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Four arrested NEWS after father of two found dead in home AIETEUR

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Tuesday Edition April 06, 2021 -Vol. 14 No. 14

Online: www.kaieteurnews.com

Guyana’s largest selling daily & New York’s most popular weekly

Price $80

Online readership yesterday, 94,119

Lack of info from Govt. agencies stymies oil sector audits - GRA p.

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COVID-19 puts Taxi driver beats, damper on Easter robs, then kicks Monday observance out passenger centre

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Guyana wants CARICOM’s solidarity in engagements with IMF/World Bank p.

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Arrested Sophia man p. 16 party-goers p. arrested for robbing p. continue 11 8 revelry on men while dining at GDF bus Pouderoyen restuarant

UN report highlights corruption risks in emergency funding

Importing items for retail to oil companies - ExxonMobil is not Local Content representative p.

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Where there is no vision people are bound to perish. Tune in to Kaieteur Radio [99.1/99.5Fm] for a rebroadcast of the Glenn Lall Show @11:00hrs!

Kaieteur News

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Tuesday April 06, 2021

Lack of info from Govt. agencies stymies oil sector audits - GRA I

t was in September 2019 that the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) operationalised the Petroleum Revenue Audit Department (PetRAD). That department was established to serve two main purposes.

The first was to ensure the administration of taxes within the petroleum sector through the performance of revenue compliance activities to ensure there is adherence to Guyana's tax and petroleum laws and regulations, as well as, Production Sharing GRA Commissioner Agreements (PSA).

General, Godfrey S. Statia The second purpose was to ensure the execution of Cost Recovery Audits aimed at verifying the expenditure have entered into PSAs with claims of contractors who the government.

Despite its best efforts to achieve the said goals, GRA noted in its 2015 to 2020 Handover Report that several challenges hindered the work of PetRAD. Chief among these was the failure of all related Government Departments to sign onto a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) governing the sharing of pertinent information.

Kaieteur News understands that this significantly hindered the authority's ability to access the documents needed to plan all Cost Recovery and Tax Audits, as well as, adopt m o r e p r o a c t i v e contemporary audit techniques.

Further to this, GRA

noted the inability to control the timely achievement of audit deliverables granted that the Cost Recovery Audit is conducted collaboratively by three Government Agencies.

Another huge hurdle was the selective interpretation of the PSA and legislation by International Oil Companies and Service Providers.

Given that the Oil and Gas Sector is in its rudimentary phase, GRA said that most terms within the PSA and the legislation are subject to interpretation.

This has to be meticulously and punctiliously read and interpreted, which is extraordinarily timeconsuming since the

outcome of these inaugural activities would set precedents within this burgeoning sector, the tax body stated.

Further to this, GRA said that the complement of the Petroleum Revenue Audit Department has expanded to 14 officers since its establishment.

It noted, however, that the further expansion of the department is being curtailed b y i n a d e q u a t e accommodation. Kaieteur News understands that infrastructural works are currently afoot to facilitate the co-option of some additional resources that are currently apart of the repository.

Of the 14 officers, GRA

was keen to note that only 11 are directly involved in the execution of Audits. Also, all 11 of these officers are officially assigned to the Tax Audit Division.

The only assigned member of the Cost Recovery Audit Division is the Assistant Commissioner.

GRA said that a project team, constituted mainly of Managers of PetRAD, was formed to facilitate the execution of the first Cost Recovery Audit. It noted, however, that strategic decisions needed to be made as it relates to the operationalisation of the Cost Recovery Audit Division and by extension, the deployment of staff to serve within the Division.

Ashni Singh pleads with World Bank for more support S

enior Minister within the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, has told the World Bank that Guyana's economic prospects are currently very promising, despite COVID-19 and domestic political issues, which caused a sharp contraction in non-oil GDP

in 2020, and as such the country remains ripe for investment and support from the financial institution.

Dr. Singh made this remark over the weekend, during the Ministerial Conclave on Human Capital convened by the World Bank Group as part of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group's

2021 Spring Meetings, which are currently being held virtually.

The Conclave was held under the theme 'Investing in Human Capital for a Green, Resilient and Inclusive Recovery.'

Addressing the conclave, Minister Singh spoke to Guyana's bright economic prospects, as well as, the

country's vulnerabilities and development challenges, but emphasized that Guyana is rich in natural resources, including oil, minerals, and forests that cover 85 percent of the country's territory making its economic climate very favouring.

The Minister was adamant; this obtains, despite the faltering experienced in

the traditional sectors of the country's economy for which he blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic and Guyana's 2020 elections impasse.

He was adamant, that even with the many challenges, “Guyana is still the fastest growing economy in the world as a result of its production of oil, and will remain amongst the fastest growing economies in the next few years.”

According to the Minister however, “...we also face extreme vulnerabilities to climate change, as well as, significant development challenges. We are well aware of the magnitude of these challenges.

They include avoiding the resource curse, promoting a strong and competitive nonoil economy, addressing our infrastructure gap, and improving human development outcomes.”

He explained, “Despite the many competing calls on our finite fiscal resources, we are investing heavily in the social sector – education, health, etc. – as well as in facilitative infrastructure such as information and communications technology.”

He cited as example, investments made in education at all levels and ensuring lifelong learning – “supported with the use of information and communication technology based on lessons learnt during COVID-19 – and all with the aim of improving production

Dr. Ashni Singh and productivity, as well as, individual and household well-being.”

The Minister used the occasion to outline that, “on many of these initiatives, we are (already) collaborating with the Bank, and we expect the education sector to dominate our portfolio of projects with the Bank in the next programming cycle... this will be in keeping with our emphasis on human capital development both as an input to, and an outcome of, sustainable economic growth.”

Dr. Singh used the occasion to also reiterate his Government's views on human capital development “as both a critical prerequisite for and a critical objective of economic growth.”

The Ministerial Conclave on Human Capital saw participation from the World Bank Group's President, David Malpass, other senior executives of the Bank, as well as several Ministers of Finance from around the world.

Kaieteur News

Tuesday April 06, 2021

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Importing items for retail to oil companies is not Local Content T

he ExxonMobilsponsored Centre f o r L o c a l Business Development (CLBD) is currently embracing the stance that much more focus needs to be paid to the true meaning of what local content is, since simply importing an item for retail at a small mark-up profit does not count as true local content.

