Guyana Chronicle 01-03-2021

3rd January, 2021

' No.106231

From court reporter to immigration attorney

––The Kinda Velloza story

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20-person team spearheading COVID-19 vaccine rollout 11 PAGE

Persons cleared to make outstanding 20 payments for house lots PAGE

Guyana leads global growth

–– closes 2020 with average GDP growth of 26.2%, according to the IMF

NEW YEAR BABIES !

The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) delivered 15 babies on New Year’s Day, while the New Amsterdam Hospital delivered five, and the Suddie Hospital one. First Lady, Mrs. Arya Ali visited the GPHC on New Year’s Day and delivered hampers to the elated mothers

SEE PAGE 03

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Wales, Ogle, Vreed-en-Hoop among potential sites for gas-to-energy plant –– discussions in advanced stages –– financial models to be examined soon

By Navendra Seoraj AS the government pushes ahead with its plan to reduce the cost of energy tremendously through a gas-to-energy project, Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat has said that discussions related to this project are in the advanced stages, and several areas are still being considered for the landing of pipes and construction of a

massive power plant.

Areas which are being considered by the government include Wales, on the West Bank Demerara (WBD); Vreed-en-Hoop, on the West Coast Demerara (WCD); and Ogle and Mahaica on the East Coast Demerara (ECD).

Wales, in particular, is a site which the government is examining seriously, Minister Bharrat said during a telephone interview with the

Sunday Chronicle.

“It is one of the highly possible sites which we are looking at; we are leaning towards it, but we have not made a concrete decision on it as yet,” Minister Bharrat said, adding: “The early studies show Ogle, Vreeden-Hoop, Mahaica and other areas, but, of course, we have to consider a number of factors before we select the site. And that is why we are leaning towards Wales,

The Wales Sugar Estate because it is closer to the population.”

Wales, as Minister Bharrat explained, seems like one of the best options right now, because it is closer to the bulk of the population, and it has adequate and readily available land for the gas-to-energy project.

A special task force, es-

tablished by President Irfaan Ali to assess the feasibility of a gas-to-energy project, has since determined that close to 2,000 acres of land would be needed to construct a power generation facility.

Minister Bharrat, in a previous report, had said that getting natural gas to shore is just one aspect of the project, as authorities also have to identify and acquire adequate space for the establishment of a power plant.

The potential site for a power plant is being considered simultaneously with a location for the landing of pipes, which will run directly from ExxonMobil’s operations to a designated area onshore Guyana.

A definitive decision on a location for this project is expected to be announced in two weeks, after which, the government will move ahead with the consideration of feasible financial models, in terms of financing.

“We have some ideas of the costing, but we have to work it through; then we will look at financial models,” Minister Bharrat said, adding that the aim for completion remains 2023.

This project forms a major part of the new People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government’s plan to reduce the cost of energy by 50 per cent through an energy mix, which includes the conversion of natural gas from ExxonMobil’s offshore

Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat operations to electricity.

President of ExxonMobil’s local operation, Alistair Routledge was reported as saying that about one-fifth of the resources discovered so far in the Stabroek Block contain natural gas, most of which would be associated gas produced with the crude oil.

It is common knowledge that natural gas can be used to generate electricity in a variety of ways, but the local plan is to establish an industrial facility that generates electricity from primary energy, which, in this case, is natural gas.

Contrary to the perception that oil and gas will be detrimental to the environment, the minister believes that gas-to-energy will go a long way in ensuring that there is clean energy, because there will be no more burning of diesel, or

‘Bonasika’ fuel, which is heavy.

Minister Bharrat assured the Sunday Chronicle that Guyana will have reliable, cleaner and cheaper energy, which will not only benefit households, but also stimulate growth in the manufacturing and commercial sectors.

Guyana is said to have one of the highest costs of power generation in the world, a factor which has discouraged many businesses from investing here.

“With gas-to-energy, we will be able to produce energy at competitive rates, and this will allow us to attract a lot of investors, especially in the manufacturing sector,” Minister Bharrat said.

He even envisages the country having one of the largest industrial parks in the Caribbean, with the advent of this project.

COVID-19 survivor and Palms resident is 106 SHE made headlines in June 2020 for being the oldest person in Guyana to survive COVID-19, and now seven months later, Zorie De Mattos is celebrating another milestone.

On January 1, 2021, she celebrated her 106th birth anniversary, the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security noted in a press release. De Mattos, who is a resident of the Palms Elderly Care Facility, was surrounded by the dedicated

team which takes care of her on a daily basis.

She also received a hamper filled with her favourite snacks from the ministry; the subject minister, congratulated the centenarian, adding “Ms De Mattos’ longevity is a testament of our commitment to quality care for the elderly. Happy birthday, you are one feisty woman.”

Ms. De Mattos has been a resident at the Palms since 1969.

De Mattos has no known relatives and has been a resident of the Palms since 1969 (Photo by Peter Lester)

Guyana leads global growth SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

–– closes 2020 with average GDP growth of 26.2 per cent, according to the IMF

By Navendra Seoraj DRIVEN by a diverse economy, Guyana continues to lead global economic growth, closing 2020 with an average real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 26.2 per cent, according to information from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s website.

Guyana, with this rate of growth, was projected by NASDAQ Stock Market in October 2020 to remain as the fastest growing economy in the world. NASDAQ is said to be the second largest stock exchange in the world by market capitalisation, behind only the New York Stock Exchange located in the same city.

Despite the debilitating direct and indirect effects of the dreaded novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and a protracted electoral process, Guyana’s pro-

jections remained positive throughout the latter part of last year and it showed equally promising signs for the years ahead.

Looking forward, according to NASDAQ, Guyana’s growth is expected to come in at 12 per cent in 2021, 49 per cent in 2022 and 28 per cent in 2023. The country’s GDP of about $6.8 billion is expected to more than double by 2025, reaching over $14 billion.

Guyana is a middle-income developing country and is covered by dense forests, and is home to fertile agricultural lands and abundant natural resources. Gold, bauxite, sugar, rice, timber, and shrimp are among its leading exports.

This nation, however, attracted international attention after ExxonMobil made the first commercial discovery of oil offshore Guyana in 2015 and started production

in December 2019. In September 2020, ExxonMobil made its 18th discovery offshore Guyana at the Redtail-1 well. And, according to NASDAQ, Guyana, with its estimated recoverable resources of about nine billion barrels of oil equivalents is projected to be among the world’s largest per capita oil producer by 2025.

“Our economic prospects have never been brighter.

Our collective feet are firmly placed on the first rungs of a ladder to prosperity that is clearly within our sight,” President, Dr Irfaan Ali said during his message to the nation on January 1, 2021.

The year 2021, according the President, will be the springboard from which Guyana will leap into recovery, rebuilding the economy, enhancing the people’s health and lifting up the vulnerable in groups in society.

“We must not remain

Two die in Corriverton accident A HEAD-ON collision between two cars on Saturday evening on the Line Path Public Road in Corriverton, East Berbice, resulted in the deaths of two men and the hospitalisation of another.

Those dead have been identified as 26-year-old Thurman Megnauth, called “Kiran”, and 36-year-old Nimrod Persaud, a hire car driver; they were both residents of Line Path. Injured and hospitalisd is 38-yearold Sheik Mahmood of Number 76 Village, Corentyne Berbice.

The Sunday Chronicle understands that Megnauth was driving motorcar PLL 4090 with Persaud was an occupant, while Mahmood was driving motorcar PYY 7581.

Police Headquarters, in a statement, noted that Mahmood was proceeding north

Dead: Nimrod Persaud while Megnauth was driving south; Mahmood claimed that he was about to pass Megnauth who suddenly swerved in his direction, resulting in a head-on collision. The accident occurred at around 18:10 hours.

They men were extracted

Dead: Thurman Megnauth from the cars and rushed to the Skeldon Public Hospital where Megnauth and Persaud were pronounced dead on arrival.

Mahmood is in a stable condition; he passed a breathalyser test.

a rich country of poor people,” the President affirmed, noting that the bounty of Guyana must be shared across the population.

HIGH NOTE This country having received payment of US$49.3 million for its fourth oil lift, has ended the year on a high note with approximately US$200 million being generated so far from the country’s nascent oil and gas sector.

Considering the country’s oil revenue and other lucrative sources of income, the President believes that the standard of living and the quality of life must be lifted for all. Work will be rewarded; hard work will be rewarded even more, he said.

“Opportunities will be created to join in such work, and they will be made available to all. I recognise

that there are communities within our society which, because of disadvantages of geographic location, will need more help than others to join our national advance,” President Ali reasoned.

The country will have to identify those communities, assess their needs, identify solutions, and implement plans to change their circumstances. This change will not occur overnight, it will take time. But every journey begins with a first step, the President said.

“I intend to initiate that first step, and to maintain a steady pace that will take us to that journey’s end. We still have many challenges ahead of us,” the Head of State said.

In the President’s assessment, Guyana’s economic recovery is demonstrably underway, with the business communities in Georgetown

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President, Dr Irfaan Ali and elsewhere reporting better performances over the recent holiday season, than any of the previous five years.

And this was achieved, even with the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic. The President believes that there is more money in circulation, and more disposable income in people’s pockets than the country has witnessed in a long time.

“I am confident that the steps which our Government will take in 2021 will continue to lift up our economy, and improve the fortunes of every person within our nation. The task before us in 2021 is to reaffirm our belief in ourselves as one people and one nation, determined to rise together in harmony, showing the world the strength and determination of which we are capable,” President Ali related.

Commander Pareshram now heads Georgetown SENIOR Superintendent Khali Pareshram will take up his new role as Commander of Regional Division 4 ‘A’, effective today, replacing Assistant Commissioner Simon McBean, who is proceeding on his annual leave.

Former Head of Special Branch, Mahendra Siwnarine will now take up command of Regional Division 4 ‘C’, which stretches from Industry to Mahaica on the East Coast of Demerara, replacing

Pareshram.

Pareshram joined the Guyana Police Force on May 3, 1999, and during his career, he has performed at the highest level in various departments and branches, such as regional divisions (Two, Three, Five, Six and 10); the narcotics branch; the special anti-crime task force, and as security officer at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport before rising to the position of commander.

He is the holder of a Diploma in Pub-

Senior Superintendent, Khali Pareshram lic Safety and Security Management, Police Development and Professionalism, as well as a Diploma and Degree in Public Management, and a Master’s in Public Administration.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Argument over woman – suspect in custody urinating leads to death

By Jared Liddell AN argument between two men over where a woman urinated on the East Coast minibus park, on New Year’s Day, resulted in the gunning down of clothes vendor, 32-year-old Paul Anthony Smith, also known as ‘Blacka’.

The Sunday Chronicle understands that Smith was shot in the back around 18:30hrs at Longden and Commerce Streets, Georgetown; the 29-year-old suspect has since been arrested.

The woman at the centre of the incident, who prefers to remain anonymous, is an employee of Smith.

She told this newspaper that the suspect, whom she identified as ‘Seon’, and his father physically and verbally abused her after she urinated at a particular spot which has been designated

Dead: Paul Anthony Smith as a “peeing spot” for the vendors.

According to her, the suspect claimed that she urinated on his shop but she denied. This led to an argument between her and the suspect commencing, during which Smith attempted to make peace.

The woman and the suspect then left for the Brickdam Police Station to make a report and, while there, it is alleged that the suspect received a telephone call that Smith was beating his father. The woman claimed that the suspect then hurriedly left the police station and went back to the scene after which Smith was shot dead.

The suspect is a clothes vendor who, along with his father, operates two stalls away from Smith.

Police Headquarters, in a statement, noted that Smith was observed holding a cutlass and heading to his car when he was shot.

Smith was subsequently picked up by public spirited citizens and taken to the Georgetown Public Hos-

The woman described Smith as a “very loving person” and noted that he

was always a jovial person who did his best to stay away from trouble.

Young mother dies in Coverden accident

when he lost control and crashed head on with the car, which was proceeding south along the eastern side of the road.

The accident occurred around 17:00hrs and the car was being driven by a male of Block ‘X’ Diamond Housing Scheme, EBD; Damon was a passenger in the front seat.

The drivers of the vehicles, along with two other occupants of the canter and Damon, were rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH).

Damon succumbed to her injuries hours later; she was a registered nurse attached to the GPHC.

AN accident involving a canter truck and a car on the Coverden Public Road, East Bank Demer-

Sunday, January 03, 09:00HRS - 10:30HRS

Smith’s stall was closed on Saturday pital Corporation where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

ara (EBD) on December 31, 2020, resulted in the death of a young registered nurse who has been

identified as 26-year-old Danata Damon.

She was the mother of a baby boy and resided at Kuru Kururu on the Soesdyke-Linden Highway.

Police Headquarters in a statement noted that the driver of the canter – a 33-year-old male of Enmore, East Coast Demerara (ECD), was speeding north along the road and swerved from a pothole

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Driver in custody after crashing into parked vehicle THIRTY-six-year-old Biron David of Charles Street, Dartmouth, Region Two spent New Year’s day in the lock-up after he lost control of his car and crashed into a parked black Xtrail on the Perth Public Road.

The accident occurred around 01:30h; this newspaper understands that David was heading north in his hire car bearing registration number HB 4847 when he collided with PXX 8695, owned by Dave Rambaran.

David claimed that his wife was continuously calling him on his cell phone and when he attempted to answer, he lost control, collided with the vehicle and landed in a nearby trench.

Residents, who were still ushering in the New Year, rushed to his rescue.

Police were summoned to the scene; the car was pulled out from the trench and the unhurt driver was taken into police custody.

The hire car in the trench after the accident

The damaged Xtrail

Guyana records first COVID-19 death for 2021 – three new cases recorded

GUYANA on Saturday, January 2, 2021, recorded its first COVID-19-related death for the new year, taking the overall death toll since the first case was detected here in March 2020 to 165.

The latest victim is 70-year-old Chitri Prashad, of Whim, East-Berbice, Corentyne (Region Six). Health officials confirmed to the Sunday Chronicle that Prashad had several underlying medical conditions, and was among five patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the National Infectious Diseases hospital at Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.

This newspaper also understands that Prashad was admitted to the hospital on December 24, 2020, after he was referred there from the Woodlands Hospital. Meanwhile, the country on Saturday recorded three new COVID-19 cases from 119 tests, taking the total number of positive cases in Guyana to 6,351.

The new cases were all recorded in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), which, to date, has recorded some 2,716 cases. Two of the newly-confirmed cases were females, with the remaining one being a male. An additional 26 persons have since recovered within the last 24 hours, taking the total number of recoveries

since March to 5,894.

There are currently 314 active cases, four of which are being kept at the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Currently, there are ten persons in institutional isolation; 279 in home isolation, and 21 in institutional quarantine.

The Ministry of Health’s daily dashboard on Saturday did not reflect the latest COVID-19 death. Many of the persons infected with the virus are said to be asymptomatic; that is, they are not exhibiting any symptoms.

The updated COVID–19 Emergency Measures are in force from January 1, 2021, until January 31, 2021. They may be extended or amended by notice of the Minister of Health, after an assessment of the prevailing public health conditions of the pandemic.

