Guyana_Chronicle_Epaper_03_06_2021

SATURDAY 6 th March , 2021

’ No. 106292

Court dismisses application to halt disbursement of budgetary sums to constitutional agencies

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US$15M ‘Aiden Hotel’ 03 comes to Guyana –– to feature 101 ‘smart rooms’; construction begins tomorrow PAGE

An artist’s impression of the dining section close to the roof of the Aiden Hotel

President 02 comforts grieving Kiritpal family PAGE

Body of third ‘backtrack’ 05 victim found PAGE

Sharida Hussein

Gasper resigns from PNC over attempted election-rigging, induced hardship 12 PAGE

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

President comforts grieving Kiritpal family

PRESIDENT, Dr. Irfaan Ali, joined family and friends of the Kiritpals for the funeral service of their 20-month-old son, Aiden Kiritpal, who died after the vehicle his father was reversing, accidentally ran over him.

The service was held on Friday at the family’s home in DeHoop, Mahaica. The Head of State offered his sincere sympathies to Aiden’s family and laid a wreath in his honour.

President Ali, who is a father of a toddler himself, urged the Kiritpals to lean on their faith during this sad time.

“To the young father and mother, grandparents, relatives, your faith is being tested, your faith is being tried, I ask you to be patient; I ask you to be resolute in your prayers, to be stronger in your devotion to God Almighty and to come closer together as a family. Comfort each other, surround each

other with love and spend more time together. While it does not bring complete healing, it gives us an opportunity to re-connect in faith and hope. So, my prayers are with you. My prayers will continue to be with you.

I pray that your lives be strengthened, that patience be given to you, and that the love of your child continues to live in you and with you forever.”

The President noted that losing a child is one of the most heart-wrenching pains a parent can feel and that he understands the void that is left in their lives.

He said there is no doubt that young Aiden brought tremendous joy and happiness to the family.

“We all know, those of us as parents, how different it is when a child is in the home and how comforting it is to have them there. The essence of the family has to do with the children themselves. We celebrate their

accomplishments, just like our parents celebrated our accomplishments. So, one can only imagine the pain of a parent, the pain of a family when we have to let go of a child. I’m lost for words to express to this family.”

The Head of State added that support to the family is critical to help ease their pain.

“Importantly, we all could contribute to the easing of that pain, through our prayers, through our thoughts, through our kind words. Here is where the support of the wider family becomes more important, to give that support, that encouragement, that love….

It is times like these that a true meaning of community, family, spirituality and communion among members of the mandir become critical in giving that support.”

The President also spoke on the importance of faith, which he said, is necessary in life.

President, Dr. Irfaan Ali comforts the family of young Aiden Kiritpal (Office of the President photo) “Important for us to understand too is the role of faith, we have to be strengthened by faith and so it gives us an understanding that we don’t have control over everything and it’s those little things that we don’t have control of that we have to rely on the creator to grant us the strength, to grant us the faith, to grant us the understanding,

to grant us the patience, to grant us the ability to accept what we cannot understand,” he said.

In addition to close family and friends, residents from the community showed up in their numbers to offer their condolences.

After the service, young Aiden was cremated.

Along with the Presi-

dent, Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest), Peter Ramsaroop; Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Lenox Shuman; Member of Parliament, Faizal Jaffarally, and Justice (ret’d) Cecil Kennard were also at the service.

(Public Information and Press Services Unit)

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

US$15M ‘Aiden Hotel’ comes to Guyana

–– to feature 101 ‘smart rooms’; construction begins tomorrow

By Rabindra Rooplall CONSTRUCTION works on the US$15M Aiden Hotel on Robb and Oronoque Streets, Georgetown, which will feature 101 “smart rooms”, will commence tomorrow.

The Aiden Hotel is a boutique-styled hotel under the Best Western Hotel and Resorts franchise.

A smart-hotel room is one outfitted with electronic devices and household appliances which are powered by Internet connectivity.

Co-developer of the hotel, Geraldo Alphonso hotel, Geraldo Alphonso, in an interview with the Guyana Chronicle, said Guyana will experience a

An artist’s impression of the Aiden Hotel

named after a tributary of the Mighty Cuyuni River in Region Seven; it is a gold-and-diamond-rich area for a number of years.

We know about the area through our gold mining exploits, and that’s why we came up with the name,” Alphonso said, while noting that the company is 100 per cent Guyanese-owned.

Arimu Investments Inc. has acquired the franchises for both “Sure Stay Plus and Aiden”, two franchised hotels, all under Best Western.

The Aiden Hotel, he said, is a trendy collection of laid-back boutique hotels that blends cool, casual charm with an eclectic neighbourly feel.

“No two hotels are alike, with each designed to reflect the unique personality of each community, and country they serve.

Guests would discover local flair and imaginative design, with Aiden as their welcoming and stylish host,” the businessman said.

He explained that the Aiden being developed

by Arimu Investments Inc. would be the 12th in existence worldwide; the first to be completed in South America; the only one in the Caribbean, and Guyana’s first franchised boutique hotel.

The ‘Aiden Midtown Georgetown’, he revealed, would be nine

Best Western is a hotel chain that originated in the USA, and subsequently spread around the world.

The company has over 4,200 hotels worldwide, each one independently-owned and run.

The hotel will be developed by Arimu Investments Inc, which is a Guyanese company with investments in mining, real estate and business.

The hotel is expected to be An artist’s impression of the dining section close to the roof of the Aiden Hotel completed in 18 months.

The directors of Arimu Investments Inc and devel- demand for accommoda- storeys high, with a 74,000 opers of the Aiden Hotel tion amid a rapidly-grow- square-foot modern buildare Geraldo and Lorenzo ing economy. ing housing 101 executive “The Arimu Invest- “smart rooms”.

Alphonso.

Co-developer of the ment Company is actually Amenities, Alphonso

said, will include conference rooms, an English restaurant and bar, coffee shop, gym and sauna area, executive boardrooms and a terrace bar.

ROOFTOP BAR AND LOUNGE The main feature of the facility, he said, would be the rooftop bar and lounge that will be encased in glass to give patrons an exclusive dining experience.

This, Alphonso said, will feature “nothing less than international furnishings, lights, sounds and designs; it would be

the first bar in Guyana to feature a humidor with a collection of world-renowned cigars. The invisible-styled rails and barriers concept would give a feeling of dining with the stars, and a sight second to none.”

He said, too, that parking would not be an issue, as there will be a three-level parking facility situated just a short distance away from the hotel.

Additionally, he said that the Aiden would be providing guests with executive chaffeur services, shuttle bus tours, and well as helicopter tour packag-

es around the city.

During the construction phase, the developer noted, approximately 150 Guyanese would be employed, and when completed and up and running, 50 Guyanese will be hired as hotel staff.

Arimu Investments Inc, which also owns the Innovations America store, last November signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Office for Investment (Go-Invest), Dr. Peter Ramsaroop for the See page 5

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Man, 32, found guilty of raping girl, 12 A TWELVE-member mixed jury, on Friday, found 32-year-old taxi driver Sahadeo Pooran called “Omesh”, guilty of raping a 12-year-old schoolgirl in 2019.

Pooran was on trial before Justice Jo-Ann Barlow in the Sexual Offences Court of the Demerara High Court.

The jury, after deliberating for two hours, returned the guilty verdict.

He was found guilty of the indictment which read that on September 27, 2019, he engaged in sexual penetration with a child who was under the age of 16.

Pooran’s sentencing was deferred until March 24, pending the presentation of a probation report.

The State was represented by prosecutors Sarah Martin and Nafeeza Baig Poorna, while Pooran was represented by Attorney-at-law Euclin Gomes.

According to reports, on the day in question, the victim left her home for school around 8:00 hours. She was standing on the roadway waiting on a taxi to take her to the road head, where she would board a minibus.

Pooran stopped his motor car and offered the girl a drop.

She got into the front passenger seat of the vehicle and Pooran drove off. During the journey he picked up two other passengers and dropped them off.

Pooran later took the child to his home. He dragged her into the home,

Sahadeo Pooran called “Omesh” locked her inside and left.

The child tried to escape but the windows were barred with pieces of wood. It was while going through a tablet that she learnt that the name of her attacker was Sahadeo Pooran.

An hour later, Pooran returned. He placed a mattress on the ground, threw the victim onto it and raped her after taking off her uniform and underwear.

When he was finished, he told the child to tell the teacher that she was involved in an accident.

The child was able to escape. She made her way to her school where she told the lie to the teacher. However, the teacher contacted her mother. The child subsequently recounted the ordeal.

The matter was reported to the police and Pooran was arrested.

Saturday March 6, 2021 – 10:30hrs

GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

GDF completes civil-works projects in several communities THE Guyana Defence Force (GDF) on Wednesday handed over a number of civil works projects that were completed in three communities to the relevant regional authorities.

The projects, all Government of Guyana initiatives, were completed in collaboration with the GDF. According to a release on the subject at hand, the projects were completed by a total of 60 troops from the GDF Engineering Corps working in three groups.

One of the projects in-

A young resident cuts the ceremonial ribbon during the handing over of the Catherine/Burma Bridge. Looking on from left are: Regional Vice-Chairman Region Five, Rion Peters; GOG Project Engineer, Brigadier Gary Beaton; Regional Engineer Dhanpaul Sukha; Regional Chairman Region Five, Vickchand Ramphal; and Commanding Officer Four Engineer Corps, Lieutenant Colonel Selwyn Austin

A young resident of the community cuts the ribbon at the handing over of the Lesbeholden Bridge volved the construction of a 40-foot lightweight-vehicle bridge at Catherine/ Burma in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice). In addition to the construction of this bridge, the troops also raised the dam along a 100-foot stretch, and completed a 72-foot revetment to the northern section of the dam fronting the bridge.

Completed in just over four weeks, the bridge was handed over to Re-

gion Five Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal, who said that he was happy to have had the GDF involved in the region’s work programme, and expressed gratitude to the GDF Engineering Corps for completing the project and delivering a functional bridge to the community.

The newly-constructed bridge provides access to residents in the immediate and surrounding communities, as well as to the fishing community that operates from the nearby Abary Sluice.

Over in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), the former Information Technology building at the Port Mourant Sports Club Ground was retrofitted over a nine-week period.

The facility now houses a well-appointed block of rest and changing rooms to accommodate See page 13

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Body of third ‘backtrack’ victim found –– relatives thankful for closure

THE decomposed body of 48-year-old Sharida Hussein was on Friday removed from a clump of bushes on the Number 48 Village foreshore, almost one month after she and two others were feared drowned after travelling to Guyana from neighbouring Suriname.

