Kaieteur News
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Saturday April 08, 2017
Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: Adam Harris Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210
EDITORIAL Syria nerve agent attack: why it made sense to Assad The president’s army is battle-weary, but the sarin attack and the US missile strikes show this war is far from over. April seemed to start well for the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, six years in to a civil war he once looked unlikely to survive. Fighting still raged across the battered country but his army and the collection of militias and foreign militaries backing his government had the upper hand, and the White House appeared to have taken any push for regime change off the table. Then, on Tuesday, the Syrian air force bombed Khan Sheikhun town, killing dozens of people with the nerve agent, sarin. Two days later the US president, Donald Trump, authorised missile strikes on the Syrian airbase where he said chemical weapons had been loaded. Critics of the strikes have raced to attack the US for blaming Assad, dismissing physical evidence against him and arguing that it would be irrational for the Syrian leader to use chemical weapons. Russia and Syria have claimed the sarin came from rebel stockpiles hit accidentally by government bombs, an argument dismissed by chemical weapons experts and inconsistent with evidence at the site of the attack. ‘The dead were wherever you looked’: inside Syrian town after gas attack “Assad is not mad and would have known that when Donald Trump produced an olive branch in his direction [then] any use of chemical weapons would have been counter-productive,” said Peter Ford, a former British ambassador to Syria. But Assad’s military gains since 2015 have been slow and costly. His army is battle-weary and although they have won decisive battles, the war is far from over. Joshua Landis, a long-time Syria observer and director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma, said chemical weapons could be attractive to a leader running low on military alternatives. “I think Assad and his generals want to win and have a depleted and exhausted army,” Joshua Landis said, when asked on Twitter if he thought the Syrian leader would have used chemical weapons. “Using atom bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima helped the US to win [the Second World War]. Neither city had military value. Demonstration effect. Shock and awe?” The images of the sarin victims, many of them children, are disturbing. But over the course of the long war Assad’s government has shown little compunction about civilian suffering and death. There have been atrocities documented by all parties in the conflict, but Assad is responsible for the majority of civilian deaths. And from the chemical weapons attack of 2013 to the bombing of hospitals in Aleppo last year, Syria has repeatedly broken international laws protecting noncombatants. As early as 2013, UN officials said the Syrian leader was implicated in war crimes. Survivors and defectors have documented a gruesome archipelago of torture and murder chambers in jails and hospitals under the control of Damascus. Assad has also bombed and starved civilians in rebelheld areas for years. It was a brutal wager, which until this week paid off, that Russian support and western fear of intervention would protect him from anything more damaging than censure and outrage.Turning to sarin was an escalation in brutality, but the Syrian president may have felt more confident after the White House described his rule as “a political reality we have to accept”. That could have made Assad believe the risk of retaliation for a major chemical weapons attack was falling, at a time when he had clear incentives to use “terror tactics. (Taken from the Guardian)
Editor’s Note; If your sent letter was not published and you felt its contents were valid and devoid of libel or personal attacks, please contact us by phone or email.
We must not distract from the core issues affecting Guyana Dear Editor, While I remain generally impressed by Freddie Kissoon’s brave and rather unusual writings against the many instances of missteps, misrule and misery in our dear land of Guyana, I find it increasingly difficult to understand or accept his vitriolic vituperations against the venerable Swami Aksharananda (ref.his KN column of 4/4/17: “Aksharananda gets a taste of his own medicine”). Such ad hominem attacks unnecessarily detract from the many serious core issues affecting our small society. Freddie Kissoon takes umbrage against Swami Ji’s rightful admonition of the Principal of Central High School allowing Pastor Anderson to sermonize the ‘innocent minds’ of young students
attending a ‘public school’ in Guyana which is legally a secular state and of which our current Government has formally acknowledged “social cohesion” as a major pillar of its governance. (In this context I vividly recall, ironically, the then colonial British Guiana, when as the Head Teacher of the Hindu College at Cove & John, a secondary school run under the auspices of a Hindu religious order, we catered for the separate religious needs of the various students so much so that in the absence of a ’Muslim’ teacher, I, a staunch Hindu, assumed the role of a Muslim teacher in leading the daily prayers for the few Muslim students). How can any right-minded Guyanese tolerate the reported Pastor
Anderson-type of Christian proselytizing in a Public school in our secular and independent Guyana, let alone someone of the stature of Freddie Kissoon. Freddie’s column elaborates on a series of racial and political occurrences over the years in a manner that appears to suggest that he equates ‘racism’ with ‘religiosity’. With all due respect, I wish to suggest that he and our fellow Guyanese desist from this; we have far too many cases of IndoGuyanese being Christians, Muslims and Hindus while similarly being of varying political persuasions to indulge in stereo-typing. Please, please let’s deal with substantive issues without being insulting Nowrang Persaud
Is the judiciary going down a path it went before? Dear Editor, At the swearing-in ceremony of the acting Chief Justice and acting Chancellor, the President made a most startling revelation. He was asked by the press about his refusal to a c t u p o n t h e recommendations he had received from the JSC over a year ago. He was quoted in the press as follows: “I withheld approval because I sent recommendations to the
present Chancellor who has agreed to look at them and resubmit a list to me.” This statement demonstrates a shocking misconception of the true constitutional position. While I do not hold the President responsible for this lack of understanding of the Constitution, since he is not a lawyer, he must be held responsible for continuing to retain in office, an Attorney General, who is demonstrably incapable of
advising, him properly, on these matters. Article 128 (1) of the Constitution states, “The Judges, other than the Chancellor and Chief Justice shall be appointed by the President who shall act in accordance with the advice of the Judicial Service Commission.” The use of the word ‘SHALL’ in the Article, clearly imposes upon the President, a mandatory obligation to act, in
accordance with the advice of the JSC. In other words, the President has absolutely no power or authority to question or to second-guess the advice of the JSC. To do so, would be to usurp the functions of the JSC. Indeed, b y m a k i n g ‘recommendations’ to the Chancellor, who is, ex officio the Chairman of the JSC, the President may have violated Article 226 (1) of (Continued on page 5)
Steep devaluation is coming for sure Dear Editor, I couldn’t believe what I was reading when I got the COMBAT newspaper in my inbox? For the record, the COMBAT newspaper is printed by the GAWU, the largest workers union in Guyana. In the COMBAT newspaper, it clearly stated that as at the week ending March 25, 2017, Guysuco produced 20,037 tonnes of sugar from a target of 74,172 (or 27%). I was advised only 6 weeks was left before the 2017 first crop terminates. As expected Skeldon produced ZERO tonnes to date because it was prematurely shut in this 2017 first crop under the pretext of another lame excuse from Hanoman and friends. But what this exposed is that there was no proper project-planning at that estate in the second crop of 2016. This is shocking because even in the hard days in the 1980’s, Guysuco always prepped its factories and machinery at the end of the previous year’s second crop in preparation for the
next first crop. So how come the management of Skeldon did not know they had a problem on the cogeneration plant before the first crop started? I immediately called my contact in Guysuco to find out the prospect for the next 6 weeks and when I thought that GAWU was being pessimistic, the Guysuco insider dropped an even bigger bombshell on the table. I was advised that Guysuco is not expecting to produce more than 45,000 tonnes for the 2017 first crop (60% performance). This will result in an immediate loss to the nation of some US$16 million in real foreign currency inflow. So how can the Minister tell me and the rest of the public that there is enough foreign currency in the system for the first half of 2017? It is either he is being economical with the truth or does not know elementary economics. I can now concur with who said that Guyana will be importing sugar for domestic consumption in
under 2 years time. At this rate, his prediction will come true before its due date. T h i s G r a n g e r administration is its own worst enemy. By choosing to play hard-ball on this sugar issue, they are putting an entire nation at risk. As the Granger administration continue to play politics with the economy, my humble advice to the workers is simple; do not become a collateral damage for a second time as the “elephants in the room mash the grass”; DE-RISK and FAST. By de-risking, I am humbly advising the workers with savings to withdraw all unnecessary cash from your savings accounts and invest it in something that can store real value like gold or silver or polished diamonds. Guyana is heading swiftly into a season of devaluation and I will not be surprised if by Christmas the exchange rate will be G$250 to US$1. In layman’s language, if you have G$100,000 in your
savings account – at the beginning of 2017, it could have bought US$485. By the end of 2017, it will more likely buy around US$400, which mean the poor man with a savings account of G$100,000 would have lost US$85 in value or almost 1/5th of its 2016 value over a 12 month period. That is steep. The teachers and nurses who lost lots of money during the 1988-1990 period will tell you how their lifesavings vanished into thin air within 2 years. The ordinary people should not make the same mistake again. My humble advice this time around invest in gold, silver and polished diamonds. Based on the commodity markets, all three of these precious metals are expected to increase in value in the next 3 years. But this also means you have to beef up your personal security. Man why does the working class always have to get the wrong end of the stick every time? Sase Singh
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Kaieteur News
Anil Nandlall is scandalizing the The most revered Hindu leader in the history of Guyana Attorney General DEAR EDITOR, The Caribbean Hindu Network (CHN), which has been in existence since 2002 and comprising 3,000 members, objects to the attack on Pujya Swami Aksharananda ji by Mr. Frederick Kissoon in his Kaieteur News column, “Aksharananda gets a taste of his own medicine” (Apr 04, 2017). Swamiji, needless to state, is the most revered Hindu leader in Guyana, and scholar whose reputation transcends the Caribbean. Mr. Kissoon, unable to address any of the issues raised by Swami Aksharananda, has once again exposed his shameless cowardice with his idea of truth. He calls Swamiji a “Hindu priest by the name of Aksharananda”. This is outrageous, not because Frederick Kissoon is ignorant, but because he is deliberate in trying to dereognize Swami Aksharananda by calling him a “priest”, which is false. Kissoon further writes, “This man was the head of a secondary school, said he was the holder of the title of Swami, and was a religious preacher.” Again, Kissoon’s intention is clear, but once again shoots himself in the foot because everybody knows Swami Aksharananda is the Founder and Principal of the famous Swarawati Vidya Niketan (SVN) High School. Everybody who has ever had any dealing with
Swami Aksharananda knows fully well that his trademark is that he does not blow his own horn as Kissoon tried to imply. Swami Aksharananda is not a Hindu “priest” or a “religious preacher”. He was initiated into the highest order of Sanyaasa in India and since then his life and activities have been in the public domain and he is the most eminent Hindu leader in the country. Heads of state, scholars, researchers, priests, “Pandits” and ordinary people praise his work and admire his simplicity and integrity. Hindus will not tolerate such canine attacks by Frederick Kissson that amounts to violence on the name and reputation of Swami Aksharananda as well as the obnoxious attack on the entire system of Sanyaasa, representing the most distinguisted authority other than the sacred texts in Hinduism. Swami Aksharananda is the most respected and scholarly Hindu leader in the history of Guyan; because the country has never produced a scholar of the caliber of Pujya Swami ji. He has been initiated into the sacred order Sanyaasi (Swami), he has renounced the need for material wealth, progeny or fame. Instead he has dedicated his life to work for the lokasangraha or the welfare and justice for all, including Mr. Frederick Kissoon.
