Guyana_Chronicle_Epaper_08_18_2020

TUESDAY 18th August, 2020

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Key foreign posts announced

No.106095

SEE PAGE 03

New Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett

New Foreign Secretary, Robert Persaud

Advisor on Borders, Carl Greenidge

APNU+AFC names parliamentarians; Granger out

New Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Permanent Secretary, Audrey Waddell

PAGE

Dr. Karen Cummings

Annette Ferguson

02

Khemraj Ramjattan

Joseph Harmon

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

APNU+AFC names parliamentarians; Granger out

By Navendra Seoraj THE country’s main political opposition, the A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) coalition, has submitted its list of parliamentarians who will feature in the 12th Parliament, to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

The Guyana Chronicle was reliably informed that former President and Leader of APNU, David Granger, has taken a step back, and will not be returning to Parliament.

Granger has been at the helm of the coalition since 2011, when he was elected Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform

(PNC/R) - the largest party in the coalition.

This publication was told that the coalition, since being unseated as government by the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C), at the recent General and Regional Elections, had regrouped and did some introspection.

PNC Chairman, Volda Lawrence; party General Secretary, Amna Ally; former Chairman, Basil Williams and former General Secretary, Aubrey Norton will not be returning to the House.

However, senior functionaries of APNU and AFC, namely Joe Harmon, Raphael Trotman, Khemraj Ramjattan, David Patterson, Dr. Karen Cummings, Cathy

Hughes, Nicolette Henry, Dawn Hastings-Williams, Annette Ferguson and Hemraj Rajkumar are slated to return to Parliament, likely as front benchers.

Some of other persons who are said to be on the list, which was submitted to GECOM, include former Magistrate, Geeta Chandan-Edmond; Attorney-at-Law, Roysdale Forde; Sherod Duncan; Juretha Fernandes; Trade Unionist, Coretta McDonald; and Ganesh Mahipaul.

Most of those persons were actively campaigning for the coalition during the lead-up to the March 2, General and Regional Elections.

Under the revised Cummingsburg Accord, the AFC

will only get 30 per cent of the seats secured by the coalition in the National Assembly based on a new 70:30 ratio agreed upon with APNU. The formula will also guide the allocation of seats at the level of the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs). Under the old accord, the formula was 60:40.

It is unclear whether the opposition will be heading to parliament when it’s convened, but senior member of APNU+AFC, Amna Ally, confirmed that their list has been submitted to GECOM. There has been no sitting of the National Assembly since May, 2019. This was due mainly to the passage of a motion of no-confidence against the former APNU+AFC Government.

The then parliamentary opposition had secured the support of then government Member of Parliament, Charrandass Persaud, to get an edge over the government in House, in December, 2018.

Although the motion was passed in the National Assembly, there were a slew of legal challenges which protracted the process and allowed sittings to be convened. Those sitting were, however, only attended by members on the then governing side, as members of the then parliamentary opposition had committed to attending Parliament only

after the completion of General and Regional Elections.

Those elections have since been held and though there was a five-month impasse after polling day, on March 2, 2020, the end result was a victory for the PPP/C. The new PPP/C government gained 233,336 votes at the March 2 General and Regional Elections and will enter the 12th Parliament with 33 seats as it moves to take the country forward.

The APNU+AFC with 217,920 votes, will have 31 seats while the joinder list of A New United Guyana (ANUG), the Liberty and Justice Party (LJP) and The New Movement (TNM) with 5, 214 votes will be allocated one seat.

And, although the APNU+AFC coalition plans to challenge the results of those elections in an elections petition, which Ally said will be filed soon, the declaration of results and official completion of the process paves the way for a return to the National Assembly.

A date for the convening of parliament has not been set, but upon their return to Parliament, MPs will elect a Speaker to preside over the proceedings of the House. The Speaker oversees the administration of the House and chairs several committees, including the Parliamentary Management Committee.

The Speaker is also the spokesperson and representative of the National Assembly in its relations with the executive and other bodies outside of the House. The last Speaker of the National Assembly was Dr. Barton Scotland.

The passage of a National Budget will also be high on the agenda, as the country is already eight months into the year and is faced with the challenges caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

As a result of COVID-19, Parliament will be held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Minister responsible for Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira has confirmed.

Teixeira explained that to minimise the risk of infection, the Parliament will also reduce the number of staff and invitees during the sitting while ministers and MPs will be seated in accordance with COVID-19 guidelines.

The parliamentary affairs minister noted that the first sitting is yet to be decided, but as part of the coronavirus regime, a number of restrictions and measures will be in place.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Key foreign posts announced

AMBASSADOR Audrey Waddell has been appointed permanent secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and new positions have been announced for former Ministers Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Robert Persaud and Carl Greenidge. Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd made these announcements on Monday evening.

Waddell joined the Foreign Service in 1985 and

served on both home and on overseas assignments.

She was previously attached to the Embassy of Guyana in Caracas as first secretary. She also served in the same capacity in Brasilia.

Former Foreign Affairs Minister in the APNU+AFC Government, Carl Greenidge, will take up the role of advisor on borders at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while Robert Persaud has been appointed foreign secretary.

Persaud served as Minis-

ter of Agriculture from 2006 to 2011 and then Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment from 2011 to 2015 under the PPP/C Government.

The post of Foreign Secretary was created in May 2019 and was first occupied

by Carl Greenidge, who was forced to resign as minister of foreign affairs when Guyana’s courts ruled that persons who held dual citizenship were not qualified to be Members of the National

Assembly.

With a change in government, Greenidge was retained to continue his work in defending Guyana at the International Court of Justice on the border case to settle the controversy in which Venezuela claims that the 1899 arbitral award which settled the boundaries of the two countries is null and void.

Former Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett has been named Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United

Nations.

Rodrigues was appointed to the Cabinet as minister of Amerindian Affairs in April 2001 under the PPP/C Administration. Following the 2006 general election, she was re-appointed as Minister of Amerindian affairs.

After seven years serving in that post, she was appointed minister of foreign affairs in 2008, replacing Dr Rudy Insanally.

Rodrigues continued to serve as minister of foreign

affairs up to the time the People's Progressive Party/C (PPP/C) lost the May 2015 general election. She was subsequently offered a spot on the PPP/C's list of MPs but she chose not to take a seat in the National Assembly, preferring to work abroad.

She was appointed director of the Food and Agriculture Organisation Liaison Office with the United Nations in Geneva in August 2017.

GCAA trying to source inexpensive flights -- for Guyanese stranded in other Caribbean nations

By Tamica Garnett DIRECTOR-GENERAL of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Egbert Field, said the agency was actively looking into sourcing repatriation flights for Guyanese stuck in Caribbean nations, but there were several technical aspects that had to be worked out to make the flights affordable.

Approximately 100 Guyanese stuck in various Caribbean islands are facing varying hardships, and are desperate to get back home, hopeful for possible repatriation flights given that Guyana’s airport closure has been extended to at least August 31.

“We are working on it. It’s not that we are not studying them; it’s about finding the appropriate sized aircraft for the journey and the amount of passengers,” Field explained Monday when contacted by Guyana Chronicle.

According to Field, there are several dynamics that have to be considered when it comes to getting the Guyanese home.

“There are a lot of factors which have got to be looked at when we are speaking about the islands, the size of the party from the islands, where they are located, the size of the aircraft that you

and that is the difficulty,” Field pointed out.

GCAA Director-General, Egbert Field

can get, so we are investigating. But there are not too many airlines operating right now, because a lot of the states have closed their doors,” Fields noted.

After Guyana recorded its first COVID-19 case on March 11, airports in Guyana have been closed to international flights since midnight of March 18, blindsiding many Guyanese, some who had left the country just days before the airport was closed.

Some are facing financial difficulties while overseas; while many others were on annual vacation leave and are worried about how their

lengthy absence will affect their jobs, going forward.

Stuck in Antigua, Guyanese Lona Bowen is desperate to get back because her two young sons are in Guyana staying with a family member. Yonette Vankenie-White is also stuck on that island and is yearning to get back home to lay her son to rest. Her son was murdered in July. The funeral has been delayed pending her return.

Though the airports in Guyana are closed, chartered repatriation flights are being allowed; however, because of the arrangements, many of the flights are expen-

sive. With the cost for the flights being borne by the passengers, cost is an important determining factor in sourcing flights.

“Commercial operations are not being conducted, so to move people around you have to charter operators.

But when you charter an airline, the airline doesn’t charge the passengers as per ticket, it charges for the entire aircraft and the hours it is being used. So if you charter an aircraft to pick up passengers from say Antigua, if there are only five or ten passengers, the charter cost has to be shared by those five or ten passengers,

FINANCIAL STRAIN Hence, the small number of passengers scattered across the Caribbean is presenting difficulties in finding flights that are within the financial reach of the passengers, many of whom are already dealing with strained finances.

“It’s not like a flight from New York or Miami where it’s a one stop and you have 100 or so passengers, these are small pockets of passengers. So unless they can get a small aircraft to charter to come home, there lies the difficulty how to move them from that location,” Field explained.

In Antigua, for passengers waiting to leave that island , some of the oneway flights cost as much as US$900 (GUY$188, 000), a sum many cannot afford.

“It is a situation where sometimes you get an airline but you have to discard the flight because the price is too high,” Field noted One such repatriation flight that is expected to return some 50 Guyanese home this weekend, bringing 35 persons from Tortola and another 15 from Antigua.

Aside from the cost of the flights, if permission to return is secured, the Guyanese will also have to pay for

a COVID-19 test. In Antigua the test is US$115, and once taken the test is valid for only seven days.

Field said the option of consolidating passengers from various Islands is also among the possibilities being explored; however, even that alternative presents logistical obstacles.

“That presents a complication because of the aviation regulations, because a pilot has to get proper rest the crew has to be rested.

Sometimes they can only do two or three stage lengths per flight. You might get a flight from A goes to B goes to C but cannot make another stop,” he said.

Nonetheless, the GCAA is trying to reach out to airlines to see what could be made possible.

“At the moment, I’m talking to a company out in Turks and Caicos Island to see if they have an appropriate sized airline to make two or three stops… to see how we can join locations together and combine the load in order that the passengers have less to pay.

We have Guyanese in the Bahamas and also in St Maarten, so what we are trying to do is see if we can get something from the Bahamas to Antigua and you combine that load to come in,” he noted.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Belarus protests: Workers boo Lukashenko as election unrest spreads

(BBC) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has been heckled by workers on a visit to a factory as anger mounts over his disputed re-election.

Workers chanted “leave” and booed the long-time leader of the ex-Soviet state as he insisted he would not allow a new vote after allegations of ballot fraud.

Strike action spread to state TV, with staff walking out on Monday.

Opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has suggested she could act as an interim leader.

Police violence towards opposition supporters, as well as the alleged poll-rigging in the 9 August vote, fuelled a big protest rally in the capital Minsk on Sunday.

Mr Lukashenko has led

Belarus since 1994, maintaining close relations with neighbouring Russia, on which Belarus heavily relies for energy supplies.

How great is the pressure on Lukashenko?

According to local, independent news site Tut.by, Sunday’s opposition rally in Minsk was “the largest in the history of independent Belarus”.

A wave of anger has been rising since the Central Election Commission said Mr Lukashenko had won 80.1% of the vote and Ms Tikhanovskaya - 10.12%.

Hundreds of protesters have been wounded and two have died in clashes with police over the past week.

Some 6,700 people have been arrested, and many have spoken of torture at the

Tuesday, August 18, 2020–– 04:00hrs & 05:30hrs

hands of security forces.

On a visit to a Minsk tractor plant on Monday, Mr Lukashenko sought to defend his disputed victory, telling workers: “We held the election. Until you kill me, there will be no other election.”

However he said he was willing to hold a referendum

and “hand over my authority in accordance with the constitution - but not under pressure and not via street protests”.

As Mr Lukashenko spoke at the factory, workers booed him and chanted “leave”.

Last week, workers at state-run factories walked out in solidarity with the

protesters, and more strikes are planned for this week, increasing the pressure on Mr Lukashenko.

At state TV, staff walked out in protest against censorship and the election results.

Ms Tikhanovskaya, who left for Lithuania after denouncing the results, insists that where votes were

properly counted, she won support ranging from 60% to 70%.

In a video message released on Monday, she said she was ready to become a “national leader” in order to restore calm and normality, freeing political prisoners and preparing for new elections.

‘Highest temperature on Earth’ as Death Valley, US hits 54.4C

(BBC) What could be the highest temperature ever reliably recorded on Earth - 130F (54.4C) - may have been reached in Death Valley National Park, California.