The position was voiced over the weekend by the CLBD Director, Dr. Natasha Gaskin-Peters, who was at the time a guest panelist on OilNow's Local Content webinar, moderated by Chris Chapwanya.

According to the CLBD director, “when we think about true local content we have also to focus on the economic definition; so we have to think about leakages within our economy.”

She explained that when the oil companies spend to procure goods from a local company “if they are importing them, that is not really local content.”

The CLBD director

- ExxonMobil Rep.

CLBD Director, Dr. Natasha Gaskin-Peters explained that when this obtains it would mean that the majority of the money is still being leaked overseas since the companies that are supplying the oil companies would have to pay for their items outside of the country.

Dr. Gaskin-Peters used the occasion to note too, “if I am a local company and not

investing in the country then it becomes a leakage.”

According to the CLBD Director, “we want to ensure that spending is not focused on pass through items; not just wholesale and retail and not just making a mark-up (profit).”

She was adamant in noting that “if we think about the spending (on local content), we also have to think about leakages.”

The director's remarks comes on the heels of lamentations by one local company that had put in a bid for the supply of personal protective equipment, namely safety helmets, vests and gloves but was declined for want of experience.

That importer had teamed up with an international partner to supply SBM Offshore - one of ExxonMobil's prime contractors - to supply the safety gears but was turned down.

Cummings Lodge squatters to relocate by April 10

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ccording to a notice posted on the Facebook page of the Ministry of H o u s i n g a n d Wa t e r yesterday, the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) is calling on all informal settlers within the Cummings Lodge New Housing Development (1767-1768) to immediately vacate the area.

The notice stated that the area where the illegal structures are erected will be developed and hundreds of first-time owners will benefit.

It was further noted that the squatters are delaying the rate at which the development work is to be done.

As such, failing to

Minister of Housing and Water, Hon. Collin Croal comply with the notice on or before April 10, 2021 will

result in actions being taken against the squatters.

Kaieteur News had reported that, Minister of Housing and Water, Hon. Collin Croal, had stated during a radio interview that he is eager to commit t o t h e P P P / C administration's manifesto promise of delivering adequate water and provide housing for over 50,000, persons.

On another occasion, Minister Croal, along with Minister within the Ministry, Susan Rodrigues, while outlining a zero tolerance approach to squatting, had told squatters of 'A' Field Sophia, that there will be no “strong arm” approach to the issue but rather a comprehensive and inclusive one.

Lamenting the state of affairs, the medium sized manufacturer said it is quite astonishing that after partnering with W. W. Grainger, Inc, an American Fortune 500 industrial supplier founded in 1927, it had thought that it would have been able to prequalify.

The local firm said it was flabbergasted to learn that it could not tender for the contract because it had no experience.

“How do you expect the small man to benefit from the sector when he can be shut out for not having experience in a sector that is new to the country? How do you expect the small man to have experience in the first place? We are being told to ready ourselves for partnerships and invest our money but when we do, we are shut out because of lack

of experience. This needs to be addressed,” the local company expressed.

Senior Vice President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Timothy Tucker, who also appeared as a guest panelist on the local content discussion, in offering a differing view on the issue, argued that the practice of importing items for retail to the oil companies could still be considered local content.

He pointed to the fact that despite items being imported, the country still benefits overall from taxes being paid and for employees earning a livelihood.

The GCCI senior vice president was reiterating the need for Guyanese to be given first preference and not be treated as window dressing.

Almost one year ago, international Energy Lawyer, Mr. J. Jay Park, had conducted a review of the

provisions in the GuyanaExxonMobil Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) for the Stabroek Block and had found that the clauses, which should ensure Guyanese get first preference for jobs and contracts in the oil sector, left much to be desired.

The terms were found to be so poor that he had given the said provisions an “F Grade.”

The renowned energy expert, who has practiced energy law for over 30 years, with specific focus on creating optimum petroleum regimes for States, had explained that the reason for such a grade is premised on the fact that the provisions would put G u y a n e s e a t a disadvantage, as they give E x x o n , a n d i t s contractors, enough room to make excuses for not giving first preference in the award of contracts to local businesses.

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Tuesday April 06, 2021

Kaieteur News

Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana.

Publisher: GLENN LALL-TEL: 624-6456 Editor: Sharmain Grainger Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210

EDITORIAL

Let there be light The first spoken words recorded in the Holy Bible are these four profound ones: “Let there be light.” One does not have to be Christian, or even a subscriber to divine providence, or any kind of believer or follower, to accept and appreciate that light is about life. The only ones who may likely disagree and distance from such an assertion are those who delight in an existence that is of deep darkness, such as witches and sorcerers, and those who operate best under the cover of concealment. But, it is that same light that we seek on the things that mean much to us, that same light we push towards, through thick man-made darkness, and that same unchangeable light that is pure when it is true, and which may be delayed and distorted, but cannot be denied for too long.

In the heavy and dismal atmospheres of our enduring poverties, there was always the wisdom that there were things about this country that would come to light. Even though most of our people were poor and at the lower end of the learning scale, there was that uncanny intuition that somehow came from somewhere that this land is extraordinarily blessed with many rich gifts. It could have come from God and heaven (for those who have faith in such things), or it could be the result of millions of years of nature and science (never ending mysteries in their own right) that put all that natural resources wealth in this place of all places.

As time and awareness have advanced, and with the broader knowledge that comes from both, there are these glittering national treasures coming to light. There was and are groves of gold in the ground, with tall arcadias of timber towering above it and, more recently, of much oil and gas under our waters. It would seem that amidst these immense blessings, that we Guyanese have had an abundance of light, more than we can absorb and carry. But we don’t.

We do not have the luster of the fullest lights because there are men who stand in the way, who are determined in their unalterable desires to block any light that would enlighten us, the citizens of this blessed country, with the fullness of knowledge that we need to appreciate what we have, and how we must use it for widespread national benefit. We, the people, are the inheritors and beneficiaries of those gifts, be they gold or diamond or bauxite, and especially that oil, of which we know way less than we should. It is because we have men, political leaders that we have voted into national office, who prefer the darkness of keeping us in ignorance. They relish and thrill to that darkness. These political leaders hide in darkness; they fear anything that has to do with the cleansing that comes from light. For light is too revealing of those underhanded things that they are engaged in with that oil, and at which they work hard to keep undercover.

Light is too confirming of how these same slippery political wizards have ogled this oil and made themselves into full-fledged ogres, who must now hide from the truths that light would flash before Guyanese forced to exist in a state of darkness about what belongs to them, is their own.