Swami Aksharananda earned his doctorate from the prestigious University of Wisconsin at Madison and, also earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the equally famous Banaras Hindu University in India. So, Mr. Kissoon, if Swami Aksharananda wanted he could have taken up a plush academic job and lived the high life and would be Professor, or for that matter had he instead chosen to become a “priest”, he would have been called Doctor Odaipaul. Kissoon is acutely aware of the pre-eminent status of Swami Aksharananda and targets him and other Indian leaders such as Ravi Dev and Ryhaan Shaw, who dare speak out against injustices in the society. Mr. Kissoon is deliberate and knows full well the great impact of Swami Aksharananda, not only in his public pronouncements, skills as an exemplary educator, and motivator of humanitarian services like his recordbreaking blood donations in Guyana. Kissoon’s ongoing diatribe against Swamiji is probably motivated by a larger goal to undermine another important contribution of Swami Aksharananda, which is Swamiji’s role as a great mentor of other Hindu/ Indian scholars, and that may explain Kissoon’s obsessive cowardly attacks. Rishi Pooran (Moderator of CHN)
Is the judiciary going down a path... From page 4 the Constitution. Article 226 (1) states: “save as otherwise provided in this Constitution, in the exercise of its functions under this Constitution a commission shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority.” It is clear that the President, intuitively, believes that the recommendations of the JSC must find his acceptance or approval. That is not so. When these recommendations are received from the JSC, the President has ONLY two options. Firstly, he must appoint in accordance with those recommendations or, secondly, he can exercise an option, which Article 111 (2) of the Constitution offers him. Article 111 (2) states that the President may refer the recommendations from the JSC back to them for reconsideration. When this is done, the JSC will have to reconsider the recommendation, in so doing, they are free to change it and send a new recommendation to the Presi-
dent; or they can reconsider it, do not change it and send it back to the President, this time the President must act on it. In short, it is clear that the President has no power to sit on the recommendations of the JSC and not act; it is equally clear that he has no authority to make recommendations of any type to the JSC, other than send back their own recommendations for reconsideration. Therefore, on both counts, President Granger is guilty of violating the Constitution. It is obvious, that the President was not happy with the recommendations, which came from the last JSC, hence his refusal to act upon it for over a year. It is to be noted, that the President did not send back to the JSC the recommendations, which came to him, as he can do under Article 111 (2), but the President has made his own recommendations to the JSC. This is absolutely wrong. Unless this is publicly condemn and perhaps challenged in the courts,
the President may feel that he is empowered to tell the JSC whom he wishes them to recommend to him for appointment as Judges. This will make a mockery of the entire constitutional process. When one adds to this a challenged Attorney General’s constant scandalizing and contemptuous verbal assaults of Judges, both in the Courtroom and in the press, coupled with his incredulous attempts at subsequent denial, thereby further insulting the integrity of the Judges by carving them out to be liars, one cannot help but conclude that Judicial independence is under siege. Unless this downwards slide is swiftly arrested, we are heading straight back into that era when the PNC flag was flown in the compound of Guyana’s highest Court and when a Chancellor of the Judiciary felt that the judicial decisions should be in consonance with the political philosophy of the Government of the day. Anil Nandlall
DEAR EDITOR, Permit me to continue from my previous letter to Mr. Nandlall’s scandal about threat to the judge’s life, which but for the public outcry which his scandal has engendered, would be simply laughable. Are we to believe that the learned AG suddenly went berserk and threatened the High Court Judge with death, not in some private telephone conversation, but in open court in full view and hearing of others? And how? By simply recalling and recounting a similar experience with a Magistrate, now dead about the accuracy of the recorded evidence? How is death to be? By voodoo? In my by-stander’s view, a tangled web of deceit is being weaved. Mr. Nandlall’s consistent vulgar abuse (in both print and electronic media) of this AG is a notorious fact. This is just another epis o d e i n M r. N a n d l a l l ’s playbook as he practices to deceive. Besides, how curious that Mr. Duncan’s Counsel (Mr. Nandlall) has a fetish with threats. Readers must recall the infamous tape recording of Mr. Nandlall (AG at that time) in a telephone conversation with Kaieteur News reporter – Leonard Girdhari issuing gun threats against KN. And recall too that similar death threats allegations were made against His Excellency President David Granger by another PPP aligned lawyer – Mr. Charles Ramson (Jnr) then representing Mr. Duncan. Casualty (that is the AG) apart, the irony of the matter should not be lost sight of: it is the AG who would constitutionally have the burden of representing any Judge against whom (it is not inconceivable or farfetched) legal proceedings maybe taken, ex officio. And what if in such an event the presiding Judge in that case appears to be lax in recording vital evidence elicited by the AG (in cross examination as appears to be the situation in the instant matter) on behalf of
the Judge he is representing. A case can be lost by such laxity. Discrepancies (and inconsistencies) in a witness evidence affect their weight and value. I suspect and would suggest that the learned AG is demonstrating the type of zeal in his advocacy in this matter, as is commensurate with the gravity and seriousness of it; involving as it does, not only the probity of the official constitutional act of the Honorable Prime Minister; but also that of His Excellency the President, coupled with the political opprobrium, loss of his case portends. Unwittingly, the Judge by the unusual course he has taken in this matter would be suppressing a method of advocacy which he considers rightly, or wrongly, disrespectful, which involves both the Prime Minister and the President. Surely, such exceptional circumstance cannot be lost on the Judge. And, he appears now, to have mistakenly persuaded himself that a criminal contempt has occurred. I am reminded that just some such mistaken persuasion occurred in the Maharaj case supra, when the lawyer had accused the presiding Judge of “unjudicial conduct”; the Judge had charged and tried the lawyer and committed him to prisonfor contempt for such utterance, and that the Privy Council in spite of their Lordships being of the view that the Lawyer had acted “discourtesly” towards the Judge, ruled in favour of the lawyer and awarded him damages (i.e. money). And just consider that in this Justice Franklin Holder matter the “egregious statement” is not even (as I have pointed out above) any accusation made against the Judge. As devil’s advocate, I would say this: I have written with the benefit of the
AG (then a junior Counsel) being a frequent appearer in the Courts in which I presided. He can be as assertive in the pursuit of his client’s cause, (the common lawyer’s characteristic) as he can be conversational in his disarming humour (a rare virtue). And finally, about apology and the intimation of the Judge that in the absence of such (as reported) “he will not sit to hear him as an Attorney-at-Law in any matter whatsoever”. I dare say that such a course portends a constitutional crisis between the Judiciary and the Executive branches of government. The AG has a constitutional right and duty to appear and be heard on behalf of the state, and its officers. That right is grounded in the constitutional doctrine of public interest. That constitutional right cannot lightly be denied him. I wonder whether by the events which has happened in this matter the Judge has not unwittingly disqualified himself from any further hearing of this matter. But the laws of contempt of court (Cap 5:05 – as an existing law) which one day may require serious consideration as to its constitutionality (unless interpreted with necessary modifications, adaptations etc) in terms of article (144) (1) and (2) of our Constitution as to “fair hearing”, cannot be used to suppress a method of advocacy which the Judge considers “disrespectful”. And no worthy AG can be expected to compromise his well settled Common Law right against self-incrimination, if the effect of an apology, would be to lead to a perception that he is guilty of some serious wrong. He is not. Maxwell E. Edwards Attorney-at-Law
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The egotistical exclamation and feral blast of the Mayor DEAR EDITOR, The declaration ‘None of them could take me on!’ made by Mayor Chase Green as she challenged Councillors, even threatening to institute legal action against them is nothing short of egotistical, vulgar and ill-advised. It was reported that during a four-hour marathon statutory meeting, she declared “I could challenge each and every Councillor in here if y’all want and none of them could take me on.” Which is indeed unacceptable verbiage coming from someone holding that office and at the forum at which it was made. What is even more disappointing is that it was reported that her feral blast seemed to receive the support of some of
her colleagues. Where have the sophistication, etiquette and high ethics of persons holding such office gone to? What has happened to proper English and the use of parliamentary language at such forum? It was also reported that she also urged Councillors to refrain from mentioning her family members, declaring “I am the mayor, not them”. This would have been all well and good and reasonable had family members not been given contracts and employment with the Council. However in truth and in fact several members of her family have become employees of the Council whilst others have been given cleaning contracts. Consequently they are
not and could not be off limits from Councillors who are their employers. Even more disturbing is her threat to even use the purported provisions of the Municipal and District Councils Act to have Councillors who offend her, removed from statutory meetings or even the City Hall compound. This is just egregious and would suggest that she does not understand that she is not an executive Mayor but rather a titular figurehead. Will City Hall ever stop being a circus? Ominously it seems as though h e r threats have scared the more vocal Councillors into submission, as nothing much has been heard from them since. Debra Gibson
The folks at City Hall are just not listening DEAR EDITOR, The downtown area of Georgetown has begun to breathe again with the suspension of the unscrupulous parking meter initiative that was instituted by Smart City Solutions under the auspices of the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown. Businesses in the area are slowly coming back to life after the Council’s death blow but will need much more time to recover from that albatross that was placed around the necks of the citizens. Shoppers are once again able to browse stores at their own pace without worrying about the ticking
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meter. H o w e v e r, t h e r e c e n t declaration by Mayor Patricia Chase-Green that she is in full support of the government’s suspension of the parking meter project for the next three months, and that Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan had acted within his right, is quite peculiar coming from her. The position taken by the Fantastic Four who purportedly obtained legal advice to support their position suggests otherwise. In fact their standpoint is that the Municipal and District Councils Act “does not permit the Honourable Minister to direct the Council to suspend any contract or bylaws enacted by it”.