The woman’s son, Joshua Samaroo related that he had received some information on Thursday evening, which caused him to contact the police on Friday. He said ranks accompanied him to

the area where the remains of his mother were found.

Police said in a release that the discovery was made at around 13:30 hrs. The body was positively identified by the woman’s son, and was subsequently escorted to the Skeldon Hospital, where the doctor on duty officially pronounced her dead, the release said. It added that the body is currently at the Anthony’s Funeral Parlour awaiting a post mortem examination.

Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle on Friday,

Samaroo explained that while he is grateful that he has closure, the pain remains the same.

“It doesn’t change the pain; it’s hard, but it’s closure,” he said.

He said that after the search was called off, relatives commenced the final rites ritual, but he had always clung to the hope that the body would be found. Two days after the tragedy, the woman’s travelling bag, her handbag and documents were recovered at the Number 70 Village foreshore.

–– says on-line programme that benefitted five Co-

Sharida Hussein Hussein, along with Baboni Harihar, 77, of Percy Smith Street, Palmyra, and Alwin Joseph, 30, a Guyanese living in Suriname, were dropped off on a sandbank near the Number 63 Village foreshore by the captain of

the vessel who then returned to Nickerie in Suriname. This was around 19:30 hrs.

Upon arrival, the trio notified relatives, but a little while later, Hussein called her youngest child in a panic, telling him that they were in waist-high water that was rising fast, and that they were not seeing any land. By the time relatives reached the area, none of them were in sight. A search was immediately launched that night, but they were not found.

Two days later, the bodies of Joseph and Harihar were found on the shoreline almost a mile apart.

Following investiga-

alition ministers will now benefit

US$15M ‘Aiden Hotel’ comes ...

From page 3

construction of an eight-storey hotel.

SURE STAY PLUS HOTEL The company plans to construct the 100-bedroom Sure Stay Plus Hotel, which is another franchise of the world-renowned

Best Western Hotels and Resorts.

This G$3 billion world-class hotel will also be situated in the heart of Georgetown.

President, Dr. Irfaan Ali had said that Guyana will be looking to provide an additional 2,000

An artist’s impression of one of the “smart rooms” that will be featured in the hotel

first-class rooms, making Guyana “a conventional destination”.

A business-friendly climate, supplemented by the anticipated economic ascension, is being credited for the attraction of major players in the hotel industry such as the Sheraton, The Element, Delta Marriott, Best Western Hotels and Resorts, the H-Tower Luxury Hotel, the Hyatt

Hotels Corporation, the Radisson Hotels, and the Hilton Hotels and Resorts, Palm Court International Hotel and King’s Hotel and Residences among others.

These potential investments are seen as timely, because Guyana, which sits on the edge of South America and has a population of about 750,000 people, is expected to ‘boom’ with its new-found oil

tions, two fishermen and a taxi driver were arrested in Suriname.

wealth, which is expected to drive infrastructural development and other sectoral advancements.

According to a study

by Oxford Economics, hotel operations and guest spending support eight million jobs across the U.S. alone.

The same study found that a typical hotel with 100 occupied rooms per night supports 230 local jobs every year.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Remembering Dr. Cheddi Jagan and Kowsilla MARCH 6 is a fateful date in Guyana’s history, because it was on March 6, 1997 that Guyana lost its greatest freedom-fighter, Dr. Cheddi Jagan.

But there were other fighters for various freedoms and rights who fought the oppressors relentlessly, even to the extent of sacrificing their lives. Kowsilla, for instance, fought on the labour front for workers’ rights, and was crushed to death by a tractor driven by a “scab” on March 6, 1964.

Guyana’s history is replete with heroes and heroines, and numbered among them is a young sugar worker, a woman named Sumintra, a weeder, and two other workers at the Leonora Sugar Estate who were shot dead by colonial police in February 1939; but they were relegated to oblivion in the annals of Guyana’s history, except for a brief mention in the following day’s newspaper.

However, this tragic incident led to the Man Power Citizens Association (MPCA) being recognised by the Colonial Government as the first representative of the sugar workers.

According to Rakesh Rampertab, “…

A quarter century after Sumintra, we arrive at the same village, at the same estate, and have the same situation; death of a woman, Kowsilla (or Alice), and hardly anything substantially is recorded about her. There has been no serious attempt by anyone to recreate, as best as possible, the life of this woman who sacrificed her life in support of her position in an industrial strike against the colonial sugar masters.”

Her murderer was one Felix Barr, who was acquitted by a jury at the Assizes because, apparently, the forfeit of Kowsilla’s life was of scant matter to the Colonial plutocrats.

It was estate workers’ resistance that concretised a young and idealistic Dr. Cheddi Jagan’s determination to relentlessly struggle for freedom and human rights against all oppressors in this nation, a resolve that was further strengthened after the brutal and senseless murder of the Enmore Martyrs.

Kowsilla was a staunch supporter of Dr. Cheddi Jagan, and an executive of the PPP’s WPO branch at Leonora.

Rampertab writes: “To speak of her, one must speak of Leonora, especially as it

was during the violent but rich sixties.

As many Guyanese know, the early sixties was a troubling and violent time; it centered on the PPP leadership, and the need to resist two forces; one external and one internal.

The external force was the British colonial force that existed and operated in the colonial office, as well as via the channels of the largest symbol of British industry in the colony, the sugar magnate, Booker/Tate. Secondly, the resistance, on the greater part of its stomach, was against the onslaught of violent politics ensued from Forbes Burnham and his PNC party, which resulted in a circle of violence between Indians and Blacks.”

He continued, “Leonora, already famous for its resistance in 1939 (and even before then in 1869), as well as being the epicentre of East Indian life and culture on the West Coast, was naturally feared, and through this fear, respected… It was at Leonora that the great Sugar Strike of 1964 began. Like other prominent estate villages across the country such as Enmore on the East Coast, and Albion in Berbice, it was a nerve centre of PPP/

Jagan support.

“At Leonora, it must have been both dangerous as well as excitingly momentous to be at the centre of socio-political activities in the early sixties. It is here that Kowsilla existed and resided; it is here that we must begin to understand how and why Kowsilla did what she did on March 6, 1964.

Two days before she is buried, Harry Lall, the PPP representative and president of GAWU, gave a necessary and exhilarating speech, for which he would be tried for sedition later by the colonial authorities. Harry Lall was extremely defiant, and demanded that people resisted both the estate authority and the anti-PPP politics of the time.

While many regarded Kowsilla’s death as being tragic, it seemed both of the time and of the natural process of resistance familiar from the Leonora region, after all, Kowsilla was a Leonora woman.”

Dr. Cheddi Jagan and Kowsilla gave their lives, in different ways, to create pathways to rights and freedoms that the entire Guyanese nation is enjoying today.

Minister Edghill hails women as champions for change

AS we celebrate International Women’s Day 2021, under the theme, ‘Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world’, I salute all our women; champions for change, innovators, producers of greatness and those who nurture po-

tentials, work and make difficult things possible and build strong foundations with the stones that have been thrown at them.

At the Ministry of Public Works, we have some of the strongest, most dedicated, hardworking and energetic women as

administrators, managers, engineers, technicians, and, of course, among the rank and file in our staff compliment.

We respect who you are, and take time out today to let you know how much you are appreciated.

I believe women can lead, and not just play support-

ing roles, which is why every opportunity must be given to ensure your contributions are optimised.

I challenge all of our men to love and respect women, and treat them as equals. I applaud all of our women who are national leaders in Government, the Private Sector and

civil society.

Continue to give true meaning to the word ‘Family’. I bow and recognise the role you play in the modernising and developing of Guyana.

Women are indeed priceless gems.

Happy International Women’s Day!

Public Works Minister, Bishop Juan Edghill

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

The ‘riggers’ lied through the teeth GUYANA is forever indebted to her true son of the soil, Dave Martin, not only because of his brave stand against “Riggersville”, but primarily so because of his popular tune, “Famous Lies,” sung with the pure West Indian rhythm of the “Tradewinds”.

Guyanese are astonishingly amazed that he had the vision and foresight of composing the theme of that rollicking tune, conceptualising humorous happenings generations ago, and articulating the lyrical verbatim which are essentially so pertinent to the essence of today’s society in good, old Guyana. Lying, cheating, deceiving, dishonesty, fooling, tongue-twisting, hiding, wearing different masks and hats and masquerading as an angel in the day and devil in the night are the pillars which laid a solid foundation to form the cornerstone for rigging, racism, rottenness, fraud, falsity, foxiness, coalition, collusion, corruption, misappropriations, malfeasance and misdemeanors.

Like they say, “Who fits the cap, draws the string”, and the leader of the pack who qualifies for this infamous honour is no one else but a very senior leader in the APNU+AFC camp.

The leader relentlessly, viciously and cunningly pursued vigorously and consciously a devious campaign, factoring a slew of shenanigans, impropriety and mischief. Endorsing, empathising and enacting the heredity of propaganda, division and confusion, the leader’s ingenuity reflects a consolidation of collaboration and conviction, sincere to the ideals of fermenting political contention, social ruckus and economic chaos. As a result of the APNU+AFC party “winning” the 2015 election (a PPP/C party’s petition still rotting in court and may never be heard), this occupation of governmental administration safely paved the pathway for control and personal distribution of State assets, the victimisation and eradication of any opposing elements, the replacement of non-cooperators, the appointment of party loyalists as reward for favours, the militarisation of strategic positions, and the manipulation of an overall structure which would guarantee the rise of dictatorship and the demise of democracy. Underlying the importance of “looking like we” and “belonging to the party”, it became too obviously and blatantly clear why the Civil Service, all Government agencies, the Police Force and the Army reflected a 90 per cent ethnic

impartiality at the expense of other ethnicities.

Such a robust plan ensured that transparency and accountability would play a role only in the darkroom occupied by emptiness. This stifled the work of any serious auditing to reveal the order of the day, and prevented any law enforcement agencies to challenge corroborators. This device stagnated the independence of justice to be upheld and authenticate rules and regulations to be broken, overruled and avoided. Its methodology confirmed the fear and apprehension that the APNU+AFC party’s ultimate aim and objective was to remain and retain political power at any cost, regardless of chick or child, man or woman, national or international force.

An exercise that was systematically stretched over only a short period of time generated a combustion of energetic and unscrupulous implementation from the very inception of domination, starting with the ludicrous and exorbitant salary and allowance increases for parliamentarians. This was followed by the thousands of political appointees who did little or no work for the State, worked primarily for the APNU+AFC party, or were only on the books, drawing down humongous salaries and wages. Secrecy became the order of the day, and an entire nation was kept at bay and in the dark as to the true state of affairs of the people, party and politics.

