TO BECOME PROSECUTORS

50 LLB graduates signal intention to become prosecutors

Nandlall, has said that 50 law graduates from the University of Guyana (UG) have indicated their interest in being trained to serve as prosecutors. Attorney General, Anil Nandlall N a n d l a l l

Attorney General made this and Minister of Legal disclosure during his Affairs, Mohabir Anil address at the Budget

2020 debates on Friday.

The graduates, all holders of Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degrees, will have to undertake a one-year accredited prosecutorial training programme at UG. This will soon be implemented through Support from the Criminal Justice System (SCJS) programme

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand

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This programme is funded by the I n t e r - A m e r i c a n Bank (IDB), aimed at strengthening G u y a n a ’ s prosecutorial services. Graduates who are selected will be hired as prosecutors in the Magistrates’ courts in collaboration with the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Guyana Police Force.

The AG said one of the goals of the initiative is to address the overcrowding of local prisons. Guyana’s prison population s i g n i f i c a n t l y surpasses the world’s average with a rate of 264 per 100,000 and an occupancy level of 137.5 per cent.

Nandlall attributed this to an over reliance on custodial sentences and the overuse of pretrial detention in the criminal justice system.

The AG first spoke of the initiative at the c o m m i s s i o n i n g of the Court S u p e r i n t e n d e n t Office at the Brickdam Police Station earlier

MINISTRY TO ESTABLISH 6 NEW LEARNING CHANNELS

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, has said that six new learning channels will be established to allow students across Guyana to access learning programmes virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It will target students from Nursery Year One

through to Grade Eleven. Around $200 million was allocated in the Emergency 2020 Budget for the expansion of the Guyana Learning Channel. The Minister told the National Assembly on Friday that this was part of the Government’s vision to utilise technology to boost education delivery.

“We can even start programmes from 10 to 3 … that is the vision of this government. That is putting your money where your mouth is because we want to serve the people,” said the Minister.

The Guyana Learning Channel has been operating on a timetable teaching schedule from 8 am to 6 pm. It provides at least two hours of programmes for the nursery to Grade 11 students.

The Learning Channel was started by the PPP/C government with the vision to provide education to all parts of the country and it currently forms part of the Educational Sector Strategy Plan (ESSP) to use technology to push distance education countrywide.

The Minister also stated that the lack of support by the Opposition for the Budget was unreasonable. “You are taking away from the children of this country, the ability to get the teaching that they desire and deserve.”

The Budget also allocated money to provide masks for teachers and students once schools can be reopened and to install sinks and water service in schools. $15 million has also been allocated for the establishment of an Education Radio Station which would reduce the Ministry’s dependence on local radio stations to provide educational material.

this month.

Letters

Nailing the lies being peddled

Dear Editor,

G o v e r n m e n t a l i n f r a s t r u c t u r e “decayed” over the past five years due to incompetence, nepotism – Nandlall

Headlines like these are upsetting! How can one be so barefaced to make these wild and baseless utterances?

From the time this illegal and dead regime came to office every day is something negative about the coalition government. They have not outlined a plan to the citizens how they intend or will be rolling out the promises.

Days into office Guyanese were inundated with “treasury empty”, but yet the following were done: $600M given to GuySuCo to pay employment costs and other a d m i n i s t r a t i v e costs.

In excess of $20b was approved for constitutional agencies at the first sitting of the 12th Parliament.

Therefore, the big question to ask is, if the treasury is empty, where the above sums came from? At least not from the PPP.

Commenting on the above statement by Mr. Nandlall. Everyone who has eyes to see is aware of what the Coalition did over the last five years. One should not fall prey to this.

When we took office in 2015, the Moruca main bridge was made from lumber and was in a bad state. The people are now enjoying a solid concrete bridge made possible by the coalition.

Residents in East Berbice, Region Six suffered for years under the PPP when they pleaded by way of protestations and other actions to have their roads done. They failed those people. It was the coalition that spent in excess of $1b to construct the road, install lights, and construct bridges and culverts.

Region Four, Sophia area. Residents protested and requested for their roads to be done. They too were denied. The then Minister of MoPWs, Mr. Robeson Benn insulted residents and with an outburst to them, “Let PNC fix it”.

Well, indeed the roads were fixed with the inclusion of culverts, bridges, and installation of lights by the Coalition.

Mocha, EBD was given a solid structural concrete bridge. Lights were installed for the very first time on the main access road. got a new power

Lights installed plant in Anna for the first time Regina. A sum of on the #19 Road, $800M was spent Region Six. to ensure the supply

I don’t know of reliable and whether the efficient electricity illegal regime to residents of visited Region 10, Anna Regina to Kwakwani and Charity. Ituni, and Region Another major Nine lately. Well sum was spent to my reminder to construct a new them is that they power plant in failed to maintain Bartica, Region those corridors. Seven. Let’s

It was the asked the big Coalition that Attorney General, invested heavily prior to August with the use of 2, 2020, were local funds to Guyanese in these ensure reasonable areas or regions mobility to those complaining? My areas. Rather than simple answer to taking 15hrs to this is No! Because Region Nine, you the Coalition fixed can now do so in it! 12hrs. Stellings were

Traveling to c o n s t r u c t e d . Kwakwani is now When last did less than two hours this illegal regime from Linden and I visit Bartica? The can say the same coalition inherited for Ituni. a delapidated

Prior to the structure from the coalition coming PPPC post in May to office, Guyanese 2015. were experiencing Today, the major electrical Management of woes. Much was TnHD along with spent to maintain residents of Bartica the gen-sets at are happy for what GPL. Region Two the Coalition did

10

By Sir Ronald Sanders

and the change of the aesthetics. The other started by the coalition is the Leguan Stelling currently being reconstructed. The waterfront development at Supenaam. Has the illegal regime visited that area? There are comforts the traveling public can now enjoy. The installation of solar grids on public buildings, schools and health centers just to name a few. I like many Guyanese could attest to the many a c h i e v e m e n t s under the Coalition government over the last five years. When you see such headlines like the one above by Anil, one must ask questions, whether, or if these people are for real and on which planet are they surviving? They have no issues or complaints to make since they inherited what they found, it’s all about seeking to destroy, undo and spread propaganda, which they are noted for. I can only identify and attribute these i r r e s p o n s i b l e utterances by Anil to the PPPC, since what I have outlined above are just a few of the achievements by the Coalition. I wish to remind and also to encourage Mr. Nandlall and colleagues to take time to do a proper assessment of their ministries before opening their mouths. My advice to them is to stop peddling m i s i n f o r m a t i o n to our people. Guyanese are smart and with the improvement of technology, they cannot and should not be made fools. It is time we call them out! They are the ones who are incompetent and confused. a roadmap from the Coalition. Rather Annette than building on Ferguson, MP

Lies and more lies –Racism, politics or both?

Dear Editor,

How many more times will Minister Juan Edghill be allowed to lie without any evidence and have his lies printed uncensored by the media? I would like to challenge some rightminded, non-partisan, e n t r e p r e n e u r i a l Guyanese to establish a fact-checking business that will do research and analyses to expose lies as they continue to be perpetuated in the name of politics. We are wasting time on constructing deception when the focus should be on development. While in opposition Minister Edghill spouted several lies with the excuse that he did not have access to the relevant documents despite the fact that I personally provided them to him. Now that he is the sitting minister, access cannot be the excuse. Why do we allow these lies to be circulated unabated when evidence to the contrary exists? It is truly unfortunate that the various media houses who continue to print these misrepresentations; both refuse to utilize the evidence that I have given and have not requested evidence to support the claims they print. The media needs to take their charge of professionalism and credibility more seriously. I want to highlight that every time I was asked for an explanation on this project, I provided evidence to support my statements. I am once again providing u n d i s p u t a b l e , factual evidence, and comments on the subjects raised during the Minister’s budget presentation.

By way of prefacing my response, I am stating that the evidence is clear, and the record must show that the number of air bridges to be installed at CJIA was reduced by the PPPC government before May 2015. Below is a summary of the size of the total areas of the project. Also attached are reports as well as

detailed drawings confirming these areas and other project related information. I challenge Minister Edghill to provide any evidence to support his fictitious version of this project. The table below illustrates a comparison between the original contracts (before 2015) compared with the final product (after 2015). COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND FINAL SCOPE #Description Original Contract (Before 2015) Final Contract (After 2015)1Area of Terminal Building total = 13,737 m2. Departures = 3,564 m2 Arrivals = 2,484 m2 Total = 13,431 m2. It is my hope that after my response along with all the

evidence provided that no reputable, professional, credible media house will carry such stories without supporting evidence. Everything else is propaganda, rumours, lies, or worse, racism. After looking at all the evidence, I can find no other explanation.

David Patterson,

Former Minister of Public Infrastructure