Because our political leaders fear the light and shun the light, they have transformed themselves into these dark monstrosities, which frighten citizens, who are all children of this richly endowed country.

Our governing leaders are afraid to speak; they recoil from facing up to uttering a single honest word that would shed needed light on what they have done, and what they have in vision and mind, with this oil treasure entrapping them. So, they take shelter in the thickest darkness, which has taken over their hearts, their very existence. They cannot move, they dare not, since that would expose them and damn them. But we have news for them.

Our news is that we at this publication will commit every sinew to shine the sharpest and most sustainably piercing light on them. They can run as much as wish, but they can’t hide for too long. Soon, they will run out of darkness, as they tangle over their own feet; the very darkness into which they retreat and take comfort will prove to be their worst enemy. We will bring them to light somehow and someday soon. Let there be light. Since we have to be the brightest spotlight shining on them, then it just has to be.

We are pleading on behalf of these two Haitian citizens Dear Editor We write on behalf of two citizens of Haiti, Junette Jean and Wilbert Fremont who on March 17, 2021 were sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment in addition to a fine of $30,000 each for the offense of illegally entering Guyana. To date, Ms. Jean and Mr. Fremont, a couple, have served just under two weeks of their sentence and continue to do so in a new country, separated from each other and surrounded by a strange language. Their nearest Haitian language

contacts in Guyana are in Georgetown. Ms. Jean is incarcerated in New Amsterdam, and Mr. Fremont was placed at Lusignan and then taken to Timehri. One can hardly imagine the mental hardships this couple faces in isolation in these conditions.

An appeal is being filed on behalf of Ms. Jean and Mr. Fremont against their unreasonably severe sentencing. On humanitarian grounds, we hereby ask that this appeal be heard without delay, since to all appearances this couple has been treated

harshly and their current rights as CARICOM citizens might not have been taken into account. Ms. Jean and Mr. Fremont travelled to Guyana hoping to reunite with their relative who lives there. Neither of these two Caribbean citizens has ever had a criminal record, and no such evidence was produced in court at their hearing on March 17.

Ms. Jean, who currently faces a health challenge, having had major surgery just a few months ago, has been severely traumatized by her arrest, sentencing and detention in Guyana. When seen by her husband’s

relative at La Penitence Police Station lockup after sentencing, she was crying uncontrollably and displaying suicidal tendencies. Ms. Jean has children and it is unconscionable that she should be kept from her children for a year.

What is of deep concern to us is what appears to be the unequal treatment of this Haitian couple in comparison to persons of different nationalities who were arrested at the same time and at the same port of entry, and charged for the same offence of entering (Continued on page 6)

Solar energy is far cheaper than the US$400-800M gas-to-shore project Dear Editor, Former Presidents Jagdeo and Ramotar are not paying attention. Solar energy is far cheaper than the US$400-800M gas to shore project. I have already made this public without refutation.

Last year the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) asked me for a conversation in August 2020 after I again publicly advised the PPP/C government to give up the Amaila Falls Project in favour of solar energy.

With the permission of a client, I shared invoices that demonstrated solar power could also be used here for US$2 per installed and readyto-receive household watt.

Since then, solar energy projects of that cost have been approved by the GEA. Mr Ramotar said it reminds him of the “Amaila Falls Project” which was frustrated by similar daily attacks from the opposition and the regular critics. He said, “All, I repeat, all, the information was shared with the opposition parties, who had no suggestions nor criticisms when the government representatives met them on more than one occasion.” Yet APNU voted against it in the National Assembly and the investor walked away.

There are several lessons

to be drawn from this.

1.

He shared all the information, so why can’t the government do the same with the gas to shore project?

Don’t they realize that the 400-800M figure betrays 100% uncertainty?

2.

There were no criticisms by the opposition.

This could mean that the then opposition had no problem with all the information per se, hopefully provided in a timely manner, but just that they might have had other priorities, having access to the public advice of the eminent economist Clive Thomas, with whose analysis of the Amaila Falls

Hydropower Project I agreed.

3.

Or maybe the opposition heard of the cheaper solar energy, for which I have evidence that Mr. Ramotar paid no heed.

For I did write about it.

4.

The analyses and alternatives were all out in the public domain but were studiously ignored as if we were dunces and the PPP/C had all the answers. Let Mr. Ramotar use his training as an economist to refute the alternative that a less privileged Guyanese pensioner has proposed and still proposes.

But a word of caution.

(Continued on page 5)

More opportunities needed in rural areas Dear Editor, I read with great interest a letter written by a young and brilliant woman from Black Bush Polder who expressed in a letter the lack of opportunities, dominance by some in authority who wanted sex from their junior employees, the importance of preservation, the lack of facilities for educational advancement and numerous obstacles in her quest for higher education.

Lisa Budhu’s letter to the First Lady Arya Alli was brilliantly written, respectful and addressed her as Her Excellency and pointed out the ills of the agricultural settlement of Black Bush Polder. Her writing skills were superb especially for someone without a University degree.

She wants to improve her education at all costs, but there are numerous setbacks.

She knows that without a University degree her chances at the job market would be minimal.

The missive was also very informative. I did not know that there was no landline in

the area to make it easily accessible to emails and computer related materials. It is unbelievable at this age when the computer is now a necessity for children’s education residents are denied this facility.

Black Bush Polder was the brainchild of Dr. Cheddi Jagan, established before Independence and when Forbes Burnham took over the administration of the government in 1964, he continued the agricultural developments of the settlement which both leaders said would be the bread basket of the Caribbean... and indeed agricultural produce from Lesbeholden, Johanna, Mibicuri and Yakusari found their way to Port Mourant, New Amsterdam, Bourda and Stabroek markets. Rice is also grown there which is exported.

However it is regrettable that the roadways are not the best and are deteriorating fairly rapidly, maybe because the infrastructure was not the best. There are numerous problems in the area and residents are deprived of

basic facilities enjoyed by those in other areas. Well known Guyanese Professor, Dr. Baytoram Ramharack, a Berbician, who now lives in New York, is not optimistic.

Writing a blog he said “Black Bush Polder is the place God has forgotten about, and the urban elites (many of whom once lived in the countryside) choose not to be reminded about it. Indeed, this place has the highest suicide rates per capita in the world of 196 countries.”

In response to Lisa’s letter, another blogger “Soph” states “This young woman is smart and resilient and makes this important call to the many national businsses that could put her intelligence and ambitions to productive use. I say if you can afford it, step up and help her get a university education.

