Guyana Chronicle E-Paper 25-09-2022

Fostering togetherness, fusing cultures

THE Caribbean Premier League (CPL) must be seen as more than just an event but a platform for the Caribbean region to market itself globally.

This was the call made to CAR ICOM leaders by President, Dr. Mo hamed Irfaan Ali, as he addressed CPL’s 10th anniversary dinner at the Pegasus Hotel, on Friday.

He said the time is now if the region wants to differentiate itself in the exciting world of sports and catalyse its tourism product.

“I think every single government must come on board. We have to give as much support to this tour nament as possible because this tournament has much more than the event and the game of cricket in it

for us. This tournament has the abil ity to bring our people in this region together, cementing us, and fusing our culture.

Giving us an opportunity to meet each other, to network and these are things you cannot attach a value to,” President Ali said.

AFTER being in the avi ation sector for 50 years, Captain Stanley Jhagroo, a United States (US)-based Guyanese has received the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award, given by the Federal Aviation Adminis tration (FAA).

–– says is more than just cricket, event has the potential to catalyse regional growth

Fostering togetherness, fusing cultures

THE Caribbean Premier League (CPL) must be seen as more than just an event but a platform for the Carib bean region to market itself globally.

This was the call made to CARICOM leaders by President, Dr. Mohamed Ir faan Ali, as he addressed CPL’s 10th an niversary dinner at the Pegasus Hotel, on Friday.

He said the time is now if the region wants to differentiate itself in the exciting world of sports and catalyse its tourism product.

“I think every single government must come on board. We have to give as much support to this tournament as possible because this tournament has much more than the event and the game of cricket in it for us. This tournament has the ability to bring our people in this region togeth er, cementing us, and fusing our culture. Giving us an opportunity to meet each other, to network and these are things you cannot attach a value to,” President Ali said.

He is of the view that the regional leaders, the private sector and all stake holders should find ways to work with CPL to create a product that will be one of the best globally.

Dr. Ali said the CPL showcases that cricket is alive in the region and also reminded the audience that cricket forms part of the culture of the people in the Caribbean.

“We cannot expect West Indies crick et and the players to do better if we are not involved in building a system and supporting a system that helps them to develop and help them to get better. We have to be part of that system,” the Head of State said.

In Guyana, according to President Ali, the government will be making funds available to support sports at the school level.

“We are looking at two to three years

to have at least one new stadium added to the country because we are looking down the road… that is why we have developed a product for Guyana and this product can be for the region, that is the Cricket Carnival,” he said.

President Ali said that he is optimistic that with innovative thinking, the Carib bean Premier League can be the biggest event in the world. With that, the head of state called for every Caribbean country to adopt the CPL as their own.

The Government of Guyana, he said, stands fully committed to the CPL, Ca ribbean cricket, the Cricket West Indies and the players who make the game possible.

This is the first year Guyana will be hosting the finals of the CPL. Guyana will also be hosting the finals over the next two years.

First Lady Arya Ali; Prime Minis ter, Brigadier (ret’d) Mark Phillips; Hero CPL’ s CEO Pete Russell and several ministers of government also attended Friday’s event. (DPI)

–– Minister

Parag says

Racism, discrimination allegations against gov’t have no basis

THE People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) gov ernment has had a track record of taking the wel fare of all Guyanese into account at all times, and as such any claims of racism or discrimination have no basis, Minister of Public Service Sonia Parag has said.

Responding to allegations made against the adminis tration by the Opposition, Minister Parag highlighted that the work of the PPP/C spans the length and breadth of Guyana.

Recently, Leader of the People’ s National Con gress (PNC) Aubrey Norton

claimed that the PPP/C was prejudiced against MochaArcadia residents, due to the majority of them being Afro-Guyanese.

“We don’t discriminate against any community; ev ery programme that has been rolled out has been for the benefit of all Guyanese across the 10 administrative re gions,” Minister Parag stated.

She noted that pro grammes and projects im plemented by the governing party, among them housing, infrastructure, scholarships and agriculture, have ca tered to every Guyanese, irrespective of race, ability or location.

“All the statistics are there to prove for themselves. So, you know, the talk of discrimination is really just a narrative for people to buy into, so that they can have some sort of relevance,” Min ister Parag said.

Further, she highlighted ongoing works in Mocha Arcadia as evidence of the government’s works in the community.

“Thousands of persons are going to be benefitting from the new Barnwell Road that is going to be built. We have had the Burnham Bou levard that has been com mended by many residents residing on that road; the res

idents were quite happy, and we are quite happy with the finished product,” Minister Parag said.

The Burnham Boulevard was recently commissioned by the President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, during an outreach to the community with other minis ters of government.

At the time, they ad dressed pressing issues and concerns, as well as the many challenges being faced by residents of the community.

“Likewise, we are doing the same thing across the country; different ministers of the Cabinet, as well as His Excellency, the Vice-Pres ident, and our honourable

Prime Minister. We have been going across the country to let residents know of the programmes that are being rolled out, and the initiatives that are being rolled out… So, it matters not where you live; it matters not your eth nicity,” Minister Parag said.

She reiterated that the discrimination card is one that is constantly being used by the Opposition to create division, but has never had any element of truth.

“Again, our ‘stats’ are there to prove that we have been catering, and will con tinue to always cater for the welfare of all Guyanese,” she said.

Addressing AFC Member of Parliament Nima FlueBess, who undermined the work of the PPP/C govern ment in Mocha-Arcadia, Minister Parag once again touched on additional proj ects being implemented by the PPP/C Administration.

These include an In formation and Communi cations Technology (ICT) training hub and drainage works conducted by the National Drainage and Ir rigation Authority (NDIA) under the Ministry of Ag riculture, despite it being the responsibility of the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC).

–– President Ali says CPL is more than just cricket, event has the potential to catalyse regional growth

President, Dr. Irfaan Ali

Some scenes from the CPL 10th anniversary dinner

Reinvestment, new business ventures

–– among plans outlined by fisherfolk after receiving $150,000 cash grant

HAVING dropped out of school at the age of nine, 54-year-old Enoch Singh has spent most of his life as a fisherman, toiling for hours at sea to “put bread on the table” and make a life for his family and himself.

Having grown ac customed to rewards that are only achieved through many hours of hard work, Singh was overwhelmed with emotion when his for tunes changed on Saturday, when he easily uplifted his $150,000 grant from the Government of Guyana as part of the fisherfolk initiative intended to offer relief amidst rising cost of living.

Singh, accompanied by his wife, Rohani, was among 1,305 fisherfolk who were scheduled to receive their

each, but had had to sell his. He is the captain of the boat, while they also have two workmen. All four were able to benefit from the cash grant.

The couple told the Guyana Chronicle that they will be using the money

cash grant on Saturday at the Ministry of Agriculture.

Couple, Roshani and Enoch Singh both benefited from the fisherfolk cash grant initiative Albert Gomes of Al bouystown hopes to use some of the money from his fisherfolk cash grant to open a coconut business

That distribution exercise, led by Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo, covered fisherfolk operating in the Bagotsown to Farm area on the East

Bank Demerara, as well as in Gopie, Grove, Herstelling, Meadow Bank, New Hope, Nobel House, Peter’s Hall, PSI, Riverview, Stabroek and Timehri.

Singh and his wife, after uplifting their grant, said that they used to own one boat

Reinvestment, new business ...

they received to invest in their fishing business, particularly after they were recently the victims of piracy and had one of their engines stolen.

Rohani related that she is glad to see the support being given to fisherfolk, so that persons could feel encouraged. She has been in the profession for over 30 years, and with a broad smile, she said that she does not see herself leav ing any time soon.

Another fisherfolk, 60-year-old Albert Gomes of Albouystown, said that the $150,000 has opened a way for him to be able to invest some money in a new business venture.

“This $150,000, I thankful very much for it; it could put a little rice and some other things in my pot, and right now I’m studying to use $100,000 from it and buy some coconut and go and sell on the road, because the fishing ground close off for a l’il while, and I am not working right now,”

Gomes said.

He related that in the same way the industry has grown over the years, so, too, has the amount of persons involved in the business, and as such it has become all the more competitive to survive.

“It getting really hard and tough for the fisher man, but I thankful for this money a great lot. I going and do some investment, because I’m not working right now,” Gomes said.

Curtis Kellman, a 66-year-old Sophia res ident, is also looking to hang up his fishing cap, so to speak. And he believes that the government’s as sistance has come at just the right time to give him the support he needs to transition into a new busi ness.

“This year I plan to retire from sea trawler work, because I’m 66. With this money, I can put some more and buy a bus and come off clean off the sea work, because I get big now, and my children

rowing with me to come off of the work,” he said.

Kellman said that he has worked for a number of years with popular fish ing company, Pritipaul Singh Investments Inc., and is ready to call it a day.

Fareeda Majeed, a 51-year-old fisherfolk who recently lost her hus band, gladly clutched her cheque, and said that she will be putting her money to good use, especially in the household.

“I gon buy l’il grocer ies, and I gon still work my boat in and out. I’m thankful for this govern ment for giving me this money,” the fisherwoman said, adding that she has been working for the past 22 years in the fish- catch ing business.

With just seven years in the industry, young Kevon Thomas believes it’s still a viable profes sion for him. However, he is looking forward to weathering whatever bad times the industry may be

facing, and continuing in the profession.

A father of two, Thom as said that he will be using money from his cash grant to finance ren ovations to his home.

“I felt a bit relieved; a bit happy, knowing that, yes, the govern ment is working with the fishermen them. Ah feel excited, and I can

do a lot of things with the money; put it to good use. Right now I’m do ing some renovations on the house, and it will help to buy some materi als,” Thomas said.

Fareeda Majeed is all smiles as she waits to collect her fisherfolk cash grant

Kevon Thomas was among those who re ceived the $150,000 fisherfolk cash grant (Elvin Croker photos)

Nationhood

GUYANA is known, among other things, for its rich cultural diversity. Sev eral attempts in the past to divide us politically and ethnically as a nation have failed. It is no exaggera tion to say that despite our ethnic and cultural diver sity, we are by and large a peaceful and cohesive society. In some important respects, our multicultur alism has been recognised by many as a model for others with similar levels of pluralism.

This speaks well of our sense of nationhood and col lective identity. This fact has found expression in several religious and national fes tivities such as Mashramani, Christmas, Diwali and Eidul-Fitr, where Guyanese of all religious, political and

ethnic stock participate in the respective celebrations.

This sense of “oneness” was all the more apparent during the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) matches cur rently being played in Guyana at the Providence Stadium. The support for the Guyana Amazon Warriors has been nothing short of spectacular and from the performances of the team so far, the “home” advantage, as it were, may have provided a psychologi cal boost to the Warriors.

This support was further enhanced by the presence of President, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, and other senior government functionaries in cluding Prime Minister, Brig adier (ret’d) Mark Philips, and Vice-President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, all of whom inter acted with fans and joined in

the jubilation. It was in fact President Ali who issued a challenge for the Warriors to bring home the trophy this year after several unsuccess ful attempts at the finals in previous tournaments.

Despite some initial set backs in the earlier matches, there is no loss of love for the Warriors. As noted by Presi dent Ali, “the people of this country support this franchise. They come out every time, commit and make lots of sac rifices and I think the players themselves must know how much they’re loved in Guyana and it’s much more than a game for us; it’s part of who we are as a nation.”

Cricket indeed is much more than a game. It is an integral part of our nation hood. This is why the PPP/C administration has been

putting so much emphasis on sports and culture. As pointed out by President Ali, sports are a very important part of the transformation that the country is expe riencing; this necessitates investment in young peo ple and sporting facilities.