As per the current measures, however, all persons are required to wear face masks when leaving their homes. Physical distancing and adequate sanitisation are also important.

The current curfew time is 22:30h to 04:00h. Persons with symptoms of COVID-19 are asked to call the COVID-19 hotline numbers: 231-1166; 226-7480; or 180/181 for assistance.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Best years ahead

GUYANESE are well set to make 2021 the year of Guyana’s giant leap forward, the year when this nation becomes a global success story with rampant prosperity for every citizen, with a peaceful land giving its people plenty of opportunities to live well, and with progress speeding along under worldclass development projects.

In this scenario, as the society becomes sophisticated and complex, it is necessary in 2021 to encourage an industry of thought-leaders, astute analysts, and think tanks to objectively study the society and the demands of the future, and to professionally publish and broadcast potential problems and challenges and suggested solutions, so that the progress bar moves consistently on an upward trajectory for decades and even centuries to come.

The nation enters 2021 with everything well set. Indeed, the ground is laid with a solid foundation for Guyanese to achieve their legendary potential. Guyana has a government in place that respects democracy and fair play; the private sector is well entrenched as the engine of growth; public servants, teachers, nurses and law-enforcement officers are contented and well taken care of; education is promising to transform the Guyanese human capital resource base, with free tertiary education slated to come on stream within the next three years, even as government rolls out thousands of scholarships and training programmes; the oil-and-gas sector is rolling along smoothly; the country is battling COVID-19 with decent results; and a slew of world-class projects – from hotels and housing development to highways and

even a railway – are all underway.

In less than half a year in 2020, this government completely transformed the mood of this land, entrenching in the Guyanese heart a welcome sigh of relief that the political agony and schism that had dogged citizens since 2015 came to an end. Guyanese everywhere now feel the excited pulse of their nation as it gears up for world-class development projects to transform the skyline and community landscape, from the East Bank of Demerara to the East Coast and Mahaicony-Mahaica region, and on the West Bank to Parika. Berbice and Essequibo will also see transformative projects take shape.

2021 is perhaps the most exciting new year this country has ever faced, with the oil-and-gas sector promising to absolutely eradicate poverty across the land, and indeed to drive such astounding socio-economic progress, that Guyana would become the shining jewel of the Caribbean, and perhaps even South America.

Citizens anticipate that in 2021 the World Court would deliver a historic victory in the border fiasco with Venezuela, freeing up development opportunities in the Essequibo area. In the admirable neighbourly cooperation already underway between Guyana and Suriname, and also Brazil, the South American Guiana Shield could very well become the global success story of 2021, much like the Pacific Rim’s Asian Tigers in the 1990s.

So, 2021 looks rosy and picture-perfect, as Guyanese start this new year. The nation could not want to be in a better situation. It is as if the land is chosen for divine blessings. With such a key vantage point, situated on the coast of the Atlantic

Ocean as a gateway to the giant global power Brazil, Guyana is ready to take its place among the wealthy nations of the world.

However, as with life, thus with a nation. The more socio-economic progress the country achieves, the more demanding it will be to refine national systems, to reform the security sector so the wealth could be protected and defended in case of hostile forces coming against the country. Guyana must look into such things as securing its cyberspace, for example, as much as securing its borders.

Anticipating a wave of immigrants from around the world, as suffering people flee troubled lands to come to places such as this peaceful, prosperous, progressive country – as with the Venezuelans for example – demands keen attention to immigration laws, which must be tinged with both compassion and sensible protection.

Given the anticipated sophistication and complexity of this society as it becomes a wealthy global nation, it is imperative that Guyanese start developing think tanks, and engaging astute analysts, and developing world-class thought-leaders. The country must start to think 50, 100 years ahead, see into the future and plan for what is coming.

Hopefully, the University of Guyana would become a mecca for thought-leaders with world-class research, analysis, and thought-leadership flowing from its faculties and academics and professors, and even outstanding students, to assail the nation with brilliant new thinking, new ideas, new wisdom.

The country needs to cultivate a national pool of wisdom elders, a la the

global organisation The Elders, which the late icon Nelson Mandela developed and made a permanent global body that influences the United Nations and governments worldwide to accelerate humane development.

The great nations of the earth all cultivate national think tanks, giving incentives to thinkers, academics and intellectuals and experts and concerned citizens to develop research and development articles that augment, and even lay the foundation for a national vision that rolls way into the future. Indeed, such organisations exist also for global development, and contributed to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that the world is now working to implement.

The great nations also encourage a national culture of thought-leadership within its academic institutions, and also within the media – with specialised magazines, a book-publishing stream for thought-leaders, and other media avenues, all cultivated and nurtured and supported and maintained.

Guyana is sitting pretty today as citizens anticipate a robust 2021.

But Guyanese cannot settle into a comfort zone of mediocrity and focus only on physical development.

The nation owes it to future generations to also lay the groundwork for a Guyana that is a truly global example of what a peaceful, progressive, and prosperous nation could be, in every facet of human development, including cultivating a national pool of visionaries, thought-leaders, astute analysts, and design-thinking proponents.

Guyana should be proud to end the year on a happy and high note Dear Editor,

IF the APNU+AFC coalition provided an earful to listen to the downside of our beloved country Guyana in the leap year 2020, then the PPP/C did provide a mouthful to talk about on the other side of the coin.

To narrate on the upside of this dear land of ours in a trying and testing year when it is easy to conjure only negative things happening, it is a relief and change to welcome anything beneficially positive.

The best thing that happened in Guyana

was the swearing in of a new and legitimate, duly elected president, Dr. Irfaan Ali, replacing a caretaker president, Mr. David Granger, who had to unwillingly demit the office of President, after squatting in office for five months and being ordered to “step aside.”

This good turn materialised due to the PPP/C winning the General and Regional Elections held on March 2nd and defeating the APNU+AFC to form the new government.

But this would not have been possible had it not been for many stakeholders condemning and preventing the APNU+AFC coalition and some GECOM officers and employees from

attempting to rig and defraud the electoral process. Guyana has a better reason to smile because many people, places and parties contributed to upholding democracy and to support the Guyanese people in the struggle to prevent dictatorship, defend freedom and maintain peace. Those playing significant roles include diplomats from the ABCE, CARICOM, OAS, AOL, ACP, UN, The Elders, all the then opposition parties, the vigilantes keeping watch on the ballot boxes, most local organisations, personnel from the media and the people of Guyana at home and abroad. One of Guyana’s proudest moments

remains in the fact that, not a single Head of State for any regional or international country supported Granger and his APNU+AFC coalition in their fishing expedition, when they attempted on numerous occasions to deny the free will of the Guyanese people and to undermine democracy in the country.

Responding to Granger with, “The truth hurts,” according to past Chair of CARICOM, Barbados Prime Minister Mia Motley, the world did not budge but stood beside Guyana to fight against the See page 7

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Guyanese are now breathing a sigh of relief Dear Editor, AS the Guyanese nation embraces 2021, most of our citizens are now breathing easier after an extremely frustrating and fearful five-year subversion at the hands of PNC-led APNU+AFC operatives.

Under the corrupt cabal, our citizens experienced the convulsions of widespread economic disaster, and widely expressed fear of the precipitous paralysis of possible continuous destructive civil unrest. The high likelihood of the emergence of a police state in reaction to what could have become an outright destructive civil war was not easy to fathom.

The general sigh of relief comes after a keen but triumphant struggle that finally overwhelmed the most threatening and almost viral attempts at ‘rigging’ of our General and Regional Elections. Although the COVID-19 pandemic remains a serious concern, various forms of assistance are now being provided to the democratically elected Irfaan Ali-led government. No doubt, a sense of renewed hope has been invigorated, thanks to their excellent work.

The young and vibrant PPP/C government ministers under the astute leadership of His Excellency Dr. Irfaan Ali, are certainly walking the walk. In so doing, they are on the move taking the government and solutions to the people, while making Guyana a better place for all Guyanese. It is indeed heartening to see the ministers and their

technical staff in the fields almost daily, listening to citizens’ issues and implementing initiatives to improve their well-being.

The ministers’ presence alone is a source of comfort to our people.

It is now necessary for all citizens to exhibit the sense of nationalism required, that would support and adrenalise the positive progressive movement needed to holistically complement the swiftest development benefits. As we move on from the disastrous “leap year” 2020, all the indicators so far assist in the encouraging visualisation of a prosperous 2021 and beyond. Our nation, therefore, must advance the resolve to live as one united people in love and harmony.

Editor, there is no intention to convey that a harmonious pathway will set aside the egregious always-looming threats to the cantankerous PNC/GECOM combination.

One must recognise that the central pillar for our effective forward movement is that of a recognised democratic front. Our own experiences provide many deleterious confirmations of the devastating impact caused by the tough 28 years of PNC rigging from the 1960s to 1992. It took our country from being the food basket of the Caribbean to the most poverty-stricken country in this hemisphere.

Without aforethought, therefore, the last five years serves to remind us that the entire world stood up for Guyana to stop the ‘rigging of elections’ and the year 2020 will never be forgotten. It is rational that the total

eradication of all possible threats must be pursued swiftly. The emphasis on the Local Government Election this year lends equally to the importance of this critically important pillar. The PPP/C’s notification that budget allocations will be provided to fund these elections must be applauded.

Notwithstanding, the same cannot be said at this time for GECOM. Diversionary tactics inundate the general framework, making any talked-about plan unacceptable without transparent efforts to cleanse the organisation of clearly compromised staff.

The Guyanese people must speak out, holding their pride to show the world that the international support received in the struggle for free and fair elections will be preserved and held in the highest esteem.

The five months from March to August was indeed frustrating as our nation struggled against the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the more dangerous ‘Rigged Elections’ epidemic. We must never forget the strong stand of our comrades and patriotic Guyanese of all walks of life in this struggle. Particularly the dynamic leadership provided by the People’s Progressive Party led by the mature Champion of the Earth, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, and team, that realised the restoration of democracy to our beloved Guyana.

There is no denying that an overwhelmingly united PPP/C then and now, is the real visible base and catalyst for the thrust in the development take-off of our country. It is

this unquestionable, initiative-driven cohesiveness of the PPP leaders that continues the sustenance of momentum in progressive national rewards. It is appropriate to recognise in this respect, the maturity of Dr. Jagdeo who according to veteran politician Clinton Collymore, is a man of substance that played the lead role in keeping the PPP/C together, while ensuring that democracy prevails.

January 01, 2021 (the time of writing) being the 71st anniversary of the PPP, the great sacrifices of the party’s founder members, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, Mrs. Janet Jagan, Mr. Ashton Chase, along with J Hubbard is recalled. While the solidity of the approaches they instilled continues to serve as an inspiration to members, the new cadre consisting of General-Secretary Dr. Jagdeo; President, Dr. Irfaan Ali; Attorney-General, Mr. Anil Nandalall et.al, must be recognised and acknowledged for their seamless fluency.

The party looks forward to their excellent stewardship in 2021, which must be the year when we must fully resolve to make our beautiful Guyana a source of pride.

Further, along the way, the world must see that we are indeed thankful for their support in our time of need. Free and fair elections are required, and we must ensure that GECOM is cleaned up.

Yours sincerely, Neil Kumar

Guyana should be proud to end ...

From page 6

APNU+AFC’s tyranny and bullies. Also, Granger could not find an ally from any of his CARICOM friends who turned their backs on him.

On another positive note, it was good to see GECOM Chair, the honorable judge (retired) Claudette Singh, enforcing her power to direct the CEO Keith Lowenfield to produce a final report as per the findings of CARICOM recount election result, which enabled her to declare the PPP/C winner of the elections, defeating the APNU+AFC. A creditable note must also include the DPP, Shalimar Ali-Hack, discontinuing criminal charges of misconduct in public office against Madam Claudette Singh brought by agents believed to be from the APNU+AFC. On a high note also, was to see so many females and young people appointed MPs by the PPP/C and the APNU+AFC coalition. Guyana again scored points in seeing the PPP/C defeating the APNU+AFC’s frivolous and vexatious petitions, both in the local courts and the CCJ. Guyana rejoiced also in the dismissal of APNU+AFC’s victimised charges politically motivated, brought against President Irfaan Ali, AG Mr. Anil Nandlall, Finance Minister Ashni Singh and Winston Brassington.

Definitely, climbing up the scale was the PPP/C government successfully piloting an emergency $330 Billion budget to cover the remainder of the year from September to December’2020. Guyanese had a lot to cheer about on learning that the many taxes imposed on them by the APNU+AFC were removed, reduced and reversed to the status of 2014, when the PPP/C was in government. The

Granger government had punished the nation for five years and, the revenue demanded and squeezed from the people’s blood, sweat and tears were squandered by the callous and unscrupulous administration. Guyanese had to pay to upkeep the exuberant and exorbitant, good lifestyle of the APNU+AFC party. The Value Added Tax was removed from a number of goods and services including water and electricity rates, exports, hinterland travel, medical supplies and building and construction. Fees for the rental of agricultural land, irrigation and drainage have been reduced to 2014 figures. Fifty-thousand (50,000) house lots have been identified for housing and the MIR (Mortgage Interest Relief) has been increased to $30 Million. The three sugar estates closed by the APNU+AFC government will be opened incrementally and some $7 Billion has already been disbursed to Guysuco and already almost a thousand workers have been re-employed. The 25 percent Corporate Tax on education institutions was removed and the uniform voucher allowance was doubled to $4,000 per child. Also, a cash grant of $15,000 will be made available for all public school students, effective Jan.1st. The PPP/C government has announced that 20,000 scholarships will be available and education should be free at UG from 2024. The Indigenous people had a lot to cheer about with some $800 Million allocated to the ADF and, the re-employment of some 2,000 CSOs who were fired by the APNU+AFC government.

Pensioner’s allowance has been increased to $25,000.

Guyanese applauded on learning from

President Dr. Irfaan Ali that there will be massive development in infrastructural transformation plans, including new schools, hospitals, roads, highways, police stations, a new Demerara River high-span bridge, bridging Guyana and Suriname, and a deep-water harbour. A new city along the Soesdyke-Linden Highway was also announced and the construction of more international hotels and another airport a Lethem. A hallmark achievement in 90 days was the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector, bringing an end to GTT’s 30-year monopoly in Guyana. A professionally structured committee was implemented to handle the COVID-19 pandemic and a cash relief of $25,000 has been disbursed to over 150,000 Guyanese households so far. Suriname’s new President has already visited Guyana, U.S. Secretary of State, the United Arab Emirates and many other financial investors from around the world, all interested in investing in Guyana.

Guyana has earned US$200 Million in revenue from its controversial oil industry and plans are afoot for the gas-to-shore project.

The mining, bauxite and forest industries have started to expand with previously established companies.