This sneaky concealment was for the eyes and ears of a few selected men and women who were privileged to being loyally sworn into royalty.

US$18 converted to almost four billion Guyana dollars is a lot of money, and the country’s business is every Guyanese business. It should not have been hidden from the public nose. Misinforming or not informing the nation voluntarily only says one thing, and that’s a mouth-full. Making secret and shady deals at the expense of the man in the street in Guyana is not welcome, and unfortunate to the good health of the nation and its citizens. Wining and dining at the table of exploiters supports the speculation of sufferers surviving in poverty. Accepting a contract of two per cent royalty depicts highway robbery, and highlights the trend of “fee-fiefoe-fum” to provide the smell of non-Guyanese blood. The providers of this scheme dug their own hole, but, sadly, it is an entire country which will sink. Our friendly neighbour, the intelligent, smart and astute Surina-

mers, certainly belittled the haughtiness of our bombastic academics, politicians and attorneys who are supposed to be brilliant and honest international negotiators, as aggressors and not pacifiers. Our august defenders of Guyana’s interests were pupils from the imminent school of “Tomfoolery”.

We should remember the words of Sir Winston Churchill, the British “Bulldog” and past Prime Minis-

ter of England, who noted that, “In wartime, the truth must be preserved with a body of lies.” In 1938, British Prime Chamberlain met with German Chancellor, Adolf Hitler to find a diplomatic way to avoid war. Hitler assured Chamberlain that war could be avoided if Czechoslovakia would agree to redraw its border. Chamberlain agreed, and announced to the British Parliament that

Hitler, “Means what he says.” Hitler took the opposite action. It is one of humanity’s most shocking lies. Richard Nixon had to resign from the American presidency because the truth was disclosed about his lies to cover up his misdeeds regarding the Watergate Scandal. Bill Clinton lied under oath when he said, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”

Junior George Bush lied

in 2003 when he said, “We have discovered weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.”

In 1988, the senior Bush made the now infamous statement, “Read my lips: No new taxes.”

The big-lie technique is a way of life in Guyana.

God save and help Guyana from the lawyers and laymen who are legal liars.

Respectfully, Jai Lall

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Changes in transmission of COVID-19 could signal presence of variants –– says CARPHA Executive Director

By Vishani Ragobeer THOUGH the Caribbean’s capacity to define the COVID-19 variants (or strains) of concern is limited, Executive Director of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), Dr. Joy St John emphasised that there are some changes in the transmission of the disease that can alert local health authorities to their possible presence.

In an exclusive interview with the Guyana Chronicle on Friday, Dr. St John said that CARPHA, in collaboration with the University of the West Indies (UWI)’s St Augustine campus, has been conducting genomic sequencing, which is a com-

plex genetic analysis that allows scientists to define the variants of COVID-19.

Dr. St. John, however, noted that surveillance of COVID-19 within the countries’ populations would indicate whether there are changes in the transmission of the disease or the rate of transmission.

These could be possible signs of variants.

“All of those are indications that something has changed, and it might be varying,” the public health official said, adding: “We recommended to the member states that their index of suspicion for changes in the pattern of spread of the virus should include the possibility of importation of the variants.”

So far, the three vari-

ants of concern across the world are the United Kingdom (UK)’s, South Africa’s and Brazil’s. It has been found that they are all more transmissible, which means that they are more readily spread from person-to-person. And in the Caribbean, only the UK variant has been detected in a few countries thus far, from the sequencing that has been done over the past few weeks.

CARPHA, through its COVID-19 progress reports, has indicated that the Caribbean is a “high risk” region for the importation of the variants, due to travel into and within the region.

On Friday, Dr. St. John explained that while the Caribbean is a tourism-de-

Genetic materials that allow microbiologists to determine whether a patient sample contains markers for the COVID-19 virus are being extracted from samples collected from individuals at the Eureka Medical Laboratory (Adrian Narine photo) pendent region, it is also characterised by a significant amount of business travel. And this mode of travel, she explained, does not necessarily need to originate from the countries where the variants have been discovered, but from other countries such as the United States, to which the variants have already spread. This allows for greater leeway for the spread of the variants.

“We do have a lot of traffic in South America, not just the fact that you (in Guyana) share border...

but there’s also other travel tourism and business reasons. So, we are going to search; we’re going to keep searching and hope that we will get regular samples being sent so that we can keep checking (for the variants),” she highlighted.

Guyana has been able to benefit from genetic sequencing through CARPHA, and has already sent 10 samples to be analysed.

Though these samples were not any of the variants of concerns, it cannot be definitively said that

Guyana does not have any of the variants circulating.

Amid growing concerns of variants circulating in Guyana, particularly since Guyana shares a porous land-locked border with Brazil, Virologist and Senior Lecturer at UWI Jamaica, Dr. Joshua Anzinger, told this newspaper that if persons adhere to the existing health guidelines, it will help to mitigate the impact of these variants.

“I think that regardless of whether you have (the variants) or not, it’s still the basic same principles of public health,” Dr. Anzinger said in a recent interview with the Guyana Chronicle, adding: “You want to keep wearing your masks; you want to keep social distancing; you want to make sure that you’re testing as many people as possible.”

Dr. St. John also affirmed that CARPHA has maintained all of its recommendations and guidelines geared at mitigating the effects of COVID-19. She emphasised that CARPHA still recommends maintaining a physical distance of six feet (or two meters).

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Relief for children in need of cardiac surgery –– surgeries to restart by year-end, backlog of 130 cases targeted surgery can get cardiac surgery right here at the GPHC,” he emphasised.

By Vishani Ragobeer GUYANA has about 130 children in need of cardiac surgery and at least 20 children are expected to receive some relief by year-end through the resuscitation of the paediatric cardiac surgery programme, according to Health Minister, Dr. Frank Anthony.

A few years ago, Guyana had instituted an arrangement with the International Children’s Heart Foundation (ICHF) (Baby Heart), whereby surgeons from abroad would travel to the country at least once a year to conduct specialised surgical procedures on children in need.

These surgeries were conducted at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

Additionally, the mission of ICHF is to bring the skills, technology and knowledge to cure and care for children with congenital heart disease in developing nations.

“That was stopped a couple years ago and now we have a backlog of cases,” the Health Minister highlighted on Friday. Resultantly, he explained that children in need of these cardiac (heart) surgeries would have to be

MATERNAL AND CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL As part of additional efforts to bring relief to children, the minister highlighted that budgetary provisions have been made for the designing of a maternal and children’s hospital.

Bibi Shareema Haleem, mother of one of the babies who underwent heart surgery, tends to her baby boy as he responds to recovery treatment at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) sent abroad for treatment and over the past two years, only five children were sent abroad for surgery. One of those five children, unfortunately, died despite having a successful surgery.

Additionally, he noted that the treatment abroad could cost at least US$30,000, which, in the long-run, is more expensive than conducting the surgeries here in Guyana.

“The cardiac team agreed to do (the surgeries) in Guyana starting this year,” Dr. Anthony highlighted, adding:

“They would have to make an appraisal of the equipment here at the GPHC; we will have to buy equipment and by the end of the year will be able to bring in a specialist team to do the surgeries.”

While there are about 130 children in need of surgery, he said that the ministry is aiming to treat at least 20 cases by the end of this year.

Subsequent efforts will be made to ensure that the treatment is given to the children.

“We’ll work to see how we can make sure that every child who needs cardiac

Duo accused of ganja-related offences remanded A MAN and a woman who were arrested after Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) ranks found almost 100 pounds of cannabis at New Amsterdam, were, on Friday, remanded to prison.

Veerasammy Armogan called “Vishal” of Crabwood Creek, Corentyne, Berbice was charged with procuring narcotics, while Alma John of Glasgow Village, East Bank Berbice, was charged with trafficking the drug.

They appeared virtually before Magistrate Renita Singh at the New Amsterdam Magistrate’s Court.

Armogan pleaded not guilty to the offence which alleged that between February 1- March 3, 2021, between Skeldon Public Road, Corentyne Berbice; Glasgow Village, East Bank Berbice, and Crabwood Creek Public Road, he procured John to traffick 44.947 kilograms of

Veerasammy Armogan called ‘Vishal’ cannabis. The said narcotics was intercepted at Princess Elizabeth Street, New Amsterdam.

Meanwhile, John denied that on March 3, 2021 at her Glasgow home, she trafficked the said narcotics.

The duo was remanded to prison until March 26.

According to a CANU report, the defendants were arrested during an operation in New Amsterdam. Ranks

Alma John intercepted a car with marijuana packed in several bulky plastic-wrapped parcels.

Armogan is accused of being the principal offender to this enterprise. He reportedly made arrangements with several persons to traffic the narcotics. One such person was John whom he got to store the narcotics at her home.

John also reportedly helped to place the said narcotics into the car trunk.

Once fully developed, Dr. Anthony explained that specialised programmes like this cardiac programme would be part of the services offered at the hospital.

Currently, it is not envisaged that these specialised services will have a cost attached to them but instead, they will be covered by the government. Dr. Anthony, however, noted that the need

for payments would become apparent once the hospital is developed, financed and operationalised.

In the presentation of the 2021 National Budget, Senior Minister within the Office of the President, Ashni Singh highlighted, “We are also examining the feasibility of establishing a maternal and child health hospital over the medium-term.”

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Distribution of Sinopharm vaccines begin this weekend

By Vishani Ragobeer ADDITIONAL frontline healthcare workers will be protected from the novel coronavirus, COVID-19 as the Sinopharm vaccines, which were donated to Guyana from China, will be distributed from this weekend, Health Minister, Dr. Frank Anthony said.

On Tuesday evening, 20,000 vaccine doses arrived on a Caribbean Airlines flight at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).

According to a report from

the BBC, Sinopharm, a Chinese state-owned enterprise, announced on December 30, 2020, that phase three trials of the vaccine showed that it was 79 per cent effective, lower than that of Pfizer and Moderna.

However, the United Arab Emirates, which approved a Sinopharm vaccine early December, said the vaccine was 86 per cent effective, according to interim results of its phase three trial.

The Guyana Chronicle understands that this vac-

cine is pending emergency health authorisation before the World Health Organisation (WHO), but, the local regulatory authorities have deemed these vaccines safe for use.

“Over the weekend we are going to start using this particular vaccine to roll it out to people,” Minister Anthony said on Friday, reminding that these vaccines will be given to frontline healthcare workers first.

Since the Sinopharm vaccine is a two-dose vaccine, the donation caters for

One of the boxes which contains the vaccines being transported from the Caribbean Airlines aircraft to a cold-storage truck on Tuesday evening (Adrian Narine photo) the immunisation of 10,000 persons. Already, Guyana has begun immunising its frontline healthcare workers, following the donation of 3,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine from Barbados.

