Guyana_Chronicle_Epaper_03_04_2022

3rd April, 2022

free Inside No.106682

Ramadan Greetings!

‘We must not be rich in possessions but poor in spirit,’ says President Ali in Ramadan message 02 PAGE

Company targets ‘concrete demand’ –– with US $10M batching plant; project to create close to 60 jobs 03 PAGE

A replica of a concrete batching plant

Turnkey housing programme 17 to be expanded to Region Three PAGE

50 women-owned businesses 05 showcased at WE LIFT Essequibo PAGE

Uitvlugt Estate factory to soon resume operations

– affected workers get much-needed assistance

PAGEs

02&03

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‘We must not be rich in possession but poor in spirit’

sunday CHRONICLE april 3, 2022

–– says President Ali in message on occasion of Ramadan AS-SALAAMU-ALAIKUM to my fellow Guyanese, Guyanese in the diaspora and Muslims across the world.

I extend Ramadan Mubarak greetings to our Islamic community.

Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, invites us to closer intimacy with our Creator and with our fellow Brothers and Sisters. Muslims observe the Holy Month with fasting, prayers and charity. Through these acts of spiritual piety, we grow closer to God and to one another.

Ramadan is also a time for us to reflect on the great gifts our Creatorhas bestowed upon us and use those gifts for our upliftment and for the common good of all of humanity. Each of us is blessed in some way. We can all deploy that which we possess for the betterment of ourselves, our families and all of humanity.

We are called to kindness. The Holy Quran states: “So woe to those who pray [but] are heedless of their prayer; those who make [a] show [of their deeds]. And withhold (simple] assistance.”

Kindness is a virtue. We all have it within us to be generous, especially to those within our communities who are in need. If we are indeed to be the keepers of our Brothers and Sisters, let us use what we have to help those who are in need. And let us do so sincerely and selflessly.

Our country, Guyana, is perched for sustained prosperity. But our material wealth must be matched with an

overflowing spirit of generosity. Otherwise, we will be rich in possessions but poor in spirit. We must neither be a rich nation with poor people nor a nation of rich people who are wanting in generosity.

May we use this Holy Month of Ramadan to demonstrate not only our devotion to Allah but also our concern for those in need!

May we follow in the example of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) whose generosity was always pronounced during Ramadan!

As we celebrate Ramadan 2022, let us do our bit to the upliftment of humanity in sharing from the blessings we have received. And even for those who are not in the position to share materially or financially but you are in the position to share physically with your strength, your character, expressing kindness to fellow humans, doing something positive for the environment, helping in some way in the upliftment of our communities and country—that too is an important part of giving.

Ramadan Mubarak to all! And I pray and hope that our fast, and all the good deeds and work that we will do during this month resound to the benefit of our families, our country, and all of humanity.

Ramadan Mubarak!

President, Dr Irfaan Ali

Uitvlugt Estate factory to soon resume operation after mechanical failure

By Jared Liddell OPERATIONS are expected to resume within a matter of weeks at the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) Uitvlugt Estate factory, West Coast Demerara.

Works are currently being done to replace the factory’s damaged #1 mill turbine

Uitvlugt Estate Manager, Yudhisthira Mana speaks to media on Saturday (Delano Williams photo) gearbox, which failed some 29 days ago. It brought works at the facility to come to a screeching halt.

According to Estate Manager, Yudhisthira Mana, the fabrication of the two parts vital

to the operations of the facility is coming to a close with one part being received late last night and the second part just past the 60 per cent complete mark.

“The part that was damaged in the factory is one that is over 50 years old. It is one that normally don’t be on ordering and safe keep because it’s rarely been damaged, and so to say just have one on standby to replace, we don’t normally have that,” he said.

Mana noted that to even source a unit for the machine, Nexus Engineering had to do “reverse engineering” because there was no technical blueprint that could have been used to replace the part of the 50-year-old machine.

“As we speak, we would have seen both parts of the gear that is under repair, one is about 60 per cent completed, and the other one we just got through last night to build it. Since the part failed, GuySuCo engineers and Nexus Engineering Company, we are all working together 24 hours a day to get it right,” Mana told the Guyana Chronicle.

He disclosed that even as operations at the estate remain halted, decisions were taken to ensure that those persons who were affected by the disruption can still earn from the estate.

“We at GuySuCo, we care for our workers, so while this was going on, everybody within the system we were offering some sort of work, so they can earn a bit; at least five days’ work we were offering them so it’s not a case where they were totally out but some would have been opting to do it and some opting not to do it,” he said.

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Company targets ‘concrete demand’ with US$10M batching plant –– project to create close to 60 jobs

THE infrastructural landscape of Guyana is changing rapidly, leaving a gap between the demand and supply for construction materials, but also creating opportunities for new investors to enter the market, and for existing stakeholders to increase production.

This massive transformation driven by immense private and public investments, has served as an impetus for various stakeholders, particularly those within the construction and manufacturing sectors.

One such investor is Coosal’s Guyana Construction Inc., which is planning to establish a US$10 million concrete batching plant at Coverden, East Bank Demerara (EBD).

“Our aim is to produce and supply high quality, highly reliable readymixed concrete readily available for use in infrastructural development projects, inclusive of housing projects, bridges, soil stabilisation by establishing a concrete batching plant.

“Our products are trusted in the use of construction of hotels, mega infrastructural civil projects, major road constructions, to name a few,” the company wrote in its project summary, which was submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for approval.

With its experience in the sale of construction materials, the company will be looking to edge further ahead with its batching plant, which is expected to address a supposed shortage of materials, particularly concrete, on the local market.

“Most projects are delayed due to the lack of ready-mix concrete required

for auger piling, which is a service we offer and is urgently required,” Coosal says in its project summary.

It is estimated that the facility, when completed, will produce a monthly volume of 2,000 m³ of ready-mix concrete, along with 1SOMT of concrete remnants from trucks. The waste will be captured in dedicated settling ponds, and disposed of at approved dump sites.

The specific location for the project is a plot of land, referred to as Block ‘X’ in Te Huis Te Coverden. It is bounded on the west by the Demerara River, to the north and south by heavily vegetated lands with residences, and to the east by houses and manufacturing sites.

The construction phase of this project is expected to run for two months, and will see the employment of 50-60 individuals.

SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION ENVIRONMENT “Coosal’s Guyana Construction Inc. is a company dedicated to the development of Guyana’s infrastructure, while at the same time creating a sustainable production environment.

“It is our belief, if granted project approval, the construction of the readymix concrete plant will have significant positive impacts on the local economy and the livelihoods of many Guyanese, while having negligible impact on the environment,” the company said.

It was reported recently that Guyana’s vibrant construction industry is expected to advance even further this year.

Driven by plans to invest heavily in

the establishment and maintenance of critical infrastructure, the construction industry is projected to grow by 10.5 per cent in 2022.

Speaking from the public investment side, Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh, during his presentation of Budget 2022 had said: “Mr. Speaker, the government is committed to filling the substantial infrastructural gaps that exist across our nation. In 2022, we will continue to invest heavily in construction projects across all sectors, alongside major projects coming from private sector investment initiatives.”

Current estimates show that the construction sector grew by 29.8 per cent in 2021 when compared with 2020. “[This is] underpinned by both the major public infrastructure buildout that is currently underway, as well as increased private sector activity in industrial, commercial, and residential construction,” Dr. Singh related.

It was widely reported last year that from the housing sector to the agricultural sector, there was the mobilisation of resources from both private and public sector stakeholders, who laid the foundation to capitalise on the impending local growth.

Private projects, as reported, ranged from the construction of hotels and apartment complexes, to shopping complexes and office buildings, among other things.

In the public sector, aside from the construction of several low-income houses and houses for young professionals, there were upgrades to highways, main roads, and miscellaneous

roads countrywide. This was also supplemented by the commencement of construction of new roads.

There was some $58.2 billion worth of planned expenditure on public infrastructure, last year.

On the capital side, the budget for infrastructure was $32.9 billion, or 32 per cent of the total allocation for 2021.

INNOVATIVE, MODERN PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE Addressing the plans for this year, Public Works Minister Bishop Juan Edghill had said that the intention is to have innovative and modern public infrastructure.

The government has allocated the largest portion of its milestone $552.9 billion budget in 2022 to the Ministry of Public Works. A total of $96.1 billion has been allocated to the ministry, which is responsible for the country’s infrastructure.

Further, the government has allocated some $76.7 billion for roads and bridges under the Ministry of Public Works in the 2022 budget.

Another component of public infrastructure is the construction of houses and the accompanying facilities to make the environment conducive to living. To this end, the government has allocated $12.4 billion for further development of the housing sector.

“With the construction boom underway, particularly pertaining to the rapid expansion in housing and road projects, the development and expansion of the other mining and quarrying subsector is crucial,” Dr. Singh had said.

Mohamed’s Enterprise gives assistance to affected Uitvlugt Estate workers GUYSUCO in collaboration with local business, Mohammed’s Enterprise, on Saturday donated packages of rice to over 300 Uitvlugt Estate workers affected by closure of the estate’s factory, caused by mechanical issues.

Businessman Azruddin Mohamed said the company saw it fit to lend a hand to the estate workers after learning that the halt in operations at the factory has affected them and their

families.

“We are always supportive of philanthropy, giving back and supporting people who are in need, so after receiving the call we knew we had to help out these over 300 workers. Added to that, right now everyone is fasting as part of Lent, Ramadan, and Navratri, so we wanted to do this as part of giving back, trying to help the estate workers who are out of a job for the past month,” Mohammed stated.

Government in Budget

2022 allocated some $6 billion to boost GuySuCo’s field and factory operations and according to President, Dr Irfaan Ali, the company’s prosperity is also linked to the livelihoods of tens of thousands of Guyanese families.

In addition to directly maintaining thousands of jobs, President Ali said that the allocations for GuySuCo will also stimulate economic activities in several communities across the country.

Uitvlugt Estate workers received much-needed assistance on Saturday (Delano Williams photo)

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Sarah Palin announces US Congress bid Sarah Palin has announced a run for the Alaska’s only seat in the US House of Representatives, her first bid for political office in more than a decade.

“America is at a tipping point,” Palin said. “As I’ve watched the far left destroy the country, I knew I had to

step up and join the fight.”

Palin made history in 2008 by becoming the first woman to appear on a national Republican ticket, as John McCain’s vice presidential running mate.

The pair lost to Democrat Barack Obama.

The 58-year-old former

governor of Alaska and fiery supporter of ex-President Donald Trump joins a field of about 40 candidates hoping to succeed Don Young, who died last month.

In her statement, Palin appealed to conservative voters worried about illegal immigration and “social-

ist” policies enacted by the Democrats, as well as issues like high inflation and petrol prices.

After losing out to the Obama-Biden ticket in 2008, Palin, a self-described “hockey mom”, became one of the most recognisable voices of the Republican Tea The ex-governor has been an ardent supporter of former Republican president Donald Trump (BB/ GETTY IMAGES) Party movement, and later starred in two reality television shows about her family.

Her brand of combative conservatism and anti-establishment appeal has led many to consider her as the political precursor to Donald Trump, whose successful bid to become Republican president she supported in 2016.

Since Trump’s 2020 election loss, Palin has re-

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peated the former president’s unfounded claims that the election was tarnished by fraud.

In February this year Sarah Palin returned to the headlines when a New York City jury rejected her lawsuit against the New York Times newspaper, which she claimed had defamed her by linking her in an editorial article to a deadly shooting. (BBC)

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50 women-owned businesses showcased at WE LIFT Essequibo

THE first-ever WE LIFT Essequibo, at the Anna Regina Town Council on Wednesday, received overwhelming support from the Cinderella County’s residents.

The initiative, a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security and the Regional Gender Affairs Committee of Region Two, showcased over 50 of the county’s most promising female-owned businesses.

Human Services Minister Dr. Vindhya Persaud officially launched the event by showering praises on the women for their innovations and contributions towards the development of the country.

Minister Persaud urged them not to confine themselves in boxes, but rather push to achieve anything they set their minds towards, as she reiterated the various opportunities the ministry is providing for citizens including its WIIN training programme.

Minister Persaud went on to reflect on discussions that suggested that the objective of world gender equality would not be achieved in 2030.

However, Minister Persaud reckoned that she would like to see this become a reality as soon as possible, in Guyana with the ministry providing extensive training in the areas of shared responsibilities, empowerment, technical vocational skills and other areas relating to

gender equality.

“To achieve gender equality it starts with every person understanding that there is space for each person, there is a place for every voice and there is an openness for every contribution big or small…. The Ministry of Human Services is passionate about the support we give to women and men, this event is called WE LIFT and has come to Region Two not by coincidence but by design, in collaboration with the RGAC of Region Two….

If you lift someone up you elevate them beyond barriers, limitations and everything that can prevent them from everything they can be, WE LIFT stands for ‘Women Empowering Leading Innovating and Flourishing Together,” said Minister Persaud.

The event also saw patrons enjoyed an Indian dance presentation

by Lalita Saytoo along with musical renditions

by Joan Henry, Wendell Walcott and Jonica Walcott.