A scholarship and some support would be awesome” I support this call and will go a bit further to request the government to assist Lisa who is trying her best to advance her education. Her stunning letter is strong

evidence that this young country woman is very resourceful and talented. She needs assistance to move ahead. She is not trying to move out of Black Bush Polder, but wants to remain and assist residents after she is better qualified to do so.

I would have thought that the government, regardless which party is in power, would make the 6000 residents of Black Bush Polder comfortable and provide them with the proper tools and better facilities so that they can continue their planting in order to feed the nation.

Their children must also be taken into account ... no doubt there are several smart ones like Lisa who want to advance their studies. They can start off with a landline and a secondary school with better trained teachers. These people are hardworking farmers and should be cared for in a better way. We should remember most of the “brains” of this country hail from the rural areas.

Yours truly, Oscar Ramjeet

Tuesday April 06, 2021

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Kaieteur News

My mother’s memory lives on in all of us Dear Editor, The death of a mother, even at 93, as mine did on Sunday night, is a great loss; it is irreparable. With my father having passed in the mid-1990s, I join many others who have lost both parents.

It takes courage to bear the pain of the loss of a loved one especially a mother who was the first to see you at birth and I was there with her in my heart as she took her last breath. I was with my mother as the ambulance took her away from her home but could not be with her in the final moments in the hospital because of Covid restrictions.

I did spend time with my mother right after my flight from Guyana on Saturday and she was joyful in seeing me, calling my name throughout the night. The grief is overwhelming as I choke with emotion.

My mother was very unique among girls of her generation as she received a primary school education that was not permitted for most others. It took a special person to do what this woman did.

She was born after the end of indenture in 1928 in Bound Yard, Plantation Port Mourant. Her parents were also born in the same village some 25 years earlier. She also spent time with her maternal

grandparents in Free Yard.

(Animal Yard, Bound yard, Freed Yard, N-Yard, and Portuguese Quarter were all next to each other in Port Mourant where the indentureds lived). My mom’s nanna and nanni, Amarnath and Bhuri Singh, of Rajput (Chatri) stock came from Bharatpur, Rajasthan India; and her aja (Sau-ji) came from (Chapra, Bihar) and aji (Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh) of Banya caste (money lenders or business people). They were bounded to Bound Yard, Port Mourant. My father’s grandparents are from Uttar Pradesh and are of Brahmin and Ahir or Garreri stock (followers of Lord Krishna).

Her name was Gladys – so given because her parents and grand-parents were ‘very glad’ for her birth being the first surviving child of Ketwaru and Rampiyari of Free Yard; earlier pregnancies ended in mortality. It was after several efforts, she was born and survived after great environmental and medical difficulties. My mother’s father (my nanna) died shortly after my mother’s marriage following an accident while working on the estate for which he got no compensation; for his death, my nanni was compensated with a job to weed grass under

...Solar energy is far cheaper From page 4 Projects like these are scaled differently. Engineers have a method of scaling projects of any magnitude by using dimensionless numbers. Do the economists and financial advisers the PPP/C government listens to have such a method? Dr. Jagdeo failed with the Skeldon Sugar Factory project. He believed he could give a Chinese firm with no such experience the experience to build it cheaper

than engineering firms elsewhere, including Guyanese engineering firms.

He was out of his depth here.

The APNU/AFC government failed even more pathetically to negotiate a proper deal for Exxon to extract oil. And yes, the gasto-shore project is currently scaled above the PPP/C government’s rating as economists.

Yours truly, Alfred Bhulai

the hot sun in the cane fields.

My mother had seven other siblings (Dhoris, Johnny, deceased, Dorothy, Aska, Irene, Esther, Shanta, and Gama, deceased).

My mother was one of four girls who were granted entrance in English School (Anglican) in Free Yard during the 1930s. There was fear of religious conversion, a common requirement for an education and social mobility, but Gladys remained loyal to her Hindu faith till the end.

She excelled in school and was offered a scholarship to study nursing in England.

Three of her friends took up the offer. But her aji, who was boss of the Sau clan, wouldn’t allow it. Her teachers, who were Africans, pleaded with the family to send the “girl’ to England because she was very bright, but to no avail.

Glady’s aji took her out of school fearing she would “couton” boys and ‘taint’ the name of a respectable money lender and merchant family.

Females were not allowed outside of the home at the time, and she must have been among a few Indian girls who actually were allowed an education by their families.

My mother cried and her father and aja wanted to send her to England but the Aji would have none of it and she was the boss.

Gladys’s paternal grandparents owned a store

selling cloth and she helped with retailing. She decided to become self-taught in sewing.

She said she would visit an African seamstress in Free Yard and observed what the woman did. She collected discarded pieces of cloth from the woman’s sewing shop and did hand sewing with needles. She asked her parents to buy her a sewing machine and she self-taught to sew, becoming the leading seamstress in Port Mourant and beyond, getting abundant jobs to sew fancy dresses. She also became a teacher of sewing, imparting skills on hundreds of young ladies. Her sewing shop also became a place for wedding match making. Families would routinely come to her shop to look for a bride for their son during the 1940s thru 1960s.

My mother would be called upon to assess the would-be bride’s character and sewing skills and or make recommendations for marriages. She ‘looked’ for husbands for some of the beauties she trained. She also taught males to sew, including my father who became a tailor in addition to being a rice and cane farmer. All of her students were forever grateful to Aunty Gladys.

My mother’s three school friends who went to study in England visited her on their return from their studies. On seeing them, refined from their

schooling and training in England, my mother grieved she did not further her study, but she was very obedient to her grandparents. It was perhaps her quest for education that she made sure her children received formal schooling. Nine of her twelve children also received tertiary education in America; one child died in infancy in Guyana. Several of her grandchildren are doctors or employed in the medical profession. My mother wanted me to become a (medical) doctor and I disappointed her by becoming a social science doctor pre-occupied with struggling against the dictatorship rather than taking care of myself and my family.

She was very proud of my achievements of perhaps being the only Guyanese to pursue four PhDs, with an extensive background in Educational Administration, natural sciences, and social sciences, and my role in Guyana’s freedom struggle.

My mother was very kind and generous. In addition to imparting sewing and garment cutting skills to youngsters, my mother helped so many others in

birth, marriages, and deaths.

She would pierce the ears of babies – without charging.