As part of the vaccination rollout, vaccine cards were issued to all those who received vaccines, indicating that persons have taken their

first dose stating by which time they have to return to the medical facility for their second dose. This second dose will be distributed some eight to 12 weeks after the initial jab.

Healthcare workers were also trained on the administration of these vaccines. In light of the donation of the Sinopharm vaccine, Minister Anthony noted that

healthcare workers who will be distributing the vaccines have again been trained for this specific vaccine.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we went back and we trained our healthcare workers how to administer this particular vaccine and we had to develop some information booklets that when someone comes to get the vaccine, they are also receiving the information booklet that explains to them the vaccines, how it works, what are the possible side-effects, who can get it, who cannot get it and things like that,” the minister noted.

Widespread vaccination is the “exit strategy” for the pandemic; this means that only when about 80 per cent of the population is immunised through vaccination or through recovering after contracting the virus, would there be some sort of ‘normalcy’.

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Applications open for 2021 Youth Ambassadors Programme THE U.S. Embassy has announced that applications are open for the 2021 Youth Ambassadors Programme (YAP) with the Caribbean.

The programme for 2021 will be a five-week virtual programme and will be conducted in July and August.

Through the virtual exchange, participants will develop their lead-

ership skills, strengthen their ability to serve their communities and foster relationships and mutual understanding among youth from different ethnic, religious, and national groups and create networks of youth leaders in the Western Hemisphere.

According to a release, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State,

the YAP exchange programme is part of the U.S. continued commitment to the prosperity of Guyana and the Region.

During their exchange, high school students and adult educators from the Caribbean Region and the United States will explore themes such as civic education, leadership, cross-cultural connections, community ser-

vice, and youth and social transformation through experiential learning activities; leadership trainings; civic participation at the community level; mentoring by community, business, and NGO leaders; and engaging with host families, and volunteering. Afterwards, students will develop and implement projects that serve the needs of

their communities in the months that follow.

This programme is open to public high school students 15-18 years, with least one semester of high school remaining after August 2021 and is a current resident and citizen of Guyana.

“We encourage all interested students and mentors to visit the

U.S. Embassy website at http://georgetown. usembassy.gov/yap. html for more information and applications.

Applications deadline is April 12, 2021.

To date, 56 students and 10 adult mentors have participated in Youth Ambassadors Programme for Guyana since September 2012,” the release concluded.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Gasper resigns from PNC over attempted election-rigging, induced hardship FORMER APNU+AFC Linden Town Councillor, Lennox Gasper on Wednesday tendered his resignation from the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), almost five years after joining the party.

In his resignation letter to PNCR General-Secretary Amna Ally, Gasper cited the increase salaries for government ministers, lack of development in Linden under the Coalition, increased

taxes and the Party’s role in attempting to rig the 2020 elections as some of the blatant ways the party has not lived up to the “good life” narrative that it promised the populace.

“I was convinced that the coalition of APNU+AFC was going to change the political culture of governance in the interest of transitioning the country to a new dispensation of accountability in development, with high hopes that all

citizens would have been given a chance at the promised ‘good life’. Unfortunately, this was not to be,” Gasper said in his letter to Ally.

The PNCR is the largest member of the APNU coalition. Gasper had joined the party at a time when it was part of the APNU+AFC Coalition Government.

Gasper called out the PNCR for neglecting Linden, one of its primary support bases, in favour of other

novice townships which were created under the Coalition during its 2015 – 2020 time in government.

“I was in high hopes that the Coalition would have implemented a rapid development rescue plan for Linden; this too was not to be.

We in Linden pleaded for job creation and development for four long years, while we watched with envy as other newer towns were prioritised,” Gasper said.

SEVERAL CLASHES Gasper had served on the Linden Town Council as a Councillor for the APNU+AFC from 2016.

During his tenure, however, he’d had several clashes with then Mayor Carwyn Holland, a fellow APNU+AFC member on the Council.

Gasper was outspoken about the lack of development in the township, and claimed that the constituency he represented was being sidelined. At one point, he even walked out of a re-scheduled statutory meeting that was not held in keeping with proper protocols of the law.

“I became a councillor with a promise to serve my constituency, town and country, without fear or favour, affection or ill will, to the best of my ability, but, regretfully, I could not deliver on that promise as a result of constraints of control freakism imposed by the party, and the heartless non-provision of resources by the Government,” Gasper stated.

DISGRACEFUL ABANDONMENT Gasper highlighted that notwithstanding the “disgraceful abandonment” of Linden, he still rallied on, and campaigned for the Coalition in the lead-up to the 2020 elections. However, the Coalition’s attempts to hold on to government by any means necessary after the elections caused him to lose faith in them.

“The party suffered a devastating defeat at those elections, fair and square, but chose instead to revert to its old Gestapo tactics of attempting to rig the results in its favour, dragging our hardwon democracy through the gutters for five long months,”

Selected Quote from Dr. Cheddi Jagan “I am aware of the changes that are still necessary for the people of Guyana, because I look at them with the eyes of the people, and not with the privileged eyes of the privileged few who have always had things easy, and so did not want a change.”

Former Linden Town Councillor, Lennox Gasper has resigned from the PNCR

Gasper asserted, adding: “I am fully persuaded that the actions of the PNC-led coalition were born out of a selfish and unbridled lust for power, without any regard for the interests of Guyana and its citizens.”

Gasper is the latest in a number of party members to have publicly left the PNCR over the past five years, the most infamous of which was when then AFC parliamentarian Charandass Persaud courageously voted against the Government in a no-confidence motion before the National Assembly in December 2018.

In August 2019, longstanding members Dave Danny Senior, and his son, Dave Danny Junior, also announced their resignation from the party. The pair have since openly endorsed the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C).

Last year, long-time member, Gobin Harbhajan, as well as former Region Five Councillor, Abel Seetaram resigned from the AFC. Former Member of Parliament Reynard Ward, and Joel Edmond, the husband of APNU+AFC Member of Parliament, Geeta Chandan-Edmond, both resigned from the AFC last month.

Some of the member parties of the APNU Coalition have also resigned, including the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) and Justice For All Party (JFAP).

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

GDF completes civil-works ...

From page 4

GDF troops on the Catherine-Burma Bridge which they constructed in Region Five (Photos courtesy GDF) both males and females, and has already been handed over to the groundsman, who is responsible for its maintenance.

Also in Region Six, a lightweight-vehicle bridge with a 70-foot span was constructed at Lesbeholden between January 18 and February 22.

Region Six Chairman David Armogan received the completed infrastructure, and expressed his gratitude on behalf of the region and the residents of the Lesbeholden community.

He also said he welcomed the idea of having the GDF Engineer Corps involved in community development by contributing their skills to the benefit of the citizens.

In handing over the facilities to stakeholder representatives, Project Engineer for the Government of Guyana, Brigadier Gary Beaton said that each of the foregoing projects fall within the scope of the vision of the army’s Commander-in-Chief, President Irfaan Ali to have the Guyana Defence Force become more community-oriented in its service to Guyana.

“I thank our Commander-in-Chief for his expression of con-

fidence in the Engineering Corps and the GDF to engage these projects,” Beaton said, adding: “We are here in keeping with his vision for the Force to be more involved in the development of communities all across Guyana.

It is anticipated that various Guyanese communities will see much more of the GDF Engineer Corps, as it undertakes and completes similar projects to these.”

In closing, he said: “With bridges in particular, these are significant symbols and real entities that foster connection, cooperation and harmony by bringing people and communities together.

At the sites of these three projects, we were pleased and thankful for the support of the people; our soldiers developed real connections with the residents, and this is a positive offshoot for projects such as these.

It is not just about the GDF going to communities to build physical structures; more importantly, it is about the residents and the communities building bonds, and experiencing the humanity of our military.”

In the construction of the two bridges, the materials were provided by the regional administrations.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE saturday, mARCH 6, 2021

Min. McCoy addresses concerns of North Timehri CDC

MINISTER within the Office of the Prime Minister, Kwame McCoy on Fri-

day met with representatives of the North Timehri Community Development

Council (CDC) and addressed a number of issues affecting the community.

Minister McCoy with representatives of the North Timehri Community Development Council (CDC) following their meeting on Friday (DPI photo) The new CDC was formed in November 2020, and is led by Chairwoman Fanica Lewis.

Minister McCoy was able to resolve some of the issues on the spot, including concerns regarding the rehabilitation of the community centre ground, roads, ownership of land, and accessing support from the Small Business Bureau (SBB) for women-led businesses in the area.

In his remarks to the group, the minister, who holds responsibility for Public Affairs, said that the government is serious about citizens’ engagement and ensuring that the needs of every community across the country are addressed in an efficient way.

“We are here to serve you and serve your communities, and therefore, it is our responsibility to listen to you and address whatever con-

cerns you may have. In turn, I would ask that, as the CDC, you play your part in the community you have been elected to serve: Engage your fellow residents; find out what are the issues facing them; build relationships with the businesses in your communities, and let’s work together to make people’s lives better,” he encouraged.

Lewis, in brief remarks following the meeting, said that since the establishment of the CDC, the government, particularly Minister McCoy, has been very supportive whenever it is called upon.

“I am very pleased with the meeting and everything we discussed,” she said, adding: “I must say that from meeting Minister McCoy in November, he has already had an outreach within the community, and now he has met with us. He made some promises to us

to help us with community development, and indeed, he is greatly assisting. We understand that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but because we know development is on its way, we are patient.

In addition to that, the community centre ground was really something we wanted addressed, and he has been successful in getting the letter from the Army to say it has been handed over to us. So, I have to say a big thank you.”

The group, through the interventions of Minister McCoy, will have a series of follow- up meetings with other Government agencies, including the Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Local Government and the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission in the new week to iron out some of the concerns that were raised at the recent meeting. (DPI)

GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Kazakhstan investors set sights on Guyana

AGRICULTURE MINISTER, Zulfikar Mustapha, on Friday, met with a team of Kazakhstani investors from the Tree Energy company to discuss possible collaboration in the agriculture sector.

Tree Energy is a manufacturer of solar-wind systems and hydro-electric power plants, that is focussed on new technological developments in green energy. They are also known for designing and manufacturing cold storage facilities powered by solar and hydro-electricity.

During the meeting, Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha told the delegation that the Government is working to transform the production and food supply chain.

He added that Government is working with farmers to extend the shelf life of fresh produce, reduce wastage and increase agro-processing through value-added mechanisms.

“We have an agency, the New Guyana Marketing Corporation, that will be procuring additional freezing trucks and cold storage facilities this year. This is to assist farmers with reducing spoilage of fresh produce.

We are also working to help our farmers transport and keep their produce in a better

way. The New GMC is also responsible for guiding our agro-processors on how they can transform any surplus produce into value-added commodities. As it relates to your company and the services you offer, there are also a number of remote areas in the country that are earmarked for massive agricultural development and we’ll have to look into facilities to store, process and package these commodities within these regions,” Minister Mustapha said.

Minister Mustapha advised the team to develop a proposal with details on developing such a facility and have it submitted to his ministry for consideration.

Afa Zada, a member of the delegation, explained that with Guyana once again being seen as the bread basket of the Caribbean, the company was eager to meet with the minister to discuss avenues to partner with Government to promote agricultural development in an energy-efficient way.

The team is scheduled to meet with officials from the New GMC in the new week to further discuss the possibility of collaborating on large-scale smart agriculture initiatives.

‘Long Hair’ found guilty of murdering Corentyne man A MIXED jury, on Friday, returned a unanimous verdict to convict Munilall Sarjoo called “Long Hair” of the murder of Levan Chandarpaul, whose body was found in a shallow grave in August 2016.

After the verdict was presented at the Berbice Assizes, a teary-eyed Sarjoo maintained his innocence. He told the court that he came from the United States of America to improve his life but instead spent four years in jail.

However, Justice Simone Ramlall- Morris reminded him of the guilty verdict. She adjourned sentencing which is expected after the presentation of a probation report and a victim impact statement to the court on March 25.

Munilall Sarjoo State prosecutrix, Tuanna Hardy, in her opening address, had submitted that Chandarpaul was last seen in the company of Sarjoo.

See page 17

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Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha, along with the team from Kazakhstan. The minister was accompanied by senior officials of his ministry

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GUYANA CHRONICLE saturday, mARCH 6, 2021

Court dismisses application to halt disbursement of budgetary sums to constitutional agencies

By Richard Bhainie JUSTICE Nareshwar Harnanan, sitting in the High Court of the Supreme Court of Judicature on Friday dismissed a Notice of Application seeking a number of Orders prohibiting the consideration and approval of budgets for Constitutional agencies and dis-

bursements of budgetary sums to those agencies.

Attorney-at-law Roysdale Forde, S.C, appearing in association with a battery of lawyers from the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) on February 22, 2021 filed a Fixed Date Application contending that the recent amendments to the Fiscal

Management and Accountability Act (FMAA) is unconstitutional.

A Notice of Application was also filed along with the Fixed Date Application in an effort to maintain the status quo until the contentions in the Fixed Date Application are heard and a decision rendered.

The matter was filed

on behalf of Opposition Member of Parliament, Ganesh Mahipaul and General Secretary of the Guyana Teachers Union, Coretta McDonald, along with a number of other individuals.

The respondents named in the matter were Attorney-General Anil Nandlall, S.C; Senior Minister within the office of the

President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, and 18 constitutional agencies.

In the Notice of Application, Forde sought a number of Conservatory Orders as interim relief to prohibit the Minister with responsibility for Finance from presenting before the National Assembly for consideration the budgets of these constitutional agencies.

He also sought orders prohibiting the Speaker of the National Assembly from considering the estimates, and to prohibit the Minister with responsibility for Finance from

Opposition Member of Parliament, Attorney-at-law, Roysdale Forde, S.C disbursing any monies approved by the National Assembly for these budgetary constitutional agencies.

On Thursday, budgetary estimates for the 2021 Budget were approved by the National Assembly, and the Appropriation Bill was passed. The Bill received Presidential Assent on Thursday evening, and was published in the Official Gazette on Friday.

The Attorney-General submitted to the court that all of the Orders requested in the Notice of Application were overtaken due to the fact that the Appropriation Act 2021 was passed, and the Minister with responsibility for Finance was likely already in the process of effecting disbursements.

The Attorney-General also argued that the No-

Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, S.C. tice of Application was misconceived and without merit, because it sought to put the Appropriation Act 2021 on hold by a challenge to the Fiscal Management and Amendment Act in the Fixed Date Application on the basis of alleged unconstitutionality.

“Many of the Orders sought to stop these budgets from being passed, those orders obviously were overtaken by time, and they could not have been stopped anymore, so they failed naturally by fluctuation of time, and by the occurrence of events,” Minister Nandlall explained after the hearing.

Forde conceded that the Orders sought to prevent the presentation of the budgets before the National Assembly and to prohibit the Speaker from considering the estimates, however, he insisted that two of the orders are still open to litigation.

By the remaining two exceptional Orders, he was seeking to prevent the Minister with responsibility for Finance from disbursing any expenditure or any appropriated expenditure approved by the National Assembly in respect of the Constitutional Agencies listed in the Third Schedule to the Constitution, and in the Schedule See page 17

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Court dismisses application ...

From page 16 to the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act. “I submitted to the court that an Appropriation Act is an instrument which is authorised by Article 218 of the Constitution, upon the national estimates and expenditure being approved by the National Assembly, and once that Appropriation Bill is passed by the National Assembly and it is assented to by the President and published in the Gazette it becomes law,” Nandlall said.

“So what this judge is being asked to do is essentially being asked to stop a law passed by the legislature from taking effect; because once the Appropriation Act is Assented to and Gazetted it becomes law, the Minister of Finance therefore becomes compelled to make disbursements under the Appropriation Act,” he added.

Nandlall further argued that if the Orders sought

by Forde were granted, the constitutional agencies listed as Defendants, including the Supreme Court of Guyana, would be deprived of their allocations, thereby threatening their ability to offer the various essential public services they provide to the Guyanese people The Attorney-General contended that the applicants have failed to demonstrate that their Fixed Date Application would be prejudiced by allowing the defendant agencies to receive their allocations.

“Mr. Forde is not arguing that they are not entitled to these sums, all he is questioning is the procedure by which they should get these budgetary monies; he believes that the procedure is wrong, the law will never put a hold to such substantive activities on the basis on the procedural violation complaint,” Nandlall said in his briefing.

“I go back to the Appropriation Act, it is a law, it mandates the disbursal of monies in accordance with that act and a court can’t put the law on hold, it can

later declare the law to be invalid or unconstitutional after hearing all those arguments,” he added.

Justice Harnanan, in his decision, accepted that the issues raised by the Applicants introduced constitutional matters of importance. He ruled that some of the Orders sought were overtaken by events, and therefore spent.

Pertaining to the remaining two exceptional Orders being sought by the Applicants, the Judge ruled that the Applicants had not demonstrated why it is just and convenient that the Orders should be granted, or how the public interest is negatively affected by the disbursement of funds to the Constitutional Agencies, and how the refusal of the conservatory orders would render the Fixed Date Application nugatory.

Consequently, Justice Harnanan refused to grant the conservatory orders being sought, and awarded costs in favour of the Attorney-General in the sum of $200,000, to be paid by the Applicants on or before the hearing of the substantive Fixed Date Application on March 15, 2021.

The other applicants in the matter are Dawn Gardner, Chairman of the Public Service Commission; Michael Somersall; Member of the Police Service Commission, Clinton Conway; and Chairman of the Teaching Service Commission, Allan Munroe.

The Attorney-General noted that among the applicants are constitutional agencies which are supposed to be independent and impartial of any political interference, namely, the Public Service Commission, the Police Service Commission and the Teaching Service Commission.

“They have all joined with political operatives in the Opposition, Ganesh Mahipaul and Coretta McDonald and this whole army of politicians who are lawyers; so you have constitutional agencies now becoming politicians,” he said

‘Long Hair’ found guilty of murdering ...

From page 15 Chandarpaul, formerly of Number 68 Village, Corentyne, Berbice was murdered between August 22 and 26, 2016.

Hardy told the court that the prosecution would prove that the accused killed Chandarpaul before bounding his hands and feet and burying him in a shallow grave.

In his evidence, Government Pathologist, Dr. Vivekanand Bridgemohan, noted that the man’s death was as a result of a fractured skull where there was also internal bleeding.

There were two fractures to the skull, one of which was fragmented, the doctor recounted in his testimony.

The injuries, he said,

were consistent with someone being hit with a blunt instrument. He opined that the murder weapon was a piece of wood.

Additionally, debris was found in the victim’s trachea, which confirmed that the injuries were inflicted prior to death.

Several witnesses testified during Zoom hearings, and were cross examined by defence counsel,

Rodwell Jugmohan.

Among those who testified were the parents of the deceased, ranks of police’s Major Crime Unit and an eyewitness who saw the deceased entering Sarjoo’s motorcar and the body after it was exhumed from the Corentyne backlands.

The man’s body was clad in the same clothes he was last seen wearing.

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South American FROM 27 World ... PAGE

However, FIFA has limited influence. Quarantine rules are set by national governments.

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has struck a similar tone to Klopp. “ We ’ v e n o t s a t down and made a proper call on that one, but it doesn’t make sense if you lose your player for 10 days of isolation, of course it doesn’t,” Solskjaer said on Wednesday.

Solskjaer’s squad includes Brazilians Fred and Alex Telles along with Uruguayan forward Edinson Cavani.

“We’re the ones paying the players, and from what I understand FIFA have given the rules that they don’t have to be released. So I would think that’s going to be a hard call to make to let them go and play in red-list countries, yeah.”

One option could be to play the games just before the June 11 start to the Copa America. One source indicated CONMEBOL may ask FIFA to create a special extra “window” for rearranged games.

FIFA and CONMEBOL did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Sri Lanka spinners rout West Indies for 117 to level T20I series

SRI Lanka’s spinners came good in the second CG Insurance T20I, to level the threematch series against West Indies, winning by 43 runs at the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua on Friday night.

The regional side was bowled out for 117, in reply to Sri Lanka’s 160-6.

It was a good showing for the visitors who lost the first match by four wickets. It was Sri Lanka first win after losing eight consecutive matches in this version of the game.

Akila Dananjaya shined in the powerplay, returning figures of 1/13 from his four overs. This after he collected 62 runs in his spell in the opening T20 which the regional side won by four wickets.

Wanindu Hasaranga was also devastating, securing 3/17 and Lakshan Sandakan took 3/10 including the vital wicket of Windies skipper Kieron Pollard for just 13. He was the only change for Sri Lanka from the first match.

Tailender Obed McCoy was the leading scorer for an unchanged West Indies with a cameo 23 off seven balls. This after the opening batsmen and power hitters failed to fire.

Evin Lewis was first to go, attempting a sweep against Dananjaya but misses as the ball stayed low and hit the middle stump in the third over. He made six.

The veteran Chris Gayle did better than his previous outing, a first-ball duck, and reached 16 but was caught out off the bowling of PWH de Silva in the seventh over. Gayle didn’t under the ball enough and Ashen Bandara at deep midwicket came in from the boundary to get his hands under the ball to take a good catch.