INSPIRATIONAL The audience moved and sang along as the Regional Men’s Group performed an acrostic, using every letter of the word ‘woman’ to describe what a woman means to them. Inspirational messages were shared by Poonwattie Jaigobin and Vanessa Butters.

Mayor of Anna Regina, Rajendra Prabhulall

expressed his delight for the works Minister Persaud and her ministry has been doing to aid in the development of Essequibo.

“This is great, a lot of women-owned businesses came out, lots of excitement in the commercial sphere, this is truly fantastic in helping women with their business and empower them so they can be their own bosses, I am very happy for this and I commend the effort of Minister Persaud; she has been doing really well and the next time I am sure it would be bigger,” the Mayor said.

Qurian Spellen, who operates the only female-owned gym in Essequibo, Qurian Body Beautiful Gym,’ already serves approximately 50 females but noted that the event provided her a platform to network more and engage a lot of people who were not aware of her gym and their tailored programmes for women.

Svetlana Kingston, proprietor of Aunty Otia’s Creation, explained that it is initiatives like these that help women in business to explore and engage others to grow their business further.

Kingston operated in a male-dominated environ-

Human Services Minister Dr. Vindhya Persaud engages representatives of some of the female-owned businesses ment from her schooling where she was the only female in the technology stream before working for 14 years at a power company where she again was the only female.

“It was a really wonderful initiative from the Ministry of Human Service and I trust that this will be an annual event that can grow larger in the years to come,” Kingston said.

Korishma Jaigobin said, “It has been real-

ly a great initiative to see women can support women, especially to see the minister being here, it shows that we are capable

of doing anything.

I was overwhelmed to see so many strong and inspiring women across the coastline.”

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sunday CHRONICLE april 3, 2022

Noble Gesture THE government, in keeping with its policy of reaching out to vulnerable groups in Guyana, has made available a significant sum of money to assist hemodialysis patients.

Seventy-nine such patients have recently benefited from financial support of $600,000 each, amounting to an initial payment of $47 million. Dialysis is the process of removing excess water, dilutes and toxins from the blood in people whose kidneys can no longer perform these functions naturally. It is a relatively new medical intervention with the first such treatment successfully done in 1943.

This is indeed a noble gesture on the part of the government which has been putting the health and well-being of the Guyanese people high on its social agenda.

Dialysis treatment is expensive and many patients are financially challenged to meet the cost of such treatments.

The financial assistance is therefore most welcome by patients, especially given the fact that not all patients are covered by national insurance. Even those who are covered by the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) require addi-

tional assistance to meet the full cost of the treatment. As one patient who understandably was full in praise of the government pointed out, “It was very rough without the assistance, because when I finish paying for the dialysis, I don’t have no money to spend to buy groceries and so for the home.”

A sum of $180M has been allocated in the 2022 National Budget to provide support to persons in need of dialysis treatment, and according to Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony, the approach by the government is not a one-off move.

In fact, such assistance will now be factored into future budgetary allocations.

“It became a new measure in the new budget. This means that every year you will be getting $600,000 to assist you with paying for your dialysis sessions.”

This is music to the ears of dialysis patients, many of whom are struggling to come up with the money to pay for the treatment sessions which, in most cases, have to be done three times per week.

In addition to providing financial assistance to dialysis patients, the government has also been working with dialysis providers to ensure that the required treatment protocols are ade-

quately followed. In partnership with the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO), a preliminary assessment was recently conducted by a nephrologist from Argentina, who examined all dialysis facilities in the country, with another expected in the country shortly.

According to Dr Anthony, “The reason why we are doing that is because we want to make sure that when patients go to any one of these dialysis centres, you can go there with the confidence that they are meeting certain international standards.”

Guyana has come a far way in terms of dialysis treatment.

And according to Minister Anthony, plans are in place to have such treatments in other regions of Guyana. In fact, the Ministry of Health is already partnering with a number of service providers to have such services available in New Amsterdam, Linden and Essequibo.

This is a step in the right direction for those residing in rural communities and also for overseas-based Guyanese and tourists wishing to visit the country and having need to access such services.

In addition to providing assistance to dialysis treatment, government is also

putting in place the necessary mechanisms to offer blood tests free of cost.

According to the Health Minister, the government will be procuring erythropoietin, which is a special medication for patients with kidney problems. The medication will be provided free of cost to patients.

While much progress has been made in terms of dialysis care and treatment, the mere fact of being diagnosed with renal failure can be traumatic.

This is why there is so much merit in the saying that ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.’ It is an established fact that diabetes and diabetes-related illnesses, including renal failure, are to a large extent the result of lifestyle behavioural patterns, which, among other factors, include unhealthy eating habits and lack of exercise.

The PPP/C administration must be commended for placing the health and well-being of the Guyanese people as a top national priority.

This financial support to dialysis patients is one of several interventions by the current administration to render assistance to vulnerable individuals and groups in our society.

Aubrey Norton must respect authority and Guyana’s institutions

Dear Editor,

LEADING up to and since the March 2020 General and Regional Elections, the new PNC/R leader Aubrey Norton has habitually unleashed several scathing attacks on Justice Claudette Singh, Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

His sustained approach of this relentless attitude against many of our key institutions is evidenced by public remarks laden with condemnation of the decision of our courts, the Caribbean Court of Justice, and more recently, disparaging criticisms of President Ali’s appointment of Clifton Hicken as Commissioner of Police (ag).

These without a doubt have been callous, wanton, without merit, lacking justification, and deserving of vehement condemnation. Certainly, the adopted posture is one-track and is also known to have realised a heavy frictional position within the PNC/R leadership that lends itself to the testimony of the extended period it is taking for the replacement of Ms Henry and Mr Harmon as representative Members of Parliament. This does not augur well for objective or constructive engagements as they highlight the PNC/ R’s akin syndrome of non-objectivity in their selections to oppose and denunciate in an attempt to gain convenient visibility.

The frequent accompanying lack of candour from the PNC/R and the ‘two-

bit’ supporting groupings making up the APNU camp suggest that these shallow interventions merely target the attraction of publicity. Likewise, the voluminous silence of the three-membership civil society group in these critical areas presents a pail picture of impartiality. In comparison with other logical observers and commentators, these continuous, clumsy, contemptuous, and ‘wishy-washy’ remarks are certainly exposing an infantile mentality. Please permit me, therefore, to defragment a bit on these two areas for want of necessary public clarification.

Norton’s thunderous silence concerning the evidence-fuelled and corrupt behaviour of those PNC/R underlings from among the GECOM officials now facing

charges for electoral fraud, emphasises why he should be silent in the first place.

One cannot plea the so-call ‘fifth amendment’ and suddenly expects the world to see them as rudimentary, transparent and correct. Norton is on record during the ridiculous five months when the ‘riggers’ were in action, supporting the efforts to rig the 2020 National and Regional Elections. Therefore, his remarks that the Chairperson of the Commission is not independent, partisan, along with his ugly outburst that she must go is without merit.

Further, his obnoxious position that her presence will not facilitate ‘free and fair elections,’ is indeed most damning see page 7

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sunday CHRONICLE april 3, 2022

Jagdeo’s big projects will transform economy

Dear Editor,

SOME critics of the government are totally opposed to the proposed big economic projects (hydro-power generation, gas to shore, Wales Industrial Complex, etc.) announced by Vice-President Jagdeo.

Those of us who study economics would know that big projects have high- level economic objectives and regeneration of an economy. This is not to say small projects should be ignored, or that they are not attractive and are not important to an economy. In India, for example, small projects have performed better in rate of returns than some big projects. But big projects are critical to a rising economy. They have been known to transform an economy -- creating jobs, boosting GDP, and raising standards of living. Infrastructure and health are basic requirements to attract private investments. Jagdeo understands this principle in economics and set out to achieve them during his presidency. Time and funding did not allow for their implementation.

And suddenly, oil has been found in Guyana waters, providing resources to revolutionise infrastructure and the economy.

Guyana was desperately in need of some big projects (hydro power, new highway, specialty hospital, among others) over

the last decade that would transformed the economy. The PPP administration lost its majority in November 2011 and power in May 2015. Instead of giving consideration to and approving some projects (in infrastructure and health care) as proposed

by Jagdeo and Ramotar presidencies, the succeeding Granger administration killed them. The Granger-led APNU+AFC Coalition apparently did not understand the benefits of big projects or “bigness’ as it is called in economics. There are negatives in bigness; but during 2010s, Guyana desperately needed some major projects for job creation and raising GDP. These were missing during the Granger presidency, resulting in rising disenchantment even among PNC supporters. This factor, among others such as raising taxes, squeezing businesses leading to closures, terminating thousands of workers without replacement jobs, and racial discrimination, contributed to the Coalition’s defeat in 2020. Voters overwhelmingly gave negative ratings on the Coalition’s handling of the economy between 2015 and end of 2018, describing it as no match for Jagdeo’s handling of the economy when he was Finance Minister and President.

Unlike those who ran the economy during the Coalition, Jagdeo is a master politico-economic strategist. He looks for projects that will develop the econ-

omy and that can also be considered as vote winners. The Coalition was doing everything to lose votes. Jagdeo was pursuing ideas to win votes. He understands the value of big projects, recognises the importance of low taxation, cash grants, and keeping workers on the payroll. He would not have closed down sugar estates without first finding alternative means of employment. Sugar has its problems. But one can’t simply shut down estates when some 40,000 families are tied to them.

That is why Jagdeo has proposed big projects that will transform the economy – tied to infrastructure that would attract private investors.

Big projects, the world over, result in boosting productivity, restructuring economies. Once properly thought out, with cost-benefit analysis and appraisals by experts, offering value for money spent, they will boost an economy – with job creation, increased tax collection, GDP growth, and higher standards of living -as observed in my travels to and studies on China, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, London, India, Singapore, Malaysia, etc.

Big projects, especially in infrastructure, stimulate the macroeconomic aspects of the economy. Revenues invested in such projects result in a circular flow of money that benefits the entire economy with job creation and rising standards of

living. There would be ancillary benefits such as private investment near accessible roadways, rise of markets, imports and exports, and maybe a shift in trade, with Guyana experiencing a surplus balance that would give stability to the local currency as well as to the entire economy.

Big projects are not cheap and some of them proposed by the Vice-President amount to several billions in American dollars. Guyana lacks that kind of money when total budget is barely $2.5 billion.

Funding for such significant spending on big projecs will, therefore, have to be financed by debt. Guyana can afford the debt for now without serious long-term consequences. With the country earning increasing amounts of revenues from oil, it can afford debt that is within its ability to repay. (We should learn lessons from Burnhamism and don’t over borrow). For the next two decades, once oil prices remain relatively high and oil keeps pumping out of the sea bed, the debt would have limited effect on the economy.

The country would be able to manage fiscal deficit and debt burden to finance infrastructural projects.

Big government projects should be encouraged.

Yours sincerely, Dr Vishnu Bisram

Aubrey Norton must respect ... from page 6

and intolerable.

As the new PNC leader, Norton did not hesitate to criticise the appointment of Vishnu Persaud as the Chief Executive Officer of GECOM. This is although the process followed the procedures governed under the constitutionally guaranteed autonomy of GECOM and included the participation of APNU’s designated commissioners.

It must be noted that he and the PNC never condemned the riggers who were employed in GECOM and are now before the courts for their notorious behaviour while working at GECOM. The Guyanese people are now calling on the PNC General Council to come out and oppose Norton’s unwanted criticism of the eminent Justice Claudette Singh.

Furthermore, the so-called Civil Society and Article 13 Group must now let the nation know if they too are in support of all these provocative, loose statements that are being

spurted from this “let-loose” creature called Norton.

Editor, please permit me to touch on President Ali’s choice of Mr Hickens, who has all the necessary credentials as acting Commissioner of Police. It is known that in appointing a substantive Commissioner of Police, the Constitution provides that the “Commissioner of Police and every Deputy Commissioner of Police shall be appointed by the President, acting after meaningful consultation with the Leader of the Opposition and Chairperson of the Police Service Commission after the Chairperson has consulted with the other members of the Commission.” His Excellency President Ali has recently reiterated his commitment to this process when the time arrives.

The proceeding on retirement leave by the previous acting Commissioner, Mr Hoppie, has created a vacancy that must be filled, al-

beit, temporarily at the President’s discretion in the key constitutional agency. The life of the previous Police Service Commission has expired after being initially suspended by the President for justified reasons affecting consultations, and its resuscitation has suffered due to challenges still to be decided in the courts.

Further, it is not surprising that since the resignation of Mr Harmon, Guyana is still without a Leader of the Opposition. Perhaps the present leader of the PNC lacks the necessary leadership qualities to convince his peers in the executive of his party. Mr Norton’s aspiring parliamentary rise to this position is preceded by some concerns evidenced by the slow decision-making of his party. He was previously kicked out of Parliament by the PNC and also radically booted out during his earlier tenure of General-Secretary of the party.

This apparent lack of respect by many who have significant influence in the PNC seemingly lends to stronger measures of uncertainty and impeeds meaningful consultation.

Before Norton continues his rants and attacks on our institutions, the PPP’s General-Secretary Dr Bharrat Jagdeo whose ilk he could never measure up to, he may be better served by fighting internally to earn the respect of his party peers who may approve of his struggles to get back as a second-string parliamentarian.

Guyana under the PPP/C is doing extremely well.

This nation needs to stay united and work together to build a stronger and better Guyana. However, our people must respect our Constitution, our leaders, and our institutions.

Yours sincerely, Neil Kumar

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sunday CHRONICLE april 3, 2022

Buckingham Palace, Royal Visits and Reparations

By Earl Bousquet GUYANA wasn’t included on the current Royal Charm Offensive for the Queen’s 2022 Platinum Jubilee, but I was at State House when she visited from February 19-22, 1994, nursing an arm in Plaster of Paris.

Today, Guyanese and Caribbean people everywhere are also discussing how Royal Visits should be seen and treated in the 21st Century.

That’s indeed the big question at Buckingham Palace following the failed 2022 Royal Caribbean Charm Offensive to observe and celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee after 70 years on the throne at Buckingham Palace.

Britons were just this week speculating whether 2021-2022 would be another 1992, which she described as an Annus Horribilis (Latin for ‘A horrible year.’)

As she approached her 40th year on the throne that year, The Queen saw the breakdown of three of her children’s marriages (including that of Prince Charles and Princess Diana), the royal family was smattered in the tabloids – and a ferocious fire hit Windsor Castle on November 20.

Thirty years later, as she approached her 70th year as Queen of the British Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth in 2021 lost Prince Phillip (her husband of 70 years); her grandson Harry deserted Buckingham Palace (after being fingered for smattering royal Blue Blood in unwelcome ways); she withdraw all royal titles from her second son Andrew (Duke of York) for bringing the royal household into scandalous

disrepute; and she’d belatedly learn that while she mourned her husband, the Prime Minister and others were hosting Wine-and-Cheese parties at Downing Street.

And then, this Caribbean Charm Offensive that turned offensive.

It’s all rooted in Prince Charles’ visit to Barbados’s Republic celebrations last November, when he expressed Royal Sorrow for Slavery, in words and ways never before uttered publicly by a ‘royal’ since Slavery’s supposed abolition in 1834.

The general response was understandably rather dismissive, most Caribbean advocates for Reparations for Slavery correctly asking ‘Where’s the action to match the words’ or simply describing it as ‘Royal Hypocrisy!’

After all, Slavery created the wealth that built the Empire that made his mother the richest woman in Britain; and it was the Royal Household that established the Royal Africa Company that started the tri-continental Atlantic Slave Trade in African between Africa and Britain’s West Indies.

But all that disappeared as soon as Prince Charles boarded his royal flight back to Buckingham Palace.

Charles’ son William came to the Caribbean three months later, also saying the royals are ‘Sorry for Slavery’ -- and again the related utterances were dismissed as empty words from a mouth too-low in the royal pecking order to be taken seriously.

But even though slightly hearing-impaired, what I heard was the Queen, speaking through her son and grandson representing her in Barbados and Jamaica, saying she’s sorry.

I think the Commonwealth Caribbean’s quick response should be to directly engage Her Majesty, to ascertain how she plans to transfer those expressions of sorrow into the actual Reparations for Slavery and Native Genocide that 14 Caribbean Community (CARICOM) nations, 13 of which are former British colonies, have been quietly calling on Britain since 2013, but with no response.

The Queen allowed her son (the next King) and her grandson (also possible later King) to come to the Commonwealth Caribbean and say, on her behalf, that the Palace is (now) sorry for Slavery.

As Queen of all Royal and Commonwealth Realms, she made Charles’ wife a queen before he becomes king; and she paid her other son Andrew’s out-of-court settlement for an alleged ‘royal sexcapade’ with a girl that he’d earlier denied.

But while the monarch considers when best to abdicate and handover to King Charles, she should be urged to instruct “My Government” in Westminster to honour Britain’s historical debts to the people in those of her Caribbean realms whose very existence was shaped by Slavery and who shed the blood, sweat and tears that created the wealth created by the resulting Industrial Revolution or construction of the British Empire.

QE2 (Queen Elizabeth II) is 96 and doing things no monarch before her has: from washing dishes and launching her own dishwashing brand online, to hosting meetings online while under COVID stress -- and returning to The Internet of Royal Things as quickly as possible thereafter, despite being an-

chored by her frailty.

The Queen waited five months to make her first public appearance: at the special Westminster Cathedral service earlier this week, one year after her husband Prince Philip died at 99 after 70 years always at her side.

In her current mode and mood of appearing to want to depart the throne with a clean royal slate, Her Majesty needs to be encouraged to decree that her Heirs and Successors -- and their Kith and Kin -- henceforth pay the huge and long-outstanding Royal tithes and offerings due by way of reparations to the descendants of the enslaved people of African descent in the former British West Indies, where CARICOM has done what no other British Commonwealth grouping has: Get together and demand Reparations Now! Britain’s formed West Indies should not let the opportunity die and should quickly engage the Queen and thank her for saying she’s sorry and advising her the best way to apologise is to take the next logical step and decree “my sincere wish” that Britain’s Reparations Debt be paid “Right now!”

Instead of waiting to ask King Charles to back his words in Barbados with action by Buckingham Palace, CARICOM should engage both mother and son -- and right now, while they’re discussing the transition from Her Majesty to His Majesty.

But even now, one can see no more Royal Visits to the Caribbean before Britain delivers on Reparations for its role in Slavery and Native Genocide in Guyana and the rest of the Caribbean.

Am I just dreaming? Maybe -and if so, please ‘Do Not Disturb!’

CANU burns US $2M in cannabis

THE Customs Anti Narcotic Unit (CANU) on Saturday destroyed over 1,500 Kg (almost 3400 lbs) of cannabis valued over US $2 million.

The exercise was done at the old Ministr-y of Housing compound, Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown.

The narcotics destroyed were

drugs seized by CANU during the previous year.

The narcotics-destruction exercise was observed by the Home Affairs Minister, Robeson Benn; Permanent Secretary, Mae Toussaint Jr Thomas; head of CANU James Singh, and other senior members of the unit.

The narcotics being destroyed at Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown

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PNC and elections-rigging A CURSORY assessment of the coverage on the attempt to rig the March 2, 2020, general election to favour the ruling Coalition Government on the dailies and media, two years later, reveals two opposing observations.

One is that the actual attempt of rigging did take place, and the other is the silence and denial of the riggers. The first observation has gained enormous traction, and I suspect will continue, which means then that the second observation is fading as the narrative of anything, but rigging is not holding water. How long the latter observation will go on is not certain, but the Coalition will have to face this reality in the next general election. Are they prepared to defend and sustain their views that electoral rigging did not happen? They will with little success. The PNC has never acknowledged the rigging of at least one of four previous elections, and so, any indication of doing so soon is nil.

The lack of recognition of the attempted rigging of the March 2, 2020, general election by one political party that once governed Guyana for three decades is an undisputed national problem. The first is that the PPP erred in thinking that the rigging of elections was something of the past. The PPP has since woken up from this misjudgment with a fixity of purpose, knowing that the possibility of

electoral rigging is real, and therefore, will be placed on high alert. There is not a soul in the PPP leadership who believes that attempts of electoral rigging will not happen again in 2025, 2030, and 2035 even with the implementation of reforms in GECOM to ensure free and fair general elections. The harbouring of fragile trust and willingness to move on from the PNC’s history of electoral rigging have been violated, if not raped. It will take decades to restore the trust that was built in the two decades of the twenty-first century.

My take is that the word rigging will not “disappear” from Guyana’s electoral process by 2050 unless the PNC addresses this inflicted pain on Guyanese.

Concomitant with how the PPP feels about attempts to rig the general election is a national running sore of ordinary Guyanese who believe that whenever they go to the polls every five years, they must deal with the prospects of electoral rigging by the PNC/R. This is an unnecessary burden and bogey on Guyanese since they have not created this problem. They simply want their voting rights to be recognised and counted in their country of birth, and not be violated like their previous generations. We need published conversations that took place in the five-month-long impasse between the generations that voted in 1973, 1980, 1985, and after the March 2, 2020,

A divided, weak and uninspiring opposition

GUYANA has a weak, divided and uninspiring main opposition party engaged in pure shenanigans and political stunts.

It is not representing the interest of the masses. The opposition party -- the A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Coalition -- has not recovered from losing the March 2022 elections.

The levels of disunity, divisiveness, and lack of co-operation are alarming. They signify an opposition in crisis. It is now two years since the Irfaan Ali Administration settled nicely and the APNU+AFC cannot find its opposition footing yet.

It is worrying that after 23 years in the wilderness of Opposition and five barren country years as the Executive Government, APNU+AFC is still having long-winded meetings and engagements trying to find agreements on who should be Guyana’s next Opposition Leader.

Aren’t there no frontrunners left following the ousting of the covert former dictator?

Why is the process taking so long?

In January 2022, Joseph Harmon signalled his intention to step down from the post.

He resigned officially as an MP back on March 15, 2022 and the PNC-led Coalition is still dragging their feet and meeting on the issue. Additionally, they are still to get a replacement for Dr. Nicolette Henry, who resigned from Parliament in February 2022.

This is almost [a]three-month wait for the Coalition to get its act together. It is more complex because of the stubbornness and puerile nature shown by ex-party leader, David Granger, the List representative.

Believe what you want, but Granger’s most recent Cuba trip is being seen as a deliberate delaying tactic. The ever-absent Granger is stalling the process of making PNC Leader Aubrey Norton a parliamentarian.

He is mulling on not naming Norton and another candidate the Coalition wants in Parliament but will consider, allegedly identifying Basil Williams, Eslyn Harris, Van West-Charles, or a newcomer.

All the Opposition party seems to talk about is alleged racism and discrimination through the side of their mouth. It is busy having idle and puerile banter on various issues on social media platforms and Facebook, aimed at getting likes and shares as

elections. This is one beneficial approach to understanding and healing why Guyana’s electoral experience has been ground stop. I will not undervalue, underestimate, and invalidate the level of trauma Guyanese have experienced in that five-month election impasse. Here again, a study is needed. One individual told me that several people started to lose their appetite, a common symptom induced by depression, while others said that they had given up farming but with the possibility of sanctions on Guyana looming, they went back to farming in preparation for pure survival.

What is fortunate, however, when comparing those who voted during past rigged elections and those who voted in 2020 is that the latter had access to social media. If they had doubts about rigging before they were born, the vivid images of attempted rigging over social media in 2020 erased those doubts instantly. Additionally, the 2020 voters have continued access to other general elections like Guyana and have noticed a difference regarding peaceful elections. They must have asked themselves why such a rigging disgrace happened only in their homeland when considering that most developing countries, like Guyana, formed in the 1960s during the decolonisation process, have experienced fair electoral practices and patterns. Neighbouring

Suriname and the English-speaking Caribbean come readily to mind. The word rigging does not exist in these countries. There are a few electoral hiccups, but they are remedied expeditiously without people going to the street to vent violence. The citizens of the wider Caribbean could not believe, as expressed in their own media, what happened in Guyana two years ago by some factions to rig the general election. The defenders of rigging went on their countries’ televisions, such as in Trinidad, spewing bizarre reasons that rigging never happened in Guyana and foreign nationals did not understand Guyana’s electoral system. This is shameful.

The above points to one direction with three strands.

The weight of future fair and free general elections will depend largely on a functional GECOM, national and international observers, and if these forces do not answer in the affirmative, rightly, or wrongly so, the pronouncement of developed countries, mainly from the U.S., would be needed. Guyana’s democracy has reached this stage because one political party does not believe to play by the letter and spirit of the law.

Their fidelity to rigging is rooted deeply, and that there is a denial of rigging is really the validation of this aberration. (lomarsh.roopnarine@jsums.edu).

if this translates into votes in the upcoming elections.

Rome is burning, and the APNU+AFC Coalition does not seem to care.

There is no political activism and meetings with the electorate to assess the mood of Guyanese.

Also, there are no credible forums to hear the citizens’ concerns about issues that are affecting them. So, there is no political representation being made by APNU+AFC parliamentarians. Opposition parliamentarians are having a free period or pass with no one to guide them.

The Opposition party is on auto-pilot. It is not focused on one aim or sector collectively.

Similarly, the public is still waiting for an Opposition party that is capable of mounting formidable and worthwhile challenges to the policy changes and decisions of government.

After all, the opposition is wasting valuable time sorting out internal matters instead of having meaningful political talks with the government. The APNU+AFC Coalition might find it more beneficial to be part and parcel of the government solutions to problems rather than constantly spuriously

obstructing the process.

It was Indian politician, Pratibha Patil, who said the Parliament of the country is the repository of the sovereign will of the people and its successful functioning is a joint responsibility of both the government and the Opposition parties.

His words stand in the case of Guyana.

The Opposition party needs a leader now and its full complement of representatives. Democracy and good governance require it. But that Opposition Leader must keep the individual personalities in check and will guide the path to elections in a much more sober, skillful and intelligent manner compared to what is occurring now.

Unless and until there is one main Opposition party to the government, the APNU+AFC Coalition will not convince right-thinking Guyanese that they should choose them against the PPP. They will continue to labour in vain. They cannot be effective in discharging their function as an effective unit because they are weak.

They do not have the kind of strength and sober-mindedness to lead Guyana.

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Caregiver’s guide to Children’s OTC preparations A CHILD’S caregiver is required to be equipped with the general knowledge of children’s medication(s), dos and don’ts and to know when you should seek emergency medical help.

Recommendations on product usage can be guided by a pharmacist.

The MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency) in the UK endorses access to children’s OTC medicines without a general practitioner from age four. Certainly though, such medications should not be stocked at patent shops such as supermarkets, gas stations and other convenience stores since there is no pharma-

cist present to provide invaluable guidance and cautionary advice to the child’s caregiver.

As the child increases in age and body weight, dosage adjustments are made when administering medications since the clinical response may vary from child to child. Detailed dosage information can be found on the labels of such products.

Generally as a rule of thumb, cough medications are not dispensed without a pediatrician’s approval for children under two years of age.

This is endorsed by the US FDA (Food and Drugs Authority). These include locally available preparations like the

Histal range (EX- Expectorant, DC- Decongestant and DM- Dextromethorphan), Ferrol DM and Chlorophan (syrup and expectorant) and the Tussadryl range. The latter product portfolio has a modified formulation to include an antipyretic (fever reducer) agent and is marketed for babies with a cough and cold from three months of age.

Antipyretics, in older children’s flu and cold preparations, have additional benefits for sore throat and maybe combined with either a cough suppressant and or an expectorant, depending if there is dry or unproductive cough or a chesty cough. OTC products such as Cetamol liquid for children (day and or night) may be considered depending on the child’s symptoms.

A temperature check is always an asset in these situations.

Other preparations such as Viscof S and Bronchosolvin are prescribed for cough associated with wheezing or shortness of breath because they have additive bronchodilator effect.

For babies, below three months of age, pain and fever reducers must be used only under the supervision of a medical doctor. The recommended antipyretic is

paracetamol (Phanadyl or Panadol) especially after taking vaccines.

Combination preparations with two anti-pyretic agents, ibuprofen and paracetamol (such as Ibugesic) is a scheduled H drug and should not be sold without a prescription from a medical doctor because of induced side effects of bronchospasm in asthmatic children. Likewise Advil or ibuprofen syrup may cause similar effects in the same category of children and is not recommended below six months.

With respect to other types of OTCs, multivitamins syrups may be recommended when the child is malnourished and may be used from as young as one month (such as Haliborange) or from five months of age (such as Juviton syrup), under the supervision of a pharmacist. Other booster vitamins such as Bell’s Vitamin C liquid can be taken from six months of age if the child’s immune system is compromised.

The FDA has not endorsed children’s homeopathic products, especially for children under four years of age, clearly indicating that they have not met with the required safety standards nor have they been proven efficacious.

As a matter of fact, severe side effects such as seizure, rapid heartbeat, allergic reactions and breathing difficulties were observed with some of these products later resulting in hospitalisation.

Additionally screening for duplication of ingredients, that cause an accidental overdose, may prevent serious life-threatening consequences. Similarly, incorrect dosage due to an increased dose frequency or higher dose amounts, if it is not measured accurately, can have the same resultant effect.

Appropriate measuring devices are important and eating utensils will not suffice. For babies and infants droppers are best used to get the job done. It must be noted that 5ml is equivalent to one teaspoon whilst 15ml is one tablespoon.

Aspirin, chemically known as acetylsalicylate or salicylic acid, is not recommended for children because of Reye syndrome, which can become life threating in severe cases.

Another factor to be considered for children’s preparation is taste. Once it appeals to the child’s taste buds the child is less likely to reject the medication.

Sometimes their favorite

beverages can be mixed with the preparations to mask an unpleasant taste some formula may have.

Always consult with healthcare provider before double dosing on medication or co-administering with another preparation. Every medication will have to be broken down and filtered by the child’s developing organs.

Apart from medication guidance, the following signs will indicate to the caregiver when to call a doctor; if there is a temperature of 100.4F (two months or younger), 102F at any age, blue lips, labored breathing, severe headaches, dehydration from not drinking or eating, diarrhea or vomiting, persistent ear pain or if there is no sign of improvement in the child’s condition.

For further pharmacological guidance and physician referral, contact the pharmacist of Medicine Express PHARMACY located at 223 Camp Street, between Lamaha and New Market Streets. If you have any queries, comments or further information on the above topic kindly forward them to medicine.express@gmail.com or send them to 223 Camp Street, N/burg. Tel #225-5142.

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Understanding Energy…

Guyana’s rapid development balanced with safety

SOME activists have recently raised questions about the pace of development for Guyana’s oil and gas industry, and whether the speed could pose safety issues.

A foreign-based environmental group has even gone so far as to call on CARICOM leaders to pressure Guyana to pause new developments for an indefinite period.

Beyond the politics and media attention, it’s important to understand exactly what a delay would mean for Guyana. Oil and gas development has a timeline; measured in decades. Going from exploration to production takes many years, even with large investments.

Delays in approvals now, as activists are calling for, could push Guyana’s full oil production later in the century, into a future where the demand for oil is more uncertain.

These efforts also ignore the reality that the pace and safety of development are largely unrelated. The speed with which these resources are being developed is a reflection that Guyana is a priority for investment and attention right now. The country has already received

the largest investments in its history, and has received some of the largest investments made anywhere in the world for offshore development over the last few years.

The accelerated pace of development also reflects the world-class skill and efficiency of thousands of experts, many of whom are Guyanese, who are working to take advantage of a limited time opportunity to maximise Guyana’s earning potential. International energy analyst Arthur Deakin wrote recently that contrary to the statements of some, oil is not a resource that Guyana can hang on to indefinitely, and still expect revenues. “Some local critics claim that oil don’t spoil, and that development is happening too fast. But, in a time of tight oil supply, growing energy demand, and concerning geopolitical risks, Guyana can serve as a cleaner, reliable source of oil and gas,” Deakin wrote.

Guyana has already made strides to balance its new developments and partnerships by enhancing its safety measures and preparedness. There is a National Oil Spill Response Plan as a first line of defence, and authorities con-

duct regular exercises with regional and international partners to train response personnel to move swiftly in the unlikely event of an accident. This planning and preparation include cooperation between operators, national agencies, and representatives of other countries and stakeholders that could be affected.

For Guyana, there is a strong incentive to develop oil in a way that is both fast and safe. While oil demand is likely to remain high in the near-term, there is ample reason to be concerned about the long-term prospects in a warming world where electric cars and renewables are growing rapidly. Oil remains vitally important to the global economy, but high prices and high demand are unlikely to last many decades into the future. That means the best time for Guyana to get the most wealth out of its oil is now.

This country also needs significant new revenues in the short-term to invest in infrastructure, education, healthcare and social programmes, as promised by the government. A “pause” to development, resulting in long delays, could have far- reaching impacts across Guyana’s development plans, not to mention

its potentially devastating impacts on the growing number of industries and workers already benefitting from oil and gas contracts. Local companies and industries are expanding, retraining, and learning to support the oil industry, but uncertainty about whether projects will continue to be approved could bring that to a halt.

Activists have a right to their concerns, and a steady, careful approach to oil development is always important.

But slowing approvals, or pausing development artificially, at the behest of environmental groups who oppose oil development, more generally is a poor recipe for the kind of growth that Guyana is seeking.

Ensuring sustained economic and social investments in the country for the foreseeable future means ensuring a steady pipeline of projects that take advantage of Guyana’s spectacular good fortune offshore.

Guyana is already well-placed, and prepared to mitigate the risks and reap the benefits of oil production, while meeting its long-term development goals.

KNRO donates new ambulance to Kwakwani hospital

ATTORNEY-GENERAL and Legal Affairs Minister Mohabir Anil Nandlall on Friday witnessed the handing over of an ambulance to the Kwakwani hospital by the Kwakwani Natural Resources Organisation (KNRO) at Independence Park, Kwakwani, Region 10.

According to a press release, Lamuel Carmichael, Secretary for the KNRO handed the keys of the vehicle to the Doctor-in-Charge of the institution and a driver attached to the Kwakwani Hospital.

The Attorney-General, on behalf of the Government of Guyana, the Ministry of Health, and the people of Kwakwani, thanked the organisation for its generous contribution.

He observed that just recently, this very organisation donated some $15M towards the rehabilitation of a school in the community and thus far has made over $65M in similar contributions to various endeavours in the community.

In lauding the efforts of this organisation, the Attorney-General acknowledged the important role that they are playing as a corporate citizen in not only taking from the resources in the community but, also giving back to the community and the people in kind.

He emphasised that civil, civic and non-governmental organisations must continue to partner with the government in improving the quality of life of citizens in a quest to create a better society.

Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Mohabir Anil Nandlall spoke with officials from the KNRO and others in attendance after the key to the ambulance was handed over at Independence Park, Kwakwani, Region 10

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Tucker retains position as GCCI’s President

President of the GCCI, Timothy Tucker, and other newly elected members of GCCI’s council (GCCI photo) THE work of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) will be spearheaded by Timothy Tucker for another year, following the chamber’s 132nd Annual General Meeting (AG) and elections, last Thursday.

Tucker, who retained his position as president of

the chamber, is among the many council members who were re-elected to serve.

The chamber also elected its new Executive Management Committee (EMC) and chairpersons for its statutory and non-statutory committees.

Those persons elected for the EMC are Gerald Gouveia Jr., who is the Senior

Vice-President; Kester Hutson, Junior Vice-President; Shaleeza Shaw, Secretary and Gavin Ramsoondar, Treasurer.

The chamber’s recent meeting paved the way for continued talks on improving business and business opportunities in the Guyanese private sector and the newly elected council is gearing up to make

a significant impact this year.

GCCI is the oldest private sector representative organisation in Guyana and was established in 1890. It is member-driven and a pro-

fessionally staffed non-profit association of business people committed to improving the economic climate and quality of life in Guyana.

The chamber’s

strength lies in the size and diversity of its membership; both large and small businesses from virtually every sector are represented.

NEWLY appointed Commissioner of Police (ag), Clifton Hicken, on Saturday embarked on his first major community outreach since he assumed the top post in the Guyana Police Force.

Hicken visited several communities in and around Georgetown including Rosemary Lane in Tiger Bay, Leopold Street, Sophia, Albouystown and Agricola where he distributed food hampers and kites to the residents.

At every location the reception was overwhelming and enthusiastic, with residents turning out in their numbers to meet the new Commissioner of Police (ag) and to interact with him.

Hicken was accompanied

by Deputy Commissioner ‘Administration’ (ag), Calvin Brutus; Commander Regional Police Division 4’A’,

Simon McBean; other senior and junior officers of the Police Force and businessman, Shahab Hack.

During the interaction with the residents from each community, Hicken emphasised the need for unity and partnership between the police and communities.

The commissioner further mentioned that there must be no conflict between the police and residents of the communities and he wishes to see the equal amount of respect given to other members of the Force and members of the business community whenever they go into communities to conduct business.

Deputy Commissioner ‘Administration’ (ag), Calvin Brutus, while addressing the residents, notified them that the Guyana Police Force will be launching a Skills Training Programme for youths and young adults within the

communities so as to help them better sustain their livelihood.

Commander of the division, Simon McBean, assured the residents that his administrative team will make frequent visits to each community since the safety and security of the residents are of utmost importance.

Businessman Shahab Hack pledged a total of $1.5M for scholarships and sport development in the communities visited.

This message was well received by the residents who openly pledged their support to the new commissioner and his team.

Before leaving, Hicken assured the residents of each community that there will be weekly meetings to address their concerns and issues and thanked them for their support over the years.

Hicken reaches out to vulnerable communities

Commissioner of Police (ag), Clifton Hicken shares out hampers throughout his visits to various communities in Georgetown and its environs

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Strategic direction of GYEITI discussed with US stakeholders

THE strategic direction of the country’s natural resources watchdog agency, the Guyana-Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GYEITI), was recently discussed at length with US Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Caribbean Affairs and Haiti, Barbara A. Feinstein, and other officials of the North American country.

Head of GYEITI, Professor Prem Misir, who led

the local agency during the discussions, said the engagement was fruitful.

Professor Misir said the discussions centered on the transparency institute’s strategic vision, strategic priorities, strategy/structure/ staffing, and its annual work plan.

Discussions also surrounded revenue forecasting, criteria for MSG membership, reconciliation, public benefit, the institute’s

relationship to sustainable development goals (SDGs), data collection template for the internal assessment (IA) report, status of the 2019 IA report and schedule of commencing the IA 2020 report.

Guided by the belief that a country’s natural resources belong to its citizens, the EITI has established a standard to promote the open and accountable management of oil, gas and mineral resources.

Governments, together with companies and civil society, work to improve the management of natural resources by implementing the “EITI Standard.”

According to EITI’s fact sheet, the “EITI Standard” requires countries to publish timely and accurate information on key aspects of their natural resource management, including how licences are allocated, how much tax, royalties and social contribu-

Coordinator of GYEITI, Professor Prem Misir (second from right); US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch (centre); US Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Caribbean Affairs and Haiti, Barbara A. Feinstein (second from left) and other officials share a light moment following recent discussions (US Embassy photo)

tions companies are paying and where this money ends up in the government at the national and local levels.

“EITI seeks to strengthen public and corporate governance, promote understanding of natural resource management, and provide data to inform and drive reforms to curb corruption and improve accountability.

“Implementing the EITI

Standard improves government systems and can lead to improved tax collection and budgetary planning. It signals commitment to the transparent and accountable management of the country’s natural resources.

A transparent and open government enhances citizens’ trust,” the transparency institute said.

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St. Cuthbert’s Secondary School gets stable electricity supply THE Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), on Monday, installed a 48kWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) as a replacement for an obsolete 47.04kWh BESS at the St. Cuthbert’s Mission Secondary School,

mation (DPI), this initiative saw 135 students and 11 teachers benefitting from a stable and reliable supply of electricity, which will enhance the delivery of the school’s daily learning activities.

The students and teachers

and small businesses needs are satisfied by this source of electricity, this does not benefit the students or teachers as the timing of the supply falls outside of the usual school hours.

The GEA, in exercising its mandate, therefore, pro-

Students of the St. Cuthbert’s Mission Secondary School in their computer laboratory Pakuri, along the Linden Soesdyke Highway.

According to the Department of Public Infor-

expressed gratitude for this initiative.

They said that it will allow them to use their well-resourced computer laboratory to complete their School Based Assessments (SBAs) and access study materials as well as examination notifications and results online.

Pakuri has an electricity mini-grid network supplied by a 135kVA diesel-fuelled generator.

Owing to high fuel costs, electricity is only provided for four hours daily during the early evening hours.

While a section of the community’s residents

vided support to the school for the procurement, transport and installation of the replacement battery bank.

The batteries were procured at a cost of $1,661,120. The battery bank includes 16 batteries configured in a 48Vdc, 1,000Ah arrangement.

The installed hybrid PV system provides clean and renewable electricity supply to the school, dormitory and teachers’ quarters.

Its operation will result in the avoidance of an estimated 5.07 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.

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Turnkey housing programme to be expanded in Region Three –– 2,000 house lot recipients to soon commence construction

THE Housing and Water Ministry will be expanding its turnkey housing programme to Region Three as lands have been reserved for close to 200 low-income and moderate-income homes to be built in Edinburg, Anna Catherina and MetenMeer-Zorg, according to Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal.

This is aimed, he said, at providing more comprehensive and sustainable housing options for all Guyanese.

Further, approximately 2,000 Guyanese who have been allocated lands in Region Three can look forward to commencing the construction of their dream homes by the end of April 2022.

This comes as infrastruc-

tural works such as roads, bridges and culverts, near completion in Edinburg, Anna Catherina, Cornelia Ida, Stewartville and MetenMeer-Zorg. Water distribution and electrical networks are also being installed in the schemes.

Minister Croal visited the sites on Friday, where he met with contractors.

“We have people that [sic] are awaiting to occupy their lands. It means a lot for the economy and a lot for them individually,” the minister noted.

He stated that while the works started under the ministry’s 2021 work programme, there were notable delays, as some lands were owned by the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and

existing crops were to be harvested before the project.

However, some dissatisfaction was still noted with the pace of contractors, particularly at Meten-MeerZorg, which allottees will be able to access in May compared to April with the other schemes. As such, the minister urged that the works be expedited.

“We are applying liquidated damages to those who have not received an extension permit. Similarly for the new contracts that have been awarded under the 2022 programme, we are going to be very rigid in its implementation because we have people that are awaiting to be able to access their new lot,” said the minister.

Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal addresses engineers and contractors on site

Aerial view of Cornelia Ida Housing Development Region Three

Aerial View of Meten-meer- Zorg Housing Development, Region Three

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CARICOM reparations message rings throughout Royal visits

THE CARICOM Reparation Commission (CRC) met in Barbados March 2829 for its 26th meeting and second Special Conference, where the Royal Visits to the Caribbean were discussed, among other reparations-related matters, including past and upcoming events -- from the African Union (AU)-CARICOM Summit last September to plans for Reparations Summits in 2022 and beyond.

The CRC’s Strategic Approach at a time when the reparations issue placed on eight years ago has now gone global and the meeting heard reports on latest related national and regional developments.

Also discussed were reparations for native genocide for the region’s first people, as well as qualification of descendants of deceptive East Indian indentureship for inclusion in the calls and cause for reparations from Britain and the European

Union (EU) member-states that participated in and benefitted from the Slave Trade.

Chairman of the Saint Lucia National Reparations Committee (NRC) Earl Bousquet, who is also the island’s Commissioner on the CRC, told the Guyana Chronicle that the meeting discussed the Royal Visits in the context of the reparations-related responses from The Bahamas, Belize and Jamaica after being visited

by Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton.

“The visits being in the context of observance and celebration of the Queen of the British Commonwealth’s Platinum Jubilee, the responses have so far been a wake-up call to the Royal Family, that after six decades of independence and republicanism, Caribbean citizens no longer sing ‘God Save The Queen’ and most no longer see the royals like they were ‘Born to reign over us’ like we were taught

Members of the CARICOM Reparations Commission (CRC) at a March 28-29 meeting in Barbados (Photo courtesy of CARICOM Secretariat Communications Unit) during centuries of colonial miseducation.”

According to Bousquet, who is also a Guyana Chronicle columnist, “The Royal Visits were supposed to

have been a Royal Caribbean charm offensive, but instead they put the Caribbean’s reparations demand on the Royal agenda in a way never planned, which is a natural welcome boon for the CRC and the CARICOM governments that gave it birth in 2013.”

He pointed out, however, that the commission did not take a position on the issue of how to respond to the Royal Visits, instead leaving it to national committees in the nations to be visited, to decide how best to welcome the Royals -and give them the reparations message to take back to Britain.

EAST INDIAN INDENTURESHIP Bousquet said the meeting also discussed different views on the issue of East Indian indentureship and the reparations agenda, as well as the role of British Guiana’s Gladstone family in and contribution to the Cross-Atlantic Slave Trade.

Bousquet said the CRC and CARICOM are now operating “in an environment where the work started in 2013 has mushroomed regionally and internationally” with the reparations movements having been “re-

vived everywhere since then, including the USA and UK, Africa and Europe, India and the remaining European colonies in the Caribbean.”

He said the CRC was also “preparing for upcoming reparations summits involving Africa and India.”

Bousquet said the CRC meeting “also called for NRCs to do more to observe the second half of the United Nations Decade for People of African Descent.”

He noted too that the national reparations committees are working with and through the CARICOM Secretariat, as well as the Centre for Reparations Research (CRR) and the Vice- Chancellor of the University of the West Indies (UWI), Sir Hilary Beckles, on how best to improve and/or increase national participation in the rest of the decade.

FAR AHEAD He noted that Guyana is fortunate to be far ahead of other CRC member states in its ability to fund activities related to the Decade and that the UN is making an extraordinary appeal to nations everywhere, including the Caribbean, to do more to ensure the second half of the decade does

not end like the first.

Another event on the CRC and NRC’s agenda for 2022, Bousquet said, is the second AU-CARICOM Summit on September 7.

He noted that the Barbados meeting had been planned before the Royal Visits began “and they were not an original agenda item, but had to be added in light of their taking place while the Caribbean’s reparations representatives met in Bridgetown, where Prince Charles last November said, on his mother’s behalf, that the Royals are now sorry for slavery.”

According to Bousquet, “National Committees in nations to be visited have basically affirmed they will ensure the Royals hear the reparations message before flying back home.”

He concluded that the overall responses to the three Royal Caribbean Visits so far have underlined the advances made across the region in people’s understanding and support for CARICOM’s call for reparations.

“And if there’s anything that can be agreed upon by all after the current visits will have ended, is that no future Royal Visits to the Caribbean will ever be the same again.”

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

Covent Garden Secondary win Janet Jagan Memorial Windball EBD final

COVENT Garden Secondary School emerged victorious in the National Sports Commission/Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, East Bank De-

merara (EBD) final of the 2022 Janet Jagan Memorial School Girls Windball Cricket competition.

T h e Wi n d b a l l s e a son-opener is organised by

Sports Officer, A. Munroe.

In the championship clash against rivals, Diamond Secondary School, at the National Gymnasium, Covent Garden won the toss

Covent Garden Secondary were flawless in the East Bank Demerara final

CONCACAF W Qualifiers...

FROM PAGE 27 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines will meet British Virgin Islands at Arnos Vale Stadium in Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the lone match in Group E. While neither side has earned a point nor scored a goal thus far, Wednesday’s affair is a chance to show the improvement made and lessons learned by both teams since February’s matches, which included a valiant performance from Vincy Heat in a narrow 3-0 loss to Cuba.

Windsor Park Sport

Stadium in Roseau, Dominican will be the site for the day’s game in Group F, with hosts Dominica welcoming in Turks and Caicos Islands.

Dominica are coming off an outing in which they went toe-to-toe with Trinidad and Tobago before falling 2-0, so they will be eager to deliver three points to the home fans.

Turks and Caicos Islands were defeated by Guyana and Nicaragua in their first two matches, but that experience should provide a lift in the visit to Dominica.

and elected to bowl.

In the middle, Diamond rallied to 104-2 from their five overs, Odessa France led the attack with a dominant 54. She belted eight sixes in her innings. Support came from Amelia Leal with 24. Shemica Lewis and Alzura Fernandes assisted with 14 runs each.

Covent Garden replied with an aggressive unbeaten

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opening partnership between Shamaya Da Costa and Latifa Dublin, who both struck 50 even runs to propel their school to 108-0.

Both young cricketers also made some big shots.

Impressively, they each hit seven sixes and two fours.

Friendship Secondary School finished third in the division.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

World Cup Draw:

Ruthless Brazil and underwhelming Portugal – the Qatar 2022 groups in numbers

THE dust is settling following the 2022 World Cup draw, which has provided a number of subplots and talking points aplenty to discuss between now and the opening set of games on November 21.

France, placed in a group that contains Denmark, Tunisia and one of Peru or Australia, will look to avoid becoming the fifth defending champions in the past six tournaments to exit at the first hurdle.

Spain and Germany, the winners of two of the past three World Cups, face off in arguably the pick of the group games in what will be their fifth meeting in the competition and the first since La Roja's 2010 semi-final triumph.

There are some good omens for England, who are in action on the opening day of the tournament – the last time that was the case they went on to lift the trophy on home soil in 1966.

As the debate rumbles on as to which is the most interesting group this time around, and supporters of participating nations plot out their route to the latter stages, Stats Perform picks out a key stat for each team.

GROUP A – Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands Qatar are competing in their first World Cup and will aim to avoid becoming only the second host nation to be knocked out in the first round after South Africa in 2010.

They will begin their campaign against Ecuador, who have not faced a nation from outside of the UEFA or CONCACAF regions in their previous 10 World Cup matches.

Senegal are participating in the event for a third time and are the third African Cup of Nations title-holders to qualify this century after Cameroon in 2002 and Nigeria in 2014.

However, the heavyweights of the group are the Netherlands, who have won 11 of their last 14 World Cup matches when not factoring in penalty shoot-outs. Three times Oranje have reached the final; three times they have been beaten.

They failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, of course.

GROUP B – England, Iran, United States, Scotland/ Wales/Ukraine England have progressed past the quarter-finals just once since 1966, although the most recent occasion came four years ago when losing in the semi-finals.

First up for England are Iran, who have scored nine goals in 15 World Cup matches – that goals-per-game average of 0.6 the lowest of any side to have played at least 10 times.

Back involved after missing Russia 2018, the United States will be looking to reach the knockout stages for a fourth time in their past five participations in a World Cup. Should Wales reach the finals, the gap of 64 years between their only two finals appearances will set a record.

Scotland, who meet Ukraine in a play-off for the right to face Wales, have made more World Cup appearances (eight) without making it past the first round than any other nation.

GROUP C – Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland One of three South American teams to have lifted the trophy, Argentina have made it past the first round in 12 of

their past 13 appearances, the only exception being in 2002.

It would be an understatement to say that Saudi Arabia have had less success in the finals, having won only three of their previous 16 World Cup matches – albeit one of those coming against Egypt in the 2018 edition.

Mexico have reached every World Cup since missing out in 1990 and tend to do well in the group stage, having advanced to the last 16 in each of their last eight appearances.

Whereas Mexico have won five of their past six opening games, first opponents Poland have won just one of their previous eight curtain-raising fixtures and have lost the last three.

GROUP D – France, Peru/Australia/UAE, Denmark, Tunisia France are out to become the third team, after Italy (in 1938) and Brazil (in 1962) to retain the trophy. However, the last three defending champions have fallen in the group stage.

Denmark boasted the best defensive record of any side in European qualifying and have made it out of the group stage in four of their five World Cup appearances.

That is in contrast to Tunisia, who have not made the knockout rounds in six previous attempts. The Eagles of Carthage have also not beaten a European side in 10 World Cup games (D3 L7).

Tunisia have lost 60 per cent of their World Cup games, the third-highest by a team to have played 15+ games behind Saudi Arabia (69 per cent) and possible Group D opponents Australia (63 per cent GROUP E – Spain, Costa Rica/New Zealand, Germany, Japan Spain won the World Cup in 2010, but that is the only occasion they have reached the semi-finals in their last 13 participations. However, they have won the group in four of their last five appearances.

Germany, champions in 2014, were the first side to reach Qatar 2022 aside from the hosts, and have made it to the semi-finals in four of the five World Cups this century – the best record of any side.

After reaching the last 16 in 2018, competition regulars Japan will aim to book a place in the knockouts in back-toback editions for the first time.

Completing arguably the toughest group is either Costa Rica or New Zealand, who meet in a play-off in June.

Costa Rica have appeared at five previous World Cups, while the All Whites have made it to the finals twice before.

GROUP F – Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia Belgium have qualified for more World Cups without winning it than any other European teamm with this their

14th appearance. With much of their 'golden generation' either 30 or close to it, however, this is realistically the final chance for that batch of players to cement their names in the history books, after a third-place finish in 2018.

Roberto Martinez's team might meet Spain or Germany in the last 16 but should have little trouble in getting out of their group.

Canada are competing in the global showpiece for the

first time since 1986, when they lost all three matches and failed to score.

Morocco have won just one of their last 10 World Cup games, with that coming against Scotland in 1998, while their last knockout-round appearance was in 1986.

Beaten finalists in 2018, Croatia have had a mixed time of things in the finals, having been eliminated in the group stage (three times) or reached the semis (twice) in their past five appearances GROUP G – Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon Brazil are the competition's most successful side with five trophies and are unbeaten in their last 15 World Cup group games, winning 12 of those. Their last such defeat was against Norway in 1998.

The next side with a chance to end that long run are Serbia, who have lost seven of their last nine World Cup matches, which is the most of any European nation since 2006. They also met Brazil in the 2018 group stage.

Another team to have been drawn with Brazil and, indeed, Serbia in Russia was Switzerland. History has repeated itself this time around. The Swiss finished above Italy in qualifying to make it to their fifth successive finals.

Including the European Championships, they have reached the knockout stages in their last four major tournaments - a record only Belgium and France can match.

Cameroon make up Group G. They have played more matches at the World Cup than any other African nation (23), but they have lost the last seven of those – only Mexico (nine) have ever lost more in a row.

GROUP H – Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea Heavyweights they may be, but Portugal have won only three of their last 14 World Cup matches, each of those in the group stage. Their last knockout-round win was in the last 16 against the Netherlands in 2006.

All being well, Cristiano Ronaldo will be featuring in a record-equalling fifth World Cup. It will almost certainly be his last, though.

Ghana's quarter-final appearance in 2010 remains the joint-best finish for an African side, alongside Senegal in 2002 and Cameroon in 1990, and they have scored in their last five World Cup games.

Uruguay controversially eliminated Ghana in the quarter-finals 12 years ago but the Black Stars have a chance for revenge here in the final round of fixtures.

First up for Uruguay, meanwhile, are South Korea, but the South American side have won their opening match at just one of their last seven World Cups.

That is good news for Son Heung-min and Co. as South Korea look to win successive finals matches for just the second time ever, having knocked out Germany four years ago. (Yahoo Sport)

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Ferguson, Gill take Gujarat Titans to second IPL win on the trot

GUJARAT Titans are up and running in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. A second win on the trot for Hardik Pandya’s men as Delhi Capitals suffered a 14–run defeat

of the season, Mustafizur Rahman made an immediate impact as he dismissed Matthew Wade in the first over. However, the other GT opener, Shubman Gill, was at his fluent best as

Twice in the match, Lockie Ferguson struck twice in an over (BCCI photo) against them.

The match was well balanced for the major part but Lockie Ferguson’s fiery spell proved to be the decisive factor. His four-for rattled DC’s batting order and sealed the win for Titans.

Besides him, Shubman Gill also played a remarkable 84-run knock.

Earlier in the match, Delhi Capitals, who defeated Mumbai Indians in their opening fixture, won the toss and opted to bowl at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.

Playing his first game

he played some delightful shots early on.

Shubman Gill brought up his highest score in T20 cricket While Vijay Shankar couldn’t contribute much, Gill found a substantial partner in skipper Hardik Pandya. The duo steadied the ship for Titans and played some delightful shots in the process.

While Hardik fell prey to Khaleel Ahmed for 31, Gill notched up his maiden fifty of the season. He shifted gears after reaching the landmark and brought up his highest score in T20

cricket, 84.

David Miller and Rahul Tewatia played some handy shots towards the end as Titans posted 171-6 in their allotted 20 overs.

In reply, Capitals lost Tim Seifert in the very second over. While Prithvi Shaw and Mandeep Singh played some good shots, they were dismissed for 10 and 18 runs respectively.

The onus was then on skipper Rishabh Pant to steady the ship.

The southpaw joined forces with Lalit Yadav and the duo added 61 runs for the fourth wicket. Just when the contest looked well in balance, Lalit was run-out amid a misunderstanding while running between the wickets. Nonetheless, Pant seemed like a man on a mission as his attractive shots kept the required run-rate under control.

However, he eventually fell prey to Lockie Ferguson, who took a four-for in the game. While Rovman Powell scored 20 runs, there was no contribution whatsoever from DC’s lower order.

The Capitals were eventually restricted to 157-9, losing the contest by 14 runs. (CricTracker .com)

SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

Lakers beaten by New Orleans Pelicans in ‘must-win’ game

LeBron James scored 21 points in the third quarter against New Orleans Pelicans - his highest for a single quarter this season LEBRON James and Anthony Davis returned from injury but could not stop Los Angeles Lakers losing 114-111 to New Orleans Pelicans.

The defeat put Lakers 11th in the Western Conference, one place below the play-in tournament spots.

Two teams from both conferences can progress via the play-in places to reach the end-of-season play-offs.

James scored 38 points and Davis 23 for the Lakers, who lost a fifth consecutive game.

The Pelicans moved to ninth in the Western Conference.

“It pretty much was a must-win for us and we didn’t get the job done,”

said James.

Lakers, who have a 31-46 win-loss record this season, face Denver Nuggets today as they try and catch San Antonio Spurs, who are in 10th place with a 32-45 record.

“Until it says we’re eliminated, it doesn’t,” said James. “Until that moment, we’ll know what our destiny is, but right now, we don’t.”

Phoenix Suns, who have secured top place in the Western Conference, suffered a 122-114 defeat by second-placed Memphis Grizzlies.

Los Angeles Clippers thrashed Milwauk e e B u c k s 1 5 3 - 11 9 , with Robert Covington scoring a career-high 43 points.

C o v i n g t o n h i t 11 three-pointers as he helped the Clippers to a franchise-record total during the regular season.

Stephen Curry is set to miss the rest of the regular season for Golden State Warriors as he recovers from a foot injury that has kept him out of the past seven games.

“He will gradually begin individual on-court activities next week, and his eventual return to practice will be based on his continued progress,” said the Warriors.

“Our next update on his status will be provided on April 11.”

Warriors play their final game of the regular season on April 10 against Pelicans. (BBC Sport)

Tite fears lack of European matches could cost Brazil in Qatar (REUTERS`) - Brazil are the bookmakers’ favourites to win the World Cup but their lack of friendlies against European opposition over the last four years perturbs coach Tite, who fears it could cost them in Qatar.

Brazil were drawn in Group G on Friday and will face Switzerland, Serbia and Cameroon in the finals.

They are unquestionably the best side

in South America along with Argentina, having recorded a record 45 points in the qualifiers and going unbeaten in all 17 matches.

But without game time against teams such as France, Spain, England and Germany, Tite admitted there was a question mark over just how good the five-time world champions really are.

“We don’t have these encounters so there’s a doubt,” he said last year.

In the four years between the last two World Cups, Brazil faced eight European teams including holders Germany, hosts Russia and eventual winners France.

However, in the four years since Belgium knocked them out at the quarter-final stage in Russia, they have only once met a team from Europe, beating the Czech Republic 3-1 in a March 2019 friendly.

That is down partly to

the COVID-19 pandemic, which has squeezed the football calendar since 2020, but it is also because of the Nations League.

The launch of the Nations League in 2018 was designed, according to UEFA, to “reduce the number of meaningless friendlies”.

Brazil, though, see such friendlies not as meaningless but as a chance to test themselves against the best in the world and Tite

has repeatedly asked the Brazilian Football Confederation to arrange games against European sides.

“Any friendly against any European team, because it is important,” he told reporters last year.

“We want it. The side wants it.”

The Europeans, meanwhile, appear less worried, if comments from Spanish coach Luis Enrique are anything to go by.

When asked about

the lack of transatlantic encounters, he shrugged his shoulders.

“I don’t think we miss playing against teams from other continents,” he told TNT Sports Brasil last week. “European teams are the top level, the four semi-finalists at the last World Cup were European.”

“The day we have to play against them we’ll try the best we can. It will be tough, of course, but I don’t think it is a problem.”

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

Keen encounters highlight SFSCL semi-finals

… Kingston slams boundary-studded century

By Frederick Halley THE 16th edition of the South Florida Softball Cricket League (SFSCL) three-day tournament was scheduled to climax yesterday at the picturesque Brian Piccolo Park with finals in all three categories – All Stars Open, Masters Over40 and Legends Over-50.

The stage was set for a return confrontation featuring Regal Legends and Toronto Blizzards after both emerged victorious in their semi-final encounters in contrasting fashions - Regal Legends trouncing Marine Masters by nine wickets in a lopsided affair and Toronto Blizzards defeating Orlando Legends by 15 runs.

Regal Masters were also seeking to make it a double for the Guyana-based club and were down to face off with Corriverton Masters after turning back the challenge of Softball Cricket Canada (SCC), following Samuel Kingston’s boundary-studded 106.

Set a meagre 90 for victory after limiting their opponents to 89 all out in 18.5 overs, Regal Legends rushed to the required score in a mere six overs, losing

Ramesh Deonarine clobbered six fours and five sixes in his unbeaten 57 one wicket in the process to win by nine wickets.

It was again the Ramesh Deonarine show as the Essequibian clobbered six fours and five sixes in an unbeaten 57 while opener Uniss Yusuf was left undefeated on 24 which contained five fours.

The two shared an unbeaten second partnership of 86, following the early departure of skipper Mahendra Hardyal with just four runs on the board in the second over.

Earlier, Marine Masters

innings never got going as wickets tumbled at regular intervals. The consistent Laurie Singh was again among the wickets with four for 19, following the early inroads by Parsram Persaud (two for 19).

The other semi-final, played on the adjoining field, saw Toronto Blizzards rattle up 180 for five in the allotted 50 overs with Mohan Harihar spanking two fours and four sixes in an undefeated 52 while Desmond Chumney hit a quick-fire 45 with two fours and five sixes.

Orlando Legends could muster only 165 for six in return, despite a spirited effort, led by opener Motiram Singh who hit a top score of 40 which included three fours and a six.

Chumney returned to bag three for 29 from his four overs while there were two wickets each for Jesh Parasnauth and Fazil Rasool for 22 and 32 runs respectively.

Regal Legends had earlier maintained their unbeaten run in the tournament with a

Laurie Singh bagged four for 19 seven-wicket win over Orlando Legends in their final preliminary round match at the same venue while Toronto Blizzards won from Wellman whose decision to play was quite commendable after the sudden demise of owner Lakhram ‘Mike’ Singh the previous night.

Set a paltry 94 for victory, after Orlando Legends reached 93 for seven, Regal Legends got to the target in 12.1 overs with Eric Thomas (28 not out) and Uniss

Yusuf (22) being the principal scorers.

The chief wicket-takers for Regal Legends were Deonarine with three for 18 and Singh two for 11.

In what was a must-win encounter for both teams, in order to qualify for the semi-finals, Toronto Blizzards got the better of Wellman by 13 runs. Chasing a victory target of 166, Wellman huffed and puffed their way to 152 for seven when their 20 overs expired. Skipper Wayne Jones hit a top score of 38 with three fours and two sixes while Jagdesh Persaud supported with 31 (four fours and two sixes).

Harihar was again among the runs for Toronto Blizzards, striking four fours and two sixes in his 40. Peter Persaud took three for 37, Khemraj Sumair two for 16 and Jagdesh Persaud two for 32.

In an astonishing display of power-hitting at the Miramar Regional ground, Kingston blasted the SCC bowlers to all parts of the outfield and beyond, smashing three fours and 13 huge sixes as Regal Masters reached a commanding 209 for six in their 20 overs. The

Samuel Kingston slammed a boundarystudded century last 10 overs in the innings yielded 140 runs.

SCC were 156 for nine after their 20 overs, losing by 53 runs with Tyrone Sanasie grabbing three for 31, Lakeram Roopnarine two for 19 and Chien Gittens two for 23.

A one-minute silence was observed by all the players and officials prior to the start of Friday’s matches in honour of Lakhram ‘Mike’ Singh, who died suddenly the previous night, reportedly from a massive heart attack.

Manchester City cruise past Buttler hits century as Rajasthan Burnley to reclaim top spot Royals beat Mumbai Indians

Jos Buttler made his Rajasthan Royals debut in 2018 ENGLAND’S Jos Buttler hit the first century of this season’s Indian Premier League (IPL) as Rajasthan Royals beat Mumbai Indians by 23 runs.

Buttler smashed 100 off 68 balls, including 11 fours and five sixes, as Rajasthan posted 193-8 despite Jasprit

Bumrah’s 3-17 in Mumbai.

Ishan Kishan made 54 and Tikal Varma 61 in reply, but Mumbai’s slip from 1212 to 136-6 undermined their pursuit.

The Royals are top of the table with two wins from two games.

Five-time champions Mumbai have lost their opening two matches.

“They batted well to get to 193,” said Mumbai captain Rohit Sharma. “Buttler played an exceptional innings. We tried everything we could to get him out.

“I thought 193 on that pitch could have been chased, especially when we needed 70 in seven overs.

“But these things can happen and it’s early days.

We can learn.” (BBC Sport)

MANCHESTER City made an instant return to the top of the Premier League with a comfortable win over struggling Burnley.

Liverpool’s victory over Watford earlier yesterday had knocked the defending champions off the summit for the first time since December 4, but Pep Guardiola’s side responded in impressive style at Turf Moor.

It took only five minutes for City to take the lead when Raheem Sterling knocked Rodri’s cross into the path of Kevin de Bruyne, who timed to pick his spot and fire into the roof of the net.

Sterling and de Bruyne combined again for the second goal, but this time it was Ilkay Gundogan who provided the finish - a cool volley past Nick Pope after Sterling found him in space inside the area.

By now, City were in complete control and could afford to see Sterling, Jack Grealish and substitute Gabriel Jesus waste excellent chances because Burnley never looked remotely capable of mounting a comeback.

The home side finally managed a shot on target after 75 minutes, when

substitute Jay Rodriguez brought a diving save from Ederson, but they can take few positives from a fourth successive defeat other than the fact they avoided significant damage to their goal difference.

Burnley remain rooted in the bottom three, while City can head into next

Gundogan, Manchester City’s top scorer in the Premier League last season with 13 goals, has netted six this term Sunday’s top-of-the-table clash with Liverpool knowing they will stay in first place if they avoid defeat.

CITY SHOULD HAVE SCORED MORE City have got a huge week ahead,

with the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final with Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, before the visit of Jurgen Klopp’s in-form Liverpool next Sunday - the start of a sequence where they play both teams twice.

Those are the games which will define City’s season, but they needed to focus on this test first - and they passed it almost flawlessly. de Bruyne’s early goal settled the nerves of the travelling fans after Josh Brownhill sent an early header flashing wide for the hosts, and the points never looked in doubt from that point.

For long periods Burnley did not even get near the ball let alone City’s penalty area, while City seemed content to keep possession rather than put much effort into chasing further goals.

They still created a host of second-half chances, with their failure to finish them the only way their performance could be faulted, although Jesus went extremely close to a third when he cracked a volley against the post.

It did not matter here, but they cannot afford to be so wasteful against Atletico or Liverpool in the days to come.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

Pakistan win first ODI series in 20 years against Australia AFTER a month of Australia making Pakistan work for every run, wicket and win, here was the exception to the rule. In a rare lack-lustre performance, Australia found themselves blown away by a dominant performance as they were crushed by nine wickets to seal a 2-1 series win.

It came courtesy of a fiery fast-bowling performance, and an unbeaten 190-run partnership between Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq. The ODI series win was Pakistan’s first against Australia since 2002 in that format, having lost six consecutive 50over campaigns since a Waqar Younis-led side won in a winter series in Melbourne (where two games were played at the Docklands Stadium) and Brisbane.

Pakistan had put Australia in to bat, skittling them out inside 42 overs for 210 before making light work of that target on a featherbed of a surface, with Imam and Babar making an inexperienced Australian bowling attack look particularly toothless (Scores: Pakistan 214 for 1 (Babar 105, Imam 89*) beat Australia 210 (Carey 56, Abbott 49, Rauf 3-39, Wasim 3-40) by nine wickets).

An undefeated 105 by Babar, his second consecutive

hundred, and an unbeaten 89 from Imam helped Pakistan canter to a nine-wicket win with 73 balls to spare.

Australia knew it was coming, and yet there seemed no way to stop it. A sensational and yet by now, almost predictable - first over from Shaheen Shah Afridi got rid of Travis Head, dealing Australia a blow

that left them groggy throughout the innings, and Haris Rauf removed Aaron Finch before Australia were off the mark.

Magicians tend not to perform their tricks too often, but repetition doesn’t make Afridi any less inscrutable. It was a full toss that did for Head first up, but with the moving in the air, there was little the batter could do to prevent it crashing into off-stump.

Finch has struggled this se-

Labuschagne early, and the normally fluid Ben McDermott got bogged down, managing just 14 in his first 34 balls.

Australia looked to be rebuilding with a 53-run stand, but Zahid Mahmood drew a leading edge from Marcus Stoinis as Imam took a sharp catch, before Mohammad Wasim ended McDermott’s innings of attrition.

A handy rearguard from Alex Carey and Cameron Green

glorious six over cover drive off Wasim, and for the first time, Pakistan were on the back foot.

That ended soon after, though, when a bit of reverse swing did for Green as he heaved wildly across the line.

It opened the floodgates, and four wickets fell for 18 runs as Rauf and Afridi returned to chip in. But in an entertaining six-over passage of play, Sean Abbott threw caution to the wind, swinging for the fences

WELLINGTON, New Zealand, (CMC) – Hayley Matthews believes the difficulties of the last several months resulted in a united West Indies Women’s squad, and led to their relative success at the ongoing ICC Women’s World Cup. The Caribbean side were given little chance of getting out of the group stage but did so, finishing fourth to reach the semi-finals where they suffered a 157-run thrashing at the hands of unbeaten favourites Australia.

“Looking back at our journey, it definitely wasn’t an easy road over the last year,” said the stylish right-hander. “[We had a] good series against Pakistan [last November] then went on to South Africa [earlier this year] and probably didn’t have the best one.

“But just to get to this World Cup alone, we had to go through the World Cup qualifiers. Just as that started there was the problem with COVID. And I think everyone had to try and get out of Zimbabwe as quickly as

possible, having to endure that.` “And then having to spend 14 days in quarantine as a team [in Oman] before getting back home just maybe a couple of days before Christmas.”

She added: “So look, over the last eight months we’ve been through so much as a team. But I think at the same time it’s helped us to become so much closer.

“We’ve had to fight through those hard times together and really struggle through the ups and downs with each other and try to stay as close as possible.

“And I think a lot of that showed this World Cup, the wins that we had, I think we played holistically as a team.”

West Indies started the tournament on a high, stunning hosts New Zealand by three runs in Mount Maunganui before following up with an equally dramatic seven-run victory over reigning World champions England in Dunedin.

They lost two on the trot to India and Australia before carving out yet another tense win over Bangladesh but an upset at the hands of Pakistan left them facing a must-win situation against South Africa in order to reach the semi-finals.

Rain saw a share of the points and India’s subsequent defeat to South Africa in their final group game saw West Indies squeeze into the final four.

“Everyone falls and I think when you look at the characteristics of this team, you kind of think of people who play with their hearts on their sleeves,” the 23-year-old explained.

“We come into every game with so much emotion and so much passion, trying to rep-

ries, and it showed in the way he tried to tackle Rauf, playing listlessly across the line and finding himself trapped plumb in front.

Australia were yet to put a run on the board, and the discipline of Pakistan’s pace bowlers meant they couldn’t get off to the brisk start that characterised their first two innings. Rauf coaxed an edge out of Marnus

followed, with the batters capitalising on a drop in intensity from the hosts. The field spread out and easy singles were available, and with the frontline fast bowlers out of the attack, Australia were steadily rebuilding, as they pushed towards a competitive total.

Carey brought up a 55-ball half-century two balls after a

Pakistan celebrate their ODI series win against Australia in Lahore

just about every delivery, riding his luck and further antagonising an increasingly irate Afridi.

He managed the strike expertly. Adam Zampa never even got off the mark through the partnership, and by the time he chipped one to short third, off Rauf, he’d scored a 40-ball 49. With the target set at 211, Abbott had given himself and his fellow bowlers something to work with.

But two days out from a match that saw 348 proved inadequate. Any hope Australia harboured of a series win hinged on early wickets, and several of them. It was in that department where Australia’s absences were really felt tonight. Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Ellis and Abbott simply don’t possess the qualities of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and especially Mitchell Starc to blast out an opposition, not least a top order as settled as Pakistan’s is right now.

Fakhar Zaman fell for a brisk 17, but with the asking rate hovering around four, the match situation was primed for the more sedate and assured Babar and Imam.

Putting down Babar at short midwicket on 1 felt like a significant moment in the game, but Australia’s sloppiness in the early overs meant it didn’t come

as much of a surprise. A couple of boundaries in the ninth over composed the Pakistan captain, and once that partnership established a foothold, any Australian optimism quickly fizzled out.

What followed was a cavalcade of class from the two highest run-scorers this series.

They appeared to rotate the strike and find the boundaries at will against spin and seam alike. Imam skipped down the wicket to smash Zampa to cow corner, before Babar caressed boundaries off Green, off the next two balls either side of the wicket, as the target and asking rate shrunk by the over.

At last, it looked like a contest between a full-strength home side and a depleted touring party stretched particularly thin.

Babar was the more proactive partner, and got a 16th ODI hundred before the game was won, as the two old friends performed a little jig mid-run to celebrate.

Imam, meanwhile, was denied the chance for a third successive hundred simply because Pakistan ran out of runs to chase and he capped a sensational series by knocking off the winning runs, skipping down the wicket to send Labuschagne down the ground.

(Cricinfo)

resent the West Indies and the Caribbean and we plan to continuously do that all the time – try to play with as much faith as we possibly can.

and was the only member of the batting group to pass 200 runs and score a century.

She was also her side’s leading bowler, taking 10 wickets with her off-spin at an economy rate of just over four runs per over.

“I think coming into the tournament, I felt like I was in a pretty good space as an all-rounder and I was pretty happy to get off to a good start in that first match against New Zealand, getting the 100,” Matthews said.

“And picking up a couple of wickets as well, I think probably if I was to sit back and analyze my entire tournament, with the start I had, I probably would have wanted to score a bit more runs.

“But at the same time, I probably was able to exceed a couple of expectations with the ball too so I think overall, I’m just pretty grateful that I was able to have a good tournament [while] at the same time, yet still hungry to improve and want to do even better and continuously learning even more.”

Journey not easy but squad united, says thankful Matthews

CRICKET QUIZ CORNER (Sunday April 03, 2022)

CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL COMPANY LTD-83 Garnett Street, Georgetown (Tel: 225-6158) Answers to yesterday’s quiz: (1) Kraigg Braithwaite-160 (Barbados) (2) Joe Root-153 (Barbados) Today’s Quiz: (1) Which WI bowler had the best innings figures in the recent Test series against ENG? (2) Which ENG bowler had the best innings figures?

Answers in tomorrow’s issue

West Indies Haley Matthews “I think looking at the group, everyone can sit and say that we are by no means the absolutely most or best cricketers in the world, compared to some of the others but at the same time we play with so much fight and so much spirit that we can compete with the best in the world which is brilliant to be a part of.”

Matthews finished as her side’s leading run-scorer with 260 runs at an average of 37,

27

SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

Mahmudul’s maiden Test ton leads Bangladesh fightback MAHMUDUL Hasan Joy scored Bangladesh’s first Test century against South Africa to lead the tourists back into contention in the first Test.

Bad light brought a slightly premature conclusion to proceedings on day three, with South Africa 75 runs ahead having bowled Bangladesh out for 298 and started their second innings 6-0.

But this was a day for the Tigers and opener Mahmudul (137) to reflect fondly on in Durban.

Mahmudul had been their one shining light on day two in only his third Test, unbeaten on 44 at stumps with his team a concerning 98-4 in reply to the Proteas’ 367.

Mahmudul Hasan Joy batted for almost sevenand-a-half hours at Kingsmead, blunting the South Africa attack (AFP/Getty Image) Nightwatchman Taskin Ahmed departed in only the third over of yesterday’s play, but Mahmudul finally found a team-mate able to stick around, in Liton Das, and the pair put on 82 for the sixth wicket.

Mahmudul was dropped

by Sarel Erwee on 64 and reached 90 before he inadvertently had partner Yasir Ali – the next man in after Liton – run-out. Mahmudul leads Bangladesh recovery with first Tigers century

Annual Mayor’s Cup KO Football Action shifts to GFC today as City teams look to excel

CITY teams will be showcased today when play in the Annual Mayor’s Cup 9-a-side Inter-Ward/ Village knockout football tournament shifts to the Georgetown Football Club (GFC) ground starting at 17:00hrs.

Leading the charge to make their mark are the impressive Sparta Boss who are down to battle the upset-minded Belle West Stars in the sixth scheduled game of the evening. Sparta, known for their tenacity and ability to dominate tournaments, will feature national footballer Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson, Eusi Phillips, Job Caesar, Ryan Hackett, Jeremy Garnett, Nicholas McArthur, Jermaine Junor, Sheldon Sheppard and Devon Charles.

Belle West will hope to spring an upset through the efforts of Andre Williams, Paul Singh, John Anthony, Andre Jose and Navin Derga among others.

However, the night’s action is set to open with Charlestown being led by Jamal Cozier, and Keron Solomon battling Club 45 who will be boosted by the likes of Steven King, Lakina King, Ray Stanton and Quacy Price among others.

Following on the pitch will be Campbellville versus Liliendaal with the

Sparta Boss and national footballer Gregory `Jackie Chan’ Richardson former side having Lamar Lord, Jason Williams, Shane Jones, Marlon Bethel, Shane McBean and Ritchie Richards down to carry their fight.

Liliendaal will look to the skills of Deon Alfred, Akeel Pinero, Otto Jones, Rondell Peters, Lennox Young, Kellon Blue and Kelly Blue to negate Campbellville.

Mocha then challenge Annandale with Eon Mars, Cappel Daniels, Steffon Ramsay and Teon Jones in the Mocha line-up.

Bourda All Stars, featuring Deon Alfred, Lennox Cort, Raphael Edwards, Ravie Corts, Daniel Ross and Kevin Baptiste, will take on Kuru Kururu who will depend on Kevon Walker, Michael Charles, Christopher Alleyne, Sherwin Henry and Anthony

Roberts to carry their fight.

Road Warriors face Agricola with Joel Yapp, Cecil Jackson, Jermaine Beckles, Darren Niles, Brando Solomon and Akel Clarke turning out for Road Warriors. Agricola will see Kacy John, Linden Pickett, Gordon Grant and Collis Samuels leading their charge. Four other games are scheduled, featuring the winners of the preceding games battling to see who will advance in the tournament.

These teams are battling for attractive cash prizes and the respective trophies with a first prize of $600 000, second prize $300 000, third $200 000 and fourth $100 000 on offer.

Mid Atlantic Oil and Gas Company is the sponsor for the winning purse of $600 000.

Among the business entities lending sponsorship support are: IPA, DDL, DIGICEL, Johil, John Fernandes, General Equipment, BUSTA, GTT, NAMILCO, MACORP, New Thriving, Sattar Gafoor, B. Megan, Pritipaul Singh, Ready Mix, Eddie Bobcat, Silvie’s, Caribbean Containers, E-Networks, SuperBet, Cummings Electrical, China Trading, Dave Lumber yard and Schlumberger.

against South Africa A landmark century kept Bangladesh moving, though, and their innings only ended when Mahmudul’s did - caught by Simon Harmer at slip - with the 31-year-old not quite able to carry his bat after playing with greater ambition alongside the tail,.

MARVELLOUS MAHMUDUL MAKES HISTORY The previous highest score from a Bangladesh batter against South Africa had been Mominul Haque’s 77 in 2017, a mark Mahmudul cleared by some distance.

He survived 326 balls and almost seven and a half hours, scoring 15 fours and a pair of sixes. Six of those boundaries came across two

SCOREBOARD SOUTH AFRICA 1st innings 367 BANGLADESH 1st innings o/n 98-4 Mahmudul Hasan Joy c Simon Harmer b Lizaad Williams 137 Shadman Islam b Simon Harmer 9 Najmul Hossain Shanto b Simon Harmer 38 Mominul Haque c Keegan Petersen b Simon Harmer 0 Mushfiqur Rahim c Kyle Verreynne b Simon Harmer 7 Taskin Ahmed c Wiaan Mulder b Lizaad Williams 1 Liton Das b Lizaad Williams 41 Yasir Ali run-out Ryan Rickelton 22 Mehidy Hasan c Simon Harmer b Wiaan Mulder 29 Khaled Ahmed c Kyle Verreynne b Duanne Olivier 0 Extras: (b-5, lb-4, nb-5) 14 Total: (all out, 115.5 overs) 298 Fall of wickets: 1-25, 2-80, 3-80, 4-94, 5-101, 6-183, 7-216, 8-267, 9-294.

Bowling: Duanne Olivier 15-5-36-1, Lizaad Williams 18.5-3-54-3 (nb-3), Simon Harmer 40-12-103-4, Keshav Maharaj 37-15-65-0 (nb-1), Wiaan Mulder 4-1-23-1 (nb-1).

overs after Mehidy Hasan Miraz departed late in the innings.

NO FIRST FIVE-FOR FOR HARMER South Africa remain in control of the Test match, but they allowed Bangladesh to retain some hope by failing to follow up their superb early bowling from the previous day.

Harmer finished Friday with outstanding bowling figures of 4-42 from 20 overs, yet he allowed 61 runs for no wicket from his next 20, improbably unable to claim a first five-for. At least he had his day two efforts to fall back on. Keshav Maharaj finished on 0-65.

(Yafoo Sport)

Grenada and Cayman Islands both out for their first points of qualifying at the Kirani James Athletics Stadium in St. George’s, Grenada.

Grenada showed great improvement from match one to match two. Following a 9-0 loss to the Dominican Republic, Grenada fought hard in a 6-1 defeat to 2019 Women’s World Cup side

of entertainment, as Aruba take on Belize at the BFF Stadium in Belmopan, Belize.

While they were unable to collect a point in their first two matches, Aruba can stand tall as the only winless team that scored a goal in their first two games. Kiomy Luperon Herasme found a late score in the 7-1 loss with El Salvador, while Vanessa Susanna had

CONCACAF W Qualifiers resume with Curacao, Belize in action

MIAMI, Florida – The 2022 CONCACAF W Qualifiers return to action on Wednesday, with 12 teams across the six groups looking to secure their first victory of the campaign.

Antigua and Barbuda will square off with Anguilla in Group A at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua.

While neither side has found the back of the net thus far in qualifying, there was notable improvement over the course of the February matches and now a golden opportunity to earn a victory in FIFA Women’s World Cup Qualifying is there for the taking.

Curacao will be keen to etch their names into the win column for the first time in Group B, but they will have to first deal with a U.S. Virgin Islands side that holds the same aspirations.

The two Caribbean teams will meet at the Bethlehem Soccer Complex in Saint Croix, USVI. USVI are yet to score in qualifying, but Curacao have a goal to their name after finding the back of the net in their 5-1 defeat to Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Taisha Hansen was the Curacao goalscorer and she would like nothing more than to add to her tally in a Curacao win in Wednesday’s visit to Saint Croix.

It is a similar story in Group C for the two teams in action on the day, with

Curaçao’s Sadeyah Rosa in action against St. Kitts and Nevis in a group stage match on February 22, 2022 Jamaica, in which Roneisha Frank scored for Grenada.

Meanwhile, Cayman Islands proved a tough for before succumbing to Dominican Republic, 4-0, and Bermuda, 6-0, which suggests that this contest will be decided by the finest of margins.

Group D will also be full

Aruba to within a goal before falling 3-1 to Barbados.

Belize have been competitive as well in their defeats to fellow Central Americans rivals El Salvador (6-0) and Panama (8-0), so the objective of a complete performance against Aruba has been set.

TURN TO PAGE 22

Angostura Chill returns as official refreshment drink of CPL T20

28

ANGOSTURA Chill has signed a further threeyear deal to be the official refreshment partner to the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) tournament.

For the 2022-2024 seasons, Angostura Chill will continue to refresh fans at refreshment zones at all T20 matches and all drinks breaks will be named “Chill” breaks in honour of drink.

Following the recent signing of the new agreement, CPL commercial director, Jamie Stewart said, “Angostura is one of the region’s great brands, proudly Caribbean but truly global.

The innovative Angostura Chill products have delighted players and fans alike for the last three years, and it is with great pleasure that we continue this partnership for three more. We look forward to more delicious

Pete Russell, CEO of the Hero CPL, and Kathryna Baptiste Assee, Corporate Secretary at Angostura Ltd celebrate the signing of the new agreement refreshment from Angostura Chill, as together we enjoy the biggest season yet for

‘the biggest party in sport’.”

Angostura Chill is the only soft drink in the world

World Cup Group neither ‘death nor life’ – Brazil boss Tite

COACH Tite says Brazil were dealt with neither the group of “death nor of life” after they were drawn to face Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon in the 2022 World Cup. The Selecao faced Switzerland and Serbia in the last World Cup in Russia four years ago, so there was a sense of deja vu when the draw was made in Doha on Friday.

As the top-ranked side in the world, Brazil will be expected to win Group G, which also includes Cameroon.

But Brazil boss Tite says there will be no room for complacency.

He told reporters: “It is

SUNDAY CHRONICLE, April 3, 2022

Brazil soccer coach Tite neither the group of death nor of life. Everything is the same (as Brazil’s group at Russia 2018) – all that was missing was Costa Rica!

“We’re talking about Swit-

Regal claim double in SFSCL tournament REGAL completed the double with resounding victories in both the Legends and Masters categories on the final day of the South Florida Softball Cricket League (SFSCL) tournament at the Brian Piccolo Park, yesterday.

The Legends defeated Toronto Blizzards by 79 runs while Masters made light work of Corriverton Masters by 67 runs. Seemingly in danger of surrendering their unbeaten run in the tournament when they struggled to 56 for four in the first 10 overs, Regal Legends went on the rampage in the final 10 to finish on 196 for nine.

Eric Thomas led the way with a whirlwind 62 which included eight sixes. Toronto Blizzards were dismissed for 117 in 18.4 overs. In the Masters category, Regal Masters batted first and made 189 for four before restricting their opponents to 121 for six in 20 overs.

Full details will be published in subsequent issues.

zerland and Serbia, the teams who stopped Italy and Portugal, and also a Cameroon team that is very strong in Africa.

“We will have to raise our own game.”

All three of Brazil’s opponents qualified for the tournament as group winners, but Tite is focused on ensuring his side are in the best possible condition to take the tournament by storm.

“That is part of the chapter of a book. Now it’s another reality, another moment,” he said.

“We have to consolidate this work now. There are eight, nine more months until the end of the year. We have to confirm an evolution of the team, to affirm the quality of the team that the athletes individually can be in their best condition.

“We have to do an invisible job of monitoring them, which for the fans maybe do not see, but it’s the medical follow-up, the physical follow-up, the follow-up of the technical commission with the athlete himself.

“We have to have all the follow-up and guidance so that they can be in the best conditions, apart from the preparatory games that we will have until the World Cup. This is the most important thing for me.”

Brazil will face Serbia in their opening game of the tournament on November 24.

(Yahoo Sport)

made with the legendary Angostura Aromatic Bitters.

The sponsorship of CPL,

which attracted over half a billion viewers in 2021, was instrumental in driving visibility and awareness of the rebrand from Angostura Lemon Lime and Bitters to Angostura Chill and provided a global platform with the vast international viewership which spans cricket fans from US to UK, Australia to India.

The sparkling non-alcoholic drink is made in T&T and is very much a Caribbean brand which celebrates the best the home of carnival, tropical forests, beaches and like much of the Caribbean, it is home to a good cricket team with the Trinbago Knight Riders.

Kathryna Baptiste Assee, corporate secretary at Angostura Ltd said: “Angostura Chill is a brand from the Caribbean that celebrates the best flavours, energy and attitude of the Caribbean.

And, if there’s one thing that unites all of the Caribbean islands - it is a deep passion for cricket and a good lime.

The CPL T20 is often called the Biggest Party in Sport – it is a vibrant, colourful, inclusive expression of our collective Caribbean heritage and therefore is such a natural fit for our Caribbean brand - Angostura Chill which is open to all to enjoy.

“As we extend the Angostura Chill range beyond the classic zesty Lemon, Lime & Bitters and tangy Blood Orange and Bitters into other exciting flavours, we’re also expanding the international footprint of the brand.

This CPL partnership puts Angostura Chill on the world stage and will make the brand synonymous with the upbeat, collective energy of Caribbean T20 cricket.”

Thompson-Herah and Fraser-Pryce can challenge 100m World Record – Ato Boldon

FOUR-time Olympic medallist for Trinidad and Tobago Ato Boldon believes that Elaine Thompson-Herah and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce can both challenge Florence Griffith Joyner’s 34-year-old 100m World Record.

Currently the coach of young Jamaican sprinter Briana Williams, Boldon has tipped the Olympic gold and silver medallist from the 100m at last year’s Tokyo Olympics to challenge Joyner’s mark of 10.49 which she did at the US Olympic Trials in 1988.

“I think they’re both certainly capable,” he said in an interview with Athletics Weekly before going on to outline that he thinks Thompson-Herah may have a better chance at the record.

“I don’t know if anybody else in the immediacy can do that but I’d give Elaine a better chance just because of her form. She is so much better at 200m than so many others. I also don’t think you can look at her 10.54 at Hayward Field last year, considering she was kind of fatigued after coming off three gold medals in Tokyo, and not think there’s another five hundredths of a second somewhere to tie the 10.49,” he added.

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Jamaican Elaine Thompson –Herah had a stunning season in 2021 As he mentioned, Thompson-Herah, who is 29-years-old, lowered her own personal best to 10.54 at the Eugene Diamond League last year leaving many, including Boldon, anticipating a record-breaking performance from her in the near future.

“I would probably be surprised if 10.49 survives Elaine Thompson-Herah’s career,” he said.

Fraser-Pryce, now

35-years-old, also had a stunning season in 2021, lowering her personal best to 10.60 at the Lausanne Diamond League in August.

“I don’t know how long Shelly-Ann has got left but I don’t think Tokyo was her last Olympics and I think she’ll go out after Paris in 2024. She has the talent as well. I mean, she ran 10.63 in April so anything is possible,” Boldon said.

(Sortsmax) SUNDAY, APRIL 3, 2022