Towards that end, several multi-purpose sport facili ties are earmarked for con struction in several regions including Regions Two, Six and 10. Emphasis, accord ing to President Ali, “will be placed on developing sports from the grassroots level, while simultaneously rekindling the powerful tool of sports on the minds of young people, starting at the level of the school.”

This year’s CPL tourna ment in Guyana will see a fusion of sports and carni

val, a significant hallmark of Guyana’s hosting of the semifinals and finals for the first time since the commencement of the games. It is to the credit of the host country, Guyana, that it has been chosen to host the CPL finals through 2024. This is indeed an honour for Guyana and moreso for President Ali, who has been championing the cause of cricket not only in Guyana, but in the region as a whole. Cricket, in the words of Presi dent Ali, is much more than a game for us in Guyana. It is a passion, part of our culture and a uni fying force, especially in the context of our embrace of the One Guyana vision.

Guyana has over the years been making enormous strides in the direction of na tionhood, which is a state of

being an indivisible, unitary nation, characterised by our sense of shared values and aspirations. And this, despite the efforts of a misguided few who seem hell bent on sowing the seeds of discord in this wonderful country of ours.

With Guyana now un dergoing a process of mod ernisation and change, the mood of the society is also changing to higher levels of optimism and confidence. The recent performance of the Warriors has lifted the spirits of the Guyanese peo ple. The whole of Guyana is behind the Warriors as they seek to emerge victori ous in future games. In the final analysis, however, it is the spirit of the games that really matters and not win ners or losers.

Patriotism and nationalism at the stadium

Dear Editor, THERE were nights of patriotism and national ism by cricket fans at the stadium last Thursday and Wednesday. Jingoism was observed at Guyana’s cricket matches against opponents on both eve nings, something never seen before at sports events in the country. This is the first time since 2019 that Guyana has staged so many games in the CPL, and fans did not disap point. They came out in their numbers to support the warriors, decked in jerseys of patriotic col ours. While they support ed their own team, they did not abuse opponents.

Roaring fans were on their feet clapping, cheer ing, shouting, waving Guy ana flags or team emblems and other paraphernalia as Amazon Warriors’ bats men hit a four or a six, or made a shot that scored runs; ditto, a wicket taken. The positive reaction to lo cal team performance is in sharp contrast to when West Indies played at Bourda or the stadium against India or Pakistan during the 1960s thru 2020s. Many Guyanese supported Pakistan and In dia and even Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Almost every one supported Guyana this time around.

Indian tassa, African drums, and loud cheers

drowned out announce ments or conversations at the stadium. Fans wined and danced. Some boozed. Many snacked on varied food items. Drones flew above focusing on fans and on special plays.

Guyana won both matches and has the mo mentum going into its fi nal two games. Thursday night’s victory was one of the highest chases in the competition. The previous night, the team also played well, defending a relatively low score. Fans were on the edge of their seats in both matches, fearing a de feat. They were able to pull off wins when the matches were swinging away from

Guyana.

The Warriors have a well-rounded team; they have everything from worldclass bowlers and batters, to top fielders and all-round ers. The lower order stepped up when the top of the order failed in the first match on Wednesday. The team’s captain, Shimron Hetmyer disappointed fans with his batting; fans complained about his performance. They also complained about some fast bowlers bowling long hops, which were rightly put away for deserving sixes.

Patriotism surged during this period because Guyana had been against the wall facing the spectre of being knocked out from the play

offs that begin next week. Guyana had been strug gling in the matches played away, winning only one of five played. One match was rained out.

Of the six teams in the CPL, two will get knocked out in the preliminary round. Each team is entitled to 10 matches. Most teams completed between eight and nine matches. Their final games are either on Saturday evening or Sunday, when two matches will be played. Guyana ‘s final two matches were slated for Sat urday and Sunday evenings.

If Guyana were to win on Saturday evening against Trinidad, it will move into the playoffs. If it were to lose Sat

urday and again on Sunday, it is out. If it were to lose Satur day and win Sunday, then it will depend on how well two other tames fared depending on net run rate.

Guyanese of all eth nicities or national groups supported their team. They were all together on the issue that Guyana must win and were there to see their team victori ous. It is difficult to say how long this kind of faux will last. It would be nice if the diverse people of the nation were to carry this kind of ethnic unity into their politics or support for political parties.

Yours respectfully, Vishnu Bisram

Smiling all the way to victory

Dear Editor, THE week began with Presi dent, Dr Irfaan Ali, address ing global leaders at the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly and meeting US President Joe Biden, and First Lady, Dr Jill Biden. He attended to his busy schedule in the USA and still found time to courteously socialise with the throngs of Guyanese eagerly awaiting his much soughtafter company.

A mega concert herald ed Guyana coming alive, as cricket comes home to the Providence Cricket Ground. The conversation surround ing Silica City continues as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) joins the dialogue. Guyana commemo rated Child Protection Week with the theme, “Nurture with Nature.” Queen Elizabeth 11 was laid to rest in Windsor Castle on Monday.

Education Minister Priya Manickchand was conferred with the Honorary Fellow of the Commonwealth of Learn ing (CoL) in Calgary, Canada. China’s Sinopharm Int’l has been contracted to build six new regional hospitals in Guy ana.

Cricket is in the air as the “One Guyana Festival” opened at the Guyana National Sta dium. Guyana, in collabora tion with UNICEF, launched a “Street Light Project,” a campaign meant to end chil dren begging on the streets. DDL Group recorded a $1.8 billion profit after tax, while Sterling Products Ltd showed $63 million for the first half of the financial year, 2022. Region Five has proposed a $6.6 billion budget for 2023. Guyana observed International Day of Peace.

The Caribbean’s first ma jor hurricane, “Fiona,” made

its landfall as a category Three. European Football’s governing body, UEFA, banned Rus sia from the qualifying draw for the 2022/23 European Championship, owing to the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

E-ticketing is welcomed in Guyana as 1,500 traffic viola tions are already recorded. As we await the crowning of Miss Cricket Carnival, the cre scendo builds for a Warriors’ playoff in the final. Do enjoy glorious cricket and marvel at the quotes and comments of the week.

1) President Ali remarked, “This is what we’re building: a knowledge-based economy that is driven by technology and innovation. Just before we came here, we had world leaders from MIT across the world.” The President updated the diaspora in Orlando, Flor ida, about the innovation city, as developers of a Singapore Model, Dar Group, expressed their interest.

2) Vice-President Dr Jagdeo surmised: “As we did with Trinidad and Tobago, we have to start demanding reciprocal behaviour. The way you treat our people, you’re going to be treated here. Your companies, when you come into this country. We have to start doing that.” The harass ment of Guyanese fishermen by Suriname authorities will be brought to CARICOM’s attention.

3) DDL Chairman, Komal Samaroo, observed: “The an ticipated benefits derived from this project came to fruition in a very timely manner, as the delay in shipments of bulk products required additional storage to keep the distillery operational.” Despite the re percussions from COVID-19 and the Ukraine war, Dem erara Distillers Ltd. (DDL) Group, recorded a $1.8 billion

profit after tax for the first half of 2022.

4) Prime Minister Briga dier (ret’d), Mark Philips, commented: “Even in her absence, the countless les sons she has left behind and the indelible example she has set for diplomacy, discipline and wise leadership in the 70 years of her reign must be re membered and exemplified…” Guyana paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth 11 at St George’s Cathedral.

5) The Commonwealth of Learning praised Minister Manickchand, saying: “In all her roles, the Honourable Minister has given practi cal expression to her love of country, her spirit of service, and her alma mater of Queen’s College motto Fideles Ubique Utiles (or Faithful and Useful Everywhere).” Since coming into office two years ago, the Education Minister certainly has sprouted many feathers in her cap.

6) The Attorney General said: “You will appreciate that these are grave allegations, and as baseless and unfound ed as they were proven to be, it is important that the relevant state agency enquires into the source of this information upon whose directions they were sourced, and perhaps more importantly, to officially reconfirm their inaccuracy, for the public record.” Mr. Nandlall has requested the “Top Cop” to launch a special probe into the PNC’s claims of dead and overseas voters, a move that has backfired for the PNC!

7) President Ali told re

porters that: “There’s some in society who can never ever take the burden of selfishness off their backs. So, because they have a very narrow and selfish political agenda, in most cases, a political agenda, they will allow that to prevent them from being part of the One Guyana. Terrible.” Criti cisms are fuelled by politicians but the “One Guyana,” is meant to cradle all Guyanese and politics should be kept in abeyance.

8) Uncle Freddy wrote: “With each passing day, the eyes of this nation are being opened to people from the opposition PNC and AFC par ties and their surrogates, who in contempt of the Guyanese people mouth off incredible fictions and display egregious barefacedness.” Putting it mildly but bluntly, their fidel ity is questionable daily and openly.

9) VP Jagdeo said: “Well, it will be $10 billion that will be spent on community roads in this region.” Over 300 roads will be resurfaced along with bridges in Region Six with the signing of some 268 contracts.

10) India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin: “I know that today’s era is not an era of war, and I have spoken to you on the phone about this.” Putin replied: “We will do everything to stop this as soon as possible.” Putin is slowly but surely being isolated by the world for his warfare activities!

11) President Ali told an Interfaith Forum in NY: “So, unfortunately, we are being

hit by a perfect storm. We are getting hit by a supply-chain crisis and a rapid increase in demand for the passport.” Some 80,000 passports are required. Investors and peo ple throughout the world are flocking the country as Presi dent Ali and the PPP/C gov ernment continue to develop the nation to become one of the fastest-growing countries in the hemisphere.

12) Lindener, Oslyn Rod riguez, the founder and presi dent of Backpack Int. Inc. (BPI), an Alabama-based or ganisation, said: “Guyana is near and dear to my heart. I am Guyanese and charity begins at home, so we always come back home.” Another loyal Guyanese answering Presi dent Ali’s call to come back home and serve their country of birth. He is currently in the USA making the same pitch.

13) President Ali declared: “I don’t know the image of the country took a beating. I don’t know who determined that narrative that the image of the country took a beating. Let me say very clearly again, and I spoke on this issue myself. You can see this with great clarity that this was something with a motive, and the motive did not succeed.” Now the naysayers can take that to the bank and bank it!

14) Uncle Freddy remind ed us about the CARICOM

recounting team documenting a statement: “The team viewed much of the exercise of the phenomenon of ghost voting as well as voter impersonation as a fishing expedition….” The scared coalition is cur rently ranting, bobbing, weav ing and hiding behind a “few mistakes,” in order to fool their constituents again, again and again!

15) Senior Minister, Dr Ashni Singh, stressed: “Hinds [Nigel] is currently the ben eficiary of a direct and excep tional appeal by the PPP/C government in order to ensure that he continues to enjoy the right to practise his profession, which he has been granted extra time to bring himself in order with the ICAG.” Many “invoke the racism bogeyman without any basis whatsoever for the sole purpose of politi cal opportunism, and knowing full well that they themselves failed blatantly to serve in any meaningful way, the very people whose cause they now claim to champion.”

16) Foreign Affairs Min ister Hugh Todd explained to the diaspora in Florida that: “When we look at the develop ment of Guyana, it means that we have to have leadership at every level. So, at the political level, we have policies that are inclusive, that are based on eq uity and fairness.” The PPP/C

From discovery to final investment decision

OVER the last several years, Guyana has announced huge hydrocarbon discoveries offshore that have increased estimated recoverable re sources to 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent. Guyana’s series of discoveries offshore have rapidly translated into production, revenues and jobs. Getting to this point was no small feat, and the strategic partnership with the Stabroek partners has allowed projects to be sanc

tioned and developed at re cord pace.