So it is either she did not get the Memo, or they have been forced to take a complete roundabout But what the Minister, the Mayor and the Town Clerk need to understand is that the citizens and visitors to Georgetown are simply not prepared to accept Smart City Solutions in any shape or form. Therefore bringing a new iteration of the contract, no matter how altered it is, just is not going to work. I don’t think the folks at City Hall are listening. The concern is the crooked way the process started. There has to be a new and proper process of advertising and tendering for the contract which would allow local companies to bid, there has to be proper consultation and stakeholder involvement but first of all Council’s books have to be audited and their accounts qualified to determine whether indeed there is a need for such an initiative. Mark Roopan
Stop the foreign travel of the Fantastic Four at City Hall DEAR EDITOR, I have read somewhere in the press that the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) proposes to embark on a revenue collection campaign, dubbed “Operation Rates Recovery” from April 5, in an effort to rake in ‘every cent’ that is owed to the municipality. However it may be a much better idea to launch another campaign instead, dubbed “Operation Stop the Squandering and Account Properly for the Citizen’s Money”. Their misguided Public Relations Officer, indicated an intention to publish in the newspapers the names and addresses of all those who owe as part of a ‘Name and Shame’ campaign with another option being to move to the court to recover such sums. I do believe this is just another empty threat by the Council, and a scare tactic to terrify delinquent property owners, particularly the elderly and the indigent into scraping up the requisite funds from wherever they can and rushing down to City Hall to settle their outstanding balances to avoid the mortification of being publicly humiliated. Upon which they will promptly continue to misuse it on themselves The glib allusion to taking people to court to recover out-
standing property rates is illusory, as the Council is well aware of the long and tedious process involved in using this method of redress. Indeed because of the obstacles put in place to avoid real estate sharks preying on underprivileged property owners, this method is next to impossible for the Council to use effectively, to recover outstanding rates. So then what will they do? They will take a couple of businesses to court and make a big show of it, to make persons afraid that they will be next to be taken to court And the route of publishing the names and addresses is simply too dicey in light of the fact that Council’s records are just too imprecise and specious. Should Council publish one wrong name or description of property, they could be hauled before the court for defamation But more important than continuously trying to rake in money from citizens who are stretched to breaking point financially, would in its place, be a conscious effort to cut out the huge sums of money wasted by the municipality. Such steps could include cashiering the scores of unnecessary staff members who have little or nothing to do all day long and who receive super salaries which in-
cidentally was admitted by the Mayor, curtailing the contracts that were given to a few select contractors in violation of tender and bidding procedures purportedly costing Council 48M per month, restricting of unnecessary foreign travel by the members of the Fantastic Four and their friends which reaps no benefits to the City, the removal of bodyguards and other ostentatious security arrangements for the Mayor and Town Clerk and the list goes on and on. The Council should start spending less rather than trying to earn more. Their worn out refrain is that the council needs every cent to provide vital municipal services to local neighbourhoods including street lighting, drainage, roads, environmental and public health services, cemeteries, open spaces, parks and gardens and a host of others. This is absolute poppycock as they do not replace defective streets lights, do not maintain roads for years now, the responsibility of which now falls on central government, there are no Sanitary Inspectors visiting yards as was done in the past to ensure good environmental and public health services, the Le Repentir Cemetery is a disgrace. Sean Moniz
Teacher assaulted by parent then as I requested, the father vis- the teacher” (me). When I finally arrested hrs, ited the school with another man got to the said station to report who he claimed was his driver. DEAREDITOR, On Friday, 31st March, 2017, I attempted to discipline a student in the confines of the classroom for her indisciplined behaviour and breach of the school’s rules. After making a report to the school’s office of the incident which involved the use of a cellular phone in school, I personally contacted the fourth former’s parent requesting that he visit the school’s office to deal with the issue on Monday, April 3rd, 2017. The father called me twice (on my personal phone) on Monday morning at 07:22 hrs to confirm his appointment with me; he also thanked me for my “time and interest” in his child’s education. On Monday at about 09:10
Ten minutes into the meeting with the father, he began spewing expletives after expletives. Editor, let me remind you that this took place in a school in the full view of and terror of over fifty students. While I practiced restraint against the verbal assault of my character, the father increased his attack with threats. In the school’s office, the parent attempted to throw a chair at me; he even pushed the aged principal. The school was hysterical. Some students were so petrified that they wanted to leave, others were amused. The father left the building saying “I will show you something,” went to his car and returned. At this time, I was so fearful for my life that I had to seek refuge in the locked science lab. The parent kicked at the locked door. While this was ongoing, I called the police station requesting that a rank be sent to the school. No one came. Editor, again, all of this took place in a school environment. Had that door been opened one can only imagine what would have ensued. In what I see as a ploy to get to the police station before me, the father exited the school. He left behind the “driver” to “guard
the threat on my life, the parent was there. At the station, I heard of the father’s concoction of a report of me “assaulting” his daughter. I was put on $5,000 station-bail and I am to report to court. Was he also placed on bail? I do not know. I will leave that in the capable hands of the officers investigating this matter. Editor, I have dedicated practically seven years of my life to teaching. And this frightening experience makes me regret joining the profession. Is this the way a parent deals with a matter? Do we even wonder why some of our children behave the way they do? Is this what we teach our children? Nothing justifies an assault and threat on the life of someone who has your child’s best interest at heart. Nothing! This is ONE example of the horrors our teachers experience daily. Can we blame some teachers when they lose enthusiasm for teaching after a wounding experience? If we were to put some parents in the shoes of teachers they will be charged with “assault” every week. I am confident that this attempt to vilify my years of assiduous work and successes with hundreds of students will be put to shame. Disappointed Teacher
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Jail time touted as means of tackling shoddy works For too long, Guyanese taxpayers are being burdened by footing the massive costs of repairing infrastructural projects that could have been constructed properly in the first place. This is the contention of Veteran Engineer, Charles Ceres. He said the fact that errant parties continue to escape court action and perhaps eventual jail time for executing shabby works, can be seen as an indictment on the part of the government – both past and current. “People don’t understand the cost to the consumers and the population of failed engineering projects,” Ceres posited. “If you are driving down a road that is full of potholes, and you have to slow down every minute, your gas consumption goes up. That is foreign exchange that leaves the country.” The Managing Director of Ceres Ground Structures Engineering Consultants, made reference to a number of projects that were shabbily executed, and now require hefty repairs. For example, there are the $350M Hope Canal Bridge and the $1B Kato Secondary School. Less than four years after its commissioning, the Hope Canal Bridge is now scheduled to be repaired at the massive cost of $46.6M. Even though the company contracted to build the bridge had raised concerns about its flawed designs, it was told by
The defective $1B Kato Secondary School, Region Eight
Veteran Engineer, Charles Ceres the Engineering consultants to go ahead and begin works. A few years later, the approaches to the bridge have begun to sink. When questioned about sanctions likely to be instituted against the errant consultants, Agriculture Minister, Noel Holder, had said that Government will be withholding the monies it owed the company. Ceres views such forms of punishment as being synonymous to a tap on the wrist. “In other jurisdictions, these things would not elude the courts. People would’ve been jailed for things like these.” As it relates to the Kato Secondary School, that
project was undertaken by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government at the cost of almost $1B. It was Kares Engineering that executed the shoddy works. As a consequence, an additional $150M now has to be plugged into repairing the defective Region Eight school building. “One of the things that we did, just as a test, we looked at the government’s specifications for one of these road projects, and we (Ceres’ company) brought the same samples in our lab and tested it. It never satisfied the
specifications. It never did,” Ceres highlighted. He pointed out the fact that works on many statefunded projects are passed and approved, but start to crumble soon after. “This is a demonstration of the incompetence on the part of the people doing this work. And I’m talking about both in the public and private arena,” Ceres maintained. In the private sector, there have been a number of reports of shabby construction resulting in injuries and even the death of persons. Only last December, (Continued on page 11)
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Kaieteur News
Enmore NDC minutes confirms plan to sell computers
The dusty computers at the Enmore NDC By Brushell Blackman In a twist to the seizure of 15 computers and eight power packs from the Enmore/Hope Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), this newspaper has seen the minutes of that NDC that confirms that the computers were indeed going to be sold. The minutes dated December 12, 2016 stated, “Councillor Deochan enquired about the computers in the computer room; council made a decision to sell all the computers.” The minutes were subsequently signed by the chairman. On Thursday a number of officials from the State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) and the E-Governance unit which has oversight of the government ICT
assets descended on the NDC office and seized the computers and power packs after receiving information that there was a plan to sell the items. According to Aubrey Heath-Retemyer, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SARU the computers as far as he knows, was gifted to that NDC by the E-Governance Unit during the reign of the previous administration. Retemyer said that the computers are not the property of the NDC and they cannot be sold by that council. Further he said that contrary to what the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) has said, the computers were not being used. According to SARU Head, the computers were in a room on
The highlighted section confirms the intended sale of the computers the upper flat of the building covered with dust and cobweb and in a state of disrepair. “The PPP is very dishonest and barefaced; those computers were sitting in a room and they appear to have not been used in a very long time.” Retemyer brushed aside
allegations that the two units acted unilaterally and entered the premises knowing that they were not vested with police powers to do so. He explained that a police officer was present when the raid was conducted. When asked if a warrant was presented before that raid was conducted, the CEO answered in the negative. Retemyer said based on their information the computers were earmarked to be sold to a council member of the NDC who owns an internet café
The minutes signed by the NDC Chairman in the area. He said that the computers were given to the council to be used by the community. Retemyer said he wanted to make it clear that there were no other motives for the seizure of the computers apart from safeguarding the state’s property from theft. The 15 desktop computers and eight backup power packs are now with the E-Governance Unit. The Ministry of Public Telecommunication in a release yesterday confirmed that the computers are the property
of the state. The statement said that the computers were a donation from the Basic Needs Trust Fund and were intended for the use by the residents of the community. The statement went on to say that upon learning about the impending sale steps were taken to prevent the illegal act. The release also said that the computers will be returned to the Enmore community once it has been agreed that they would not be sold or otherwise disposed of.
Saturday April 08, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Beware of the bullies Bullying has always been a problem in schools. Those who claim that there were no bullies in their time at school have selective amnesia. There is no generation who can boast that there was no bullying in their time at school. The bullying of students is now taken seriously in the United States of America. It is one of the most serious issues in education, because bullying has affected the behaviour of victims well into adulthood. The bullied child needs help. The bullied child must not be seen as weak. He or she must be seen as a victim. We have a lot of bullies in this country. We have bullies in the home who commit violence against their own family members. We have teachers who bully children by punishing them unfairly. We
have bullies in public and private offices who feel that because of the power of their positions they can do as they please. There are bullies all around. It should therefore not be strange that one in every ten children, at some time or the other, is going to be bullied. Recently, a child was allegedly kicked in the stomach and died. A lot of attention is being paid to the failure of the medical authorities to internal trauma until it was too late. A medical investigation should be ordered. You do not correct problems without investigating those problems. The investigation should be done. It should have already been ordered. It is strange the pace at which some things happen in this country. But the medical issue is
only one side of the matter. The other side is that the child who died was involved in an incident, just prior to her death, in which it is said that she was kicked in the stomach. There has to be an investigation into that, since it must not be assumed, unless there is evidence to the contrary, that the child was bullied. There are lots of bullies within our school system. What is to be done with them? The previous government had a policy of no child being left behind. Bullies who were dunces - and most of them in the past were dunces – under that system were entitled to promotion, regardless of how poorly they did in examinations. They had an automatic pass. The new government
Dem boys seh ...