Guyana should be proud to end the year on a happy and high note to learn that the International Court of Justice ruled that it has jurisdiction in the matter of the border controversy between Guyana and Venezuela. The PPP/C government’s generosity was extended to include bonuses to the police, the army and front-line workers. After suffering, struggling and suffocating from the strangulation of AP-

NU+AFC’s knee on Guyanese necks, Guyana was privileged and heartened to know that Guyana still has many kind-hearted people who genuinely care and are concerned about the welfare of the poor, underprivileged, handicapped and less fortunate. Many announced and unannounced Guyanese reached into their personal pockets to take care of their fellow Guyanese from all walks of life, from all villages and all ethnicities and to share in their plights. The PPP/C and government, employers, organisations, institutions, houses of worship and private citizens gave generously in cash, clothes and food hampers to the needy in society in all three counties. The APNU+AFC was limited and selectively involved. This charitable drive was caused by the hardship brought on by the APNU+AFC administration and the COVID-19 pandemic.

This 2020 leap year did share its pros and cons with Guyana and served its advantages and disadvantages. The expressed fear of a leap year myth did materialise and pervaded with its perilous qualms, psalms-singing, open palms for help, distribution of alms, a calm after the storm, curious peeping Toms, not wanting to bid salaam and a jam-packed programme for the next year.

While many are sadly not with us to ring out the old year, hopefully, you may find something to cheer to ring in the new year. May God bless all. Happy New Year Guyana!

Respectfully, Jai Lall

8

SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Public sector workers welcome ‘unexpected’ $25,000 grant

By Vishani Ragobeer

FOR many, President Irfaan Ali’s announcement on the last day of 2020’ that all public sector workers, pensioners and workers of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) would receive a one-off grant of $25,000 came as a surprise, but a welcome one, nonetheless.

Public Relations Officer (PRO) at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, Leah Hernãndez, was one worker who did not anticipate that such a grant would be offered, since the year 2020 was fraught with many financial and economic challenges.

“This move by our President is one I think most public servants like myself would find very considerate of him. And as a public servant, I feel somewhat satisfied that we were included to be given the grant,” Hernãndez told the Sunday Chronicle.

Another public sector worker, Trisha Wilkinson, hailed this $25,000 grant as a “very good” initiative and expressed her gratitude for it.

GPHC Nurse Ishaku Zechriah “At times we all need additional help, especially financially, and therefore it will be well received to assist me in doing something extra for my household,” she said.

“I was not expecting this grant; however, I believe in unprecedented times like these it is a government’s duty to take care of its people and I am happy that the Government of Guyana was able to provide and deliver,” another public sector employee, Andrea Premnauth, said.

Members of the public sector also include teachers,

Public Relations Officer (PRO) at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, Leah Hernandez medical professionals and members of the disciplined services. Secondary school teacher, Alisa Holmes also said that the bonus comes at a time when it is much needed.

“I’m thankful for it since it’s better than having none at such a time when we’re faced with the global pandemic,” she said.

In November last year, the President announced that healthcare professionals will get two weeks’ equivalent bonus before the end of the year. Subsequently, the twoweek, tax-free bonus was

Secondary school teacher, Alisa Holmes

Public Sector employee, Andrea Premnauth

Public sector employee, Trisha Wilkinson

also announced for members of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and the Guyana Police Force (GPF).

Then, a nurse with the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Ishaku Zechriah said, “I think it is encouraging, particularly [since] there has been multiple agitation to compensate for the increased workload and risks associated with

the pandemic. I think the President’s response is appropriate.”

Commenting on this $25,000 grant was Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, who called it a “spectacular measure” that is much needed by citizens during a trying time.

He gave a reminder that this grant is given in addition

to the $25,000 grant offered to households and the suite of relief measures offered in the 2020 emergency budget.

“The only category of persons who are not benefitting from this measure in the public sector would be ministers in government,” he said, contending that this was a measure aiming to provide relief to the people who need it the most.

Essequibo family welcomes New Year’s baby WHILE many Essequibians were busy saying goodbye to a dismal 2020, the Davidson family of Queenstown Village in Region Two started off their 2021 with a new bundle of joy.

Theirs was the first baby to be born in the county of Essequibo to 23- year-old Natasha Davidson; her baby girl arrived 42 minutes after midnight during a normal delivery.

Davidson was admitted to the Suddie Public Hosptial on December 31, 2020 after experiencing immense labour pain.

She was welcomed by midwife, Patricia Bridgemohan, who guided her throughout her delivery.

The new born is Davidson’s third child. An elated Davison said she is thankful that her baby girl is healthy as she expressed initial fear of the COVID-19 pandemic.

She thanked the management and staff of the Suddie Public Hospital for their care and guidance. Davidson is expected to take home her bundle of joy in two days’ time.

Natasha Davidson and her new born baby girl at the Suddie Public Hospital

SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

GPF announces promotion of 296 junior ranks

Commissioner of Police (ag) Nigel Hoppie

COMMISSIONER of Police (ag), Nigel Hoppie in his 2020 New Year’s message, announced the promotion of 296 junior ranks of the Guyana Police Force (GPF).

Hoppie said 2020 was an exciting and challenging year, which caused the force to modify some Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs).

“We have modified some SOPs and have created new ones where necessary, and we are also in the process of updating our Standing Orders. Suffice it to say that we are ready to face whatever challenges confront us in 2021, as we consolidate on the gains of 2020,” the Police Commissioner said.

He added: “We confronted challenges of the criminal community and performed creditably having recorded a 6.8 per cent decrease in serious crimes. Our work at the General and Regional Elections, along with the transition of the new government, where we provided competent security with assistance from the Joint Services, and our continuing efforts in the fight against the existing COVID-19 pandemic have been significant.”

In keeping with the GPF thrust to build public trust and confidence in the year 2021, the acting Top Cop said there must be greater involvement in community work, community outreach and community involvement with emphasis on moulding youths.

TO SERGEANT 1.

19204 Corporal Harvey 2.

15572 W/Corporal Gravesande 3.

19115 Corporal Nicholson 4.

18250 Corporal Adolphus 5.

19432 W/Corporal Bentham 6.

19244 Corporal Raghubir 7.

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Frank-Angoy 8.

21126 Corporal Reynolds 9.

17699 W/Corporal Grainger 10.

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TO CORPORAL 1.

17062 L/Corporal Sinclair 2.

18147 L/Corporal Mc Kenzie 3.

19651 L/Corporal Jonas 4.

21167 L/Corporal Lyken 5.

20395 L/Corporal Profitt 6.

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22035 W/L/Corporal Dos Santos 8.

22360 L/Corporal Bridgelall 9.

22263 W/L/Corporal Barnes 10.

19465 W/L/Corporal Lee 11.

19634 L/Corporal Scotland 12.

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21000 W/L/Corporal Hall-Campbell 15.

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20285 Const. Austin 47.

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Mortley Const. Archibald Const. Morgan Const. Collins Const. Richmond Const. Sealey Const. Griffith Const. Damon Const. Kadir Const. Jupiter Const. Greene Const. Britton Const. Persaud W/Const. Kendall Const. Bagot Const. Daniels W/Const. Embrack W/Const. Shariff W/Const. Wilson W/Const. Grave sande-Latchman Const. Humphrey Const. Pedro Const. Reid Const. Archibald Const. Chesney L/Corporal Semple

TO CORPORAL CONT’D 74.

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25701 Const. Moonsam 103. 21420 W/L/Corporal Halley 104. 22497 W/L/Corporal Stewart TURN TO PAGE

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Understanding Energy

Examining how production ships use associated gas FLOATING production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels are used to safely produce oil and gas in some of the world’s deepest offshore production areas. FPSOs will be critical to developing Guyana’s oil and gas resources, all of which are located in deepwater. Already, Guyana has one FPSO in operation, the Liza Destiny, with two more under construction.

Cutting-edge technologies have been developed for FPSOs to maximise production, and ultimately revenues, while limiting environment impacts.

As with most oil deposits, oil in Guyana is found alongside “associated gas”— natural gas that has been trapped underground and is produced as a biproduct of oil production. FPSOs can make use of this gas in a variety of

ways, and disposal of excess amounts of gas is a critical decision for oil producers.

After a small amount of gas is used to provide clean and efficient power for the FPSO vessel, the operating company then reinjects the remaining gas into the ground, pipes it to shore or flares it off. Most commonly, FPSOs reinject the produced natural gas into the reservoir.

This is often the most profitable option for small volumes of associated gas since it can help maintain reservoir pressure and maximise oil production. Reinjection is safe and avoids environmental challenges. This is how most of the associated gas produced by the Liza Destiny FPSO will ultimately be used.

Gas that can’t be reinjected or piped away must be dealt with for the safety of

the crew. When Exxon was unable to reinject gas due to a faulty compressor, the only safe option was to flare the gas.

That led to several months during which the FPSO in Guyana flared larger amounts of gas. Though still small by global standards, it could not be reduced until the gas compressor issue was fixed. Now, the “pilot flare,” which accounts for less than 0.5 per cent of the natural gas produced on the FPSO, is all that is left.

Pilot flares are necessary safety measures on nearly all production platforms dealing with associated gas. It’s useful to think of the pilot flare as similar to the pilot light on an oven. When you turn on your oven, it ignites the gas automatically without needing to open the oven and stick a match inside. That’s

because the oven has a small pilot flame that is always on at the back of the oven. This small flame continuously burns a tiny amount of gas to ensure that the oven is ready to use. The pilot flare on an FPSO functions in the same way but is more critical for safety.

Flaring must be available at a moment’s notice on an FPSO, which is why platforms flare a miniscule amount of gas on a continuous basis to keep the flaring option open in case of an emergency to avoid putting workers at risk. Flaring is normally the safest way to deal with over-pressure situations and other emergencies on board.

While flaring receives the most attention in the media, companies do not like to flare more than is absolutely necessary if they can safely

avoid it because there are better, more profitable alternatives. FPSOs like the Liza Destiny are therefore designed to avoid routine flaring.

It’s also useful to look at how flaring is handled in a country with a reputation for strong environmental regulations like Canada. Platforms off the coast of Canada have permits to flare more natural gas than the Liza Destiny FPSO in Guyana because they are typically older designs that were not able to minimise environmental impacts to the same extent.

Longer term, Guyana will be looking to another option for some of its associated gas that Canada has long exploited: piping gas to shore to generate reliable and cheap electricity. While this option can be economically beneficial to the home country,

extra infrastructure and investments are needed to ensure that a safe pipeline and power plant are available to transform the gas. Guyana is looking to take advantage of this option within a few years as soon as the infrastructure can be built.

While flaring continues to dominate discussions, it’s critical to realise that a small level of pilot flaring is both normal and an important safety feature for oil production. Guyana remains on a path to avoid larger and more damaging practices like routine flaring that are common in some jurisdictions around the world—a step that should help cement its place as a forward-thinking and environmentally responsible oil producer for the 21st century.

GPF announces promotion...

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L/Corporal Charles L/Corporal Bourne Const. Primo Constable Chetram Constable Horatio Const. Gilbert Const. Bacchus L/Corporal Mendonca Constable Haymer L/Corporal Cromwell W/Const. Linton W/Const. Glasgow

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11313 W/L/Corporal Joseph 3.

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13009 L/Corporal Archer 5.

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15244 L/Corporal Fraser 10. 13174 Constable A n goy-Durant 11. 11469 Constable Collins 12. 14075 Constable Sam 13. 14475 W/Constable Butcher 14. 15668 Constable Springer 15. 15075 Constable Persaud 16. 15560 W/Constable Charles 17. 12391 L/Corporal Sullivan 18. 11513 W/L/Corporal Dick 19. 15283 W/L/Corporal Barnes 20. 15244 Constable Fraser 21. 11280 Constable Branche 22. 15334 Constable James

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TO SPECIAL LANCE CORPORAL 1.

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Gulliver e Grant Grant Sobers Adams CarmiKhan Springer Duncan Mentore Hinds Maraj Grant Thomas Gomes Khan Farley Whyte

TO RURAL SERGEANT 1. Rural Constable Pastor Jean Roberts

11

SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

20-person team spearheading COVID-19 vaccine rollout

By Vishani Ragobeer A 20-person team of professionals, drawn from both the public and private sectors, will be spearheading the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines, which are expected to arrive here in the coming weeks, according to Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony.

In a recent interview with the Sunday Chronicle, Dr. Anthony said that a number of persons were contacted and asked to lend their expertise to a team that would be responsible for the importation, storage, management and distribution of the vaccines.

In December, Dr. Anthony announced that this vaccination team, which is an extension to the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF), would be made known to the public. He, however, told this newspaper subsequently that getting responses from the targeted individuals have been a challenge. Though he did not provide any names, the Health Minister did disclose that there are 20 persons on the team.

mation (DPI), the Health Minister had noted that Guyana applied for a grant from the COVAX facility to garner expertise on cold chain storage. COVAX is a global initiative geared at accelerating the development and manufacture of the COVID-19 vaccines, and then providing them in a guaranteed rapid, fair and equitable manner to those countries which need them.

Dr. Anthony said that Guyana’s grant application Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony “It’s a large group of the Mayo Clinic medical people and the idea is that facilities in Florida and from for specific areas dealing Harvard University. The exwith vaccination and so perts at Harvard have been forth, we’ll have subgroups working specifically with that would work on these the local surveillance team things,” the Health Minister and looking at the dynamics explained. of the disease.

In addition to these per“We have a number of sons who will be serving on experts who have been givthis vaccination team or task ing us support, but to be force, the minister also high- full time with us (on the lighted that Guyana has been vaccination task force), that receiving assistance from would be a challenge,” Dr. professionals overseas who Anthony related, but emphaare experts in immunology. sised, “We can draw down These international ex- on that expertise though.” perts, who have been proDuring one of his recent viding consultancy services COVID-19 updates with the to Guyana, are drawn from Department of Public Infor-

–– int’l experts providing additional support

cally ultra-cold chain storage. This expertise carries a cost of approximately US $50,000.

The minister indicated that the country is expecting a favourable response and explained that if the vaccines are not stored in the appropriate temperatures, they could spoil and therefore be wasted.

The first set of vaccines Guyana will be receiving will be through the COVAX facility; those vaccines will

COVID-19 vaccine was acknowledged and the country is waiting on confirmation stating this grant has been approved. This grant will be used to get someone who understands cold chain storage, specifi-

be free and the first three per cent will be used for the frontline health workers and the next tranche, about 17 per cent, will be used for older persons and persons with higher risks, such as

those with co-morbidities.

It is important to develop appropriate cold chain storage since the country does not yet know which vaccine it will be receiving.

The U.S. drug company, Moderna, had announced that its vaccine, the mRNA1273, from Biotech, could be stored in a standard refrigerator with temperatures of two to eight degrees Celsius (36 degrees to 46 degrees Fahrenheit) for 30 days. But, the Pfizer vaccines must be stored at very cold temperatures of minus 70 to 80 degrees.

The minister emphasised that the country does not have prior experience dealing with those ultra-cold temperatures. Several companies have already submitted bids to the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) for the construction of walk-in cold storage facilities.

Dr Anthony also said that vaccination sites are being expanded and healthcare workers are being trained to aid with the vaccination of the adults, targeted for some time this year.

Two teachers in Reg. 1 robbed again –– authorities mobilise to provide assistance

TWO teachers, living in the government quarters in Port Kaituma, Region One, were counting their losses on Saturday after thieves broke into their living quarters for the second time in a few months and ransacked their living space.

On Saturday, one of the teachers, Leon Beaton, said that he has been teaching at the Port Kaituma Secondary School for five years and Saturday’s robbery was the second one in three months.

“The thief easily ripped out my kitchen window mesh and my bedroom door, which had two locks, then went on to ransack the apartment. I am yet to determine what exactly is missing but here I am, once again in tears, left with nothing other than what I brought back with me,” Beaton wrote in a Facebook post.

He also lamented that following

the first robbery when he and a female teacher lost all of their belongings, they began advocating for heightened security measures, but to no avail. During that first incident, Beaton said that he lost $450,000 in items- including his clothes, appliances and personal items.

Following the unfortunate incident, when the Sunday Chronicle reached out to the teacher, he highlighted that both the Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand and Deputy Chief Education Officer (DCEO) for Amerindian and Hinterland Development, Marti DeSouza, assured him that the premises would be secured. He said they also committed to replacing what was stolen.

The General Secretary of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), Coretta McDonald, also reached out and committed that everything will be done to ensure that the teachers are kept safe.

The window that the intruder{s} broke to enter the living quarters of the teachers

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

From court reporter to immigration attorney –– the Kinda Velloza story

By Jeune Van Keric “I always knew I wanted to study law after being inspired as a court reporter assigned to the Berbice Assizes,”recalled Kinda Vel-

Guyanese-born Immigration Attorney, Kinda Velloza loza, a New Amsterdam resident, who now resides in the US. Back then, being a 16-year-old just out of school, she was attached to the local Little

Rock television Station, where under the editorship of Daniel Da Costa, she covered cases at the Magisterial and Judicial Courts, with primary focus on criminal matters.

That aside, she pioneered the first regional online news agency “Berbice News .com” in 2002, when local news was broadcasted daily through the unfailing support of the business community.

Subsequent to her marriage and the birth of her son, Velloza migrated to the US in late 2005, and enrolled at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

“My main focus was going to law school.

I majored in Criminal Justice and excelled in my undergraduate studies, resulting in the college President inviting me to apply for the double degree programme, which afforded me the opportunity to graduate with my bachelor’s and master’s degree at the same time. I chose to do my master’s in Public Administration as I intend to return home and serve.

“After graduation, I successfully applied to the Charlotte School of Law in North Carolina.

It was at this point my struggles began. As an undergraduate, I lived with my family and would commute from the Manhattan to the Bronx everyday. But, for law school, I had to uproot. My family stayed behind. This journey was most difficult having to focus on school and family. It resulted in a divorce and a custody battle. Nevertheless, I graduated with pro bono honors as I had joined the immigration clinic, giving free representations to persons from the Hispanic community, who could have ill-afford to pay their legal fees,” Velloza said.

Upon graduating from Law School, Velloza

Kinda Velloza presenting the scholarship to sixth former, Anika Johnson of the New Amsterdam Secondary School applied, successfully, for a post at the Associate Immigration Attorney at the Taylor, Lee and Associates Law firm in Georgia.

After three years, she is still in the employ of that Law firm, and has since launched her own law firm, Velloza and Associates, which deals primarily with assisting Caribbean immigrants with visitor’s visas, consular processes and other immigration services.

Her future plans includes paying off her

student loans and attending the University of West Indies to do the transition law programme before returning to her homeland where she can serve and run for a political office.

On a recent visit to Guyana, Velloza donated four computers and cash to her alma mater, the New Amsterdam (multilateral) Secondary School and offered a scholarship to sixth form law student, Anika Johnson of West Coast Berbice.

Diseases such as COVID-19 are consequences of climate change

… says Guyanese scientist

By Rehana Ahamad LAST year can safely be regarded as a cataclysmic year ‘plagued with a plague’ and other extraordinary destructions-- from the devastating Australia wildfires that killed billions of animals and destroyed millions of hectares of forest, to the unprecedented floods, droughts, and severe temperature fluctuations experienced across the world.

Guyanese Scientist, Dr. Michelle Kalamandeen, believes that the environmental tragedies of 2020 have inevitably created the deadly monster that is the novel coronavirus.

The biologist expressed confidence that the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic is a consequence of global administrations ignoring, and by extension, failing to address the critical connection between the environment and human health.

“COVID-19 has demonstrated how fragile our national and global systems are,

exposing the existing and persistent inequalities of our healthcare and economy,” Dr. Kalamandeen told the Sunday Chronicle.

“At the bottom of this pyramid is our environment which connects our health and our livelihoods,” she added.

In bringing further clarity to her point, Dr. Kalamandeen indicated that three out of every four new infectious diseases in people come from animals.

“More specifically, from our wildlife and from the livestock we keep in ever-increasing numbers,” she added.

Dr. Kalamandeen said that even though climate change continues at its own pace, the changes effected by humans are making matters far worse.

“Carbon dioxide emitted from our everyday consumption of fossil fuel is shifting climate zones,” she posited.

The scientist explained that “if an area becomes too hot or too cold for certain wildlife, they will migrate to new places, where they interact with other animals that

oil and gas industry.

“The recovery from the COVID-19 crisis must lead to more equal, inclusive and sustainable societies that are stronger and more resilient – one that ensures robust climate action, a reduction of fossil fuels and developing a sustainable standing-forest economy,” Dr Kalamandeen maintained.

“A healthy environment means healthy people and a healthy economy,” she added.

Meanwhile, during her address at the launch of this year’s Human Development Report, Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, also stressed the connection beGuyanese scientist, Dr Michelle Kalamandeen, speak- tween people and planet, also ing with the media in England indicating her belief that huthey have never encountered the environment and human man activity has created “this pandemic of biblical proporbefore. health.

“It also means that hu“There is no choice in tions”.

“While scientists continue mans increasingly are sharing addressing the health imto debate over if, and when the same spaces and vying pact, the economy, the social for the same food, thereby in- fallout from this pandemic we can be considered to have creasing the risk of transmis- and the environment. It is all entered a new geological era sion of diseases from animals connected,” Dr Kalamandeen – the Anthropocene, where human activity has the domto humans,” Dr Kalamandeen asserted. reasoned.

The biologist believes that inant impact on our earth’s She is adamant that the the advent of the coronavirus ecosystems, we do not need current COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call, especially to wait thousands of years for is yet another warning shot for an eco-paradise such as definitional proof to emerge of the consequences of ignor- Guyana, and most especially in rock formations or fosing the connections between in the context of an emerging sils…we know it,” Mottley

emphasised.

She believes that the current generation remains in an ideal position to reverse and mend some of the human-inspired damages done to the environment.

“If we seem surprised at the ferocity of this convergence of nature’s forces, we really should not be. It is not as if scientists have not warned us in a myriad of ways about the catastrophic consequences of indiscriminate human action on our natural environment…an environment that remains vital to the support of all forms of life on the planet,” Mottely said.

She declared, “We have reached a transformational moment, where moral and ethical leadership is most needed.”

The Barbadian Prime Minister believes that if the world heeds 2020 as a wake-up call, and avoid slipping back into complacency, global leaders, supported by scientists, can be able to strike a reasonable balance between people and the planet.

“The time is now,” Mottley maintained.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

15 New Year’s Day babies at GPHC

FIRST LADY, Mrs. Arya Ali, on Friday, joined mothers in the delivery unit of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), to celebrate the birth of 15 New Year’s Day babies.

She was accompanied by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Brigadier (ret’d) George Lewis. The First Lady praised the maternity staff for the work they have

been doing.

“I must commend you all in this COVID time where we’re all, each and every one of us, battling this pandemic but we’ll make it through. I just want to wish you all a happy, healthy and a prosperous new year and stay safe,” the First Lady was quoted as saying by the Department of Public Information (DPI).

Mrs. Ali also distributed care packages to the moth-

ers. Meanwhile, Mr. Lewis expressed the hospital’s gratitude to the First Lady.

“Thank you for coming out today. Thank you for sharing the wonderful moments with the mothers who are here and thank you for coming and interacting with the nurses and the other members of staff,” the CEO was quoted as saying.

First Lady, Mrs. Arya Ali visited the mothers of 15 New Year’s Day babies at the Georgetown Public Hospital (Photos: DPI)

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Five New Year babies delivered at NA hospital

By Nafeeza Yahya-Sakur THE medical staff of the maternity ward at the New Amsterdam Hospital was kept busy on New Year’s Day as they delivered five bundles of joy -- four girls and a boy.

The mothers hailed from West and East Berbice; the five babies were delivered between 01:45hrs and 21:58hrs on January 1, 2021.

Lisa Edwin, who was initially scheduled to give birth on January 25, 2021, was the first to give birth at 01:45hrs, after arriving at the hospital moments before midnight on December 31. Edwin told the Sunday Chronicle that she was with family members waiting to usher in the new year when she started to experience labour pains; her water bag broke around 22:30hrs at her Number 70 Village, Corentyne home.

The 23-year-old was rushed to the delivery room where she was monitored by the medical staff; she gave birth to a 4.6 lbs baby

First-time mother 18-year-old Maria Ali with her baby girl

girl, her fourth child. Edwin shared that her other daughters and family members were in disbelief that she gave birth until they saw the pictures of the little one.

“This new year surprise was so unexpected and quick; them girls after seeing her pictures now want me to hurry home so that they can

be with her. They so excited, [they] can’t wait and keep asking when [I am] going home,” an elated Edwin said.

The next to give birth was Maria Ali, 18, a firsttime mother from Cotton Tree, West Berbice; she delivered a 6.4 lbs baby girl at 04:10hrs. Ali was scheduled to give birth on December 30,

23-year-old, Lisa Edwin with her baby girl

2020, and was in the hospital since then, but she started to experience labour pains only after midnight on New Year’s Day. “This is very exciting to have a new year baby. It’s a blessing and the perfect new year’s gift,” Ali told the Sunday Chronicle as she expressed gratitude to the doc-

tor and nurses for guiding her throughout the entire process.

Meanwhile, shortly before 13:00hrs, the lone baby boy, weighing 5.4 lbs, was delivered to another firsttime mother Tiana Carpen, of Chesney Albion, Corentyne. She recalled that she spent the entire New Year’s Eve with family and even

broke the new year with them. She later experienced “sharp pains” and visited the Port Mourant Hospital but was transferred to the New Amsterdam Hospital in the wee hours of Friday morning, when she was admitted to the labour ward until it was time for her to deliver.

Goroshnie Goordial of East Canefield Settlement, Canje, was the fourth mother to give birth at 20:20hrs to a 4.4 lbs baby girl while Tarmila Bhawan of Number 72 Village, Corentyne, gave birth to a bouncing 7.3 lbs baby girl at 21:58hrs.

The mothers were presented with hampers from the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital Mr. Michael Khan, who was accompanied by the Chief Medical Superintendent Dr. Vasana Henry; Director of Health Services in Region Six, Dr. Vishalya Sharma, along with Gynaecologist Dr. Surujaul Singh and nurses from the maternity ward of the hospital.

Proceed with caution! …EMS Director urges Good Samaritans responding to road accidents

By Rehana Ahamad GUYANESE are known to be quite helpful by nature and in times of tragedies, we tend to shatter all superficial barriers in our bid to provide assistance to victims of adversity.

However, while intentions may be admirable and well-placed, the responses from Good Samaritans may not always be good for the victims, especially those injured in road accidents. This is why Dr. Zulfikar Bux is pushing aggressively for the expansion of Guyana’s National Emergency Medical Services (NEMS).

“If we had enough coverage, we would have asked members of the public to take a step back and allow trained first-aid responders to tend to the emergencies,” the national EMS Director told the Sunday Chronicle during an interview.

In an ideal situation, emergencies of this nature

would have been responded to by the police, emergency medical responders, and the fire service, simultaneously.

However, with Guyana’s EMS being just about four years old, this is not yet being done.

A Facebook video of an Old Year’s Day crash at Coverden, East Bank Demerara, showed public-spirited citizens removing injured persons from the wreckage and placing them into the tray of a nearby canter truck for transport to a medical institution.

The victims were all taken to the hospital for treatment; however, one of the victims -- a young mother -- Danata Damon, succumbed to her injuries a few hours later.

Medical practitioners have often warned that providing hurried responses to cases of accidents may not always be best, because even though it may result in swift transportation to a medical institution, the untrained han-

Dr. Zulfikar Bux, Director of the National Emergency Medical Services

dling of victims can result in them sustaining further injuries, many of which can lead to life-long disabilities -- or even death.

Should these unfortunate consequences prevail, however, persons providing assistance are protected by

the Good Samaritan Act. This ultimately and generally gives basic legal protection from liability of unintended harm caused by the assistance they would have rendered.

Because vehicular accidents have become so very common, it is likely that almost

every Guyanese would have at some point in their lives, witnessed an accident, or at least the aftermath of one.

The involvement of public-spirited citizens is therefore critical and necessary in order to save lives.

“We don’t have enough

coverage, so we still rely on members of the public to be good first responders,” Dr. Bux indicated. He, however, advised that they proceed with caution.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Tourism sector charts path for better 2021

By Jared Liddell DESPITE the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism sector recorded a successful year and the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) will be building on these successes through the implementation of several new systems to ensure a better 2021 for the growing sector.

GTA Director Carla James told the Guyana Chronicle that incentives will be provided for investment in tourism so as to encourage new and better tourism-related activities.

“We do need to create more activities, more experiences, so we are working with GO-Invest [and] GRA to revise the tourism incentive package to encourage more businesses opening tour operations, or even putting in new activities such as zip-lining just so there are more things to do that are accessible and that are not expensive, especially to our Guyanese who want to go out there to explore their own country,” said James.

She noted that due to Guyana’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, the country is a pull for international tourists. While noting the importance of international tourists to Guyana, the GTA Director emphasised that this year the GTA intends to see more locals having access to Guyana’s tourism products.

One of the systems intended to improve local access to the tourism sector is the removal of taxes from

GTA Director Carla James

the vacation allowances of persons in the private sector.

She stated that the GTA is currently in talks with the Ministry of Finance, as well as the Guyana Revenue Authority and several private sector organisations to have this policy change finalised.

This tax concession the GTA believes would enable many more persons to benefit from the local tourism products of Guyana. Currently, only members of the public sector enjoy tax- free allowances on receipt of their annual leave passage allowance.

James further noted that with international travel expected to restart in a major way by the end of the first quarter of the year, the GTA is looking to advance its marketing strategy geared at selling Guyana as a safe destination.

She said one of the major aims of the GTA is the achievement of increased alignment with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) Caribbean Travellers Health Assurance

Stamp.

The Caribbean Travellers Health Assurance Stamp for Healthier Safer Tourism (HST) is a measurable and verifiable recognition award for tourism entities and destinations that are implementing the recommended proactive COVID-19 health monitoring and safety measures.

It is aimed at building travellers’ assurance, tourism resilience and regional health security. The measures include utilising the Tourism and Health Infor-

mation System (THiS), a web-based, early warning and response information system to capture illnesses in real-time and thereby reduce spread and reputational damage; certified training in COVID-19 health measures for the hospitality sector (including testing, masks, social distancing, handwashing hygiene, sanitisation, and response from visitor arrival to departure); guidelines and checklists; hospitality health, safety and environmental sanitation (HSE) operational standards.

James stated that one of the major determinants of the success of the tourism industry in the level of compliance with health and safety guidelines by the local businesses in the tourism sector. She stated that the GTA, as part of its new strategies, intends to increase enforcement and monitoring of these businesses. Representatives of the GTA will be dispatched to conduct monitoring to ensure that all COVID-19 protocols are followed.

“We will continue to

Proceed with ...

ASSESS THE SITUATION First and foremost, Dr. Bux stressed the need for persons to assess the situation before running to provide assistance.

“Scan for threats such as fires, exposed wires and fuel leaks…then if there is no need for immediate action, a call should be placed promptly to emergency services,” the doctor said.

He explained that even though Guyana’s EMS is not as advanced as many would hope, it has still successfully

provided assistance to thousands of Guyanese.

“As it is, we have three ambulances serving the East Bank of Demerara,” Dr. Bux noted.

When one attempts to become a licensed driver, he or she is required to take a theoretical course, followed by a driving practical. In the lectures, potential drivers are briefed on providing first aid.

It is encouraged that priority assistance be given to those who are conscious, especially if they are bleeding.

In this case, stopping the

bleed becomes the most critical task. As it relates to unconscious victims, it is important to check for breathing and give Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), or as is commonly known in Guyana, ‘mouth-to-mouth respiration.’ If a Good Samaritan does not know how to perform CPR, he or she is advised against even attempting it, since it can cause the victim more injuries.

OVER-THE-PHONE ASSISTANCE Asked about the avail-

ability of over-the-phone assistance by trained professionals to untrained responders, Dr. Bux said that this is a component of the EMS that is being examined, and is likely to be implemented as the service expands.

“As it is, the service is new and most of our EMTs are quite young, so we still have to bring them to a standard where they are able to give assistance on the phone, and not just when they get to a scene,” Dr. Bux told the Sunday Chronicle.

The EMS Director said

FROM PAGE

monitor tourism businesses to verify that they are compliant with the protocols that they have committed to, based on the inspection process. Additionally, we are going to increase enforcement to hold all businesses accountable, because that is the only way that we can continue to keep our workforce safe, our communities safe and of course our travellers safe,” said James.

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that the plan is to provide coverage to Guyana’s road population, with adequate staff and resources to be able to respond within 15 minutes to any accident scene along the country’s major carriageways.

“I sometimes fantasise about the day when every Guyanese can have emergency access to paramedics anywhere in Guyana by calling the emergency hotline.

I am still optimistic we will get there and I’ll do all that I can to achieve this goal,” Dr. Bux said.

As for the hinterland regions, air and water ambulances remain most effective.

“That process needs a more collaborative effort, but we have the technical know-how to support such a system,” Dr. Bux added.

He said that with the emergence of a thriving oiland-gas sector, Guyana’s developments are likely to be rapid, making the need for an effective EMS system even more obvious. Dr. Bux is optimistic that Guyana can still have National EMS coverage by 2025.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Improved plan for delivering health services coming soon …as draft comprehensive health plan being reviewed

By Vishani Ragobeer THOUGH the COVID-19 pandemic demands much

of the health sector’s attention, the myriad of other health issues should not be neglected and that is why

focus has been directed to the creation of a Comprehensive Health Plan, according to Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony.

“We have a draft (of the health plan) that was done and the directors of the (Health Ministry) have been going through and adding comments to it,” Dr. Anthony said during a recent interview with the Sunday Chronicle.

This plan, the minister explained, covers many sub-sectors with the local health sector. Much focus has been directed to Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, cancer and hypertension. According to the Health Ministry’s Strategic Plan for NCD Prevention and Control (2013 - 2020), which was done under former Minister of Health, Dr. Bheri Ramsaran, statistics show that NCDs accounted for over 60 per cent of deaths amongst males and over 70 per cent of deaths amongst females in 2009. In 2020, the Pan-American Health Organisation’s (PAHO)’s NCDs progress monitor for Guyana stated that 4,400 deaths (or 68 per cent of all deaths) were caused by NCDs. Previously, the Health Minister told this newspaper that many efforts have been made over the years to tackle

Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony

the prevalence of various types of cancers in Guyana but much more work is still needed. Key areas in need of improvement include screening capabilities with a focus on pathology in order to classify the cancers and stage them; laboratory capabilities and the type and quality of treatment offered (such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy). And, of course, greater focus has to be placed on preventive measures.

Another key focus of this plan will be on infectious diseases, including those neglected diseases such as Lymphatic Filariasis (commonly called filaria).

“We’re trying to cover the range of activities we do in the Ministry and so forth and to ensure that we put different plans and programmes to handle those,” Dr. Anthony emphasised.

RESEARCH NECESSARY Aside from improving the existing services offered in treating and preventing health issues, the minister emphasised that it is imperative that the healthcare sector takes a more proactive approach to focus on those sectors that have not been traditional priorities.

Health research will be

one area that much more focus will be placed on, cognisant that clinical and programmatic research are crucial components of improving the local standards in health. This will allow for better approaches to healthcare and better monitoring and evaluation of health programmes.

Research into the interventions for the NCDs that will be included in the comprehensive health plan could allow the ministry to analyse how successful these efforts are and how they can be improved in the future, for example. A greater focus on research could also allow Guyana to contribute to the medical field regionally and internationally.

While the Ministry is currently focused on preparing for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines and the further management of the coronavirus, further scrutiny of this health plan will be done this month.

Dr. Anthony ascertained that the improvements to the services offered in the health sector would be made this year.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Over 400 complaints received

by Consumer Affairs Unit

By Richard Bhainie THE Consumer Affairs Unit (CAU) of the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission has so far received 434 complaints for 2020, and so far, 44 per cent of those matters have been resolved.

During a recent interview with the Sunday Chronicle, Rusante Perry, an economist at the Consumer Affairs Unit, related that the low rate of resolving/addressing the complaints is largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and ongoing negotiations between the Commission and suppliers.

In comparison to the previous year, there is a decline rate of 24.6 per cent as it relates to complaints received by the Commission, as there were 576 complaints received in 2019; there is a 16 per cent decline in resolution rates.

Perry explained that the pandemic has hindered the Commission’s operations.

“Usually, we have a lot of in-house meetings; also, we would visit the supplier’s locations and all of that. However, because of COVID-19, we have been restricted,” Perry explained.

She added: “We had a lot of complaints against LIAT that are yet to be resolved.

Lately, they would have stated their intention to resume their service, so we are still

in contact, as it relates to what are they going to do to resolve these queries for consumers.”

During 2020, the Commission received complaints against defective items; airlines, specifically in relation to LIAT; suppliers failing to respond to consumers; and supplier’s failure to deliver products and services.

“For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, where persons would have paid for a wedding hall or decorating services but were not able to keep events, that’s the nature of the complaints,” Perry explained SUCCESS IN ADVOCACY The Commission has embarked on an extensive campaign aimed at increasing awareness in relation to consumer rights and responsibilities. In 2018, the Consumer Affairs Unit received 282 complaints, which spiked in 2019 at 576. And even though the rate declined in 2020, there are more complaints in 2020 than there were in 2018.

Perry explained that the increase of cases from 2018 to now is credited to the increased advocacy and public awareness of the Commission. The Commission has been running a social media campaign to reach persons far and wide, as well as a radio

“Another topic that we know causes a lot of stir would be warranty; we have been advising consumers to demand six months warranty,” Perry said, adding: “As a consumer, something that you have to find out from the supplier is how much warranty they are providing; if it’s less than six months, then you should demand, in a polite manner, six months.”

Rusante Perry, an economist at the Consumer Affairs Unit, Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission

programme on Wednesdays and Fridays, which has seen positive feedback from consumers.

“Through social media, we have been able to reach more persons. And most persons are surprised to know their rights, because persons think in Guyana, you can’t do returns or refunds, so they receive the information very well, knowing that should they purchase something,

and they have any issue, there is somewhere they can go to seek redress,” Perry explained.

The Commission has placed special emphasis on the importance of collecting receipts, as it is not only a vital part for the consumer in their transactions, but for the Commission as well, since proof of purchase must be submitted for an investigation to commence.

COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE When a consumer approaches the Consumer Affairs Unit, they are required to file a written complaint, or they can also utilise the option of filing that complaint Online. Once the Commission receives the complaint, it is reviewed to ensure that the supplier is contravening a section of the Consumer Protection legislation.

Upon verification of the breach of the legislation, the matter is passed on to the investigator, who would further review the complaint to assess whether fault is attributed to the supplier, the manufacturer, or is due to the consumer’s negligence.

“A lot of the complaints, for example, which involves a defective product, we would hire an independent expert to do a diagnosis.

Once that diagnosis is completed, we would then be able to resolve that issue,” Perry

explained.

Perry noted that in some cases where suppliers fail to comply with the Commission after intensive investigation and correspondence with the suppler, the complaint is forwarded to the Board of Commissioners for a hearing.

Once the hearing is concluded, a ruling is served, with which the supplier is required to comply; if there is still non-compliance, then the case is sent to the court.

Perry explained that the Commission is also trying to get suppliers on board, so that they are aware of their responsibilities and duties.

The Consumer Affairs Unit (CAU) of the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission is charged with the Legal mandate of administering and enforcing the Consumer Affairs Act #13 of 2011 (CAA), with purview of durable goods and services.

The Consumer Affairs Act protects consumers from being unfairly treated by businesses, and also provides a legal framework which businesses can utilise to pattern their modus operandi after.

Their advocacy campaigns focuses on educating consumers in relation to their rights and responsibilities, such as their right to return, refund, safety, choice, installation, to be heard, and most importantly, their right of redressal.

Over 1,000 received legal aid services THE Guyana Legal Aid Clinic (GLAC) has provided legal aid services to 1,433 persons, between the period of January to September, 2020, in relation to a wide range of both civil and criminal matters.

Of the 1,433 individuals who benefitted from the services (advice only and advice along with representation), 208 were from Region Two; 1,086 from Region Four; 31 from Region Five and 108 from Region Six. The spectrum of civil matters included areas of divorce, domestic violence, estates, personal injury, and

property disputes with 186 civil matters dealt with in Region Two; 1,012 in Region Four; 31 in Region Five and 96 in Region Six. The legal aid clinic also saw a high number of divorce matters, with 684 individuals across the four regions being interviewed, all of whom advice and representation were rendered to.

In relation to criminal matters, services were offered for offences inclusive of assault, disorderly behaviour, murder/manslaughter, narcotics possession, robbery and theft; 22 matters were addressed in Region 2;

74 in Region Four and 12 in Region Six. There were no criminal matters dealt with in Region Five for the period.

Of the 22 criminal matters dealt with, nine pertained to murder/manslaughter cases, eight in relation to rape/carnal knowledge and 21 in relation to robbery and theft. Two individuals, who applied for legal aid during the period, were deemed ineligible.

The Guyana Legal Aid Clinic is a non-governmental, not for profit organisation that provides legal aid to persons who cannot afford to retain legal representation.

The clinic assists clients facing criminal charges and most civil matters in the Court of Appeal, the High Court and most magistrate’s courts.

A means test is used to determine eligibility for either free or subsidised legal aid services. Both financial and substantive eligibility criteria must be satisfied for eligibility. If upon assessment, someone is considered unable to afford to pay anything towards legal aid services (and satisfy the substantive eligibility criteria), they will be provided with same free of charge.

Where, if assessed as being able to pay something towards their legal services, a client will be asked to make a contribution by making a down payment and/ or monthly payments. If someone is deemed ineligible for legal aid but would still require assistance, the GLAC refers the individual to a private practitioner who may be willing to take on the case for a reduced fee.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the clinic is only open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9:00hrs to 12:00hrs.

The GLAC has of-

fices in four regions: the Georgetown office is located at First Floor, eastern section, Maraj Building, Lot 185 Charlotte and King Streets, Georgetown; the Essequibo office is located in the RDC compound at Anna Regina; the West Coast Berbice office is located in the RDC compound, Fort Wellington, West Coast Berbice and the East Berbice/Corentyne office is located in the RDC compound, Vryman’s Erven, New Amsterdam, Berbice.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

A troubled political marriage that traumatised Guyana THERE is an adage, when tweaked, that says some political parties stay in a marriage because of the ceremonial feeling of togetherness, to enjoy perks and power extravagance. In the copious chambers of psychology, such a behavioral position is diagnosed as cognitive tunneling, meaning that individuals are too internally focused on what they want, and not on the wider aspects of that want.

Put differently, it is a situation whereby one is concentrating on the trees, and in so doing, misses the benefits of the whole forest.

The above vignette applies to the APNU+AFC coalition, when both political parties joined hands on Valentine’s Day in 2015 to work together to compete in the general elections of that year. Undoubtedly, it was a glorious and graceful occasion that

thousands of Guyanese were waiting for, to address the cynosure of one-party domination in Guyana: 28 and 22 years of PNC and PPP rule, respectively. The politically-arranged marriage of convenience between APNU and AFC captured the imagination of Guyanese, and made an enormous impact on Guyana’s ossified voting pattern. It was historic, as Guyanese, for the first time, voted mostly on issues rather than on race and ethnic loyalty. The APNU+AFC coalition slipped into power, based on the former sentiments, with a razor-thin majority, and the march towards a change, as outlined and perfected on the campaign trail, appeared existential.

Then, within months of the APNU+AFC coalition assuming power, we realised that the coalition’s idea of change in the style and substance of leadership from the tumultuous past was different and delusional from what Guyanese had hoped for.

Instead of greasing the wheels of fair governance for all, as promised, the Coalition embarked on a journey of self-gratification and self-destruction, marrying the proviso of malfeasance. Space limits me to provide a full list, but jobs for loyalists (cronyism), the hiding of the US$18 million signing bonus (corruption), large and expensive celebrations (jamboree), the good life for all Guyanese (grandiloquence), closing of the sugar estates with no remorse (schadenfreude), uncontrolled spending (recklessness), the removal of opposition employees from important posts (witch-hunting), and the use of the State security services to achieve targeted objectives (parastatal), will suffice.

To understand why the pendulum swung from popularity to pomposity within the first year of APNU+AFC administration, it is instructive to examine the political factory that produced these individuals who joined hands to form the Coalition, and the situation that was created and allowed for it to flourish. First off, the individuals within the Coalition, from the PNC, were couched during the dark days of Forbes Burnham’s paramountcy of party, who believed that the mantle of leadership should be administered on the axis of diktat, command and control, an antiquated form of bureaucratic authoritarianism so common among tin-pot dictators of banana republics in the 1980s. We know this not only because the head honcho had paid repeated homage to Forbes Burnham’s “heroism”, but he had also asked a few rabble rousers in the AFC to goosestep with him. Those from the AFC were mainly a ragtag of so-called middle-class individuals who had severed ties with the PNC and the PPP, and who believed that they were wronged by the said parties, but were convinced they could be the Third Force of change Guyana desperately needed. In short, these were over-ambitious and pantomime politicians.

The PNC, which later became APNU, and the AFC, therefore, came together on the mutuality of interest to unseat the PPP from power. In so doing, they were successful in receiving the needed votes to hand them a victory, although the results of the 2015 general elections have now raised a red flag, given the deceit surrounding the

2020 general elections. Something else of substance also occurred. The Coalition had missed the opportunity to consolidate and even mend the ingrained differences among themselves to move Guyana forward. The idea of internal party-building was never on stream. I am flabbergasted by the thought that there was not anyone in the regular Cabinet meetings who remotely believed that inter-party building within a Coalition was a prerequisite for nation-building. It is logical to think that the initiative of uniformity would have been a high priority, since the Coalition was formed merely three months before the election, not to mention the open disapproval of the AFC supporters to form a Coalition with the stained PNC. Instead, the Coalition moved with supersonic speed to conceal crackpot characteristics, as evidenced by the fact the leaders of both parties within the Coalition hardly faced the public and press jointly.

The second point I want to stress is that the Coalition miscalculated the power of the PPP opposition, believing that the PPP would remain on the other side of the political fence. Apart from the Coalition’s vain-glorious posturing, the display of fragmented leadership and “mistakes” by the Coalition played into the hands of the PPP opposition. Consistent pressure from the PPP, via press conferences, print, and social media was instrumental in mobilising the return of supporters who had left to join the AFC, and to bridge the inter-generation gap of those who knew, and those who had heard of PNC excesses. The stage was set for the development of critical thinkers to have a field day, revealing not only a fragile but loose political marriage. To be continued. (lomarsh.roopnarine@ jsums.edu).

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

The Science of COVID-19 Acute kidney injury: Causes, treatment and prevention

By Dr. Haimchand Barran MMSc Internal Medicine/ Infectious Diseases Fellowship -- Nephrology Nephrology Department -- GPHC

AS mentioned in last week’s article, and by way of introduction again, COVID-19 predominantly affects individuals between 30 and 79 years of age, with 81 percent of cases being classified as mild.

Some patients with COVID-19 have displayed kidney damage through acute kidney injury (AKI), mild proteinuria (protein in the urine), hematuria (blood in the urine), or slight elevation in creatinine (blood marker testing for kidney function), possibly as consequence of kidney tropism of the virus and multiorgan failure.

The impact of COVID-19 on patients with pre-existing kidney impairment, including those with chronic kidney disease (CKD), kidney transplant recipients, and individuals on hemodialysis (HD) has not yet been clearly established.

Renal (kidney) involvement in COVID-19 (coronavirus-nephropathy) has a complex etiology (causes).

AKI in COVID-19 is strongly associated with higher mortality and morbidity and is an indicator for survival with coronavirus infection.

According to a prospective cohort study, 44 percent of COVID-19 patients had proteinuria and 27 percent had hematuria at hospital admission, while five percent of patients experienced AKI during in-hospital. Patients with kidney disease had a significantly higher risk of death.

CAUSES Most cases of AKI are caused by reduced blood flow to the kidneys, usually in someone who's already unwell with another health condition.

This reduced blood flow could be caused by low blood volume after bleeding, excessive vomiting or diarrhoea, or severe dehydration; the heart pumping out less blood than normal as a result of heart failure, liver failure, or sepsis; problems with the blood vessels -- such as inflammation and blockage in the blood

ful waste, extra salt and water, may be needed.

PREVENTION Those at risk of AKI should be monitored with regular blood tests if they become unwell or start new medication. It's also useful to check how much urine you're passing.

Any warning signs of AKI, such as vomiting or producing little urine, require immediate investigation for AKI and treatment. People who are dehydrated, or at risk

Dr. Haimchand Barran

vessels within the kidneys (a rare condition called vasculitis); or certain medicines that can affect the blood supply to the kidney -- other medicines may cause unusual reactions in the kidney itself.

AKI can also be caused by a problem with the kidney itself, such as glomerulonephritis. This may be caused by a reaction to some drugs, infections, or the liquid dye used in some types of X-rays or CT scans.

It may also be the result of a blockage affecting the drainage of the kidneys, such as an enlarged prostate; a tumour in the pelvis, such as an ovarian or bladder tumour; or kidney stones.

A doctor may suspect AKI if you're in an "at risk" group and suddenly fall ill or get symptoms of AKI, which is usually diagnosed with a blood test to measure your levels of creatinine, a chemical waste product produced by the muscles.

If there's a lot of creatinine in your blood, it means your kidneys are not working as well as they should. You may also be asked to give a urine sample and an ultrasound scan of your kidneys may be done to look for any blockages.

Urine can be tested for protein, blood cells, sugar and

waste products, which may give clues to the underlying cause. Doctors also need to know about any other symptoms, such as signs of sepsis or signs of heart failure, any other medical conditions, or any medication that's been taken in the past week, as some medicines can cause AKI. An ultrasound scan should reveal if the cause is a blockage in the urinary system, such as an enlarged prostate or bladder tumour.

TREATMENT Treatment of AKI depends on what's causing your illness and how severe it is.

You may need to increase your intake of water and other fluids if you're dehydrated, use antibiotics if you have an infection, stop taking certain medicines (at least until the problem is sorted), or undergo a procedure with a urinary catheter -- a thin tube used to drain the bladder if there's a blockage.

Most people with AKI make a full recovery, but some people go on to develop chronic kidney disease or long-term kidney failure as a result.

In severe cases, dialysis, where a machine filters the blood to rid the body of harm-

of dehydration, may need to be given fluids through a drip.

Any medicine that seems to be making the problem worse or directly damaging the kidneys needs to be stopped, at least temporarily.

The most serious complications of acute kidney injury are high levels of potassium in the blood -- in severe cases, this can lead to muscle weakness, paralysis and heart rhythm problems; fluid in the lungs (pulmonary oedema); and acidic blood (metabolic acidosis) -- which can cause

nausea, vomiting, drowsiness and breathlessness.

In next week’s article, we will move on to look at two other aspects of AKI, namely, proteinuria (protein in the urine) and hematuria (blood in the urine).

This article is submitted as part of the Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 public information and education programme. For questions, email ministersecretaryhealth@gmail.com.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Persons cleared to make outstanding payments for house lots ––Housing Minister says allocations will proceed once lands aren’t disputed

By Navendra Seoraj THE Ministry of Housing and Water had put a hold on accepting payments for some lands which were distributed prior to August 2020, but Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal, has said that the ministry, after careful consideration and analysis has

given the “green light” for allottees to make or complete payments for land allocated to them.

The ministry, in August, had put a hold on receiving payments for lands, following complaints by allottees that they feel duped out of their earnings for lands they were still to identify. It was reported that initial checks

into those allocations revealed that some of the lands were not owned by the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), and, in some cases, did not have proper infrastructure in place for housing.

A review of those allocations was completed, and, according to Minister Croal, some of the underlying issues

were addressed, so persons are free to make and complete payments.

Lands which were allocated by the former A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) government during the early part of this year, were owned either by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments

Minister of Housing and Water Collin Croal

Limited (NICIL), the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC) or the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

“We had to do a review of what was happening. We had to assess in terms of where allocations were done, what lands we may need, what we may need to look at and those type of things…we had a hold on payments for some areas, but there is no hold-up on payments.

“They can complete payments. In fact, it has been so for a while and for areas where we have no issues with for which allocations were done, that continues,” Minister Croal told the Sunday Chronicle.

Access to adequate housing is viewed as a basic human right and is considered to be an integral factor for the enjoyment of other economic, social and cultural rights. And, with Guyana’s economy poised to quadruple in the coming years, the government will be moving to ensure that its people, especially from the low and middle-income brackets, have access to adequate housing.

Housing units will eventually be constructed across all administrative regions, and authorities are already working to identify and acquire lands for this purpose.

The ministry of housing and water continues to engage NICIL, GL&SC and GuySuCo on the acquisition of land.

“As we get more clearance, we will continue allocations… this is an ongoing process based on the availability of land, as well as infrastructure works,” Minister Croal said.

The ministry has so far made allocations of land in Regions Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Four (Demerara-Mahaica) and Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).

For Region Three, 1,500 allocations were made for lands in five areas including

Cornelia Ida, Anna Catherina, Edingburg, Meten-MeerZorg, and Stewartville.

In Region Four, persons secured land in Bladen Hall, Vigilance, Strathspey, Annandale, LBI, Cummings Lodge, and Great Diamond and Little Diamond; and in Region Six, over 300 allocations were made for land in Number 75 Village, 79 Village, Ordinance-Fortlands, Hampshire and Williamsburg.

In their 2020 elections manifesto, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had committed to distributing some 50,000 house lots within their first five years in office, disaggregating this into 10,000 house lots per year.

“I am happy to report we achieved 3,600 allocations; we had set a target actually of 3,000 for our first four months for 2020, so that we can do 7,000 next year, so that we can meet our 10,000 target. So, I am very pleased to report that we have surpassed that target by allocating 3,600 for 2020,” Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water Susan Rodrigues said recently.

Rodrigues reiterated the government’s commitment to keeping their manifesto promise, with the ministry categorising applicants, and giving priority to persons who have been waiting for a long time.

Minister Croal has said that with approximately 70,000 applications for housing in the CH&PA’s system, the ministry is actively looking at ways of addressing the backlog, even as the number of applications continues to grow with new applicants daily.

It was reported that the ministry is seeking U.S.$250 million (approximately G$52.5 billion) in financing to support its housing-development plans for the next five years.

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE, January 3, 2021

Labourer chopped to death POLICE have arrested several persons in connection with the murder of 58-yearold Arjunan Andiappan, known as “Keks”, who was beaten and chopped by a group of men on December 31, 2020 at Wallace Street, East Canje Berbice.

Andiappan was a labourer of Kalabash Creek, in Canje Creek, Berbice. He died at the New Amsterdam Public Hospital at around 01:30h on January 1, 2021, hours after the incident.

His sister, Tangachee Balgobin, told the Sunday Chronicle that he took some food from her at around noon on Thursday and then left for Wallace Street; on his way back to her, he was allegedly chopped and beaten to the head.

The mother of one of the suspects rushed him to the hospital.

“The woman said she is going to take him to the hospital but I said no is my brother. I came back home to get dressed and by the time I reach back, she already took him.

“When I walking out the street, them done come back from the hospital but he [was] still bleeding, so I [went] to the Reliance [Police] Station and they give me a form to give them doctors, but when I reach, a nurse tell me the doctors done take care of him and

Grieving sister, Tangachee Balgobin

stitch him and they can’t do nothing, [so] let I bring him home back.”

The sister said when he

Father of two dies in New Year’s Day accident A twenty-seven-year old father of two was pronounced dead on arrival at the Fort Wellington Hospital, after he lost control of his car and crashed into a fence in the wee hours of January 1, 2021, on the #42 Public Road, West Coast Berbice (WCB).

Dead is Parmanand Kalamadeen called “Bujoo”, of Woodley Park, WCB. The accident occurred at around 04:00h. The Sunday Chronicle understands that Kalamudeen, a taxi driver, was proceeding east along the northern lane at a fast rate of speed in his motor car, HC 8700, when he lost control and slammed into a fence on the southern side of the road.

Kalamadeen sustained severe injuries and was rushed to the Fort Wellington Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival; his family remains in a state of shock.

His wife, 22-year-old Noreena John, is expected to give birth to their third child sometime this week. John said a relative telephoned her and related the tragic news.

She explained that Kalamadeen received a telephone call at around 02:00h to take a passenger to Georgetown and so he left home.

“I last saw him around 02:00h and we gaffed a little

Dead: Parmanand Kalamadeen

and laugh then he get a call to go Georgetown and he went. I never expect to hear this,” a grieving John told this newspaper.

Meanwhile, Kalamadeen’s mother, Jacqueline O’Neil, 45, remains in a state of disbelief upon learning of his death; he was her eldest child.

“When I saw him lie down in the mortuary, I couldn’t believe. I say before he been dead is best me dead cause I know what kind of son meh get. He never cuss me or stew he teeth on me but God love he that’s why he take him. He’s a very loving person; don’t drink, smoke or fight,” the mother said through tears.

Kalamadeen leaves to mourn his wife and children, ages five and two.

arrived home with her brother, his wounds began to bleed profusely.

She rushed him back to the New Amsterdam Hospital and at around 18:00h, she realised he became weak and was still bleeding from the wound to the head.

He subsequently succumbed to his injuries at around 01:30h on New Year’s Day. The incident has left relatives in a state of

shock and anger at both the hospital staff and the suspects.

“When they took him first, if they had admit him and treat him, I think he could had a chance to survive or when I take him back the second time when they refuse me, because he was bleeding but the nurses said the doctors already stitch him and they can’t do nothing.”

Balgobin noted that while her brother was a habitual drinker, he was a peaceful person and so she has no idea what might have triggered the men to murder him.

She noted that her bother lived and worked in Kalabash Creek and only came to spend time with them for the New Year. Police investigations are ongoing.

Dead: Arjunan Andiappan

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Georgetown seal Bounce Back Football title on ref’s decision

ON New Year’s night what started as an evenly matched encounter developed into a see-saw battle then was marred by a referee’s poor decisions as Georgetown All Stars claimed the final win of the Bounce Back Football tournament.

The event, which was a collaboration of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS) and the Kashif and Shanghai Organisation (K&S), saw the eventual victors defeat Linden 1-0 compliments of a Kelsey Benjamin goal.

After two nights of action, Benjamin was adjudged the Most Valuable Player (MVP) and also picked up the Highest Goalscorer’s award.

Meanwhile, Linden custodian Sese Norville claimed the Best Goalkeeper and Best Young Player awards.

For their winning efforts, Georgetown carted off with $1M while the runners-up pocketed $500 000.

Friday night’s match started promptly at 18:00hrs with Linden playing their usual composed football which often halted the opposition rushing format of play.

As time progressed opportunities gracefully presented itself but neither side successfully capitalised.

Both sides found the back of the net in the first half but they were offside-influenced and thus ruled out.

In the second half with the scores deadlocked at nil, it started to become evident that the on-field referee Sherwin Johnson began to blow some questionable calls.

He rounded off his poor calling with a terrible deci-

sion to ignore his linesman from a clear foul and play the advantage aspect.

At this point, Georgetown launched an almost unchallenged counterattack as several of the Linden side were appealing the foul because the linesman’s flag was up.

That attack allowed the stumbling Benjamin to bury his effort past first post after storming down the left flank.

Even after the goal was scored, Lindeners tried to appeal but Johnson was not having any complaints. He armed himself with the yellow card and seemed content to issue fouls until the issue ironed itself out.

According to the job description of a linesman, all decisions by the assistant referees are only advisory to the referee; their decisions are not binding and the referee is allowed to overrule an assistant.

That sequence in play obviously daunted the spirits of the Linden side who were completely controlling the match.

Johnson’s calls became more relaxed following that incident.

After that lone goal in the 69th minute, Linden began stepping up their attack but were unfortunate to not find the equaliser even with some threatening chances near goal.

When the regulation time whistle sounded the victory seemed shallow for the winners from their joyless actions.

Meanwhile, the tournament collaborators, who garnered support from ExxonMobil, Mohamed’s Enterprise, Japarts, Trophy Stall, KFC and other entities, expressed their gratitude at the event’s presentation ceremony.

WIPA backs health ... youngsters to tour if I was not 100 per cent certain that the protocols were in place.

“Cricket West Indies are sending a doctor to ensure and enforce all the protocols so we have no real concerns.

We expect everything will be adhered to and therefore we feel very comfortable that the guys will be protected.”

Selectors have been forced to pull together a second string side for the ODI and Test tours, with seasoned opener Kraigg Brathwaite asked to lead the Test unit and Trinidadian Jason Mohammed recalled for the first time in nearly three years to captain the ODI squad.

There are also several uncapped players in both sides and while Lewis admitted to being surprised by the number of withdrawals for the tour, he said it was an opportunity for many of the younger players to stake their claim.

“It’s unprecedented that so many players have opted out of one tour. We’ve seen … even [for the tour of New Zealand] three players opted not to go … [and] there were some players who refused to tour England as well for the first time when the team went to England,” Lewis said.

“But I didn’t expect that

TURN TO BACK PAGE

number [for the tour of Bangladesh] so I am kind of surprised by that but … they have the right to not tour.

If they think their health is at risk and they don’t want to trust what we negotiated and what we agreed on and they think they feel vulnerable and they’d like to opt out of the tour, it’s their right to do that.

“Cricket West Indies have always said, and I’m reiterating the point, it would not go against the player if they choose to not tour and so far it has worked. I haven’t seen where any player has been disenfranchised for opting out of a tour.”

He continued: “I’m very philosophical about these things. Last time the strongest West Indies team we could have selected went to Bangladesh and we were destroyed.

It’s an opportunity for younger players to get an opportunity to establish themselves and try to hold on to this opportunity that has been given to them.

“On that basis I am very hopeful and excited for them, [I’m] hopeful they will do well and give a good account of themselves and play with the passion that lovers of cricket have always asked for.”

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Kane Williamson: Simple values, element of consistency behind NZ Test dominance

KANE Williamson has started the new year as the No.1 Test batsman and his New Zealand side could become the new No.1 Test team if they beat Pakistan in the second Test in Christchurch.

Williamson, though, downplayed those thoughts, saying such landmarks won’t distract the team in their last Test this home summer.

“Every game you play, every Test you play, any opportunity to win a Test you want to take, but to get into those positions naturally there is just so much hard work, from the first period of play to perhaps late in the match, so for us that’s the focus,” Williamson said on the eve of the Christchurch Test.

When asked if he ever wondered if he would become the top-ranked Test batsman captaining a po-

tentially top-ranked team, Williamson credited New Zealand’s core group that has evolved over the years since he made his Test debut in Ahmedabad in 2010.

“I suppose when you start out as a young player, you want to find your feet and get an understanding for the group that you’re in,” Williamson said. “I guess anybody that gets an opportunity to play one Test for his country or any format perhaps … I think there’s something special about Test (cricket) and wearing that baggy is such an amazing thing and one that you certainly never assume.

Whenever that time comes or if that time comes, it’s just a complete surprise and a fantastic moment to perhaps fast-forward to a number of years and the focus changes from first Test

to being involved in a group, a fairly consistent group for such a number of years.

competitive at times, but certainly not all the time,” Williamson said. “And the

Kane Williamson recently became the world's No. 1 Test batsman (AFP via Getty Images)

And trying to be part of moving that team forward is a different focus and really enjoyable challenge to be involved in.

“Looking back, we were

team has come a long way in terms of bringing an element of consistency mainly to their behaviours, which I think has been really important, simple values which are important to

Runs hit 133-year low in Australia Test summer

(AAP) - Not since Test c r i c k e t ’s e a r l y d a y s of Fred Spofforth and George Lohmann some 130 years ago have batsmen found the going so tough in Australia.

For so long a haven for batsmen on flat and hard pitches, for once it is a battle dominated by ball as Australia and India share the series after the first two Vodafone Tests this summer.

The average run per wicket this summer is just 21.50 - the lowest in any Australian summer since way back in 1887-88.

It’s a far cry from the mark of 34.01 when David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne dominated Pakistan and New Zealand last summer, or even the 30.03 from when India toured two years ago.

Run-rates are down too, with the scoring rate of 2.63 the slowest of any summer this century.

All this in a time when limits on shining balls and banning the use of saliva, due to COVID-19, were meant to make things harder for the bowlers.

Yet somehow, all three of Australia’s quicks are averaging under 20.

“If you look at both teams, both teams have really struggled to get this scoreboard rattling along,” Australia’s assistant coach Andrew McDonald said.

“So for me that’s good planning, good bowling execution, but also the surfaces have lent themselves to slower play.

for intriguing Test match cricket.”

Planning does account for much of that after the teams faced off in Australia just two years ago.

India have targeted Steve Smith’s leg stump and shown he is human with just 10 runs across four innings.

Test bowlers are partying like it’s the 1880s, with Australia and India’s batsmen enduring the toughest summer in Australia in 133 years

“They left some grass on it which allowed some movement and some swing.

“There haven’t been what we normally now assume to be flat, Australian conditions in the first two Test matches.

“I hope the surface in Sydney lends itself to having the ball at certain stages being able to dominate the bat. That makes

The same tactic has largely been employed to Labuschagne, who passed 50 in seven of eight innings last summer, but is yet to post a half-century in four this season.

India’s batting meanwhile showed a great deal of resilience in Melbourne to bounce back from their 36 all out in Adelaide, but Ajinkya Rahane’s 112 is

still the only hundred of the series for both teams.

The tourists’ wall from two summers ago, Cheteshwar Pujara, is finding it just as challenging, with Pat Cummins having removed him three times.

Pujara has scored just 63 runs across four innings, while his 243 balls faced is less than he soaked up in his first innings alone on the last tour.

But in that instance, Cummins said it was more about placing a value on patience after doing it tough in 2018-19 rather than extravagant scheming.

“It’s just trying to bowl good balls and make him make a decision to play or leave it and do it for as long as we can,” Cummins said.

“Fortunately it has come off so far pretty early in his innings, so long may it continue.”

Lowest-scoring Test summers in Australia 1887-88: 9.35 runs per wicket 1886-87: 12.30 1878-79: 18.26 1876-77: 18.89 1882-83: 20.78 2020-21: 21.50

our group and to Kiwis, simple things we want to commit to day-in day-out.

“That doesn’t always reflect in the performance being perfect - very rarely is it perfect - but certainly it can help a team grow, and it has contributed to the team moving in that direction. But, here we are now on the eve of another game, where anything can happen. It’s about peeling it back and focussing on what’s important to the group and keep looking at the bigger picture and how we can hopefully continue to trend in the right direction, facing the challenges that we continue to face.”

About six years ago, Brendon McCullum’s ODI side turned a rugby-mad nation into a cricket-loving country with their barnstorming performances in the 2015 World Cup

at home. Now, Williamson’s Test team is on the verge of something special in their own backyard, and he hoped that the Kiwi public would be pleased with their success.

“Yeah, I hope they’re enjoying watching it and those sort of things,” Williamson said. “For us, it’s important we play to the best of our ability as much as we can. This game that we play is fickle and doesn’t always happen like that and winning Test matches are very tough. We certainly respect that and we know how challenging it is against any international opposition.

So, we want to keep starting again and commit to what’s important to our group and uphold the behaviours that are important to the team. And we do hope that connects with the Kiwi public.” (Cricinfo)

‘Australians told me to get lost’: Sunil Gavaskar opens up on his infamous MCG walkout in 1981

THE sight of Sunil Gavaskar urging his batting partner Chetan Chauhan to walk off the field after being given out wrongly is etched in the minds of every Indian cricket fan.

For those unaware, here’s what had happened: During a Test match between India and Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in 1981, Gavaskar was given out lbw off a Dennis Lillee delivery when the ball had clearly hit the bat and then the pad.

Miffed at the umpire’s decision, an irate Gavaskar forced his partner Chauhan, who was at the non-striker’s end, to walk off with him before leaving the ground himself fuming with anger.

Years later, speaking to former Australia fast bowler Damien Fleming, Gavaskar, who was the captain of the team back then, opened up on the moment that almost led India to forfeit the match they famously went on to win.

“I got an inside-edge as you can see from the forward short-leg fielder,” Gavaskar told 7Cricket. “He hasn’t done anything, he hasn’t moved. Dennis (Lillee) is telling me, ‘It hit you there,’ and I’m trying to say, ‘No I hit it.’

And now you see, I’ve asked Chetan to walk off with me.”

For years it has been assumed that Gavaskar lost his cool because he was given out wrongly by the umpire.

However, as the former India captain now points out, it wasn’t as much the decision as it was the Australian players constantly mouthing words to Gavaskar.

“The misconception is that I was upset at the lbw decision,” Gavaskar said.

“Yes, it was upsetting. But the walk-off happened only because, as I had gone past Chetan on the way to the change-rooms, the Australians had given me a spray.

They told me to get lost, which is where I’ve come back and asked Chetan to walk off with me.

“But why walk off? The previous day we had this situation where we thought Allan Border had been out three times then after a hundred he’d been bowled round his legs and the umpire started to go towards the square leg umpire to confirm it had happened, and Syed Kirmani said to me, ‘if this is given not out, I’m walking off.’ I said, ‘You can’t do that’. And he said, ‘No, this is questioning my integrity.’ So this word, ‘walk-off’, is there, so the next day when this thing happened, that’s it.”

Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed, thanks to the India’s tour manager Wing Commander Shahid Durrani, who asked Chauhan to stay on the field. India went on to win that Test match by 59 runs thanks to a wonderful 5-28 from Kapil Dev in the fourth innings which bowled Australia out for 83.

However, had it not been for Chauhan’s consistent questioning of Gavaskar’s decision, the MCG Test could have become the first in history to be forfeited/abandoned.

“His reaction was, ‘Are you serious?’” Gavaskar said. “And then as we walked a little further he asked, ‘Are you serious?’

At which point I walked further away from him.

(Hindustan Times)

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SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

Ganguly ‘stable’ and ‘completely conscious’ after undergoing angioplasty

SOURAV Ganguly, the former India captain and current BCCI president, is “stable” and “completely conscious” after undergoing an angioplasty yesterday. Ganguly had been hospitalised in Kolkata after complaining of chest pain, which doctors said was a heart attack.

ESPNcricinfo learned that Ganguly had felt some “uneasiness” in the morning after doing some exercise, and was subsequently admitted to the nearby Woodlands Hospital where Dr Rupali Basu, the MD & CEO, confirmed that he was undergoing a primary angioplasty.

“Sourav Ganguly has undergone angioplasty. He is stable now. He will be monitored for 24 hours,” Dr Aftab, one of the doctors treating Ganguly, told the media.

“He is completely conscious. There are two blockages in his heart for which he

will be treated. As of now he is stable, we will have a meeting on Monday and then we will decide what needs to be done further. Priority is to let him settle down after heart attack. He is risk-free and he is talking as well.”

earlier this week to discuss the preparations for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy India’s domestic T20 competition - with Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Avishek Dalmiya and secretary Snehashish. Kolkata is among

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Kolkata (Getty Images)

After attending the BCCI AGM recently in Ahmedabad, Ganguly had returned to Kolkata and visited Eden Gardens

the six cities that will host the league stage of the SMA Trophy starting January 10.

Ganguly, who captained

India from 1999 to 2005, took over as the BCCI president in October 2019 after the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) left the board following a period of 33 months.

Ganguly has since then been credited for making India play their inaugural day-night Tests, against Bangladesh at his home ground Eden Gardens, and announcing the introduction of a contacts system for first-class cricketers in India.

Under Ganguly, BCCI has also been seeking approval of the Supreme Court for radical amendments to the board’s constitution, which also includes a proposal to allow Ganguly and Shah to continue in their posts until 2025, effectively bypassing the mandated cooling-off period that was approved by the court itself in 2018. (Cricinfo)

Johnson, Hetmyer to captain teams in first practice match on January 8 … CGI Fitness Assessment set for tomorrow at Leonora track

By Clifton Ross GUYANA Jaguars will ring in 2021 with their first physical assessment of the new year, followed by a few practice games at the new LBI Cricket Ground, as part of their preparations for February’s start to the regional season.

Guyana Jaguars will swiftly commence their training and planning as they prepare to compete in the 2021 CWI Regional Super50 Tournament, which bowls off on February 4 in Antigua and Barbuda. with the six main franchises - Guyana Jaguars, Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, Jamaica Scorpions, Barbados Pride, Windward Islands Hurricanes and Leeward Islands Volcanoes participating.

He will have the services of Chandrapaul Hemraj, Sherfane Rutherford, Kevin Sinclair and other youngsters on his side.

Former West Indies batsman and Jamaica Scorpions franchise player, Assad Fudadin, returns to the Jaguars mix after years away from playing for his home country and will feature on Johnson’s XI. Pacer Clinton Pestano, one of the Jags breakout pacers and leading wicket-taker a few seasons ago in the Super50, also returns to competitive action after recovering from injury last season.

West Indies trio of Romario Shepherd, Veerasammy Permaul and Raymon Reifer will be on West Indies international duties, while the omitted Keemo Paul will be

Kane, Son doing ‘special things’ - Jose Mourinho

LONDON, England (Reuters) - Harry Kane and Son Heung-min are doing “special things” for Tottenham Hotspur this season, manager Jose Mourinho said after the dynamic duo both scored in a 3-0 win over Leeds United that lifted Spurs to third in the Premier League yesterday.

Kane gave his side the lead from the penalty spot - his 10th league goal of the season - then combined with Son who doubled Tottenham’s tally just before halftime.

It was Son’s 100th goal for Tottenham and the 13th time this season that the pair had combined for

a league goal, equalling the whole season record set by Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton for Blackburn Rovers in 1994-95.

Son Heung-min’s effort was the 13th time this season that he and Harry Kane have combined for a goal

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“I think in the Premier League there are many good players everywhere even in clubs where you don’t believe they can have great

ANSWERS TO YESTERDAY’S QUIZ: 46 wickets 164 Tests TODAY’S QUIZ: Who is the only Guyanese to hit a Test debut century overseas to date?

Who is the only Guyanese to snare a Test match hattrick to date??

ANSWERS IN TOMORROW’S ISSUE

players,” Mourinho said.

“But I have to say that Sonny and Harry are doing special things this season.

“They are very good players as you know for many years. I want more goals, especially from other players but today the second goal is great, is also great because it was something we spoke about against a team that defends the way Leeds does.”

While the scoreline rather flattered Tottenham against a Leeds side who enjoyed 64% possession, it snapped a four-game winless sequence in the Premier

League and sent Mourinho’s side back into the top four of the table.

T h e y a re i n t h i r d spot with 29 points from 16 games, four behind joint-leaders Liverpool and Manchester United.

“Of course the result is important. We didn’t play the last match and the run of results in the least few weeks was not good so we needed these three points so we go up a little bit in the table,” Mourinho said.

Tottenham’s game in midweek was postponed after Fulham players tested positive for COVID-19, a decision that Mourinho still found puzzling on the day that three of his own players were condemned for breaking the rules to attend a party.

“I go back to the initial rules of if you have 14 players available you have to play,” Mourinho said. “I don’t see another reason for not doing it.

I think every club does the best for their players to keep them all safe but then there are moments in private lives which you cannot control.

“Not everyone can be blamed so we have to carry on. If somebody has some positives, we have to play.”

Guyana Jaguars players return to live action this week with their practice games set for the LBI Ground

As part of their major prepping, Cricket Guyana Inc. (CGI) recently named two squads who will face each other in a three-match series.

All players named in these squads will be required to participate in Monday’s fitness assessment which gets underway 06:00hrs at the Leonora stadium.

Guyana Jaguars captain Leon Johnson will lead one team while West Indies batsman Shimron Hetmyer, will lead the other unit, as the Jags prepare for some live action ahead of the regional season.

These matches also see the return of a few old players along with a number of upcoming stars within the Jags Academy setup.

Johnson will have the likes of Trevon Griffith, Chris Barnwell, Jonathan Foo and others on his side.

The left-handed Hetmyer who missed out on the Bangladesh tour, now has some time to get himself back into proper playing condition both mentally and physically.

otherwise engaged in cricket duties.

Meanwhile, the first of two practice games bowls off on January 8 with the two remaining games set for 10 and 12.

Hetmyer X1: Chandrapaul Hemraj, Raymond Perez, Kevlon Anderson, Shimron Hetmyer (capt.), Sherfane Rutherford, Akshaya Persaud, Kemol Savory, Bhaskar Yadram, Kevin Snclair, Demitri Cameron, Keon Joseph, Clinton Pestano, Anthony Adams, Vishaul Singh, Mavindra Dindyal, Steven Sankar, Sachin Siingh and Ricardo Adams.

Johnson’s X1: Trevon Griffith, Tevin Imlach, Leon Johnson (capt.), Jonathan Foo, Christopher Barnwell, Assad Fudadin, Anthony Bramble, Quinten Sampson, Gudakesh Motie, Ramaal Lewis, Niall Smith, Ronaldo Alimohamed, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Devendra Bishoo, Andre Stoll, Totaram Bishun, Richie Looknauth, Kelvin Umroa.

27

SUNDAY CHRONICLE January 3, 2021

CWI chief selector Roger Harper responds to LICB ― NCA refutes claims

By Rajiv Bisnauth

C R I C K E T We s t I n d i e s (CWI) chief selector Roger Harper, in his response to the letter from Leeward Islands Cricket Board (LICB), admitted that while statistical performance is very highly weighted among the criteria used for team selection, there are other components that are also seriously considered, and which impact upon the final selection decision of the panel.

The LICB, through its acting CEO, Peter Abraham Jr, has written to Harper, questioning the selection policy of CWI, highlighting specifically the metrics, criteria and standards used to select West Indies Test and ODI squads.

In the letter, the board is also questioning the omission of players – Kieran Powell, Sheno Berridge and Devon Thomas - to the squads for the tour of Bangladesh this month.

To this end, Harper, the former Guyana and West Indies off-spinner claimed in his letter that while the selection panel is aware that the trio

performed very well in CWI’s last Super50 tournament, Powell and Thomas have not yet met the CWI minimum fitness standard.

Roger Harper

“As CEO of the Leeward Islands Cricket Board, I expect that you are aware of CWI’s fitness policy and its requirements. You may recall that earlier this year we strengthened its implementation, and for the first time players were actually omitted from the West Indies team for failure to meet the fitness standard,” Harper stated in his response.

He further added, “Since

then, players who have not met that minimum standard, unless given a medical exemption, have not been selected. We have tried to make it clear to

Carlisle Powell

all concerned that it is the responsibility of each player to attain and maintain at least the minimum standard. According to my information, two of the players mentioned in your letter have not yet met the CWI minimum fitness standard.”

With regard to Berridge, Harper noted that the fast bowler has shown that he has a big heart and he has impressed. Unfortunately,

there was only one fast-bowling spot available with strong competition for that place (the other specialist fast bowling spots were taken by in-

Kieran Powell

cumbents).

“The panel opted to invest further in Chemar Holder who has shown good future potential along with also having had a good last Super50. Please note that selection of our fast bowlers was also impacted by the strategic balance of the squad as influenced by the anticipated local conditions where the tour matches will be played,” he reckoned.

Harper in conclusion acknowledged, “As a past player myself, I can appreciate the players’ disappointment in not gaining selection, especially after returning good statistics just a year ago.

“However, with so much international cricket expected in 2021 and beyond, I would like to encourage all of your players to keep on performing to a very high standard and to ensure that they tick every box in the selection criteria, including fitness”.

Further, the Nevis Cricket Association (NCA) has rubbished Harper’s claim, regarding the non-selection of Powell.

A statement from president of the NCA Carlisle Powell also indicated that Powell was part of the Leeward Islands Hurricanes fitness programme on June 30, where he successfully passed all aspects of the tests, including the yo-yo test.

The NCA president said the tests were under the supervision of coach Stuart Williams and trainer Hance Richards, and at the conclusion there was

no question on the fitness of Powell. The results of the tests were communicated to Mr. Peter Abraham Jr, CEO of the Leeward Islands Cricket Board, shortly thereafter.

“These results and, in particular, as they relate to Kieran Powell ought to have been made known to CWI and their employees as they have an interest in the fitness of all of their players.

Subsequently, we presume Cricket West Indies (CWI) were in receipt of Kieran Powell’s successful fitness test results as Powell was included in a group of probable players that were in consideration for the West Indies tour of Bangladesh as recently as two weeks ago,” the statement further noted.

In the meantime, NCA feels that Powell has met every aspect of the CWI selection policy, and in light of this, NCA expects Harper to correct his damaging public statement made on the lack of fitness of Powell and to retract his statement made on the Mason & Guest Show on December 29.

CWI eyeing brighter 2021 with packed home schedule Mars wins double after copping National Blitz Chess title KINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC) – Cricket West Indies (CWI) is anticipating a financial windfall this year, with four major home tours expected to provide a much-needed injection of money for the cashstrapped Antigua-based body.

Sri Lanka, South Africa, Australia and Pakistan are all expected in the Caribbean later in the year, marking the first home series since Ireland toured for a mixture of One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals last January.

The region had been scheduled to host several home tours in 2020 but the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic forced the entire itinerary to be scrapped.

CWI chief executive Johnny Grave said in the wake of the disappointments last year, 2021 would see an “unprecedented” year where West Indies played nearly all of their cricket at home.

“The big thing that I’m looking forward to financially is the fact this upcoming Bangladesh tour is our last away obligation for 11 months,” Grave said in a television interview here.

“We will after this tour host – after our Super50 Cup – a tour by Sri Lanka, followed

by South Africa, Australia and Pakistan before the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) next year.

“So this is our last away tour obligation (in Bangladesh), and to have four home tours in a year is unprecedented and that will have positive financial implica-

tions and impact on CWI which is well needed.”

The arrival of COVID-19 in the Caribbean first disrupted the first-class championship in March, leaving CWI with little choice but to abort the final two rounds of the competition.

And with the region going into lockdown in the following months, tours by New Zealand in July and South Africa in July and August, had to be postponed.

CWI chief executive, Johnny Grave

Under the current International Cricket Council (ICC) arrangement, only host boards benefit financially from bilateral series and the postponements caused a worsening of the CWI financial position, forcing the institution into salary cuts for players and staff.

Both West Indies men and women undertook international tours, however, with the Test side making history when they faced England in a three-match series to mark the resumption of international cricket following a global lockdown.

The women also toured England for five T20 Interna-

tionals while the men again saw action in New Zealand for three T20 Internationals and a two-Test tour in November and December.

And with the men’s side poised for their third tour amid the ongoing pandemic, Grave said it had been critical for CWI to honour all its international obligations, pertaining to the ICC Test and one-day championships.

“The One-Day Internationals are part of the ICC Super League, which is the qualification process for the next 50-over World Cup which takes place in 2023, and the Test matches are part of the World Test Championship,” Grave pointed out.

“So we had a contractual obligation to fulfil the tours under that programme and clearly once we’ve gone through that robust process to ensure that the players are safe (on overseas tours), we’re duty bound and contracted to tour.

“At the moment, there is no direct financial gain for West Indies to tour Bangladesh or go on any away tour because of the way international cricket is structured.

“So this Bangladesh tour is our last away tour obligation – we would’ve met all of our away tour obligations under that contract that would have been signed along with other Full Members of the ICC.” West Indies leave the region next week for three ODIs and two Tests against Bangladesh, in a tour that runs from January 20 to February 15.

DAVION Mars ended 2020 with back-to-back chess victories. After copping the National Rapid Chess Championships last Sunday, the 25-year-old stormed his way to the National Blitz Chess Championship on Thursday afternoon. Both events were held at the Guyana National Stadium.

I had to understand that while it’s Blitz, with a faster time control, anything could happen. It felt great winning back-to-back titles. For me, though, classical chess is the best because I like to play as accurate as I can.”

Mars said moving forward his hope is to also dominate in classical chess.

Davion Mars (right) makes a move against second place finisher and Junior Blitz champion Keron Sandiford

Meanwhile, Keron Sandiford excelled in the Junior Division to win the Junior Blitz title.

KEEPING HIS COMPOSURE Mars told Chronicle Sport that he was elated to have earned the double, which is a first in his career.

He said he was able to keep his composure and regulate his time in the fast version of the game.

“I approached the Blitz mentally as an isolated event.

Both Rapid and Blitz are faster versions of classical chess. Blitz is, however, at an express level.

Since Anthony Drayton opted not to defend his title, Mars was an early favourite. He, however, had several quality players to battle. From his 11 games, he finished with 10 wins; his only blemish was to Gilbert Williams in Round Seven.

He also had a scare against Junior Rapid Champion, Joshua Gopaul, who lost the match

after playing an illegal move in a winning position. All of his other games were convincing wins.

Sandiford, whose only defeat was to Mars, finished second overall. Gopaul, who played his last junior competition, finished second in that division, while Jessica Callender finished as the third best junior.

Third place overall went to veteran player Rai Sharma, who ended with eight wins and three losses (to Saniford, Mars and Williams).

Gopaul finished fourth overall, while Williams finished fifth, Uddhav Bagwandeen sixth and Callender seventh.

The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) Director of Tournaments, Rashad Hussain, applauded the executives and players for making the championships possible.

He said that last Thursday’s competition was the first FIDE rated Blitz chess tournament in the history of Guyana.

“I’m pleased to have ended 2020 on that note, with new champions being crowned. I would like to thank the GCF executives and players for supporting chess tournaments in 2020.

“It’s time to look forward to 2021, which, if things go according to plan, will be a more productive year.”

Georgetown seal Bounce Back Football title on ref’s decision

SEE PAGE 24

The Georgetown All Stars team celebrate winning the GFF/MCYS/K&S Bounce Back Football Classic alongside Hon. Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson Jr.

Maradona a fragile poet, says Pope Francis

WIPA backs health protocols for Bangladesh series BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, (CMC) – Players union, WIPA, says it has no qualms over the safety of the West Indies squad on the upcoming tour of Bangladesh and has thrown its support behind the COVID-19 health protocols implemented for the series.

Secretary Wayne Lewis

Guest cricket show.

“We’ve had extensive meetings with Cricket West Indies and their team and our team led by our Dr Andre Cooke who guided us throughout that process because we’re not medical doctors.

“We have no skillset for that so we had our doctor who

West Indies Players Association secretary, Wayne Lewis

Pope Francis greets the “poet” Maradona, but also “the fragile man”

(REUTERS) Rome – Pope Francis has hailed fellow Argentine Diego Maradona as a “poet” on the pitch, but also acknowledged his frailty away from the sport.

In a wide-ranging interview with Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport published yesterday, Francis recalled his own days playing soccer as a child with a ball made of rags and laid bare his scorn for doping cheats.

Francis is a big soccer fan and met Maradona, who died in November, several times after becoming Pope in 2013.

“On the field he was a poet, a great champion who gave joy to millions of people in Argentina as in Naples. He was also a very fragile man,” Francis said.

Maradona played for Na-

poli from 1984 to 1991 winning two Serie A titles and the UEFA Cup. In 1986 he captained the Argentine team to victory in the World Cup. Despite his love for the game, Francis said he was living in Germany at the time and was not able to see the final played in Mexico against West Germany. He only discovered the result the next day when a student wrote ‘Viva Argentina’ on the blackboard during a language class.

“I personally remember it as a victory of loneliness because I had no one to share the joy of that sporting victory with,” he said.

Francis said he himself had no talent for the sport and was forced by his companions to play in goal.

“But being a goalkeeper was a great school of life for me. The goalkeeper must be ready to respond to dangers that can come from all sides,” he said.

Being poor, he recalled how he and his friends could not afford a proper ball, so they had to improvise: “All we needed was a ball made of rags to have fun and perform.”

While extolling the virtues of sport, Francis took aim at athletes who took performance-enhancing drugs.

“Doping in sport is not only cheating, it is a shortcut that destroys dignity,” he said. “Better a clean defeat than a dirty victory.

I wish this for the whole world, not just the world of sport.”

said WIPA had held extensive discussions with Cricket West Indies over the tour, and were convinced the protocols were consistent with what had been executed on recent previous tours.

“We’ve had absolutely none (worry over protocols) because [they’re] the same exact protocols as what transpired in England and also in New Zealand,” Lewis told Starcom Radio’s Mason and

sat in on all those meetings and we had extensive conversations about everything.

“We’ve crossed all the T’s and dotted all the I’s as it relates to the tour and therefore we were happy at the end based on a [reconnaissance tour] that was done by Dr [Akshai] Mansingh.”

Ten first choice players last week declined selection for the Bangladesh tour which comprises three One-Day In-

ternationals and two Tests, with CWI citing “COVID-19 related concerns or personal fears” as the reason behind their absence.

Test skipper Jason Holder and white ball captain, Kieron Pollard, were joined by the likes of Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer and Nicholas Pooran in opting out of the touring party.

CWI agreed to the tour after Mansingh, a director and member of its medical advisory committee, carried out a review of the facilities and protocols in a trip to Bangladesh last November, and gave the safety mechanisms a huge endorsement.

And Lewis said WIPA had reviewed Mansingh’s report and had no reason to believe players would be placed at risk during the January 10 to February 15 tour.

“We looked through his report and we did our own check as to exactly what is happening in Bangladesh as well so we’re pretty confident,” Lewis explained.

“I would not be part of a team to agree to allow the TURN TO PAGE 24

See CWI chief selector Roger story on Page 27 Harper responds to LICB

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SUNDAY, JANUARY 3, 2021