There was a special skill to ‘bore’ the ears or noses of female youngsters and my mother was able to numb the ears to prevent pain; I watched her undertake that task with expertise like she was a trained nurse as hundreds visited our home.

She sewed clothes (gowns) for brides and grooms and for the deceased, often free or at very low charges especially for the poor. The rich did not patronize my mother that much, preferring instead urban fashion. She was very comfortable helping the poor.

And she shared meals even under very difficult financial constraints. I remember some very poor families visiting our homes for cooked food, and my mother packing the saucepan for them. And off course, she would give out rice and dal to beggars who would come to our gate almost daily. After our rice harvest, my mother doled out rice to neighbours and relatives. She also shared with neighbours and relatives the milk from our cows, vegetables and fruits from the kitchen garden, and (Continued on page 6)

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Tuesday April 06, 2021

Kaieteur News

I detect a totalitarian state, with only occasional objecting pockets Dear Editor, The more I observe this country, the more I see a state heading downhill. I commend sleek PPP leaders for their covert operations, but then that would be a party to the immensity of the ugly tyrannies present, where nothing is for society, and everything is for me, family and crony. I enlighten.

Topping the list of the handiworks directly traceable

to manipulative PPP leadership is the state of the opposition. It is helpless, both to itself and Guyanese.

I discern that it is largely selfcreated. But, I believe that there was material assistance from the PPP to reduce the PNC+AFC to its present undeniable state of malaise and virtual impotence. It has subtracted from the PPP’s profiteering, and passed on to citizens of this country with

much damage done. From a PPP leadership perspective, it is worth every cent spent.

With opposition out, another bulwark relentlessly surrounded and quietly neutralized is the Fourth Estate. There is nuanced stranglehold on the media, through encircling government and party influences on existing channels and incoming outlets, most new

...My mother’s memory lives on in From page 5 the pumpkin, watermelon, other fruits, and chowrai bhaji or other produce my father brought from the backdam from the banks of our rice fields. I remember her preparing and sharing special delicacies for Phagwah and Diwali and her fasting for other Hindu festivals. My mother held a special place in her heart for me – she prepared the best foods for me including when the dictatorship banned basic foods. I had to get my dhal, alou, and roti. As a child, I only ate fresh water fish and she got hell to find me patwa, hourie, hassar, and sun fish to make me happy. And she took me to Bollywood movies

with the old stars.

She was adored by her relatives and neighbours.

They referred to her as “Didi” (elder sister) or as ‘Bhouji’ (sister in law). Neighbours and others called her Aunty Gladys.

My mother was very hard working. I remember her giving birth to my last two siblings and back at the sewing machine the next day or making roti or preparing meals for the family or washing clothes. Even after undergoing surgery and returning home, she was back on the manual machine sewing clothes to provide food for her dozen children.

Life was very difficult for the family especially for me

personally during the period of banned foods. But we were never short of food and clothing at home. My parents provided for our well-being raising us in comfort. Our ten surviving siblings (Bassant, Sadhanand, Kamlawati, Chandrowti, Srimati, Baskanand, Taramati, Vishnunand, Vekanand, and Chrishnanand) and two dozen grandchildren and a dozen great grand along with her in laws (Sadhu, Wato, Bebo, Sandra, Penal, Parbatie, Jugnu, Anand, Desiree, Radica, Golo) will miss my mother. Vedyawati and Sanita passed on. She was our ‘mai’. Her memory lives on in all of us.

Yours truly, Dr. Vishnu Bisram

practitioners. One of its own (previously falling foul of the law) is establishing a press residence here. It perplexes that in a crowded field for a tiny audience such daring entrepreneurship is considered; somebody has money to burn: potentially huge losses are not concerning. To that add the growing brigade of cyber comrades parroting party line and mindlessly accommodating PPP leadership machinations: no hard questions, no pushback, no probing. The terrain surrounding Stabroek News, Kaieteur News, and Demerara Waves tightens suffocatingly: staffers lured, barriers erected, continuity impaired. Control the messages, overpower audience. Total mind control is the ultimate objective. We are North Koreans.

Then, there is what is charitably called civil society.

To say that it is almost completely compromised is an understatement, so low it has fallen. Its overlapping sectors-mainly private, spasmodically professional, heavily social, and widely spiritual-have tarnished themselves through love of money, failure of principle, craven cult leadership prostration, and in thorough distancing from the ethical and national. The gods and holy grails of most of the membership of those bodies are access and endless acquisitions of assets; they sell themselves openly for PPP silver. They hang themselves publicly for the thirty pieces thrown their way: a contract, a job, a project, any piece of the action. Betrayal is cheap.

Whither honor, when civil society is trussed like a pig?

In not insignificant swathes, the Guyanese Judiciary is the epitome of p e r c e i v e d untrustworthiness. Don’t take my representation for it.

Other than from the top, many truth seekers founder before influence and environment; less of majesty of the law and more of prevailing passions and prejudices. The Guyana Police is at the government’s beck and call, manipulated accordingly. The public service is infiltrated and infested -big game hunting for czars and comrades to oversee rackets.

Politicized is the word.

I detect a totalitarian state, with only occasional objecting pockets. Guyanese bow before it. I am a heretic.

Yours truly, GHK Lall

...We are pleading on behalf of From page 4 Guyana illegally. Our understanding is that, a group of five persons from a different country were similarly arrested and charged on the same day for the same offence.

They pleaded guilty, were fined $15,000 and each deported immediately. Both Haitians also pleaded guilty but, as stated above, were fined $30,000 each and sentenced to one year in jail with deportation orders only after completion of their incarceration.

After sentencing, they were transported to Georgetown and placed in crowded holding cells in Brickdam and La Penitence, respectively, the conditions of which appear to be in breach of the COVID protocols in effect in Guyana. Their imprisonment exposes them to danger from many fronts, among these are cultural intolerance, the pandemic and the violence which erupts in our prisons

from time to time.

Additionally, in the overcrowded prison system in Guyana, is it right that taxpayers are being charged the full costs for the incarceration of two non-violent Haitians for a border crossing - when they could just as well have been deported as the other non-Haitians were for the same offence?

The discrimination against Haitians, who are CARICOM citizens, needs to be questioned. Why is the legal system more amenable to infringements by other nationalities and so draconian towards Haitians? We stand in solidarity with Junette Jean and Wilbert Fremont. We support their appeal without reservation and call for their immediate release on humanitarian grounds.