Dem playing people like a guitar Things got to be really bad when de opposition got to pick pun everything to mek a point. Gail complain how a reporter deliberately tell a lie pun she and de party. De truth is that when de reporter ask she when she gun present de list of dem people who dem collect to be de Chairman of de Elections Commission, she seh that this week she gun look at it and mek a decision. If is one thing that people got to learn is that when people ask a question de thing that does stick in dem mind is de first words. So when Gail seh this week de poor reporter think she gun hand in she list this week. Lo and behold she go and
mek a song and dance. Then SARU move in and seize some computer from Enmore. De noise Jagdeo and he party mek could deaf a deaf man. Dem claim how de people spiteful and all kind of thing. Is only when de truth come out that dem shut dem mouth. De people did plan to sell dem computer to a man who want set up an Internet Café. As soon as de truth come out de party switch. All of a sudden de computers had cobweb and dem wasn’t wukking. If dem ain’t wukking why de party had to mek all de fuss? Dem boys must admit that de party know how to mek noise. Jagdeo go round and tell dem businessmen that dem must hold on to
dem foreign currency fuh spite de government. He got to know wha he starting because de government can tell its people not to buy from certain stores. That happen one Christmas and all dem same people who listening to Jagdeo holler. De same Jagdeo who never go in de market to buy one squash now deh in all dem market. He suddenly got a soft spot fuh de vendors and de poor people falling fuh de trickery. Dem boys know wha deh behind all this and is only a matter of time before de bubble buss. Talk half and watch how Jagdeo playing he own people.
h a s a n o t h e r p o l i c y. I t says every child must be in school. This gives a right to education to bullies. Before anyone gets the wrong impression, there are also bullies in private schools. Some of them are rich, spoilt kids who feel that because their parents have money they can do as they please. The private schools have a way of dealing with bullies. They expel them. And the public schools have to take them in, because there is a policy of every child in school. The public schools have their own way of dealing with bullies. They deal with them by transferring them to another school. This is passing the buck and passing the problem on. It means that the bully is free to prey on others in the new school to which he or she is assigned. For the record, there are both boy bullies and girl bullies, and you would be surprised who are the more vicious. But bullies also have
rights, especially if they are children. They need help. Bullies need as much help as their victims. Disciplining them or transferring them to another school is not the solution. It has never been the answer. Bullies need medical care by trained psychologists. We do not have the amount of psychologists in Guyana to deal with bullying in our schools. It has taken the death of child to remind us that in ev-
ery two classrooms we can expect to find one bully. Perhaps one is sitting right now next to your child.
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Saturday April 08, 2017
Kaieteur News
=== The Freddie Kissoon column ===
Hitler and now Trump show how nonexistent is the human mind I sat next to this gentleman at my niece’s funeral service in Wakenaam last Thursday, and what he said to me lasted for just a few seconds but it made me sad. I will have more to say about that fleeting tiny, conversation but it is philosophically connected to the presidency of Donald Trump. I have read untold numbers of books on history and philosophy and in those history books I have read about some of the bizarre, negatively incredible actions of Homo sapiens that call into question how higher animals can behave like this. Now I am witnessing one of those negatively incredible moments in this the age I live. The election victory of Trump is one of history’s most incomprehensible things. In this context, a com-
parison with the rise of Hitler is appropriate. It is when you do the comparison that Trump’s political success is more macabre than the rise of Hitler. In 1929, the world was going through a destructive recession. Germany was worst hit because in addition to the economic devastations all countries were enduring, it also had to continuously pay the victors of World War One. Hitler’s agenda was twofold – reject the payment of the Allied powers and reject the humiliation Germany was going through. There is no similarity here between Trump and Hitler here because there is no humiliation of the US by the world that Trump can claim and the US at the time of Trump’s victory last November was trillions of miles away from the economic hardship
that Germany faced in 1933 when Hitler came to power. Hitler promised Germans he would restore Germany, Trump is doing the same for the US but the comparison ends here. Germany embraced Hitler because he was a working class man without any access to university education and wealth. Hitler couldn’t even make it through art school. That kind of class background appealed to Germans. Now here is an interesting comparison with Trump and Hitler. Both appealed to the ordinary man and woman and asked for their support. Such people embraced Hitler and Trump. But it was rational, logical and normal for the ordinary German to accept Hitler’s message. He wasn’t a big time industrialist or rich banker or a wealthy German or a national celebrity asking for their support. With Trump, the comparison falls in this context. Trump is one of the rich-
est Americans with extensive business assets around the world. The question that is deeply disturbing is why would the lower income classes find such a person the one to address their economic deprivations. But they did. What sort of people has Trump put in power to end this deprivation? Almost eighty percent of these persons are either wealthy or very wealthy or super wealthy. Can such people empathize with the low earning classes in the US? Hitler’s choices for his Cabinet did not come from the German bourgeoisie. In fact, they came from Hitler’s own Nazi party. The most powerful Cabinet ministers in Hitler’s government were from the upper working class or lower middle class; they were not millionaires which at that time in the thirties would constitute wealth. People like Herman Goering, Joseph Goebbels, Rudolph Hess, Heinrich
Himmler were not from the bourgeoisie. The only person in Hitler’s Cabinet that had access to wealth was the Minister of Munitions, the aristocratic architect, Albert Speer. Hitler’s Foreign Minister, Von Ribbentrop was middle class but not wealthy. Trump’s Foreign Minister (Secretary of State) was the CEO of Exxon at the time of his appointment. Hitler had ideological problems with the bourgeoisie and German aristocracy. His party was named the National Socialist Party. Hitler never reconciled himself with both of these classes. Trump in stark contrast to Hitler is an unashamed admirer of the capitalist class and for the short time he has been in power, there are policies in motion to help big companies. There are plans to lower taxes on big companies. The point is (which explains I hope the title of the column here) there were deep logical rea-
Frederick Kissoon sons for the ordinary German to support Hitler- his class position appealed to them. One must remember Hitler’s book, Mein Kampf, documented his struggle including his time in jail. What reasons do the American working classes have to look toward Trump as their saviour? Even if he promised, as Hitler did, to save the country, surely they must have seen from his history and his extravagant wealth that he may not be the person to save them. Does human mind function? Can it comprehend reality?
Saturday April 08, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Rice industry gets lifeline after Dubai company buys Alesie rice group Golden Grains Investments announced yesterday that it has reached a purchase agreement that allows that company to acquire all of Alesie Group’s assets in Ruimzeight, Vreed-en-Hoop, Wakenaam and Corriverton. Golden Grains Investment was established in Dubai since 2004 and is a leading importer-exporter of grain, food and non-food products for the food service industry. It is a leading distributor for major food lines from countries worldwide. The deal was unanimously approved by the
Alesie Board and considered the proposed transaction to be in line with the interests of the company, its shareholders and its employees. Recently, Alesie Rice Group announced it was pulling out of the industry. At the time former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Alesie Rice Group, Thurane Doerga, said the company had been operating with many constraints and certain recent developments necessitated the move – not least of which is the lack of coherent policies, something that continues to plague the sector.
The rice expert said that the deal that was brokered by NexGen Global Marketing Services comes at a time when the industry is at a crossroad. He urged the government to find markets for the struggling industry. However the now stated sale of the rice group which according to Doerga was for a substantial amount comes less than a month after Alesie announced it was pulling the plug on its Guyana operation. Persons who are familiar with the way such major sales are conducted believe that this deal was in the pipeline
for some time now. The purchases of such big companies take a great deal of time and negotiation and it is inconceivable that such a deal could have been brokered in less than a month. Additionally the transfer of ownership and the drafting of the necessary legal documents to validate and finalize the sale are additional time consuming measures. When Doerga announced his closure he had already sold Alesie for a hefty profit and merely wanted to signal his way out. On announcing the clo-
Jail time touted as means of tackling... From page 7 a Diamond, East Bank Demerara, woman died after her bathroom wall collapsed on her. Going back to the national contractors, Public Infrastructure, Minister David Patterson declared a few
months ago, that he was dissatisfied with the level of incompetence and lack of professionalism displayed by the majority of local construction firms. This had previously resulted in the
Bureau of Statistics gets... From page 3 laws of Guyana to further bolster the independence of statistical management, the Finance Minister said. “Since its establishment, the Bureau has played a pivotal role in conducting censuses, collecting, compiling, analyzing and publishing socio-economic and other data as well as collaborating with other agencies in the public agencies of data derived from administrative sources.” Jordan said that despite the challenges faced by the Bureau, the entity still sought to deliver on its mandate. FENDING OFF CABINET COLLEAGUES “The commissioning ceremony is a symbol of Government's “unwavering commitment” to ensure that data remains at the heart of decision making.” Minister Jordan told the gathering. Jordan said that he was approached by the Chief Statistician, Benjamin, soon after the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) took office. It was pointed out that the Bureau, spread wide across three locations as it was, did not make for efficient and effective operations; that as a result, the Bureau was hampered in its ability to execute its functions. Jordan noted that numerous recommendations were made to 'former administrations' but these calls had fallen upon 'deaf ears'. “I indentified the old customs building and after fending off some of my cabinet colleagues, who had been eyeing the building for one purpose or the other, I won the approval of the cabinet to utilise the building as the headquarters of the Bureau.” Jordan said. He congratulated the Chief Statistician, Benjamin and his staff and expressed optimism that the building will serve them well. The Bureau is the main co-
ordinator and producer of economic statistics, including national accounts. The main data on population, economic and social conditions of households stem from censuses and surveys. The Bureau is recognised as the central authority on statistics in this country, and is often requested to advise and assist ministries and private/ public sector organisations on statistical matters.
delay of several of the state’s major infrastructural projects. The Minister said that often times, companies bid for multiple state projects, but are unable to competently complete any. According to Patterson, there are currently no mechanisms in place that can prevent incompetent companies from bidding for more than one project. Patterson had told Kaieteur News that while errant companies are not exactly blacklisted, the Government does have the prerogative to decline to work with any company based on past bad experiences. Mr. Ceres believes that the administration, both past and
present, has had enough bad experiences to warrant that jail time be examined as a solution. “Look, if anybody works for me and they do poor quality work, they would never work for me again. But that doesn’t happen with the Government of Guyana. You do poor quality work for them, and you get more work to do,” Ceres said. He believes that the penalty clauses attached to contracts signed between government and contractors are inadequate, and in some cases, not being used effectively. “These clauses aren’t being used as a deterrent. Maybe they are just standard clauses for these contracts,” Ceres reasoned. (Rehana Ahamad)
sure of his company after 25 years, the former CEO of the rice group explained that after the last election it was hoped that the ruling administration would have advanced different policies from its predecessors. Doerga said that the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) during its time in government marginalized and ostracized the Alesie group, and that this was also a contributing factor. Doerga also said that there are chosen rice millers who seem to be having a greater say in the industry and special privileges are constantly being extended to them.
When contacted by Kaieteur News on the sale, Doerga said that Golden Grain Investment has given an undertaking to ensure all jobs are secured and that no one that was employed with Alesie is laid off. Doerga said that all the rice mills previously owned by his group will remain open as well. As a leading rice miller and distribution company, Alesie was for 25 years dedicated to providing solutions that enhance the safety, quality and convenience of rice. In partnership with brands around the world, Alesie develops and distributed food products to millions of families around the world.
PAGE 12
Prison survey‌ The improvement of prison infrastructures were among several issues highlighted yesterday when Professor Ernest Uwazie, Inmate Rehabilitation and Reintegration (R&R) expert met with Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan. Uwazie was hired through the Citizen Security Strengthening Programme (CSSP) to provide technical and strate-
Saturday April 08, 2017
Kaieteur News
Prison expert highlights need for infrastructure improvement, other issues gic advice to the Project Executing Unit (PEU) with the aim of designing rehabilitation and social reintegration services for prison inmates, At the press briefing, Uwazie informed the minister that based on his visits to the prison locations; he was able to identify some critical issues that must be addressed in order to achieve success-
ful reintegration of inmates after serving their sentence. The issues identified were the improvement of the prison infrastructure, giving greater focus to corrective approaches, training to increase educational levels of inmates, employment skills building for inmates and facilitating systematic contact between inmates and their families.
Uwazie was tasked with conducting an assessment of the adequacy of the Guyana Prison Service’s physical infrastructure, and capacities to facilitate the implementation of the R&R programme in compliance with international standards. He was required to review the inmate management module of the Guyana Prison Service and advising the CSSP on what is required to make it operational and compatible with other justice-chain institutions, supportive of case management, and the generation of data for evidence based decision-making. He also assisted with de-
veloping a handbook on safeguards required to protect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of prison inmates. Professor Uwazie is a professor of criminal justice at California State University, Sacramento, USA. He holds a Ph.D. in justice studies, with specialization in dispute resolution and comparative justice and is a graduate of the Harvard Law School Programme on Negotiation & Mediation. He is also a facilitator at the California State Prison in Sacramento. The strengthening of R&R capabilities of the Guyana Prison Service is a key
component of CSSP. Prison overcrowding and inexistence of a comprehensive inmate R&R model and management tools are two prominent issues that that the CSSP is currently addressing. Prison rehabilitation programmes have shown to improve social and economic reintegration and reduce criminal recidivism. In seeking to reduce prison overcrowding, the CSSP is also finalizing procurement activities to hire a consultant to conduct a study of alternatives to pretrial detention to reduce the number of pre-trial detainees in prison.
Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan (R); Consultant, Professor Ernest Uwazie (Centre) and Project Manager, CSSP, Clement Henry (L)
Saturday April 08, 2017
Kaieteur News
“My brother is not a murderer” - says sister of alleged wife-killer
Dead: Dhanwantie Ram A sister of alleged wifekiller Ganesh Dhanraj is pleading with him to turn himself in. She is also asking the police to allow him to surrender unharmed. “Of course we want him to surrender,” the sister said during a telephone interview yesterday. “But we don’t know where he is. We can’t go into the jungle (backlands). We don’t know where in the jungle he is. I would like them to give him a fair chance to surrender.” According to the sister, the family was told on Thursday that Dhanraj “get shoot up.” “Right now we don’t know if he alive or dead. We never see him back since the incident (murder).” Police said that Dhanraj narrowly escaped from ranks who had spotted him at Roden Rust, East Bank Essequibo, on Thursday. He reportedly plunged into the Essequibo River before the ranks could close in. He was reportedly seen returning to shore. Repeatedly insisting that Dhanraj was innocent, the sister said she would only believe that he had killed his
On the run: Ganesh Dhanraj
spouse, Dhanwattie Ram, “if he tells me to my face.” Asked why her brother would go into hiding if he had committed no crime, the sister suggested that he was reacting to media reports which implicated him in his reputed wife’s murder. She also claimed that her sibling was the abused partner in the relationship, and that his name would be cleared if a ‘proper’ investigation is done. “Right now my brother is scared. I want the media to come into the area…I don’t believe that he killed his wife. I never know him to be like that. I believe that if a proper investigation is done he would surrender.” Painting quite a different picture of the suspect, relatives of the slain woman alleged that he was a heavy drinker, and was also physically abusive to his spouse. He is alleged to have dragged the housewife into the couple’s house and killed her while she was heading to the Parika Police Station to make a report against him for assault. Dhanraj allegedly strangled 29-year-old
Dhanwattie Ram, the mother of his three children, with a bed sheet at their Parika Façade, East Bank Essequibo home at around 07:00 hrs on Wednesday. The victim’s sister, Latchmie Jailall, made the gruesome discovery shortly after the alleged killer was seen fleeing towards the backdam. The police said that investigations have so far revealed that the victim, after encountering repeated domestic abuse, moved from the suspect’s home four days ago with two of her children and went to her sister’s home which is located a short distance away. But Dhanraj reportedly went to the sibling’s home on Tuesday and demanded that his reputed wife return home. An altercation reportedly broke out between the couple when she refused to. Dhanraj then left, but about 06:00hrs on Wednesday, the victim was on her way to the Parika Police Station to lodge a complaint, when he intercepted her and dragged her to their home. Her lifeless body was later found in the house.
Former bank employee charged with defrauding customer Stacy Moffett, 28, of Lot 38 Shell Road, Kitty was yesterday arraigned before City Magistrate Leron Daly in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts where she was ordered to post bail at the sum of $150,000 on a fraud charge. Moffett pleaded not guilty to the charge which alleged that on January 2015 at Georgetown while being employed has a clerk or servant at Republic Bank of Guyana Limited, she received the sum of $500,000 from
Ivan Bazilio in order that she will wire transfer the money into the University of Southern Caribbean, Trinidad and Tobago Bank account for the said Bazilio. She allegedly fraudulently converted the money to her own use and benefit. Police Prosecutor Bharat Mangru did not disclose any facts in the matter and had no objection to bail being granted to the defendant. The mother of one will make her next court appearance on April 28.
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SERVICES
VEHICLE FOR SALE
PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620
1-Leyland DAF GRR Series; excellent condition. Call: 6804101
Visa Application: U.S.A, Canada & UK; Guyana passport application. Graphics design, advertisement. Tel: 6267040; 265-4535. INNOVATIVEMARKETING & PUBLISHING INC –TEL: 600-4212: We create A/ works, logos, busi ness cards, posters, etc, placements of ads included. Passport, permanent & visitor visa application, Professional Immigration Consultant – Sabita Immigration Services. Call: 225-6496/ 662-6045
Allion, Primo, Fielder Wagon, Spacio, Bluebird, 212 Carina, NZE, Honda CRV, Toyota IST, RZ & Pit-bull – Call: 650-7501 Toyota Vigo pickup -$3.5M and Nissan Pathfinder Jeep $1.5M negotiable. Call: 6097766/ 225-8427 (must be sold) Toyota Avensis, 17" rims, excellent condition -$2.3M. Call: 681-8982 RZ minibus -$700,000. Call: 697-2550, 613-1810 One 212 new model, price negotiable. Call:264-2954/ 664-1759 1 Toyota Vigo, with 3 RZ engines - $2M. Call: 698-7807
Eagle’s: Re-gas -$8,000, Washing machine repairs, Gas Stove, Plasma flat Screen computer repairs & more. Call: 697-2969/646-0966 Floor sanding & Lacquering, house plans, estimate & painting, boat for Santa Mission. Call: 650-4362 Reupholstery for all furniture at a price you can afford, home service if possible. Call:612-0422/ 682-8718/2162230 Computer repairs, cellphone unlocking, website building, data recovery, visa application. Call: 227-7556/ 615-8734 (we also buy computer parts) Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezerCall: 610-5846 or 661-8158 Veterinary Services, East Side Animal Clinic @ 147 Section ‘A’ Grove Block ‘Y’ East Bank. Call: 216-4144/ 6817215 Guitar repairs and servicing parts supply and accessories supply. Call: 628-0009
TAXI SERVICE GR TAXI SERVICE. CALL: 219-5000; 227-1982 & 225-7878 (24HRS)
Saturday April 08, 2017
Kaieteur News
WANTED
SALON
PROPERTY FOR SALE
VACANCY
We are buying WamaraTonka Bean Logs, cash down as document ready. Call:6645150
- Make-up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, etc. - Cosmetology Courses: $120,000 - Technician Course: $45,000. Call: 6471773/660-5257
Transported property @ Grove and Diamond $16M negotiable. Call: 625-5461
Outdoor Salesman/Driver, Salesgirls, general domestic. Apply at R.Sookraj & Son’s, 108 Regent Street Georgetown.
Contract hire car to work @ GR Taxi. Contact Ganesh: 6146202 Straight stitch/over edge machine operators/labourer. Call: 222-2541 8:00am-4:00pm (Mon-Fri) Two years experienced salesgirl @ Christine Variety, Lombard Street. Call: 227-8529 1 Arc Welder with knowledge of Grill Work. Call: 227-4243 One male or female to look after layer birds in Interior. Call: 668-6421 One female domestic worker to work in Trinidad. between ages of 25-35. Call 1868- 6831528
LAND FOR SALE 1 Transported land in Tuschen Phase 1 -$2M, Tuschen Phase 2 - $1.4M, La ParfaiteHarmonie (main road) -$2M, La ParfaiteHarmonie $1.4M. Call: 642-1252 Diamond Scheme ( 2 nd Avenue), Eccles Scheme (middle) negotiable. Call: 6097766/225-8427 (must be sold) Eccles New Scheme (110X50ft) concrete fence& bridge, land filled (deal) $7M. Call: 684-5822/ 611-7223
Tuschen: 2 storey building, 2031 ft2 - $9.8M Negotiable. Tel: 231-9690 (During working hrs). FOR SALE LARGE QUANTITIES OF HIGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICK SILVER) 99.99995% PURITY$19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754. One Ford Van E350, one Toyota Tundra, One Caterpillar back hoe 4x4, one bobcat Tel: 660-2212
Live in waitress to work in a bar- Call: 604-6606;692-4646
Spare for washing machine, microwaves, fridges, stoves, timers, gearbox, motors, etc. Call:225-9032;647-2943;604-5198
We pay USD for residential house lots, East Bank gets priority. Call Duncan : 677-4092
1 Double twin steer Atkinson Truck. Call: 684-2708
Welder/Fabricator. (Must have at least 3 years’ experience). Apply with written application: Technical Services Inc, 18-23 Eccles. Corilla Bush (Dried) & Lemon Grass in large quantities. Call: 665-1397 Two female domestic to work at Andre Mineral Trade, 75 Church Street (40yrs and older). Call: 657-6009 One waitress to work at a bar. Please call: 647-2622 One experienced hairdresser/ cosmetologist preferable on the East Bank. Call: 645-3010 Investors for Tilapia Farm, double your investment within two years US $1,000 or multiles desired. Call: 2256485/ 665-3622/610-5437
Complete game shop equipment. Call Leon: 2318424 or 610-0808 Miller welder 225 Amps, Honda Generator 6500 Watts Honda Civic – Contact: 6390866 Design & Make Aluminum windows, doors, stainless rails, showcases, rolling shutters, make & install automatic doors. Call: 2336818/677-5599/659-9999 Great Deals on video games & all gaming consoles. PC, video games & repairs – Call: 672-2566; 265-3231 1 Diesel Welder, 1 Generator. Call: 627-7835 Mitsubishi Canter Truck, GMM, price negotiable. Call: 698-5604
Eccles $7.5M, Providence $5M, Farm -$3M, Uitvlugt $2.8M, La Parfaite Harmonie -$1.6M, Bartica -$3M. Call: 233-3006/ 658-5897/651-1969
Males between 25-45yrs to work as operator @ Ice Factory in Rosignol. Call: 6183800 between 8am-5pm.
Mobile wheelchair, excellent condition, new batteries and charger, wide-width, cheap. Call: 626-6335
Transported land for sale size 37X270 @ Coglan Dam, Vreed-en-Hoop, W.B.D. Call: 650-5644/677-9938
Live in domestic must know to cook Indian dishes 2540yrs, live in or live out waitress 18-25yrs from E.C.D – Call: 698-7172
Folders 1" black soft cover & spiral notebooks by Maritha Stewart, cheap. Call: 626-6335
La Parfaite Harmonie $1.2M, $1.4M, $1.6M, Tuschen Phase II $1.3M, $2M, Uitvlugt -$2M, Herstelling -$3.5M .Call: 6046724
Land to buy La Parfaite Harmonie, Herstelling, Eccles, Uitvlugt, Tuschen or anywhere. Call: 666-2326
La Parfaite Harmonie -$1.4M, $1.6M, $1.8M, Tuschen Phase II - $1.3M, Uitvlugt $2M, V/Hoop -$27M. Call: 666-2326
1 Handyman to work @ the Kalyan Mall & Shopping Plaza, 162-163 Lamaha Street, Cummingsburg, Georgetown. Call: 227-6681/655-9187/6273390/647-0933
House & Land available for sale. Contact Pacific Development Inc @ Lot 3 Church Street, G/Town. Call: 223-6035/227-8274
Doberman pup. Tel: 619-6086/ 699-7077 1 Complete Sawmill at Yarrowkabra Linden Soesdyke Highway and 1 F66 – Clarke, Ranger Skidder. Call: 609-8041/ 644-1190 Lincoln 225 welder, 1 lincoln power mig welder, Hitachi Hammer Drill and welding gloves. Call: 627-9825/ 6572440
Parfaite Harmonie: 2 storey building, 1245 ft2 - $9M Negotiable. Tel: 231-9690 (During working hrs). Tain, Corentyne: 2 storey building 3309 ft2 - $8M Negotiable. Tel: 231-9690 (During working hours). Newly built @ Craig E.B.D land 91X50, house 40X28, 3 rooms, 1 self-contained$23M. Call: 718-213-6496/ 617-7691 Covent Garden E.B.D, land 120X40, house 60X26, 4 bedrooms (1 self-contained), kitchen, cupboard, concrete yard & fence. Call: 612-4722/ 675-9093 Lot 4 Public Road/Line Dam Section E, Hopetown, West Coast Berbice. Contact # 6807600, 696-8174 Serious Inquiries only.
Looking for experienced all round IT specialist. Send CV t o jobs@expresstruckingcorp.com or call 227-6025. Office Clerk (senior/junior) with CXC English/ Mathematics, computer knowledge an asset. Call: 223-7500 Live in or live out babysitter/ domestic –Call: 223-7500. Monday-Saturday 8:154:15pm Welder: apply in person to Alabama Trading G/town Ferry Stelling. Experienced female Accounts Clerk, Apply in person with hand written application to Alabama Trading 65-66 Robb Street Bourda Accounts Clerk for Eccles, Industrial Site area knowledge of NIS, PAYE, VAT, Quickbooks. Call: 614-4358 Exist for Cashiers/ Salesgirls, apply with written application at Nirva Supermarket, 49 Sheriff & Craig Streets. Call: 227-5771 Trainee A.C, Refrigerator, Technician –Call: 231-0655
TOURS Rodeo, Lethem Rodeo, Brazil, Falls and sightseeing, April 13- 17th. Call: 665-5171, 639-2663, 2237589,658-3758,673-2348 Somaru’s Tavel Service, best rates around Georgetown, local tours, hotel accommodation, etc. Call Vee: 670-1162/223-4187/ 616-2727
CAR RENTAL PROGRESSIVE CAR RENTAL: SUV FOR RENTAL- $4,000 & UP PER DAY- CALL: 677-7827, 6435122 ,EMAIL:PRO_AUTO RENTAL@YAHOO.COM AIDAN’S CAR RENTAL: PICKUP, 9-11 SEAT MIN BUS, GOOD FOR AIRPOTR & FAMILY OUTING, CHEAPEST RATE . Call: 698-7807
Room attendant, male security age 30-55, 233 South Road, Lacytown. Call: 225-0198 Experienced carpenters – apply in person to Alabama Trading Georgetown, Ferry Stelling Stabroek. General Domestic to work 3 days per week, wash & clean. Apply in person @ Alabama Trading, 65 Robb Street, Bourda. One A/C Technician, must have own tools. Call: 698-7807
CAR RENTAL DOLLY’S CAR RENTALCALL: 225-7126/226-3693 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL@ YA H O O . C O M / W W W. DOLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM WING’S CAR & PICKUP RENTAL: LOW DOWN PAYMENT, CHEAP REATES,SPECIALOFFERS FOR THE SEASON. CALL: 690-6494 Continued on page 23
Saturday April 08, 2017
President thinks Govt. doing a good job Guyana has recorded an economic decline for 2016 and while there are no figures out as yet for the first quarter of 2017, entrepreneurs are complaining about increased hardships. This reality, coupled with the shortage of US currency in the market and the consequent increased foreign exchange rate, has caused much public worry. While the opposition, by no surprise, is condemning the actions of the government in addressing these and other problems, President David Granger thinks that his Cabinet is doing a very good job. He is even optimistic that Guyana will be in a much better place come 2018. He made his opinion known during the televised Public Interest programme. Granger was asked how he feels about the performance of the government. He responded that he is pleased with the work of his Cabinet and therefore did not see the need to fire any or his ministers. “Apart from some internal changes, I have not removed anyone from the Cabinet. I have not brought in any new person and the changes made have been explained.” Granger said that the performance of the Cabinet has to be measured in the context of what the APNU+AFC inherited upon assuming Office in May 2015, “so I think the performance is quite good.” Despite his satisfaction, the President said that the government can improve in many areas. In this regard he pointed to the management of natural resources, health services and education. Granger said, “We may improve the performance of the Cabinet in areas like natural resources. When we got in (office) we did not expect that the discovery of petroleum would be so massive and therefore I have had to ask Minister (Raphael) Trotman to pay particular attention to that field and I removed environment from him.” The President was optimistic that Guyana will be just fine despite all that the nation is facing. “We will continue to overcome the obstacles
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President, David Granger that face us.” The Head of State also noted “severe obstacles” in the sugar industry, telecommunication, infrastructure, education and public health. The President said that these are important areas that his government needs to tackle but stated, “These are not faults of ours. These are not errors of governance that came about over the last year or two, theses are historical faults. I am not trying to blame the other administration but these are matters we are dealing with.” Zeroing in on the critical need for improvements in the area of education, Granger
said that more focus will be placed on primary education to get more students passing the National Grade Six Assessment. He said that the government will also be looking to strengthen the system for pharmaceutical distribution in public health. “We have to remove the problems of bottle necks, incompetence and corruption. These are historical problems which we are dealing with but I expect that by 2018 the situation will improve and the public will start to see the changes we are making in these sectors.” (Abena Rockcliffe-Campbell)
LEGAL NOTICE 2017-HC-DEM-CIV-FD-191 IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE SUPREME COURT OF J U D I C A T U R E FAMILY, DIVORCE AND M A T R I M O N I A L J U R I S D I C T I O N FAMILY DIVISION PETITION NO. FD-191 (Between) ABRAMS (ELVETT AUBREY REUBEN)PetitionerABRAMS DESIREE nee DUNCAN Respondent TO: DESIREE ABRAMS nee DUNCAN Formerly of Lot 125 Cummings Street, Buxton, East Coast Demerara. TAKE NOTICE that on the 10th day of February, 2017 a Petition for Divorce was filed against you by ELVETT AUBREY REUBEN ABRAMS, Petitioner in the Family Division of High Court in- Georgetown, . Demerara. AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that as part of an Order made on the 22nd day of March, 2017 the Petitioner was directed to effect service of his Petition on you by publication of this Notice in two (2) consecutive Saturday editions of a newspapper of general circulation in the State of Guyana. AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that if you desire you may appear or attend in person or by your duly authorized agent or Attorney-atLaw at the Registry of Family Division of the High Court at Georgetown, Demerara, where you will be issued with a certified copy of the Petition together with related documents. AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that if you desire to Defend this Divorce, then upon receipt of the certified copy of the Petition, you must file an Acknowledgement of Service, Notice of Intention to Defend (Forms are available at the Registry),Answer and/ or Cross Petition in the Registry of the Family Division of the high Court at Georgetown, Demerara within. 28 (twenty eight) days from the date of the second and final publication of this Notice. TAKE NOTICE that the Divorce is fixed for Directions Hearing on Monday the 15th day May, 2017 .at 9:30am in the Directions Hearing Room of the Family Division of the High Court at Georgetown. IN DEFAULT of your filing an Acknowledgement of Service/Notice of intention to Defend Answer and/or Cross Petition the Court may proceed in your absence and may make any Order it considers appropriate, including granting the Divorce. The Registry of the Family Division of the High Court is located at the Law Courts [Georgetown, Demerara. The office is open to the public between 8:00am and 3:30pm Mondays to Thursdays and 8:00am to 2:30pm on Fridays except on public holidays and on such other days as the Registry is closed. Dated the, 27th day of March, 2017
From page 22
PEN PAL Indian Male seeks female age 27/34 write to M.D 7475 Goreway DR #47Mississauga on L4T 3T3, Canada.
FOR RENT PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 Lot 14 Croal & Longden Street: 4 Storey building (infront Demico). Call: 663-1876
HEALTH Dietitians Clinic: nutrition guidance for diabetic, obese, high cholesterol, cancer, renal, pregnant patients and more. Call: 231-9335/ 699-7083
Apartment for rent – 1 bottom flat 3 bedrooms at Lamaha Gardens. Call: 2258084, 689-6001 Two bedroom upper flat located at 261 Golden Grove, Tank Street (3rd corner). Call: 233-5802/600-4984/641-1476 Upper flat 2 bedrooms apartment in Eccles. Call: 2332082/ 663-1109
LEARN TO DRIVE C. Persaud & N. Outar Driving School formerly Soman & Sons Driving School @ Maraj BuildingCall: 644-5166; 622-2872; 6150964; 689-5997 (affordable packages).
2 Bedroom Executive furnished Apartment in residential Area, close to Ogle Airport with all modern amenities.Call:622-5725/ 664-1070
TO LET 4 AC Rooms/2 large hall with 1 extra room, suitable for business/ offices @ 21 Seaforth St. Campbellville, Georgetown. Call: 226-4877, 624-7436, 654-9350 MASSAGE The Gent’s Spa: Massage done by Tiffany, mobile services. Book appointment now! Call: 677-5465
3 Bedrooms fully furnished upper flat size 38X40ft -$160,000 monthly. Call: 644-5151 3 Bedroom upper flat at 143 Pike Street. Call: 234-0733 Fully furnished vacation home with all amenities Call during working hours 227-1218 One spacious 3 bedroom lower flat at Mon Repos, E.C.D -$48,000 monthly (water included). Call: 6452395/ 629-5300 2 & 3 Bedrooms, fully furnished luxury apartments, long and short term rental. Call: 665-3505/ 655-6270
EDUCATIONAL French Classes: 276B Peter Rose Street, Monday-Friday open from 1-5pm, www.alliancefrancaiseguyana. com. Tel: 226-1882
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Kaieteur News
Thousands take to the streets in Suriname demanding govt. revoke policies
For the second consecutive day, the protestors gathered at Independence Square denouncing recent measures taken by the Desi Bouterse govt. PA R A M A R I B O , Suriname (CMC) – Thousands of people took to the streets here yesterday calling on the Suriname government to revoke the recent increase in fuel prices. For the second consecutive day, the protestors gathered at Independence Square opposite the Presidential Palace denouncing recent measures taken by the Desi Bouterse government including price hikes for fuel, water and electricity. Last week, the price of gasoline increased by US$0.08 cents per litre, while diesel increased by US$0.03 cents per litre. At least 10,000 people participated in the protest on the two days organised by the trade unions following a
similar event by the 30-year old Maisha Neus on Monday. Observers described the protest as the largest protest action against the Bouterse government with students, workers and even staff of different hospitals and opposition parties in National Assembly participating. While the protestors called on Bouterse to resign, the trade union leaders said that this was not their goal with RAVAKSUR leader Robby Berenstein indicating that the objective is not to overthrow the government, but rather to press the administration to change its policies. The union leaders claim that the policies have brought untold hardship on the population and vowed that the demonstrations would continue until the
“disastrous” measures have been revoked. Suriname has had to enter into an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after the Dutchspeaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country experienced a drastic decline in revenue as a result of the situation on the international market where the prices of the country’s most important commodities gold and oil dropped significantly. According to the government, the country’s income since 2015 fell by 70 per cent in comparison to 2014. As a result also the foreign currency reserves were nearly depleted which led to a devaluation of the Surinamese dollar in November 2015 by 20 percent.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – Barbados health authorities yesterday warned that only healthcare providers sanctioned by the Ministry of Health are authorised to conduct HIV rapid testing on the island. “The Ministry of Health is strongly advising that members of the public should not have HIV rapid tests done at private medical facilities unless those facilities have been certified by the Ministry. The National HIV Testing Policy clearly stipulates that HIV rapid testing may only be done by personnel who are trained and certified to conduct such tests,” said Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Joy St. John. She made the statement amid concerns here that members of the public were receiving inaccurate results after being tested by unauthorised providers. Dr. St. John said that while HIV rapid tests may
appear simple to use, they were highly prone to error, which could occur at any point in the testing process, either with the equipment itself or by the person performing the test. “Prior to the introduction of HIV rapid testing, the Ministry of Health went through a process of validation of the HIV rapid test kits currently being used to determine their reliability in the Barbadian population. Not all kits reach the minimum standard of accuracy for this population.” As a consequence, she said, some HIV rapid test kits led to a higher rate of false results than others, even if they were used correctly, based on the manufacturer’s instructions. “The two types of HIV rapid tests currently being used by the Ministry of Health have been validated and there is an ongoing quality assurance programme to
maintain accuracy of test results. “Such rigorous quality monitoring is not done for HIV rapid tests done beyond the auspices of the Ministry of Health. This is why the Ministry has taken a very stringent stance on the use of this technology in Barbados to protect the health of the public,” Dr. St. John said. Senior Medical Officer with responsibility for the HIV/STI Programme, Dr. Anton Best, said that rapid HIV tests were diagnostic tests for HIV, which used either a blood sample or oral fluids, and produced results within as little as 20 to 30 minutes. The Senior Medical Officer disclosed that the HIV Rapid Testing Programme started in 2010 and by the end of 2016, just over 13,000 tests were done, with the majority of persons coming forward to be tested being women.
Barbados warns against unauthorised rapid HIV testing
New UN report finds Zika virus could cost region up to US$18 billion UNITED NATIONS (CMC) – A new United Nations report has found that in addition to the impact on public health, the mosquitoborne Zika outbreak could cost the Latin American and the Caribbean region as much as US$18 billion between 2015 and 2017. The report titled “Socioeconomic impact assessment of Zika virus in Latin America and the Caribbean” prepared by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), has a particular focus on Brazil, Colombia and Suriname – countries that first reported the outbreak in OctoberNovember 2015. The UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of its Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean, Jessica Faieta, underscored the far-reaching impact the Zika virus would go, beyond tangible losses, such as to the gross domestic p r o d u c t (GDP), and could p o t e n t i a l l y impact the implementation of the 2003 UN Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The consequences of the virus can undermine decades of social development, hardearned health gains and slow progress towards [achieving] the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” she said. The UN said the assessment also “clearly showed that the impact of the virus was felt the most in poorer countries.” While larger economies, such as Brazil, could bear the greatest “absolute” burden, the most “severe” impacts are likely be felt in the poorest countries, such as Haiti, the UN said. “Zika reminds us that all countries and peoples remain vulnerable to emerging
infectious diseases, and that a disease that primarily affects poorer populations has wideranging social and economic implications for entire communities,” said Magdy Martínez-Solimán, the UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of its Bureau for Policy and Programme Support. The UN said the impact assessment also highlighted the need to strengthen regional and national preparedness and response strategies, which also involve communities and have particular focus on the needs of vulnerable group, such as girls, women and persons with disabilities.
World Bank urges Latin America and the C’ bean to improve spending efficiency WASHINGTON (CMC) – The World Bank yesterday said Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) can dramatically improve its infrastructure by better assessing priorities and improving spending efficiency. In a new study released here, the Washington-based financial institution notes that although the region trails others in infrastructure investment, it should focus on spending better before thinking of spending more. It said while Latin America and the Caribbean spends three per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) on average, compared to 7.7 per cent in East Asia and Pacific for instance, many countries spend more than four per cent. “Infrastructure investment can be a powerful engine for growth in Latin America and the Caribbean as the region emerges from six years of slowdown, including two of recession,” said Jorge Familiar, World Bank Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean. “In today’s tight fiscal context, it is essential that investments are as efficient as possible, and that the full potential of the private sector be tapped.” The study, titled “Rethink-
ing Infrastructure in Latin America and the Caribbean – Spending Better to Achieve More” notes that rather than focusing on often poorly defined financing gaps, it advocates for addressing “service gaps,” according to countries’ development priorities. This means putting in place efficient ways of addressing these needs, and developing clear rules for deciding when taxpayers should finance services, instead of users. The study states that improving performance in a constrained fiscal environment will require well-identified priorities. The report singles out sanitation and transport, in which LAC lags behind other middle-income regions, as potential focus areas. In addition, the region should also factor concerns such as climate change, urbanization and its changing socioeconomic profile, in particular a larger middle class, which are changing infrastructure service demands –especially on energy and transport. “Latin America and the Caribbean has long been an innovator in infrastructure,” said Marianne Fay, Chief Economist for the World Bank’s Sustainable Develop-
ment Vice-Presidency, and one of the authors of the report. “With its expertise in sophisticated regulations and its experience with public-private partnerships, the region has the means to improve its infrastructure services by spending better and on the right things.” The World Bank says spending more efficiently could have enormous benefits. In the case of the energy sector, where transmission and distribution losses are high, LAC would need US$23 billion per year if it were to follow the same investment path of the past. Costs would at least halve under an approach that favours efficiency, climate resiliency and renewable energy solutions. According to the report, many of the causes for inefficient infrastructure investment have roots beyond the sector, including lack of institutional capacity for planning, regulatory uncertainty, and budgeting and implementation issues in many countries. Inefficient procurement processes, for instance, contribute to excess costs. Adequate pricing for infrastructure services is another important potential area for increased efficiency.
Saturday April 08, 2017
Kaieteur News
Central Bank empowered to give guidelines on currency spread – Govt. officials It appears that the Government is sticking to the guideline provided by Central Bank to have operators use a $3 spread between the buying and selling rate for foreign currency. According to officials at Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance, the Governor of the Bank of Guyana, Dr. Gobind Ganga, is within his right. He is operating with his legal remit to issue such a guideline on the foreign currency. The officials stressed that the point or motive behind the guideline was to ensure the stabilization of the foreign currency market. The Government officials also objected to statements made by the political opposition that the Central Bank and Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, issued a “threat” to cambio operators to obey the $3 spread. They maintain that this is false and never occurred. According to the PPP, the measure by Central Bank is of tremendous concern. The party had said that it viewed the measure, as high handed and unconstitutional. “It must be noted that these cambios operate under specific laws and any attempt to force these cambios to buy or sell currency at specific rates is in violation of the law,” PPP said in a statement issued by Irfaan Ali, a senior Parliamen-
Central Bank Governor, Dr. Gobind Ganga tarian. It was pointed out that the country’s foreign currency market operates based on a floating exchange rate and is therefore determined and influenced by demand and supply. ”The Minister of Finance cannot fix the rate based on his own wishes. As has been noted by many businesses there is a shortage of US currency in the economy. To address this, the Central Bank needs to address the supply side and not dictate against the realities of the market,” PPP insisted. But the Finance Minister
in support of the Central Bank Governor stated that he was doing what every Central Bank Governor in the world does and is in keeping with the law. The PPP is also arguing that the economy is weakening. It said that the currency is going to continue to lose value. This, coupled with reduction in foreign direct investments (FDI) and severe shortfall in foreign currency earned from export trade for forestry and agriculture, will have an impact. The situation will only get worse, the PPP statement said.