Upstream oil and gas pro jects on the scale of Liza One and Two, Payara and Yellow tail are massive investments that take place over decades, and it is worth understanding how that process unfolds.

The upstream oil and gas lifecycle occurs in five basic phases: exploration, appraisal, development, production, and closure.

The first three stages alone

can take at least a decade to explore a potentially viable oil or gas source, identify sites and develop initial infra structure for site drilling. If resources are found, explora tion companies will organise government contracts and permits to prepare to produce oil. Doing this safely and in compliance with government regulations takes time. Projects are normally permitted and evaluated at multiple stages for their impacts on the environ

ment, as the developments in Guyana have been.

Moreover, beyond the timeline of the phases, there are still socio-political fac tors that can influence the time between discovery to production and final invest ment decision (FID), including governmental and regulatory hurdles, community pushback and fiscal terms that can deter mine whether a project will be economical.

FID is the critical point in

the capital project planning process when the decision to make major financial com mitments is taken. At the FID point, major equipment orders are placed, and contracts are signed for engineering, pro curement, and construction.

According to the inter national consultancy Wood Mackenzie, deep-water pro jects like those in the Stabroek Block require some of the highest up-front investments from companies in terms of

time and resources, even as costs have declined and pro jects have become more ef ficient in recent years. For instance, Brazil’s deep-water Bacalhau field reached FID only last year, five years after the initial discovery.

In Guyana’s case, Exx onMobil announced the Liza discovery in May 2015—the first significant oil find off shore Guyana—and reached FID two years later in 2017,

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Smiling all the way to...

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government is bent on improv ing the lives of all Guyanese through equitable distribution of the country’s wealth, so that all can become prosperous and improve the infrastructure. The government is paying much interest to upgrade the health care system, the education system and security.

17) President Ali was open and frank with Guyanese from the Floridian diaspora, say ing: “And we are very humble about this. We understand our responsibility in the world. We don’t need anyone to lecture us about our responsibility in this world.” He related that Guyana has positioned itself to lead the world via his government managing by way of ensur ing that there is sustainability, resilience and prosperity in the areas of climate change, energy and food security.

18) Minister Vindhya Per saud emphasised: “It is also important to look deeper into the matter to see what triggers those children into being on the street and why their parents are not integrally involved in supervising them.” A “Street Light” initiative was launched by the Human Services and Social Protection Ministry to observe, “Keeping children safe through Community Col laboration.”

19) Public Works Minister Juan Edghill lamented: “There was no Parliament, there was no oversight and you had a government that was holding on for their life by a thread that was doing everything possible to get re-elected.” The govern ment side of the PAC will not support the examination of the 2019 and 2020 Auditor general reports together. These reports

must be examined minutely to expose all the skuldug gery of the PNC government when they were in a “caretaker mood.”

20) President Ali informed the UN forum: “Guyana com mits to an inclusive education system, one that leaves no one behind. This entails narrowing access and attaining gaps by ensuring that every schoolaged child in regions is entitled to a sound primary and second ary education.” On its way to provide free tertiary education by 2025, the PPP/C govern ment will increase education expenditure to 20 per cent of its national budget and six per cent of the country’s GDP.

21) Canadian High Com missioner Mark Berman said: “In Canada, I’m sure you all know, is deeply committed to advancing the rights, perspec tive, and prosperity of Indige nous peoples.” A multimilliondollar project was launched to improve justice for women, girls, children and 10 to 12,000 Indigenous Peoples in Guyana.

22) President Ali told the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF): “So, in all investments we’re making in livestock, 35 per cent of those farms must be owned by women and 30 percent of those farms must be owned by youth.” The PPP/C govern ment is ensuring more efforts are made for agriculture to remain sustainable to avoid the “Dutch Disease.”

23) Norton dreamed about his nominees for the NRF com mittees: “We know the people we want to put there.” Norton, the LoO, continues to fanta size that he is the President of Guyana!

Antonio Guterres said: “Social media platforms based on a business model that monetises outrage, anger and negativity, are causing untold damage to communities and societies.” In Guyana and overseas, many are profiteering from the mis use of social media by spread ing propaganda and attacking people and party.

25) Addressing the sixth plenary meeting of the UN General Assembly, President Ali championed a case for in creased prices for carbon cred its on the global market and for continued access to affordable financing for new entrants to oil production, i.e. from US$10 to closer to US$70 per ton. He said: “COP27 must make pro gress in refining the rules for the implementation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, and make decisions that would increase the price of carbon traded in voluntary carbon markets.”

26) The Attorney General announced, “…It is going to be an expensive undertaking, and I want to assure that every single cent of the monies that are going to be expended will be made public, because it is public funds.” He was re sponding to a coalition MP’s request for full disclosure of the remuneration packages of the commissioners appointed to probe the March 2020 polls. What they need to worry about is not the expenses, but the exposure from the findings and the consequential action.

27) President Ali informed the UN: “The world’s na tions can be assured that Guy ana shall remain true to those peaceful processes and deny every effort to depart from them. Guyana will abide with

the ICJ’s final settlement on the border controversy with Venezuela.”

28) NY Attorney Gen eral Letitia James, a Democrat, said: “The pattern of fraud and deception that was used by Mr Trump and the Trump organisation for their own fi nancial benefit is astounding.” The “art of deal” became the “art of steal,” as former US President Donald Trump and his adult children were sued by NY State for misstating the values of real estate proper ties by billions of dollars to obtain favourable loans and tax benefits.

29) Adrian Saunders, CCJ President, said: “It is not by chance that the CCJ urged the convening of this gathering. It was a logical step for us.” The first hemispheric meeting of regional courts and tribunals in the Americas was held at the Hyatt Regency in Portof-Spain. Watch out PNC, as history is created!

30) Labour Minister Jo seph Hamilton declared: “No lands were taken away from anyone, from any [Afro-Guy anese] people. And I want to make this point so that people understand.” Norton’s bat is shattered once again!

31) Guy Ryder, ILO Di rector General, urged world leaders, saying: “I encourage governments, workers’ and employers’ organisations to remain firmly committed to a sustainable energy transition, which is indispensable for the future of work.” Unlike the PNC party which had shunned the Amaila Falls project, the PPP/C government is in sup port of renewing this project development in keeping with renewable energy alternatives.

Some 700,000 new jobs were added from last year as 12.7mil lion are employed globally in renewable energy projects.

32) Yolande Warde from GECOM informed us that only 17 objections were recorded so far. “A lot” squealed the PNC. “Lota sing,” screamed the PPP.

33) Debra Welch wrote” “There is no place for this at Queen’s College.” QC, the lead ing secondary school, repre senting the face of what? Did Minister Manickchand give her blessings or was she bypassed by the “association?”

34) Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony hinted: “Mental health has definitely [been] shown to be one area where we’ll have to train more staff, get more doctors to be work ing in this area. It’s something that we’ll have to offer more scholarship for people to spe cialise in, mental health.” The PNC party is certainly driving people “nuts and bolts” with its perpetual shenanigans!

Some 1,600 fisherfolk in Region Six are smiling as they began receiving the $150,000 one-off cash grant last week, as promised by the PPP/C government. A smiling cham pion jockey Colin Ross, rode Alado to cross the finishing line to win the President’s Cup, having won the Guyana Cup at an earlier meeting. Some 200 Lethem residents are smiling as they received their house lots. Guyanese are smiling in NY as the 173rd Street in Jamaica was renamed after late Guyanese Pandit Lalharry Seerattan. Also, 150th Street at the corner of 94th Avenue was renamed Maharshi Dayananda Gurukula Way, after the Arya Samaj Mandir was founded by Guyanese Pandit, Dr Satish

Prakash.

After rechecking the score from an incorrect tabulation, a smiling 17-year-old Kris tie Emma Rambharat was crowned Miss Amerindian Heritage 2022. Some 300 stu dents from Annai are smil ing with their school pack ages, courtesy of Backpack Int’l Inc. (BPI). Students from eight learning institutions are smiling with their agricultural tools donated by Food For The Poor (FFTP). Under the Basil Butcher Trust Fund, dozens of youths in Berbice are smiling after receiving cycles, school bags and electronic tablets worth some $700,000, donated by the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club.

Buxton contractors are smiling with their advances to begin rehabilitation work on 25 bridges. Residents of Number Seven Village in West Berbice are smiling with the commissioning of a new $10.5 million Health Centre. All Guyanese are smiling with the Warriors for their first two wins at home at the time of writing. At Lethem’s Magistrate’s Court, all are smiling with the children’s painting, a mu ral. The Police Force is smil ing with their four brand new XR Honda motorcycles. The Ministry of Health is smil ing with the donation of 50 wheelchairs from the Rotary Club of Georgetown in col laboration with the Mohan Thani Foundation. As you traverse another week, do apply William Shakespeare’s remedy, “A smile cures the wounding of a frown.”

Yours respectfully, Jai Lall.

Let us continue to rally behind our ‘Warriors’

By Neil Kumar, GUYANA’S President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, was in full sup port as he joined in the

winning euphoria, to see the Guyana Amazon War riors humble the St Lucia Kings at the Guyana Na

tional Stadium, Providence. The Warriors, playing with tremendous determination to win, performed magnifi

APNU+AFC cannot win the upcoming LGEs

IN its current form, the A Partnership for Nation al Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) can not win the upcoming Lo cal Government Elections (LGEs) which is going to be around the first quarter of next year.

Firstly, if one were to an alyse the internal politics of this coalition, one would find that there is discord, disunity and infighting among key members. This, as it were, weakened the strength and ability of the coalition to focus solely on matters that have to do with preparations for the LGEs and sanitisation of the voters’ list.

Instead, Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton has been a divisive individual within the coalition. He is rumoured to have had sev eral fights with his party comrades over power and control.

So much so, that a senior member of the party has reportedly stepped aside be cause she does not hold the confidence of certain mem bers inside the PNC control room to play the type of opportunistic, discrimina tory, and race-baiting politics of the PNC-APNU+AFC. She is on the outside while Carol Smith-Joseph is driv ing slowly to a senior posi tion in the party. Smith also copped the portfolio of Chief Scrutineer.

Norton did not shield the senior member from Smith and other party executives. He is allegedly fighting to have influence and control over certain rogue members and parliamentarians by giv ing out party roles and perks.

Sadly, those persons who supported David Granger and his ways of conducting party business under the veil of secrecy and moder nity, thus keeping the prying eyes of the PPP at bay, are constantly after Norton and are criticizing his ways of handling the party’s affairs in the lead-up to LGE polls.

Roysdale Forde has gotten in the party’s favour while Christopher Jones and all the other vocal PNC old guards are taking a back seat.

Also, the opposition is not focused as they should be on the elections as too many threats of resignations and party matters are abounding.

It would appear that the AFC does not matter in the scheme of things. They keep their party conference once a week and it has become a talk shop. Ramjattan tries to come off as critical and con cerned about developments, but most times fail miserably to meet the mark.

Secondly, the opposition is losing support ahead of LGEs. The narrative of the votes list and the fraud of the PPP/C is not working and sticking.

Perhaps, President, Dr Irfaan Ali; Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo, Attorney General Anil Nandlall, S.C., and the PPP are too quick with cutting down some of the opposition lies spoken about the voters’ list, the 2020 elections episode, and other things such as their argument that Guyana is becoming an apartheid state.

The truth is, these men and the PPP have been trav elling the length and breadth of Guyana with the truth, telling Guyanese of the op position’s alleged deceitful ways.