Yours truly, Guyana-Haiti Support Group - Charlene Wilkinson Melissa Ifill Donald Rodney Sinikka Henry Danuta Radzik, Karen De Souza Vanda Radzik Alissa Trotz Sherlina Nageer Mark Jacobs Pierre Jean, teacher Mondy Balenjo Nago Methelus, Journalist Myrtha Désulmé President Haiti-Jamaica Society; Haitian Diaspora Federation - VP for Advocacy & Public Policy for the Caribbean and Latin America Kesnel Toussaint, President, Association of Haitian National in Guyana (AHNIG) Patrice Florivus Collectif des Avocats Spécialisés en Litige Stratégique de Droits Humains, (CALSDH – Haiti) Elton McRae, Guyana

Reparations Committee Olive Sampson, International Decade for People of African Descent, Guyana Chapter (IDPADAG) Women & Gender Equality Commission - I. Chandarpal; C. Sampson Help & Shelter Josephine Whitehead Red Thread - Joy Marcus; Wintress White; Halima Khan; Susan Collymore; Vanessa Ross Jeremy Peretz Medino Abraham, journalist Sherwin Fraser, University of Guyana Pat Francis, University of Guyana Ebon Lammy Hazel Woolford, Guyana Institute of Historical Research (GIHR) Barrington Braithwaite Gerald Perreira, Organisation for Victory of the People Janette Bulkan Hollis France Nicole Cole Akola Thompson Lisa Edwards Vidyaratha Kissoon Kamala Kempadoo Bonita Harris Denise Harris Oonya Kempadoo Lighttown/Gangoo Creek Community Development Association Sea View Cultural Association Guyana Non-Traditional Agricultural Exporters Association (GNTEA) Invest Cuffy 250 African Cultural Development Association (ACDA) Dominion Schools First of August Movement Anbessa Foundation Women for a Green Economy Blak Reparation Forum

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L B T LUNT.. UNT...B BL B Tuesday April 06, 2021

Kaieteur News

It is indeed commendable that the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security has taken note of the hardships that our pensioners endure each month in order to collect their old age pension, and has put in place a bank payment option.

But what the Honourable Minister who heads this Ministry must take into consideration, is the fact that for many of these pensioners taking advantage of this new option may be a tedious task.

While some may lack a bank account, there are others who may also lack dependable family members or even neighbours, to assist with accessing and filling the necessary forms.

We therefore suggest that systems are put in place to help those elders who may need the added assistance; after all they deserve to be treated with respect and not be pushed around until the 'roll is called up yonder'.

Honourable Minister, we beseech you, don't let this awesome initiative be a silver lining with a dark cloud....we would much prefer the reverse.

PAGE 07

Kaieteur News

PAGE 08

Tuesday April 06, 2021

Guyana wants CARICOM's solidarity UN report highlights in engagements with IMF/World Bank corruption risks in

F

inance Ministers from across the C a r i b b e a n Community (CARICOM) this past week met virtually to prepare CARICOM's agenda ahead of a scheduled upcoming meeting with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

The meeting—the Eighth Special Meeting of the CARICOM Council for Finance and Planning (COFAP)—was chaired by Senior Finance Minister, within Guyana's Office of the President, Dr. Ashni Singh last Thursday.

The meeting was held virtually in accordance with the decision of the 32nd InterSessional meeting of the Conference of CARICOM Heads of Government held in February 202 1 , w h i c h examined the supporting

m a c r o e c o n o m i c environment for the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).

According to a release from the Ministry of Finance, Thursday's meeting involved the various Ministers from each jurisdiction meeting to exchange views on joint advocacy positions that they may wish to adopt during the upcoming IMF - World Bank Spring Meetings 2021.

It was noted that the meeting also addressed and reached agreement on a number of longstanding issues related to the CSME, including

the CARICOM Policies on Credit Reporting, Deposit Insurance, Development and Regulation of the Regional Securities Market, as well as the CARICOM Financial Services Agreement and the intra-CARICOM Double Taxation Agreement.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, Minister Singh used the occasion to underscore that the meeting was taking place at a time when the Region was facing unprecedented economic challenges, resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which have brought into sharp focus the importance of speaking with a single unified voice on issues of shared interest at the upcoming IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings.

He used the occasion to also highlight the urgency with

which progress is needed on many of the long outstanding issues that needs to be addressed to advance the supportive architecture for the CSME, and urged that these matters be dealt with conclusively and in a timely manner.

According to the Ministry, “the meeting subsequently saw significant progress made on many of these issues, and agreement was reached on the way forward with a number of the pending policies, while there was also consensus on the way forward with other items that require further discussion and consultation among Member States.”

Thursday's meeting involved participation from several Prime Ministers, Finance Ministers, Central Bank Governors, and senior finance officials from around the region.

emergency funding

T

he United Nation's Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in its report titled “COVID-19 Vaccines and Corruption Risks: Preventing corruption in the manufacture, allocation and distribution of vaccines,” has pinpointed corruption risks in emergency funding.

Given the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic, which has left countries worldwide vehemently hunting to source vaccines and other medical supplies to combat the virus, corruption risks are now heightened.

The organisation has outlined that with crisis response, large amounts of funding are directed to address a critical and complex problem rapidly.

“As of June 2020, the International Monetary Fund estimated that approximately United States dollars (US$) 11 trillion had been allocated

The investigation was conducted by the country's audit service and in its report, it was noted that there were many examples of apparent fraud and corruption. “For instance, in the procurement of supplies and payments for Ebola response workers, it is estimated that the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies lost millions in funding due to fraud and collusion in the Ebola response,” the UNODC highlighted.

As it expressed the aforementioned challenges, the organisation has suggested that states consider immediate and long-term response measures to identify and mitigate corruption risks that may compromise their population's access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines. It lamented that the United Nations Convention against Corruption is the

globally as fiscal support to the COVID-19 response,” the report noted, adding that in October 2020, the World Bank's Board of Executive Directors approved US$12 billion for developing countries to finance, purchase and distribute COVID-19 vaccines for their populations.

In light of that, the report cautioned that with large inflows of funding that are being disbursed quickly, they may be vulnerable to corruption if appropriate due diligence criteria are not in place.

Further, it referenced a scandal that occurred during Sierra Leone's 2014 Ebola outbreak, where it was found that there was a lack of documentation of nearly US$3.3 million in payments from the Government of Sierra Leone's Ebola directed accounts and that US$2.5 million in disbursements had incomplete documentation.

only legally binding, universal anti-corruption instrument and it provides a global framework and key tools to promote accountability, integrity and transparency, “in times of crisis, during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Moreover, it was stated that the ongoing pandemic continues to soar across the globe and morbidity and mortality rates continue to climb.