The recording is being verified by the US National Weather Service.

It comes amid a heatwave on the US’s west coast, where temperatures are forecast to rise further this week.

The scorching conditions have led to two days of blackouts in California, after a power plant malfunctioned on Saturday.

What were the previous records?

Sunday’s reading was recorded in Furnace Creek in Death Valley.

Before this, the highest temperature reliably recorded on Earth was 129.2F (54C) - also in Death Valley in 2013.

A higher reading of 134F, or 56.6C a century earlier, also in Death Valley, is disputed. It is believed by some modern weather experts to have been erroneous, along with several other searing temperatures recorded that summer.

According to a 2016 analysis from weather historian Christopher Burt, other temperatures in the region recorded in 1913 do not corroborate the Death Valley reading.

Another record temperature for the planet - 131F, or 55C - was recorded in Tunisia in 1931, but Mr Burt said this reading, as well as others recorded in Africa during the colonial era, had “serious credibility issues”.

What about the heatwave?

The current heatwave stretches from Arizona in the south-west, up the coast to Washington state in the north-west.

It is expected to hit its peak on Monday and Tuesday, before temperatures start to drop later in the week. However, the sweltering heat will continue for at least another 10 days.

As temperatures soared in California, a large “firenado” was observed on Saturday in Lassen County.

California’s Independent System Operator (CISO), which manages the state’s power, has declared a Stage 3 Emergency, meaning “when demand [for electricity] begins to outpace supply”.

Because so much of the region’s power relies on solar and wind energy, and because people use their electricity for air conditioning, during heatwaves the power grid becomes strained and is at risk of completely malfunctioning.

In order to manage the state’s demand for power and prevent a complete shutdown, officials are using scheduled rolling blackouts to control and conserve energy.

What are the effects of extreme heat?

Officials define extreme heat as a period of two to three days of high heat and humidity, with temperatures above 90F (32C).

US public health body the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says heatwaves have killed more people on average than any other extreme weather event in the country.

The immediate effects of heatwaves on the human body are heat cramps, dehydration and even potentially fatal heat strokes.

However, extreme heat can also exacerbate pre-existing health conditions, including respiratory diseases, heart conditions and kidney disorders, the World Health Organization (WHO) says.

How to look after yourself in hot weather It can affect infrastructure, too. As well as straining power grids and causing blackouts, extreme heat can ground planes, melt roads, and cause the inside of cars to overheat to dangerous levels.

Heatwaves can also have a severe impact on agriculture - either by causing vegetables to wilt and die, or by encouraging the spread of plant diseases.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Colombia offers reward after eight young partygoers killed (BBC) The government of Colombia has offered a reward of 200m pesos ($53,000; £40,000) for information about the killing of eight people in south-western Nariño province.

Four gunmen burst into a party held at a house in Samaniego on Saturday and shot dead seven men and one woman.

The victims were part of a group of about 20 revellers.

The motive for the attack is not clear but there are a number of drug gangs active in the border area with Ecuador.

What is known about the attack?

Survivors of the attack told El Tiempo newspaper that some of them had received threats on Saturday warning them to stop the party they were attending on

the outskirts of the town of Samaniego.

The group said they had decided to organise the party after an annual music festival was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

They gathered at the empty house of the grandmother of one of the organisers to drink beer and listen to music, according to the father of one of the victims.

Some received messages over WhatsApp telling them to stop and minutes later, four armed men burst onto the property on motorbikes and opened fire.

Who are the victims?

Most of those killed had either just graduated from high school or were at university.

The only woman to be shot dead, Laura Michel Melo Riscos, was planning

Some of the victims have already been laid to rest

to study medicine. Óscar Andrés Obando Betancourt was studying sport in the city of Cali.

Carlos Patiño, the father of Bairon Patiño, another of the young men killed, said his son had been attending

the party with his girlfriend, who survived the attack.

“She told us that she survived because she played

dead when the shooting started. The others who managed to get away, about 20 of them, were either in the kitchen or were able to run away, but all of those in the courtyard were shot dead,” Mr Patiño said.

Mr Patiño dismissed rumours that the shooting may have been a settling of scores between rival criminal or drug gangs.

“Those youths were decent youngsters, sporty and hard-working,” he said. He added that his son played in the local five-a-side football league.

What’s the background?

Murder rates have fallen since the government signed a peace deal with Colombia’s main rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), in 2016.

RBPF destroys Hundreds of firearms (BARBADOS ADVOCATE) The Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF) is assuring the public that they will not be letting up on their efforts to rid the streets of illegal firearms.

So much so, they continue to destroy those weapons which have been either handed in by civilians, or come into police custody as a result of police investigations that have been adjudicated.

Yesterday’s exercise carried out at Central Police Station, the first for 2020, saw over 350 rifles, handguns, shot guns and imitation firearms broken into tiny pieces by a machine and disposed of. Last year September 640 firearms were destroyed.

Acting Superintendent Rodney Archer was in charge of the operation that got underway around 9.30 a.m.

“Nowadays pipe guns seem to be falling by the

wayside because readymade guns are so available,” he revealed.

As to where these firearms originate, Superintendent Archer said, “I can tell you we don’t make guns in Barbados. If we knew where they were originating, and more specifically how they were coming in, we would really stem the flow … We have our hunches; we have our intelligence and it is a work in progress.”

Some of the firearms destroyed by the Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF), yesterday.

Inspector Rodney Inniss, Public Relations Officer (Ag.) continued to appeal to the public to point the Force in the direction of these illegal firearms.

“We know that there is a lot of criminal element out there. Guns are coming in and tied in and associated with illegal drugs. We have been out there working from the south to the north, we have been doing several operations, we have been

acting on intelligence, we have been doing all in our power to appeal to the public to give us the information and we act on it and we have been successful in many cases in arresting and charging persons with illegal firearms.

We are happy that we are making head way, but there is always room for improvement and we continue to appeal to the public for assistance,” he said. (TL)

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Amaila power plant is back!

IT was reported in the press that the Vice-President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, Dr. Bharat Jagdeo, made clear his government’s plan to “resuscitate” the PPP/C flagship hydropower plant at Amaila Falls.

With a total shutdown in the Demerara-Berbice Interconnected system on Sunday, August 16, 2020, for a period of just over an hour because of poor maintenance under Mr. Granger, who was busier with Court proceedings than running the nation, this news from Dr. Jagdeo could not have come at a better time. Gas guzzling generators are not the solution for Guyana, and Sunday night proved this fact.

An energy mix of a variety of renewable energy sources, backed-up by fossil fuel generators, remain Guyana’s only viable long-term solution. It is time we all make that mental shift, and embrace our largest natural source of energy with open arms – water. The time is now!

Therefore, this message from Dr. Jagdeo is most welcomed. From the preliminary estimates, the Amaila Falls Hydro Project (AFHP) is expected to cost just under US$1 billion and will be able to generate 165 megawatts of stable and reliable electricity for 11 solid months of the year, with the additional month during the dry season being used for scheduled maintenance. The last time this newspaper checked, the project is still bankable, meaning that the financiers are still open to the idea of funding the project and all the technical studies are still relevant. Therefore, the restart timeline is expected to be much shorter than it was

before 2015.

GPL currently sells electricity to the nation at about US$0.33 per kWh and this is expected to be reduced by 25 per cent within the first year of the operations of the AFHP, and by 50 per cent within five years; and by the end of 20 years by as much as 80 per cent. Think of this carefully. For an ordinary family who pays G$20,000 in light bills every month, they can experience annual savings in the first year after the completion of the Hydro Project which can exceed G$60,000, and by the fifth year, that family can see double that amount of cash staying in their pockets. The impact for the working families at the bottom of the economic ladder can be immense.

The original model was designed for the private investor to build and operate the project for 20 years and then transfer it to the people of Guyana. In the grand scheme of things, this project can function without any major works for 100 years. Can you imagine what that means for a small nation like Guyana – 100 years of low cost and reliable electricity?

These are the kinds of transformational projects that can transform Guyana from a third world nation to a first-world one in one generation. And with the oil money, we can even buy out the investors after 10 years and push through the full benefits to the people even before the full 20 years.

At the end of the day, even with the Gas Turbine Option as put forward by His Excellency, the President Dr. Irfaan Ali, the Amaila Project is still needed to add to our stock

of low cost and reliable electricity suppliers. This energy can be diverted to any part of the nation and a real option remains the new industries and service providers expected to populate the area alongside the transportation link (Road or Rail) to Brazil. Low cost and reliable electricity on this transportation link between Lethem and the Coast can catalyze the private sector as they open new industries and service businesses to facilitate this Brazil to Guyana trade route. The vision is to fully ‘power-up’ all of Guyana, all of the time with low cost and reliable electricity. The opportunities are infinite; all Guyana needed were a pair of hands on the steering wheel like His Excellency, Dr. Irfaan Ali. This project can take between 4 – 5 years to move it from the Framework Agreement to the conclusion of the construction. The Access Road to the Project site just needs some maintenance and it can be fully functional again to support the developer. It is expected that a project of this magnitude will create close to 1,500 jobs directly and much more than that indirectly. According to an IMF Report, this project can bolt on as much as “6%” per annum over the four years construction period and just under three per cent per annum thereafter for the next 30 years.

It is therefore commendable of Vice-President Jagdeo when he said that “We are going to go back to hydro and an energy mix – hydro, wind, solar-- all of them. Amaila would be part of that too.”

It is time to make Guyana Great!

Welfare of Guyanese central to guiding government’s policy I ONCE again congratulate His Excellency the President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, and the PPP/C, on their success at the March 2020 elections. Indeed, this has been a victory for our fledgling democracy, as this election cycle has amplified the extensive weaknesses within the institutions which manage our democracy. It is only because of the basic integrity and commitment to justice and the rule of law by a handful of persons that we were able to escape the sure dysfunctionality of a lawless dictatorship.

Some quick observations to strengthen our democracy include, if this is not already the case, the selection of persons to the lead positions in those institutions responsible for maintaining our democracy, the High

Court, the Court of Appeal, the Guyana Police Force, and the Guyana Defence Force, be similarly guided by the constitutional guidelines for selecting the Commissioner for the Guyana Elections Commission, where such persons are recommended by the opposition. This should extend to the appointment of the Chief Executive Officer of GECOM also, as it has become clear that the wrong person can create opportunities for failure where there should be none.

Additionally, the composition of the Guyana Elections Commission should include two or three independent commissioners similarly appointed by the selection process outlined for the GECOM chairperson.

The installation of our new government

brings with it great opportunity in a national and global environment challenged by the untimely coronavirus pandemic, as an abundance of resources now need to be allocated to address the economic slippage and increased poverty which has unfortunately resulted from measures instituted to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

One of the unsung clichés of economics is that much if not all of the poverty of nations is a consequence of poor government policy.

I recently tasked myself with developing an economic policy framework for Guyana aimed at realising the welfare of developed nations like the ABCEs. The wider perspective is naturally beyond the

capacity of a single letter, but its basic nature is twofold, and is enshrined in the idea that Guyanese must derive the maximum benefit from our available natural resources, the management of which in this new global environment must be guided by international best practice. The new administration will undoubtedly wish to apply this to revise existing policy.

The overarching objective of my policy design is the realisation of the welfare enjoyed by the ABCEs. This has necessitated making the welfare of Guyanese central to the guiding force of government policy.

Also critical was the commitment to maxSEE PAGE 7

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

The vacuum of estate closure has been heart-rending Dear Editor,

THE GAWU’s attention was drawn to Ms. Akola Thompson’s Minority Report column titled “Sugar” which appeared in the August 14, 2020 edition of Stabroek News. Having considered the column, the GAWU believes it should offer a response to bring clarity to several of Ms. Thompson’s suppositions.

The columnist begins by recognising that the industry for many years played an important role in our nation, describing it as “…the crown jewel of Guyana’s industries.” While it is obvious to recognise the economic impact, the GAWU has consistently demonstrated that the industry has a much wider social impact in rural Guyana. This while not easily seen is probably the most tangible contribution of the industry. Moreover, as Guyana’s economic “crown jewel”, sugar economic legacy is impressive, the sugar levy alone carried Guyana during the turbulent past of our nation. So while Ms. Thompson contends that it’s an “…ambitious task…” to restore the industry to viability, we cannot share that view.

We are not going to be like ostriches with our heads in the sand and say it will be an easy feat, but we hold that it’s certainly not an impossible task as the columnist seemingly makes it out to be. It is a goal that is attainable with proper and creative management, motivated workers, and sufficient support.

