the years The limpet … A clingy crab is born By Stephon Sookram TheChanderpaulShivnarineimmovable ICC amidTest,protectmustODIformatsriseofT20leagues:KapilDev Former