Simmons would lose his wicket in the same over. A tossed up delivery from Hasaranga that Simmons failed to pick up the googly, played down the wrong line and it spun to take the front

pad in front of off stump. He reviewed the decision but lost it and had to depart for 21 of 18 balls.

In came Holder but he too doesn’t last long, thanks to bowler Gunathilaka. Attempting to slam another six but the elevation wasn’t there and took a straightforward catch. The Windies Test skipper departed for Wickets continued to tumble for the host team, with Dwayne Bravo and Nicholas Pooran losing their wickets to Chameera.

Bravo in the first ball of the over sent a simple catch to Mathews from midwicket off the leading edge of the bat.

Pooran was bowled on the last ball of the over, playing a huge swipe across the line to a length ball that was angled in from around the wicket. The ball whizzed under the bat to hit the stumps.

Fabien (12) was next to go then, Pollard. He tried to slam the ball over cover, but it took the outside half of his bat and flew towards the sweeper cover Chandmal, who ran in quickly to get under the ball.

Earlier, Sri Lanka, made one change to their line-up with the inclusion of left-arm wrist spinner Sandakan, won the toss and decided to bat.

Openers Danushka Gunathilaka (56) and Pathum Nissanka (37 gave the visitors a great start getting their team to 94-0 before the first wicket fell.

Gunathilaka brought up the 50 for SL off the bowling of Holder with the first six of the match.

Moving towards the offside, Gunathilaka helped the ball over wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran and it carried all the way.

He almost lost his wicket in the sixth over but was dropped

by Pollard at midwicket off the bowling of Holder, who delivered a slower bouncer which Gunathilaka pulled away towards Pollard. However, the Windies captain mistimed the

jump and failed to hold on with his right hand.

Gunathilaka continued his onslaught reaching his half-century in the 10th over penalizing McCoy’s short and wide delivery, smashing through point for four.

Bravo got the breakthrough for the West Indies in his first over sending Nissanka back to the pavilion after Gunathilaka called for a single, going for a pull but got an inside edge onto his leg and the ball bounced towards the offside. Bravo moved quickly across in his follow-through, fielding the ball with one hand and hit the stumps directly with Nissanka well short.

In the same over, Bravo got rid of the other danger man with

another slower, fuller and wider delivery.

Gunathilaka delayed his shot, reached out for the ball, failing to keep it down and it went straight to Sinclair at wide mid-off to have Sri Lanka 96-2 and soon, 105-3 with Bravo getting another wicket.

That of Chandimal who was looking to slog the ball across the line but instead got a top edge that ballooned on the offside with Simmons just needing to move a couple of steps to his right from short fine leg and completed the catch.

The remaining wickets were picked up byMcCoy (1-34) and Holder (1-36), who also had a runout.

The third and final T20 is carded for tomorrow (Sunday).

SCORECARD SRI LANKA D Gunathilaka c Sinclair b Bravo 56 P Nissanka run out

37 D Chandimal c Simmons b Bravo 3 *A Mathews c Holder b McCoy 13 A Bandara c Simmons b Holder 21 T Perera run out 2 H de Silva not out 19 +N Dickwella not out 0 EXTRAS: (b1, lb2, w6) 9 TOTAL: (6 wkts, 20 overs) 160 Did not bat: A Dananjaya, D Chameera, L Sandakan Fall of wickets: 1-95 (Nissanka), 2-96 (Gunathilaka), 3-104 (Chandimal), 4-119 (Mathews), 5-129 (Perera), 6-154 (Bandara) Bowling: Edwards 2-0-19-0, Sinclair 4-0-32-0, Holder 4-0-36-1 (w3), McCoy 4-0-34-1 (w1), Bravo 4-0-25-2 (w2), Allen 2-0-11-0.

WEST INDIES L Simmons lbw b Hasaranga 21 E Lewis b Dananjaya 6 C Gayle c Bandara b Hasaranga 16 +N Pooran b Chameera 8 J Holder c Dananjaya b Gunathilaka 9 D Bravo c Mathews b Chameera 2 *K Pollard c Chandimal b Sandakan 13 F Allen lbw b Hasaranga 12 K Sinclair c Nissanka b Sandakan 3 O McCoy b Sandakan 23 F Edwards not out 1 EXTRAS: (lb1, nb2) 3 TOTAL: (all out, 18.4 overs) 117 Fall of wickets: 1-9 (Lewis), 2-45 (Gayle), 3-48 (Simmons), 4-60 (Holder), 5-65 (Bravo), 6-66 (Pooran), 7-89 (Allen), 8-93 (Pollard), 9-116 (McCoy), 10-117 (Sinclair) Bowling: Dananjaya 4-0-13-1, Chameera 4-0-26-2 (nb2), Perera 2-0-42-0, Hasaranga 4-0-17-3, Sandakan 3.4-0-10-3, Gunathilaka 1-0-8-1.

Series: Three-match series level 1-1.

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: HASARANGA DE SILVA

President’s T20 Softball League bowls off in grand style SOFTBALL cricket has now become one of the most-attended sports locally, and yesterday’s start of the inaugural Georgetown Softball Cricket League (GSCL) Incorporated President’s T20 Softball threeday League was no different.

Despite the turn out, all the necessary guidelines by the COVID-19 Task Force were adhered to. Twenty-four local and overseas teams began battling for supremacy at various) ground.) ground.ues in Georgetown.

While it was somewhat difficult to report on all 24 games, Chronicle Sport visited most of the venues.

YESTERDAY’S RESULTS ARE AS FOLLOWS: MASTERS Ariel Masters 161 for 9 20 overs (Fidel Singh 51) beat Wellman Masters 148 all out (Rawl Reid 58 not out) by 13 runs.

Trophy Stall 170 for 3 20 overs (Dindiall Lakhan 93 not out; Wazir Majid 2/26) beat HS Masters 117 for 9 20 overs (Ganpat Gusain 38; Randolph Ketwaroo 3/24) by 53 runs.

Regal Masters 190 for 2 17.1 overs (Richard Latif 75, Chien Gittens 67 not out) beat Corriverton Masters 189 for 7 20 overs (David Lukhnauth 87; Suruideo Ramdeen 3/48 by 8 wickets.

Regal Masters 71 for 6 10.2 overs beat Better Hope United 68 all out (Kyume Mohmed 5/17) by 4 wickets.

Wellman Masters 164 for 6 15 overs (Ernesto King 55) beat Trophy Stall 104 for 4 15 overs (Dindial Lakhan 38; Anil Durga 2/11) by 60 runs.

HS Masters 148 for 4 (Wazir Majid 61, Keith Fraser 51; Mark Fung 2/40) beat Ariel Masters 123 all out 14.4 overs by 25 runs.

Fisherman Masters 178 for 9 beat Corriverton Masters 139 for 9 by 39 runs.

Fisherman Masters 129 for 8 beat Better Hope 128 all out by 2 wickets.

Fisherman Masters 178 for 9 beat Corriverton Masters 139 for 9 by 39 runs.

LEGENDS Parika Defenders 311 for 5 (20 overs) Ramesh Kumar 82, Ramesh

Narine 75, Unis Yusuf 54) beat Sunshine State 104 all out by 207 runs.

Wellman Legends 72 for 2 8 overs beat Enterprise Legends 70 for 8 20 overs by 8 wickets.

Regal Legends 119 for 7 20 overs (Gopaul Deen 4/14) beat Wellman Masters 113 for 8 20 overs by 6 runs.

Rockaway Legends 117 for 2 beat Enterprise Legends 113 all out by 4 runs.

President’s XI 147 for 4 beat Floodlights 146 for 7 by 6 wickets.

Parika Defenders 186 for 1 (Unis Yusuf 101 not out, Ramesh Narine 66 not out) beat Floodlights 185 for 3 (Anil Beharry 104 not out) by 9 wickets.

Regal Legends 131 for 4 12.2 overs beat Rockaway 130 for 1 (Hemraj Diaram 103 not out) by 6 wickets.

OPEN Speed Boat 125 for 9 (19.5 overs) beat Regal All Stars 121 all out 18.5 overs by 4 runs.

Avinash Scrap Metal 196 for 8 beat Essequibo Wild Oats 93 all out by 103 runs.

Speed Boat 120 for 6 beat Hillfoot Warriors 119 all out by 4 wickets.

Ariel 284 for 7 (20 overs) (Brian Mangar 103) beat Hillfoot Warriors 32 all out (5.3) by 252 runs.

Regal 183 for 3 16 overs (Sachin Singh 90) beat Ariel All Stars 182 for 5 20 overs (Brian Mangar 81 not out) Cosscutters All Stars 131 for 8 17.5 overs beat Essequibo Wild Oats 131 all out (Marvin Bobb 4/19) by 2 wickets.

Xenon All Stars 184 all out 19.5 overs Alex Rodrigues 58 beat Cosscutters All Stars 152 for 9 (20 overs) by 32 runs.

The three-day tournament continues today and concludes on tomorrow, with the three finals set for the Everest Cricket Club (ECC) ground.

The winning teams in each category will receive $500 000 and a trophy while the runners-up will collect $100 000 and a trophy.

There will be other incentives (trophies) for individual performances.

24

GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

SA appoints Temba Bavuma as first black African captain; Dean Elgar to lead Test team

South Africa batsmen Temba Bavuma (left) and Dean Elgar walk off at the end of a day’s play in a Test match

TEMBA Bavuma has become the first black African to permanently captain a South Africa side after being appointed their limited-overs skipper.

Batsman Bavuma, 30, will lead the Proteas in the next two Twenty20 World Cups later this year and in 2022 as well as the next 50-over World Cup in 2023.

Opener Dean Elgar, 33, has been named Test captain for the next cycle of the World Test Championship.

“This is one of the greatest honours of my life,” said Bavuma.

“Captaining the Proteas has been a dream of mine for many years as those closest to me know.”

Bavuma and Elgar replace wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock, who had held the T20 and one-day international captaincy roles since last January and was named temporary Test skipper in December. de Kock had taken over all three roles from Faf du Plessis, who retired from Test cricket last month and said he will now focus on T20s.

Mixed-race players Ashwell Prince, JP Duminy and Justin Ontong have previously captained a South Africa cricket side on a temporary basis. Hashim Amla, the first Asian to play for South Africa, has also

captained his country in matches in all three formats.

Prince was the first mixedrace player to captain South Africa when he led them for two Tests in Sri Lanka in 2006 while Graeme Smith was injured.

Bavuma became the first black African to score a Test century for South Africa, against England in Cape Town in 2016.