Ms. Thompson goes on advancing her proposition arguing that

the industry has not been unable to justify its past investments. That sentiment, in our view, has to be considered alongside a clear policy position by the former Coalition Government to downplay the industry with a seeming intention to get rid of it. Undoubtedly, the lack of effective leadership and a government-supervised tug-of-war between NICIL and GuySuCo also served to bring more harm than good. Apart from that, we saw the placement of many square pegs in round holes.

The columnist may be surprised to learn of the number of high-paid consultants, many past the age of retirement, the industry engaged at reportedly high pay over the last five years. To give an instance, the corporation’s factory operations department of its Head Office has more staffers now than when the industry had seven factories. Notwithstanding that development, factory efficiency is at an all-time low. The industry is largely agriculture but we continue to see a lack of creativity in addressing the maladies at that level though the Company is currently led by a long-standing agriculturalist who possess a PhD. The industry is labelled a ‘black hole’ by the columnist. It’s an interesting phrase and one which was used by the APNU, in the form of Dr. Carl Greenidge, to describe the industry similarly in 2013. Maybe it is coincidental choice but it also exposes Ms. Thompson’s naivety as it regards sugar. The reality is that the industry must be re-oriented to producing several products such as

electricity, refined sugar, packaged sugar, among other things. There must be improved efficiencies in the fields as well through mechanisation and harnessing advances in technology. For the columnist’s information, steps were taken in this direction and the fruits of those efforts were borne.

Rather than continuing along that path, we saw the former Coalition Government throwing the baby out with the bathwater. To share an example, the Enmore Packaging Plant yielded GuySuCo the best prices for its sugar and in spite of such positive attributes it was closed without a second thought. Over the last few years, GuySuCo has been forced to rent the plant from NICIL, to whom it was surreptitiously handed, and transport sugar from Blairmont to be packaged at Enmore in order to meet market demand. One need not be a rocket scientist to imagine what it did to the margins.

Guyana’s sugar sector vis-à-vis our Caribbean contemporaries cannot be considered in abstract. We have to wonder whether Ms. Thompson is au fait with those industries. In those island states, there are massive costs to irrigate fields. Sugar cane is a heavy consumer of water. In Guyana, on the other hand, we don’t have to face those difficulties. From a natural standpoint we have several endowments that lend to sugar cultivation such as flat arable land, an abundant access to fresh water, waterway transport of harvested canes, among other things. We don’t face the difficulties of sugar displacing other economic pursuits as some

Welfare of Guyanese central....

since one of the principal benefits of such a policy beyond improved financial stability in the home is reduced worker stress and increased commitment on the job, with the larger derivative of dramatic gains in the delivery in the areas in the areas of public education and health services. This is even poverty line of US$5.50/day (G$1,100/day as the jobs of tomorrow require a solid or G$34,650/mth). An attempt to determine educational background just to compete in a ‘living wage’ by myself had shown that our rapidly-advancing globalised technoG$150,000/mth was yet insufficient for logical environment. a family of four, this being just slightly My best estimates for our disabled and more than the poverty line of G$138,600 retirees are G$60,000 per month, and 75 (G$34,650 x 4) for a four-member family. per cent of my proposed living wage of ‘Insufficiency’ is a term I have adopted to G$150,000/mth, or around G$112,500/mth, describe the situation of being out of pov- respectively. It is unconscionable that many erty, but still unable to provide the rights of our retired workers find themselves and necessities for a family. impoverished and dependent after giving The demographics of the poor and those years of their lives to develop Guyana. in a state of insufficiency include affected Unemployment insurance is not a new children and other dependents, unemployed idea proposed for embrace, enshrinement persons, persons with disabilities, many within our government policy framework, of our retired persons, and the many thou- along with some form of financial support sands of workers whose families cannot for our unemployed youths, many of whom adequately meet their needs. There should have been denied the benefit of the right be a national commitment to raising the to the proper education necessary to comminimum wage of Guyanese to close to, pete for jobs. This could include adequate or above G$150,000/mth. While it is easy compensation to encourage enrollment in to err into thinking that this represents a skills training, or funding to support the tremendous financial cost or stain on gov- development of their business ideas. One ernment, raising salaries to this level in of the great benefits of such a programme fact represents an investment in our people, is that these youths will have less time to FROM PAGE 6

imising economic growth, and represents another component. While increased welfare is intrinsically tied to economic performance, policy should also be guided by Guyana’s commitment to the basic human rights of the United Nations. Specifically, Article 23 (3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection. This translates into, among other things, the right to a decent standard of living qualified by the right to a livable income, and the right to quality education and healthcare, among other things. Demands placed by commitments to these basic human rights fuel the drive to stimulate activity to achieve these ends.

Success in these areas necessarily involves quantifying the magnitude and demographics of the problem. The IDB estimated that around 41.2 per cent or 309,000 Guyanese men, women and children lived in poverty as at 2017. This is based on a

of our Caribbean friends faced. It’s against that background that we see it as comparing apples with oranges.

Ms. Thompson shared her agreement with the past administration decision to close estates. It says a lot about where she stands in our view but again that’s her right. We, of course, expressed a very critical view for so many reasons. The columnist nevertheless accepted that the closure process was haphazard and callous.

Yet, in spite of that admission, it appears that there was no recognition of the reality that the former government could have cared less about what were the fate of those who were affected. As is rightly admitted that apparent lack of empathy that arose from the closure remains “…a sore point.”

We could not agree more with Ms. Thompson in assessing the refusal of the Coalition to the cries of the workers and their communities of the closed estates. We are unsure whether the columnist knows or not but the former government bluntly rejected a call for a properly considered study to have a better understanding of the consequences of the decisions which at that time were being contemplated. Indeed, the economic and social impact was “…swift and brutal…” and as the Stabroek News and several other media houses have pointed out, is an impact which many have yet to recover from, if they will recover at all.

Ms. Thompson, in spite of her admissions, urges that the industry should be “…allowed to die its natural death”. As an organisation which

has struggled with the workers and their families we know all too well what that would mean for the tens of thousands in the sugar belt. Certainly, the economic dislocation would be enormous and the social fallout with be even more detrimental. It would push back the steady climb out of poverty for a great lot of Guyanese.

We, in those circumstances, find the suggestion, if it can be considered that, as most irresponsible. What for us is most disturbing is that Ms. Thomspon is regarded as a social activist and, therefore, we are at a lost to see how she can fathom making such a statement. But that is another story.

For Ms. Thompson, we hasten to remind that sugar industry remains a significant industry in our country from so many points of view. Contrary to her view, the industry has many potentials for success. Several other industries offer sterling and living examples in this regard. We consider such feats within our grasp and once pursued properly success can redound to the industry and all Guyana. The vacuum created by estate closure has been heart-rending and the pains suffered have been intense.

It’s not something we would wish on our worse of enemies and it’s not something we see responsible persons should advocate, but then again we live in the real world.

Yours faithfully, Seepaul Narine General Secretary GAWU

engage in socially destructive behaviours.

Examples of sources of funds for these proposals could be garnered by evaluating strategies in the ABCEs and other developing nations, but a quick first response is a graduated unemployment insurance tax on businesses, with a smaller component for personal incomes, these not being so acutely affected as they benefit from higher salaries.

Our new government is undoubtedly presented with immense challenges of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and severely depleted financial position left by the previous administration, but I propose this as part of the basic platform for the national dialogue on moving Guyana forward. President Irfaan Ali has articulated a sound commitment to inclusive government and constructive national dialogue, and we can all take this opportunity to both support and engage with him and his administration as we together strive to chart the best way forward. May we fulfill the dreams of Dr. Cheddi Jagan for a united and prosperous Guyana, and may we work to realise our dreams for tomorrow today.

Yours Faithfully, Craig Sylvester

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Private sector minimum wage increase still on the cards A TRIPARTITE committee is expected to meet soon to continue discussions to increase the minimum wage in the private sector to $60,000.

The minimum wage in the public sector currently stands at $70,000.

Speaking at a virtual press conference last Monday, Labour Minister, Joseph Hamilton, explained that last year the tripartite committee had begun discussions and the increase to $60,000 was proposed.

However, meetings of the committee had stalled and are expected to begin again in the near future.

“It is a matter that is out-

standing. There is a tripartite committee between labour, government and business that met, discussed this matter and a proposal is on the table that is since last year. For whatever reason, the tripartite committee has not engaged again,” Hamilton explained.

“As I understand it, the proposal had to do with $60,000 in the first instance, that’s what I learnt. The question is how soon they engage to concretise that proposal. I have instructed the Chief Labour Officer [Charles Ogle] to have that meeting convened so that the proposal for the raising of the minimum wage can be dealt with and implemented.”

Appeal court reduces sentence of ‘popcorn’ THE Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of reducing a sentence imposed on Delon Gordon, called ‘Popcorn’, for throwing kerosene on his reputed wife Natasha Johnson, 23, and burning her to death on July 11, 2012 at Better Hope Squatting Area, East Coast Demerara.

In 2014, Gordon was found guilty of the offence by a 12-member jury and sentenced by Justice Navindra Singh to serve 83 years imprisonment for his crimes.

Gordon, through his attorney, Dexter Todd, then moved to the Appeal Court to have his conviction and sentence overturned. However, the court only allowed Gordon to appeal his sentence.

Todd had argued that the jury’s guilty verdict was unreasonable and could not be supported by the evidence presented at the trial.

On Friday, August 14, 2020, the court, comprising of Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George, and Justices of Appeal Rishi Persaud and Dawn Gregory, after considering the nature of the case, ruled that the sentence imposed by Justice Singh was excessive and severe.

The Court then reduced Gordon’s sentence to 62 years, and the time he spent in custody from his conviction in 2014 be deducted from his sentence.

According to reports, during an argument on July 4, 2011, Gordon reportedly set his residence on fire, causing the death of his reputed wife, Natasha Johnson.

Johnson, a mother of four, was burnt extensively and had to be taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, (GPHC) where she later succumbed to her injuries.

A post mortem revealed that Johnson had suffered from a dislocated nasogastric tube, brain haemorrhage and congested kidneys with heavy lungs that oozed a bloody liquid.

The private sector minimum wage has not increased since 2017 when it was raised from an hourly rate of $202 to $255, taking the monthly wage from $35,000 to $44,200.

However, last year Consultant of the Labour Department, Francis Carryl, had concluded that the economy was vastly changing and another increase is crucial.

Minister Hamilton noted however that even as the discussions continue, the full implementation of the change would be affected by the current COVID-19 situation, which has been having severe economic effects on the private sector.

Labour Minister, Joseph Hamilton

Over the past few months, in Guyana, many businesses have had to either shutter their doors or effect major cut backs to remain in business.

With finances tight, many have also even had to ask employees to take pay cuts so that they could afford to keep them employed.

Nonetheless, Hamilton was optimistic on the way forward and that an agreement will be reached eventually.

“When the tripartite committee meets we will have to discuss it to see how best we can keep the gentleman’s agreement regarding the increase,” he said.

Services of Region Six health director terminated THE contract of Director of Regional Health Services, Jevaughn Stephen, was terminated on Monday, with immediate effect, according to a letter signed by Region Six Regional Executive Officer (ag) Surindradat Beharry.

The letter stated that the contract for service as director dated 2018-07-09 for the period 201809- 04 to 2021-09-03 is hereby

terminated on 2020- 09-16 pursuant to clause 7 (a) of the contract.

Stephen has been asked to proceed on leave, with immediate effect, until the contract comes to an end on September 16.

Further, he was thanked for his rendered services; he was ordered to return any property or records of the Government of Guyana which may be in his custody.

Jevaughn Stephen

23-year-old Canadian man missing

Missing: Nicholas Jaipaul

A 23-YEAR-OLD Canadian citizen is missing and feared kidnapped sometime between 19:00 hrs on Sunday and 05:00 hrs on Monday.

Nicholas Jaipaul of Canada and of Lot 42 Section ‘A’ Number 69 Village, East Berbice, Corentyne, was in Guyana by his grandfather on vacation and, because of the travel restrictions due to COVID-19, he was unable to return to Canada.

Jaipaul was last seen alive at home on his verandah on Sunday evening, at around 19:00hrs by his 86-year-old grandfather, as the latter was about to retire to bed.

On Monday morning, at around 05:00 hrs, Jaipaul’s grandfather, Ramkissoon Jaipaul, received a call on the landline phone saying that Nicholas was kidnapped and the

kidnapper demanded money for his release.

Relatives related to Guyana Chronicle that the elderly man became flustered upon hearing the news and could not recall the rest of the demands by the alleged kidnapper.

