Guyana Chronicle E-Paper 30 03 2020

MONDAY 30th March, 2020

No. 105955

Inquiry needed into int’l interference in Guyana’s elections – PM Nagamootoo

Linden sanitises streets, market facilities

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Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo

PPP/C launches 19 attack on Judiciary as it demands recount West Dem Hospital patient did not die from COVID-19 11 PAGE

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EPA rewriting outdated 17 Environmental Protection Act PAGE

In its quest to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Region 10, the Regional Health Emergency Committee (RHEC), in collaboration with the Linden Fire Station, has embarked on a sanitisation exercise. In this LM&TC photo, members of the Linden Fire Station can be seen washing Republic Avenue, Mackenzie, Linden

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Rupununi Villages taking COVID-19 precautions

By Lisa Hamilton RESIDENTS of North Rupununi are making special effort to protect themselves from the contraction of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and, through the radio, are being informed on the specific ways they can do so.

Although North Rupununi is located far away from Guyana’s capital and is sparsely populated, councillor of Annai Central and former Toshao, Michael Williams, said that persons in the Region are still having minor challenges adhering to ‘social distancing’.

Annai Central has porous borders compared to other villages and persons can access the village from any angle, preventing author-

ities from enacting a precautionary village shutdown.

Williams told the newspaper on Sunday that the only option was to educate and the radio had been serving this important purpose.

He works along with the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB) and Annai’s Radio Paiwomak where he broadcasts both in English and Makushi.

“Everything is coming through the radio to educate our people on the dos and the don’ts. Every 15 minutes we have something about this virus on the radio,” he told this newspaper.

About 23 villages have access to the reach of the radio station. Meanwhile, authorities in North Rupununi are all a part of a Whatsapp Residents of Surama construct and close the gate to their village in light of COVID-19 in the country.

Radio Host Michael Williams broadcasts in English and Makushi at Radio Paiwomak. (Carinya Sharples photo)

group which they use to discuss issues and how they can collaborate for intervention.

It includes village leaders, Sub-District and Development Officers, medical workers, teachers, government officers and Radio Paiwomak staff.

“So, anything funny or anything at all is brought to our attention through the Whatsapp group and we try to see how we can continue educating our people,” Williams said.

He noted that there is a specific hotline for Region 9 which villagers can utilise; villagers are no longer hosting birthday parties; schools have long been closed and shops are taking

strict measures to prevent the virus.

Annai authorities have also spoken to bus drivers and passengers who travel from Annai to Lethem urging them not to make unnecessary trips.

Though far away from the capital, there have been concerns in the Region as it lies close to the Brazil border where there are over 3,904 confirmed Covid-19 cases and a death toll of 111 as of March 28, 2020.

Last week, Brazilian authorities enforced a gazetted order to close the border See page 11

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Inquiry needed into int’l interference in Guyana’s elections – PM Nagamootoo

INTERNATIONAL interference in Guyana’s 2020 General and Regional Elections warrants an inquiry, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo said as he took note of the continuous threats of sanctions based on personal interpretation, as opposed to legal interpretation, of Guyana’s current situation.

These threats come at a time when the Government has not acted – or insinuated that it has intention to act – outside of the law and Constitution.

“It is interesting to note the number of times that the American Deputy Secretary of State has intervened to issue threats against Guyana, even as the United States is battling its own challenges in the fight against COVID-19, as all of our countries are doing at this time. The urgency of the Guyana mission appears to take precedence,” Prime Minister Nagamootoo said when he made the case in point on Sunday.

He said Guyana has responded with patriotism and dignity.

“Our Ministry of Foreign Affairs has insisted that Guyana is a sovereign state that upholds and respects the Rule of Law. Elections in Guyana are governed by the Constitution. The government does not run elections, which is the remit of a constitutional body.

The final tabulation of results of the elections has been delayed not by government but by legal processes that are engaging the attention of the judiciary.

This is how a democracy works, or ought to work,” Prime Minister Nagamootoo explained.

subject to the direction and control of any other person or authority.

The Judiciary, through the High Court, is responsible for determining challenges to elections and electoral disputes which are submitted to it for adjudication by way of an elections petition as outlined in Article 64 of the Constitution of Guyana.

As is also public knowledge, there are matters before the court challenging the electoral process in its latter stage.

President David Granger has made it clear on several occasions that he has no intention of overstepping the Constitution and Laws which govern Guyana. In other words, he has no intention of facilitating a swearing-in of himself as President for a second term unless the complete results are declared and the process completed by the rightful body – GECOM. GECOM, on the other hand, has emphasised that it is awaiting the ruling of the High Court on current matters and will not act outside of the Constitution and rule of law by making a declaration until same is ruled upon.

toughest sanctions on these individuals and their families, and … they will not be able to run the country. They will have no access to money from bilateral or multi-lateral sources, they not gonna get access to the oil money, they will face individual sanctions; we’ll have restrictions from our exports and a whole range of stuff that will harm Guyana [because of their actions], but it will also hopefully make them see the folly of their ways,” the Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo stated at a recent press conference.

The Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has also worked to reel in the support of other ‘spring-up’ political parties

INTERNATIONAL LOBBYING Political leaders at this time, along with the rest of the nation, are simply awaiting the Court’s ruling.

Nonetheless, the Opposition has been lobbying for sanctions to come upon the Government and government officials in their individual capacity.

ISN’T THE LAW CLEAR? Since its establishment, it has been the common understanding and acceptance of all Guyanese that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has responsibility for the management of General, Regional and Local Government Elections.

Article 62 of the Constitution states: “Elections shall be independently supervised by the Elections Commission in accordance with the provisions of Article 162.”

Article 162 gives the Commission the sole right to direct and supervise the registration of electors and the administrative conduct of all elections of members of the National Assembly; ensure impartiality, fairness and com- Assistant Secretary for the US Departpliance with the provisions of this Con- ment of State’s Bureau of Western stitution or of any Act of Parliament on Hemisphere Affairs, Michael Kozak same and even postpone the holding of election day or the voting in any area.

“APNU just wants to hang onto to By virtue of Article 226 of the power at all costs … somehow in their Constitution, GECOM, like other con- heads, they think this will all go away. stitutional Commissions, shall not be It will not go away. We will seek the

Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo and, more interestingly, the support of international government officials.

NOT A TERRORIST STATE Assistant Secretary for the US Department of State’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Michael Kozak has been constantly tweeting on Guyana’s situation with one of his most recent being: “Democratic nations can’t ignore this blatant disregard for rule of law.”

“Respect the will of the Guyanese people to choose their leader,” he said in another tweet and “de facto regimes do not receive the same treatment from us as democratically elected Governments” in another.

Observing the same, Prime Minister Nagamootoo stated in his Sunday Column: “I am hoping that when the time is right liberal democrats everywhere would support an international inquiry into foreign interference in Guyana’s 2020 elections, and the attempt at regime change of a friendly

Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo government.”

He said that Guyana continues to protect and promote the fundamental rights of its indigenous peoples and media; has no political prisoners; no restrictions on movement by citizens; no curtailment of the right to association and it is therefore curious that the international community to allow itself to be controlled by personal agendas rather that the visible facts of the current situation.

“Ours was not an illegal or authoritarian state. Guyana under the six-party Coalition Government led by President David Granger, was a model democracy with an unprecedented inclusion of women in national life, and an incremental boost in the standards of living of all working people. I had once described the democratic openings here as ‘a silent revolution’,” the Prime Minister said.

He added: “So, political scientists would be baffled that Guyana has been targeted for ‘regime change’ – the standard Western label for external subversion of unpopular, repressive and often mis-characterised terrorist states.”

He pointed out that though impatience is giving way to “threats of sanctions and an undeclared war of terror”, the PPP/C has once again allowed itself to become a victim of foreign intervention and the Trojan Horse of geo-strategic interests.

Nagamootoo said that patriotic Guyanese are taking note of the invites and threats to wreck their democracy and will remain “a monument of patience”, resolute in the duty to defend their nation’s sovereignty.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE March 29, 2020 GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Coronavirus cradle Wuhan partly reopens after lockdown Coronavirus: ‘Millions’ of Americans

could be infected, expert warns

(BBC) The city in China where the coronavirus pandemic began, Wuhan, has partially reopened after more than (BBC) The coronavirus two months of isolation. pandemic could kill up to Crowds of passengers 200,000 Americans and were pictured millions morearriving could at be Wuhan station on infected,train the US governSaturday. ment’s leading expert has warned.

People are being alDr Anthony the lowed to enter Fauci, but not face of the Trump adminleave, according to reports. istration’s Wuhan,coronavirus the capitaltask of force, made the prediction on Sunday.

“Looking at what we’re seeing now, I would say between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths,” he told CNN. But he quickly urged caution. “I don’t want to be held to that,” he said. “It’s such a moving target.”

Dr Fauci added that the US, which now has the most recorded cases of the virus in the world, was the “focus” of the global outbreak.

“We’ve got a serious problem in New York, we have a serious problem in New Orleans, and we’re go-

Hubei province, saw more than 50,000 coronavirus cases. At least 3,000 people in Hubei died from the disease. ing to be developing serious But numbers have fallproblems in other areas,” he en dramatically, according said. to China’s figures.

“I want to see that The tests state on Saturday reported are being implemented on 54 cases emerging the new ground,” he added.

“If we can previous do that... then we the dayI -think which pull backall onimported. some of the itcan said were restrictions.”

As it battles to control There are atfrom leastabroad, 125,433 cases coming confirmed cases across the country, with 2,201 deaths.

The United States overtook both China and Italy last week for the number of reported cases.

But its death toll remains lower than that in other global hotspots, such as Italy, Spain and China.

China has announced a temporary ban on all foreign visitors, even if they have visas or residence permits. It is also limithaveChinese all sounded theforeign alarm. ing and “We have nurses wearing airlines to one flight per the same mask from the beweek, flights must ginningand of their shift untilnot the be more than 75% full.

What signs are there of Wuhan reopening?

The virus is thought to have originated in a seafood market in Wuhan that “conducted illegal transactions of wild animals”.

The city’s 11 million residents have been shut off from the rest of the

A major concern among health professionals is the number of available ventilators. Demand has surged

President Donald Trump has ordered a car manufacturer in Detroit to produce more ventilators to satisfy

cases across the state on Sunday. It brought the total number of cases there to 59,513.

New York is at the heart of the US outbreak and is home to just under half the total cases across the country.

On Saturday, President Trump said he was considering quarantining the state Many of those arriving in Wuhan on Saturday pulled suitcases behind them of as in a bid to slow the spread they returned to their families the virus.

He later commented that not necessary after stuMr Nineteen-year-old world since the middle of Friday, according to Reu- it was Cuomo said doing so would dent Guo Liangkai, who January, with roadblocks ters news agency. “preposterous”. arrived back in the city around the outskirts and And state media said be M r Tr u mmonths, p t w e e ttold ed after three drastic restrictions on dai- the subway was open from that instead“First of quarantine, Reuters: of all, it ly life.

Saturday and trains would a “strong travel advisory” makes me very happy to But roads reopened to be able to arrive at the would be issued to New see my family. incoming traffic late on city’s 17 railway stations. York, New Jersey and Con“Weby wanted to hug for but What’s the latest in the necticut the Centers now is Control a special period so US? Disease and PrevenDr Anthony Fauci (L), seen here with President Donald Trump, is a we can’t hug or make any Dr Fauci’s prediction tion (CDC). leading expert in infectious diseases came as cities across the Saturday also saw the actions like these.” country warned that they end, masks that are supposed as the virus has spread, and demand. first All death in the in USWuhan of an arrivals may soon run out of key to [be used] for one patient,” a number of states have Meanwhile, New York infant who had tested have to show a green poscode medical supplies. Detroit, Michigan Governor Gretchen warned that they will soon Governor Andrew Cuomo itive coronavirus.

The on afor mobile app to prove New York, and New Orleans Whitmer told CNN. run out. reported 7,195 new Covid-19 baby died in Chicago. that they are healthy.