It now illustrates the urgency of developing and ensuring access to affordable, safe and efficacious vaccines, and their rapid and fair deployment.

According to the UNODC, a critical response will be required by governments to ensure their populations get access and thus far, many governments have indicated their aim to set up COVID-19 vaccine programmes that will cover their entire population.

Kaieteur News

Tuesday April 06, 2021

PAGE 09

The PPP/C is back to its old ways T

he decision of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) to terminate the contract of its General Manager signals a policy of maximum administrative domination (MAD) within the public sector. The PPP/C in so doing has reverted to its discredited policy of sacrificing professionals in preference for politically favoured persons.

Nizam Hassan, the terminated employee, is one of the more highly respected individuals within the public sector. He previously was employed within the Ministry of Agriculture and was elevated as the General Manager of the Guyana Marketing Corporation. He was later appointed as a General Manager of the GRDB following the problems, which erupted after an audit of that institution was undertaken, by the APNU+AFC. According to reports in the newspapers, the audit uncovered irregularities in relation to the use of the Petro Caribe Fund, the issuance of promissory notes to interested parties and preference being shown to one major rice exporter.

Criminal charges were laid relating to the non-entry into a ledger of some transactions. It was never clear whether the sums involved were ever accounted for or whether the charges were simply related to an accounting procedure.

No one has yet been convicted of those charges filed by the Special

Dem

boys seh...

D

em boys hope dat Uncle Frank nah been in de same class like de man wah bin seh dat 34 is half of 65.

Uncle Frank hoping fuh give 40,000 vaccines over de next week. But dem boys wan remind he dat is only 152,000 doses de country get. And dat only good for 76,000 persons since everybody gat to get two doses.

So if he done give out more dan 36,000 and he hoping fuh give out another 40,000 dis week, wah gan happen to de 36,000 people

Organised Crime Unit (SOCU). In fact, most of those charged have been freed by the courts.

Most of the bigwigs who were part of the management of the GRDB during the period covered by the audit are now highly placed in the agricultural sector. Hassan has not been that fortunate; he has been sent packing.

When the PPP/C was in Opposition between 2015 and 2019, it appeared to have learnt from its mistakes. It came in to office promising a more inclusive approach.

But the PPP/C memory is short and now that it has settled, the same old methods are being deployed.

The PPP/C's idea of inclusive governance is to hand out positions to select Opposition persons and its friends in the private sector.

This is a mollifying tactic rather than one aimed at inclusion.

But no one should have expected better. So long as those with a penchant to be control-freaks are involved in the PPP/C, the obsession with control was always going to be on the cards.

The PPP/C in this respect is no different from the APNU+AFC. No sooner had the World Bank agreed to provide major support for the education sector, the APNU+AFC decided to reassign its then Minister of Education and appointed someone else.

It was obvious that the PNCR, the dominant party in the APNU+AFC, wanted to have one of its candidates in command of the

management of this fund.

When the PPP/C came in, it announced that emphasis would be placed on agricultural research. The PPP/C, when it came into office, said that it would emphasize improving genetic and research capacity of farming and the development of new strains for paddy.

No sooner had the PPP/C announced plans to boost agricultural research and development, including evidence based extension services and in the area of feed formulation, the decision was taken to remove the existing Director of NAREI and replace that person with someone who has made no attempt to hide his affiliation to the PPP/C. A lot of money is likely to be poured into agricultural research and extension services. And this is why there needs to be transparent accounting systems to ensure that there is accountability for the sums used in research and extension services.

With the present decision to end the services of Mr. Hassan, the PPP/C is reverting to its old ways. It prefers trusted lieutenants to professional public servants.

The media has been speculating that the decision to end the services of the highly competent Hassan has to do with the problems, which have arisen in respect to payment for rice from Panama. But this excuse is like a strainer: it is full of holes.

The Panama Agreement

Some people need fuh get charge! when de time come fuh dem second dose.

Dem boys laugh when dem hear bout de 40,000 target over de next few days.

Dem boys hear Prezzie seh how dem aiming fuh 10,000 shots per day. But dem can't even reach half of de original 7,000 shots per day. So how dem gan do 10,000 shots per day?

Dem boys hope dem know wah dem doing and start shutting down de place.

Dem hauling people to de station fuh breaking de curfew. But dem boys seh once dem gat repeat

defaulters is time fuh pull dem licence. Is den all dem nightspot gan put demselves in order.

Dem boys seh nuff of dem young people nah feel dem gan dead from COVID and so dem having a good time and nah tekkin' precaution. But some of dem need fuh get charged fuh being accessory to murder because somebody had to ketch de virus and carry it home and pass it on to nuff ah dem old people wah dying.

Talk half and go and get vaccinated!

is a red herring. Hassan cannot be held responsible for that agreement. A Memorandum was inked way back in 2014 for rice sales to Panama.

The agreement later caused consternation in Panama with rice producers there complaining about the purchase of rice from

Guyana. The outgoing General Manager of the GRDB therefore cannot be held responsible for any such agreement and the debt, which is owed to local rice farmers.

No one should fall for that excuse. The most likely reason why Hassan has been sent packing is the same

reason that Dr. Homenaught was sent home: the PPP/C is back to its old ways.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

Kaieteur News

PAGE 10

Tuesday April 06, 2021

THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN

Mahadai Das: Ian McDonald's missing biographical notes I

n a column, “Ian McDonald should be careful what he writes because of his ethnicity,” of Monday, February 8, 2021, I observed that he overlooked the obnoxious side of the scientist, James Watson. Mr. McDonald is doing a series of articles on great people he has met.

His latest identification (last Sunday's Stabroek News) is the well-known literary personality, Mahadai Das. Mr. McDonald should

be careful how he writes any biography. It has to be backed by extensive knowledge of the personality under focus. A biographer may eulogise the character they are describing, but he/she runs the risk of being criticised for omission of crucial details.

This could attract criticism of faulty writing.

Of Mahadai Das, Mr. McDonald notes, “She had gone abroad to study and there she encountered tragedy.”

This is actually a misleading statement, which would do harm to a factual assessment of the life of this beautiful young lady who succumbed to schizoid paranoia, which led to deteriorating physical health which eventually led to death.