B Division Commander, Calvin Brutus, has confirmed to this publication that detectives were still out in the fields investigating the matter.

He, however, cautioned that, due to lack of details, the matter was being treated as a ‘missing person report’ until more details become available.

That being said, the commander assured that every lead was being pursued to locate and return the missing man to his relatives.

GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Death row sentence overturned DEATH row inmate, Herman Ally, called ‘Shark Oil’, who was found guilty of killing his fellow Rose Hall Town villager in 2006, had his conviction and sentence set aside by the Guyana Court of Appeal.

The Appellate Court replaced the conviction for murder with a conviction for manslaughter, for which it imposed an 18-year sentence on Ally.

The appeal was heard

by Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag), Yonette Cummings-Edwards, Justice of Appeal, Dawn Gregory, and High Court judge, Brassington Reynolds.

The ruling was handed down on Friday, August 14, 2020.

The Court also ordered that the time Ally spent in jail from the time of his arrest in 2006, must be deducted from the sentence.

In 2012, Ally was ‘handed’ the death sentence by Justice Roxanne George at the Berbice High Court, after he

was found guilty by a 12-member jury for the capital offence of murder It was stated that between October 5 and 6, 2006, at Rose Hall Town, Ally killed Sandy.

The prosecution’s case, though circumstantial, included a dying declaration, in which Roydel Sandy told Danny Goberdan that ‘Shark Oil bore me’, and a caution statement in which Ali confessed to killing his fellow villager, after he had intervened in a matter .

Ali had told investigators that, while he was in front of his yard, Marva, a neighbour, started to verbally abuse him and then chucked him, prior to questioning him about a matter at the lower court, in which the magistrate had given him time to pay a fine for an offence.

“After she chucked me, I chucked her back.

Her daughter came with a knife and Roydel intervened and I bore his belly.”

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Broomes and driver charged

Former Minister, Simona Broomes, and driver, Dexter Austin

FORMER Government Minister, Simona Broomes, and her driver/bodyguard, Dexter Austin, were, on Monday, August 17, 2020, ‘hauled’ before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court to answer to a series of criminal charges.

Broomes and Austin appeared before Magistrate Leron Daly on a total of 12 charges and were represented by attorney-at-law Nigel Hughes They both pleaded not guilty to the charges and were released on self-bail.

The first charge alleged that the duo, on August 3, 2020, at Sophia, used threatening lan-

guage towards Dion Younge, who is a People Progressive Party/Civic councillor.

The second charge also alleged that the duo unlawfully retrained Younge.

The last joint charge alleged that Broomes and Austin caused public terror.

Broomes was separately charged for assaulting Younge so as to cause him actual bodily harm.

Meanwhile, Austin was charged for discharging a firearm within 100 yards of public space.

The case was adjourned until August 31, 2020.

The Guyana Chronicle had reported that, on August 3, Broomes took to a Facebook livestream while she was in pursuit of two men who had ripped off ‘No fishing’ signs from her private property.

Broomes and her driver trailed the men all the way from her Meadowbrook Home to the Sophia area where she confronted them about their business at her private residence.

The former minister who appeared to be distressed at the time of the livestream said that when she had first inquired their reason for being at her home and destroying her signs, they

hurled death threats at her and made an attempt to escape.

During the confrontation Broomes identified one of the men as Younge, a former schoolmate and a Council Member of the PPP/C. Meanwhile the men, who were seen clearly in the Facebook livestream maintained their innocence of the allegations.

During the confrontation, Young was reportedly assaulted while Austin, who is a rural constable, pulled out his service weapon and discharged several rounds.

Convicted ‘sexual predator’ moves to the Court of Appeal AFTER being sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment for having sexual activity with an under-aged girl, Kenrick Morrison is challenging his conviction and

sentence at the Court of Appeal.

In 2015, Morrison was sentenced by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow at the Demerara High Court, after a 12-member jury found him guilty of

‘having sexual activity with a child under 16 years.’

The Judge, during her ruling, condemned the behaviour of Morrison who, she said, was expected to

set a good example for others.

She expressed the expectation that the sentence would serve as a deterrent to persons who may be thinking of committing similar

offences.

Morrison, has since moved to the Court of Appeal where he is requesting that his conviction and sentence be overturned.

COVID-19 puts dent in blood donation

By Naomi Marshall

DUE to the COVID-19 pandemic, blood donation has been a major issue in Guyana with the blood collection sites seeing a vast decrease in donation countrywide.

This is according to the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC), Toshanna Alicock.

Last Wednesday, the LHC in collaboration with the Linden Mackenzie Police Station hosted a ‘blood drive’ in Linden, Region 10 under the theme, “Save three lives in 15 minutes," in an attempt to increase the amount of blood being donated during this period

of time.

Additionally, the blood drive which is the first of its kind to be held since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, was carried out to educate members of the public on the importance and benefits of donating blood.

Eighteen units of blood that have the potential to save 54 lives were collected within six hours at the blood drive.

Alicock said due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the guidelines put in place to subdue the spread of the disease, the LHC has seen a major reduction in the donation of blood which can be life-threatening for individuals who need it.

Recently, in a telephone

A voluntary blood donor at Wednesday’s blood drive

interview with Guyana Chronicle, Director of the National Blood Bank, Dr. Pedro Lewis, revealed that the blood bank is running low on all types of blood due to the pandemic.

Dr. Pedro explained that because of the blood bank’s production shortfall, they are now forced to go out into the outlying regions to do blood collection.

Meanwhile, Alicock explained that the process of giving blood is easy and takes only 15 minutes. Firstly, she noted that a ‘health check’ is done to determine whether the person is eligible to become a blood donor or not. The volunteer’s body weight, blood type, pulse, temperature, iron level and

blood pressure are checked.

The donor must be over 110 pounds and 16 years old or older.

She added that blood donation stimulates new blood cells production; promote weight loss, and lowers the risk of cancer, heart and liver ailments, among others.

Persons interested in donating blood can visit the New Amsterdam Hospital, Suddie Public Hospital, the Lethem Regional Hospital, the West Demerara Regional Hospital, and the Linden Hospital Complex. Opening hours are 08:00hrs to 18:00hrs from Monday to Friday and on Saturdays, 9:00hrs15:00hrs.

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To mark IYD2020…

SASOD Guyana lays out five-point proposal --for engaging marginalised youth in year ahead ON August 12, 2020, the world celebrated World Youth Day under the theme, “Youth Engagement for Global Action”, and to mark the occasion, several organisations and persons took to social media to recognise the power of all youth, including those often left behind with unmet needs.

Local human rights activists, Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD Guyana), in a release to mark the occasion, noted that this year’s theme highlights the importance of placing young people at the centre of social justice and advocacy, especially when the human rights and dignity of people are threatened and restricted.

For over 17 years, SASOD Guyana has been defending and promoting the rights of vulnerable groups here, including LGBTQ+ persons and marginalised youth who are subject to discrimination, violence, and persecution, for simply being who they are.

With the help of local and regional partners, SASOD Guyana fought tirelessly to bring an end to the archaic law against cross-dressing, which was struck down by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) almost two years ago. “We have trained hundreds of police officers on issues related to gender and sexuality, and how to interact with LGBTQ+ youth,” the organisation said in its release, adding: “Notably, SASOD Guyana continuously documents abuses, and offers pro-bono legal services to young women, girls, marginalised youth, and LGBTQ+ persons as they seek to pursue justice against violators of their human rights. But we all must do more for, with and by them.

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the situation of poverty, unemployment, and violence faced by youth further inhibits their potential to lead healthy and promising lives.”

On the subject of International Youth Day (IYD) 2020, SASOD Guyana is calling on the newly-elected PPP/C government to focus more on youth issues, and implement strategies that will target and promote youth development.

“While the recently-installed PPP/C government has included some young people in its Cabinet, its sincerity to addressing issues affecting youth will be measured by its actions,” the organisation said.

In the circumstances, it is calling on the government of the day to implement the following top five actions for marginalized youth in its first year in office: 1: Repeal Sections 351 to 353 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, which criminalises same-sex intimacy between consenting, adult men in private.

2: Include sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression as prohibited grounds for discrimination in the Prevention of Discrimination Act (Section 4).

3: Introduce Comprehensive Sexuality Education in all schools in Guyana to provide young people with the tools they need to make more informed decisions to either delay their sexual debut, or prevent teenage pregnancy and sexually-transmitted infections, if they choose to be sexually active. Comprehensive sexuality education would also inform students about diverse sexualities and genders, and reduce targeted bullying of LGBTQ+ students in Guyana’s public schools.

4: Provide access to housing for LGBTQ+ people, especially children, who have been temporarily displaced or rendered homeless due to biased violence; and 5: Provide comprehensive and accessible entrepreneurial training programmes for vulnerable groups, especially LGBTQ+ youth, and make capital accessible to start up small businesses through grants and low-interest lending schemes.

SASOD Guyana asserts that the foregoing top five actions, coupled with supportive programmes, will “move the needle” for marginalised youth, and advance equality for all young people.

GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Elderly man becomes 24th COVID-19 victim

By Navendra Seoraj

AN elderly diabetic patient, Aron Peters, has fallen victim to the dreaded Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), becoming the 24th person to die from the disease in Guyana.

The 87-year-old man, from Grove, East Bank of Demerara (EBD), was the second person to die within the past 48 hours, due to complications from the disease.

The Guyana Chronicle was reliably informed that Peters, who was diabetic and suffered from hypertension, succumbed while receiving treatment in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

This newspaper understands that the man was a patient of the unit for over a week, and despite efforts to save him, he died on Monday.

As seen in recent days, there has been a consistent increase in cases of the disease and deaths caused by the disease. Among the persons who died in recent

times are 73-year-old, Wilfred James; 74-year-old, Milton Paul; Geerjadai Jagnarine, 69; and 76-year-old May Portsmouth, who died while receiving treatment at the GPHC. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. Most people, who fall sick with COVID-19, will experience mild to moderate symptoms and recover without special treatment. There are, however, vulnerable groups such as persons with underlying conditions and elderly patients, who may develop the severe

forms of the disease.

The Guyana Chronicle had earlier reported that the COVID-19 disease has proven to be a “real killer”, especially in cases involving persons who have co-morbidities.

This was according to doctors of the GPHC. At the time, Guyana had recorded six deaths due to the COVID-19 disease, and while the loss of life is never pleasant, doctors had said most of the persons who died had co-morbidities.

In medicine, co-morbidity is defined as the presence of one or more additional conditions co-occurring with

a primary condition; in the countable sense of the term, a co-morbidity is each additional condition. The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that 81 per cent of the persons who contract COVID-19 will have mild symptoms, while 14 per cent will have severe symptoms, and another five per cent will need intensive care.

“Most of the people who passed have [sic] co-morbidities; some had diabetes, hypertension, asthma, and one of them even had severe pneumonia, which, without COVID-19, can also cause death…. These, TURN TO PAGE

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Mechanic injured after boat explodes at New Amsterdam Stelling

A mechanic was rushed to the New Amsterdam Hospital on Monday after the boat he was working on exploded.

Fizul Adams was refueling the ‘Grady White’ which was docked at the New Amsterdam Stelling when the vessel caught afire and exploded sometime before noon.

According to information reaching Guyana Chronicle, Adams was using a built-in pump to re-fuel a privately-owned white fiberglass boat with black trim when the tank overflowed causing the fuel to spill on the stern of the vessel.

The spill set in motion a blaze.

Within moments of the onset of the fire, there was aloud explosion causing the boat to drift under the stelling and burst into flames.

Adams, who was onboard the vessel, was unable

Firefighters in a bid to extinguish the burning boat

to get off in time and fell overboard following the explosion.

Flames engulfed the boat even as public-spirited citizens rushed to rescue Adams, who had drifted away from the inferno. He was

taken to the New Amsterdam Hospital where he remains a patient.

The New Amsterdam firefighters quickly arrived on the scene and prevented the fire from spreading onto the stelling docks.

The badly damaged boat was eventually turned on its side to allow water to seep onboard to prevent the fire from burning the entire boat to ashes.

Investigations are ongoing.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Gov’t to move ‘swiftly’ with gas-to-energy project -- vice-president says new administration does not want ‘flaring’

By Navendra Seoraj INDUSTRIALISATION and cheap electricity beckons, as the newly-elected People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) government looks to negotiate with American oil giants, ExxonMobil on a price for natural gas.

ExxonMobil had made significant oil discoveries offshore Guyana, but the “black gold” wasn’t the only treasure they found, as there were associated gas deposits which could be piped to shore.

As reported, the priority, as outlined in the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) between Guyana and ExxonMobil is oil recovery, but the new administration will be looking to capitalise on the associated gas deposits, so that Guyanese could benefit from cheap electricity, among other things.

Vice-President, Bharrat Jagdeo, said government plans to move ‘swiftly’ with the gas-to-energy project, as their intention is to deliver the promise of cheap electricity, which was made to Guyanese.

It is common knowledge that the cost of electricity in Guyana has been relatively high, and has hindered industrialisaton over the years.

Jagdeo believes that

Guyana could have already been on stream to cheaper electricity, but while ExxonMobil was interested in the project, the previous A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) had placed “roadblocks” because they did not respond to the oil company. “…We want to get this done as swiftly as possible and ExxonMobil , I think, is eager to go along with this project, too, because from what I gather they have been waiting for quite a while for the government to show major interest in moving this forward,” said Jagdeo during a press briefing on Friday.

He said the new administration is studying several reports in order to ascertain why there was no progress on the project. Already, there have been reports that persons would have “bought up” lands on the proposed location for the pipelines, but this is being investigated by the government.

Despite the impediments, the vice-president said government wants to get the project done urgently, even though they will have to be guided by technical people.

“We want to get this done urgently…we have to be guided by technical people, but we want this project on the road as early as possible,”

Vice-President, Bharrat Jagdeo

said Jagdeo, adding that there a number of things which need to be decided on.

VERY DIFFERENT The first order of business will be to negotiate a price for the gas, one that is “very different” from what is in the contract.

While the vice-president did not say what government believes would be a reasonable cost for the gas, he said the contract locks in a price for the gas for the first 300400 megawatts.

In explaining why government needs the electricity at a different cost, Jagdeo said: “…we need the electricity to industrialise this country and generate more

Prime Minister receives courtesy call from British High Commissioner PRIME MINISTER, Mark Phillips, received a courtesy call from outgoing British High Commissioner to Guyana, Dr. Greg Quinn, at the Prime Minister’s Office, on Monday.

Prime Minister Phillips and the British High Commissioner discussed the United

Kingdom’s continued assistance to Guyana in many areas, including continued security cooperation between the two countries.

The British High Commissioner began his tour of duty in Guyana in 2015 and will now be departing Guyana’s shores, after more than five years.

Prime Minister Phillips and outgoing British High Commissioner to Guyana, Dr. Greg Quinn, at the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday

jobs, and fulfill the promise to cut their electricity bill significantly by half of what they are paying now.”

Other critical decisions, which will have to be made, include the ownership of the company that supplies the gas on shore. Some of the possibilities include a public/ private partnership, a tender or even a government-owned company.

“We have to make these decisions, but they will be made dependent on the resources available and what

the market offers,” said Vice-president Jagdeo.

Although many things are still undecided, the vice-president said government is certain that they do not want gas flaring to continue.

It was reported that ExxonMobil flared over two billion cubic feet of natural gas due to challenges during production start-up. These challenges have since been alleviated with the commencement of the re-injection of gas.

“We are doing all we can to repair the equipment safely in order to complete final commission of the system.

As we have said, we have also reduced crude oil production to lessen the amount of gas being flared.

“ExxonMobil’s commitment to minimising the environmental impact of its projects is reflected by our design of the Liza Destiny and Liza Phase One project. Our operations in Guyana will not utilise routine flaring. We are currently still in the start-up period for Liza Phase One which involves temporary flaring to fully commission the gas compression and injection systems, for safe operations as outlined in the approved Environmental Im-

pact Assessment and permit,” said ExxonMobil’s Senior Director of Public and Government Affairs, Dedra Moe, in a past report.

Back in 2019, ExxonMobil had explained to media operatives that for the first period after ‘first oil’, there would be initial start-up flaring – authorised by the EPA – which occurs during the commissioning and initial start-up phases of the FPSO when gas and liquids are introduced into new facilities and equipment.

This flaring, the company said, would not continue as routine and will only take place again in the case of an emergency whereby flaring will be used to immediately de-pressure the facility as part of a shut-down process to reduce risk.

ExxonMobil is now firmly established in Guyana, operating an office in Georgetown, with numerous ongoing exploration and development operations offshore. ExxonMobil Guyana has made 16 discoveries since May 2015 and began production in December 2019 from the Liza Phase One development project.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

20,000 online scholarships for Guyanese youth

PUBLIC Service Minister, Sonia Parag, said government will be providing 20,000 online scholarships to Guyanese to enable their educational and professional advancement within the next five years in keeping with its manifesto promises.

Already, the minister has secured an increase in scholarships to Indian universities following a courtesy call from the Indian High Commissioner, Dr. K.J. Srinivasa, on Monday.

She revealed that previously, only 24 scholarships to India were offered.

“What we will do is strengthen our bilateral and multilateral relations with our current providers of scholarships… that is one of the immediate policies we plan to implement,” Minister Parag explained.

The minister further noted that currently, India

is exploring the transition to full-time online education delivery, in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has greatly restricted in-person lectures and physical learning environments globally.

Additionally, Minister Parag, in her early days of office, has taken a hands-on approach at improving the efficiency of the public service, noting that the ministry will serve a threefold purpose: policy development and administration, human resource management, and human resources development.

The PPP/C government will be implementing a performance analysis system to restructure and vastly improve public sector services for greater efficiency.

Among the government’s plans are to professionalise the public sector, bringing it up to par with modern

standards to deliver better quality. “[We will] restore confidence in the public when they

Public Service Minister, Sonia Parag, receives a token from the Indian High Commissioner, Dr. K.J. Srinivasa (DPI photo)

have to deal with the public service,” the minister said.

Scholarships are currently being offered in doz-

Elderly man becomes 24th ...

coupled with the complications related to COVID-19, can be dangerous,” said Head of the Department of Internal Medicine at GPHC, Dr. Genellys Camps, during an interview with Guyana Chronicle.

Among those who lost

their lives to the deadly disease are, 25-year-old Lethem schoolteacher, Donna Ambrose-Greaves; 34-year-old Abdool Khan, a resident of Bartica, who was asthmatic; and local ‘drag-racer’, Deryck Jaisingh, called “Mad Dog”.

Guyana’s first COVID-19 victim, 52-yearold Ratna Baboolall, was also hypertensive and a diabetic. Jermaine Ifill, an emergency medical technician (EMT), who had also succumbed to the dreaded disease, was also being treat-

ed for pneumonia.

Two other persons who died from the disease were Osa Collins, a 78-year-old resident of New Amsterdam and 77-year-old Colonel, John Percy Leon Lewis.

Forty-five-year-old Lennox Williams, who also had un-

ens of subject areas at the bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD levels to the University of Guyana, the University

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derlying conditions, died because of COVID-19. And most recently, a diabetic patient, 67-year-old Samuel Morris, also lost his life.

COVID-19 remains a serious issue not just here in Guyana, but globally as well, and according

of the West Indies, and various universities in China, the United Kingdom, the United States and India.

to global statistics, there are 20.1 million cases of COVID-19, with over 775,000 deaths. And, with no approved treatment or cure, there is no assurance that persons will survive after contracting the disease.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Minister Rodrigues engages Region Three residents

By Jared Liddell

NEWLY-appointed Minster within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues met Monday for the first time with residents of the Lust-en-Rust Housing Scheme in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), and by the time she was done talking with them, she had them convinced she had their best interest at heart.

She began by underscoring the government’s commitment to development, stating that with her at its helm, the Ministry of Housing will be tackling some of their most pressing issues and concerns, so as to ensure that everyone is able to live comfortably.

Minister Rodrigues further piqued her audience’s interest by telling them of the various plans her ministry already has earmarked to tackle, and that the purpose of her visit to the community that day was so as to get to know them better, and to hear for herself what are some of the majors issues plaguing them.

She assured residents of the relatively young community that the Ministry has already started working on addressing some of the issues they had previously highlighted to the last administration, and that she already has a team working on ensuring that they take on board some of the suggestions they share with them when devising what plan of action is best suited to their particular developmental needs going forward.

Several residents told the minister how pleased they were that, busy as she no doubt is, she was able to spare the time to meet and talk with them, and see for herself the conditions under which they were living.

Vanessa Peters, who said she’d only moved into the neighbourhood a few months ago, told of the myriad issues she wants the minister to pay keen attention to, one of which is the deplorable state of the roads and streets lead-

Minister within the Ministry of Housing, Susan Rodrigues, engaging residents of Lust-en-Rust Housing Scheme, during a visit there on Monday

An ingenious way of catching rain water

ing to and running through the community. She explained that not only is the state of the roads damaging person’s vehicles, but they also pose a security risk, as most public transportation operators are loathe to safely take persons home, or as close to home as possible.

“No vehicles want to drive through these streets; none of them want to come and damage their vehicles,”

Peters said. “So persons who don’t have their own transportation have to come out and walk from the main road to all the way in here. And that’s not safe, especially for persons who have to come in the evening hours.”

She further highlighted that while most residents have access to electricity, the major issue is access to potable water. She stated that while many residents don’t

The state of one of the streets in the Lust-en-Rust Housing Scheme (Photos by Adrian Narine)

have to this vital service, the few that do barely get any at all, since the pressure is not enough for the water to flow from the standpipes.

Amrit Jawahir, another resident, noted that while there are many issues he would like to see addressed, the most immediate one is the very access to potable water of which Peters spoke.

He shared with the minister that it takes his entire

family nearly 15 minutes to fetch whatever water they need from the scheme closest to theirs.

“Yeah, it’s difficult because sometimes we come home at 6, and we have to be walking ‘til to the other scheme to get water. Sometimes we finish fulling water ‘til ten or eleven o’clock at night, and it’s inconvenient, ‘cause we still have work in the morning and all that. So,

it ain’t mekking sense that we aren’t able to access water when we come home.”

Jawahir said that presently, everyone in the community, he included, is forced to rely on the rain to fill their water tanks, or pay the $8,000 it costs to purchase a tank of water.

Speaking specifically to the enormous economic strain it puts on one to buy water, Jawahir said he has five water tanks, and they only last his family three weeks.

Rawle Tucker, who has lived in the area for over three years, has similar concerns, and he, too, spoke of how difficult it is to get water for everyday use. He recalled how, in the past, he and other residents had to resort to filling up on water from the canal so as to allow their families access to water.

“We have several issues in this Scheme; most of them we could overlook, but not getting access to water is a big one, and we have to find a way to make do with what we have,” Tucker said, adding: “There is no assistance for us to get water.”

After paying rapt attention to what everyone had to say, Minister Rodrigues apparently resolved there and then to do something about the situation, and do it fast, as within an hour or so of leaving that community to pay another one a visit, she was announcing plans to have water running at full throttle in the community by weekend.

But before leaving, however, she promised Lust-enRust residents that there will be a significant restructuring of how the Ministry of Housing and Water and sister agencies such as the Guyana Water Inc. do business, so as to ensure that in future, issues such as access to water and key infrastructural improvements and distribution and allocation of land are done in a more organised manner, and that residents have access to all of the necessary resources they may need.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Scholarships, training for State media operatives

CHINA will be providing scholarships and training for state media operatives, Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister, Kwame McCoy said.

On Monday, Minister Kwame McCoy held discussions with Deputy Chief of Missions of the Chinese Embassy in Guyana, Chen Xilai.

“I believe that it was a good meeting and we have always relied on the Chinese government to assist us in many projects. They have been a very good partner to the Government of Guyana over the years,” Minister McCoy noted.

Mr. Xilai said the two countries have a lot of potential that can be cultivated, especially since Guyana

is an oil-producing nation and its economy will grow exponentially.

“We discussed scholarship opportunities provided by the Chinese government and we discussed probable future cooperation in different agencies under his leadership,” the deputy chief of missions said.

He explained that currently, the Chinese Embassy is engaging many sectors of the new administration to inquire the priorities as the Chinese government would be willing to provide assistance for the national development of Guyana.

“Once they have made up their mind and come up with a proposal, the two sides can have a discussion and we can come up with more details

Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister, Kwame McCoy and Deputy Chief of Missions, Chen Xilai and an assistant of the Chinese Embassy in Guyana during the discussion on Monday

of the kind of cooperation needed. We have been cooperating with Guyana for over 48 years and the relationship between Guyana and China is very good, and we would like to see the cooperation advanced in the future,” the deputy chief of missions said.

He explained China has a lot of experiences it can share with Guyana as a developing country. “It’s our honour to cooperate with Guyana so that it can bring more benefits to the two countries.”

Adding that China’s

policy is people’s centric, the deputy chief of missions said all benefits should focus on the livelihood of the general public as China has the technology, human resources and will power to assist in development.

Essequibo Chambers congratulates President Ali THE Essequibo Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ECCI) has extended congratulations to Dr. Mohammed Irfaan Ali on becoming Guyana’s 9th Executive President.

According to vice-president, Suean Seewnarayan, the non-profit, non-governmental and non-partisan organisation looks forward to working with regional officials as well as major stakeholders in promoting the social development within the business community in the region.

Seewnarayan wishes the President all the best as he embarks upon his new responsibilities.

“We at the ECCI assure you of its support and sympathetic interest in the collective development of our people and the Cooperative Republic of Guyana,” Seewnarayan said.

The vice-president said the chamber is willing and eager to work with the newly-elected government -- the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), towards improving the business climate in the region.

“We at the ECCI aim at improving the socio-economic well-being of the people of Essequibo, in particular as we address the actions necessary towards the recovery process of the impact of COVID-19,” Seewnarayan said.

ECCI Vice-President, Suean Seewnarayan

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Fire Chief says…

People acting more responsibly these days --as seen in significant decline in regular fires, but arson’s a horse of a different colour

By Jared Liddell PEOPLE are seemingly behaving more responsibly these days, if the 16 per cent reduction in fires due to carelessness is anything to go by.

But according to Fire Chief Marlon Gentle, the story is a bit different when it comes to privately-owned property, as they seem to be perennially dogged by fire, judging from the statistics as at August 9, 2020, which pegs those occurrences at a whopping 167 to date.

As the Fire Chief was able to confirm, the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) has received over 1266 fire calls to date, which represents a 32% decrease from the 1861 calls they took for the same period last year.

He also told the Guyana Chronicle on Thursday that statistics show a significant decrease in outdoor vegetation fires as well, from 1299 last year to 791 for the same period this year. In terms of fires involving vehicles, that figure is also down, to 40 from 55 the previous year, with 47 occurring at business places.

And with arson being yet

another concern for the authorities, that has reportedly been on the increase, by some 50 per cent, from 66 last year to 99, the majority of which occurred in early March of this year.

Going into a bit more details, Gentle said people seem to be paying a bit more attention and taking special precaution these days, not just while cooking, but also when dealing with household appliances, and attending to small children. Unfortunately, the figures for 2019 tell a different story, for whereas back then the GFC responded to 33 fires that were electrical in origin, this year the number has risen by eight.

And where fires started by children are concerned, there’s a reason for that, and it all has to do with the outbreak of the coronavirus here.

He said that with children being out of school because of COVID-19, they tend to be drawn to the forbidden, hence the increase by 55% of fires started by children playing with matches.

FLAME-INDUCING DEVICES He used the opportunity to encourage parents in this

Fire Chief Marlon Gentle

stay-at-home COVID-19 period to teach their children about the dangers of playing with flame-inducing devices such as matches and lighters.

He explained that since it is uncertain when children will be able to return to school, and given that they will be at home for the better part of the day, parents need to take a more hands-on approach to their safety. “At this point, I understand that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, children are at home, but I would advise parents that it is not the best idea to

DC Williams directed to proceed on accumulative leave

DEPUTY Commissioner (DC) of Police, Paul Williams, on Monday, proceeded on 192 days annualised vacation leave, the Guyana Police Force confirmed.

However, reports indicate that Williams was sent on leave as a matter of “Public interest”.

At age, 52, Deputy Commissioner Williams is three years away from retirement and will return to work next year where he is expected to be reassigned.

Home Affairs Minister, Robeson Benn, on Saturday last, outlined at a briefing with members of the Joint Services that gaining public confidence is one of the 10 policy priorities that will be addressed.

Minister Benn had elaborated on the need to implement a mechanism that allows feedback from members of the public as to their

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Paul Williams

perception of the quality of service offered, especially by the Guyana Police Force and the need to assess and improve on the treatment of prisoners in custody.

Earlier this month, Deputy Police Commissioner, Maxine Graham was also sent on pre-retirement leave and Assistant Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken will head operations of the

Guyana Police Force.

Graham will attain retirement status in December 2020 but has over 170 days leave.

She reportedly joined the force on March 9, 1987.

Hicken, who will take over from Graham, is known for his dynamic style of management and is expected to provide the necessary support to acting Police Commissioner, Nigel Hoppie.

Commissioner of Police, Leslie James, is also on pre-retirement leave.

James was appointed Commissioner of Police back in August 2018, along with four Deputy Commissioners of Police in the persons of Lyndon Alves, Maxine Graham, Nigel Hoppie, and Paul Williams. Alves was sent off the job in the public’s interest in 2019.

leave them unsupervised,” the Fire Chief said, adding: “Also, locking children in homes poses a great risk, in that in the case of an emergency, they would not be able to get out. Ensure that if you have grilles, that some areas are easily accessible and can be released.”

Touch on the sore issue of electricity theft, Gentle is calling on persons to refrain from doing so, as tampering with circuity in an effort to bypass the meter can cause fires, leaving persons with millions in losses.

He said that given that the country is still in COVID-19 mode, the GFS is even more vigilant than usual, but still finds the time to join the fight to slow the spread of the virus.

He said that for the safety of both the firefighters and those in need of assistance, the GFS ensures at all times they are equipped with their masks, gloves and other protective gear.

He added that at the fire stations, there are precautions for the fire officers and fire ranks, including hand washing, sanitation masks and glove distributions, as well as temperature managing of the ranks and anyone entering the fire service.

Gentle stated that since the GFS would not be able to make outreaches due to the COVID-19 restrictions, it is looking to have a bigger presence through the media to promote fire safety.

“Right now,” he said, “some of the radio stations and so on are running our cautionary public service announcements and so on, basically telling parents to ensure that while your children are at home, keep matches away from them, so

that they do not have easy access to flame-making items and materials. We will be heightening that, since, given the current situation, we may not be able to go out and do outreaches; so we will be working with the media to strategically promote fire awareness.”

He also seized the opportunity to call on all citizens to follow the fire prevention guidelines, so as to ensure the safety of themselves, their loved ones as well as their properties, and to be conscious of electricity use. “Follow the guidelines for use of electrical appliances,” he advised. “Do not overload electrical circuits, and turn off and plug out appliances when not in use, especially when leaving your homes.”

He also urged that when using alternative means of light, persons should try to do it in a safe manner, by avoiding the use of candles and other like objects, and that they should try to move to more battery-operated modes of lighting.

Four victims in Pomeroon stabbing remain in ICU THE teenager at Bat Creek, Pomeroon River, who, last Thursday, stabbed his brother-in-law to death then turned the knife on his two sisters, nieces and nephew, and attempted to commit suicide when he was finished, has been arrested in the presence of his father and is cooperating with police.

The two women and two of the children who were brutally stabbed are currently battling for their lives at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Suddie Public Hospital.

The family member's conditions remain the same.

On Thursday last, the teenager went berserk at his home in Pomeroon River, Region Two, killing his brother-in-law, 55-year-old Ramdat Singh, also called

Dead: Ramdat Singh

“Shami”, of Bat Creek, Upper Pomeroon River, and his nephew-- three-year-old Kissoon Williams.

Reports are that after the teen stabbed Singh, he attacked three children-- aged one, three and six-- and his two sisters. He stabbed one of the women, and the three children about the bodies, while the other woman’s

throat was slashed, after which he fled the area.

The injured persons were placed in a boat and rushed to the Charity Hospital.

Singh was pronounced dead on arrival.

The other injured persons were all transferred to the Suddie Hospital, where two of them were rushed to the theatre for emergency surgery while the other three were admitted to the ICU in stable condition.

Three-year-old Williams succumbed to his injuries later in the evening. Reports reaching the Guyana Chronicle indicate that the teenager was scared that he may have contracted COVID-19 and that caused him to go berserk. However, a test done on him showed a negative result.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Arch rivals Amazon Warriors...

CONTINUED FROM BACKPAGE veterans Dwayne Bravo, his brother Darren, Lendl Simmons and Sunil Narine, who have more T20 experience than most of the players in the Warriors side.

The international pair of Kiwi, Colin Munro, a proven match-winner and centurion in previous editions and newbie Zimbabwean all-rounder, Sikandar Raza, are a huge boost for the home team, especially with their opponents’ batting a more regionally-constructed unit. Given their IPL records, Narine, the Bravos, Pollard and Simmons are the key for TKR with the bat and ball when it’s all said and done.

From a bowling angle, it’s a tussle as the Warriors have been one of the best bowling units over the years. Warriors have more international class bowlers who will be a handful, with the likes of South African ‘leggy’ specialist, Imran Tahir and the skipper, Green. They will rely on seamers, Paul, Rutherford and Shepherd, to complement the Warriors mixed bowling attack.

The Trinidadian side will want more from their bowling stars like pacer Ali Khan, spinner Kharry Pierre, Narine and possibly the 48-year-old Indian spinner, Pravin Tambe, who has been a star in the IPL over the years.

Both units also have a few young pieces amidst the veterans. The Warriors could allow some match time for the young pair of Kevin Sinclair and Ashmead Nedd-- two highly-decorated West Indies youth players.

Pollard will also be keen on seeing what his youngsters like the classy Amir Jangoo, or even a Windies U-19 stud the likes of Jayden Seales could offer sometime down the line.

Apart from the talent, both teams will want to have a strong mental approach over the next month in the ‘Bubble’. With no fans, a number of restrictions and limited bonding among teammates and teams could upset the mentally unstable. Also, with most of the stars well-rested after months away due to lockdown, a higher level of cricket is expected to be on display over the next few weeks.

Barbados Tridents vs St Kitts & Nevis Patriots Meanwhile, over at the same venue, defending champions Barbados Tridents will be on a mission to get their 2020 campaign off to a great start, when they do battle with the Rayad Emrit-led St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots.

Action at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy Ground between GAW and TKR bowls off at 10:00h while the Tridents/Patriots encounter will top off the first day of action under lights from 17:30h.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Former India cricketer Chetan Chauhan passes away due to Covid-19 Chetan Chauhan who had tested positive for COVID-19 last month, died aged 73on Sunday, August 16, 2020. (Photo by Sonu Mehta / HT Archive) FORMER Test batsman Chetan Chauhan, who shone as a gritty player against fiery pace overseas as Sunil Gavaskar’s enduring opening partner in the 1970s, died on Sunday following complications due to Covid-19, his family sources said. He was 73.

The two-time former BJP Lok Sabha MP from Amroha was Home Guard minister in the Uttar Pradesh cabinet. He tested positive for Covid-19 last month and was shifted to a Gurugram hospital

after his condition worsened. He is survived by wife Sangeeta and son Vinayak.

“My elder brother Shri Chetan Chauhan has left us today after fighting a good battle. I sincerely thank everyone who had prayed for his recovery. His son Vinayak will be reaching anytime and we will then perform last rites,” brother Pushpendra told PTI. In an India career from 1969 to 1981, Chauhan played 40 Tests and seven ODIs. He scored 2,084 Test runs with 16 half-centuries, but never scored a century, with a best of 97. The prolific domestic batsman in a two-decade firstclass career played Ranji Trophy for Maharashtra and then Delhi.

Born in UP’s Bareilly, Chauhan grew up in Pune, where his father was posted in the army. He amassed 11,143 first-class runs (21 centuries, 59 fifties).

In a moving tribute, Gavaskar recalled they used to greet each other in recent years: “aaja, aaja, gale mil, after all we are in the mandatory overs of life”.

“I firmly believe I was responsible for him missing out (century) on two occasions, both in Australia in the

1980/81 series,” he said. In the Perth Test, Chauhan was out for 97 which a superstitious Gavaskar believes was because he moved away from the TV and came on to the players’ balcony to celebrate the century.

“The second occasion that I believe I was responsible for Chetan missing a hundred was when I lost my head after being abused by the Australians as I was leaving the pitch after a terrible decision.” He was out for 85 in MCG. He made his Test debut in 1969, but was discarded after five Tests. He made a comeback in 1977 after scoring 158 for Delhi against Haryana braving a broken jaw. He went on to play 35 Tests between 1977 and 1981, 17 of them away.

He shared 11 Test century stands with Gavaskar, 10 for the first wicket.

He didn’t have an orthodox batting technique, but blunted attacks with sheer grit during a phase when helmets were just being introduced.

Chauhan hit 88 at bouncy Perth in 1977 against an attack led by Jeff Thomson. In 1980-81, he played a key role as India rally to draw the series 1-1.

At Adelaide, he tackled Dennis Lillee, Rodney Hogg and Len Pascoe for his 97.

At MCG, he looked set for a maiden century when a 165-run opening stand ended after Gavaskar (70) was dubiously given out leg before to Lillee. Upset by the sledging, the skipper asked Chauhan also to walk. Though the team manager made Chauhan return to the crease, he was out after India had added 11 runs. India though sealed a famous win, routing Australia for 83 chasing a fourth-innings target of 143.

Chauhan and Gavaskar were involved in a 213-run opening stand at the Oval in 1979. He hit 80 and Gavaskar a then career-best 221. India came within nine runs of winning the Test, reaching 429/8 before it was drawn.

A former national cricket selector and long-time Delhi cricket administrator, Chauhan received the Arjuna award in 1981. His biggest contribution as a cricket official came as manager on the controversial 2008 tour of Australia, when an initial ban on Harbhajan Singh for alleged racist remarks to Andrew Symonds in the Sydney Test almost led

to an India boycott of the series.

Following India’s appeal, the ICC adjudicator reduced the ban to a heavy fine for use of abusive language. India went on to win at Perth.

Former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar, Chauhan’s team mate in many Tests, mourned the loss. “I’ve lost a very dear friend, a very good human being and a great fighter, and always ready to help. He was very jovial, very easy going. We played a lot together right from 1977, my first tour to Australia. A very gutsy batsman, he played well in the series. He batted very well at Perth; playing without helmet he got 80-odd (88). We shared rooms in many Tests.”

BCCI president, Sourav Ganguly, who was skipper on the 2008 Australia tour, said in a statement. “I’m deeply anguished. I’ve spent so much time with him when he was the Indian team manager. Not only was he a tough opening batsman, he was a person with a tremendous sense of humour and had tremendous attachment to Indian cricket.”(Hindustantimes

Simona Halep decides not to England owe Pakistan reciprocal tour in 2022, says Akram play Grand Slam in New York

WORLD number two Simona Halep is the latest leading women’s player to withdraw from the US Open.

Romanian Halep is the sixth top 10 player to opt out of the Grand Slam, which will be played behind closed doors in New York from 31 August.

“I always said I would put my health at the heart of my decision,” she said.

Canada’s defending champion Bianca Andreescu and Australian world number one Ashleigh Barty are among the other big names to have pulled out.

Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina, Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands and Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic have also decided not to play in the tournament amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“After weighing up all the factors involved and with the exceptional circumstances in which we are living, I have decided that I will not travel,” added reigning Wimbledon champion Ha-

SOUTHAMPTON, England (Reuters) - England must tour Pakistan in 2022 reciprocating the visit of Azhar Ali and his men despite the coronavirus pandemic, Pakistan pace great Wasim Akram said.

The England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Tom Harrison has thanked West Indies and Pakistan for touring England amid the pandemic this summer, sparing the ECB massive financial loss.

Akram said England should return the favour in 2022.

“You boys owe Pakistan cricket, and the country, a lot, with the boys coming over here,” former Pakistan captain Akram told Sky Sports Cricket.

“They’ve been here almost two-and-half months in the bio-secure environment,” he said, referring to precautions that have included zones off-limits to anyone other than players and officials. Matches have been played without spectators.

“So if everything goes well, England should tour Pakistan,” said Akram, arguably the greatest left-arm pacer.

“I promise you they’ll get looked after on and off the field there and every game will be a packed house.”

Top teams have declined to tour Pakistan since a 2009 militant attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in the city of Lahore.

England last toured Pakistan in 2005-6 but Akram was hopeful the participation of English players in Pakistan’s franchise-based Twenty20 competition would help allay England’s safety concerns.

“The English players were there for the Pakistan Super League in our team, Karachi Kings - Alex Hales and Chris Jordan,” Akram, bowling coach of the franchise, said.

“They loved it, they enjoyed it, they got looked after beautifully, so the PSL is a step in the right direction.”

Simona Halep won the Prague Open on Sunday, her first tournament in five months.

lep, 28.

The two-time Grand Slam winner - who won the Prague Open on Sunday says she will stay and train in Europe, where the French Open is scheduled to start on 27 September.

American great Serena Williams has committed to play in New York, along with Japanese 2018 champion Naomi Osaka, Australian

Open champion Sofia Kenin of the United States and Czech world number three Karolina Pliskova.

On the men’s side, Serbia’s world number one Novak Djokovic, Britain’s three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray and Russian 2019 runner-up Daniil Medvedev are competing. (BBC Sport).

Pakistan great Wasim Akram

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

ICC mulling possible changes to bad light regulations

The ICC’s cricket committee is likely to discuss regulations around delays for bad light and wet weather after farcical scenes during the Test summer in England.

Despite the huge efforts of all involved to ensure cricket could resume behind closed doors, the Tests against West Indies and Pakistan have been marred by frequent interruptions after the umpires deemed the light to be unfit for play.

There have also been prolonged delays in resuming after rain has stopped. This culminated in a decision to break for lunch after a delayed start and just one hour of play on the second day.

On the fourth day, play was abandoned shortly before 4pm, with the ground subsequently bathed in sunshine. It is understood there was some frustration at the ECB over the decision, with one insider suggesting play could have resumed at 6pm. On the final day, the rain stopped at 11.15 am, but play did not resume until 3.20pm.

The ECB has spent heavily to ensure the return of cricket in the face of

Covid-19. As well as arranging charter flights for the West Indies and Pakistan players, they have met the costs of creating bio-secure bubbles to satisfy safety concerns and convince the government - and the governments of the opposition teams - that games can be played without compromising the health and safety of all involved.

The match officials, however, have been uncompromising in their adherence to normal playing conditions.

The ICC’s cricket committee is likely to discuss whether this has been an admirably consistent approach, or a little inflexible in the modern age with improved protective equipment and less tolerance for such delays from spectators.

With match officials judged on many criteria, including their ability and desire to get the game on, it is possible the team at the Ageas Bowl in particular - standing umpires, Richard Kettleborough and Michael Gough, third umpire Richard Illingworth, fourth umpire Martin Saggers and match referee Chris Broad - will marked

down by the ICC for their performance.

Among the other options likely to be considered by the cricket committee will be the use of a pink ball - a decision which might impact on the colour of the sight screens in operation - and whether it would affect the integrity of the game to change the ball as required when the light fades.

Paying under floodlights.

While the lights have been used at several stages this summer, the current convention dictates that once the artificial light has taken over as the primary source, play should be abandoned. This issue was looked at by the ICC a few years ago, with the Full Member boards rejecting the idea of playing on under floodlights. It might be that floodlight technology has improved, too, allowing more play in such circumstances.

More transparency over the light meter readings is another possible area of improvement. At present, the umpires take readings by which they judge the light on subsequent days to ensure fairness to both sides. If such readings were published, or

The umpires were out to inspect (Getty Images)

if the broadcasters and host venues were able to have access to such meters, it might improve expectations from spectators and avoid some of the frustration that has surrounded recent matches.

ESPNcricinfo understands there is are no major concerns over the venue. Drainage at the Ageas Bowl is understood to be comparable to other Test venues in England, while extra groundstaff had been drafted in from other clubs to aid preparation of the surface for the third Test - which is scheduled to begin here on Friday - and the warm-up game played by members of the Pakistan white-ball squad.

The only minor quibble concerned the length of the covering over the area where the bowlers runups. There were some sug-

gestions these were a little shorter than those provided elsewhere and the delay on the fifth afternoon was lengthened by concerns over damp run-ups at the hotel end of the ground. But the application of sawdust seemed to help speed the drying process.

The ECB is also likely to review its own playing conditions. While other nations are prepared to start play earlier on subsequent days after rain, the ECB has long argued this would cause confusion with ticket holders. If, for example, a decision was taken at 7pm on Friday to start play one hour earlier the following morning, it is felt it would be difficult to communicate that information to 25,000 or so ticket holders which might, in turn, leave them open to

claims of refunds from those that miss out on watching any play.

In the case of behindclosed-doors games, however, that is not a factor and it is understood there is growing momentum to change this playing condition ahead of the final Test of the summer, which starts on Friday. In the longer term, it is possible the terms and conditions of the ticket sales could cover such a scenario.

The overall impression is that many in the game’s administration, not least those at the ICC, have been stung by the criticism in recent days. As a result, “The Farce Show” - as it was dubbed by one wag - could prove to be something of a watershed moment for the sport.(ESPN Cricinfo)

Barcelona sack coach Setien following Bayern drubbing, call elections

BARCELONA (Reuters) - Barcelona have sacked coach Quique Setien and brought presidential elections forward to March 2021, the club said on Monday, three days after the Spanish side were hammered 8-2 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Setien, 61, was appointed in January after the club sacked two-time league winner Ernesto Valverde despite his side sitting top of the La Liga standings on goal difference.

But after Barca were condemned to their heaviest defeat in European competition on Friday, Setien was also sacked after only seven months in charge, after overseeing the club’s first trophy-less season in 12 years.

Barca finished second in La Liga behind champions Real Madrid and were knocked out of the Copa

del Rey at the quarter-final stage by Athletic Bilbao.

“This is the first decision within a wider restructuring of the first team which will be agreed between the current technical secretary and the new coach, who will be announced in the coming days,” added Barca’s statement on Setien.

According to widespread Spanish media reports, Netherlands coach and former Barca defender Ronald Koeman is set to be named as Setien’s successor.

The statement, which was released more than nine hours after president Josep Maria Bartomeu and directors had begun a board meeting, also said the club’s hierarchy had decided against calling an election imminently in the wake of the Bayern defeat, as many fans and influential voices had demanded.

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Champions League - Round of 16 First Leg - Napoli v FC Barcelona - Stadio San Paolo, Naples, Italy - February 25, 2020 Barcelona coach Quique Setien before the match REUTERS/Ciro De Luca

“The board understand that an immediate call for elections is not feasible,

given that the league season will begin on the weekend of September 12, 2020, and

the situation arising from the COVID-19 crisis - both economically and socially,”

added the statement.

“Consequently, the club will continue to implement the plan to reverse the sporting and economic situation, based on profound changes to the first team, plus a redefined budget to deal with the new situation caused by COVID-19, before the end of the current mandate.”

As at Real Madrid, Athletic Bilbao and Osasuna, Barcelona presidents are voted for by club members.

Bartomeu won the last election, held in 2015, but is barred from running in the next round of elections as he has already served two consecutive mandates, having been named president in 2014 after the resignation of Sandro Rosell.

Victor Font is the front-runner for the election, while former president Joan Laporta has also declared his intention to run.

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GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Chris Nenzani steps down as Cricket South Africa president

CHRIS Nenzani stepped down as the Cricket South Africa (CSA) president on Saturday, three weeks before his term was due to end.

Nenzani has been under increasing pressure in the face of administrative upheaval and left his post within hours of the organisation sacking its chief operating officer Naasei Appiah, and a day before the men’s national squad begins a culture camp. The post will remain vacant until CSA’s annual general meeting on September 5.

Appiah, along with former head of sales and sponsorships Clive Eksteen, who was dismissed in June, is taking CSA to court to contest the decision to sack him.

Appiah was found guilty of “transgressions of a serious nature”. Meanwhile, suspended CEO Thabang Moroe met with CSA last week but his case did not reach resolution. It is expected to conclude this week and ESPNcricinfo understands Moroe is likely to be dismissed as well, on the evidence of a forensic audit, which CSA commissioned when Moroe was suspended last December.

A CSA statement, issued on Monday morning, gave no reason for Nenzani’s exit, and thanked him for his time in office. “Mr. Nenzani has provided valuable leadership, insight, assistance and direction in advancing the game of cricket with a focus on achieving transformation and access for the majority of the South African population,” the statement read.

Not everyone feels that’s enough, though. “Given what has happened over the last nine months, the president owes stakeholders an explanation for why he is stepping down now,” Andrew Breetzke, SACA CEO, told ESPNcricnfo.

Nenzani had been in the position since 2013 and served two three-year terms, the second of which was extended through a change in CSA’s constitution in 2019. That gave Nenzani an additional 12 months, to see CSA

Key men: [L to R] Graeme Smith, Enoch Nkwe, Mark Boucher and Linda Zondi AFP via Getty Images through a difficult period. But he has since said he regretted staying on.

It is also during this time that Nenzani has come under the heaviest criticism. Since December last year, CSA’s disputes with the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA), initially over a proposed domestic restructure which has since been repealed and then over unpaid commercial rights’ fees, came to a head, three independent and one non-independent board member resigned, a major sponsor - Standard Bank - opted not to renew their deal and seven staff members, including Moroe, were suspended.

A common demand among the players’ body, the board members who walked away and commercial partners was that Nenzani step down because of his role in the administrative crisis that ensued when Moroe was appointed on a permanent basis in July 2018.

Under Moroe, CSA launched the Mzansi Super League but were unable to sell television rights for the two editions played to date, costing them in access of Rand 200 million (USD 11.49 million approx.).

Chris Nenzani has stepped down as the CSA president ICC via Getty Images Additionally, CSA is forecasting losses of Rand 654 million (USD 37.58 million approx.) over the four-year cycle ending in April 2022, but is expected to report a profit for the 2020 financial year. In an attempt to mitigate against the losses, CSA proposed a

new domestic structure, which would eliminate the franchise tier of the current system. SACA argued that up to 70 cricketers could lose their jobs if that happened, and took CSA to court to prevent the changes and rescinded when CSA U-turned on the restructure.

Moroe also sought to overhaul the national men’s team structure, with a view to appointing a team director to replace the head coach and a director of cricket. He courted Graeme Smith for the latter role but Smith only signed on after Moroe was suspended and then did away with the idea of team director, appointing Mark Boucher as head coach.

Despite that, South Africa endured their worst summer since readmission, winning just one of the five series they played in.

The waters have remained choppy since the Covid-19 outbreak, which has seen the Black Lives Matter movement take centre stage in South African cricket. In recent weeks, former players and current coaches of colour have flooded the media with stories of exclusion and blamed the administration for not doing enough to create an environment that was comfortable for everyone.

Nenzani was interviewed by Marawa Sports Worldwide last week and conceded that CSA had missed an opportunity by not appointing Geoffrey Toyana as head coach when Ottis Gibson got the job in 2017, an admission which prompted a fresh round of criticism on Nenzani’s leadership. Despite CSA’s assertion that Nenzani played a positive role in advancing transformation - under him a black African quota was introduced in 2013 and targets were increased the following year - Nenzani has found himself in the midst of the racial schisms currently playing out.

Nenzani has undertaken to address the media at the conclusion of next month’s AGM where a new president is expected to be named.

The president is chosen from the group of provincial presidents who sit on the CSA board (five of the 14 provincial presidents are members of the board) and there is no obvious candidate to replace Nenzani.

Vice-president Beresford Williams has been identified as a possible successor.(ESPN Cricinfo)

Windies door not closed for Sammy insists Pollard WEST Indies captain Kieron Pollard has insisted the door is not closed on former

skipper Darren Sammy, The 36-year-old Sammy, despite it being three years who captained the Caribbean since his last appearance.

T20 team to two World Cup titles, last appeared for the West Indies against a Pakistan XI in 2017. Sammy’s tenure with the team seemed to have come to an end in ac(TUESDAY AUGUST 18, 2020) rimonious circumstances after COMPLIMENTS OF XTRA ENERGY he was removed as captain DRINK - STABROEK BAZAAR (Tel: and dropped after publicly 683-9500) &CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL criticising the West Indies COMPANY LTD-83 Garnett Street, administration after they won Campbellville, Georgetown (Tel: 225-6158) the tournament in 2016.

Pollard, however, noted Answers to yesterday’s quiz that as it stands all players (1) Jonathan Carter (Tridents) are eligible for selection and Sammy is no exception.

(2) Jonathan Carter-50 “We have made clear to the (new Cricket West Indies) Today’s Quiz: administration that everyone is available for selection in (1) Who had the best bowling figures in the CPL that pool. No one is an excep2019 final? tion to the rule. Performances and fitness and everything we (2)How many sixes were struck in the CPL 2019 are looking for,” Pollard told final? members of the media.

The 33-year-old Pollard Answers in tomorrow’s issue replaced Jason Holder as

CRICKET QUIZ CORNER

Darren Sammy captained the West Indies team to two T20 World Cup titles.

the ODI captain and Carlos Brathwaite in T20Is last

September. Sammy will look to make his mark in the upcoming Caribbean

Premier League where he will represent the St Lucia Zouks. (Sportsmax).

GUYANA CHRONICLE Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Crawley makes most of chance as second Test ends in predictable draw

ZAK Crawley made the most of his chance - when it finally came - scoring a half-century on the final afternoon of a second Test severely affected by bad weather throughout.

With only 91.2 overs bowled up to the final resumption and the draw a

career-high 76 in the first installment of England’s series against West Indies in early July.

Crawley’s frustration that he couldn’t go on further after reaching his third Test fifty was palpable when he swung his bat furiously through the air while trudg-

SCOREBOARD

PAKISTAN 1st innings 23

England 1st innings Rory Burns c Asad Shafiq b Shaheen Afridi 0 Dominic Sibley c Mohammad Rizwan b Mohammad Abbas 32 Zak Crawley lbw Mohammad Abbas 53 Joe Root Not Out 9 Ollie Pope lbw Yasir Shah 9 Jos Buttler Not Out 0 Extras 0b 3lb 3nb 0pen 1w7 fait accompli, the evening session was consigned to batting and bowling practice. But it was by no means wasted on the players or the viewing public who had been starved of action for frustrating stretches of the match in Southampton.

The opportunity was not lost on Crawley, who came into the side for Ben Stokes and returned to the ground where he made a

Total(43.1 overs) 110 decl Fall of Wickets : 1-0 Burns, 2-91 Crawley, 3-92 Sibley, 4-105 Pope Did Not Bat : Woakes, Curran, Bess, Broad, Anderson Bowling: Shaheen Afridi 10 - 3 - 25 - 1 (1w 1nb), Mohammad Abbas 14 - 5 - 28 - 2 (1nb), Naseem Shah 5- 010 - 0 (1nb),Yasir Shah 11 - 2 - 30 - 1, Shan Masood 3 - 0 - 14 - 0, ing off, having fallen lbw to Mohammad Abbas for 53.

Up to that point Crawley, who is just 22 years old and seven Tests into his career, had acquitted himself well.

Play recommenced at 3.20pm local time for the first time since all but the first hour of the fourth day was lost to rain and after a severe thunderstorm lashed the Ageas Bowl in the early hours of the fifth day, re-

Zak Crawley cuts past backward point in his inknock of 53. (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

quiring lengthy mopping up and drying efforts.

It was a cruel irony that when play resumed it was in blazing sunshine and it stayed that way until stumps, when England declared their first innings on 110 for 4 and the sides shook hands on a draw shortly after 6pm. That ended a run of six consecutive Test wins in charge for Joe Root, but ensured England go into the third and final Test starting at the same venue on Friday with a 1-0 series lead.

The sun also changed the complexion of the match, albeit too late to have any

effect on the result.

The movement and bounce that had so troubled England on the fourth morning, when they lost opener Rory Burns for a four-ball duck, were far more tame on the final afternoon and Crawley and Dom Sibley bedded in for a 91-run second-wicket stand.

Abbas, largely unplayable during his opening spell on the fourth day, dropped a couple short in his second over and was duly punished by Crawley, who pulled nonchalantly to the boundary at backward square leg and crunched another through cover point.

Crawley ended up with

seven fours, including one through cow corner off a Yasir Shah long hop to bring up his half-century.

Crawley had been keen to face Yasir, having travelled to India a couple of years ago to develop his batting against spin. But Yasir would have had him stumped in his third over had it not been for a fumble by wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan, who has been otherwise tidy behind the stumps. Crawley skipped down the wicket to Yasir, effectivley yorking himself, but Rizwan failed to grab the ball as it skidded through.

23

It was Abbas, who ultimately did for Crawley, starting a new spell and immediately pinning him back with a length ball on middle stump which moved away off the seam, beating the bat and striking the back pad.

Crawley reviewed, probably in the hope that it had hit him too high, but he was confirmed out on umpire’s call and sent on his way.

Sibley, too, played well for his 32 but, slightly worryingly for him, he was caught behind down the leg side in Abbas’ next over, a style of dismissal which has become familiar.

Yasir was amongst the wickets when he had Ollie Pope out cheaply lbw, and Root pulled the pin after one ball from his counterpart Azhar Ali, as the teams reached the final hour and shook hands on a draw.

Rizwan was named Player of the Match after top-scoring in Pakistan’s innings with 72.

While the match ended brightly enough in terms of play resuming in glorious conditions and Crawley taking another step in his development, the positives were overshadowed by debate over the lack of action due to the weather and questions over how the game can evolve to avoid such frustration.

(ESPN Cricinfo)

Dwayne Bravo and TKR Skipper Kieron Pollard have a lot of responsible this season

Arch rivals Amazon Warriors, TKR clash in CPL opener today …Barbados Tridents take on St. Kitts& Vevis Patriots in second match

By Clifton Ross THE quest for the elusive Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) title bowls off today for the Guyana Amazon Warriors, who square off against long-time nemesis and ‘Bubble’ hosts, the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) in the first of two opening round matches played at the Brian Lara Academy in Trinidad & Tobago.

If the recent rumours about TKR and the local players managing to sneak in training and practice are true, then Chris Green will certainly have his hands filled to the brim with responsibility as the Warriors new captain.

On paper, TKR seems to be the ‘Eye-Candy’ of the two franchises, having the most experienced core of T20 Guns-for-hire at their disposal.

The last 5 encounters between these two sides, over the course of the last 3 seasons dating back

Guyana Amazon Warriors Captain Chris Green will need to beat TKR in today’s opener in order for his side to gain momentum for the rest of the CPL

CWI president Ricky Skerritt(left) and vice-president Dr Kishore Shallow

Cricket West Indies (CWI) president Ricky Skerritt said he is committing to effect the changes to the board’s governance structure as recommended by the Wehby Report that has now been shared with stakeholders.

The report that was submitted to the board just over a week ago contained some far-reaching changes that would significantly change the way the board now operates.

The report highlighted the “need to foster the rebuilding of trust and a common purpose between CWI and the other stakeholders, especially with regional governments”.

The recommendations included comprehensive reform of the governance structure using key principles of modern gov-

to 2018, has resulted in a 4-1 score-line in favor of the 5-time finalists, Warriors, who outpunched the Knight Riders.

This season, however, is entirely different compared to the previous years as a number of overseas players have been kept out of the tournament due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The onus this year will lie on the shoulders of the local players in both franchises, who are likely to field a few new faces in a bid to find the right ‘combo’ as the tournament progresses.

With New Zealand’s Ross Taylor being their premier overseas batsman, the Warriors will want to see more from their star core of West Indian stars like Nicholas Pooran and Brandon King.

King, in particular, ended as the leading batsman for the Warriors last season before going on to gain some experience in the West Indies senior limited overs team, and will be tasked with doing more for his team in the absence of the globally recognised firepower in the batting department.

The Warriors homegrown core of stars: Shimron Hetmyer, Anthony Bramble, Keemo Paul, Romario Shepherd and Sherfane Rutherford will have eyes on them. With their Windies experience and a seemingly more matured approach to cricket, it is likely that those aforementioned players will play a much higher brand of T20 cricket in the weeks to come.

TKR, on the other hand, will field a more experienced, aggressive batting unit, led by Kieron Pollard and features T20

ernance to provide greater accountability and transparency and that the membership of the Board of Directors to reflect a wide cross-section of skills and competencies.

The report also recommended a shift to a smaller and more balanced Board of 12 in the immediate instance, with an eventual reducing to nine including at least two women.

The CWI board is currently comprised of 18 members.

The roles of the president and vice- president are to be redesigned to be more board specific and non-executive. The report also recommended the establishment of a Nominations Committee to identify and evaluate potential directors and to nominate future directors and committee members and that

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SEE PAGE 19

CWI president Skerritt commits to enacting Wehby Report recommendations

there be a reduction in CWI Committee structure from 12 to five (5) Committees.

“We cannot ignore the fact that this is the fifth external governance review endeavour of its kind, within the past 13 years. However, I am confident that this latest review was conducted by five experienced, skilled and well-intentioned West Indians, each with an unmitigated concern and respect for West Indies cricket in general,” the CWI president said in a letter to stakeholders.

“Together they are more than capable of merging learnings from past reviews with the realities of the present, in order to develop a pertinent and strategic outlook for a preferred future”.

An Independent Task Force led by Senator Don Wehby, which also included Sir Hilary Beckles, Mr Deryck Murray, Mr O.K Melhado and Mr Charles Wilkin QC, prepared the report. The Task Force consulted extensively, and the 36-page report drew from a wide cross-section of expertise – from knowledgeable persons in the West Indies as well as in the global game.

The report is also now available to the public on the CWI Website https://www.windiescricket. com/cricket-west-indies/the-wehby-report-distributed-to-cwi-stakeholders/(Sportsmax) TUESDAY,AUGUST 18, 2020