Sunday, March 29, 08:00hrs - 09:30hrs Officials say restrictions on people leaving the city will be lifted on 8 April, when domestic (BBC) President Donald carry out duties on behalf of In a statement released plans to ask the US governThe couple and their son steady acrossexpected the US. flightsmarch are also Trump says the US will not the Queen, but these arrange- through a spokesperson on ment for security resources. Archie have spent much of There are currently 135,499 to restart. foot the bill for Prince Har- ments will be reviewed after Sunday, the couple said: “The Privately funded security ar- this year residing in Cana- confirmed cases - more reThe virus emerged in ry and Meghan’s security one year. duke and duchess have no rangements have been made.” da’s west coast, following a ported diagnoses than any China in December and amid reports that the pair six-week Christmas break on other country - and there have more than 3,300 people have moved to the US from Vancouver Island. been 2,381 deaths. there have died from the Canada.

Last month, the Canadian In California, coronavirus infection - but both Italy Mr Trump tweeted he was government announced that it cases continue to surge, with and Spain now have high“a great friend and admirer would stop providing security 5,565 cases and 121 reported er death tolls. of the Queen and the United assistance to the family “in deaths. Last week Governor It is now battling to Kingdom”, but added: “They keeping with their change in Gavin Newsom issued a shelcontrol a wave of importmust pay!” status”. ter-in-place order - ordering ed cases as infections soar The couple said they had Now Mr Trump appears Californians to remain at abroad. no plans to ask for publicly to have followed suit. home except for providing or This so-called “secfunded security in the US. The family moved again accessing essential services ond wave” of imported They have reportedly relast week to the Los Ange- among the toughest directives infections is also affectlocated to Meghan’s home les area where Meghan was across the country. ing countries like South state of California amid the raised and where her mother, Prince Harry’s father, Korea and Singapore, intensifying coronavirus outDoria Ragland, now lives, US the Prince of Wales, tested which had been sucbreak. media reports say. positive for coronavirus cessful in stopping the They will formally step The president’s announce- earlier this week, Buckspread of disease in redown as senior royals on 31 ment comes as the novel ingham Palace said, but Harry and Meghan have reportedly relocated from Canada to California cent weeks.

March and will no longer coronavirus continues its “remains in good health”.

Trump says Harry and Meghan must pay for security

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Coronavirus: Brazil’s Bolsonaro in denial and out on a limb

(BBC) As the world tries desperately to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, Brazil’s president is doing his best to downplay it.

Jair Bolsonaro has largely struggled to take it seriously.

Going against his own health ministry’s advice earlier in March, and while awaiting the results of a second coronavirus test, he left self-isolation to join rallies against Congress.

He shook hands with supporters in Brasilia and sent a message to millions that this was not something to worry about.

In a televised address last week, he repeated a now wellworn phrase. “It’s just a little flu or the sniffles,” he said, blaming the media once again for the hysteria and panic over Covid-19.

A few days later, he clearly demonstrated his prioritisation of the economy over isolation measures favoured by the rest of the world.

“People are going to die, I’m sorry,” he said. “But we can’t stop a car factory because there are traffic accidents.”

A LONE DENIER “Jair Bolsonaro is alone right now,” says Brian Winter, editor-in-chief of the publica-

tion Americas Quarterly. “No other major world leader is denying the severity of this to the extent that he is and depending on how things go, that approach could cost a lot of lives in Brazil.”

country.

ECONOMY RULES A few days ago, a video was shared by Jair Bolsonaro’s son, Flavio - a politician himself.

President Jair Bolsonaro has previously accused the media of “fear-mongering” over coronavirus

Jair Bolsonaro is frustrated. He came to power last year promising a better economy and coronavirus has put a stop to that.

Rio’s beaches are deserted and the normally gridlocked streets of Sao Paulo are empty.

Shops, schools, public spaces and businesses in many states have shut.

So Mr Bolsonaro is determined to make this pandemic political, blaming his adversaries for trying to destroy the

The video’s message, which claimed to come from the Brazilian government, was that “BRAZIL CAN’T STOP” (in Portuguese, #obrasilnãopodeparar). People need to keep working to keep the country safe and the economy growing.

The government refused to claim ownership of the video and has since called it “fake news”, but it’s exactly the message Mr Bolsonaro has been putting out.

So much so, in fact, that a federal judge on Saturday banned the government from campaigning against isolation measures. Government posts on social media using the hashtag were hastily removed.

“He’s clearly laying the foundation of being able to say six months to a year from now that he did not agree with tough distancing measures, with the lockdown,” says Oliver Stuenkel, Associate Professor of International Relations at the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Sao Paulo.

“It’s an attempt to reduce the negative impact that the economic crisis will inevitably have on the approval ratings of the Bolsonaro government but it’s a very risky strategy because by minimizing the crisis he’s also not leading the response,” Mr Stuenkel said.

SUPPORT FOR BOLSONARO But Mr Bolsonaro’s message resonates with his supporters. In the past few days, many have held motorcades across Brazil, driving through town and honking their horns in support of businesses that want to re-open.

“When you suggest that by going out onto the streets,

you could be infected, people become panicked,” says Luiz Antonio Santana Caldas, a Bolsonaro supporter from Bahia.

“If you are going to be made to quarantine and there’s no solution in two weeks, all you’re doing is causing the economy to collapse.”

Paloma Freitas, a property administrator from Fortaleza, disagrees. She voted for Mr Bolsonaro but she says he no longer represents her.

“Every time I listen to him, I’m terrified,” she says. “Instead of uniting, he constantly attacks people. He thinks the country will break but dead people don’t generate money, they’re not going to make the economy tick unless it’s the funeral business.”

STATE GOVERNORS LEADING THE CRISIS Sao Paulo’s governor, Joao Doria, along with nearly every other governor in the country, has tried to encourage the federal government to support their isolation measures. To no avail. Mr Bolsonaro just accuses them of political games.

“It’s not rational to make health and peoples’ lives political, especially those who are poor and vulnerable,” Mr Doria said, attacking Mr Bol-

sonaro for not valuing peoples’ lives. Mr Doria said that Brazil could - and should - stop.

PANELAÇOS PROTESTING WITH POTS AND PANS The din of pot-banging on peoples’ balconies has been the soundtrack to many an evening in cities like Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro recently.

The “panelaços” are a protest against a President they see as irresponsible. A man known for denying science. And a man who looks to Donald Trump as his inspiration.

“I wish Bolsonaro was listening more closely to Trump right now because if he were, he’d understand that Trump is actually taking this much more seriously than he was even two weeks ago,” says Brian Winter. “Trump is also proof that it’s never too late for a president to change his or her approach on this issue.”

There’s little sign of an about-turn from Jair Bolsonaro though - a politician who has always railed against the establishment.

But in these times of crisis, people don’t want to listen to a blame-game. They need a problem to be solved - and fast.

Mayaro health staff concerned about masks to treat COVID patients (TRINIDAD GUARDIAN) While the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends wearing a mask if you’re interacting with a COVID-19 patient or someone suspected of having the virus, some staff at the Mayaro District Health Facility (MDHF) are concerned about being issued dust and surgical masks.

Masks work by capturing droplets that are released when a person coughs, sneezes and breathes, which is how the COVID-19 can be transmitted. A surgical mask is recommended for health care providers to prevent them from inhaling particles.

However, the N-95 respirator is recommended for COVID-19 care as it reduces the wearer’s exposure to airborne particles even more. According to the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, it is tight-fitting and can filter out at least 95 per cent of air particles from large to aerosol droplets.

B u t s o m e s t a ff t h e MDHF said management is putting their lives at risk by giving them dust masks to wear.

They explained that when people show up with coughs and colds, they are asked to go to a triage area where a doctor or nurse will screen them to determine whether they fit the criteria for COVID-19. The doctor would be required to wear a regular surgical mask. But other staff, including those who clean the isolated areas and who provide support, are given dust masks to wear. Their concerns increased as reports circulated that WHO was reviewing evidence that COVID-19 can be airborne and that it was considering new precautions for medical staff.

“They have proper masks in stock and are keeping it until things get more serious. The staff is putting themselves at risk and they have families to go home to. People who have to clean the isolated area are doing so with dust masks.

All staff who are working in the facility are not getting the proper masks.

All healthcare workers at the Sangre Grande Hospital who may be exposed are given green scrubs and N-95 masks, but some staff in Mayaro have to provide their own and have to walk

Doctors at the Mayaro District Health Facility are concerned that the proper N95 masks are not being given to them for the treatement of COVID-19 patients

with a change of clothes.

We are under the Eastern Regional Health Authority (ERHA) and there are different rules,” a staff member said.

Although N-95 respirators are for those directly involved in handling COVID-19 patients, staff said there has been a steady flow of people seeking help for respiratory ailments.

Many are coughing and sneezing but unless tests are done, no one knows who has contracted COVID-19.

ERHA CEO Ronald

Tsoi-A-Fatt told Guardian Media that the issuance of protective gear is done using WHO guidelines, therefore not every member of staff is required to wear N-95 respirators. Tsoi-AFatt said if something was wrong, he did not understand why the staff did not speak to the management.

However, the staff at the MDHF said their concerns were ignored. TsoiA-Fatt said he will look into the concerns to ensure there is no deviation from ERHA policy.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

The problem with Bharrat Jagdeo

T

HE problem with Bharrat Jagdeo’s lust for power is that he is willing to sacrifice the stability, security and economy of the nation, so that he and his cronies are able to assume office. As the political stalemate surrounding the March 2 Regional and General Elections continues to unfold in a protracted and litigious court setting, Mr Jagdeo relentlessly continues to forward his narrative of electoral fraud.

To this end, in recent comments made by Mr Jagdeo in relation to the possibility of international sanctions being imposed on Guyana and particular officials, he maintains that his party is trying to fight to avoid sanctions, but are also asking the international community to stay resolute in bringing sanctions down heavily on those who would put the country and democracy at risk.

Mr Jagdeo’s comments make little sense in that it is unclear whether he is fighting against sanctions being imposed on Guyana and Guyanese, or whether he is fighting for them to be imposed on Guyana and Guyanese. The contradiction in his statement must be glaringly obvious to readers; however if they are not, it appears as though that whilst Mr Jagdeo does not want sanctions, he also wants sanctions. In any case, his jumbled diatribe only serves one purpose and that is to bolster support for his failing manoeuvres to secure a victory for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).

Mr Jagdeo asserts that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) knows that the results for Region Four

are fraudulent because according to him, the international community has said so. Whilst citizens would be aware that the international community has made brief comments on Guyana’s electoral impasse on Twitter, it remains to be seen that they have been so deeply involved in our affairs and the electoral process as to be deemed reliable witnesses to electoral fraud. On that matter, we would be better placed to examine the statements of the various observer groups who were observing the tabulation process of the contested Region Four results. Upon doing so, it would become evident that what really transpired on the night of 4th March and morning of 5th March when the PPP/C strongmen bulldozed through GECOM like rabid animals, brandishing weapons and making demands, was a blatant attempt to derail the verification process in order to cast doubt on the elections, which were, until that point, deemed free, fair, credible and transparent.

Mr Jagdeo appears to believe that when he assumes office, those who have obstructed his ascension to said position would be dealt with at that time. He has asserted that he has seen serious police actions and that they must be resistant. He has warned that the police need to know that there will be consequences for them too if they continue to take political instructions and harass people. We can only assume Mr Jagdeo is referring to the Guyana Police Force (GPF) operating within their constitutional mandate which is and has always been to serve and protect the Guyanese people. His allegations of the GPF harassing people is troublesome as the GPF has shown

enormous restraint when dealing with factions of the Guyanese society who have, at the behest of Mr Jagdeo and his associates, been encouraged to go out and protest.

And not in the constitutional fashion which is permitted by law, but by attacking schoolchildren, members of the GPF and sadly a member of the nursing profession; not forgetting the wanton destruction of property.

In addition to Mr Jagdeo’s threats against the GPF, he has asserted that he is coming up with a list of names from GECOM, the government and business leaders who are supportive of them (the government) and intends to pursue action against them. Whilst it remains unclear exactly what action Mr Jagdeo intends to take or is indeed able to take, we can only assume that he will engage in his nuanced approach to conflict resolution.

The most outrageous statement made by the leader of the opposition is that if President Granger is sworn in, Mr Jagdeo intends to treat Irfaan Ali as the president of Guyana. Mr.Jagdeo has said that wherever President Granger goes, he would be met with protests and that he would urge people to stop paying their taxes and that the opposition would not be part of any parliament and would take their resistance to a different level.

Mr Jagdeo’s rhetoric is incendiary and reckless.

His comments and statements are rarely based in facts and serve as desperate attempts to promulgate his baseless narrative of electoral fraud. His behaviour is reminiscent of the old adage that empty barrels do indeed make the most noise.

Time to give shared governance a chance Dear Editor,

I

AM writing about the current political stand-off in my beloved country Guyana. As an elder who saw the country torn apart by violence in the 1960s, I fear that we are on a path back to the future.

I offer my perspective as the former publisher and CEO of the Guyana Graphic, the largest newspaper in Guyana during the tumultuous period before it was taken over by the Burnham government in 1974. I am someone who contributed to my country as an actor and playwright, including the play “Guyana Legend” which was the official theatrical cultural presentation at Guyana’s independence celebrations in 1966.

Last week, the Working People’s Alliance, a member of Guyana’s coalition government, and political commentator and academician, Mr Dhanpaul, expressed grave

concern over the health of Guyana’s democracy and called for a shared-governance model to avoid severe consequences in the racially polarised country.

These represent the first thoughts from anyone to help solve the political impasse in Guyana. It is patently clear that neither of the two political entities can effectively govern Guyana without the involvement of the other.

We need to remember that Guyana was built on the blood, sweat and tears of an enslaved people who had their cultural identity, religious beliefs and their very children torn from them.

Those who came after them, owe them a debt which they must never forget.

The descendants of these slaves and their mixed-blood descendants still suffer today from the insecurities which this loss of identity inculcated, and which has resulted in our crippling incapacity to help each other and any others.

Those indentured servants who came after slavery was abolished had the luxury of retaining their cultural identity, their religious beliefs and their ability to make and keep their families, thus building a sense of community which the slaves and their descendants never had. Our indentured brothers and sisters had the luxury of knowing who they are and thus how to help each other.

If Guyana is to survive and prosper, then we have to accommodate these two realities and accept that neither one nor the other identity can prosper without the involvement of the other.

Shared governance -- as Mr Dhanpaul had suggested -- is the only way to start this process. It will be fraught with difficulties, but the alternative is infinitely worse. As my old grandmother used to say, “THERE IS BAD... AND WORSER THAN BAD.” We have no option but to choose the former.

Constitutional reform is essential and

must include under the PR system, the right of constituents to choose their own to represent their constituency in elections.

A new constitution must also include, the right of parties to form coalitions AFTER elections.

I am hoping to provoke further positive comments to assist Guyana in solving its problems.

Otherwise, I fear, that the road to El Dorado will lead us to the gates of this fabled country with riches untold, but we will spend the time destroying each other in order to climb the walls to be first inside, instead of working together to break the gates so that we can all enter together and benefit from the riches therein. I hope that this falls on fertile ears, especially young Guyanese.

Regards Ricardo Smith

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

We have made the same mistake with respect to the looming threat of pandemics Dear Editor,

W

E humans are strange creatures. We often tend to put off making important decisions and taking vital action until we hit a crisis point. We do this in both our individual and collective lives. The problem is that in today’s world, some of the decisions we have steadfastly refused to make can spell the difference between life and death. We are learning this the hard way with the coronavirus pandemic and its twin, the growing global economic crisis.

And yet, there are still constructive choices we can make. Rather than stumbling blocks, we can choose to treat these crises as stepping-stones helping us build an effective system of global governance fit to respond to our collective needs in the 21st century and beyond. We have known for a long time that climate change poses a dire threat to life on earth in many different ways. We have also known that the continuing proliferation of nuclear weapons increases the threat of a nuclear war, which, whether deliberate or accidental, will have horrific consequences. Yet, we have been content to stick our heads in the sand and abdicate responsibility for making collective, global decisions that will ensure that these nightmares are mitigated or never come to pass.

We have made the same mistake with respect to the

looming threat of pandemics. For years, we have talked about the possibility of such an event, and yet we have failed to take the necessary steps to ensure that we were prepared to tackle such a crisis swiftly and effectively.

While some voices have for many years been calling for the creation of a limited form of global government, most of our leaders have been unwilling to countenance such an idea. Yet, finally, in the face of the enormous physical, economic, and mental suffering we have begun enduring in the wake of the coronavirus, we are starting to hear voices among the world’s leaders calling for the creation of some kind of system of global governance that is capable of responding to the needs of the 21st century. Such voices should be encouraged and applauded.

What an incredible call to action! This is precisely the kind of leadership we need — one that is willing to acknowledge and dispense with systems that are not working and no longer ensure the well-being of those they were created to serve. And one that recognises the need for collective consultation in order to conceive of new global structures, capable of managing collective problems that impact humanity as a whole.

Also recently, the views of Gordon Brown, the former prime minister of Britain were clearly laid out in an article published by The Guardian. He cut straight to the chase, urging world leaders “to create a temporary form of global

government to tackle the twin medical and economic crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.”

He highlighted the obvious yet often unacknowledged fact that “this is not something that can be dealt with in one country,” rather, it is something that requires “a coordinated global response,” starting with “some sort of working executive.” This kind of call confirms world historian Arnold Toynbee’s predictions in the last century that — despite our strenuous resistance to any notion of a world government — once we faced an existential threat -- we would rapidly, though reluctantly, abandon our resistance in favour of a world government, albeit limited in scope to what is absolutely necessary to effect the global management of global challenges.

We, the people of the world, have a choice to mitigate our global suffering and to ensure that our hardships have not been in vain. It is up to us, one and all, to demand of our leaders that they seize this opportunity to demonstrate the statesmanship, vision, and courage required to build those global decision-making and enforcement institutions we so desperately need to meet the urgent needs of an inextricably interconnected world.

Regards Rooplall Dudhnath

PPP, Mercury and the American politicians ...a threesome involving lust for money, oil and power Dear Editor,

I

am so proud of my childhood that you would be forgiven in believing that I was brought up in an affluent society.

The fact is, my formative years were an impoverished daily battle. Having said that, I’m very proud of where I came from and will forever talk and write about it.

The knowledge I have gained from that developmental period has played and continue to play, a critical role in my adulthood. Two of the concepts I have learnt, that guide my actions to this day are, one should never make threats if one is not prepared to carry through with them. Secondly, not all threats would be carry through but it is difficult to determine which one is going to hence all threats should be taken seriously.

Today will make four weeks since the general elections. Even before Election Day, PPP were complaining more than the woman alluded to in the Bible.The bible made reference to the fact that it is better to live on the roof of a house than to be in a house with nagging woman. That aptly describes PPP before and after the election. But that is not all to PPP, there is much more. PPP formed an unhealthy $34M relationship with Mercury LLC that served as the link between PPP and the American politicians. This Mercury relationship resulted in unusual behaviours by some American politicians, as it pertained to Guyana. Inexplicably, American politicians would, always with fail, echo PPP political position, albeit they are thousands of miles away.

For example, PPP demanded that Region 4 results must to be verified and the American politicians demanded that Region 4 results

must be verified before they are deemed credible. The well learned Chief Justice subsequently said results verification is nonsense. PPP then silently whispered oops and the American politicians also silently whispered oops. And it got more disconcerting when PPP posited that GECOM should use statement of polls rather than spreadsheets for tabulation of the Region 4 results. The American politicians instantly mirrored PPP’s argument and instructed GECOM that only statement of polls and NOT spreadsheets should be used for tabulation of Region 4 results, for it to be deemed credible. By now most Guyanese were wondering why these American politicians are not relocating to Guyana to become the official opposition party. Anyway, PPP maintained the quarrelsome woman mentally and cried that the Region 4 results are not credible since they have no confidence in GECOM statement of polls.

OK PPP but you demanded that they be used.

Unsurprisingly, like the PPP locally daddy the PSC, The American politicians proclaimed that the results are not credible even though the preferred statement of polls were used.

By now a very tolerant President Granger had enough of this synchronised dancing between PPP and the American politicians hence he used his political clout to arrange for a CARICOM high level team to recount all the votes. Surprise, surprise, PPP were elated and made it publicly known. Let’s see what the American politicians had to say. They argued that results are only credible if CARICOM supervise a recount. Anyway, I wrote a missive to the editor titled, “Tweets and facebook postings are not official routes for diplomatic communications” on the 25th March. In essence I asserted that if the Americans have concerns about our General election then

the Secretary of State would summon our Ambassador, Mr. Riyad Insanally to explain as he expresses his Administration concerns.

Within 24hrs of that letter, the Acting Assistant Secratary for US Department Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, summoned Ambassador Insanally to explain while he raised his Administration concerns. These clearly can’t all be coincidental.

It is clear than there is a communication link between PPP and the American politicians since the American politicians’ statements are always consistent with PPP narrative, verbatim.The fact is that America and the entire world are battling the Coronavirus pandemic. Also, the fact is that America has registered the highest cases so far. It is without doubt that many of these American politicians are up for re-election in 7 months.

They are too well aware that they will be judged on their managing or lack thereof, of the coronavirus in America. This is undoubtedly a battle for their political lives. The fact is that they don’t know about Guyana. The fact is that they have never heard of Guyana.

The fact is that they are to busy with domestic matters to make the time to research and read the news on a nation with a population of less than one million.Therefore, I would humbly submit that someone is doing the work for them. That someone would be employed by a lobbyist group. That lobbyist group is Mercury LLC. I would opined that these statements and diplomatic summons are orchestrated by Mercury LLC. Don’t tell me that the Americans politicians would have educated themselves on our electoral vernacular vote tabulation processes eg, verification, spreadsheet and the fact that our voting is not digital. They don’t know and they careless. As I have stated earlier,

all threats should be taken seriously since we never know which one is going to be carried through. The Guyana Government is clearly taking that approach as it pertains to the threat of sanctions.

Finally Mr. Editor, there must be a brilliant neologist in PPP. First the new word battylion was coined.Then recently the phrase, “Caretaker President.” Now we have “Government in waiting.” I do recognise this phrase “President in waiting” but “Government in waiting” is new to all of us.

My understanding is that once the President in waiting is inaugurated he then selects his cabinet which forms the Government.

Also, I could not help but notice that our well learn neologist missed an opportunity to add a new word to the dictionary. You see, from 2011- 2015, Donald Ramotar led a minority Government but strangely the PPP neologist did not consider him a Minority President. Therefore, to add clarity to this new concept of “Government in waiting”, I thought I should put a few questions to the PPP political scholar.

1. How long they anticipate the “Government in waiting” will be in this transition state before they are they are deemed the real deal?

2. Is there a waiting list of “Government in waiting” and what position on that list is PPP? 3. So far APNU-AFC are ahead of PPP on the GECOM “Government in waiting” list, based on official results. How do they plan to manage expectations when considering that they will be on that list for quite a few decades?

Regards Dr. Mark Devonish

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Mc Intosh, others masquerading as ‘guardians of democracy’ must be brought to justice for inciting violence

I

Dear Editor,

t was my son who first drew attention to a certain Bryan Mc Intosh’s rantings and ravings; but dangerous actions of incitements that hurled threats at prominent Guyanese, inclusive of high-ranking state officials.

One wonders whether this is the same citizen, who years ago, made daily appearances as a health advocate, on one of our more popular TV channels? Whoever he is, his language was a clear call to unmitigated violence, the kind that is reminiscent to anarchy which acts have often led to horrible internecine violence.

Editor, Guyana, since 2015, has seen the media, being able to operate in an environment that accords respect for the upholding of free speech and the right to such expression; and individual citizens who have also been able to embrace this right in an uninhibited manner. So much so, that the Mc Intoshs and those of his ilk can continue to hide behind such human rights, using it for ends that can only described as impregnated with dangerous portents that threaten the fabric of peace and the welfare of the nation and its citizens.

At best, it was another call to violence that was unmistakable in its challenge to the State, a particular behavior that has been manifested in various forms and disguises, which include the threat of death, from a West Coast Demerara resident to the person of the president, apart from being accused of racial incitement and fomenting ill will against the president. There has also been the matter of the attempt to assassinate the president, apart from other acts that should have attracted prosecutorial actions.

In the first instance quoted, there is no jurisdiction in which such an offence has been committed, and clearly proven, that would not have attracted sanctions. In fact, there is no American or other citizen that will make such a recorded threat against the person of the POTUS, without inviting a prompt visit and all that it will entail, from the US Secret Service.

Though one may want to understand, the seeming magnanimity of the state in not taking the matter of the threats against the president to its most appropriate logical conclusion; not doing so, may have conveyed the mistaken impression, or illusion of a state that is in a state of inertia or hesitant to take action against

those guilty of extreme forms of behaviour.

I would hasten to say, not so, since every state has coercive power in every sense of its meaning. However, the Granger administration has fashioned a different understanding of the Rule of the Law and the use of the arms of the State, responding to untoward situations. This is what the ‘’badman’’ style of the Mc Intoshs do not comprehend, apart from the fact that his cretinous mind, have been sadly disappointed by a refusal of citizens to respond to his dangerously retarded expectations. No one, who advocates, encourages, or incites violence, by issuing challenges to mortal combat, and referring to ‘’guns’’, can be considered a “guardian of democracy’’. Such self-ascribed title, is an aberration of the tenets of democracy, and a desecration of its time- honoured values. Those who masquerade in its seamless robes are guilty of a most dangerous heresy.

And neither is there a defence from McIntosh, as a reason for such dangerously inciteful language, since as he is clearly acting for and on behalf of undemocratic political elements – those who own the ‘’dogs of war’’. They are not democrats by any stretch of the imagination,

as their very recent actions would remind us all. One hopes that Retired Brigadier Joseph Singh is making note of another canine, and his vicious snarls/cum intentions.

McIntosh is simply advancing sale of an incendiary laced quantum, for which there are no buyers. But he at the same time, while being reckless with the hopes of inciting violence, must understand that he is releasing demons which in such known scenarios often return to haunt the initiator.

One hopes, too, that those social media trolls who have taken to mouth their worthless crap, that the relevant authorities have every and all right to detain any citizen, inclusive of their so called ‘’badman”/’’guardian of democracy’’, for ascertaining the reasons for his call to violence. There is every reason for charges to be laid. I would be most surprised if this is not done; for there are laws in our country, and its anarchic offenders must be brought to book when these are violated.

Regards Carla Mendonca

Hinds, PPP’s disregard for the constitution, the Rule of Law and the Courts cannot go unnoticed

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Dear Editor,

T takes a special kind of patience and unique faith in the Almighty God to deal with political puxa saca, opportunists, usurpers of authority and people who have no respect for the constitution, the courts or the rule of law. These types of people can be labelled hypocrites of the worst kind, but Mr Nigel Hinds is even more special: a man known by few and followed by fewer. This is the man who consciously hoodwinked and bamboozled the less than 100 persons that followed the Change Guyana political Party into believing that he was going to be their prime ministerial candidate, then at the last moment bowed out of the race. Even though he knew that dual citizens could not contest the General elections; he knowingly deceived the few followers of Change Guyana and the wider Guyanese populace for one whole year.

The man who claimed that he couldn’t give up his U.S. citizenship for health reasons but looked perfectly healthy on March 9, 2020. He, Mr Editor, was intrinsically involved in the cabaret show, with the main opposition party taking the leading role at GECOM’s Region Four office, where they created a gladiatorial circus with all the trappings of political infamy and complacency, as they stormed the building and broke the door of the GECOM chairperson’s office, disrupting the work of GECOM. Most have agreed that their behaviour should have been condemned by all compos mentis homo sapiens, in this enlightened time and age.

Mr. Hinds and the PPP/y gang of political rascals on stage that night and days after, have shown the world, including some observers from different geographical regions, with their own interests, some who were regrettably embroiled-- directly or indirectly-- in this cocoon quagmire of political notoriety, placing our democracy at risk during an ethnically volatile time, leaves much to be desired.

Mr. Editor, I almost feel guilty for writing this letter as if I am aiding in giving Nigel Hinds PR, because he is a virtual unknown, but in this letter, I felt it necessary to address his missive dated March 26 , 2020, when he wrote to the editor of Stabroek News with the caption: “I congratulate President-elect Ali and look forward to a gov’t that is inclusive, transparent.”

One wonders, what prompted this letter? Is it that Mr. Hinds has no respect for the rule of law and courts, or does he question GECOM’s constitutional independence to do its work? It is obvious that he has no respect for the court or GECOM’s autonomy, but also, he has now revealed, he was a political pawn being used

all along by Jagdeo.

In the words of Mark Twain, “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”

His utterances were very disappointing, unsavoury, ludicrous and senseless. We are well aware of the extrinsic nature of his letter to the editor of Stabroek News. This letter was a PPP/ Mercury influenced letter, which was created to directly create confusion, spread lies and deliberately mislead vulnerable Guyanese. It is even further shameful Mr. Editor, that Nigel Hinds would even support a man with questionable degrees and 19 fraud charges.

Mr. Nigel Hinds’ suggestion in his poor excuse of a scribbled gaga missive, where he ventured to accuse and insult the hard-working, honest and decent GECOM staff, of being involved in fraudulent conduct, without any shred of evidence being provided, must be condemned by all!

Furthermore, his claim of abuse of the court process, to delay the swearing in of the elected President, provides a very clear outlook into how unscrupulous this so-called defender of democracy has no respect for our judicial processes and systems.

Mr. Editor, Nigel Hinds’ missive is a direct reflection of the PPP/C’s camp which comprises some of the most unpatriotic and anti-national human beings that have ever inhabited this country.

The so-called guardians of democracy and Nigel Hinds have no appreciation for the fact that in any democratic society, the judiciary is the final arbiter for acceptance of conclusions for differences and disputes in a law-abiding society.

The PPP/C has tried in a desperate attempt to vitiate, destroy and impair the legal validity of the declaration of Region Four results. They failed!

Their daily propaganda agenda aimed specifically to challenge the constitutional authority and independence of GECOM, was not only tried in the legal courts but in the court of public opinion, where persons like Nigel Hinds are spewing untruths, half truths and pure rubbish. Declarations from persons like Nigel Hinds threatened the constitutional independence of our agencies, the characters of their workforce and also put GECOM workers at risk of their safety.

Mr. Editor, Nigel Hinds is out of his loop with these political juggernauts. His juvenile and boyish attempts to gain supposed favours for his first jump “suck up” concocted “what if” and hypothetical scenarios he created in his mind, will not work with the PPP/C elitists, chatree class nor on the Guyanese populace.

Mr. Editor, at this time, the lives and safety of our citi-

zens are at risk with the imminent threat of covid-19. The so-called defenders of democracy who guard heavily locked ballot boxes which are housed in steel containers with many padlocks and are further guarded by police officers are only putting this nation at risk as they refuse to practise social distancing which is vital at this time. When will the PPP/C’s leadership realise this?

Mr. Hinds should remain quiet on issues of a political nature, especially since he has no credibility, no influence, and he doesn’t make any utterances in support of the legitimacy of Guyana’s legal framework and the independence of our constitutional agencies.

This want-to-be-politician must first understand that Guyana is a full-fledged democratic society, where the rule of law, respect for our constitution and our courts must be adhered to.

GECOM has its work to complete, which is to make the final declaration. We are confident that is exactly what will happen because the courts have to make its declarations on those matters in contention.

Mr. Editor, We have a country to govern, with the ever-present threat to our citizens’ lives with the covid-19 virus plaguing the world. A country to govern that is now even more bitterly divided due to mistrust, revealed deep-seated hatred, dislike, racial and racist bigotry due to the behaviour of irresponsible politicians from the opposition who claim to be defending democracy, while at the same time, propagating racism and disregarding the law.

The social cohesion of our society that is most needed at this time in our nation’s history has to be rebuilt with all parties being part of the process of rebuilding and playing a defining role in crafting a new and much more inclusive society for all of our people.

We all do agree that we have a tattered past, but equally so, we have a brighter future ahead and we all as Guyenese can and will benefit; but we must work together, with each other, as Guyanese brothers and sisters, to finally experience our long-awaited El Dorado.

Let us be cautious of those with interests that go against uniting our people and those who may want to exploit and take advantage of our fragility as a people and prevent us from experiencing a good life from the abundance of our natural resources.

Regards Jermaine Figueira

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

‘We have to protect our women and children’ –– says Bartica Mayor, as the town grapples with a recent case of domestic violence ON Friday evening, the town of Bartica was plunged into a state of shock, after a 37-year-old woman was brutally killed by her husband at the town’s airstrip.

In expressing condolences to the woman’s family, Mayor of Bartica, Gifford Marshall stated, “On behalf of the municipality, the Town Council and the councillors, I want to express my deepest sympathy and condolences to the deceased’s family.”

Describing what transpired on that evening as a traumatizing event, Mayor Marshall stated that he has full confidence that the ranks of the Bartica Police Station and the commander-in-charge will investigate and ensure that the perpetrator in the case will be prosecuted to the full extent

DEAD: Natoya Speede of the law.

“What transpired on the evening of that day traumatized all of us and we can understand, with much pain, what the family is going through. With that being said, we have every confidence that the Bartica police and the commander will investigate and bring the [perpetrator] to justice. I am certain justice

will prevail in this matter” he stated.

In an appeal to the general public and those who may be in similar situations, Mayor Marshall stated, “In these situations, actions have consequences and the consequences many times don’t just affect the individuals involved but it affects the entire community like what we see is happening now and I want to use this opportunity to call on our males to let us respect our women and let us treat them as our mothers, our sisters; let us treat those who we love the way we ought to.”

Adding that persons should report matters of domestic violence or seek counselling to avoid such violent outcomes, Marshall stated that persons can overcome any domestic challenges through conversation, mutu-

al respect and love which, he believes, is the foundation of every relationship.

“Any challenge or any crisis can be overcome through mutual dialogue, through respect and through the foundation of any relationship which is love.

We can’t afford to have our women being murdered, we can’t afford for them to be abused, we can’t afford for our children to grow up in communities without parents,” he stated.

He further added that it is the children who are left to mourn, and who are the victims in the current situation. “In this particular case, we have two children….what they experienced on that day is with them for life and we can’t afford for our children to be having those experiences as that can cause major

breakdown in our society and our morals.”

Natoya Speede, the woman who was brutally murdered, was a schoolteacher and a mother of two. According to reports, around 20:00hrs on Friday the suspect took the woman and her two children to a desolate area along a trail leading to the Bartica airstrip.

On the way, the two were embroiled in an argument

and the assailant attacked the woman with an axe. The woman’s two children fled the scene.

The suspect was later found with what are believed to be self-inflicted wounds, in an alleged attempt to kill himself.

The man was admitted to a hospital in Region Seven and remains under police guard as investigations are ongoing.

Keep our frontline workers in prayers – as they combat COVID-19 pandemic

WHILE many have the option of remaining home or working on a shift/ rotation system during the outbreak of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic, there are those who have to remain on the frontline to ensure that the general public remains healthy, safe and informed.

Nurse Bobb (only name given), a nurse attached to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), stated that the general public should show some sympathy to healthcare workers during this critical period.

“Nurses, we are at the frontline, we don’t have a choice, so I mean they should at least be sympathetic to us …I can’t step back from the fact that this is the career that I chose,” she stated.

Bobb and several of her co-workers have faced some grave stigmatization since Guyana has recorded its first

case of novel coronavirus, earlier this month.

In expressing her disappointment with the stigmatization and discrimination nurses and doctors have faced, the nurse stated, “it’s kind of appalling that this is how the general public are treating the healthcare workers that they still have to turn around and ask for help at the end of the day.”

She added that nurses and doctors cannot adjust to the current shift/rotation system set up in the various work environments which makes it even more frustrating for them. “You know how they are doing the whole shift system now, you work you stay home you work. I’ve been working overtime, like I’m tired but I still have to come to work because I can’t leave the patients undone because they are still sick patients coming,” the young nurse stated.

Meanwhile, an officer attached to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) who requested to remain anonymous stated that he has been keeping himself up-todate by following stories and articles from international media outlets about the Covid-19 pandemic and, while he is sympathetic to the patients, he is also sympathetic to the first responders who have to work tirelessly during the outbreak.

The officer who is stationed at Timehri added that during this health crisis, frontline workers like himself should be kept in prayers since they do not have the option, like other persons with traditional jobs, to stay home.

“We don’t have the option like other people, we are first responders, we still have to go to work. We still have to be at the airport. We still have to be guarding the borders. We still have to

make sure that Guyana and its people are safe,” he stated.

He added that during this health crisis, not only Guyanese but persons everywhere even those who are not affected by the Covid-19 pandemic should stand in solidarity with the doctors, nurses, police officers and firemen who are constantly working around the clock during the health crisis.

Additionally, the man stated that he now has a profound respect for reporters and journalists as they too have to work during the pandemic to keep members of the public informed of what is occurring around them.

“Even reporters they have to keep working to get the story and to get the facts so that they could tell the public more about the virus and how to keep themselves protected,” he stated.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Parents’ duty and the internet PARENTS, please understand that the internet can be a dangerous place for children and it is your responsibility to enforce some boundaries and a level of supervision.

Children will always be easy prey for deceitful and depraved adult attention, and the internet is the perfect platform for people who are up-to-no-good, to hide their identity. But keep reading because today, we will give you some tips to help you protect your children when they go online.

Children are at home for the time being and that means they will be looking for ways to pass the time. ‘What better way is there’ they’re bound to think, ‘than to spend time on the internet’. As a parent, you may not mind, as long as they are occupied, quiet and content.

But as fascinating and informative as the internet can be, it can also be a perilous place for children and parents need to understand

this and take it seriously. There are a number of traps that children can fall into, quite innocently, while using the internet, and predators can lurk in the most unusual places.

Children like to play games online (sometimes on their iPad) with opponents. These games are so high tech that the opponent can be elsewhere in the country or even in another part of the world: the opponent can even be someone the child has never met. Meeting people on line can be tricky because some deceitful adults disguise themselves (as children) with the intention of befriending and gaining the child’s trust. After which, they might manipulate or coerce the child into doing things of a sexual or criminal nature.

Children are groomed online. Grooming is when someone deliberately sets out to befriend a child (or sometimes even an adult) for his/her own manipulative purposes.

Children are especially at risk because they can be enticed with kind words and empathy.

Teenagers who feel misunderstood are particularly vulnerable. Grooming usually takes place between an adult male and a child; however, any vulnerable person can fall victim to the charm of a cunning predator.

Nowadays people are very explicit online, posting pictures of everything they do and giving a step by step account of their daily lives.

When children post pictures of themselves or talk about inner feelings they are putting themselves at risk. Cyberbullying does exist and it can be very hurtful to children when a (known or unknown) person makes fun of them or sends spiteful messages to make them feel unworthy. This type of emotional anguish could have long-lasting effects on a child, especially if the bullying is consistent.

Children should not give out private information, such as their name, (a user name is advised) address, phone number etc. online to anyone. Even posing and posting pictures in their school uniform should be discouraged; taking photos outside their homes can unwittingly give away their address and could put them at risk. All types of people use the internet, some have a hidden, wicked agenda, therefore, it pays to minimise the amount of information that you and your children share with the public.

Some sites can be harmful to children.

These include sites with hate content or ideological teachings that may confuse a child or encourage a child to think in a certain way.

There are sites that urge children to self-harm or choose other methods of self-destruction.

While on line, children have access to pornography and some use their phones for sexting (sending risqué pictures to one another).

They fail to realise that these images can be accessed by the World. Nothing sent, posted or browsed on the internet is totally private

and information and photos shared today may cause undue sorrow and regret later on in their lives. These are some of the negative attributes of the cyber world.

This is why children must be taught to use the internet sensibly.

1)Parents should create and help manage their children’s accounts.

2) Children will do the right things online once they have been informed of the dangers and influences to which they could be exposed. They should be positively influenced by adults to behave and respond appropriately; reporting any untoward activity.

3) Children need to be empowered by adults to make critical assessments and judgement calls. They must resist any requests for personal data or invitations to adult forums or chat rooms.

4) Children must feel free to talk to their parents about any type of bullying. Cyberbullying can only be handled properly with parental support and a practical action plan.

Parents should help to build a child’s resilience to petty and persuasive influences.

5) Encourage children to become critical thinkers while using the internet. Help them to understand the consequences of their actions.

6) The internet can impact a child’s social development and school work. When a child is not getting enough sleep it is time to revise his internet usage and put firm measures in place. Parents are responsible for the material to which their children are exposed.

If you are concerned about the welfare of a child call the CPA hotline on 227 0979 or write to us at childcaregy@gmail.com A MESSAGE FROM THE CHILDCARE AND PROTECTION AGENCY, MINISTRY OF SOCIAL PROTECTION

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

West Dem Hospital patient did not die from COVID-19

THE Regional Administration of Essequibo Islands-West Demerara (Region Three) has confirmed that the patient who died last Thursday at the West Demerara Regional Hospital tested negative for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

In a message on its Facebook page, it was indicated that the man did not die as a result of being infected with the coronavirus.

“Please be informed that the patient who passed away Thursday night… and was a suspect of COVID-19 did not die from COVID-19. The test results have confirmed that the deceased was never infected with COVID-19. Notwithstanding please continue to take all necessary precautions,” the post said.

The patient had presented symptoms of the virus when he was admitted to the hospital, and last Friday, staff of the hospital had assembled outside after they were barred from entering the compound, when they

turned up for work.

According to reports, the gates were closed after the nurses for the screening area, set up at the hospital, did not turn up for work. A tent was set up at the hospital to facilitate the screening of persons seeking medical services.

When they were allowed in, the staff still refused to enter the compound. It was not until Advisor to the Minister of Public Health, John Adams, and Regional Executive Officer (REO), Jennifer Ferreira-Dougall, met with the staff and promised to have the hospital sanitised for a second time that the staff returned to the hospital.

Operations at the hospital have since returned to normal.

Guyana recorded its first case of the coronavirus on March 11, and has since recorded seven other cases. The first victim has since died. The first five cases were all related to each other. The last three cases were first announced by the Minister of Pub-

Rupununi Villages taking ...

From page 2

crossing linking Guyana with the neighbouring country.

While Annai Central leaders cannot prevent persons from travelling through the village, Surama, just nearby, has the opposite opportunity and acted on it.

On Sunday, a resident from the area, Kenneth Butler, posted photos of a gate now constructed at the village’s entrance stating: “Yesterday afternoon Surama village put up their gates to stop non-vil-

Headteacher of the Fairview Primary, Quado Vancooten lagers access and to control who and the number of persons coming and going out and Into the village.”

The move was applauded by well over 100 persons on social media. Butler had also noted, in an earlier post, that the local bus service closed on March 26, 2020, until further notice “for the safety of our families and the community”.

Meanwhile, over at Fairview, Medevac personal have met with villagers twice to educate them on proper

handwashing techniques and how they can best safeguard their immune systems from the virus.

Headmaster at Fairview Primary, Quado Vancooten, said that the village has blocked its back entrance but a secret road known only to villagers remains open for their access.

He said that most persons from the two main sources of employment in the village --- Iwokrama River Lodge and Research Centre and McVantage lumber company ---- have returned home to the village.

No tourists have been visiting and persons have not been gathering in large numbers.

Vancooten is especially pleased that the government supplied Wi-Fi placed in strategic locations has been enabling villages to access the internet and research on the latest local and international update on the virus.

“Because of the e-gov Wi-Fi, many persons are trying to access information and they’re sharing it. That’s something good coming out of this. Persons are looking up, they’re searching to see what’s the latest information. Everybody is going on the net once they have a phone or a tablet.

Persons are eager to go to see what’s happening,” he said.

Observing the need for re-education on sanitary habits, Williams believes that the virus is a wakeup call on the fact that Guyanese, and humans in general, must not forget the right habit they would have learnt during their earlier days in school.

“It’s a matter of hygiene practices that we used to do before,” he pointed out.

“It’s a matter of stepping back because it was almost forgotten…it’s just going back to the basis of a healthier lifestyle.”

lic Health, Volda Lawrence, on Saturday.

Forty-four persons have been tested so far in the country, while the number of persons in institutional quarantine has risen to 31.

Declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the coronavi-

rus has been responsible for almost 30,000 deaths since the first outbreak was recorded in Wuhan, China in December, 2019.

The virus has since spread to 202 countries infecting almost 635,000 persons as of Sunday, according to WHO statistics.

Regional Executive Officer, Jennifer Ferreira-Dougall (with face mask) meeting with staff gathered outside the West Demerara Regional Hospital, last Friday

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Troy Resources agrees to pay fine for fuel spill

By Tamica Garnett

AUSTRALIAN gold mining company, Troy Resources Inc. has accepted liability for a fuel spill that occurred last week, and has agreed to pay a fine of $1M and submit all required documentation requested by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

EPA Director, Dr. Vincent Adams, said the company has been cooperating with the Agency, and has already begun providing some of the

Director of EPA, Dr. Vincent Adams

information requested.

“I have had several conversations with the general manager and they accepted that it was their responsibility and the situation could have been avoided. As soon as they received the letter they responded, even with some of the information that we already asked for and they’ve agreed to pay the fine,” Dr. Adams told the Guyana Chronicle on Sunday.

Troy Resources, last Monday, notified the EPA of the spillage, which the company said amounted to 5,000 litres, and occurred due to the inoperability of several safety systems that should have been in place including an automatic shut off system.

The EPA wrote the company, last Thursday, and informed it of the fine. Additional information and documents were also requested.

A midsize gold producer with a history of developing and operating mines in Australia and South America, Troy Resources has been operating in Guyana since 2013, at its Karouni Mining site after the company acquired Azimuth Resources Limited.

The company has until April 3 to provide the requested information, while it has 28 days, upon receipt of the letter, to pay the fine.

This latest incident comes months after the company was embroiled in questions over safety after geologist Ryan Taylor died while on duty at one of its open pit mines on October 8, 2019.

The situation saw the company temporarily suspending production operations; however, it

Fuel tanks at Troy Resources, Karouni Mines resumed operations earlier this year.

Dr. Adams said this occurrence speaks to “a strong indication of a poor maintenance culture, which drives to the heart of safety measures.”

He added: “in a situation such as that you should have at least someone looking at it but there was no one paying attention to it for who knows how long.”

The company now has to submit to the EPA a plan outlining how it will prevent a reoccurrence.

As Dr. Adams explained it, the company was in the process of transferring fuel to a tank, where an “automatic shut off” system was supposed to be in place to shut off the flow once the tank was filled, in this case that system was not working.

Regulations call for a secondary containment area to accommodate overflow from the tank, however this too had issues.

“For emergency situation the pipe coming out of the secondary area has a valve. But in this case the valve was not there. So when the stuff started flowing into that secondary [containment] area and it got to the pipe, it flowed out of the pipe and went into the ground,” Dr. Adams explained.

Due to Guyana currently implementing measures to guard against the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the EPA is unable to travel to the company’s Region Seven mining site to independently ascertain the amount of fuel that was spilled.

“Verification is always necessary. We’re at a big disadvantage because we can’t visit the site; we don’t know the geography and geology because we’re not there. We have to rely on their data. That’s why we’re asking for a lot of information to see what we can decipher from it. One of the things they have to do is present us with data to show the depth of contamination in the soil itself. Quantities matter but we’re going to also be looking at things like did it get into the ground water,” Dr. Adams further explained.

As the situation develops, the EPA will decide if further probing is needed.

“Those are not the end of the questioning as the data comes in that would provide us with more info to ask more questions and for them to provide more information,” he said.

An email sent to Troy Resources for a comment on the situation was not responded to up to press time.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

Mackenzie benefits from sanitisation exercise –– as part of proactive measures rolled out by RHEC to tackle COVID-19

By Vanessa Braithwaite ON Sunday, the Regional Health Emergency Committee (RHEC), in collaboration with the Linden Fire Station, executed a sanitisation exercise which saw Republic Avenue, a main thoroughfare in Mackenzie, and the Mackenzie Municipal Market being washed with water, bleach and de-

aging residents to sanitise their yards and personal spaces as we try to keep Linden clean,” Arrindell said RESIDENTS ADHERING On Saturday, the regional curfew was implemented which saw the residents and business owners in full compliance with the regulations.

A section of the Mackenzie Municipal Market being sanitised by the Linden Fire Service tergent.

All businesses were closed to facilitate the activity, which was followed by high commendation from residents, business owners and stakeholders.

The activity was funded by the Linden Mayor and Town Council – a major player in the newly formed RHEC – in collaboration with the Linden Fire Station.

Linden’s Mayor, Waneka Arrindell, said RHEC will continue to sanitize streets on the Mackenzie shore, before moving to the Wismar Market and Burnham Drive.

This will be done as soon as funds are available to facilitate same.

The activity, she said, also sets precedence for individual business owners to sanitise their business spaces as the town, and, by extension, Region 10, practise preventative measures in tackling the pandemic that has already affected eight Guyanese.

Region 10 is deemed a hot-spot region, since it is the gateway to several interior locations that have porous borders, and Lethem, which borders Brazil, that has several cases of the coronavirus.

In addition, there are at least three Lindeners, who traveled to Guyana last Wednesday evening from Barbados, under mandatory quarantine at a Ministry of Public Health facility.

“We are also encour-

At 18:00hrs all businesses were closed while supermarkets and pharmacies were closed by 19:00hrs.

The streets were also clear of citizens by 20:00 hrs. Giving them a prompt reminder, was the bauxite horn which blew at each of these intervals.

This was also replicated in various communities across Region 10 such as Ituni and Kwakwani, which saw residents adhering to the curfew and staying inside.

Arrindell said she was very pleased to see residents and businesses complying.

“I was very pleased to see Lindeners willing to support.

Lindeners understood the need for the curfew and we also had the radio station keeping them entertained with lively programmes; we had the support from them as well. Now we have to work on implementing social distancing during the day,” Arrindell said, adding that on Monday, members of the RHEC will be visiting businesses to ensure they are adhering to social distancing and sanitisation guidelines.

Some businesses such as Banks DIH Linden Branch, supermarkets and barbershops have already implemented these practices/guidelines.

The Region 10 curfew will last for two weeks, after which the committee will decide whether it should be continued or dropped.

The curfew also mandates all restaurants and bars to perform delivery and eat-out services.

Any resident of Region 10 experiencing COVID-19 related symptoms are urged to contact hotline numbers 444-6137 and 444-6127.

The committee had already taken a position to set up quarantine rooms at medical facilities in the region.

The RHEC is expected to meet every 48 hours. It also comprises of sub-committees with responsibility for health, transportation, communication and welfare. Members of the Committee include officials from Linden Mayor and Town Council, the Regional Democratic Council, the Disciplined Services, the Linden Fire Service and the Linden Hospital Complex.

Empty streets in Mackenzie, Linden and Ituni as residents adhere to mandatory curfew

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

The One Year Experiment

AVID readers of my column would be aware that my one-year remigration anniversary is only mere days away.

In the midst of a global pandemic and our own local political circumstance, I will be celebrating a full year of living in Guyana. And what a year it has been.

When most people choose to migrate, they often move to countries they perceive to be better than the country they planned to leave, however, I tend to do things differently. Having lived in London for 20 years and having experienced everything the UK has to offer, I decided it was time to move on. Come ‘home’, settle and make a difference.

Being fully cognisant that Guyana is ‘not a real place’ I embarked on my mission to re-migrate, settle and find something meaningful to do.

Guyana is a beautiful country, truly, and Georgetown is a wonderful place to live for many reasons. I still maintain that despite

the current political crisis and global health pandemic, Georgetown and Guyana has the potential to rapidly accelerate as an economical powerhouse in the Western hemisphere and world. Like most Guyanese, I believe the oil wealth is closely connected to the actualization of this advancement. So now we have a situation where 27+ days past the March 2 elections, we still have not sworn in a government or declared the results of the elections. Its unprecedented.

Nonetheless, this year has also shown me that Guyana is a fun, almost too laidback, vibrant place to live with a unique and beautiful culture which is expressed in our people. We usually all get along well enough to live cohesively together but recent events might have you believe otherwise. I have personally experienced extraordinary acts of kindness from people who I would deem strangers in this wonderful place we call home.

The natural beauty is only

outshined by the warmth of the people.

But what we are seeing play out now and the narrative being told in the media concerning our recent elections is not representative of the Guyana that I have come to know. I still maintain that we have come very far in terms of race relations and social cohesion, but I also agree that there is still much more work to be done before we achieve the utopian society we all dream of. And that is also why it is important that we as Guyanese control our narrative. He who controls the narrative wins the game. With increasing frustration, I have paid close attention to those who would seek to promulgate a false narrative that our society is deeply divided along ethnic lines. The local “bad boys” and cowboy politicians are more concerned with power grabbing than they are with the needs and concerns of Guyanese citizens. With a global pandemic that could easily wipe out the minis-

cule population of Guyana, the power grabbers nonetheless have continued their schemes without so much as a nod to the encroaching COVID19 health pandemic. So much so, that even though the government has been advising citizens to practice social distancing and to stay home where possible in order to curtail the spread of the virus, the “protectors of democracy” remain camped outside of GECOM offices in large groups.

The would-be arbiters of democracy have gone so far as lobbying western governments to impose sanctions on government officials and Guyana in general. What is even more disappointing is that there are Guyanese who have also joined calls for sanctions to be imposed on Guyana. Whilst many Guyanese have made themselves comfortable in the diaspora, let us not forget that those privileges have been extended by the very same governments that have engaged in illegal wars of aggression and often trample on the same democratic principles that they would impose upon developing nations such as ours. Quite frankly, with the same zeal that they would impose sanctions on Guyana, they could return you all to these very shores in one fail swoop, much like they have been doing in the UK if we consider what the Windrush scandal really achieved and the institutionally racist home office which has been arbitrarily deporting Caribbean natives

for quite some time, largely undetected by most.

The complexities of politics in Guyana is much more nuanced than I previously understood. At the same time, it is not dressed up in finely tailored suits and under pretenses of legitimacy.

It is raw, its calculated and aggressive. The litigious meanderings of the March 2020 elections will be spoken of and studied years from now.

For that is the importance of these elections.

Elections and politics aside, we are living in unprecedented times as a species. The current corona- virus COVID19 health pandemic and the resultant global shutdown of cities and nations worldwide is being felt by everyone, everywhere. The societal, economical and political impacts are also being felt by everyone, everywhere.

The rapid implementation of legislation worldwide curtailing COVID19 has been staggering. The world is at a standstill as we all grapple with curtailing this virus.

We are now living with the reality of many countries across the world having curfews and lockdowns of non-essential businesses.

Children have been sent home and parents are either working from home or

staying home to take care of their children. Everyone has been truly impacted by the coronavirus.

Like most of the world, Guyanese are fearful, frustrated and are wishing for things to go back to ‘normal’. In my opinion, normal was not working and if we look at what COVID19 is really doing to our society, I don’t think anyone should want things to go back to normal. Normal is a reality in which most people, the world over, are living on the breadline, mere steps away from abject poverty and this is not only in Guyana but in many western and developed countries. The real impact of COVID19 will be felt months and possibly years from now but it has done us a favour in exposing the vast inequalities we continue to condone within our societies.

In one year, I have accomplished a great deal living in Guyana and it is my sincere hope that once we have weathered this storm, we will all seek to address the issues that are being exposed within our society in order to create a new normal; a truly utopian society.

Guyana has the potential to achieve this and more, but progress must be allowed to continue.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

COVID-19: SBB, IPED assessing measures to help small businesses

F O R t w o w e e k s n o w, small-business proprietor Brad Singh has been paying his staff even though several of his businesses are temporarily closed due to the presence of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Guyana.

Singh, who owns wellknown electronics store Cell Point, Karma 78 Bar, and Brandz to Go Boutique, hopes

With the virus coming on the heels of tension from the March 2 General and Regional Elections, business has been on the decline for most of the month.

Make-up artists Onica Naar and Ladonna Richardson told this newspaper that the beauty industry has been hard hit by the situation, given the amount of contact it involves.

Last Saturday, Richardson was forced to give

clients and most of all my children,” Richardson said.

Naar feels anxious about the situation, as she wonders how she will come up with the $100,000 for the rent of her North Road location. The make-up artist said she approached her landlord for compassion.

“She [the landlord] doesn’t seem to care much about what is going on. She said she isn’t GTT to give extension, so we

Small Business Bureau CEO, Lowell Porter

that he would not have to terminate his staff, but is uncertain of the future of his business.

“I don’t know how long I will be able to do that for them.

If things remain like this I would be forced to let my staff go, which I’m trying not to do at the moment,” Singh told the Guyana Chronicle.

Singh’s, like many other small businesses, has been hard hit by the decline in commercial activities as a result of the spread of the novel coronavirus. Guyana recorded the first case on March 11, and has since recorded seven additional cases.

Make-up artist Onica Naar

up her Vreed-en-Hoop store – six months after she opened for business – as she can no longer afford to pay the $35,000 per month rent.

Because of the virus, the mother of four has had to put a pause on her dream but believes that it is necessary, so as to maintain social distancing.

“All I want to do is be indoors. This is not only for my safety but the safety of my

not to hold on to the business locations he rents.

“I’m watching to see how long this process takes. If it’s a lengthy one I will be forced to approach him [landlord].

It’s not something I want to do, but if it comes to that it’s something I will have to do.

I’m hoping that he would be understanding about it,” Singh said.

Singh said on average his monthly expenses total $1.5M for the four businesses; with little income he is bearing the financial strain.

Officials from the Ministry of Business Small Business Bureau (SBB) and the Institute of Private Enterprise Development (IPED) said that they have begun to evaluate the situation, to gauge what help could possibly be offered.

“We are working out a

IPED CEO Ramesh Persaud

have to find her rent on time and in full,” Naar said.

Naar has since spoke to a lawyer about her options.

Singh is also facing the difficult decision of whether or

been their difficulties since the start of this corona- virus outbreak. From that we’re going to understand what they’re going through,” Porter explained.

Though the bureau has approximately 10,000 businesses on its database, Porter said by law the bureau can only work with those businesses that have been compliant. Only 400 of the registered businesses have been compliant.

Porter commended the moratorium that some commercial banks have put in place, thereby allowing persons leniency on their loan payments. He noted, however, that the bureau is limited in the help it can extend.

“There are a lot of expectations on what the SBB can provide to these businesses that are not true. The SBB doesn’t lend any money; we’re not a lending agency, there’s nobody repaying us for anything,” Porter said.

He suggested that small businesses band together and

Small-business proprietor Brad Singh

on, and we just started that process,” Porter said.

Porter said the bureau is also helping clients with the setting up of online platforms.

“They have to maintain an interface with their clientele.

If the business can be done online they can utilise an online portal. If they don’t have one, we’re reviewing how to help them have an online presence,” Porter said.

At the Future Zone Internet Café, proprietor Rawle Hinds has taken steps to sanitise and have other measures in place to guard against the spread of the virus, but he too worries about the life of his business.

“I’ve already separated work stations so customers can sit far apart and we’re cleaning phones and computers after use by each customer, but I’m worried about my staff well-being and about having to close,” he told this newspaper.

However, it has not been all bad for all small-business owners, especially those who retail food products, which are in high demand during this period due to a lot of panic buying of foodstuff.

Poultry farmer David Pusslewhyte said he has been seeing a normal demand in business. “No issues thus far, smooth sailing,” he commented.

Produce retailer Andrew Campbell also noted that some aspect of his business has even grown, with him seeing an increase in demand for ginger.

Ginger has been touted by some as a means of treating the coronavirus, though there Make-up artist Ladonna Richardson

menu of measures to help them,” shared IPED CEO, Ramesh Persaud.

IPED is a not-for-profit organisation that provides business guidance, technical assistance, training and finance to micro and small business entrepreneurs.

“We have been in contact with our clients, listening to their challenges. At this stage it’s too early to make a full assessment and say what those measures will be specifically, but we do intend to put measures in place,” Ramesh said in a telephone interview last Wednesday.

At the SBB, CEO Lowell Porter said the bureau last Wednesday began talks with some of the businesses registered with them.

“We are now talking to them to be guided by what they’re saying. We’re asking them straight up what have

assess ways in which they could even help each other out.

“I advise that they start working together. For example, if you own a restaurant arrange with a delivery service. I believe there are opportunities but we need to talk to the clients first and see what is going

has been no research to support the premise. Consumers, however, are nonetheless rushing for ginger.

“Business always slow for small entrepreneurs you know, but in my case, I’ve had an increase in calls for ginger,” Campbell said.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

EPA rewriting outdated Environmental Protection Act

WHILE the COVID-19 pandemic has hampered the customary operations of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the pause in normal activities has given the Agency time to organize some 2,000 projects and begin the rewriting of the outdated Environmental Protection Act. Head of the EPA, Dr. Vincent Adams, told the Guyana Chronicle, on Sunday, that a new record-keeping system has been developed by the EPA and, based on a one-week rotation, workers are carrying home files to addresses them while practising social distancing.

“We’ve established a Registry because we never had any record keeping before. So, now we’re getting everything in place and we’ve got a new team that is looking over that and now we’ve got an opportunity for the officers to go through every single file and we even found that we have like 2,000 projects and we did not even know we had so many. We’ve got everything organized, we’ve got them categorized,” he said.

While the EPA’s work regarding inspections has been stymied, being able to better organize its files will give the Agency a head start when the coast is clear on the COVID-19 front.

“It’s definitely affecting us because one of our core functions is to go out and do inspections and visit all over the country, so we basically had to shut that down,” he said.

“It [COVID-19] has slowed down one aspect of the work but at least what we’re going to do is use the opportunity to really focus on these [projects] and see where the deficiencies and gaps are. We were doing it on-and-off but now we can focus on it to identify gaps where people are out of compliance, where there are expired permits, etcetera, so that we can identify where we need to take enforce-

EEPGL had applied to undertake the Hammerhead Development Project.

It marks the pursuit of Exxon’s fourth development project, with Liza Phase I and Liza Phase II already approved, and

Head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr. Vincent Adams ment action.”

When the virus passes, the EPA Head is certain that a number of field actions in light of the findings will be executed immediately.

Added to this, the time has given the Agency a head start in the revamping of the Environmental Protection Act of 1966 which is in need of amendment.

In 2019, the World Bank stated that the Act --amongst some others --- was “outdated” and needed to be adjusted to support the enhancement of the transparency, governance, legal, regulatory and institutional frameworks for the oil and gas sector.

“One of the things that we’re going to be focusing on is the rewriting of the Environment Protection Agency Act that was written since 1996 and is outdated. Lots of things have to be changed and so we’re rewriting the whole Act. We’re doing interviews, we’re hiring people like lawyers etcetera to re-write the Act; to come up with regulations so when this thing is over we’re going to be ready to launch,” Dr. Adams said.

Meanwhile, when it comes to certain time-sensitive matters which were in play prior to COVID-19, the EPA Head said that itself and stakeholders are somewhat helpless to the course of the virus.

For example, at the beginning of March, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that

Payara awaiting approval.

In keeping with the Environmental Protection Act No. 11, 1996, an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for development must first be provided before any decision is made

as the project could have significant impacts on the environment.

Adams said progressions in this regard are either moving slower or have been hampered altogether and no one truly knows

when normalcy will return.

“I can’t tell you what the effects are going to be because I don’t know how long this thing is going to last for; they don’t know either so everything is up in the air now,” he said.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

WHO reviews ‘current’ evidence on Coronavirus transmission through air

(NPR) The World Health Organization says the virus that causes COVID-19 doesn’t seem to linger in the air or be capable of spreading through the air over distances of more than about 3 feet.

But at least one expert in virus transmission said it’s way too soon to know that.

“I think the WHO is being irresponsible in giving out that information. This misinformation is dangerous,” says Dr. Donald Milton, an infectious disease aerobiologist at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Health.

The WHO says that “according to current evidence,” the virus is transmitted through “respiratory droplets and contact routes.” By that, the agency means the virus is found in the kind of big droplets of mucus or saliva created through coughing and sneezing.

These droplets can travel only short distances through the air and either land on people or land on surfaces that people later touch. Stopping this kind of transmission is why public health officials urge people to wash hands frequently and not touch the face, because that could bring the virus into contact with the nose or mouth.

Other viruses, however, get shed by infected people in a way that lets the germs actually hang suspended in the air for minutes or even hours. Later, these airborne viruses can get breathed in when

other people pass by. Measles is a good example of that kind of transmission — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, “Measles virus can remain infectious in the air for up to two hours after an infected person leaves an area.”

The WHO said that this kind of airborne transmission of the new coronavirus might be possible “in specific circumstances and settings in which procedures that generate aerosols are performed,” such as when a patient is intubated in a hospital or being disconnected from a ventilator.

Based on that, the agency recommends “airborne precautions” when medical workers do those procedures.

Otherwise, the WHO says, health care workers caring for COVID-19 patients could use less-protective “droplet and contact precautions.”

That troubles Milton, who says so little is known about this new virus, SARSCoV-2, that it’s inappropriate to draw conclusions about how it is transmitted.

“I don’t think they know, and I think they are talking out of their hats,” Milton says.

He says people like to think that there’s some sharp, black-and-white distinction between “airborne” viruses that can linger and float in the air and ones that spread only when embedded in larger moist droplets picked up through close contact, but the reality of transmission is far more nuanced.

“The epidemiologists say if it’s ‘close contact,’ then it’s not airborne. That’s baloney,” he says.

When epidemiologists are working in the field, trying to understand an outbreak of an unknown pathogen, it’s not possible for them to know exactly what’s going on as a pathogen is spread from person to person, Milton says. “Epidemiologists cannot tell the difference between droplet transmission and short-range aerosol transmission.”

He says these are hard questions to answer, and scientists still argue over how much of the transmission of influenza might be airborne. Some research shows that exhaled gas clouds from people contain a continuum of many droplet sizes and that a “high-momentum cloud” created by a cough or sneeze might carry droplets long distances.

What’s more, one study of hospital rooms of COVID-19 patients found that “swabs taken from the air exhaust outlets tested positive, suggesting that small virus-laden droplets may be displaced by airflows and deposited on equipment such as vents.”

Another study, in hospitals in Wuhan, China, found that most areas had undetectable or low levels of airborne virus.

In the face of this uncertainty, Milton thinks the WHO should follow the example of the CDC and “employ the precautionary principle to recommend airborne precautions.”

A photograph from 1940, taken for infectious research purposes at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, shows respiratory droplets released through sneezing “The U.S. CDC has it exactly right,” he says, noting that it recommends airborne precautions for any situation involving the care of COVID-19 patients.

Of course, the world is struggling with a shortage of the most protective medical masks and gear. For the average person not working in a hospital, Milton says the recommendation to stay 6 feet away from others sounds reasonable.

He says if someone in a house is sick, it makes sense to have that person wear a mask and to increase the ventilation in the room, if possible, by cracking open a window. People shouldn’t cram into cars with the windows rolled up, he says, and officials need to keep crowding down in mass transit vehicles such as trains and buses.

NA municipality clamps down on businesses amid COVID-19 fears FOLLOWING a high-level meeting with regional health officials on Sunday, New Amsterdam Mayor, Winifred Haywood, and Councillors issued a ‘Cease Operations’ proclamation for betting outlets, bars, and beauty parlours within the township.

The order took immediate effect.

“Pitt Street – the main shopping thoroughfare – is also ordered closed in preparation for sanitisation on Tuesday.

Also, fish shops and hangout spots are to be closed immediately, along with churches, mandirs and mosques and other religious groups,” Mayor Haywood declared.

The decision came on the heels of a voice note, which suggested that there

was a suspected case of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the township, and an increase in the number of confirmed cases in the country.

Mayor Haywood and Chair of the Market Committee, Sheantta Lambert, told the Guyana Chronicle that food stalls would be allowed to operate during market hours. However, restaurants are asked to offer delivery services only.

The Municipal Market will now be closed at 12:00hrs on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

The market, however, would be closed on Wednesdays and Sundays until further notice.

“Only persons selling essential prod-

ucts, inclusive of green and yellow vegetables, fruits and meats will be allowed to vend in the market. Vendors selling non-essential items such as clothing [and] shoes will not be permitted to do business. Supermarkets and grocery shop owners are to carefully monitor the intake of customers, so as to allow social distancing in line with the guidelines of Ministry of Public Health,” the Mayor said.

While some businesses are now mandated to close by 16:30, pharmacies will now be allowed to operate until 18:00hrs, instead of the previous 20:00hrs curfew.

In addition, the New Amsterdam Municipal Business Complex will be

closed today (Monday) for sanitisation purposes. Residents are also being asked to be off the streets and remain indoors by 19:00hrs.

With respect to the payment of pension, Mayor Haywood disclosed that the monthly outreach at the New Amsterdam Post office, scheduled for April 1, has been postponed.

Further, Mayor Haywood is advising residents to eat healthy foods so as to build their immune system, and in so doing, fight COVID-19.

Residents of New Amsterdam were advised to comply with the new orders.

Failure to adhere to these orders will result in the interventions by ranks of the Guyana Police Force .

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

PPP/C launches attack on Judiciary as it demands recount

THE People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) launched an attack on the judiciary on Sunday when it stated that the High Court would become “part of the problem” if it does not rule in favour of a recount of votes cast at the 2020 elections.

In a statement on Sunday, the Opposition put forward that all political parties, including the governing coalition; the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and the international community, are in support of a recount and to deny such would be unconstitutional of the Court.

“Against this backdrop, why would a Court stand in the way of such an imminent resolution of the dispute before it by the authorized constitutional agency?

In such a circumstance, any Court that hinders the resolution of this dispute becomes part of the problem and not the solution,” the party stated.

It added: “the fair, just and expedient thing for a Court to do, in these circumstances, is to hold its hands, while the constitutional institution discharges its

mandate. After all, no Court has the jurisdiction to give legitimacy to that which is plainly illegitimate.”

Guyana is governed by three separate, but complementary, branches of Government: the Legislature (National Assembly), the Executive (President, Cabinet and Government Departments) and the Judiciary (Courts).

The power to run the country is divided among the three branches to create a system of checks and balances.

The Judicial branch vests its authority in the courts. The courts determine and interpret the law and are independent, impartial and subject only to the Constitution and the law.

Article 122 A (1) of the Constitution states: “All courts and all persons presiding over the courts shall exercise their functions independently of the control and direction of any other person or authority, and shall be free and independent from political, executive, and any other form of direction and control.”

Nonetheless, the PPP/C’s statement on Sunday seemed to suggest that

should the Court, in its judgement, rule contrariwise to the position held strongly by its party, it would be failing to meet its mandate.

The statement was made even as matters relating to the national recount and the tabulation of Region Four votes remain before the court.

“The ultimate objective of any judicial system is to resolve disputes in accordance with law. Any time a Court obstructs, rather than facilitate the resolution of a dispute before it, in any form or fashion, that Court would be departing from its conceptual role and indeed, its constitutional duty,” the Opposition party stated.

It further added: “The very survival of Guyana, as a Nation State, being part of the civilised and free world, is currently before the Courts of Guyana.

The quintessential issue of controversy is whether a recount of the ballots cast should be done. The law says that it is a mandatory facility available to any political party desirous of a recount.”

The PPP/C noted that the request

for a recount has been made by eight political parties; “every major local organisation”; “every accredited international observer team and almost every diplomatic mission in Guyana and the Governments they represent.

It noted that CARICOM reached out to broker an agreement between the President and the Leader of the Opposition to facilitate this recount and an Aide Memoire was signed but the recount was not realised due to an interim injunction.

The party also pointed out that the GECOM Chair has indicated that GECOM is willing to carry out this recount.

The party stated: “The world has said to Guyana that no government, which assumes Office through the current declaration of the Region 4 results, would enjoy legitimacy and that a repertoire of sanctions will be unleashed upon Guyana, and personally against those who aided and abetted in the derailing of democracy at these elections.”

Only BCGI barges not allowed pass barrier -RUSAL employees

EMPLOYEES of the Russian-owned Bauxite Company of Guyana Incorporated (BCGI) said loggers and other commuters have never been prevented from passing their barrier across the Berbice River, which the workers have been preserving for the past two months.

The Maritime Administration Department (MA-

RAD), last Saturday, published a notice “Advisory on the block of the Berbice River”, quoting laws pertaining to the blockage of waterways in the Summary Jurisdiction Offences Act and Criminal Law Offences Act. They are also reports that the barrier has been blocking loggers from passing.

“We view that as a political move. The river is free to

In February, police clashed with BCGI/RUSAL workers at Ladernsville where workers are blocking the river

everybody except RUSAL. No logger can say that we are preventing them from passing here. One pass here recently about a week ago,” expressed Garfield Brutus, an employee and Branch Vice-President of the employees’ union, Guyana Bauxite & General Workers Union (GB&GWU).

Russian aluminum giant, RUSAL is the parent company with 90 percent shares in BCGI. Brutus maintained that only barges from BCGI have been prevented from crossing the barrier, and presented video showing ships loaded with logs passing the area, where the barrier is erected, without being hampered.

“We are not blocking the river from any commuter, we are dealing specifically with RUSAL. We have an industrial situation here. We are blocking RUSAL barge not the regular commuters, so I don’t see it should be a problem with the Maritime Administration. If they need to take things further they would have to speak with our representatives but so far nobody has contacted us as yet,” Brutus said.

Workers of the BCGI have blocked a section of the to have their demands met The workers have been suspending operations at the blocking the river since RUS- mines on February 2.

AL took the decision on The employees see the January 24 to lay off 147 blockade as their only leveremployees, citing “fuel short- age in making the company age”. pay attention to their grievSince then, the employees ances. In original demands have been vigilantly guarding issued through their union, the blockage at Landerns- the employees called for the ville, to obstruct the company re-hiring of employees; the from shipping out materials addressing of compensation or equipment from its Kuru- for two employees who sufbuka Mines in Region 10. fered electric shocks while The company subsequent- on duty in December 2019, ly responded by officially ter- and increases in wages and minating 326 employees and salaries.

Berbice River in an effort Earlier in February the employees had even defended their blockage against confrontation with the Guyana Police Force (GPF) when police officers had descended on the area. The relentless employees said their protest was peaceful and they did not harm anyone. The police presence was eventually removed.

“Right now we prepared and ready for anything so they could come,” Brutus conveyed.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday, March 30, 2020

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday March 30, 2020

Caribbean netball players to...

FROM BACKPAGE

over the next five weeks, we will have further discussions with the ANPA to determine any further changes to conditions that might need to be made.”

Jamaican stars Shamera Sterling, Kadie-Ann Dehaney, Jodi-Ann Ward, Jhaniele Fowler, Romelda Aiken and Shimona Nelson, along with Trinidadian Samantha Wallace, all currently campaign in the league.

Wallace, a 26-year-old goal-shooter, was voted Most Valuable Player in last season’s grand final when New South Wales Swifts defeated Sunshine Coast Lightning.

Players Association CEO, Kathryn Harby-Williams, said the economic fallout for players was inevitable, especially as the COVID-19 persisted across the globe.

“Our sport is not immune. Over the past few days we have endured some of our most difficult times when faced with the harsh reality of an uncertain future,” Harby-Williams said.

“We fully understand we need to play our role to enable netball to get through these bleak times, hence we have agreed to take a pay cut.

“Our game has worked really hard to continue to increase the minimum wage and allow players to be contracted for 12 month periods, but the brutal truth is that our minimum wage is $30 000 per annum and this pay reduction will be severely felt.

“However, we know we are not alone and many others throughout our community are suffering.”

She added: “On a positive note, the players feel well supported and are particularly grateful that the sport has introduced a wellbeing taskforce to help them through this extraordinary period. We look forward to getting to the other side to do what we do best – and that is play the game we love.”

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Monday March 30, 2020

Marquez wins in virtual MotoGP

(REUTERS) - ALEX Marquez celebrated a first MotoGP win — even if only virtually — in a ‘#StayAtHomeGP’ esports race featuring 10 top riders including older brother and six-time world champion Marc.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic that has brought live sport to a standstill, the 23-year-old Moto2 champion is still waiting to debut in the top category after moving up to partner Marc at Repsol Honda.

The opening race in Qatar on March 8 was cancelled and all other races up to May 17 have been postponed, with more likely to be stalled.

Sunday’s light-hearted on-

line race, with riders joining remotely, was put on by MotoGP organisers to give fans something to watch while reinforcing the message about staying safe at home.

“I am really pleased to win my first race!” joked Alex, whose brother has won the last four MotoGP titles and triumphed in 12 of last year’s 19 races with single-season point and podium records.

The Spaniard said Indonesian esports racer Putut Maulana had given him some useful tips, which he had kept to himself out of sibling rivalry.

Italian Francesco Bagnaia was second for Pramac Ducati

with Yamaha’s Spaniard Maverick Vinales third in a crashstrewn race over six laps around the virtual Italian Grand Prix circuit at Mugello. Marc Marquez was fifth.

“I enjoyed it a lot and I hope everyone who watched also had a good time,” said Alex Marquez.

“Let’s hope that everyone continues to follow the advice of the doctors and scientists so that we can return to a more normal life, seeing friends and family, enjoying the outside and going racing.”

Second only to Italy in fatalities, Spain is preparing to enter its third week under near-total

lockdown with most of the population housebound as the country tries to curb the virus.

Seven of Sunday’s 10 riders were Spanish.

Petronas Yamaha’s French rider Fabio Quartararo came fourth, and set the fastest lap, after starting from pole position but taking out future team mate Vinales at the first corner of a chaotic opening lap.

“You need a different style in these kinds of races so I had to adapt my strategy a little bit during the day,” commented Marc Marquez, who also crashed.

“A good time and I am really happy to be able to do something for the fans.”

Alex Marquez of Spain and EG 0,0 Marc VDS greets in the paddock during the MotoGP of Malaysia - Previews at Sepang Circuit on October 31, 2019 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

(Photo by Mirco Lazzari gp/Getty Images)

Law still aiming for Olympic qualification despite postponement (Reuters) - Four years after being inspired by watching compatriot Justin Rose claim gold at the Rio Olympics, Bronte Law had all but secured a spot on the British golf team before the 2020 Tokyo Games were postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

With the Olympic qualifying period likely to be extended for another year, Law remains confident of maintaining her strong form to secure her ticket to Tokyo.

She flew back from her American base to her family home in Cheshire just before Britain went into lockdown earlier this week to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

With the LPGA Tour shut down indefinitely, Law, who won the 2015 English amateur by 16 strokes, will have plenty of time to ponder the Olympics.

“It’s been something on my mind for a couple of years now,” she told Reuters in a telephone interview. “(During the 2016 Rio Games) I was still in college. To see (Rose win) made it very real as far as golf now being an Olympic sport.

“You can win grand slams in tennis and majors in golf, and all of those are incredible achievements but when you become a gold medal winner you become part of a very select group of incredible athletes that branch across all sports.”

Law is 18th on the Olympic qualifying list, the second-placed Briton, immediately behind Charley Hull and well ahead of 39th-

Liverpool should be awarded...

FROM BACKPAGE

en’t doing as well and are maybe in the relegation places, an abandonment would obviously suit them.”

The Premier League season has been suspended until April 30, but it is looking increasingly likely that the date may have to be pushed back further.

German international Gundogan also said he would be open to taking a pay-cut should English clubs follow the likes of Juventus and Borussia Dortmund in asking their players to accept reduced wages so non-playing staff can be paid.

“Of course I think it’s okay, that goes without saying, (but) there’s been no discussion in England yet,” he said.

“Perhaps that’s because the English clubs are a bit financially stronger than the clubs in Germany at the moment.

“I don’t know who has the final say in that decision.

On the other hand, if a player says, ‘no, I don’t want that, I worked hard for it, I get my salary’, then it can go in the opposite direction.

“For me personally, it would be okay but, to be honest, you have to be tolerant and if there are players who are against that, then that’s also an acceptable situation.”

ranked Georgia Hall.

Two British women will qualify. “(The delay) is obviously very disappointing,” said Law. “I really set my sights on Tokyo and have been playing well, and hope to continue to do that, so I’m not so concerned about making sure I make the team.”

Whenever the LPGA Tour resumes, the 25-year-old Law will be ready rather than rusty.

“We have a nice place with plenty of room and land and I figured I would be at least able to practice and have a gym at home here,” she said.

“We have land attached to the garden where I can hit a range of iron shots, not too many drivers but I’m planning on putting up a net.

I don’t have it too badly here.”

Though Law is rarely venturing out because of the lockdown, her parents have been busy supplying packaging to food manufacturers.

“My parents are working non-stop and it’s just me and my sister at my house,” Law said. “We’re trying to do our best to not leave the house at all.”

That will soon change, however, as Law has signed up to deliver groceries to those most in need, including health workers who are working long hours due to the pandemic.

“It’s an unknown time for a lot of us but a time we can give back in a way we’re not always able to, having such busy schedules,” she said.

(Reuters) - England’s cricket players must “realise the bigger picture” and will be expected to take a pay cut as the country’s cricket governing body (ECB) tries to deal with the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic, The Times here reported on Sunday.

More than 662,700 people have been infected by the novel coronavirus across the world and 30,751 have died, according to a Reuters tally, and the outbreak has brought global sport to a virtual standstill.

England’s tour of Sri Lanka was cancelled earlier this month and the ECB announced no professional cricket will be played until the end of May. England’s home test series against West Indies and Pakistan and limited overs series with Australia from June to August are also at risk of being postponed or cancelled if the situation does not improve, leading to a further loss of revenue.

“We’re looking at everything about how the game can make savings,” an ECB spokesman was quoted as saying by The Times.

“There’s a formal process to go through with centrally contracted players but the game needs to pull together at this time. We believe the players realise the bigger picture.”

English players on central contracts have their salaries paid in full by the ECB, who awarded 10 test contracts and 12 white-ball contracts in September last year.

The Times reported players such as Joe Root, Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler — who play for England in all three formats — would be expected to take pay cuts of approximately 200,000 pounds during the three-month shutdown.

England players set for pay cuts due to

coronavirus crisis report

England captain Joe Root and Ollie Pope leave the field at stumps on day one of the tour match between SLC Board President’s XI and England at P Sara Oval on March 12, 2020 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Liverpool should be awarded title if season is cancelled

Caribbean netball players to take pay cuts amid COVID-19 Trinidadian Samantha Wallace (left)

Ilkay Gundogan of Manchester City, Roberto Firmino of Liverpool and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain of Liverpool in action during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield on January 14, 2018 in Liverpool, England.

(Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

(REUTERS) - MANCHESTER City midfielder, Ilkay Gundogan, says it would only be “fair” for rivals Liverpool to be awarded the English Premier League trophy if the season cannot be completed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Gundogan told German broadcaster ZDF that Liverpool deserved to be crowned champions given their massive 25-point lead over second-placed City, the current holders, which has left them just two wins away from the title.

“For me, that would be okay, yes,” Gundogan said, on being asked whether

Liverpool should be handed their first topflight title for 30 years should the season not be completed.

“You have to be fair as a sportsperson,” he added, while conceding that it was a difficult decision for football authorities given the impact that the cancellation of the season would have at both ends of the table.

“There are different opinions. For clubs who have had a very good season, it obviously wouldn’t be nice if it was cancelled now,” he said.

“On the other hand, for clubs who arSEE PAGE 23

CMC – The coronavirus pandemic is set to deal a harsh blow to the earnings of Caribbean stars in the Australia Super Netball League, after the players association here struck a deal with organisers for a reduction in player salaries.

With the start of the league suspended until at least June 30 because of the COVID-19 outbreak, all contracted players have been forced to take two weeks leave from their respective clubs starting from Monday.

They will then be placed on “active rest” for seven hours each week for the

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three weeks following, and have their pay reduced by 70 per cent.

“These are difficult and unprecedented times, not only in netball, but right across the world,” said Super Netball CEO Chris Symington.

“In a less than ideal situation, our players have shown maturity and understanding throughout these discussions and we’re pleased to have reached an outcome for the near future.

“The league has put measures in place to ensure that all players have wellbeing support during this time, and, SEE PAGE 22 MONDAY, MARCH 30, 2020