“The responsibility of captaining one’s country is not one I take lightly, and I am looking forward to this new challenge and journey with Dean in the Test cricket format, as well as leading the team to not just one, but three World Cups in the very near future,” he added.

Elgar, who has 67 Test caps, previously captained the Test side twice when du Plessis was unavailable.

“I’ve always said that to captain your country in any form of the game is the biggest honour that a player can be fortunate to receive,” he said.

“To captain my country’s Test team, which I believe to be the pinnacle of the game, is the biggest highlight of my career and I’m grateful for the opportunity to represent my country in such an important way.”

South Africa are currently ranked sixth in Test cricket and fifth in both ODIs and T20s. (BBC Sport)

CRICKET QUIZ CORNER Saturday, March 06, 2021

COMPLIMENTS OF XTRA ENERGY DRINK – STABROEK BAZAAR (Tel: 683-9500) & CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL COMPANY LTD – 83 Garnett street, Campbellville, Georgetown (Tel: 225-6158) (1) (2)

ANSWERS TO YESTERDAY’S QUIZ: Vanburn Holder-5/50 (vs ENG, Birmingham, 1976) Ashanta de Mel-5/39 (vs PAK, Leeds, 1983)

(1)

(2)

Which WI wicketkeeper has effected most dismissals in ODI cricket?

Which SL wicketkeeper has effected most dismissals in ODI cricket?

TODAY’S QUIZ:

ANSWERS IN TOMORROW’S ISSUE

25

GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Pant’s dazzling ton takes Test away from England

By Stephan Shemilt

RISHABH Pant’s dazzling century ensured India repelled a Ben Stokes-led England fightback on a compelling second day of the final Test in Ahmedabad.

In extreme heat, Stokes’ huge effort brought the wickets of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to help reduce India to 146-6 in reply to England’s 205.

But Pant counter-attacked in thrilling style, climbing into a tiring England attack for 101 from 118 balls, with 13 fours and two sixes.

Pant shared a seventh-wicket stand of 113 with Washington Sundar, who remained unbeaten on 60 as India reached 294-7, 89 ahead.

Leading 2-1, India need to avoid defeat to win the series and secure a meeting with New Zealand in the World Test Championship final.

India hold edge after absorbing day This was a wonderful day of Test cricket, an arm-wrestle for control on a pitch that is threatening to deteriorate.

For two sessions, England were as good with the ball as they were bad with the bat on Thursday, giving the hosts little respite.

However, even though Dan Lawrence’s 46 on day one was crucial, the decision to extend their batting left England short of a bowler late on day two, especially with off-spinner Dom Bess

looking devoid of confidence after being left out for two Tests.

Pant cashed in with a memorable century that delighted the smattering of spectators inside the world’s biggest cricket stadium.

played a crucial innings on the final day of India’s series win in Australia, began by curbing his attacking intent, before unleashing the full range of his strokeplay. His first 63 balls brought 37 runs.

The next 55 brought 64.

On 35, he survived a

slog-sweeping Root for six.

After Pant heaved to mid-wicket to give Anderson his third wicket, Sundar continued to play correctly and with composure in an unbroken stand of 35 with Axar Patel.

Sundar overturned being

Test as his career-defining century to defeat Australia.

Showing no sign of the stomach bug which he has been suffering from, Stokes bowled at high pace and generated prodigious swing.

Kohli was caught behind off a brutal lifter for a duck, while Rohit was deceived by a huge inswinger to be lbw for 49.

Anderson, who has also been ill, was just as good.

Miserly for most of the day, he had Ajinkya Rahane edge to second slip for 27.

Left-arm spinner Leach remained reliable, trapping Cheteshwar Pujara lbw and

having Ravichandran Ashwin chip to short mid-wicket.

Bess, however, could not be trusted, bowling a number of full tosses and long hops.

It was hard not to feel for him after he was left out earlier in the series for Moeen Ali, who was then asked to stay on, only to leave for his planned period of rest.

With Root nowhere near close to recapturing the magic of his 5-8 from the previous Test, England were a bowler light and, by the evening session, exhausted and out of options.

(BBC Sport)

SCORECARD

Rishabh Pant made his third Test century - he has reached two of them with a six

England still have the opportunity to post a fourth-innings target that could be tricky to chase on the wearing surface.

But the likelihood is that Pant has played a defining, series-winning innings.

Pant’s crucial hand When Pant was joined by Sundar, India were still 59 behind and in danger of giving away a first-innings lead.

The wicketkeeper, who

marginal lbw shout from Bess in the final over before tea. On his return after break, Pant upped the intensity as England opted to bowl Bess and Joe Root instead of their frontline trio of Stokes, James Anderson and Jack Leach.

Pant found another gear when England took the second new ball, audaciously reverse-sweeping Anderson over the slips, then went to his third Test century by

given lbw to Bess in the penultimate over of an evening session which yielded 141 runs.

England run out of steam Before Pant’s pyro technics, England dragged themselves back into contention thanks in no small part to Stokes, whose bowling evoked memories of the marathon spell he produced at Headingley in the same

ENGLAND 1st innings Zak Crawley c Mohammed Siraj b Axar Patel

9 Dominic Sibley b Axar Patel

2 Jonny Bairstow lbw Mohammed Siraj

28 Joe Root lbw Mohammed Siraj

5 Ben Stokes lbw Washington Sundar 55 Ollie Pope c Shubman Gill b Ravichandran Ashwin 29 Dan Lawrence stp. Rishabh Pant b Axar Patel

46 Ben Foakes c Ajinkya Rahane b Ravichandran Ashwin 1 Dom Bess lbw Axar Patel

3 Jack Leach lbw Ravichandran Ashwin

7 James Anderson not out

10 EXTRAS: (b-3, lb-5, nb-1, w-1)

10 TOTAL: (all out, 75.5 overs)

205 Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-15, 3-30, 4-78, 5-121, 6-166, 7-170, 8-188, 9-189.

Bowling: Ishant Sharma 9-2-23-0, Mohammed Siraj 14-2-45-2 (w-1, nb-1), Axar Patel 26-7-68-4, Ravichandran Ashwin 19.54-47-3, Washington Sundar 7-1-14-1.

INDIA 1st innings Shubman Gill lbw James Anderson

0 Rohit Sharma lbw Ben Stokes

49 Cheteshwar Pujara lbw Jack Leach

17 Virat Kohli c Ben Foakes b Ben Stokes

0 Ajinkya Rahane c Ben Stokes b James Anderson 27 Rishabh Pant c Joe Root b James Anderson

101 Ravichandran Ashwin c Ollie Pope b Jack Leach 13 Washington Sundar not out

60 Axar Patel not out

11 EXTRAS: (b-8, lb-5. nb-3)

16 TOTAL: (seven wkts, 94.0 overs)

294 Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-40, 3-41, 4-80, 5-121, 6-146, 7-259.

Bowling: James Anderson 20-11-40-3, Ben Stokes 22-6-73-2 (nb-1), Jack Leach 23-5-66-2 (nb-1), Dom Bess 15-1-56 -0 (nb-1), Joe Root 14-1-46-0.

Finch becomes Aussies’ highest run-scorer in men’s T20 cricket

… Australia set up T20 series-decider against New Zealand AARON Finch became Australia’s highest run-scorer in men’s T20 cricket as his side defended 156-6 to set up a series-decider against New Zealand.

They lost regular wickets on a tricky pitch with Finch making an unbeaten 79 off 55 balls - including taking Kyle Jamieson for 26 off the final over.

New Zealand were restricted to 107 in reply, with Kane Richardson taking 3-19 and three others taking two apiece.

The final game in the five-match series is at 23:00hrs GMT today.

The Australia innings was underpinned by Finch

Aaron Finch is now the sixth highest run-scorer in men’s international T20 cricket - behind India’s Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, New Zealand’s Martin Guptill and Pakistan’s Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez

but he struggled for timing on a pitch that was twopaced and offered some spin, until the final over.

He took two off the first ball and then hit three successive sixes - two over cover and one over log-on - before sending the last ball over mid-wicket for another six.

In the course of his innings, Finch overtook David Warner to become Australia’s highest run-scorer, leaving him sixth on the all-time list, and he also became the first Australian to hit 100 sixes in international T20 cricket.

Australia’s top run-scorers in men’s Twen-

ty20 internationals:

They limped to 41-4 at the halfway point, with key Batsman batsmen Martin Guptill and Innings Runs Kane Williamson both out.

Aaron Finch Glenn Phillips was run70 2,310 out in comical fashion with David Warner both he and Devon Conway 81 2,265 stranded at the non-striker’s Glenn Maxwell end.

64 1,779 Jamieson offered some Shane Watson late resistance as he made 56 1,462 an 18-ball 30, but AustraCameron White lia’s spin trio of Ashton 44 984 Agar, Adam Zampa and Marcus Stoinis’ 19 was Glenn Maxwell were key, the next highest score with taking 6-49 from 11 overs, leg-spinner Ish Sodhi im- as Australia wrapped up pressing in taking 3-32. a comfortable 50-run win.

Despite Finch’s last-over Fans will be able to heroics, the total felt below attend the series-decider par but New Zealand were after lockdown restrictions never able to get going in were lifted in Wellington. their reply.

(BBC Sport)

26

GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Promoter Arum says fight between Fury and Joshua agreed

(REUTERS) - Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will fight this year with “no more issues” to prevent the heavyweight unification bout from happening, promoter Bob Arum said on Wednesday.

Joshua beat Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev in December to retain his IBF, WBO and WBA titles and his promoter Eddie Hearn said last month that the deal for a clash with fellow Briton Fury - who holds the WBC belt - was done.

However, Fury last week played down the chances of the bout happening this year, saying that no progress has been made in fixing the fight due to delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and logistical issues.

Asked on Wednesday if the fight was on, Fury’s promoter Arum told iFL TV: “Yeah, as far as I’m concerned. That’s

Peter Nero

Tyson Fury (left) and Anthony Joshua

what each side has said. Now, we’re scrambling around to get the thing signed and everything.

“But I can say clearly, based on my view on everything, that there are no more issues.”

After taking the lead in the first sitting, where Cold Fusion marked 15 games to State Auditors eight and Banks DIH six, the eventual winners never let up as they led throughout.

Cold Fusion topped with 91

games with Banks DIH placing second on 79 while State Auditors finished in the cellar on 61 games.

Robin Persaud led the way for the winners with the maximum 18 games and received

Fury has not fought for a year since his knockout victory against American Deontay Wilder.

Cold Fusion win feature dominoes clash COLD Fusion made light work of Banks DIH and State Auditors when their feature dominoes game climaxed last Sunday at Cold Fusion Sports Bar, at Zeelugt, East Bank, Essequibo.

Senior WICUA functionaries to feature in CCUA seminars

The winning Cold Fusion team

great support from Sharda McKend with 16 games while Radesh Sooklall and Taslim Inshan scored 15 games each and Balram Sammy 14.

For Banks DIH, Kenneth Hazel played through and made 30 games, Justin Stoby registered 15 and Jose Felicien 14 games.

State Auditors’ top player was Tychious McAlmont with 16 games while his teammate Andrew Quintin was the lone lovebird, The winning team received a trophy and $24 000, while the second-place team got $12 000. The three teams will clash again at the same venue on Sunday, April 11.

Williams century, bowlers help Zimbabwe trounce Afghanistan inside two days A CENTURY from skipper Sean Williams, coupled with destructive pace-bowling from Blessing Muzarabani and Victor Nyauchi, led Zimbabwe to a 10-wicket win over Afghanistan inside two days in the first Test in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

Williams hit 105 to guide Zimbabwe to 250 all out before Afghanistan - trailing by 119 - were bowled out for 135 in their second innings.

That left Zimbabwe to score 17 runs which they made without any loss.

“It was a fantastic team performance. I was really happy with my seam bowlers. Obviously it was a difficult wicket to bat on, but these challenges come in Test cricket,” said Williams at the presentation ceremony.

“If we take them head on, we’ll succeed. Test cricket can swing in a couple of games. In this game, the senior players came to the party, which is what I want. The younger guys will learn from it.”

Afghanistan had been bowled out for 131 in their first innings.

Lanky pacer Muzarabani finished with 2-14 - and six wickets in the match - while his new-ball partner Nyauchi took 3-30, also getting six in the match.

Afghanistan were facing an innings defeat at 81-7 but opener Ibrahim Zadran fought hard during his 76 - his second half-century - and added 48 for the eighth wicket with Amir Hamza who remained 21 not out.

Zadran batted for three hours and hit ten boundaries.

This becomes Afghanistan’s third defeat in five Tests since gain-

ing status to play the five-day format in 2017.

“Yesterday we won a good toss but they bowled good lines and our boys played poor shots as well,” admitted Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan.

The writing was very much on the wall when Nyauchi had Abdul Malik in the second over for a duck for the batsman’s pair on debut.

Nyauchi then dismissed Rahmat Shah (zero) and Hashmatullah Shahidi (four) while Muzarabani had Munir Ahmad (one) and rival skipper Asghar (14) to leave Afghanistan rocking at 47-6.

Nyauchi’s previous best of 3-69 was on his debut against Sri Lanka at Harare last year.

Earlier, resuming at 133-5, Zimbabwe added 117 more runs to gain a crucial lead.

Williams, who resumed on 54, lost his overnight partner Ryan Burl for eight but then found an able ally in Regis Chakabva (44) as the duo added 75 for the seventh wicket.

Williams completed his third Test century, and second in successive Tests, soon after lunch with a single to square leg.

But he fell for 105 while flicking spinner Amir Hamza straight to mid-wicket.

Williams had 10 boundaries while Chakabva smashed a six and six fours.

Left-arm spinner Hamza finished with career-best figures of 6-75 - his second five-for in Tests after his 5-74 against West Indies at Lucknow in 2019.

The second Test starts on March 10, also in Abu Dhabi.

TWO senior members of West Indies Umpires Cricket Association (WICUA) will play leading roles in the Canada Cricket Umpires Association’s (CCUA) annual seminar which gets underway today, starting at 13:00hrs. Unlike previous years, the programmes will be done virtually via Zoom.

WICUA Secretary Vivian Johnson and Committee Training Chairman Peter Nero will form part of the threeman lecturing team which also includes CCUA Secretary Azad Khan.

The seven-week seminar runs until Saturday, April 24 with each session scheduled for three hours.

Power point presentations will be used for most of the sessions which pertain to the Laws of Cricket while all seminars and examinations will be based on the 2017 Code of Laws of Cricket (updated 2019).

The CCUA was forced to abort last year’s programme following the intervention of the COVID-19 pandemic which also saw no examinations - including the West Indies versions - being held.

While the CCUA is working on the modalities of holding its internal exams this year, the association is still awaiting word from the WICUA as to the way forward, as far as the West Indies exams are concerned.

CCUA president Albert Ramcharran will open today’s session.

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American racing Tips Aqueduct Race 1 Destinationwnascir Race 2 Gagliano Race 3 Morgantown Race 4 Kaz’s Beach Race 5 Scotto Race 6 Miss Brazil Race 7 Share The Ride Race 8 Lake Avenue Race 8 Highly Motivated Race10 The Big S Arab Emirates Racing Tips Meydan 08:00 hrs Panadol 08:35 hrs Walton Street 09:10 hrs Canvassed 09:45 hrs Kimbear 10:20 HRS Al Suhail 10:55 hrs Roman RTosso 11:30 hrs Royal Crusade South Africa Racing Tips Kenilworth 08:10 hrs Byer Bye Bombshell 08:45 hrs Benjamin 09:20 hrs Arendale 09:55 hrs Somerset Maugham 10:27 hrs Spectra Force 11:02 hrs Tallahassee 11:37 hrs Greenlightflash

27

GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday, March 6, 2021

Bright, Foster, Hooper to compete at NCAA National Indoor Championships

CHANTOBA Bright, Andrea Foster and Natricia Hooper, will be on show at NCAA National Indoor Championships, set for March 11-13 at Randal Tyson Track Centre in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) National Indoor Championship is one of the highly anticipated events in collegiate track and field, especially with a number of athletes looking to make the qualifying standard for the Tokyo Games.

The women qualified for the National Championships following their exceptional showing at their

respective conferences Indoor championship.

Bright, competing for

Kansas State University, will feature in the Long Jump and will come face-to-face with

Hooper in the Triple Jump.

At the BIG 12 Conference, Bright leaped a person-

al best (PB) 13.60 metres to finish second in the Women’s triple Jump. Nicola Martial’s 13.62 metres is Guyana’s National Indoor Record.

Bright’s distance of 6.43 metres was good enough for fourth place at the BIG 12 Conference.

At the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championships, Natricia Hooper, suiting-up for the University of Florida, leaped 13.43 metres to finish third in the Women’s Triple Jump. The Guyanese is ranked 5th All-Time in the Gators’ history in the Women’s Triple Jump for her mark of 13.53 metres (set in 2019).

Meanwhile, Andrea Foster will be just one of

six athletes representing Clemson University at the National Championships.

At the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championships, Foster clocked two minutes 03.54 seconds (2:03.54) to finish third in the women’s 800 metres for Clemson University. The time, a personal best, was the third fastest in the school’s history.

Foster recently returned to Clemson University after wrapping up her Degree in Health Science. She came close to Marian Burnett’s National Indoor record of 2:02.27, set at the 2008 World Indoor Championships in Spain.

GFF honours late former national player Neil Humphrey THE Guyana Football Federation (GFF) yesterday sent its condolences to the family of former national footballer Neil ‘Grizzly’ Humphrey, who passed away last weekend.

Berbice-based Humphrey, who was 65, played for the Senior Men’s National Team during the 1970s with his brother, Keith. During his club career, he played for several sides, including Cougars, Caribs, Bermine and Hearts of Oak. “Grizzly was a larger-

than-life character who made a huge impression on football nationally and, in particular,

Neil ‘Grizzly’ Humphrey

in Berbice. On behalf of the Guyana Football Federation, I would like to send my sincerest heartfelt condolences to his family and friends at this difficult time,” said GFF president Wayne Forde.

After his playing career, Humphrey remained a keen enthusiast, supporter and organiser of football, from coaching to refereeing and youth development, including the Teach Them Young football camps which he ran for more than two decades. He also served as

South American World Cup qualifiers in doubt as clubs take hard line

By Simon Evans

MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) - This month’s World Cup qualifiers in South America are in serious doubt, with European clubs unlikely to release their players to travel amid concern over the COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine restrictions.

World soccer’s governing body FIFA has relaxed its normal rules about player-release for internationals because of the pandemic and worries about the impact of long-distance travel to areas with high caserates. Clubs are expected to keep their players at home.

All 10 South American countries feature on the UK government’s “red list” travel ban, which does not include exemptions for athletes and sports people.

Any UK-based players who played in the games would face 10 days in hotel quarantine on return.

That in itself makes it difficult for clubs to consider agreeing to CONMEBOL’s requests.

“I think everybody

agrees -- we can’t let the players go and play for their country and then quarantine for 10 days in a hotel. That’s not how we can do it,” said Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp, whose team includes Brazilian trio Alisson Becker, Fabinho and Roberto Firmino.

Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp

South American confederation CONMEBOL, which organises the qualifiers in the region for the 2022 World Cup, wants clubs to release their players for the March 25 and 30 games, but it is running out of options.

CONMEBOL’s council met yesterday to discuss the situation and is in contact with FIFA as it searches for a solution.

But CONMEBOL is reluctant to play the games without European-based players and has not considered moving the fixtures to “bubbles” in Europe. It faces a scheduling problem, however as their continental championship, Copa America, is set for June in Argentina and Colombia.

Wi t h 1 4 r o u n d s o f matches still to be completed in the World Cup qualifying process, which is due to end in March 2022, there is limited space for the games.

“It is difficult to postpone the FIFA dates, there is no space, you cannot tighten the qualifiers,” Ecuador FA president Francisco Egas told his local station Radio La Red. “There is strong pressure from European clubs not to give up their players for the qualifiers. FIFA must be in the middle to help get an understanding,” he added.

TURN TO PAGE 23

president of the Hearts of Oak Masters FC and as the local contact for the Overseas Disturbance FC, which is comprised mostly of members of the diaspora from New Amsterdam.

“He will be greatly missed by all, but there is so much to celebrate about his life. He leaves behind an incredible list of achievements in football that have made a permanent mark

on his community and beyond,” Forde said. “It is the unsung heroes like ‘Grizzly’ who make the real difference for the development of young people in our communities.”

Sri Lanka spinners

rout West Indies for 117 to level T20I series SEE PAGE 23

Wanindu Hasaranga picked up 3 for 17 to dent West Indies' chase (Getty Images)

President’s T20 Softball League bowls off in grand style SEE PAGE 23

Part of the action in yesterday’s play

One of Guyana’s best Softball players Richard Latif failed to make an impact yesterday

SA appoints Temba Bavuma as first black African captain Printed and Published by Guyana National Newspapers Limi ted, Lama Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown. Telephone 2 2 6- 3243-9 (General); Editorial: 2 2 7- 5204, 2 2 7- 5216. Fax:2 2 7- 5208

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SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 2021