Take, for instance, only Friday the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) re ported that just 17 objections have been made to entrants on the preliminary voters’ list so far. This is one month after it embarked on the claims and objections period in preparation for the LGEs.

Where are all the claims that the opposition said it would make to stop the PPP from padding the voters’ list? Where are all the objections from the APNU+AFC side?

One is forced to conclude that the opposition is cry ing foul over a list that is

perfectly fine, and a process that is working within the laws of Guyana. All done of course because they know they cannot win at the local government polls.

Thirdly, the last Local Government Elections saw the then PPP opposition win ning 64 per cent of PR seats and gaining strength in the municipalities and Neigh bourhood Democratic Coun cils, shaming the coalition and relegating it to a highly unpopular force.

Now the governing par ty has sped up the process of meeting its manifesto promises made in 2020. The PPP/C government is half way there and is seemingly focused on building and modernising Guyana, while the opposition is still running behind their concerns about past elections and an election which they did not win.

As opposed to counting and cutting their losses and looking ahead at upcoming elections, the opposition still has not devised a clear strat egy for victory, whether it be using the issues that are driv ing the concerns of the local public or using a political tactic to its advantage.

They are not using the scientific way of arguing the cases of police excesses, discrimination and state ex cesses. So, there is no empiri cal evidence to justify their positions on those issues.

Additionally, they have not embraced the use of multimedia technology and new and mass media to get their messages across to the populace. They still do not understand the media and press in Guyana. They still do not understand the use of polls and research in political strategy and marketing.

LGEs will be a contest of ideas and the best poli cies, not blind allegiance. So, the opposition must shape up or set the stage for its ultimate failure at another local government polls.

cently and with a pugna cious half century from the young Rahmanullah Gur baz along with a splendid half century from the ma ture Shai Hope, the home team sent the mammoth crowd into real party mood

Batting first, the St Lucia Kings lost an early wicket. However, their skipper, Fa du Plessis, blasted a masterful century and he received very solid support from Niroshan Dickwella who contributed a useful 36. However, the Warriors’ bowlers were able to stifle the other batsmen and contain them to a chal lenging 194.

The Warriors’ opening batsmen blasted the Kings bowlers in the superior overs and piloted the way to victory. Warriors’ skipper, Shimron Hetmyer, and Hope controlled the middle-order batting before Hope ham mered the Kings bowlers to

take his team home to vic tory. The impressive win cat apulted the Guyana Amazon Warriors to two successive victories and strengthened their chances of securing a position in the play-off.

Winning signals the real strength and potential of the Warriors. However, the sup port of the massive Guyanese crowd and their young and enthusiastic President Ali were indeed a source of in spiration to our nation. The team returned home at the bottom of the points table. However, the Warriors are battle ready fully energised and with the thunderous chants from the thousands of supporters, victory is inevi table. The Guyana National Stadium was built by the PPP/C Government with the vision to bring our people

together and make sure they gyrate and celebrate in unity. Cricket is indeed a unifying force and this is the season to see unity in diversity.

As our batsmen stroke the ball eloquently to the bound ary, our fieldsmen make a superb dive and stop the ball or our bowlers produce a devastating spell of bowling, it is the massive roar and the touching of the fist and the high fives that demonstrate our people’s unity.

The remaining matches in this year Caribbean Pre mier League will bring excitement and the players’ passion and the spectators’ mission for victory are in deed a motivating force with our Guyanese people.

Let us continue to rally behind our Warriors.

Let’s go Warriors!

Devonshire uprising: Did it occur on September 29 or 30, 1872?

I must admit that when I first came across the lit erature on Devonshire Castle uprising in 1872 in Devonshire, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), Es sequibo, while conducting research at the India Re cord Office in London some 30 years ago, I thought the word castle was a common colonial error similar to the careless registration of Indian names in route from India to the Caribbean plantations.

The word castle was too close to the word caste in spelling and that caste was central to the social structure of Indian immigrants. Caste is a form of social stratification in which individuals are born to specific stations of life with little or no opportunity for upward social mobility. Caste does not exist in Guyana.

The above error on my part has been long resolved

but what I was told recently suggested that thirty years ago, I was probably on to something similar. I received a message from historian, Evan Radhay Persaud, saying that, and I paraphrase, please address the error associated with Devonshire massacre in your next column. I asked why. He stated that this year will be 150 years of the mas sacre, and that for “every year around September 29 vari ous organisations including the regional administration and the Indian Arrival Com mittee remember the fallen heroes with a wreath-laying ceremony” on the wrong day. The massacre happened on September 30, not 29, he espoused.

To wit, the British Gov ernment allowed the transpor tation of an estimated 239,000 Indians from mainly North and South India to work on Guianese coastal plantations

on a contract system, known as indenture, for years. When their contracts expired, they had the option to settle or re turn home, resulting in about 75,000 returning to India while a third of them “chose” Guyana to be their home.

In short, the Guianese sugar plantation systems held all the trappings of a conflict-habituated environ ment in which the indentured/ plantation Indians occupied the lower end of the social, economic and political zone. In this man-made setting, problems were bound to sur face, in Karl Marx’s analytic, from those who rule and those who were ruledT not merely to upturn the power structure of the ruling plantocracy, but the ruled seeking some fair justification for serving their labour bondage.

There were actually three categories of Indian immi grants in relation to their

approach to indenture: (a)

Those who were bossed and bowed to the labour regi men (b) Those who were skeptical about it but pre ferred redressing grievances according to the law (c) a nd those who revolted out right against their overlords. The latter was the smallest in population size but the most determined to seek justice.

Within the latter con text, the Devonshire upris ing occurred seeking a fair relationship between wages and work. When this did not materialise, the aggrieved immigrant labourers revolted and five were subsequently killed by colonial authori ties. The dead were Acukloo, Baldeo, Beccaroo, Kaulica, and Maxidally (ABBKM), pronounced as appKAM in keeping with the intention of bringing us close to the Hindu custom and language.

Many other indentured

immigrants were injured, and although no women were killed, they also participated in the uprising, a role com monly untold in the subalter nity of justice. In honour of the dead, a monument was built at Cabbage Dam, in Re gion Two, the site of the up rising. However, the date of the monument is inscribed as September 29, 1872, which, according to Persaud, is inac curate.

The role of accuracy that Mr. Persaud is referring to that September 30, 1872, was the correct uprising date is paramount. Persaud’s po sition is supported by an impressive dissertation writ ten by Anne Marie Phillips titled Contracting Freedom: Governance and East Indian Indenture in the British At lantic, 1838-1917, submitted to Duke University. Drawing upon a correspondence re specting a disturbance among

the Indian Immigrants em ployed on Devonshire Castle Estate, a colonial report of 1873, Phillips mentioned that the uprising occurred on Sep tember 30, not the 29.

My position is that the date is now open for fur ther discussion and further research to have such an important historical ex perience of Indian immi grants, our forefathers, in Guyana, correct since it is inscribed in stone. If we do not address the accuracy of the uprising date, we will add to the misinformation so associated with Indian indenture in Guyana. For instance, we are told that about 239,000 Indians were brought to British Guiana, but there isn’t one existing population study to justify this figure. I am backing historian Evan Radhay Per saud on this one. (lomarsh. roopnarine@jsums.edu)

From discovery to final...

FROM PAGE 8

leading to first oil in late 2019. The Liza One project alone is expected to generate over US$7 billion in royalties and profit for Guyana over the life of the project.

To understand just how unique this is and how fickle FID can be, consider Suri name, whose oil and gas in dustry is more mature than Guyana’s with years of smallscale onshore production. Its offshore territories have attracted international inter est and many analysts believe there may be reserves in deepwater areas nearly as large as Guyana’s.

But despite having proven reserves, multiple discover ies and the will to develop their resources, the country has fared less well than Guy ana, growing by just 1.9 per cent last year. Despite some investments in exploration offshore and some promising discoveries, Suriname has had no companies make FID on the offshore discoveries, meaning that there are cur rently no offshore sites that have a confirmed future in oil production.

At present, Suriname has

licensed only 40 per cent of its offshore blocks and is largely playing catch-up with Guyana. The government is unlikely to receive any revenues from off shore production until 2025, at the earliest. Companies remain suspicious that invest ments will be worthwhile in light of strict fiscal terms of fered by the government that many companies fear could make projects unprofitable.

In a further blow, FID on two major projects was recently postponed. That has left Surinamese companies eager to join the industry in limbo and the government still without any revenues while it struggles with an ongoing fi nancial crisis, in sharp contrast to the double-digit growth that Guyana has experienced over the past several years.

Guyana, meanwhile, has seen FID on four projects with two already producing oil and generating revenues. Guyana’s oil and gas developments have been on a steady upward pace and increased output in July to 360,000 barrels per day with a target of producing around 380,000 barrels per day by year end, about 40,000 more than its initial 2022 tar

get. With two more projects expected to start producing by 2025 and others in the pipeline, development output could reach 1.2 million barrels per day by 2027.

Oil and gas production also depends on the avail ability of capital, labour and required equipment which of ten can be tied to investments, meaning oil and gas producers willing to bet on a country’s supply can reduce a project’s timeline and move a country closer to its producing capac ity. ExxonMobil’s Yellowtail development, which reached FID back in April, will cost US$10 billion to develop and represents the largest invest ment ever made in the history of Guyana.

The journey from dis covery to FID is fraught with complexities for com panies and countries alike. However, the continued in vestment in Guyana and the rapid pace of development is testament to private and public sector working to maximise benefits for Guya nese and increase global production at a time when the world needs oil more than ever.

The evolution of the profession of pharmacy W orld P harmacist D ay

TODAY, September 25, 2022 is designated World’s Pharmacists’ Day.

On this day, the achievements and con tributions of pharmacists worldwide are celebrated. It must be noted that in Guyana, the first person to be inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine was a pharmacist, leading from the forefront, at a time when there was peak vaccine hesitancy.

Pharmacists play an integral part in the healthcare team and, at this time, it is import ant to recognise the transitory roles played in the evolution of the profession of pharmacy.

In the earlier days, pharmacists played the role of the apothecary, compounding preparations when pharmaceutical products were not readily available in the various formulations and strengths. The pharmacist, more commonly known then as the druggist or dispenser, had a limited role to compound, titrate, attach labels and dispense to the pa tient. Over the years, as the pharmaceutical industry advanced, the focus transitioned from products to patient, simultaneously moving from industry to information.

Prior to 1970, the use of computers were highly unpopular so patient’s prescription records were filed manually. But with today’s technological advancement, numerous avail able medical software programmes create a win-win for both patients and pharmacists since the patient’s medication history could be quickly retrieved for evaluations simulta neously freeing up valuable time to maximise usage of the pharmacist skillset. The training for pharmacists were upgraded to transition in the next decades.

So, from 1980 to 2009, significant focus was placed on pharmaceutical care, where the pharmacist was tasked to reduce drug related morbidity and mortality through their evaluations. Direct value-added benefit for prescription reviews was observed where as sociated cost savings were noted by reducing hospital readmissions and preventing adverse reactions. Pharmaceutical care was demanded in polypharmacy, where multiple drugs are prescribed to one patient, usually the elderly, for various ailments.

This may cause drug interactions thus not impacting significantly on therapeutic outcomes. The concept of optimal drug use which minimises adverse effects and negates drug interactions for enhanced therapeutic outcomes will soon become the universal output for pharmacists, enhancing the quality of life for patients. Hence, a patient-centered practice has been developed. The pharmacist was able to get compliance from patients by developing trust and maintaining patient con fidentiality throughout the process.

From 2010 to present day, emphasis was on post pharmaceutical care and the pharmacists were trained to not only provide screening checks for blood pressure and blood sugar but give guidance on self-checks. Demonstrations on how to appropriately use the sphygmomanometer and glucometer and how to interpret readings attained are empow ering for the patients.

Patient education and patient care are the hallmark in healthcare which is rein forced usually at the last stop in the chain of healthcare workers, the pharmacist, who has the freedom to spend extra time outside the barriers of appointments and consul tation charges currently in our country. It must be noted that in some Caribbean countries appointments and consultation charges have been instituted for these in valuable services.

At the dawn of the pandemic, we rec ognised the importance of pharmacists from the lines at the drug stores to stock up on supplies for masks, sanitisers, vitamins and other over-the-counter preparations. Pharma cists were the go-to resource when in doubt and overseas pharmacists were the frontline healthcare worker to be actively involved in vaccination of the Covid-19 shot.

Since 2020, there has been a movement led by the United States to advance the scope of work for pharmacists, pharmacy interns and pharmacy technicians to include admin istration of vaccines from the flu shot to 10 additional ones to patients from age three years and up. The updated laws regarding the practice of pharmacy goes hand in glove with the continuing education sessions and the prerequisite certified training.

Pharmacists’ contributions locally are in the regulatory sector, retail or community pharmacy, hospital and in the industrial; only two privately owned manufacturing compa nies exists in the latter.

The efforts by pharmacists in research in ternationally are also noted. In some hospitals the new concept of clinical pharmacy places the pharmacist on team to proactively address drug related concerns instead of combating a problem after the fact. In some forward thinking counties, pharmacists are allowed to legally prescribe schedule One drugs only and OTC for minor ailments including skin problems, cold sores, thrush, allergic rhini tis, dysmenorrhea, oral contraception and hemorrhoids.

In Guyana the practice of the profession is guided by the Code of Ethics and the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance. Regula tory matters are governed by the Pharmacy Council whilst the Pharmacists Association’s

mandate is to standardise the practice of phar macy and act as an advocate for pharmacists. Good governance of the pharmaceutical ser vices provided must have accountability and integrity at the core.

Segregation of duties, shared governance and avoidance of conflict of interest from wearing multiple hats or playing musical chairs will propel the profession. Like every progressive administrative body new office holders should be named every term.

Lessons learnt and the transfer of in valuable institutional knowledge by senior pharmacists will propel the profession when combined with the high energies and dedica

tion of willing junior pharmacists. Evolution and continuity is fostered when fresh views, high energies and synergies come together to create impressionable waves of change. May the noble profession of pharmacy continue to be of service to humanity!

For further pharmacological guidance, contact the pharmacist of Medicine Express Pharmacy located at 223 Camp Street, be tween Lamaha and New Market Streets.

If you have any queries, comments or further information on the above topic kindly forward them to medicine.express@ gmail.com or send them to 223 Camp Street, N/burg. Tel #225-5142.

‘Education will get you everywhere’

–– Minister Parag tells Mocha’s top NGSA performers, says journey has just begun

By Clestine Juan

THE government to gether with the Women on Track Group of Mo cha-Arcadia, East Bank Demerara, on Saturday honoured children of the community who excelled at this year’s National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA).

Minister of the Public Service, Sonia Parag, in her address to children and residents in attendance at the award ceremony, commended the Mo cha-Arcadia community for its efforts in support of children’s education and advised the awardees to continue striving for excellence.

The children who were honoured are Deshaun Gurrick, Annaldo LaRose, Celina Beckles, Shonia Penston, Felicity Isaacs, Rhema Cooper, Hosenia Moses, Lennon Thorn hill, Senika Crandon and

Jashoun Ward.

In her advice to the pu pils, Minister Parag said: “The journey has just be gun. So, when you feel all that relief after writing your NGSA exams, and we do, we’ve all been through it. We know that when we work hard for a few months and dedicate our selves, we tend to down tools and just lay there for the next few months because we’ve worked so hard, but the journey has now begun.”

She said that when en tering secondary school, they will interact with oth er students from all walks of life and the competition will be strong and chal lenging. However, she en couraged them to “rise to the occasion” and remain resolute.

Minister Parag reflect ed on her education jour ney after finishing primary school. She said that she grew up on the Essequibo

Coast and was a pupil of the Anna Regina Primary School. In her time, she was among six pupils who were awarded a place at Queen’s College.

“... At that time, I had nowhere to stay because my family was in Essequi bo, so I went to President’s College instead, because we were encouraged to try to get to the best of where we want to go,” she told the gathering.

After graduating from President’s College, Min ister Parag went to the University of Guyana (UG) and was an English, Histo ry and Law major. She lat er obtained her LLB from the university and went on to achieve the Certificate of Legal Education from the Hugh Wooding Law School.

“But what I want to tell you is that education will get you everywhere. It ’s something that you will hold as a valuable

possession that no one else can take from you…Your circumstances, your envi ronment does not define what you can do,” she said.

The minister advised the awardees to not fall victim to peer pressure and other societal challenges they might face along their journey.

“I am looking forward to the next four or five years, to seeing you excel at the secondary level and excelling doesn’t neces sarily mean that you have to have 20 grade ones. For those persons who want to do it, that’s great, they have the capability. But you do what you’re ca pable of doing but ensure that you do it to the best of your ability. That is what is important,” Minister Parag said

The community, she related, remains an import ant stakeholder in ensuring children could receive the best guidance and support

in their pursuits, education ally and otherwise

“It takes a communi ty to raise a child… and in your community who push you and challenge you, and even when you think they’re punishing you, they’re challenging you to do your best. The community can do all it can do to support you. But you the individual got to do the work and get there…” Minister Parag said.

Meanwhile, Gurrick, who will be attending Queen’s College, gave a brief testimony of his aca demic journey thus far.

“This journey has not been easy going through my school years. It has had its ups and downs, joyful moments and stressful mo ments,” he said.

The aspiring doctor said that all the long hours have paid off, and while the journey was hard, the progress will continue.

Minister of the Public Service, Sonia Parag, flanked by the NGSA awardees

The Caribbean Premier League’s

Here are some more images from the Caribbean Premier League’s 10th-anniversary dinner at the Pegasus Hotel last evening. (Office of the President photos)

League’s 10th-anniversary dinner

Taxi driver dies in West Coast Berbice accident

AN early- morning acci dent between two cars at Cotton Tree, West Coast Berbice (WCB), has left taxi driver Salim Yusuf, dead.

The Guyana Chronicle understands that 30-yearold Yusuf of Benett Dam,

D’Edward Village, was driving motorcar PTT 9357 west along the southern car riageway around 04:15hrs, when 33-year-old Colin Bynoe, who was travel ling east along the north ern drive lane in motorcar PYY 3603, lost control and slammed into the right side of the taxi driver’s car, causing it to flip several times.

A relative of Yusuf, Jen ny Rajkumar, told reporters that the taxi driver had left home to do a “pick-up,” but she received a call shortly after that he was involved in an accident.

The woman said she alerted other relatives and rushed to the scene of the accident, where she saw Yusuf pinned in his car.

Rajkumar recounted that police arrived at the scene shortly after and removed the taxi driver from the car. He was then rushed to the Fort Wellington Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Rajkumar remembered her relative as a hardwork ing and quiet individual who was always willing to assist when called upon.

Meanwhile, the police have confirmed that By noe is in custody assisting with an investigation. Yu suf’s body is at Antony’s Funeral Home awaiting a post-mortem.

The mangled remains of Salim Yusuf’s car

Dead: 30-year-old Salim Yusuf

Work on $648M Fire Service HQ moving apace

–– building almost 60 per cent complete, Minister Benn says

CONSTRUCTION of a new headquarters for the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) is progressing ac cording schedule, Home Affairs Minister Robe son Benn has said.

The minister , in an invited comment on the sidelines of a recent event, said the actual structure at Homestretch Avenue is 60 per cent completed

The new headquarters, which costs some $ 648 million, will see the cur rent Central Fire Station relocated from its Sta broek Market location to the new facility which sits on three and a half acres

of land

The expected deadline for completion of the project is April 2023, but is likely to be completed ahead of time

Providing an update on the project, Benn said that there is still some more construction and internal works to be done on the building

He added that he had visited the construction site three times and did a walk through with the awarded contractor, Mo hamed’s Enterprise

“I’m satisfied with the progress and the quality of work so far,” Minister

Benn said

In January last year, he unveiled plans to move the fire service’s headquarters from the congested Sta broek Market location to Homestretch Avenue

The relocation will en sure easier access and ac commodate new fire fight ing equipment and re sources being procured.

The contract for the construction was award ed last November, fol lowing the allocation of some $1.9 billion in the national budget that year to enhance the ca pacity of the Guyana Fire Service.

Reporters arrested for alleged extortion

TWO media operatives, Gary Eleazer and Alex Wayne, are in police custody for allegedly ex torting $1 million from a businessman to remove an offensive post published by the Guyana News Net work (GNN), a “slander ous” online entity.

This was according to a report shared on Saturday by Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall S.C, on his official Facebook page.

The report stated that the media operatives were found with the cash when they were arrested on Fri day during a police sting operation along the East Coast of Demerara.

Reports are that the businessman, on August 29, filed a report to the police claiming that GNN posted an article with his photographs attached, al leging that he was involved in illegal activities.

In a statement to the police, the businessman allegedly denied the claims and stated that it was an at tempt to humiliate, embar rass, and cause emotional distress.

The victim told investi gators that he was contacted by the duo, who are al legedly close associates of a businessman with whom

Gary Eleazer Alex Wayne

he has an ongoing dispute and told him that it was he who told them to publish the article. They then al legedly demanded a large sum of a million to remove the said post.

According to the report, the police, as a result of the information given by the businessman, conduct ed a sting operation on Friday between 15:40hrs and 16:35hrs. In addition to certain instructions, the police reportedly gave the businessman marked bills to give the duo.

The two reporters re portedly arrived at the loca tion and during a conversa tion with the businessman, they allegedly demanded $ 1 million to remove the offensive Facebook post.

Based on the report, the duo admitted that they were among the admins on the GNN page. They reportedly

revealed too that an AP NU+AFC activist, Rickford Burke, is also an admin on the page.

The men were reported ly later arrested by police with the divided cash on them.

The police also confis cated two cellular phones and a laptop which was also found in their possession.

According to the report, ranks also conducted a fur ther search at the home of one of the reporters and seized a laptop and three hard drives.

While under caution, one of the suspects re portedly admitted that he acted in concert with the other along with the businessman who has an ongoing feud with the vic tim, to create and publish the said post on GNN’s Facebook page, the report stated.

Construction ongoing at the new fire service headquarters at Homestretch Avenue in August (Delano Williams photo)

India, CELAC hold discussions on strengthening diplomatic ties

HIGH-LEVEL represen tatives from India and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) converged recently on the sidelines of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), to dis cuss matters of diplomatic relations.

According to a press re

High-level representatives from India and the Com munity of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) converged on the sidelines of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to discuss matters of diplomatic relations

lease, the Indian side was led by External Affairs Minister (EAM), Dr S Jaishankar, while the CELAC Quartet was represented by Foreign Minister of Argentina, Mr. Santiago Cafiero; Foreign Minister of Guatemala, Mr Mario Adolfo Bucaro Flores;

Foreign Minister of Trini dad and Tobago, Dr Amery Browne, and Vice-Minister for Multilateral Affairs of Colombia, Ms Laura Gil Savastano.

Both sides expressed sat isfaction at revitalising the India-CELAC forum. They

expressed happiness at the growing engagements of India with Latin Ameri can countries, and reviewed the entire spectrum of In dia-CELAC relations.

The meeting took stock of developments towards a post-COVID-19 pandem ic economic recovery, and agreed to work closely in sectors including trade and commerce, agriculture, food and energy security, health, vaccine production, tradi tional medicines and logis tics.

The representatives also discussed regional and multilateral issues of mutual interest. Both sides acknowledged their co-op eration in UN and other multilateral bodies, and agreed to work together on global issues, including UN reforms and Climate Change.

246 businesses receive local content certification

PRESIDENT of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and In dustry (GCCI), Timothy Tucker, has praised the country’s Local Con tent Legislation as being simple, transparent, and equipped with several mechanisms to flush out non-compliant actors.

During a radio inter view last week, he said 170 credible businesses had received their Local Content Certificates, with 130 more going through the vetting process. With efficient vetting being conducted by the Local Content Secretariat, Oil NOW understands that up to September 23, the number of certified Guy anese companies rose to 246.

Tucker said: “Our legislation ticks a lot of boxes. The legislation is robust, and it is accompa nied by clear guidelines which help the Secretariat to really flush out certain applicants. It helps them to look deeply into the persons applying to see whether they are schem ers, [whether they] are legitimate businesses, and of course, how they’re

President of GCCI, Timothy Tucker

made up.”

The GCCI President, who is a businessman, said this is a process he has gone through and can testify to its soundness. He said some of the doc uments that must be sub mitted to the Secretariat pertain to company bylaws, shareholder com position, board structure, how resolutions are had, and how profits are dealt with. He said these need to be hand-delivered.

“They want to phys ically see the Guyanese that is behind this com pany and that has its pros and cons. One of the cons is that it is taking a long

time; it is slowing up the process, but due diligence is important. They have to make sure the legislation is not being used against us,” Tucker said.

He was keen to note that based on feedback from members, the leg islation is seen as critical for creating opportunities for participation in the areas where capacity al ready exists.

The GCCI president said that at the end of the year, the Natural Resourc es Minister, Vickram Bharrat, in conformity with the law, must pres ent a report to Parliament which outlines the prog ress made thus far with the law’s implementation.

He commented that this report will be pivotal to the development of the local private sector as well as the businesses which were awarded their certificates.

The GCCI Head said the law will no doubt serve as an instrumental steppingstone for tak ing the business sector into an era of signif icant transformation and wealth generation.

US-based Guyanese receives ‘Master Pilot’ Award

–– after successfully completing more than 50 years in the profession

AFTER being in the avi ation sector for 50 years, Captain Stanley Jhagroo, a United States (US)-based Guyanese has received the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award, given by the Federal Aviation Adminis tration (FAA).

This award recognises pilots who have practised safe flight operations contin uously for 50 or more years during the course of their careers.

Jhagroo, along with his five siblings, grew up at Babu Jaan, Port Mourant, on the Corentyne Coast, where he attended the Corentyne High School, now JC Chan disingh High School.

His dad, George Jha groo, was a scholar who studied abroad and became the headmaster of St. Jo seph’s Primary School in Port Mourant.

His mother, at first, did not give her approval for the career choice, as she told him that he could get killed.

He ignored his mother’s advice to choose a safer profession, and followed his dream. Jhagroo started his aviation career in 1972, when he was about age 20 years old, after being quali fied as a commercial pilot in Opa Locka, Florida.

He returned to Guyana as Captain Jhagroo, and was hired by a private company, In-Air Ltd, at the Ogle Air strip as a bush pilot.

In the mid-70s, flying with a map with very limited information and a compass to plot his course was an everyday occurrence. Those were the days of no turbine airplanes at Ogle, no Global Positioning Systems (GPS), no weather radar or weather reporting systems.

As the veteran pilot re calls: “It was only you, God and the airplane.”

In the latter parts of the 70s, Captain Jhagroo applied for a job with the United Nations Develop ment Programme (UNDP) in Trinidad, specifically at the Caribbean Aviation Training Institute (CATI).

The position involved being a flight instructor, but at the time he did not have his flight instructor creden tials as yet. However, in furthering his journey, Jha groo earned a scholarship to Oxford Aviation College in the United Kingdom (UK), where he trained as a flight instructor.

He also did the conver sion of his licence to a UK licence. The instructor train ing would be one of the many foundations that led to the rest of his aviation career as an aviation trainer.

Jhagroo then returned to Trinidad to work with CATI. In following years, Stanley moved to the Turks and Caicos Islands with his wife, Pansey, and their son, Darren. The couple later got their second child, Andre.

The veteran pilot was then granted the job as Chief Pilot for Turks and Caicos National Airways, where he was in charge of staff with daily flights throughout the Bahamas.

During his tenure in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), Jhagroo was ap proached by several aircraft operators based in Guyana with the idea of starting a flight school here at Ogle, on the East Coast Demerara.

His love for Guyanese aviation carried him back to Guyana, where he co-found ed the Guyana School of Aviation.

This organisation was based at Ogle and was the first flight school to train pilots from scratch to com mercial pilot licence.

IMMENSE PRIDE

People would come from all over Guyana to train at the flight school, an achievement which gave Jhagroo an immense sense of pride to teach aviation in Guyana, and to empower people with a career that they could succeed in worldwide.

Most of the pilots trained at this school are now senior Captains at the Ogle Interna tional Airport, or Captains across the Caribbean and worldwide.

Satisfied with the prog ress of the school, Jhagroo took another step in his career, and moved to the US, where he now works at

FlightSafety International. FlightSafety is recognised as being one of the top aviation training outfits in the world.

He started as an instruc tor, and moved to various positions, including Director of Standards, Chief Instruc tor, and then the top position of being a Centre Manager.

Jhagroo related that it was not an easy task to man age over 300 students and over 100 instructors.

Passionate about his pro fession, the pilot forged ahead and moved on to a corporate position with the company, and joined the Quality and Safety team.

This involved being trained as a lead auditor for the ISO 9001 programme of quality, and obtaining Sig Sigma qualifications.

Jhagroo is now 70 years old, and is still at FlightSafe ty, where he was present ed this prestigious Wright Bros-Master Pilot award.

He related that he has seen his life come full circle. From his dream of being a pilot in the 1960s, becoming a pilot, becoming an instruc tor, and then providing avi ation quality and standards.

“I must say that my biggest supporter of my aviation journey has been my wife, Pansey. She has followed me with our two boys to many countries for me to pursue my dream,” Jhagroo said.

He feels fulfilled with his dream, and now loves to spread his knowledge with other aviators.

Jhagroo said that he has come to embrace the saying: “Everyone has to work, but those that find what they love to do will never work a day in their life!”

70-year-old Captain Stanley Jhagroo being present ed with the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award

Gurbaz fireworks, all-round...

ly with his runs.

Guyanese off-spinner Junior Sinclair (2-26), veteran leg-spinner Imran Tahir (2-31) and leftarm spinner Gudakesh Motie (1-16), further helped to spin webs around the TKR batters as they struggled to score.

Munro and Patel looked dangerous, hitting a few sixes and finding the ropes during their 36run 2nd wicket stand, but the spinners got into their bag soon after, namely Shakib who was at his best, as the Warriors controlled the flow of the match from the inception.

Failures from skipper Kieron Pollard (13), Nicholas Pooran (1), Andre Russell (12), Narine (19) and the team's leading run-scorer Tim Sei fert (13), played a huge role in their eventually lost, especially after TKR had reached their 100 with more than half of their wickets still intact.

When play began earlier, Providence pitch continued to live up to its recent batting-friendly nature, providing the Warriors with two much needed half-century partnerships, which proved cricket in the context of their victory.

An ultra-aggressive Gurbaz set the tone in typical fashion, seeming to pick up from where he left off in the last game, dealing in boundaries, primarily sixes especially after the early loss of his partner Chandrapaul Hemraj (4) early.

In-form batsman, Shai Hope (14) hit two fours and looked solid before his departure, play ing second fiddle during the 50-run 2nd wicket partnership he shared with the Afghan, allowing the 20 year-old to find his groove.

Short of runs after two ducks upon his arrival this season, Shakib had useful time in the middle,

adding 60 runs batting alongside Gurbaz. The left-hander dug in nicely before smashing four fours and a six, before falling to the wizardry of Narine.

After racing to his fifty off 35 balls, just a few balls later, the explosive opener attempting another big shot, managed to pick out the sub stitute fielder in the deep, giving pacer Daryn Dupavillion (1-13), his only wicket but what would be TKR'S biggest breakthrough.

Smith then teamed up with Hetmyer and the right-hander continued his exhibition of pow er-hitting, lighting up Providence with 3 quick sixes as he did a few nights ago, clearing his front leg and muscling anything in his zone into the sea of screaming Warriors fans.

Hetmyer, batting a little lower down the or der than usual, looked classy as he hit 5 fours before being run out, a little before the end of the innings, leaving his partner unbeaten as the 20 overs expired.

The Warriors will now shift focus to the Royals as they will be keen on stretching their tally to 4 wins should they come out victorious tonight, thus qualifying for a spot in the finals.

CRICKET QUIZ CORNER

(Sunday September 25, 2022)

COMPLIMENTS OF CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL COMPANY LTD- 83 Garnett street, Campbellville, Georgetown (Tel: 225-6158)

Answers to yesterday’s quiz:

(1) Sunil Narine

(2) 2017 & 2021

Today’s Quiz:

(1) Which two teams played the first ever CPL final?

(2) Which two teams contested the last CPL fi nal?

Answers in tomorrow’s issue

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FROM BACK

Mark Wood vows to snub franchise leagues to go ‘all in’ with England

PACER Mark Wood wants to make his return to Test cricket in Pakistan later this winter and remains ful ly committed to the format after recovering from his latest serious injury.

Wood played his first game for England in six months on Friday and clocked speeds of 97mph in his second over to prove his recovery from double elbow surgery.

High pace is in demand in all formats and at 32, Wood could be tempted to see this as ,his chance to cash in on the final few years of his career and hit the franchise circuit.

But he says he is ‘all in’ with England now which is a huge boost for the Test and white-ball sides given his value in all forms of the game.

One of the major recom

mendations of the High Per formance Review, conducted by Sir Andrew Strauss, is to implement a new system of central contracts with multiyear deals being a strong possibility for those players the board would like more control over. England would like to give Wood one of those deals once they are approved by the board.

“One day we will have

a conversation (franchise cricket) but at the moment, I’m all in with England,” he said. “For me, England will always come first and if I can fit anything else in then great but from an injury point of view I think it’s more a case of where can I get things in and where makes sense.”

England will need pace on these pitches when they return for the Tests in Decem

ber. The weather will be cool er and the pitches possibly a bit livelier than the grave yards of the Australia series earlier this year but England will not get away with a diet of right-arm fast medium that wins Tests at home.

Wood can reverse the ball too at high pace), so England will be keen to get two Tests out of him in the three match series if he comes through the World Cup first in Australia.

“If they want me (for the Tests in Pakistan), I’ll be ready to go,” he said. “Having that long lay-off all summer, I felt really tired af ter four overs. That’s mental to think that after four overs I felt rank. During the World Cup I’ll get more up to speed with the games and stuff like that but during the World Cup, at some point, I’ll have to practise with the red ball and try and get my workloads

BCCI to hold AGM on October 18 in Mumbai

The BCCI is set to hold its AGM and elections on Oc tober 18 in Mumbai. The elections are for five posts - president, vice-president, secretary, joint-secretary

Shah circulated a Notice, which ESPNcricinfo has seen, to all the state associa tions on Thursday, listing out what's on the agenda for the AGM. This includes updates

which the BCCI has to pro cure. This has been the global body's request to the BCCI for previous ICC events held in the country.

The previous ICC event in India was the 2016 T20 World Cup and the ICC did not get a tax exemption at the time, following which it withheld close to US$ 2030 million from the BCCI's share of the central revenue pool.

In 2020, the ICC had threatened to shift the 2021 T20 World Cup - originally scheduled for India but later held in the UAE because of the COVID-19 pandemic - as the BCCI had failed to secure a tax exemption from the Indian government.

Women's IPL, which Gan guly recently said was set to start early next year.

Among other points on the agenda were:

• Election and induction of a representative of the gen eral body in the apex council

• Induction of two rep resentatives (one male and one female) of the Indian Cricketers' Association (ICA) in the Apex Council

• Election and induction of two representatives of the general body in the IPL gov erning council

• Induction of a represen tative of the ICA in the IPL governing council

• Appointment of an om budsman and ethics officer

up a little bit to get ready for where. I want to play - Test cricket.”

Wood’s injury developed over the winter after a heavy workload in the Ashes and he broke down after the first Test of the Caribbean tour on a featherbed in Antigua.

An operation on his right elbow failed to clear up the problem and he needed fur ther surgery in July after abandoning his comeback when he experienced pain in the joint after playing for his club side, Ashington.

The follow-up surgery removed a piece of tendon that was “trapped” in his

elbow. “I mentioned to the surgeon that I felt it more bowling away swing (mimes rotating his elbow) so when he knocked me out he was turning my wrist and arm and a ligament kept flapping into my joint all the time. So he cut the ligament off and since then it has been fine. ‘

The plan is for Wood to play two more matches in the series, both in Lahore next week. They will con tinue to experiment with their XI today when the series resumes at the Na tional Stadium with Chris Woakes fit again too. (The Telegraph)

Jaguar Gordon bounces back from foot injury

and treasurer - and will be in the spotlight. given the recent Supreme Court judgement that allows current board president Sourav Ganguly and sec retary Jay Shah to contest another term.

"on ICC matters" and "ICC tax matters".

With the next ODI World Cup scheduled to be held in India in late 2023, the ICC will be looking for a tax exemption from the govern ment of India for the event,

Also on the BCCI's meet ing agenda will be whether it wants to nominate a can didate to contest the ICC chair elections scheduled for November this year, to suc ceed Greg Barclay. The new term for the ICC chair starts in December.

Another point on the agenda was the inaugural

• Appointment of the cricket committees and standing committees

• Appointment of the umpires committee

• Appointment of the BCCI's representative or representatives to the ICC or any similar organisation

• Update on National Cricket Academy matters

LONDON, England (CMC)

– Guyana international Liam Gordon has recov ered from injury, delighting the head coach of his En glish League Two club Wal sall after fears the defender may have had to have his foot amputated.

Michael Flynn said he is “so pleased” to see Gordon fit again after the Jaguar made a belated debut for the Saddlers as a substitute in Tuesday’s 2-1 English Foot ball League Trophy defeat at Cheltenham Town.

The 23-year-old suffered the foot injury during training in early July, having joined Walsall from League One club Bolton Wanderers on a two-year deal in May.

“He’s had a disaster of a time,” Flynn said. “We’ve

got to build him up slowly – get his fitness back up, but he’s had a good 27 minutes (against Cheltenham).”

UK-born Gordon was Flynn’s first summer signing, but suffered what the Walsall boss called a “bizarre” injury during training, when he fell and damaged a muscle around his foot which re quired surgery.

“When he collapsed (on the pitch) I remember think ing ‘something bad could happen here’ – it’s been a long road back for him. We thought he was going to have to retire then there was talk of him losing his foot.

“I’m so pleased for him. When you’re going through a tough patch you can come through it, and Liam did.”

Guyana international Liam Gordon

BCCI secretary Jay Shah (left) and president Sourav Ganguly are eligible to contest another term after the recent Supreme Court ruling (BCCI photo)

Mark Wood of England celebrates taking the wicket of Babar Azam of Pakistan (Getty Images)

Part of me leaves with Federer, says emotional Nadal

LONDON, England (Re uters) - Sitting courtside, Rafael Nadal cried as his great rival, Roger Federer, bid an emotional farewell to tennis at the Laver Cup on Friday, later saying an important part of him was also leaving the men’s Tour with the retirement of the Swiss.

Pictures and videos of Federer and Nadal - who shared one of tennis’s most enthralling rivalries - cry ing together after combin ing for Team Europe in a doubles defeat at London’s O2 Arena went viral on social media, leaving their legions of fans highly emo tional.

Nadal, who has won a men’s record 22 Grand Slam singles titles, said it was a difficult night for him emo tionally as the defeat to the American pair of Jack Sock and Frances Tiafoe marked the end of the 41-year-old

Federer’s dazzling career.

“For me, it has been a huge honour to be a part of this amazing moment of the history of our sport, and at the same time a lot of years sharing a lot of things to gether,” the Spaniard said of Federer.

“When Roger leaves the tour, yeah, an important part of my life is leaving too be cause all the moments he has been next or in front of me in important moments of my life. So it has been emotional to see the family, see all the people. Yeah, difficult to describe; but, yeah, amazing moment!”

Federer, who won 20 major singles titles, played Nadal 40 times in one of the most compelling rivalries across any sport.

Despite the ferocity on court, they have remained friends off court. It was per haps most apt that the Swiss chose to have his final dance

with Nadal on his side of the net.

Loud cheers accompa nied Federer and Nadal, or ‘Fedal’ as they are jointly nicknamed, on court. Af ter entertaining the sellout crowd during the match, both were overcome by emotions.

“I think every year the personal relationship gets better and better, on a daily basis,” Nadal, 36, told re porters. “I think in some way we understand at the end we have a lot of things similar. We approach the life proba bly similar.

“On court we have com pletely opposite styles, and that’s what probably makes our matches and our rivalry probably one of the biggest and most interesting.

“Very proud to be part of his career in some way, but even happier to finish our career like friends, after everything we shared on court like rivals.”

Lord’s finale ends with controversial run-out as India claim series win

a tense conclusion when Dean was dismissed for 47 at Lord's.

The game was reaching

England were visibly aggrieved at the dismissal,

which is within the laws of the game but seen by many as against the spirit of cricket.

It was England Wom en's first game at Lord's since their World Cup tri umph over India in 2017.

The dramatic conclu sion to the game somewhat overshadowed legendary fast bowler Jhulan Goswa mi's farewell to interna tional cricket and India's first series win in England since 1999.

Chasing just 170 to win, Dean came to the crease af ter England slipped to 657, with India seamer Re nuka Singh Thakur taking 4-29 and Goswami 2-30.

It was a terrific effort from 21-year-old Dean, who fell just three runs short of her maiden inter national half-century as England ended 153 all out.

She was supported by captain Amy Jones' 28, but

when Kate Cross was dis missed for 10 to leave En gland nine wickets down, they still required another 52 runs for victory.

Number 11 Freya Da vies batted sensibly, nudg ing singles, and contrib uted an unbeaten 10 to a partnership of 36 with Dean, who was dropped at slip on 23, but batted with impressive calmness and temperament to bring England so close.

Earlier, Kate Cross led a much-improved bowling performance for England, taking 4-26 as India were bowled out for 169.

Deepti Sharma was left stranded on 68 not out, while opener Smriti Mand hana scored 50.

The game concludes England's internation al summer, with their next series coming in the West Indies in December. Sport)

INDIA completed a 3-0 series whitewash over England in the third and final one-day interna tional after a controver

sial dismissal by Deepti Sharma.

England required 17 runs to win, with one wick et left, when bowler Deepti

stopped in her delivery stride to run-out Charlie Dean at the non-striker's end to secure the victory.

A tearful Roger Federer sits alongside Rafael Nadal after his last Laver Cup Tennis match. (Mandatory Credit: Peter van den Berg-USA TODAY Sports)

Deepti Sharma runs out Charlie Dean backing up at the non-striker’s end (Getty Images)

LEGENDARY West Indies fast bowler Sir Andy Rob erts believes not having a settled team could make things difficult for the team in the upcoming T20 World Cup qualifiers.

In order to officially book a spot in Australia next month, the two-time champions must advance from a play-off group that will also feature Ireland, Scotland, and Zimbabwe.

The team will start as heavy favourites to advance from the group but the squad will feature several players that have not been in the squad for

play in the format.

Having played so many matches. Roberts believes the team should have been already been using a settled squad ahead of the tournament.

“We don’t have a settled team and that is the biggest problem. You don’t know what your teammate is capable of doing because he has just come into the team,” Roberts told the Mason and Guest Ra dio programme.

“When West Indies were at their best, we had a settled team for five, ten years. If you check out Australia, Aus

Bangladesh, Ireland qualify for 2023 women’s T20 World Cup

BANGLADESH and Ire land have booked their places at the next women's T20 World Cup, to be held in South Africa early next year. In the semi-finals of the qualifying tournament in Abu Dhabi, Bangladesh beat Thailand and Ireland edged past Zimbabwe.

The two teams will meet in the final today, but that will have no bearing on their presence at the World Cup.

Bangladesh 113 for 5 (Rumana 28*, Murshida 26; Kanoh 1-13) beat Thailand 102 for 6 (Chantham 64; Salma 3-18, Sanjida 2-7) by 11 runs.

seal Bangladesh's win, and a place at the World Cup.

the last few months and even some who have never played the format internationally.

Since a disastrous cam paign at the 2021 World Cup, the Windies have played 22 matches, but a few of the play ers added to the squad have not played in the majority of them over the past year. For instance, Evin Lewis has not played since the last tourna ment, Johnson Charles has not played for the team since 2016, Sheldon Cottrell has played sparingly since the start of the year, and Yannic Cariah and Raymon Reifer are yet to

tralia have a settled team, and Pakistan have a settled team. India are fiddling around with the team and just look at the issues they have been having. You need settled teams,” he added.

“We are going with a number of new players, new to the international scene. We knew for a long time that the World Cup was going to be this year, so we should have been trying our best to make sure we have a unit that is ready to go from ball one.”

(Sportsmax)

Natthakan Chantham's attacking 64 off 51 balls went in vain for Thailand in the second semi-final, as a lack of support from the oth er batters and sharp bowling from Bangladesh proved decisive in a low-scoring game. Chantham hit four fours and three sixes in her knock, but the next-best score in Thailand's reply to Bangladesh's 113 for 5 was captain Naruemol Chaiwai's 12.

Sanjida Akter Meghla and Salma Khatun had re duced Thailand to 13 for 3 by the fifth over, before Chantham and Chaiwai briefly steadied the innings with a partnership of 32, which was broken by Nahi da Akter.

Chantham continued the fight by adding 50 with Sornnarin Tippoch, but Sal ma grabbed two late wickets - including Chantham's - to

Bangladesh had a rough time with the bat, too, losing three wickets for 29 runs in a middle-overs mini-col lapse as the Thailand bowl ers kept chipping away. Their top three got off to stable starts, but couldn't get off the blocks, and Bangla desh were restricted to just 81 after 17 overs.

However, Rumana Ahmed and Ritu Moni bashed 32 off the remaining three overs to give their side some late impetus, which proved crucial in the end. Rumana hit an unbeaten 28 off 24 deliveries, and Moni cracked 17 from 10 balls.

"We have been playing together for so many years, this is our time to show the world how good we are, how much we have im proved as a side," Bangla desh captain Nigar Sultana said after the win. "There are a lot of experienced and

talented players in our side, and we need to show the kind of potential we have."

Ireland 137 for 6 (Pren dergast 28, Stokell 26*; Sibanda 2-24) beat Zimba bwe 133 for 6 (Mayers 39, Musonda 31; Maguire 2-18, Kelly 2-27) by four runs.

It was a tight affair in the first semi-final, as Ireland rode on a combined batting effort to put up a compet itive 137 for 6, but then Zimbabwe gave the target a spirited chase, before stop ping just four runs short.

Ireland, asked to bat first, had Orla Prendergast top-score with 28 at just bet ter than a run-a-ball, while Rebecca Stokell provided the finishing touches with an aggressive 26 not out from No. 6. Stokell's 12-ball innings, with a four and two sixes, ensured Ireland piled up 41 runs in the last four overs.

They had gotten off to a quiet start as captain Laura

Delany managed just 22 from 29 balls, with Nomve lo Sibanda keeping a check on the opposition up top. Sibanda got 2 for 24 from four overs, while Kelis Nd lovu, though expensive, also bagged two wickets.Like Ireland, Zimbabwe took their time to get going with the bat. The first five overs produced only 20 runs, as 19-year-old Jane Maguire struck twice to remove Ndl ovu and Chipo Mugeri-Tiri pano. That is when Sharne Mayers and captain MaryAnne Musonda got down to add 50, before Arlene Kelly bowled the former after she had scored 39 from 36 deliveries.

When Cara Murray had Musonda stumped for 31. Zimbabwe required an other 39 off 29 balls with six wickets in hand, but they fell short despite quick cameos from Modester Mupachikwa and Josephine Nkomo.

"It is a lot of relief that we won. They ran us till the last ball; it was a very competitive game," Delany said. "We weren't successful last time so we wanted to do things differently. We had a very good season - some brilliant wins against some tough sides.

“Qualifying for the World Cup is the next step in the journey. We will get to play against some better sides hopeful ly on a more regular basis.

(Cricinfo)

Spain handed first home loss in four years by Switzerland

SPAIN fell to their first home loss in almost four years as Switzerland dealt a blow to their bid to qual ify for next year's Nations League finals.

Defeat saw Luis Enrique's side replaced at the top of Group A2 by Portugal, whom they will meet in their winnertakes-all final group match on Tuesday.

Eric Garcia's own-goal, three minutes after Jordi Alba levelled for Spain in the sec ond half, decided the game.

Manuel Akanji's 21st-min ute header had put Switzer

land ahead in Zaragoza.

It is La Roja's first home defeat in 22 matches across all competitions since losing 3-2 to England in the Nations League in October 2018.

That stood as their only loss in their past 56 com petitive home matches, with defeat by Switzerland only their second defeat on home soil since 2003.

While a Spain win yes terday, accompanied by de feat for Portugal against the Czech Republic, would have sealed top spot for the 2021 runners-up, Spain will now

head into their final game two points behind Portugal and requiring all three points to progress.

Switzerland, who picked up their first win against Por tugal last time out in June, moved off the bottom of the group after another impres sive victory.

Garcia's own-goal, forced as Breel Embolo attacked a second ball at a corner, saw them leap frog final opponents, the Czech Republic, as they bid to avoid relegation. (BBC Sport)

WI should have had a settled team – Sir Andy Roberts

Yannic Cariah Raymon Reifer

Spain’s last home defeat came against

Bangladesh’s top three got off to good starts, but couldn’t get off the blocks (ICC)

GFF breaks historic grounds in Region One

THE Guyana Football Fed eration (GFF), in collabo ration with football teams of Region One, broke new grounds yesterday when for the first time an organised tournament got underway in Hosororo.

The GFF-NAMILCO Na tional U-17 League, in its 7th year, is including the North West Region for the first time, where the teams have been divided into 3 zones: Matakai, Moruca and Mabaruma.

Yesterday the 6-team zone

of Mabaruma kicked off at the Mabaruma Settlement play field and resulted in a 5-0 demolition of Green Park by home team.

Ricardo Allen netted a hattrick, while there was one goal each for Reon Richards and Chad Scott. The other fixture of the double-header ended in a 1-1 stalemate between White Creek and Kissing Rocks..

As part of the assistance to develop the sport in the Re gion, the national Federation conducted two 1-day courses

simultaneously.

The Referee Beginners’ Course was conducted by GFF's Referee Instructor Ab dulla Hamid and the Coaches Introductory Course was done by the Federation's head of Coaching Education, Lyndon France.

The Region, which has gifted this country a number of National youth players, is making every effort, with the help of the governing body, to establish a Members Asso ciation.

In a message to the Region, president of GFF, Wayne Forde, stated, "My vision is to do everything pos sible to ensure that all Guy anese, young and old and of all races and religions, have equitable access to football development programmes and resources, in particular, players from the hinterland communities who have been achieving success over the years and have demonstrated an unrivalled passion and love for the sport".

Struggling Windies batting line up can take cues from NZ: Selman

NORTH SOUND, Anti gua, (CMC) – Vice-cap tain Shakera Selman says West Indies Women’s batting had not lived up to expectations in the on going series against New Zealand Women, and believes the hosts need to follow the lead of the visitors.

“They are batting better than we are. We haven’t been able to get a half-cen tury in the series as yet and they got a half-century in the first game,” Selman told media on the eve of the final One-Day Interna

East Coast FA to launch NAMILCO

Under-17 league today

THE East Demerara Foot ball Association (EDFA) will today launch the an nual Guyana Football Federation/NAMILCO national Under-17 League for its affiliated teams.

The East Coast sub-as sociation’s leg of the tourna ment will have an increase of two teams from last year, with Airy Hall and Hasling ton teams taking the number to nine for this year. De fending champions Buxton United, Mahaica Determi nators, Ann’s Grove United, Dynamic FC, Melanie FC Buxton Stars and BV/Tri umph United complete the list of participating teams.

The Golden Grovebased Dynamics include National U-17 players, Tra vis Williams and Bryan

Wharton, and are expected to provide a serious chal lenge for the cup-holders Buxton United, who also boast national U-17 player Swade Edwards.

Dynamics will feature in the second game of today’s double-header scheduled for the Buxton Community Centre ground where they will meet newcomers Has lington at 16:00hrs.

The other debutants, Airy Hall Stars, will kick off the one-round League in the opening encounter at 14:00hrs when they tackle Ann’s Grove.

Before the action on the pitch gets underway the nine participating teams will take part in an official march past at 13:00hrs.

tional of the three-match series carded for the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground.

“They had a better start in the first game and then they had a top four batter bat through almost to the end of the innings in the last game, and that’s what we’ve been asking from our top five for someone to bat until the end of the innings.

“And we saw how crucial that was especially in the last game when Maddy Green put up her hand for the team after they lost two early wickets. So I think that’s the main thing – they’ve been batting better than we have.”

West Indies Women pro duced lacklustre batting efforts in the opening two matches, to lose the first game by five runs

under Duckworth-Lewis-Stern and the second game by two wickets.

On both occasions, the Caribbean side batted first but failed to pass 170.

The side is playing its first series since the high-profile retirement of ace all-round er Deandra Dottin, and the appointment of new captain Hayley Matthews to replace Stafanie Taylor.

Selman, 33, a veteran of 97 ODIs, said the rejigging of the batting order would take time to produce results.

“Deandra is only one play er. She obviously was a big part of our team both with the bat and the ball for many years and we’re grateful for what she has done but cricket has to go on and we have to find

a way to go on without her,” Selman explained.

“Other players obviously now have the opportunity to perform for the team and to really put up their hands for the team.

“I guess we’re still exper imenting with the openers, obviously with Natasha Mc Lean now coming back into the team after a while out and Hayley now batting down at five.

“So it’s an opportunity for batters to put up their hands.

I’m not sure which batting order will work. Maybe one day it will work but the next day it won’t. We’re going to have to give the youngsters some time.”

Taylor, the batting leader with 5 316 runs and seven

hundreds from 147 ODIs, has been short of runs in the series with scores of eight and 10.

However, Selman said it was only a matter of time be fore the Jamaican’s class came to the fore again.

“I believe in class and Sta fanie is a class player. There’s no doubt about it,” Selman pointed out.

“If you look at her stats, she is a legend of the game. She’s done so much for West Indies with the bat and I think that class players are always just one knock away from making a big score and getting back into form.

Seamer Cherry-Ann Fraser has replaced speed ster Shamilia Connell in the 13-member squad an nounced Saturday.

Ricardo Allen netted a hat-trick for Hosororo

Former captain Stafanie Taylor has managed only 18 runs from two innings in the series

Gurbaz fireworks, all-round Shakib set up crushing win for Warriors

By Clifton Ross

IT was more pyro technics at Providence Stadium last night, after opener Rahman ullah Gurbaz cracked his second successive half-century, while a world-class all-round effort from Shakib Al-Hasan helped Guy ana Amazon Warriors

cruise to an easy 37run win over Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), further keeping War rior Nation's hope alive, as they prepare for their final test this evening; against the Barbados Royals.

Fearless batting again yielded a 150plus score, as the War riors piled on a daunt

ing 173-6 in 20 overs, batting first. Gurbaz was again in a no-non sense mood, dealing in strictly in sixes, nailing 6 of them during his aggressive 60 off 42, his 2nd consecutive in as many games and the team's top score for the evening.

Support came in bits and pieces, with

match MVP all-rounder Shakib who scored 35, finding some form after his pair of ducks. Cap tain Shimron Hetmyer (23) and the destructive Odean Smith 22 from just 7 balls, all helped reinforce the assault led by the Afghan.

TKR were indebted to off-spinner Sunil Na rine who spun his way

to 2-32, finishing as the most successful bowler for his team, as few of his teammates grabbed a wicket each here and there.

The chase never gathered the required momentum needed and the early removals of TKR's pair of top-scor ers in, England's Samit Patel (34) and New

Zealander Colin Munro (30) didn't help, as they were slowly mowed down for just 136 in 20 overs.

Again, it was the allstar spin bowling attack which paid dividends, led by world ranked T20 all-rounder Shakib, who snared 3-20 from 4 overs, to go along nice

GBA president Steve Ninvalle at IBA Extraordinary Congress in Armenia

GUYANA will be among more than 150 countries to cast votes when the International Boxing Association (IBA, for merly AIBA) stages an Extraordinary Congress this morning in Yerevan, Armenia.

The GBA is being rep resented by its president, Steve Ninvalle, at the crit ical event which could pit incumbent Umar Kremlev of Russia against Holland's Boris van der Vorst in a runoff for the president's seat.

Today's Congress will see eligible, affiliated fed

erations first cast votes on if there needs to be an election.

In a telephone inter view yesterday, Ninvalle explained that IBA held a presidential election last May in Istanbul where Kremlev was re-elected unopposed.

However, van der Vorst, who was also a can didate for the presidency in the May election, was excluded from the vote for alleged irregularities. He appealed his exclusion to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and in June,

CAS ruled that the Dutchman's barring from the vote was not jus tified.

According to Ninvalle, the af filiates will first have to vote on whether there is need for an elec tion today. “Only if this vote is suc cessful then will there be an im mediate election,” Ninvalle said.

“To me this is one of the most pivotal events in

boxing and the results, in my personal opinion, will reveal if IBA is capable of

solving its own issues or if outside influence has the upper hand," Ninvalle,

a former Americas Box ibg Association (AMBC) vice-president added.

Part of me leaves with Federer, says Nadal

President of GBA, Steve Ninvalle, shakes hands with IBA president Umar Kremlev (left), at a meeting in Yerevan, Armenia yesterday

Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz celebrates his second consecutive half-century

A delighted Guyana Amazon Warriors team celebrate a big victory over TKR after their 37 run win. (Photos CPL/ Getty Images)

...TKR knocked out, Warriors rocket to second place