‘Boyo’ murder PI continues
MURDERED: Ganesh ‘Boyo’ Ramlall The preliminary inquiry (PI) into the murder of Ganesh Ramlall, former owner of the Regent Multiplex Mall, Regent Street, Georgetown, will continue on Tuesday, April 11, at the Leonora Magistrate’s Court. This is according to the special prosecutor assigned to the case who disclosed that the matter is winding down. Lennox ‘Soldier Man’ Roberts, 32, of 2279 Tuschen Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara; Fazeel ‘Javed’ Bacchus, 21, of 7, Anna Catherina, West Coast Demerara; and Kurt ‘Banana’ Erskine, 35, of 285 Section ‘C’, Golden Grove, East Bank
Fazeel Bacchus and Lennox Roberts Demerara are currently on remand for Ramlall’s murder. The killing occurred on July 5, 2015. According to reports, Ramlall, also known as ‘Boyo’ of Lot C La Jalousie, West Coast Demerara, was reportedly shot seven times about the body after bandits attacked his home. The 48year-old businessman is reported to have just returned home from a barbecue, when he was accosted by four men who shot him to the head and chest before relieving him of jewelry and a wallet before escaping. Earlier on in the preliminary inquiry, Police
Sergeants Rodwell Sarrabo and Salaish Roopnarine, were called by the prosecution to give evidence. The Police Sergeants, both detectives, assisted with investigations into the matter. Sergeant Sarrabo is the Subordinate Officer in Charge of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Brickdam Police Station. Sergeant Roopnarine is stationed at the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU). At the time of the murder, both policemen were attached to the Major Crimes Investigation Unit, Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Headquarters, Eve Leary, Georgetown.
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Russia warns of serious consequences from U.S. strike in Syria (Reuters) Russia warned yesterday that U.S. cruise missile strikes on a Syrian air base could have “extremely serious” consequences, as President Donald Trump’s first major foray into a foreign conflict opened up a rift between Moscow and Washington. The warships USS Porter and USS Ross in the Mediterranean Sea launched dozens of Tomahawk missiles at the Shayrat air base, which the Pentagon says was involved in a chemical weapons attack this week. It was Trump’s biggest foreign policy decision since taking office in January and the kind of direct intervention in Syria’s six-year-old civil war his predecessor Barack Obama avoided. The strikes were in reaction to what Washington says was a poison gas attack by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that killed at least 70 people in rebel-held territory. Syria denies it carried out the attack. They catapulted Washington into confrontation with Russia, which has advis-
ers on the ground aiding its close ally Assad. “We strongly condemn the illegitimate actions by the U.S. The consequences of this for regional and international stability could be extremely serious,” Russia’s deputy U.N. envoy, Vladimir Safronkov, told a meeting of the U.N. Security Council yesterday. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev charged that the U.S. strikes were one step away from clashing with Russia’s military. U.S. officials informed Russian forces ahead of the missile strikes and avoided hitting Russian personnel. Satellite imagery suggests the base houses Russian special forces and helicopters, part of the Kremlin’s effort to help Assad fight Islamic State and other militant groups. Trump, who has frequently urged improved relations with Russia, strained under Obama over Syria, Ukraine and other issues, was hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Thursday night when the attack oc-
curred. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, in Florida with Trump, said yesterday the United States would announce additional sanctions on Syria in the near future but offered no specifics. Russia’s Defense Ministry responded to the attack by calling in the U.S. military attache in Moscow to say that at midnight Moscow time (5 p.m. EDT) it would close down a communications line used to avoid accidental clashes between Russian and U.S. forces in Syria, Interfax new agency said. U.S. warplanes frequently attack Islamic State militants in Syria and come close to Russian forces. U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said yesterday the Trump administration was ready to take further steps if needed. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who also was in Florida with Trump and is scheduled to go to Moscow next week, said he was disappointed but not surprised by the Russian reaction because it showed continued support for Assad.
Leading Venezuela opposition figure barred from office 15 years (Reuters) Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles was yesterday banned from holding political office for 15 years, a move that could galvanize protests against the leftist government and upend a presidential election in 2018. Capriles, a two-time presidential candidate and current governor of Miranda state, was seen as the opposition’s best hope to defeat President Nicolas Maduro. The national comptroller banned him from office due to “administrative irregularities” including breaking contracting laws and improper management of donations from the British and Polish embassies, according to a copy of the ban. The punishment deals a blow to the opposition after stepped-up protests this week and accusations that Maduro, the unpopular handpicked successor of the late Hugo Chavez, was leading the country to dictatorship and cracking down on dissent. Capriles responded to the measure in a defiant speech to emotive supporters at a small Caracas sports arena, describing the measure as a desperate gambit of a decaying dictatorship. “You can shove your disqualification where the sun doesn’t shine,” said Capriles,
flanked by opposition leaders. “This is not one person’s struggle, this is not Capriles’ struggle. This is the Venezuelan people’s struggle.” The decision would also likely fuel anger ahead of an opposition protest planned for today after a string of violent marches, spurred by the Supreme Court assuming control of congress last week before an outcry forced it to retreat. A young man died in violence around protests on Thursday. Over the last few days, authorities have accused Capriles of fomenting violence and bloodshed by leading increasingly intense protests against Maduro.
Capriles’ punishment falls under a comptroller’s office measure known as “disqualification” that blocks politicians from holding office if they are deemed to have committed “irregularities” in managing state resources. The comptroller’s office notification to Capriles said he had 15 working days to appeal the decision at that office or 180 days to ask for its annulment at the top court. Both are pro-government and unlikely to overturn the decision. When asked about the donations mentioned in the ban, the British Embassy declined to comment, while the Polish Embassy did not immediately respond.
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Heads of Missions address enhancing export capacity, attracting investments
Several matters engaged the concluded Heads of Missions Conference. Among those discussed by the country’s 20 Ambassadors stationed abroad were the enhancement of export capacity and attracting investments for Guyana. This was confirmed by Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge, during a press conference yesterday following the conclusion of the conference at the Georgetown Pegasus Hotel. Greenidge was asked whether specific areas were identified and on which Guyana’s foreign missions would have to focus when promoting the country’s interests abroad. His response was that the issues of cooperation to enhance export capacity, cooperation in order to attract investments and trade laws would have been dealt with by a wide range of dialogues. He said that these discussions would have covered both the countries where trade agreements were considered relatively successful and those where the country would have to do something to enhance performance on the Guyana side. “Trade constituted a significant topic among the exchanges as did investment and the various arrangements for improving trade and problems in some of the markets of relatively low levels to get the potential. We discussed for the example extensively what might be done in Southern Africa or South Africa in particular.” He said that the Ambassador to South Africa is considering various areas where there can be cooperation. These areas include human resource skills, institutional arrangements, the skill and market strengths of South Africa and the availability in Guyana of a range of minerals such as semi-precious stones and diamond production. However, Greenidge explained that although those
Seated in centre, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge speaking at yesterday’s press conference in the company of Guyana’s Ambassadors and Foreign Ministry Officials issues are discussed and promoted by the Guyanese Ambassador, Guyana does not control the implementation of measures in the host country. Ultimately, he said that Guyana’s Foreign Ministry is primarily focused on generating the ideas within host countries for them to hopefully endorse the missions abroad. Some of the other areas which were discussed included the oil and gas sector, geographic indicators and the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union. Greenidge said that the purpose of the conference which began on Monday was to allow the members of the administration and those who formulate foreign policies to hear from the operatives or Ambassadors who are located across the globe about their impressions on events which have been taking place. He said that the Missions provided information on trends within countries, within multilateral fora and the free markets. Also, he said that the con-
ference provides the Missions with the opportunity to hear from their principals through the Ministry and Minister of Foreign Affairs of any changes, priorities and concerns the principals wish to highlight. “The programme has been
quite an extensive one. We tried to pack it with a number of things, bearing in mind that we have Heads of Mission who whilst they are well equipped academically and otherwise with a wealth of experience, all but three are new to the Guyana Foreign
Ministry. “Under those circumstances it is very important that one finds an opportunity to have them think and reflect on issues together so that you actually build a team.” He said that part of the reason for the exercise is to
help to engineer team building in terms of the undertaking of foreign policy. He said that based on the exchanges between the Ambassadors coupled with the reactions and contributions, the presentations were very impressive.
Guyana’s borrowing from IDB not in trouble - Finance Minister Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, has said that the decision by the United States to withdraw its support from the Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), will not adversely affect Guyana. Jordan told Kaieteur News that three other donor countries have stepped up to cushion the gap that the US pullout would’ve otherwise caused. “In particular, Japan stepped in and together with increased pledges from Latin and Central America, MIF 3 is fully subscribed,” Jordan said. He further declared that “Guyana’s regular borrowing from the IDB is not in trouble.” An adverse effect of the US withdrawal was foreseen by many, including former Auditor General Anand Goolsarran. Before it was pointed out that the gap left by the United States was filled, Goolsarran had pointed out that such a situation would pave the way for an opportunity. “For decades, we have been running a budget deficit,” Goolsarran pointed out. He told Kaieteur News,
Finance Minister, Winston Jordan “Every year, we rejoice at the fact that we have the biggest budget ever, but little do we realise that we are living with borrowed money, and hence beyond our means,” the former Auditor General said. He went further to explain contents of the 2015 Auditor General’s report. “The public debt was G$352.073B, the external portion of which amounted to US$1.143B at an exchange rate of US$1=G$203.1. At the current exchange rate, we will have to find more Guyana
dollars to service our external debts.” Given this, Goolsarran is of the view that the time has come for Guyana to introduce austerity measures aimed at securing a more balanced budget. “As a minimum, we need to scale back on foreign borrowings. Countries such as Canada and the UK do not borrow to finance infrastructure works,” Goolsarran pointed out. He said that while the prospects of earning oil revenues are encouraging, the country must consider such revenues, as of now, “a bird in the bush.” Whenever they materialise, we should consider them as a bonus,” he said. In other words, Goolsarran is advising that Guyana not “put all our eggs in one basket.” He is of the view that continuing to do this will see the country suffering “the Dutch disease.” “In short, the economy needs to be diversified and we must aim to have a balanced budget, say at the end of five years,” Goolsarran urged. It was at a news conference last Sunday that
the United States’ decision to pull its support from the fund was made known. According to Reuters, IDB had linked the U.S. decision to a policy shift since Republican President Donald Trump took office in January. Founded in 1959, the IDB provides loans to governments and businesses in need of funds to finance projects, both large and small scale ventures. The IDB has boasted of being the leading source of development financing for Latin America, lending $11.3 billion and $13.8 billion in 2015 and 2014, respectively. The international news house highlighted that Multilateral Investment Fund, or MIF, created in 1993, was instru m e n t a l i n t h e development of microfinance and provides technical assistance to small projects aimed at providing economic opportunity to the poor. A statement from the IDB, as quoted by Reuters, pointed out that the MIF, was actually a brainchild of former U.S. President George H.W. Bush, adding that the United States has historically been its largest donor.