I could certainly dispute Mr. McDonald's statement about mental deterioration occurring abroad. Mahadai Das began to show signs of psychosis shortly after her voluntary service in the

Guyana National Service (GNS).

There were two Indian cultural artists and an African film actress in Guyana whose life ended tragically – Das, Latchmie Kallicharran and Gloria David. Of the first two, I knew Kallicharran far more than I knew Das. I never met David who was older than me. It is outside the scope of a newspaper column to write brief notes on Das alone, much less all three women.

Of Kallicharran, I believe she was murdered with fire set to her rented home. Her life was equally tragic as that of Das. Das and Kallicharran were cruel victims of race, class, colour and politics of this troubled nation. David's untergang had more to do with class.

Had they just have a working knowledge of Guyanese society they probably would have been alive today and be iconic figures.

Here now are brief analytical notes on Das. She was a protégé of a famous pro-Burnham Indian Guyanese woman, Rajkumari Singh, who helped to preserve Indian cultural forms in Guyana. I think Singh was driven into the world of Burnham because her famous father, Dr. Jung Bahadur Singh, was a person who Cheddi Jagan did not have flattering words to say about.

Since Jagan and Burnham were rivals and Burnham was the permanent oligarch of Guyana, Singh found it strategic to offer Indian support to Burnham, though I think she didn't care for politics. Under Burnham,

her Indian cultural platform flourished. Knowing Burnham, Rajkumari Singh had to reciprocate.

This is where she used Das and Burnham used Das too. Das then was simply living in victimhood and she died in victimhood.

Frederick Kissoon Since Das was emerging as a Caribbean cultural artist, Burnham who needed prominent Indian faces, appealed to Singh for Das to openly embrace his regime.

Das thus voluntarily joined the GNS at a time when it was compulsory and the opposition PPP was harshly denouncing it, especially the interior hardship UG students had to go through.

But Das like her idol, Rajkumari, were not intellectually equipped to understand the mind of a demonic autocrat like Burnham. Das thought she would have been treated like a queen by the Burnham regime. Beautiful by any standard, and gifted in literary forms, Das entered GNS thinking she would

stand out as a value to the Burnham regime. She did but in ways, she never anticipated.

Long after she left GNS, Das told me outside of Austin's bookstore that she was raped in GNS (for details of the sexual abuse of Das in GNS, see my column, “Mahadai Das told me she was raped,” June 18, 2006).

This was the beginning of her mental troubles. She expected that there would have been serious repercussions but the PNC regime took no action including two high state officials that were Das' lovers.

From the time Das became disappointed with the Burnham regime, her mental health was never the same. It would be factually wrong to say that she did not control it. She did. She continued to work. She went abroad to study. I don't think it is correct to say, as McDonald stated, that the tragedy started abroad. She returned to Guyana and was quite normal. As Das settled in, she maintained her relationship with the PNC government but it was a confusing relationship.

Her poetry reflected ambivalence with the PNC government she had put her faith in. Her idol, Rajkumari, had died in 1979, so she lost a huge gateway to the power establishment.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

Tuesday April 06, 2021

Kaieteur News

PAGE 11

Kaieteur News

PAGE 14

Tuesday April 06, 2021

Labour Inspectors can conduct inspections but not initiate sanctions - US Dept. report

T

he US State Department's 2020 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Guyana has highlighted that while labour inspectors have the authority to make unannounced inspections, there is no

authority to initiate sanctions when there is a discovery of a defaulter.

Scoping into the country's “acceptable conditions of work,” the report noted that the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security is

charged with enforcement of the labour law, but the number of inspectors was insufficient for effective enforcement. It must be noted that Guyana now has a Labour Ministry to execute that mandate, but before August 2020, it was the

responsibility of the Human Services Ministry. Also, Guyana's 'Labour inspectors' are formally referred to as labour officers.

Section 34 of the Labour Act outlines that, “Any officer of the Labour Department designated for the purposes of this section by the Minister (in this section referred to as a designated officer) is empowered and authorised—(a) whenever he has reasonable cause to believe that labour is employed in any premises, to enter, inspect and examine such premises and every part thereof at any hour of the day or night whether by day or by night, and to obtain and to require from any employer information as to the wages, hours and conditions of work of those so employed.”

Additionally, it notes that a labour officer can take with him a member of the police

force if he has reasonable cause to apprehend any serious obstruction in the execution of his duty and execute any examination, test or enquiry which he may consider necessary to satisfy

himself that the provisions of any law relating to the employment of persons are being strictly observed.

Minister of Labour, Joseph Hamilton, would have recently revealed that labour law defaulters are

usually dealt with in the Magistrate's Court and also admitted that the current fines for breaching labour legislation are “useless.”

However, he did note that he is adamant to implement substantial fines. This will be done in the new labour legislation that is currently in the drafting process, he had said.

Hamilton had said that in the case of persons being taken to court for a breach and they are given an order by a judge, which they fail to adhere to, he is currently seeking guidance on whether labour officers can return them to the court and have an order of contempt filed against them, since labour officers cannot impose sanctions themselves.

That will be custodial sentencing for flouting the court order. Custodial sentencing is a judicial sentence that imposes (continued on page 16)

Four COVID-19 fatalities in 24 hours - 14 patients currently in ICU

The Ministry of Health (MOH) has recorded four fatalities as a result of

COVID-19 within the last 24 hours. The new deaths take the total number of fatalities

in the pandemic to 247.

Among the latest fatality is one 67-year-old female from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) who died while receiving care at a medical facility yesterday.

Prior to that a 73-year-old female from Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) succumbed to Covid-19 complications and two males, a 59-year-old from Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni) and a 44-year-old from Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), died while receiving care at a medical facility in their respective districts.

Meanwhile, the Ministry yesterday recorded 26 new COVID-19 cases taking the overall confirmed cases to 10,606.

Region 10 recorded five new cases, Region Five recorded seven, Region Six recorded one, Regions Three and Four each recorded four, while Region Seven recorded two.

Additionally there are 14 patients in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit at the Infectious Diseases Hospital, 72 are in institutional isolation and 985 are in home isolation.

To date there are 9,218 recovered patients.

Kaieteur News

Tuesday April 06, 2021

PAGE 15

Four arrested after father of two found dead in home A believed that the men followed Ross and attacked him there.

A resident from the village told this media house that one of the suspects was heard telling

father of two was yesterday morning found dead in his Swan, Kuru Kururu, