Guyana_Chronicle_Epaper_02_07_2020

FRIDAY 7th February, 2020

' No.105903

Key ruling on residency

requirement for voting Monday ‌Court of Appeal wraps up hearing after lengthy submissions by lawyers

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Stephen Campbell House commissioned -- President says tribute fitting as Indigenous leader advocated for protection of Indigenous rights and citizenship SEE STORIES ON PAGES 02&03

Ms. Anna Correia Bevaun, granddaughter of the late Stephen Campbell, unveils the commemorative plaque as President David Granger (right), Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo (far left), and the Ministers of State, Health and Citizenship look on (Adrian Narine photo)

Over 50-member EU Observer 08 Mission launched PAGE

JetBlue advances application 14 ICJ sets clear time table for hearing to commence daily non-stop flights on jurisdiction in border case 17 PAGE

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

Gov’t explores introduction of single ID card -- President David Granger

THE government is examining options for the introduction of a single national identification card with biometric and security features which can be used for all government transactions.

This is according to President David during his feature address at the opening of the Stephen Campbell House, Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Bourda, Georgetown on Thursday.

The Department of Citizenship now has its own building.

This building was renovated in order to become a comfortable and people-friendly environment.

In attendance were ministers of government, permanent secretaries, Campbell’s granddaughter, Anna Correia Bevaun and his great-granddaughter, Naiomi Bevaun, along with special invitees.

The President noted that such an ID card can be used for the collection of NIS pensions, payment of taxes, social security, immigration and admission to schools.

“This single national identification card will replace the multiple forms of identification which are used presently by citizens,” the President noted.

Meanwhile, the President said the Stephen Campbell President David Granger (second left) with Stephen Campbell's granddaughter, Anna Correia Bevaun (third right) and his great-granddaughters Naiomi Bevaun (left) and Gabrielle Parsram (second right), who was accompanied by her husband Shawn Parsram (right). (Adrian Narine photo)

House will stand as a testimonial of the nation’s commitment to protecting the rights of every citizen regardless of race, religion or region of residence in accordance with the Constitution.

The building currently houses the Department of Citizenship.

The President said the department exemplified the importance which the government attaches to protecting Guyanese citizenship and to prevent abuses which have been occurring with increasing frequency in other parts of the hemisphere.

Underscoring that citizenship of a state is a precious asset and must be managed carefully, President Granger said the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights [at Article 15] provides that: “Everyone has the right to a nationality.”

“Citizenship is not perfunctory. It carries benefits and entitlements. It is estimated that there are more than 10 million stateless persons in the world,” the President noted.

President Granger said that Guyanese citizens enjoy constitutional protections and entitlements.

He said that citizenship entitles a citizen to have his or her birth registered which, in turn, can be used to register to vote and to apply for a national identification card and a passport.

“Proof of nationality allows for citizens to access education

and to receive social assistance and public pensions,” the President noted.

He explained that citizenship entitles every Guyanese to a share in the country’s patrimony.

“Citizenship obligates the state to protect its citizens, both at home and abroad. The protections offered by citizenship are not limited to the country’s territory. Nationals are entitled to protections outside of our borders. The Constitution [at Article 31] states: “It is the duty of the State to protect the just rights and interests of citizens resident abroad,” the President underscored.

Further, he said that Guyanese are entitled to certain benefits by virtue of their country’s membership of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy.

He explained that these include duty-free movement of goods produced within the community, definite six-month entry in any community state and the free movement of certain categories of skills and labour, including university graduates, sportspersons, artists, media workers, registered nurses, trained teachers and certain artisans and household domestics.

NOT A SYMBOL He said citizenship is not a symbol. It is a qualification which ascribes rights, benefits and entitlements.

The President noted that

citizenship has become an issue of topical interest, as evident in the ongoing reports and debates with the media, relating to the presence of foreign nationals in Guyana and the eligibility for qualification to become a member of the National Assembly.

The Constitution, he said, empowers the President with the authority to deprive a dual citizen of his or her Guyanese citizenship.

It states (at Article 46 (1)): “If the President of Guyana is satisfied that any citizen of Guyana has at any time after 25th May 1966, acquired by registration, naturalization or any other voluntary act (other than by marriage) the citizenship of any other country other than Guyana, the President may, by order, deprive that person of his or her citizenship.”

Noting that the Department of Citizenship was intended to protect the rights of citizenship, President Granger said citizenship policy is to ensure that every Guyanese citizen will be accounted for from birth to death, as far as technologically possible.

“Citizenship is attained by registration of births. Children, nowhere in this country, should be prevented from attending school because they had no birth certificates. Many births could remain unregistered because of the long distance, time and high cost of transport TURN TO PAGE

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

President Granger commissions Stephen Campbell House

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-- says tribute fitting as Indigenous leader advocated for protection of Indigenous rights and citizenship

PRESIDENT David Granger, on Thursday, commissioned the Stephen Campbell House located at Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, Bourda, Georgetown.

The Stephen Campbell House is the home of the Department of Citizenship, Ministry of the Presidency.

President Granger, in his remarks, said it is fitting that the building is dedicated to Stephen Campbell, one of Guyana’s iconic Indigenous leaders.

“Stephen Campbell was an ardent advocate of protecting Indigenous citizenship. He wore many caps during his lifetime. He worked as a teacher, farmer and labourer and as a rubber-tapper. He toiled in the bauxite and gold-mining industries and in the logging industry. He is best remembered for his sterling agitation for the protection of Indigenous peoples’ rights – rights which he felt were derived from their citizenship of this country,” the President said.

President Granger noted that the 1965 British Guiana Independence Conference acknowledged Indigenous peoples’ rights to the legal ownership and occupancy over areas and reservations where Indigenous peoples normally reside.

“This decision was greatly influenced by Stephen Campbell’s tireless and persistent agitation. The Guyana Constitution 1966 enshrined the protections for which Campbell had petitioned. Stephen Campbell’s vision of citizenship embodied the concept of national integration. This,

he felt, could be achieved only if each person is respected, regardless of his or her class, ethnicity or place of residence and where everyone enjoyed opportunities for economic, political and social advancement,” the President said.

The Head of State said that ‘Guyaneseness’ – the quality of being

their human rights are upheld; to live in a sovereign state where equality prevails and where citizens can be accorded greater opportunities for their development in a secure, safe and stable environment; and to live in a cohesive society in which everyone has a stake in our national patrimony.

now enshrined in the Constitution.

Stephen Campbell’s labours were not in vain,” President Granger said.

The Preamble to the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana states that Guyanese people “Value the special place in our nation of the Indigenous Peoples and recognize their right as citizens

Attendees at the dedication ceremony of the Stephen Campbell Building

Guyanese – is to belong to a country which celebrates its cultural diversity by respecting each other.

“To be Guyanese is to live in a society which harnesses the best of its citizens, ensures that our people are protected from abuse and where

A PIONEER Stephen Campbell was a pioneer of Indigenous peoples’ rights, particularly land rights. He laid the foundation for the range of Indigenous peoples’ rights which are

to land and security and to their promulgation of policies for their communities.”

The Constitution [at Article 149G] mandates that: “Indigenous peoples shall have the right to protection, preservation and promulgation

Gov’t explores introduction of single... associated with registration,” he noted.

He said that the Department has been decentralising the issuance of passports.

“This has relieved the burdens which many citizens, across Guyana, had to face in travelling long distances and at great expense in order to obtain a passport. Passport offices have now been established at the capital towns of New Amsterdam, East Berbice-Corentyne and Linden, Upper Demerara-Berbice, and another will soon be established in the Pomeroon-Supenaam, at Anna Regina,” the President noted.

The government intends, he said, to eventually have a passport office in every capital town so as to make the service more accessible to citizens.

He said that the department is responding to the migrant challenges. It is estimated that at present there are more than 13,000 migrants from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela who have entered the territory, most of whom are in on the frontier regions so far.

STRAIN These migrants, he said are placing a strain on local social services, particularly on public health and public security systems.

“The department has adopted international best practices to respond to the influx of migrants fleeing Venezuela. It is improving its management by strengthening its capacity to monitor and map

these migrants; it is seeking international help in providing them with humanitarian assistance. Guyana’s

and gold-mining industries and in the logging industry. He is best remembered for his sterling agitation

Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix explains to President David Granger the functions of the rooms that will deal with aspects of the ministry’s operations. (Adrian Narine photo)

extensive and often porous land borders increase the likelihood of illegal migration and emigration, including back-tracking,” President Granger noted.

Additionally, the President said that it is fitting that the building be dedicated to Stephen Campbell, one of Guyana’s iconic Indigenous leaders. Stephen Campbell was an ardent advocate of protecting Indigenous citizenship.

“He wore many caps during his lifetime. He worked as a teacher, farmer and labourer and as a rubber-tapper. He toiled in the bauxite

for the protection of Indigenous peoples’ rights – rights which he felt were derived from their citizenship of this country,” the President said.

A SHINING EXAMPLE Adding that Stephen Campbell’s vision of citizenship embodied the concept of national integration, the President said this could be achieved only if each person is respected, regardless of his or her class, ethnicity or place of residence and where everyone enjoyed opportunities for economic, political and social advancement. “‘Guyaneseness’ – the quality of

being Guyanese – is to belong to a country which celebrates its cultural diversity by respecting each other,” the President noted.

Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix, said in May 2015, the Department of Citizenship was created since there was a need to acquire space to accommodate services offered that were previously at the Public Service Ministry, Water Street, Georgetown.

He explained that the space available was inadequate and President David Granger identified the current building which was the home of the Presidential Guard Service and now the headquarters of the Department of Citizenship.

He explained that the Department of Citizenship consists of immigration and passport department located at Camp Road, Eve Leary, and the Registrar of births, deaths and marriages located above the Guyana Post Office Corporation.

Minister Felix explained that the current building will house the minister of citizenship, the immigration and support services, the administrative department along with the immigration secretariat support staff.

He noted that the remigration and diaspora unit housed in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will also be absorbed in the ministry.

He explained that from July 2018, to date, the ministry has processed 15,249 applications of various categories and from the oil

of their languages, cultural heritage and way of life.”

It provides [at Article 212S (1)] for the establishment of an Indigenous Peoples’ Commission “to enhance the status of Indigenous peoples and to respond to their legitimate demands and needs.”

“The Stephen Campbell House will stand as a testimonial of the nation’s commitment to protecting the right of every citizen regardless of race, religion or region of residence in accordance with the Constitution,” the President said.

Meanwhile, Minister of Citizenship, Mr. Winston Felix said the renaming of Bidford House to the Stephen Campbell House is in recognition of the “enormous contribution of our Indigenous Peoples.”

Minister Felix said Stephen Campbell is the first member of the Indigenous community to have become a member of the Legislative Council of British Guiana (now Parliament), on September 10, 1957.

Annually, Guyana celebrates Stephen Campbell’s achievements as part of Indigenous Heritage Month.

Stephen Joseph Campbell was born in Moruca, in the Barima-Waini (Region One) on December 26, 1897.

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and gas sector, 4, 054 applications were processed.

Underscoring that the name “Stephen Campbell House” is important in the history of the Indigenous peoples of Guyana, Felix said Campbell was the first Amerindian Member of Parliament in Guyana.

He was elected to the Legislative Council of British Guiana on September 10, 1957. On this date, every year, Guyana celebrates Stephen’s achievements as a part of Amerindian Heritage Month.

Stephen Joseph Campbell was born in Moruca, a sub-district of the Barima Waini region, the northern most part of Guyana, on December 26, 1897. Campbell was born to Maria dos Santos nee Osorio, and Tiburtio A. Campbell, a boat builder.

He said both parents died when he was very young and he was brought up by his grandmother whom he credited with teaching him the core principles of life; “religion and discipline”.

He was the first Amerindian to contest the General Elections in British Guiana, and at the age of 60, he became the first Amerindian Member of Parliament in Guyanese history.

The minister noted that Campbell died on May 12, 1966, two weeks before British Guiana gained Independence from Britain.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

Chinese doctor who raised early alarm over coronavirus dies

…Beijing declares ‘people’s war’

SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) - One of the first Chinese doctors who tried to warn the world about a new coronavirus died on Friday from the illness, as Beijing declared a “people’s war” on the fast-spreading outbreak.

Li Wenliang, 34, was an

ophthalmologist at a hospital in Wuhan, the city hardest hit by the outbreak. He and seven others were reprimanded by Wuhan police last month for spreading “illegal and false” information about the coronavirus. Li had told a group of doctors on Chinese social

media about seven cases he saw and posted a picture of a test result in an effort to help other doctors. As the death toll in mainland China jumped by 73 to 563, with more than 28,000 infections, President Xi Jinping sought to reassure his citizens and the world that China would

Passengers wearing face masks look out from a cabin on the World Dream cruise ship, after it had been denied entry in Taiwan amid concerns of coronavirus infection on board, at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong, China February 6, 2020. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

beat the coronavirus. “The whole country has responded with all its strength to respond with the most thorough and strict prevention and control measures, starting a people’s war for epidemic prevention and control,” Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying in a telephone call with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman. In a striking image of the epidemic’s reach, about 3,700 people moored off Japan on the Diamond Princess faced testing and quarantine for at least two weeks on the ship, which has 20 cases. In Hong Kong, another cruise ship with 3,600 passengers and crew was quarantined for a second day pending testing with three cases on board. Taiwan, which has 13 cases, banned international cruise ships from docking. In China, sometimes dubbed the world’s workshop, cities have been shut off, flights cancelled and factories closed, cutting off supply lines crucial to international businesses.

CORPORATE FALLOUT Companies including Hyundai Motor Co (005380.

KS), Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), Ford Motor Co (F.N), PSA Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA), Nissan Motor Co Ltd (7201.T), Airbus (AIR.PA), Adidas (ADSGn. DE) and Foxconn (2317.TW) are taking hits. Financial analysts have cut China’s growth outlook, with ratings agency Moody’s flagging risks for auto sales and output. Nintendo Co Ltd (7974.T) warned of delays to production and

shipping of its Switch console and other goods to the Japan market. Honda Motor Co (7267.T) was considering keeping operations suspended for longer than planned at its three plants in Wuhan, Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reported. Indonesia said it stands to lose $4 billion in tourism if travel from China is disrupted for the whole year. Passengers wearing face masks look out from a cabin on the World Dream cruise ship, after it had been denied entry in Taiwan amid concerns of coronavirus infection on board, at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong, China February 6, 2020. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu More than two dozen large trade fairs and industry conferences in Asia, where billions of dollars worth of deals are usually done, have been postponed.

Chinese-ruled Hong Kong, hit by months of anti-China unrest, said the coronavirus was hurting its economy and urged banks to adopt a “sympathetic stance” with borrowers. But U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he still expected China to maintain its commitment to boost purchases of American goods and services by at least $200 billion over the next two years, as part of a Phase 1 trade deal.

And stock markets across the world rose, buoyed by record highs on Wall Street and a move by China to halve tariffs on some U.S. goods that emboldened bets the global economy would avoid long-

term damage from the virus.

China, which has bristled at being ostracised, was considering delaying an annual meeting of its highest legislative body, the National People’s Congress, from March 5, sources said.

RUSH FOR HIV DRUG The World Health Organization (WHO) said it was too early to say the outbreak was peaking, but noted the country had recorded its first day of a drop in the number of new infections. “We are still in the middle of an intense outbreak,” said WHO emergencies expert Mike Ryan, calling it “a great worry.”

WHO epidemiologist Maria van Kerkhove, said the virus causes a full spectrum of disease, from what looks like the common cold to pneumonia including multiple organ failure and death. One Chinese official said the crisis could be nearing its peak, with just over 1,300 patients discharged from hospital, although the number of new patients diagnosed with coronavirus was still rising.

“The darkest time is before the dawn,” the official said.

“I have full confidence that we’re going to get ahead of it.” “The biggest challenge is still to control the spread of the disease, and let all the suspected patients be cured in the hospital.” Devy, a 38-year-old from Shandong province, said he was among hundreds who had asked people with HIV for antiviral medicine.

“When you are left alone, seeing the blur shadow of death far away, I think no one can feel calm,” Devy told Reuters. People were also desperate for face masks.

The city of Dali, in southwestern Yunnan province, with only eight confirmed cases of the virus, was accused of intercepting a shipment of masks bound for a municipality with 400 cases. In the overwhelmed province of Hubei, of which Wuhan is the capital, authorities said they needed another 2,250 medical staff at least. Around a nation unaccustomed to widespread working from home, the epidemic has forced millions of white-collar workers to get used to just that.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

Key ruling on residency requirement for voting Monday …Court of Appeal wraps up hearing after lengthy submissions by lawyers

By Svetlana Marshall ATTORNEYS in the appeal – Attorney General-v-Christopher Ram and others– went head-to-head in a legal battle of words on the validity of Constitutional Amendment No. 4 of 1991, which sets residency as a requirement for voting in Guyana. The arguments formed part of the overall challenge to the High Court’s decision to block the removal of persons from the National Register of Registrants Database (NRRDB), and the Court of Appeal has announced that it will hand down its judgment in the case on Monday, February 10, 2020.

In the partial appeal – the Attorney General-v-Christopher Ram, the Chief Elections Officer, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and the Guyana Bar Association (Amicus Curiae) – the Appellate Court, upon hearing a series of arguments, asked the two sides to submit arguments on the validity of the Constitution Amendment Act No. 4 of 1991, taking into account the provisions of Article 164 of the Constitution; and secondly, if validly enacted, to address the question of residency in Article 159 (2) (a) for qualification to be registered as an elector.

On Thursday, as the lawyers responded to the questions posed by the Appellate Court, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams, and his battery of lawyers rejected arguments by the opposing sides that the amendment was a sunset legislation, maintaining that the residency requirement was reinstituted in 1991. The contention that a referendum was required was also shot down by the Attorney General and his team.

The Solicitor General, Nigel Hawke, in supporting the Attorney General’s position, told the panel of three judges led by Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag), Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards, that the contention by Ram’s Attorney, Anil Nandlall, that the amendment to the Constitution had to be done by way of a referendum holds no merit. Pointing to Article 164 (2) (b) of the Constitution, the Solicitor General said what is mandated is a two-thirds vote.

The referendum is required to satisfy Article 159 (2) (a) and not Article 159 (2) (b) of the Constitution, he submitted to the court.

Interjecting, Nandlall admitted to the court that he

erred when he submitted that a referendum was required. “I am withdrawing that aspect of my submission,” he told the appellate judges.

In response, the Solicitor General said Ram and his attorney, having agreed that the amendment was properly carried, is suggesting to the court that Constitutional Amendment No. 4 of 1991was a sunset (temporary) legislation, but that contention, he said, must be rejected.

Hawke told the court that

differing and unrelated matters. These unrelated matters, he emphasised, were reviving Parliament and introducing the residency requirement.

The Solicitor General was keen on pointing out that when the Legislature introduced the residency requirement there was no state of

Attorney General Basil Williams

Attorney Anil Nandlall

Solicitor General Nigel Hawke

it is not a sunset provision but rather a deeming provision.

The Amendment provides: “Section Two (e) shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 28th September, 1991, section 2(f) shall be deemed to come into operation on the 26th March, 1991.” The amendment brought to life that which did not exist, he said, explaining that the Parliament, having being dissolved had to be recalled. In support of his arguments, the Solicitor General alluded to Justice Appeal Keith Messiah, in the case of Nielsen-v-Barker and another.

“In the draftsman's thesaurus the word "deemed" must rank as perhaps the most utilitarian.

In its normal signification it means "regarded as a being" or "considered to be". By its employment in a statute something could be made out of nothing, and matters of apparent significance reduced to the level of mere trivia,” Justice Messiah had said.

Hawke said the amendment fundamentally created a legal anomaly because the parliament and the members, which did not exist, were recreated. “The sun had already set on the parliament, so how could parliament introduce sunset legislation to a parliament that is dead? It is legally impossible,” he told the appellate judges.

According to him, a clear and objective reading of the Amendment Act would reveal that the piece of legislation sought to amend different articles of the Constitution that touched and concerned

General, in his submission, made reference to Article

emergency or other transience pertaining to the residence of the electors to suggest that the residency provision was introduced to address these issues.

Importantly, he said, the Constitution (Amendment) (No. 4) Act 1991 lacks the most important and defining feature of a sunset legislation – that is an expiration date or event by which the expiration of the Act may be determined.

Further, he said there are no reasonable grounds upon which an inference can be drawn that the Act, more specifically section Two (f) containing the residency requirement, was intended by the Legislature to be a sunset provision.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT In his original written submission, the Attorney General had argued that by virtue of Constitution (Amendment) No. 4 of 1991, the residency requirement for voting in Guyana was reinstituted and became a necessary requirement to qualify to be an elector. Article 159 2(a) of the Constitution, he argued, was amended to read to include the residency requirement.

“Albeit an argument may be advanced that there was omission of the alteration of the revised constitution by section Two (f) of the Constitution (Amendment) (No.4) Act 1991 (Act No. 36 of 1991) and that the omission of an alteration to the article of the revised edition of the Constitution, this omission whether inadvertent or not, does not affect the validity of the article of the Constitution,” he said while pointing to Section 10 of the Law Revision Act, Chapter 2:02.

Further, in support of his position, the Attorney

159 (2) (C), explaining that it provides a mechanism to facilitate the socio-political changes that would necessitate the extension of the list of qualifications.

Article 159 (2) (C) reads: “(two) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (three) and (four), a person shall be qualified to be registered as an elector for elections for elections if, and shall not be so qualified unless, on the qualifying date, he or she is of the age of eighteen years or upwards and either – (C) satisfies such other qualifications as may be prescribed by or under any law.”

He, therefore, argued that by virtue of that provision, Section six (two) (a) of the National Registration Act, Chapter 19:08 makes residency part of the list of qualifications under “any law.”

On Thursday, the Attorney General, in expounding on his original submission, explained that it was not the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM’s) intention to remove persons from the list, but rather to generate a new register based on data collected during the 2019 house-to-house registration.

“Article 159 (five) [of the Constitution] states that by a qualifying date GECOM has the option to compile a new

register or revise a register,” Minister Williams told the court.

He submitted to the Appellate Court that once a new National Register of Registrants Data Base (NRRDB) is developed, the old register is retired.

That aside, the Attorney General respectfully submitted to the Appellate Court that Ram and the Guyana Bar Association failed and neglected to provide and furnish any evidence of overseas voting since 1991. “The Act wasn’t inactive; the Constitutional Amendments and Elections Law were not inactive, they were being applied since 1991 because there has been no overseas voting since 1991, you had to be resident in Guyana to vote,” the Attorney General argued.

In responding to the arguments submitted by the Attorney General and is team, Nandlall reminded the Appellate Court that the elections were due in 1990 but were held in 1992 due to prevailing circumstances. “A series of reforms took place, some of which needed legislative support and this piece of legislation, which is under review, is part and parcel of a menu of legislation enacted at the time. Many of them or most of them were specially to deal with and only to deal with, the peculiar circumstances

which arose at that particular juncture and their efficacy and validity did not extend beyond that factual matrix they were intended to address.

They died a natural death when those circumstances, they were intended to cater for, came and went,” Nandlall submitted to the court.

Senior Counsel, Stanley Marcus, the attorney representing GECOM, told the Appellate Court that Nandlall should not add to the legislation that which is not there. Like the Solicitor General, Marcus emphasised that within a sunset legislation, duration and event are clearly stated.

“In none of those provisions do you find a limitation either by date or by event, and I respectfully submit that for you to have a sunset provision you need a time limit or an event, which when occurs will activate a particular sunset provision,” the Senior Counsel emphasised.

Attorney-at-Law, Sanjeev Datadin and Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, the attorney representing the Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, also made submissions on Thursday.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 07, 2020 -- 4:00HRS TO 5:30HRS

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GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

National Youth Corps and job creation

In his address at the coalition’s elections campaign rally at Diamond, East Bank Demerara Wednesday night President David Granger assured that if reelected the coalition will ensure that the country’s youth benefit from a minimum of 10,000 jobs and career paths which his government will realise in the various economic initiatives during the Decade of Development.

The President told the rally that his government has already created the path for job creation for the country’s youths through a series of initiatives among them being the re-vitalised Guyana Youth Corps- the successor of the Guyana National Service, which the PPP had disbanded leaving many persons, including school leavers out in the cold. He told the gathering that the administration re-established the

youth corps and according to him, 1000 young Guyanese will be trained annually by the institution over the next 10 years. None can deny the importance of such a focus given that the future of our young demographic, if not addressed in a forceful and concerted manner, is perilous.

With his bold announcement, President Granger is saying that the crisis in the youth community will no longer go unno¬ticed or will a hodgepodge or piecemeal approach in seeking to fix it, suffice. Approximately two-thirds of this society is 40 years and younger, which means that Guyana not only has a healthy human capital pool at the most productive period of their lives, but is under-utilising such talents which carry dire consequences for development, inclusive of self and nation.

The hope demonstrated

back in 2015 by the young in getting involved to shape the political destiny of the coun¬try speaks to a group that no longer wants to be invisible, but being a major player in moulding their destiny. Thus the pro¬nouncement by President Granger must be seen as a response to the growing, visible activism to not be on the side lines of affecting their affairs and the course of the nation’s direction. The Youth Corps (1968) was the precursor to the Guyana National Service (1975-2000) which suffered the injuries of having its objectives misrepresented.

As the concept for the Youth Corps unfolds, it requires the involvement of stakehold¬ers to ensure avoidance of the pitfalls of the past, and ensure the programme meets the acceptable desire of the young community. Staying engaged on this idea is a responsibility of every citizen, more so the

older among us, who have a responsibility to create the enabling environment for younger generations to bloom and grow.

Opportunities for learning need not only be readily ac¬cessible but also affordable because in this growing complex world ignorance is not a choice. The youth corps clearly is identified with this principle as the students of this institution are receiving free training that will equip them for life. The benefits of the youth corps has seen more people being put into productive activities, which will enhance various sectors in the economy, even as it creates new ones. With government’s aim of pursuing economic development in a sustainable manner, focusing on the protection of the envi¬ronment can propel the transformation needed in tackling climate change.

The importance of youth to

national development has, clearly, been recognised by the APNU+AFC administration. At the launch of the NYC, President Granger said, “We have a youthful population – Youth are our main resource, our richest resource. Half of our people are below the age of 24. One in every five Guyanese is between the ages of 15 and 24.”

His Excellency noted that, if Guyana is to fulfil its destiny as a land of opportunity and prosperity, the country must harness the potential of its majority – its young people.

The president said, “This country will falter if its youth flounders; it will remain poor and undeveloped as long as its youth remain undeveloped.”

President Granger’s remarks clearly indicated his administration’s defined priorities. Guyanese will agree that young people are the ones who give effect

to the ideas of the typically older leaders in politics, business and other sectors.

We will also agree that youth are not only the leaders of tomorrow; they are also partners to the leaders of today. As such, arguably, youth play the widest role in nation-building. It is therefore necessary that youth be given the opportunities, skills, and tools to live productive lives, improve themselves, and elevate their standards and values, as they prepare to assume the role of the leaders and decision-makers of the future. The present-day NYC, which was constructed within the framework of government’s National Youth Policy, has objectives and principles that meet those criteria.

PPP/C ‘Dark Ages’ political culture should be condemned Dear Editor, I HAVE just listened to the very enduring and informative Basil Bradshaw’s ‘Wake Up Guyana’ morning show, and what was related about the experiences of the Azeez family of Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice, from excerpts of the Dave Television Channel Eight telecast, amounts to political harassment and outright goon tactics and thuggery being perpetrated on a Guyanese and his family, because of their democratic right of political choice and affiliation.

This is undoubtedly the work of the PPP/C’s criminal

agents being let loose on an Indo-Guyanese who they feel have no right to break ranks, regardless of their democratic preference and right to exercising such.

To have destroyed Mr. Azeez’s place of business, in addition to defacing its walls with PPP/C slogans, is an unqualified manifestation of a party that, despite their decades-old claim to being democratic, has aggregated an unenviable record of trampling democratic norms, inclusive of the right of freedom of expression, and the democratic will of choice.

And, to think that this is the party which the man of “prayerful considerations”

represented the other day as “democratic’’. As a reminder to him, it is because of such injustices that Jesus Christ, who may have come down, did not even walk through Robb Street, much less support the PPP/C! Two examples of this ugly track record of a party that is still wholly Stalinist in political culture will suffice: The two recent examples of Khemraj Ramjattan and Moses Nagamootoo, publicly derided as ‘neemakarran’ in the Hindu dialect for having taken the heroic decision to leave the PPP/C with which they both would have been associated for so many decades. They have both been

ridiculed publicly, in the print and broadcast media owned by the PPP/C-aligned media houses. They have been especially singled out for the vilest attacks on social media in this ‘Silly Season’. These two cases give credence to the fact of a party’s culture which pays lip service to political plurality; a culture which it has never practised; does not believe in or embrace. It exposes the falsity of its claim to democracy.

Just talk!

To be threatening the Azeezes that they will have to remove from their village in the event of a PPP/C victory, underlines the well-known bullyism and vindictive

brands for which this PPP/C party has become notoriously famous. Here again is the unmistakable totalitarian culture of a party which believes that it has the birth certificate for all Indo-Guyanese, who are bound, hand and foot, to support it until death.

One is certain that there are similar tribulations being encountered by Indo-Guyanese supporters of the Coalition in other well-known PPP/C areas. Therefore, the trenchant attacks on Mr. Azeez must be seen as an open threat to all other Indo-Guyanese supporters of the Coalition government, designed to cow them into submission. This is an assault

on democracy, and must be exposed wherever it is taking place.

Those Indo-Guyanese supporters, as well as all democratically-minded Guyanese, must continue to reject such Dark Ages political culture, which is about the denial of the right of political choice and affiliation. All Guyanese must speak out against this wellknown PPP/C communist culture of denying the right of political choice. The days of dictatorship and political bullying are over!

Regards, Aditya Panday

GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

7

Jan Mangal is one bitter man

Dear Editor,

I WOULD like to share my views relating to the personal attacks on Mr. Carl Greenidge by Mr. Jan Mangal, a former adviser to President David Granger. From the onset, I would like to state that Mr. Mangal has descended to a new state of bitterness since his dismal for poor performance as Adviser to

the President of Guyana, on Oil and Gas. I must bring to light that while he was employed in that position, as Presidential Adviser he was instrumental in bidding for Chevron (his former employer, or maybe he is still on their payroll) ahead of more credible companies. His tenure has been marred by with incompetence, and while he fancies to speak so much about Guy-

ana’s oil and gas, he should explain to the Guyanese population how his brother won a major contract to manage an onshore base in Guyana.

Further, he has been caught propagating lies against the PPP/C and has been exposed, so he is now attacking the current administration, accusing it of mismanaging the oil and gas sector. Where will this man stop at covering up his lies

These elections are too important --for nation to use a list that is clearly imperfect

Dear Editor, THE article seen in the Thursday February 6 edition of the Kaieteur News, titled ‘ A maddening bloated Voter’s List’, is instructive, and I believe a comment from the contesting political parties should be forthcoming.

The situation is worrisome, and as one who has been close to general elections since the granting of Universal Adult Suffrage more than six decades ago, it is unacceptable that a Final Voters’ List should represent a percentage of our population that renders the numbers a total absurdity.

The article, ‘A maddening bloated Voter’s List, should be should read, reread and digested. For this and other reasons, I earlier urged that the Observers be represented at each and every Polling Place, and not as happened before, seem to focus their attention on

certain urban areas.

My attitude to Observers is generally known, but their presence and involvement is now a fait accompli. If this be the case, then my letter needs to be taken seriously

by GECOM and the contesting political parties. As a concerned citizen, dipping your finger in the indelible ink provided by GECOM can literally be a cosmetic, or if you prefer, futile operation.

We have known in certain areas, where the finger is not even really dipped. Next, what scientific analysis do we have to show that the ink supplied is the same throughout the country on E-Day. Why House-to-House registration was suspended is a great tragedy, but that’s another matter, and water under the bridge.

These elections are too important for the nation to use a list that is clearly imperfect. It is not too late to salvage this sad situation.

As an aside, I note that the

Director-General of the Ministry of the Presidency met with a team from the Carter Center, and he assured them that the Government has made all financial resources available to GECOM so that the latter can deliver credible elections.

However, I would have preferred for Mr. Harmon to remind the Carter Center of the role they played in previous Elections, and that he should have extracted from them an undertaking that their scrutiny would be fair and not encumbered by a philosophy which characterised the Carter Center of the late 80s and 90s. I have publicly referred to this apparent philosophy, and the Carter Center operating out of Atlanta is aware of what I am talking about.

Regards, Hamilton Green

and illusions; seems like his pit of lies is bottom-less.

Now presumably under pressure, or threats from APNU/AFC, he is sucking up to the current administration, and I believe I speak for the majority of APNU supporters when I say we don’t need Jan Mangal. As such, I would like to congratulate the President for not renewing his contract. He has been sitting in Houston,

USA and collecting millions from the Guyanese treasury.

He is a parasite, only eyeing up Guyana’s oil-and- gas wealth, after other patriotic Guyanese had to bite the bullet and do all the hard work.

Now Jan Mangal wants to be our knight in shining armour.

I dare say NO!!!!.

Editor, this man is very crafty and shifty; he is using the old “push-and-pull tactic”, playing his game to

stay in bed with the APNU government. But we don’t need him. Mr. Mangal should be reprimanded for launching vile attacks on Guyanese of both political divide. Apologise forthwith, and please take your eyes off our oil-and-gas fortune.

Regards, Mark Fraser

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday February 7, 2020

Moving through the GDF ranks to becoming chief magistrate

COLONEL Ann McLennan, the chief magistrate of Guyana, enlisted in the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) in September 1985.

As a young student of the Bishops’ High School, she would eagerly look forward to witnessing military parades, which always fascinated her.

It was her work-study attachment at the Guyana Defence Force Credit Union though, which sealed her decision to enlist, as this presented an opportunity for her to learn more about the organisation she was contemplating to join and make a career.

She successfully graduated from the Standard Officers’ Course 17 in 1986.

The chief magistrate gained her Bachelor of Laws Degree (Hons) from the UWI (Cave Hill Campus, 1994), the Legal Education Certificate from the Sir Hugh Wooding Law School, Trinidad (1996) and a Post Graduate Certificate in Diplomacy from the University of Guyana.

She was admitted to the Bar in Guyana in 1996.

Ms. McLennan then returned to the Force and went on to hold several appointments including Trainee Welfare Officer, Admin Officer Ground Forces Group, Personal Assistant to the Force Commander, Commanding Officer Medical Corps and Legal Services Department, Staff Officer 2 within the G1 Branch and Staff Officer to the Chief-of-Staff.

In 2007, enthusiastic to expand her legal career and to give further service to country, permission was granted for her to be seconded to the Judiciary to sit as a magistrate in the Georgetown Magisterial District.

She has presided over Courts in the Georgetown, West Demerara and East Demerara Magisterial Districts. She was appointed chief magistrate in 2015 and presently presides over the Court 1, Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.

“I have no regrets for enlisting in the Guyana Defence Force. Apart from my secondment to the Judicia-

ry, I spent all of my adult life in the military. Once you enlist, your life is never the same again. The life of a female Officer has its ups and downs and some challenges but it is no different from any other profession. The Force has structure and is organised, as such, you are taught to do everything when you enlist, from making your bed to tying your booth lace and that is what is fantastic about the Army, “she said.

As a young officer and mother, it was not always easy for her to fulfil both roles, however, Col McLennan stated that she was always grateful for the support of her biological as well as her military family.

She believes that the Force has evolved over the years and has provided a more enriching career experience for both female officers and other Ranks with more administrative support.

“As we celebrate 53 years as a body of women in the Force supporting the men, I encourage my fellow female officers and ranks to continue their excellent work as they

Chief Magistrate Colonel, Ann McLennan

aim to fulfil the mission of the corps and Force. We have come a long way and there is no turning back, the men cannot survive without

Over 50-member EU Observation Mission launched

By Lisa Hamilton

A TEAM of over 50 European Union (EU) Elections Observers will soon form a Mission observing Guyana’s 2020 General and Regional Elections with an eye out for potential fraud, intimidation, violence or anything which affects a transparent and credible electoral process.

The Observation Mission was officially launched on Thursday at the Marriott Hotel where members of the public were addressed by Estonian Politician and Chief Observer, Urmas Paet.

This marks the first time that the EU has deployed a fully-fledge operation mission to Guyana with a team of 14 long-term observers already deployed to various regions of the country. “The presence of the European Union Election Observation Mission demonstrates the European Union’s commitment to the conduct of inclusive, transparent and credible elections in Guyana,” Paet stated.

“We focus our observation not only on Election Day but on the entire election process including the campaign, the results tabulation and the resolution of any election-related dispute after voting has finished.”

A total of nine elections experts from the mission arrived in Guyana on January 25, 2020 and soon 20 short-term observers and other locally-recruited short-term observers will reinforce the team.

The locally recruited observers will come from EU Members States and diplomatic missions accredited to Guyana and together they will observe the voting process, counting and the tabulation of results.

“The mission is independent in its findings and conclusions and EU observers adhere to a strict Code of Conduct of International Observers which requires them to maintain neutrality and impartiality in the course of their work and do not interfere in the electoral process,” Paet explained.

our support and we thank them for supporting us. I want to urge every female officer and soldier to never limit themselves and look to the achievement of former members who have excelled, as their motivation,” the chief magistrate noted.

She said that Guyana is now a petroleum producing country and over the years the WAC has produced many persons in academia including lawyers, doctors, nurses, engineers, paratroopers, pilots, chefs, nutritionist, bartenders, secretaries, administrative assistants, ministers of the government and a chief magistrate, just to name a few.

“I encourage any young woman who wants to give the best service in the world, to enlist today and I can assure you there will be no regrets. I see the Force in the near future appointing Female Battalion Commanders and look forward one day to our first female chief-of-staff. I wish all officers and ranks of the WAC a happy 53rd anniversary,” the chief magistrate noted.

Foreign Minister, Chinese envoy hold talks on cooperation, Coronavirus

Estonian Politician and Chief Observer, Urmas Paet (Adrian Narine photo) “We do hope that our presence will have a positive effect on reinforcing confidence in the process and that it will help to deter any potential fraud, intimidation and violence.”

The mission will also assess the extent to which the elections are in compliance with the Laws of Guyana and international and Regional commitments for democratic elections to which Guyana is a signature.

Some of these include the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination, Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities amongst others.

Leading up to Elections Day, the mission will also assess the legal framework, the voter and candidate registration, the campaigning environment, elections preparations, the role of civil societies and the role of the media.

The neutrality and independence of the judiciary and the election administration as well as transparency of operations such as the tabulation and publication of results will also be examined.

On March 4, 2020, the EU Mission

will issue a preliminary statement detailing its initial assessment of the electoral process. A more comprehensive report will be issued three months post-elections which will include recommendations for future elections.

The Chief Observer stated: “The European Union attaches great significance to these elections. We stand ready to deliver an impartial, objective assessment of the electoral process and call on all stakeholders to respect the rules and refrain from inflammatory language and violence…as impartial elections observers, we don’t care who wins; we care about how they win.”

That same day, the Observer Mission was also scheduled to meet with Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Karen Cummings; Chair of GECOM, Justice Claudette Singh; and representatives of The Citizenship Initiative (TCI) and the Liberty and Justice Party (LJP).

Paet stated that the Observer Mission has thus far received a warm welcome from elections stakeholders; thanked President David Granger for the invitation to observe the elections and thanked the EU Member states and Norway for their support of the mission.

China’s Ambassador to Guyana, Cui Jianchun, and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Karen Cummings

CHINA’S Ambassador to Guyana, Cui Jianchun, on Thursday, met with Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Karen Cummings, to discuss enhancement of bilateral cooperation and the current outbreak of novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).

The Foreign Minister lauded the Government of China for the work being done to contain the virus. Guyana hoped to implement a similar model, she noted. Ambassador Jianchun then informed Minister Cummings that two Guyanese students in Wuhan were receiving assistance from the Government of China. Further, they discussed increased people-to-people interactions at both the government and private sector levels.

Dr. Cummings also used the opportunity to update the Chinese Ambassador on Guyana’s Decade of Development: 2020-2029, specifically as it related to economic growth, infrastructural development, healthcare and education. Guyana and China established diplomatic relations on June 27, 1972, and continue to maintain a vibrant programme of cooperation.

GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

Tech-savvy professionals also in great demand

9

--educators agree at TVET rebranding workshop

TECHNICAL, vocational education and training (TVET) is not second-class to traditional education, being it’s just as important in the development of a country, and the Ministry of Education (MoE) is working to ensure that this importance is correctly recognised.

This was emphasised by MoE Permanent Secretary Alfred King, and Chairman of the Council for TVET, and Board of Industrial Training (BIT) Clinton Williams when they spoke on Thursday at a TVET Workshop held at the Umana Yana.

“TVET should not be seen as an option or alternative. Technical education has to take its rightful place as part of the mainstream product, where you can achieve competence and certification to take you straight to the world of work or higher levels of education,” King stressed to an audience that included representatives from a number of education sectors.

The event was attended by heads of the varying TVET institutions, as well as representatives from the University of Guyana and Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE); officers from the National Centre for Educational Resources Development (NCERD), and BIT; and the head teachers of several secondary schools among other education stakeholders.

The workshop, which was held under the theme, “Rebranding TVET in the decade of Green State Development; Streamlining

TVET in Secondary Schools with particular emphasis on hinterland communities”, is part of other initiatives orchestrated by the Ministry of Education to reshape the image of TVET in Guyana.

TVET education has of-

Aside from oil and gas, which is considered a most topical sector, Williams said focus is also being placed on technical and vocational training for mining and mineral processing; agriculture and agro-processing; infra-

TVET Council and BIT Chairman Clinton Williams

A section of the audience at the TVET Workshop (Delano Williams photo)

ten been utilised by many school dropouts who did not fare well in the traditional school system. As such, over the years, it has developed an image as a programme catering primarily to such students, notwithstanding attracting many qualified students.

“It has been established internationally that there is a historical stigma to technical and vocational education, which leads to not enough being done; not enough people being directed to this area of work,” Williams noted.

As Guyana goes about rebranding the image of TVET nationally, Williams noted that the CTVET is targeting focus in areas applicable with economic sectors in Guyana.

structure development; information and communication technologies (ICT); and timber and timber processing.

Guyana’s initiative is also part of a wider initiative across the Caribbean to elevate the recognition and importance of TVET, as well as the development of standardised programmes that are recognised both across the Caribbean, regional and internationally.

“We want to have an inclusive national TVET system that meets the demand of global standards,” Williams said. “Our standards cannot simply be standards that are for ourselves, because we operate in a global world.

And if we don’t fit, we will be uncompetitive in what we do,” he added.

President Granger commissions ...

A DEVOUT CATHOLIC Stephen Campbell’s work began in the Indigenous communities with the Church. He was a devout Catholic and served as a Teacher and Catechist in various Regions of Guyana. He was an assistant teacher at Martindale R.C. School in the Pomeroon River, Head Teacher of St. Louis School and Teacher-Catechist among the Wapisiana Indians in the Rupununi. His service in the Rupununi was recognized as part of the Church’s efforts to convert members of the various Indigenous tribes to Christianity.

It is recorded that in 1919, Stephen Campbell dedicated his time to developing literacy among the Wapisiana tribe in the Rupununi and founded the first school in the village of Sawariwau. He lived in various locations in the Barima-Waini Region; in Pomeroon – Supenaam (Region Two); Cuyuni-Mazaruni (Region Seven) and in the Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo Region

Under the CARICOM Heads of Government agreement 2008, the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) was mandated to facilitate the issuing of the Caribbean Vocational Qualifications (CVQ) within

(Region Nine).

“It was while working at a Waini Saw Mill that his interest in politics developed. He took the opportunity to look into the interest of Amerindians who were clamouring for representation. Their chance came with the introduction of Universal Adult Suffrage and that gave Stephen Campbell and members of the Indigenous community the opportunity to participate and express themselves in General Elections, where he served as Presiding Officer,” said Minister Felix.

Stephen Campbell became the first Amerindian to contest the General Elections in British Guiana. He served as a member of the Legislative Council from September 10, 1957, until May 1961.

“As a Member of Parliament, he showed a keen interest in land rights for Amerindians and his greatest achievement was the act of crafting the Amerindian Act, the development of better

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health facilities, implementation of postal service, the development of agriculture in the NorthWest District, and improved wages,” Minister Felix added.

Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo; Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr. Barton Scotland; Ministers of State, Foreign Affairs, Public Health, Social Cohesion, Social Protection and within the Ministry of the Presidency, Mrs. Dawn Hastings-Williams, Dr. Karen Cummings, Ms. Volda Lawrence, Dr. George Norton, Mr. Keith Scott and Ms. Simona Broomes respectively also attended the commissioning.

Also in attendance were Stephen Campbell’s granddaughter, Ms. Anna Correia Bevaun and great-granddaughters, Ms. Naiomi Bevaun, and Mrs. Gabrielle Parsram, who was accompanied by her husband, Mr. Shawn Parsram. (Ministry of the Presidency)

secondary schools across the region.

Guyana currently has some 10 technical institutes distributed across the country, including in Linden, Essequibo, Berbice, and on

the West Coast of Demerara among other places.

Additionally, beginning in September 2019, the MoE piloted CVQ programmes in 11 secondary schools to provide secondary school students with validation of skills.

King said that now is the time for TVET to be seen as an option for all students, and more focus will be placed on the area as the MoE goes forward, crafting a five-year strategic plan.

“The ministry is at that point where we’re reviewing developing our strategic plan that will guide the ministry’s delivery of education for the

next five years. TVET will have to be a part of this work plan,” he said.

King, himself a former TVET instructor, also told the audience that TVET instructors and teachers also play a vital role in raising the standard of the image of TVET. “Unless you demonstrate an understanding and pride in what you do, you would not help with the branding,” he said, adding: “We have to stop thinking what we’re doing is second-class to anything else that we offer.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

Seize opportunities for self-development -- First Lady encourages CEPAM graduates

FIRST LADY, Sandra Granger, on Thursday, encouraged 25 girls and young women, who participated in a Comprehensive Empowerment Programme for Adolescent Mothers (CEPAM) which was organised by Women Across Differences (WAD), to be proud of themselves and their achievement.

Mrs Granger, during a simple graduation exercise held at the Baridi Benab, State House, urged them to capitalise on every available educational opportunity as they are the future leaders of Guyana.

“I can say this without fear of contradiction that I am always thrilled when women, and in particular young women, seize the opportunities that are offered for their growth and development….

You are the next leaders of our country and I would like to encourage you to seize every opportunity [that] you are offered to educate yourselves [and] to take your rightful place in society,” Mrs Granger said.

The CEPAM programme aims to build the self-esteem and self-worth of teen mothers through education and empowerment. The First Lady noted that many of the graduates of the programme and members of WAD have moved on to become success

stories.

She used the occasion to encourage the young women not to let challenges deter them from achieving their goals and to always have a bright and positive outlook towards their futures.

“The sky is the limit! So you see, you can do whatever you want. I urge you to look beyond the professional fields in which women have traditionally worked.

You are living in the age of technology... you need to acquire the skills and training that are necessary for employment not only in the oil and gas sector, but also in agriculture, communications, computer programming and engineering, food processing,

hospitality etcetera. If you stumble and fall occasionally, that’s alright. You can get up, dust yourself off and carry on, knowing you have the support of your WAD team,” she said.

CEPAM is an initiative organised by Women Across Differences (WAD) in partnership with Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited (RBL).

During the year-long programme, participants are given psychosocial support, while being taught entrepreneurship skills, academics, family planning and other subject areas. The First Lady serves as patron of WAD. Meanwhile, Coordinator of WAD, Clonel Samuels-Boston, in her address,

Floral decoration and other soft furnishings, area rugs and place mats made by the graduates of the Comprehensive Empowerment Programme for Adolescent Mothers (CEPAM) which was organised by Women Across Differences (WAD) in partnership with the Office of the First Lady and Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited

First Lady, Sandra Granger, second from right, along with, from left to right, Secretary-General of UNESCO, Patrice La Fleur; Coordinator of Women Across Difference (WAD), Clonel Samuels-Boston and Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited Marketing and Communications Manager, Jonelle Dumette (first from right) at the Comprehensive Empowerment Programme for Adolescent Mothers (CEPAM) graduation ceremony

said adolescence pregnancy remains prevalent in society.

In this regard, she said WAD is committed to collaborating with its partners such as the Office of the First Lady and RBL, to provide a second chance at success for teen mothers. Samuels-Boston also noted that the feedback and impact of the programme has been overwhelming.

Since its commencement in 2009, a total of 545 adolescent mothers have benefited.

She urged the young women

to stay focused and to utilise the knowledge they would have gained for their own self-development.

“The future ahead looks promising, not only for the programme but also for the adolescence mothers… I challenge you to stay focused, keep the positives and discard the negatives… remember that there are always solutions for everything,” she said.

Additionally, RBL’s Marketing and Communications

Manager, Jonelle Dumette, emphasised her bank’s commitment to continued partnership with WAD in pursuit of the empowerment of girls and young women.

She noted that the initiative will ensure that the participants have access to social and economic resources and life skills.

“We, at Republic Bank, are firmly committed to the development and empowerment of women… Be assured that Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited will continue in support of this group even as we look at ways in which we can expand our support,” she said.

At the close of the ceremony, the First Lady viewed an exhibition of decorative items created by the teenage mothers and which were on display. The programme also included cultural programmes such as poems, dances and musical renditions from local reggae and soca artistes, Mark Batson and Michelle ‘Big Red’ King.

Representatives of the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Irfan Akhtar and Jewel Crosse; Secretary-General of the National Commission for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Patrice La Fleur; representatives of the Peace Corps, Yefi Oshodi and Lucy Cumberbatch and the Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Social Protection, Mohan Ramrattan also attended.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

‘We don’t have to be afraid of phantom squads anymore’ ….Min Felix hails govt’s efforts at tackling crime, reforming police force that, “Granger ?xed that problem.”

Felix also noted that the fire service has been enhanced and to date, a number of facilities to enhance the work of the Guyana Fire Service have been established across the country. He also noted that one can

By Alva Solomon GUYANESE must not allow the Peoples Progressive Party to forget the past and according to Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix, the APNU+AFC Coalition will continue to expend finances on reformation of the security sector and improve services offered by the Department of Citizenship.

“They owe this nation an apology,” he said, noting that it is for the 21 policemen who died in that violent crime wave post2002. “There are no longer human rights abuses,” he said, adding that if they do occur, they are dealt with forthwith.”

Felix, who is the campaign manager for the East Bank Demerara corridor, told a mammoth crowd at the Diamond Market Tarmac that no other first-term government has

Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix, as he addressed the gathering on Wednesday evening

The large gathering at the Diamond Market Tarmac (Adrian Narine photos)

done as much as the David Granger administration, geared at development of the country.

He said President David Granger has placed a “careful eye on law enforcement” and according to Felix, a number of initiatives have been put in place over the past four years to address crime. To this end, he spoke of the Safe City security project which saw closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) being placed around the city to augment the police work in undertaking its duties.

The Safe City programme operates on an independent government-owned fibre optic network managed by the National Data Management Authority (NDMA), an agency of the Ministry of Public Telecommunications.

It has no points of entry or gateways for any third party – individuals or companies and the network is physically independent.

It is physically isolated from the eGovernment platform which provides connectivity to government institutions, agencies, schools, health and other public facilities.

Felix also noted that government has invested $110M in procuring DNA and gun-residue testing equipment to aid the police in its crime-fighting agenda.” We are putting our money where the developmental needs are,” he said to the large crowd which gathered shortly after 17:00hrs on Wednesday.

He said that the investment by the government has resulted in the reduction of serious crimes from 2015 to date. “They have seized close to 596 illegal ?rearms in that period,”

he said of the Guyana Police Force’s efforts.

Felix also noted that there have been systems put in place to curb extra-judicial killings, adding that this has been an area which the police have been working to address. “I think that is a remarkable record,” he said, adding it shows the President’s character.

“And that’s why David Granger must get another chance,” he said to the jubilant crowd.

Felix told supporters that the March 2, 2020 elections this year is about choosing the best leader to take Guyana forward. He said that in less than five years, the David Granger-led government has achieved a lot and he noted that in 2015, the government took the nation out of fear which existed for years.

In this regard, he recalled the February 2002 jail break which led to a violent crime wave that swept the nation. He said a former Minister of Home Affairs permitted the prison of?cers to take the prisoners to Mashramani celebrations that year, and this was seen as an opportunity by some prisoners to break free.

“We had in that period something called massacres, massacre in Lusignan, Bartica and massacre in Linden,” he said, adding that it took the David Granger government to bring sanity to the country. “We don’t have to be afraid of the phantom,” he said.

Felix also recalled that Guyana was known for a high incidence of drug trafficking, noting that cocaine went overseas in rum, lumber, and ?sh, among other items.

“Everything had cocaine,” he said adding

apply for a passport with less hassle these days and such is ready within five working days once the applicant’s particulars are in order. He said that the decentralisation of critical services is also benefitting the populace.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

Reg. 2 gets refrigerated truck

THE transfer of medical supplies from the Materials Management Unit of the Ministry of Public Health, Georgetown,

has now been made easier as the Health Service Programme in Region Two recently received a refrigerated truck.

The refrigerated truck that was handed over to Region Two on Tuesday

Regional Health Officer, Dr. Afarah Khan, speaking at the handing over ceremony

The truck was handed over on Tuesday evening by Regional Executive Officer, Denis Jaikarran. According to Jaikarran, the refrigeration part of the truck will be used to keep the medical supplies that are susceptible to heat in a safer environment. He said such a truck was needed in the region in an effort to properly store medicine when transported it to the region.

Accepting the truck was Regional Health Officer, Dr. Afarah Khan, who thanked the Region Two administration for making a wise purchase.

She said the refrigerated truck will trans-

Regional Executive Officer, Denis Jaikarran, handing over the keys to the truck

fer drugs and medical supplies from the Georgetown Public Hospital to the Suddie and Oscar Joseph District Hospital at Charity and health centres on the Essequibo Coast.

Khan said there has been an improvement of health services within the region over the past year and thanked the government for the many investments. Many persons, especially those living in the riverine areas, now have access to quality healthcare services.

Attending the handing over ceremony was People's National Congress Regional Chairman, Prince Holder, and Social Cohesion Officer, Audrey Garraway.

GBTI hosts jubilee anniversary social media contest THE Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI) has undertaken a social media contest that encourages participants to share reasons why they love Guyana, in observance of Guyana’s Golden Jubilee Republic Anniversary.

“Our 50th anniversary is a big thing for us as Guyanese and we wanted to have a fun way of celebrating, and what other way to do that than with social media,” the bank noted in a press statement.

The bank recently partnered with the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana and Impressions for the installation of the ‘I Love Guyana Sign’ at the new

tourism park in Kingston, Georgetown, which has become the new buzz area.

“To demonstrate our patriotic pride and connection and encourage others to do the same, we decided to have the contest centred on I love Guyana,” GBTI stated.

Participants are simply required to upload to their Instagram and or Facebook accounts a photo of themselves taken in front of the sign

with the hashtags ##GBTI #iloveguyana Ten photos with the most likes or shares will each receive USD$50.

Apart from this contest, the bank continues its longstanding support to the Ministry of Education, Allied Arts Department, in the hosting of the Children's Dramatic Poetry Competition.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

Sugar: Shifting the blame around

SUGAR and bauxite were seen as two of the major productive sectors in Guyana for many years. Both of them have had a very large workforce of Guyanese at all levels, with a relatively small amount of expatriates also working mainly in some of the management positions within the sectors.

But even as the tide turned and the then People’s National Congress (PNC) government demitted office in 1992, with the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) simultaneously taking office, serious decisions were already being made about the two industries, as well as others.

The PNC government had already started a reprogramming of these and other industries. In fact, part of that reprogramming had to do with the Economic Recovery Programme (ERP), which was started in 1989 by the Desmond Hoyte-led administration and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) playing an integral role in the ERP. However, by the time the PPP took office in late 1992, there was already a Country Report by the same IMF (Country Report No. 99/52), which stated in the summary: “By 1992, inflation had

declined markedly; the fiscal and external deficits were reduced substantially; and private and official capital inflows had risen significantly.”

There was also a report by the Private Sector Commission of Guyana, which stated: “The Guyana economy has been a free-market economy since the government instituted an Economic Recovery Programme in 1989.

(This was under the Hoyteled administration) This policy resulted in high rates of growth up to 1997 after which growth stagnated for several years.”

Further, in a report delivered by the then General Secretary of the PPP, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, to the Central Committee of the 25th Congress, held at Queen’s College, December 3-4 1994, he told the Congress: “Privatisation, through a Booker/Tate management contract, coupled with improved wages, salaries and bonuses and proper collective bargaining arrangements with the unions led to unprecedented growth of over 20% per year in 1991-92.

Even with the rundown machinery, the new management achieved in 1992 what it had planned to achieve in

1995!” The 1991-92 period referred to by Dr. Jagan was under the Desmond Hoyte PNC-led administration.

SUGAR AND BAUXITE The IMF had crafted and proposed to government that there be privatization of the sugar and bauxite industries, among others by 1993.

However, in 1993, the PPP government was already in power and would have had to make the decisions.

Amidst the many challenges faced by the bauxite industry, it continued to be the main, and in some cases, only source of livelihood for most of the people living in MacKenzie and Wismar, as well as some of the outlying areas.

Therefore, it can be understood why the then opposition PNC, trade unions and other interest groups fought hard against a PPP’s decision to privatize bauxite. Nonetheless, in December 2004, the Linden Bauxite was privatized by joint shares of Cambior having 70% shares and government 30% shares. The Cambior shares were sold to BOSAI CHINA in year 2007 and government retained 30% share. Clearly, while the PPP accepted the IMF’s privatisation remedy for the Bauxite Industry, it retreated when it

Eastern Airlines finalising arrangements to commence non-stop flights in March

OFFICIALS from Eastern Airlines LLC met with the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Director-General, Lt. Col. (Ret’d) Egbert Field, on Monday, to discuss final regulatory requirements, as the airline prepares to launch non-stop scheduled air services on the JFK-GEO-JFK route from March 5.

Eastern proposed initially to operate two weekly flights on Thursdays and Sundays using its Boeing B767-200 and Boeing 767-300 aircraft

with seating capacity of 236 and 280 passengers respectively.

The scope of Eastern Airlines’ application is covered under Article 3 – Authorisation of the ‘open-skies’ Air Transport Agreement between the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Government of the United States of America.

Eastern Airlines has concluded its security and economic fitness assessment and is in the final stages of its safety assessment with

the GCAA. Eastern Airlines is finalising arrangements with a commercial bank in Guyana to lodge the required bonds with the Guyana Revenue Authority and the Ministry of Public Infrastructure before commencing operations.

The travelling public can expect greater travel options in terms of days, airfares and time, with the introduction of Eastern Airlines into the Guyana market.

came to doing the same for the sugar industry.

WHITE ELEPHANT Under Dr. Cheddi Jagan, the PPP negotiated very hard to convince the IMF that the social impact of privatisation would be deadly and that the industry had hopes under government ownership.

The PPP accepted Booker Tate – the foreign management team that the PNC government had brought in during 1990. They then embarked on one of the largest investment in Guyana’s history with a plan to expand the industry to produce more than 400,000 tonnes annually.

The plan was to have a ‘state-of-the-art’ sugar factory expanded and constructed at Skeldon. This was going

to see some 100,000+ tonnes of sugar produced annually with a parallel increase of cultivated land to supply the factory with sugar cane.

Skeldon ended up two years late in-the-making by 2009; then it became obvious that the government had created a white elephant.

While the old factory that had been regularly producing 50,000 tonnes annually was dismantled, the New Skeldon factory was never been able to reach 40,000 tonnes, even when the cost for production doubled from what it was before.

By 2010, Booker Tate was deemed responsible for the failure and was shown the door. Further, the skyrocketing debts created for the sugar industry especially through Skeldon, is naturally

causing the industry to slide downward economically.

STATE LAND RESETTLEMENT COMMISSION Now, there is no PNC anymore, but the coalition government of the APNU+AFC is currently saddled with bringing some relief to sugar workers. Just recently President David Granger said that his government plans to establish a State Land Resettlement Commission, adding, “We will not leave the sugar workers on their own.”

This is in addition to the billions already invested to bring relief to the industry.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

JetBlue advances application to commence daily non-stop flights A TEAM from JetBlue Airways Corporation (JetBlue) recently met with the Director-General, Lt. Col. (Ret’d), Egbert Field, and his team at the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) to discuss the airline’s application for commencement of non-stop scheduled air services on the JFK-GEO-JFK route from April 2, 2020.

JetBlue’s team was led

by Adam Schless, Director, Aircraft Transactions and International Counsel, who shared the airline’s long-term vision and plans for the Guyana market.

JetBlue proposed to operate daily flights using a new Airbus A321-271NX aircraft with seating capacity for 200 passengers.

The scope of JetBlue’s

Lt. Col. (Ret’d) Egbert Field, Director-General, GCAA; Stephanie Vargas, Manager Compliance Corporate Security; Adam Schless, Director, Aircraft Transactions & International Counsel, JetBlue (seated) and standing are other officials from GCAA and JetBlue

application is covered under Article Three – Authorisation of the ‘open-skies’ Air Transport Agreement between the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Govern-

ment of the United States of America. Article Three of the Agreement states: “Each Party, on receipt of applications from an airline of the other Party, in the form and manner prescribed

for operating authorisations and technical permissions, shall grant appropriate authorisations and permissions with minimum procedural delay, provided: a. Substantial ownership and effective control of that airline are vested in the other party, nationals of that party, or both; b. The airline is qualified to meet the conditions prescribed under the laws and regulations normally applied to the operation of international air transport by the party considering the application or applications; and c. The other party is maintaining and administering the provisions set forth in Article Six (Safety) and Article Seven (Security).”

GCAA is presently conducting safety, security and

economic fitness assessment on JetBlue to ensure the airline meets the regulatory requirements of the authority.

The application process is in its advance stages and will be likely be concluded within the next two to three weeks.

JetBlue is an American air carrier with its main operating base in New York. The airline presently operates to over 100 cities within and outside of the United States including several Caribbean countries such as Jamaica, Barbados, Grenada and St. Lucia, among others.

The travelling public can expect greater travel options in terms of days, airfares and time with the introduction of JetBlue into the Guyana market.

CARICOM provisionally endorses draft policy on trade in animals, animal products CHIEF Veterinary Officers (CVOs) of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have provisionally endorsed the Draft Regional Policy on Trade in Animals and Animal Products.

Endorsement in principle was given on January 27, 2020, at a meeting of the CVOs in Georgetown, Guyana. Member States are to further review and provide, if necessary, written comments on the policy. The formulation of the policy was a mandate of the 48th Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED).

The main rationale for the creation of the policy is to facilitate and create an effectively regulated environment for the trade in Animals and Animal Products, guaranteeing the supply of high-quality products, as well as enhancing food safety throughout the Region.

The policy is grounded in the provisions of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas as contained in the provisions of Articles 56 and 57, particularly Article 57 (i)(k) which promotes the establishment of effective and workable

sanitary and phytosanitary systems (SPS).

The approach to the development of the policy acknowledges the need for broad consultation and agreement among Member States given the national realities. To this end, the policy reinforces the need for safeguarding the health of citizens and the productivity of the livestock sector from the risk of entry, establishment and spread of animal, zoonotic and foodborne pathogens, while providing adequate access to quality food.

The goal of the policy is to provide the framework to address the challenges currently affecting Member States in relation to cross-border issues including non-tariff measures, SPS issues and general capacity enhancement gaps which currently exist. The policy will also ensure that CARICOM is compliant with international trade in animal procedures, such as those established by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

Labour Department to verify payments to RUSAL/BCGI workers

THE Bauxite Company of Guyana Incorporated (BCGI) has claimed that it has already paid terminated workers, including all their benefits.

The Department of Labour (DoL) will be writing the company for a spreadsheet of the breakdown of the payments to independently verify that the amounts paid are what they are supposed to be.

The Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GBGWU), however, maintains, notwithstanding the termination, the issue of wages and salaries still remains to be addressed, regarding retroactive payment to the workers.

This was the latest update coming out a meeting held last Wednesday, between representatives from the company and the union at the DoL Brickdam Office. Representing the company at the meeting were BCGI Managing Director, Gennadii Derevyanko, and Executive, Vladimir Permyakov.

Outside of a call for documentation to verify monies paid over to the workers, the department continued its push for the reinstatement of the 326 employees terminated, who were fired without notice.

In Guyana, the law requires employers to give employees two weeks to one months’ notice before they are terminated; in lieu of this notice, the employer is mandated to pay the employees one month’s salary.

“We inquired whether they were paid their severance and other benefits; we were advised that all outstanding benefits were paid over to the workers, that is, one month’s notice, all severance and annual leave. They are to submit to us the breakdown so that we can calculate and verify that the terminal benefits are accurate,” Chief Labour Officer, Charles Ogle, informed at a media briefing after the meeting.

NOT MUCH ACCOMPLISHED Outside of the meeting, GBGWU General-Secretary, Lincoln Lewis, believed the meeting did not accomplish much.

“We are still far away, very far away.

The matter we came here to discuss is the matter it seems no one wants to put on the table. I’m talking about negotiations; they’re talking about the unblocking of the river. This issue is not about the blockage of the river, this issue is the violation of the Collective Labour Agreement, violation of the Laws of Guyana,” an impassioned Lewis conveyed.

A subsidiary of Russian aluminum giant RUSAL, BCGI, has been re-engaging the attention of the DoL since last month when they laid off 142 workers on January 23, then another 146 on January 30. On February 2, RUSAL officially announced that it had terminated 326 workers and was suspending its Guyana operations in Upper Demerara-Upper Kwakwani.

Following the firing of the 142 workers, some workers blocked a point of the Berbice River, effectively blocking the company from transporting bauxite and materials from its Kurubuka mines.

On exiting the meeting, the company’s representatives declined to comment.

However, Ogle related that at the meet-

ing, they once again called for the unblocking of the river, with the possibility of restarting operations at their Kurubuka Mines in Region 10.

POSITIVE SIGN “They cannot make the decision; they said they have to consult with their superiors in Russia as to the proposals put forward to them. As a sign of good will, the management has said that if the union would [encourage workers to unblock the river] they will consider re-employing,” Ogle informed.

However, with severance and other benefits paid, there is no guarantee the The blockage across a section of the Berbice River at Ladernsville

GBGWU General-Secretary, Lincoln Lewis

unionised workers will be re-employed by the company. Even with re-employment, they will be entering the company as new employees.

The workers are remaining steadfast in their fight for what they believe is right.

“We will agree, as a union, to facilitate, the process in having the river unblocked but a number of things have to be satisfied. Negotiations is not you get everything and walk away. You have to address these things.

When they’ve finished discussing [salaries and wages] there will have to be retroactivity. As such, the people who were sent home, on termination, their terminal benefit will have to be adjusted right away, nobody wants to talk about that,” Lewis said.

The union and the company have spent the past year trying to agree on a new CLA, inclusive of an agreement on increases in wage and salaries for workers. In August 2019, the union asked for the wages and salaries negotiations to be dealt with separately.

The negotiations hit an impasse when the company made a final offer of a six per cent increase and the union called for a minimum of eight per cent, to rectify what they said is a disparity between what workers at BCGI are being paid, against what equivalent workers at other bauxite companies in Guyana are offered.

On August 24, the union wrote the DoL asking for the commencement of conciliation, the next step in collective labour bargaining. The union has since been asking for the conciliation to be declared deadlocked and for the discussions to move to arbitration.

A process whereby an independent tribunal makes a decision on the matter and both sides are bound to the decision.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

ICJ sets clear time table for hearing on jurisdiction in border case

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has outlined a clear timetable for the presentation of oral arguments on whether it has jurisdiction over the case filed by Guyana – Arbitral Award of 1899 (Guyana v Venezuela).

In a statement on Thursday, the ICJ confirmed that public hearings will be conducted from March 23-27, 2020 at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court. “The hearings will give the parties to the case the possibility to address the question of the jurisdiction of the Court,” the ICJ explained.

According to the established scheduled, the first round of oral argument will commence on Monday, March 23, 2020 with Guyana leading arguments from 10:00hrs to 13:00hrs.

On Tuesday, March 24, 2020, Venezuela is expected to present its case from 10:00hrs to 13:00hrs. The International Court indicated that the second round of oral argument will commence on Wednesday with Guyana defending its position from 16:30hrs to 18:00hrs. Venezuela is expected to follow on Friday March 27, 2020 from 10:00hrs to 11:30hrs.

Although contending that the ICJ lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate Guyana’s lawsuit, Venezuela failed to submit its Counter-Memorial on Jurisdiction – in response to Guyana’s Memorial on April 18, 2019 – a date which was fixed by the court.

The hearing will determine whether the Court has jurisdiction over the case filed by Guyana on March 29, 2018. By that case, Guyana seeks to obtain from the Court a final and binding judgment that the 1899 Arbitral Award, which established the location of the land boundary between then-British Guiana and Venezuela, remains valid and binding, and that Guyana’s Essequibo region belongs to Guyana, and not Venezuela.

Guyana filed its case before the ICJ after United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, António Guterres, in January 2018, referred the controversy between Guyana and Venezuela to the world court. In taking his decision, the Secretary-General was exercising the power vested in him in the 1966 Geneva Agreement between Guyana, Venezuela and the United Kingdom to decide how the controversy should be settled, the Foreign Affairs Ministry had explained.

In a letter to the Court, Venezuela contended that the Secretary-General exceeded his authority under the Geneva Agreement, and that the Court therefore lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate Guyana’s lawsuit. On that

basis, Venezuela has indicated that it will not participate in the proceedings.

Regardless of Venezuela’s participation, the ICJ will hand down a ruling on the matter. “Under well-established judicial precedent, the Court will proceed to decide if it has jurisdiction over Guyana’s claims, irrespective of whether or not

Venezuela participates in the proceedings. If it decides that it has jurisdiction, the Court will proceed to rule on the merits of those claims, and decide whether the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award and the border between the two States should be confirmed,” the Foreign Affairs Ministry had explained.

It noted that under the

United Nations Charter and the Court’s own rules, its final judgments both on jurisdiction and the merits will be legally binding on Guyana and Venezuela, whether or not Venezuela participates in the proceedings.

In its submission, Guyana pointed out that the boundary with Venezuela was established by an ar-

bitral tribunal constituted pursuant to a treaty concluded by Venezuela and Great Britain in 1897. It said the record would show that Venezuela accepted the unanimous award rendered by five eminent jurists on October 3, 1899. The Spanish-speaking country had also participated in a joint commission to demar-

cate the boundary on the ground, and insisted on the award’s strict implementation. Decades later, Venezuela, in anticipation of Guyana’s independence, cease recognising the award’s validity and binding nature, using that pretext to lay claim to more than two-thirds of Guyana’s territory.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday, February 7, 2020

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday February 7, 2020

PPP promises better public infrastructure, life for Wakenaam farmers

RESIDENTS of Wakenaam, Region Three were, on Tuesday evening, told that the PPP/C has plans to utilise revenues garnered from the oil and gas sector to develop the island. This disclosure was made by the party’s Presidential Candidate, Dr. Irfaan Ali, during a public meeting held at Belle Plaine.

Ali said should the PPP/C win the island at the upcoming March 2 General and Regional Elections, there will be transformative changes, particularly in the infrastructure and transportation sectors. He said the changes will directly impact agricultural activities and improve the livelihood of residents.

The PPP/C presidential candidate said transportation and linkages are very important on the island, especially for farmers to be able to take their produce to market. With that said, he emphasised that the PPP/C has intention to complete the Del

Conte Road Link, a project he said that was on the card since May 2013.

“Many of you may say that we have been talking about the project a while now but you should recall that we did not have the resources at the time, from the oil and gas resources, we will use it to create opportunities for you, we will use it to build the infrastructure and give you better opportunity; the infrastructure will reduce your cost of production,” Ali said.

He also said the Wakenaam Stelling will be repaired to ensure a viable transportation network both on land and water.

“The cost to move your agriculture produce is very costly, you have to travel and sometimes you have to waste an entire day to conduct one transaction. The boat comes only once per week, there is no transportation system to support the pensioner or the children, we will correct the

issues,” Ali further lamented.

Promising to help cash crop and rice farmers, Ali said the PPP/C government will be aiming at opening more lands by providing better drainage and irrigation.

He said it is not the intention of the PPP/C to increase land leases nor land tax but to reduce the cost so that farmers can benefit. He also promised marPPP/C kets for the Presidential agricultural Candidate, produce by Dr. Irfaan Ali creating an agricultural hub with other nearby lands such as Parika and East Bank Essequibo.

Ali told the islanders that the plans can only

A section of the gathering at the Wakenaam rally

become reality if they come out March 2, 2020, and vote for the PPP/C. He, therefore, urged them

to support the PPP/C and its initiative and to ensure the party wins the upcoming Regional and General Elections with a landslide victory.

Plaisance Health Centre significantly improves services THE patient load at the Plaisance Health Centre has increased by three-fold in the past two years, according to doctor-in-charge at the health centre, Dr. Kenneel Fingal.

Dr. Fingal disclosed that about five years ago, the health centre was barely seeing patients, owing to the significant difficulties that were being experienced there.

She disclosed that residents of the community had no confidence in the health centre, owing to several factors. She said because of the lack of confidence in the health centre’s ability to deliver excellent service, output was severely affected, resulting in many of the patients seeking services elsewhere.

“About five years ago, nobody really wanted to come to the Plaisance Health Centre as the reality is that the services being offered were very poor. As such, many of the residents went to the other health centres because they had no confidence in the staff here delivering services at a high and most importantly, confidential level. Those severely affected our numbers as the number of persons that sought health services here significantly dropped,” she said.

Dr. Fingal pointed out that services have increased significantly

within the past two years. She said the increased level and quality of services being offered has helped rebuild confidence that members of the public had lost in some of the staff there.

“With the quality and standard of service continuing to increase, we are seeing our patient load tripping as more and more persons want to benefit from the services that we offer here. We have several persons who doesn’t fall within our catchment area coming here and is prepared to wait because they have heard about the level of service that we offer and want to benefit,” she stressed.

Dr. Fingal continued: “Over the past two years, we changed how services were being offered here. We changed the approach of how the staff treat and interact with the patients and members of the community, so that the public knows that we are here for them, we are here to assist and provide several services to them so together we have to work.”

PRIDE IN WORK Dr. Fingal argued that part of their success is because she and her staff have been taking pride in the service that they offer. She said among the services being offered

dates, her health centre does not send them away, as they are seen regardless of which day they turn up. She added that the staff would stress upon them the importance of keeping their appointed dates.

She pointed out that a number of additional services are being offered which include ECG. The

The Plaisance Health Centre

include the antenatal clinics on Mondays. Tuesdays have been reserved for chronic disease patients and Wednesdays and Fridays for child health clinic, the largest clinics that they see each week, with Thursday being used to alternate with early antenatal and newborns, family planning and the adolescent clinics.

She added that the health centre also offers a number of other services including EKG and ultrasound, mental health, among others. She disclosed that a number of major clinics in Georgetown are referring mental health and diabetic foot patients to their clinics. She revealed that because of their significant work, DFC

and Mental Health Unit are urging several of their patients to maximise the services being offered.

“We usually do the 60 seconds diabetic foot screening and we would do patients dressings accordingly as we primarily co-manage the patients between Doctor in Charge at the Plaisance here and the Diabetic Foot Centre. Health Centre, Dr. Kenneel Fingal We have also noticed that because of our excellent results with `several of our diabetic patients’, DFC has been referring several patients to Plaisance Health Centre caters for us even though they aren’t from our persons from Goedverwagting to Felicity on the East Coast of Demerara. catchment area,” she said.

The health centre has a staff of The doctor assigned at Plaisance 17 persons and Dr. Fingal is supnoted that while some patients are in the habit of missing their clinic ported by two additional doctors.

‘Joinder’ parties to each share possible seat in Parliament THE three political parties, which joined their lists for the upcoming General and Regional elections, have decided to equally split their time in the National Assembly should their merged votes give them a seat or more.

Appearing on the Guyana Chronicle’s online programme, Vantage Point, on Thursday, A New and United Guyana (ANUG) Presidential Candidate, Ralph Ramkarran explained: “If each of us has 2,000 left-over votes, we’ll have one seat and the person will serve 1/3 of the time. Each party will have a member for 1/3 of the period in parliament.

So, the first person will resign after 1/3 of the time, the second person

nominated by the second party will serve for 1/3 and so on.”

The distribution mirrors ANUG’s interpretation of its position on shared governance whereby the country to be managed by all political parties elected to government but represented by a different president each year. On January 18, 2020, The New Movement (TNM) and Liberty and Justice Party (LJP) announced to the public that they had forged a Joinder of Lists Agreement, which would see their votes being counted collectively after the elections.

Ramkarran said that if the parties individually meet the total votes for

one seat on their own, they will have that seat, but left-over votes will be counted collectively for the progressive 1/3 representation in parliament. He said on the programme that the parties’ decision to join their lists ensures that no votes are wasted in the case that they can be added up to form a seat in the House.

“If [it is that] 6,000 votes would give you a seat, assuming none of us gets 6,000 votes but each of us gets 2,000 votes, we get one seat; if we get 4,000 votes each we get two seats. If we did not have this joinder of lists, those votes would be discarded. So, we can get seats in normal way and the left-over votes will be counted, they will not

be discarded; that’s the technical advantage,” he said.

Though the parties each share strong views on matters such as land rights, the decriminalizing of marijuana, governance and Amerindian rights, the attorney-at-law said that there are no matters that stand to break their bond.

“We have different flagship issues, the three parties, but we have no disagreements among ourselves about each other’s’ flagship issues and we have agreed that when we have joint campaigns, it will be quite proper for each party to promote its own flagship issue,” Ramkarran said. “The great advantage of it is, I think it’s more

A New and United Guyana (ANUG) Presidential Candidate, Ralph Ramkarran

in relation to the message we’re sending to the Guyanese people, a message of unity, and many people were very happy.” Meanwhile, ANUG is continuing on its party’s campaign at the grass root level and plans to launch its party’s manifesto soon.

GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

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GTT commits $3M to GPHC’s Oncology Unit --20 cancer survivors assured of continued treatment, care

By Wendella Davidson THE Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T), on the occasion of World Cancer Day, observed annually on February 4, has committed $3M to strengthening the Oncology Unit of the Guyana Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

The sum represents some of the money that was raised during the company’s ‘Pinktober’ calendar of activities that included a massive walk/ run cancer awareness march held on October 26, 2019. The ‘Walk’, which started at D’Urban Park and made its way to the Kitty Roundabout and back,

was aimed at mobislising funds for cancer-related organisations.

The money will ensure that 20 cancer patients, who can ill afford it, may continue receiving critical treatment and the kind of diagnostic services they require.

At a simple ceremony held at the Corporation’s head office on Brickdam, **eight of the 20 patients who were referred to GTT by the GPHC, who were present inclusive of; Anna De Morias, 55, Zepherina Gift, 78, Takeram Lachman, Indra Ferreira, 57, Antonette Ifill, 38, Carolyn Carvan, 57, Cecil Williams, 61 and Inez Ault, 59, were reduced to tears, as the announcement was made

that payment is assured for them receive the much-needed treatment.

World Cancer Day is celebrated internationally on February 04, the day set aside to raise awareness of cancer and to encourage its prevention, detection, and treatment. It is led by the Union for International Cancer Control to support the goals of the World Cancer Declaration, written in 2008.

De Morias who gave a brief insight of her illness to the media, recalled having to remove her right side breast on October 21, 2008 and by December the same year, doctors had diagnosed that her left lungs contained water.

The brave survivor revealed that as time progressed

Returning to the Onocology Department of the GPHC, De

of the other beneficiaries and herself.

GTT cancer treatment beneficiaries - Some of the cancer patients who will benefit from the monies allocated by the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph for their continued treatment, pose with GTT’s Pinktober Representative Diana Gitten (centre back)

Flashback: GTT ‘s Pinktober Cancer Awareness March, October 26, 2019 (Chronicle Archives)

she began losing weight and weighed a mere 110 pounds, also that the doctors had given up all hope of her surviving.

However, she credited her family and friends who stood resolutely by her side which gave her the courage to fight on.

De Morias further related that in 2009, a visit to the Cancer Institute revealed that her lungs were filled with water.

Her condition worsened and she had difficulty sleeping at nights, unless she was in a sitting position, so she was referred back to the Georgetown Hospital but refused to go.

She said, she went instead to the St Joseph’s Mercy Hospital but after a while found that she could no longer afford to pay the bills. She had already done nine months of chemotherapy in 2009 but by 2015 the cancer returned in the left side breast, she said.

Morias said she told the doctors there that she wanted the breast removed. This resulted in her undergoing more chemotherapy in 2015 and 2016.

More bad news was however to follow, when in 2018 the cancer again surfaced, this time in her vagina and a biopsy revealed that it was at Stage 2.

De Morias said that diagnosis saw her doing international and external radiation which is very costly but she expressed her appreciation to the Government of Guyana for helping her with some funds which allowed her to complete 26 sessions of radiation in Guyana and three weeks in neighbouring Suriname.

Even though she will be receiving treatment, De Morias is thankful that God has given her the strength and courage to endure it all. She expressed gratitude to GTT on behalf

In an invited comment, GTT’s Pinktober Coordinator, Diana Gittens told the Guyana Chronicle that the allocated funds will allow for the 20 patients who need radiation, one of the most expensive forms of treatment available for the disease, as well as those requiring computerized tomography (CT) scan. By way of a CT, doctors are able to diagnose the cancer and the progress made by the patients.

She noted that because of lack of funding some patients have been waiting for months to have a CT Scan procedure done, and others for radiation therapy. She further stated that for patients to access the treatment, they are required to come up with varying amounts of $300, 000 or $400,000.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Friday February 7, 2020

‘Messenger’ here for Calypso competition on Sunday

SOME 27 years ago, Joel Gonsalves entered his first Calypso competition and placed eighth with a song that was based on a true cutlass murder-story in Buxton, on the East Coast Demerara.

“I placed eighth in that competition, being the youngest.

And I still believe I’m the youngest to enter into the competition via the route of auditioning,” the 43-year-old told the Buzz earlier this week during an interview at the Guyana Chronicle.

Joel is here to participate in He entered the compethe 2020 competition tition two other years, ending up in the quarter-finals. But this year, Joel, known as ‘Messenger’, has around the exhibition booths. This brought him into contact with high hopes that his song, “Do you know” will do great in the National Calypso Monarch of Guyana some visitors, whom he overheard talking about the negative things Competition, to be held this Sunday in Bartica. There, he will join that were happening in Guyana.

He used the opportunity to speak up and let them know that 20 other artistes also vying for the title.

Joel has been living in Trinidad for the past 12 years, positive things were happening here, too. “It started dawning on my but he has never lost touch with his country. He came home just mind what else I can do to promote Guyana,” he said.

A few days later, he spent time with some musicians who had to be able to participate in the competition, and will be leaving shortly after, so that he can return for the finals at D’Urban Park on travelled there for CARIFESTA. “A guy came up with a guitar and started singing some Guyanese songs,” he said, adding: “We February 14.

Having been born and raised on the East Coast Demer- started singing with him; we were just having fun. They said to me ara, Joel once taught music at both Golden Grove and Annandale they heard my voice and invited me to come back to Guyana and do something.”

Secondary Schools before leaving for Trinidad.

Speaking about the song he is taking to the competition this year, Recalling how he became interested in the competition again after taking a break from it so many years, Joel said when Joel said: “I’m here to claim the monarch. The song is very educaTrinidad hosted CARIFESTA, he volunteered some evenings to be tional, and is a historic piece that goes back to 1963. I’m hoping not

Freedom Family strikes again

-New party concept being introduced on Mash day Prominent promoter, Marlon Jacobs who heads the promotional company ‘Freedom Family’, is at it again, bringing yet another event for his Guyanese supporters.

This new event is dubbed ‘Drink, drunk, lie down, and is set for February 23, at GFC Ground starting from 15:00hrs and ends at 22:00hrs.

In an interview with ‘The Buzz’, Jacobs said this will be his first day time event that will be held in Guyana and will be guaranteed fun as all of his other events.

For years he has been successfully executing parties and events with creative concepts, throughout the Caribbean and the US, including Friends with Benefits, Drinks Ice Soca, Liquorish for Soca, and his recent addition, GOAT, which

is his birthday celebration.

Jacobs said every year he looks for new ways to please his supporters, hence the reason he brought this activity. This one he says is a day time Mashramani celebration just after the parade ends on the street.

“DDL is the first of its kind, and we expecting to attract thousands of patrons that will be in the vicinity for the 50th mash parade. Patrons can expect endless drinks specials, a sexy ambience everything will be on point,” the young promoter said.

Early bird tickets are $2,000 available at Digicel by Stabroek, Shortboss Boutique on Orange Walk, Chasers Clothing, Grill Kings and Unruly Taste on Fifth Street Alberttown.

Joel wearing the title of his song for this year’s calypso competition

only to entertain but to edify. This song is not only speaking about the positive side of Guyana, but it speaks of us living together. This is an election period, and you are seeing divides. But after elections, we will still have to be each other’s neighbour. So the song is saying once we continue to work together, we will complete our journey as one people, one nation, one destiny.”

Joel is grateful he has a good team to work with. “Mark Batson, Diana Chapman, Margaret Lawrence, ‘Big Red’, Bonny Alves, Charmaine Blackman and the Calypsonians themselves; they gave me a warm welcome, and were happy to see me.”

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GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

Sumner and Hall emerge Junior Soca, Calypso Monarchs

THE Junior Soca and Calypso competitions concluded last Saturday evening in the township of Lethem, with 17-year-old Relon Sumner and 18-year-old Omaiah Hall emerging as the two monarchs, respectively.

Sumner, who hails from the mining town of Linden and is visually impaired, told ‘The Buzz’ that he has been singing for five years, and had no fear entering the competition.

And neither did he doubt that he can be the winner.

He feels great knowing that he won, since this was the very first time he’d tried singing a Soca song. It was also his very first time entering the competition.

“I feel really great, because I’m into Dancehall music. And to know that it was the first time for everything, and I won, I feel good. But I rehearsed a lot, so I went in prepared,” the young man said.

Junior Soca Monarch Relon Sumner

Junior Calypso Monarch Omaiah Hall

Coming in the other places behind Sumner were Akeem Alexandar, Faith Corrica, and Jada Harry.

Meanwhile, Hall, the Calypso Champion, said that she is overwhelmed with joy.

“I prayed for this; I really did pray for this, and I worked really hard to win,” she said, adding: “I went out there and give my all, and I came out successful. I’m really happy that I got the support from my mom and loved ones out there with me.”

Coming in second, third and fourth place respectively were Reshaun Whyte, Chisara James and Akeem Alexander.

Both Junior winners are now preparing to take on the seniors in their semifinals this Sunday in Bartica. If through to the next round, the Juniors will take on the challenge to be the Senior champions as well.

To this regard, Sumner said that he is aiming to make history.

“In the senior competition,” he said, “there are a lot of big artistes in there; some that I was watching since I’m small. Now, instead of meeting them and shaking their hands, I will be competing with them, and that is an honour. I have no fear though, I’m looking to make history as the first person to

win both junior and senior monarchs.”

Hall expressed similar sentiments, saying that it is her dream to win, and to ‘shock out’ the seniors. Not that the first part of the dream has come true, and she is the Junior winner, she is ready to take on the ‘big guns’ for the senior title.

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Sociedad’s Odegaard knocks Madrid out of Copa Del Rey

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Real Madrid have won the Copa del Rey 19 times, while Real Sociedad have triumphed twice.

(BBC) - REAL Sociedad’s Martin Odegaard scored against his parent club to help send Real Madrid out of the Copa del Rey in a thrilling quarter-final.

The Norwegian midfielder, who is on a two-year loan, opened the scoring.

Alexander Isak netted twice in two minutes, including a superb acrobatic effort, as Sociedad went ahead, 3-0.

Marcelo and Rodrygo scored for Madrid, in between Mikel Merino adding Sociedad’s fourth, with Nacho heading in late on.

The defender’s 93rd-minute goal set up a tense finish at the Bernabeu as the referee played eight additional minutes. Although Sociedad’s Andoni Gorosabel was sent off for a second yellow card,

Real Madrid were unable to find the equaliser.

Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior had a header ruled out by the video assistant referee (VAR) for offside in the second half.

Odegaard, 21, who joined Real Madrid as a 15-year-old, was rewarded with a standing ovation from the home fans as he was substituted in the 64th minute.

Zinedine Zidane’s side are top of La Liga and have the best defensive record in the top flight with just 13 goals conceded from 22 games. They were unbeaten in 21 games coming into the tie.

It was the first time that Madrid have conceded four times under Zidane in more than 190 matches across two

spells in charge.

“It hurts, we have to be honest, nobody likes a defeat,” said Zidane.

“Despite (trailing) 1-4, we have fought until the end, but it has not been possible.

“We must congratulate the opponents and also accept losing.”

Sociedad, who are eighth in La Liga, have won the competition just twice in their history, most recently in 1987.

The draw for the last four takes place today, with Granada - who knocked out holders Valencia - and second division side Mirandes both in the pot.

Athletic Bilbao host Barcelona on Thursday in the remaining quarter-final.

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CRICKET QUIZ CORNER (Friday February 07, 2020) COMPLIMENTS OF XTRA ENERGY DRINK – STABROEK BAZAAR (Tel: 6839500) & CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL COMPANY LTD- 83 Garnett street, Campbellville, Georgetown (Tel: 225-6158) Answers to yesterday’s quiz: (1) Courtney Walsh-5/1 (Sharjah, 1986) (2) Farveez Maharoof-6/14 (Mumbai, 2006) Today’s Quiz:

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American Racing Tips Aqueduct Race 1 More Graytful

(1) Who were the first captains involved in a WI/SL One Day International game?

Race 2 Be Magic

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Race 4 Stay Fond

Race 3 Tipazo

Race 5 Bad Guy Race 6 Leaveuwithasmile

Answers in tomorrow’s issue

Race 7 Am Impazible

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GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

Archer to miss Sri Lanka series, IPL (ESPNCRICINFO) JOFRA Archer will miss England’s tour of Sri Lanka and this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) after scans revealed a stress fracture in his elbow.

Archer was troubled by problems with his right elbow during the recent Test tour of South Africa, which England won 3-1. He missed the second and third Tests as a result and was then ruled out of the fourth on match-day morning when he suffered a recurrence of pain in the area while bowling during the warm-up.

He was withdrawn from the T20 squad due to play three fixtures in South Africa next week and returned to England for scans, which the ECB said yesterday had “confirmed that Archer has

Jofra Archer pulled up during the warm-ups.

Getty Images

suffered a low-grade stress fracture”.

“As a result of the injury, he has been ruled out of England’s Test tour of Sri Lanka and the IPL 2020 season,” the ECB added in a statement.

“He will now commence an injury rehabilitation pro-

gramme with the ECB medical team with a view to be ready for the international summer campaign starting in June against West Indies in a three-match Test series.”

In an upbeat post on Twitter, Archer vowed to return to action “soon”.

England travel to Sri Lanka to play two Tests next month and it is not just his national team who are set to feel the impact of Archer’s absence. Rajasthan Royals, with whom Archer was due to be reunited for the IPL beginning in late March, made a brief statement on Twitter, saying they were still optimistic about Archer returning this season.

“We’re working with the ECB to help @JofraArcher secure a speedy recovery, and still hope to see him in a Royals jersey this season,” the club said.

Archer was bought by the Royals in the 2018 auction for INR 7.6 crore (US$1.125 million) and proved he was worth every penny as he became their go-to bowler.

Despite never having

Joy takes Bangladesh to U-19 final MAHMUDUL Hasan Joy ended his run of poor scores with his fourth Youth ODI century to secure Bangladesh’s maiden World Cup final - across levels and genders - for the Under-19 tournament against India on February 9.

Joy’s hundred helped Bangladesh chase down 212 with six wickets in hand and nearly six overs to spare, after the bowlers restricted New Zealand to 211 for 8 in Potchefstroom.

Joy had a best score of 38* in his last eight innings and the early departure of Bangladesh’s openers yesterday didn’t make things any easier for him.

He still anchored the chase by striking 13 fours in his 127-ball innings of 100 and was assisted

by No. 4 Towhid Hridoy, who made a brisk 47-ball 40, and the No. 5 Shahadat Hossain, who stayed unbeaten on 40.

Captain Akbar Ali scored the winning runs with a drive past mid-on in front of a sizeable Bangladesh-supporting crowd that had come from cities near and far.

That Bangladesh chased a total under 250 was courtesy of their all-round bowling performance that continuously pegged New Zealand’s scoring rate.

Asked to bat, New Zealand struggled with their tempo and if it wasn’t for Beckham Wheeler-Greenall’s 83-ball 75, they would have finished with a much smaller total, having

played in Indian conditions before his IPL debut, Archer made use of his height and his variations to dominate batsmen during the Powerplay and at the death. Last IPL, his economy rate of 4.75 in the Powerplay was the second-best in the tournament among bowlers to send down at least 30 deliveries in the Powerplay.

Archer’s economy rate in the Powerplay for the two seasons he has played for the Royals was 6.52. Bowling at the death, Archer’s overall economy rate was 8.73 and he bagged 14 wickets.

In 2019, Archer had to leave the tournament after 11 matches to report for the England duty ahead of the World Cup. He signed off in style, hitting a four and six with the Royals needing

nine runs in the final over to win at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

The Royals have Andrew Tye, Tom Curran and Oshane Thomas in their squad along with an Indian contingent lead by Jaydev Unadkat, Ankit Rajpoot and Kartik Tyagi, who is currently performing well at the Under-19 World Cup. To cover for Archer, they would need to look for a replacement from the final registered pool of players that the IPL shortlisted during the auction. Among the quicks who went unsold were: Sean Abbott (Australia), Alzarri Joseph and Kesrick Williams (West Indies), Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh), Mark Wood (England), Adam Milne (New Zealand)

been reduced to 142 for 6 at one point.

Left-arm seamer Shoriful Islam took 3 for 45, rightarm quick Shamim Hossain ended with 2 for 31 and leftarm orthodox spinner Hasan Murad finished with 2 for 34 under overcast conditions in the morning.

The sun then baked the Senwes Park deck as the chase began, making batting much easier.

Joy and Hridoy added 68 for the third wicket to take Bangladesh to 100. Once Hridoy was stumped off Adithya Ashok, Joy dominated a 101-run stand with Shahadat to take Bangladesh past 200.

He reached his hundred by sweeping Jesse Tashkoff for four in the 43rd over but fell on the very next delivery by handing a return catch to the bowler.

Only 11 runs were left for Bangladesh then, and Ali finished the chase to send the crowd into frenzy.

Ali pumped his fist after hitting the winning runs while his teammates from the dugout ran onto the field with the green-and-red Bangladesh flag to spark the celebrations off.

Bangladesh began their choke of New Zealand’s batting right from the first over when Shoriful began the day with a maiden.

The following over from Shamim yielded the wicket of opener Rhys Mariu, who edged a drive to slip.

Rakibul Hasan then removed the other opener, Ollie White, who edged a drive to the wicketkeeper in the 12th over.

While the third-wicket

partnership lasted nine overs, New Zealand added only 28 runs in that period, after which Fergus Lellman and Tashkoff fell in quick succession, leaving them at 74 for 4 in the 26th over.

Wheeler-Greenall then turned aggressive after a sedate start to push New Zealand towards a respectable total, but wickets around him forced him to rein his stroke-play on some occasions.

He reached his second fifty of the tournament - by hitting two fours off Murad in the 44th over, and helped New Zealand collect 19 in the last over to stretch the score past 200.

Wheeler-Greenall was a class apart on the day. He scored his 75 runs at a strike rate of 90.36, while the other nine batsmen scored their 122 runs at a strike rate of 56.

“The toss played a big role today,” New Zealand coach Paul Wiseman said after the game. “Bangladesh had a good start with the seamers.

The spinners got the ball to grip, and after that, we were always scrambling.

“When we were 75 for 4, we would’ve probably taken 210220. But obviously fantastic effort from the Bangladesh batsmen, a very mature innings by the centurion, he played us with ease. That took the game away from us.”

New Zealand now face Pakistan in the third-place playoff on February 8.

GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

33

Pakistan cricketers now allowed four T20 leagues yearly

(ESPNCricinfo) - In a major change to the existing policy governing participation in T20 and other leagues across the world, Pakistan’s cricketers will now be allowed to play four leagues, including the PSL, in a year.

Permission to play in other leagues is contingent on a number of factors, including taking part in the national one-day cup and the T20 cup.

The earlier policy, which was introduced in 2018, had restricted player participation in several leagues, but the PCB has undertaken a review of the policy for the first time.

The PCB took the board of governors into confidence to approve the new NOC guidelines for all national and domestic cricketers, in a move that is likely to prove beneficial to players who had otherwise suffered major financial blows in the last two years due to the inconsistency of the policy for featuring in foreign leagues.

Misbah-ul-Haq speaks to the press. (PCB)

Pakistan’s players are already among the lowest-paid professionals in world cricket, and aren’t allowed to take part in the IPL. The old policy had added to the uncertainty, with players often given NOCs for an entire tournament, only to be pulled out by the PCB midway to return home and either join national camps or undergo fitness tests.

That sparked frustration and discontent among the leading white-ball cricketers and emboldened them to

revolt against PCB’s restrictive participation policy on foreign leagues.

A meeting of several high-profile players with PCB chief executive Wasim Khan averted the threat of a players’ revolt last year when PCB had revoked NOCs for the T10 league in Abu Dhabi.

Khan, however, promised to review the policy and arrive at a lasting amicable solution.

ESPNcricinfo understands that henceforth, the

policy to issue an NOC will be more thorough than before, and will be based on the player’s prospects for national selection, fitness and fulfilling the domestic commitments.

Once NOC is handed out, it won’t be revoked.

The aim is to maintain a balance between players taking part in national tournaments and their workload, while also ensuring that players don’t face financial losses during a period when they are not playing any domestic cricket, particularly for the white-ball specialists.

“The Board of Governors approved the No Objection Certificate (NOC) guidelines for cricketers,” PCB said after its first-ever meeting in Peshawar this week.

“Amongst other guidelines, the policy allows centrally contracted players to seek clearance for up to a maximum of three ICC-approved foreign leagues, excluding the HBL Paki-

stan Super League, as long they don’t coincide with the PCB-organised events and player workloads and fitness regimes are properly managed. The CEO shall have a final approval right. Further details on the NOC policy will be announced in due course.”

When Mickey Arthur was the Pakistan coach, a number of centrally contracted players featured in the world’s major T20 leagues, apart from the IPL. This meant the national coaches and selectors raised concerns about fitness and the risk of injuries due to the added workload.

Those concerns came to a head in 2018 with Arthur pushing for higher fitness standards across the board.

The worry was that players hadn’t maintained fitness standards while travelling around the world, and they had also missed their domestic tournaments. That led to the PCB formulating a strict

policy. However, the policy had lacked clarity since its inception.

This time around, Misbah-ul-Haq - who took over from Arthur as head coach and also holds the additional role of chief selectors - will have a major role in the process of issuing NOCs. While Khan has the final right of approval, the entire process will depend on Misbah’s planning for each player.

He is also working on forming a national selection policy with the help of selection committee convener Nadeem Khan and all the head coaches of the six provincial teams - who are acting as national selectors.

Misbah had presented his plan and briefed the Board of Governors since he took over the reins of the national team, and had informed the Board about his future plans and selection criteria.

Nurse aims to use Islamic Solidarity Weightlifting Championships to accelerate refereeing position DEION Nurse was scheduled to officiate from this week at the Islamic Solidarity Weightlifting Championships, scheduled to run until next week in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

The seasoned official and athlete, who is a Category Two referee, was set to join officials from the USA, Aruba, Venezuela among other nations after leaving Guyana on Thursday morning.

In the Central Asian country, Nurse is looking to do his best so that he can accelerate the process of becoming a Category One referee.

“I am happy to be selected; I hope to do the best job possible. I am looking forward to moving up to Category 1.”

Nurse, who is a back-toback Masters winner of the Phillips and Springer Classic Caribbean (Weightlifting) Championships (2017, 2018), has been licensed to referee since 2003, but only began

refereeing last year.

Since the local governing body is required to cover the cost of attending, travelling to meets is no easy task. Weightlifting does not get the corporate support as some other sports, which means that officials are faced with difficult decisions when sending teams or persons overseas.

“Our federation is required to cover our cost of attending, but you know how things are. So I have been able to get some assistance on the occasions that I attended. That is the case of this one as well.”

Owing to this, Nurse will look to make good on his opportunity.

“So I have to gain some more exposure and then sometime soon I’ll write the test.”

“You need to show your competence before you are given the opportunity to write the exam.”

The pass mark for the

Deion Nurse will look to build on his previous successes.

Category One exam is 90%.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, February 2, 2020

2020 PCL Regional 4-Day Round 4

Permaul and company keep Scorpions subdued … Blackwood strokes 81, Jags trail by 170

By Clifton Ross ACE spinner Veerasammy Permaul bagged four wickets while his supporting cast made significant inroads as Guyana Jaguars trailed the Jamaica Scorpions by 170 runs, following the end of day one.

Round 4’s battle bowled off in the Champs’ backyard at Providence, with the Scorpions being indebted to Test batsman Jermaine Blackwood, who defied Permaul

and his men with a fluent 81, before Jamaica were shot down for 187 runs in 79.5 overs.

It was another clinical ball-outing by the Champs who operated like a pack today. Permaul, Guyana’s leading wicket-taker continued to cast spells as he returned magical 1st innings figures of 4-34.

Fast-bowler Niall Smith (2-50) and the part-time golden-arm seamer Chris Barnwell (2-16) played excellent

supporting roles to further suppress the visitors.

Heading into the second day, the Champs were 17-0, 170 runs behind their first target with Tage Chanderpaul (4*) and Chandrapaul Hemraj (13*) looking solid as day two commences.

When play began, Scorpions openers Assad Fudadin (3) and John Campbell (5), two batsmen with West Indies experience, fell cheaply at the hands of off-spinner Kevin Sinclair (1-33) and

left-arm seamer Raymon Reifer (1-22).

Sinclair struck in a delivery which rattled the stumps of the former Jaguars batsman Fudadin. Reifer’s swing ability was then enough to unsettle the flashy Campbell who was trapped lbw.

With the openers back in the dugout, the duo of Blackwood and Paul Palmer (15) looked like the repairmen, as they took Jamaica to 48-2 at the lunch interval.

Scorpions soon suffered

a blow when the speedster Smith got into the action for the first time, knocking over Palmer’s stumps a few overs into the afternoon session.

Blackwood looked to pick off the weak deliveries which were few and far, but nevertheless kept himself busy and the scoreboard ticking as he helped himself to 50 of 135 balls with six crisp fours.

With the arrival of tea, the visitors managed to stay in the innings by taking their total to 117-3.

Brief rainfall extended the tea break by a few extra minutes but as soon as play resumed, Nkrumah Bonner fell to Chris Barnwell for 25.

Blackwood pressed on with confidence but was outfoxed by Permaul and paid the price with his wicket.

Tail-enders Denis Smith (18) hit two sixes and Derval Green ended on 16 not out, as Jaguars bowlers tied up the remaining loose ends.

Day 2 action continues today from 10:00hrs.

Tuschen romp to 10-wicket win against New Mosque in Inter-Jamaat cricket TUSCHEN Train Station Masjid made light work of New Mosque when the Muslim Youth Organisation (MYO), Trophy Stall Inter-Jamaat 10-over Softball Cricket competition continued recently, at the MYO ground on Woolford Avenue.

New Mosque won the toss and batted first. Led by openers Amil Ally (25 runs)

Imtiaz Hack led Tuschen Train Station with an unbeaten 50.

and Rahim Alli (19 runs) they pushed the score to 91-4. Mohamed Omar was the pick of the bowlers for Tuschen with two wickets.

Needing to score at 9.2 runs per over to claim a win, Tuschen Train Station blasted their way to the target in 4.2 overs without losing a wicket. Imtiaz Hack slammed an even 50, while Riaz Khan supported with 42.

Meanwhile, in an all-LBI battle, LBI A team won the toss and batted first, but they were in early trouble as Carl Spencer took three wickets in the second over. Rash shots caused the wickets to tumble, but the A-team managed to finish their innings on 93-8.

Gary Khan made 31 and Zaman Ally 14. Spencer picked up 3-17 and Puran Deokaran 2-16 for LBI-B.

When LBI-B batted, they lost captain Safraz Ally in the first over for one run.

Nevertheless, led by Randy Narine, the side were able to overhaul the score in 8.4 overs. They did lose four wickets in the process, and it could have been more, since Narine was dropped at long off on 19, but he made use of his chance and scored a day’s high 64 not out to see his

team home. Imran Khan supported with an unbeaten 14.

Akram Bacchus was the pick of the bowlers with 2-14 runs.

The number of scheduled matches was reduced, since Diamond New Scheme Masjid failed to turn up, which resulted in Hague Masjid and LBI-B gaining walkovers victories.

Dominant Wiggins named Student Athlete-of-the-Week at Munroe College … makes career-high steals ALTHOUGH he is a freshman, Guyana’s senior basketball player Kevon Wiggins is turning heads at Munroe College (Bronx Campus).

For his recent dominant performance on the court, he was named Male Student Athlete-of-the-Week on Wednesday.

On Tuesday night, Wiggins stormed to a career-high nine steals to help his team to their fourth consecutive victory when they tackled the Bronx Community College in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) league.

The guard was all over the court and proved extremely important to the side in their victory.

Along with his steals, he scored 13 points (three shots from downtown), pulled down seven rebounds and made five assists in the close 78-76 win.

The 19-year-old told the Guyana Chronicle that he was focussed on

the defensive aspect of his game and making stops, since his opponents were up to the challenge.

In his 16 games so far this season (since November), the Berbician has constantly improved. Overall, he is averaging 16.1 points. He is shooting 42.4 percent from the field and 41.1 percent from the three-point line.

For 2020, the youngster has had seven consecutive games with 10 or more points. His three 30-plus games have helped to push his average for this year to 22.8 points per game.

The 6’3” sharp shooter had shot 37 threes this season - 26 of them have been scored in 2020.

Overall, he has scored 257 points, 27 steals, 28 assists and 58 rebounds.

Last night he was expected to play again for his college.

Kevon Wiggins has been outstanding this year for Munroe College. (Bronx Campus).

GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

35

Aurora Knight Riders, Invaders Masters, through to Essequibo T20 semis ...Bacchus Bulls, Affiance SC also advance

THE quarter-finals of the South/Central Essequibo T20 League were played last Sunday at the Imam Bacchus and Reliance grounds.

At the Bacchus ground in Affiance, the hosts were admirably led by a fine unbeaten half-century by former national Under-19 batsman Yogeshwar Lall against Reliance Hustlers.

His superb 82 was deco-

rated with 10x4 as he showed his class. His effortless knock was supported by cameo innings of 37 (6x4) from Navindra Persaud and 32 (4x4, 1x6) from national Under-17 all-rounder Sheldon Charles, as Bacchus Bulls stormed to 182-2 from their 20 overs.

Not to be daunted, Rovin Doodnauth played enterprisingly, counting 9x4 in his unbeaten 60.

His effort, however, was not enough as he received little support, with Reliance ending on 151-8 when the overs expired to lose by 31 runs.

Lalbachan Narine and Punraj Singh bowled accurately to claim 2 wickets apiece.

At the same venue, Invaders Masters dimmed the light of Rising Stars to claim an emphatic 7-wicket win.

The Stars failed to shine and reached 99-8 in their 20 overs. Only former national Under-15 batsman Mahindra Dindyal with 22 (2x4) showed any resistance.

National all-rounder Ricardo Adams was impressive in grabbing 3-10 while former national Under-19 left-arm spinner Beesham Seepersaud rolled back the years to take 2-15 from his 4 overs.

Adams then returned to smash 44 (8x4) and with Dharmendra Lakhan supporting with 33 (5x4), the total was easily overhauled with the Masters reaching 100-2 from just 12 overs.

At the Reliance ground, the hosts were stunned by Aurora Knight Riders who posted 154-8 and restricted Reliance Hustlers to 88 all out.

Affiance SC were also in

winners’ row against Jaguars but scores were not available. The competition will continue on Sunday with the semi-final play-offs at the Imam Bacchus ground.

The first match is scheduled for 10:00hrs with Wazeer Dhanraj and Deva Dass officiating.

Hetmyer fitness retest set for February 14 WEST Indies star batsman Shimron Hetmyer is to redo a fitness test next Friday (February 14) after failing the first test conducted by Cricket West Indies (CWI).

The left-hander reported for training yesterday having

not reported on Wednesday as the Guyana team held final practice session for the Professional Cricket League (PCL) four-day game against the Jamaica Scorpions.

When the news broke on Tuesday that the Guyanese,

along with Evin Lewis, was dropped from the side, the hope was that he would be drafted into the Guyana team for the upcoming regional match.

However, Sanasie explained that it is customary

when cricketers return from International duty, they are to report to their territorial boards, something Hetmyer failed to do upon return from the Ireland series.

As such, the Guyanese was not considered for selec-

tion into the Guyana team for the Jamaica Scorpions clash which began yesterday at the Providence stadium.

However, Sanaise cleared up the situation, saying, “Hetmyer has since reported for training and he is getting

ready to redo his fitness test which is set for next Friday.”

He noted that the Guyanese will be hard at work ahead of the test.

Former presidents head slate for GMR&SC election TWO former presidents of Guyana Motor Racing and Sports Club (GMR&SC) have been nominated by members to take the top seat once again as the organisation

gets ready to host elections next Monday.

Aaron Bethune and Mahendra Boodhoo, both of whom are racers have emerged as contenders along with a third slate

which has Rameez Mohamed in the presidential seat.

Bethune, president from 2009 to 2011 returned to Guyana recently after work had taken him abroad, while

Mahendra Boodhoo was president in 2016 and an active voice in the sport.

While Mohamed has been president for the past two years, he has indicated to Sportshubgy that he

will pull his slate due to the work of the GMR&SC presidency clashing with his business commitments.

Mohamed has also thrown support behind Boodhoo for the presidency.

In the coming days, we are expected to outline plans on the way forward for the sport.

Leacock/Beaton win Men’s Doubles final in Trophy Stall tennis LEYLAND Leacock and top junior player Jordan Beaton won the Men’s Doubles final after a twohour exciting battle against Andre Lopes and Sandeep Chand on Wednesday evening at the Le Resouvenir Tennis Court on the East Coast of Demerara, to culminate the Trophy Stall Tennis Competition.

Leacock, who was one of three coaches participating in the final, copped his second

title after having won the Men’s 35-years-and-over Doubles title over the weekend.

In the latest clash, Beaton played a measured game and came up with some big shots, which kept their experienced opponents at bay especially in the first set.

The match was tied at 2-2 before Leacock/Beaton secured a break, which they consolidated into a 4-2 lead. Chand/Lopes broke

serve to come within 4-3 and 40-0 on serve, before losing the next four points to surrender the game and eventually the set 6-3.

The second set was also a close affair with Lopes/ Chand switching up tactics and the pace of the game, as they forced a third set after securing a break at 4-4, after which Chand served out the set at love to win 6-4.

The super tiebreak decider was an up-and-down affair

with Chand/Lopes riding the momentum to go ahead 4-1 before the score was tied up at 6. Good serving by Leacock and a perfectly-placed lob from Beaton then allowed the eventual winners to take the title 10-6.

Ronald Murray, who had won the Men’s 35-yearand-over doubles with Leacock, had also won the Mixed Doubles final with Fiona Bushell.

Leyland Leacock and Jordan Beaton won the Men’s Doubles final on Wednesday evening.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE, Friday February 7, 2020

2020 PCL Regional 4-Day Round 4

Permaul and company keep Scorpions subdued … Blackwood strokes 81, Jags trail by 170

PAGE

34 Veerasammy Permaul tormented the Scorpions batsmen yesterday as he bagged 4 wickets. (Adrian Narine photo)

Joy takes Bangladesh to U-19 final PAGE

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Former 35 presidents head slate for GMR&SC election PAGE

Mahmudul Hasan Joy acknowledges the cheers for his century. (ICC via Getty) Mahendra Bhoodoo (left) & Aaron Bethune

Hetmyer fitness retest set for February 14 Printed and Published by Guyana National Newspapers Limited, Lama Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown. Telephone 226-3243-9 (General); Editorial: 227-5204, 227-5216. Fax:227-5208

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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020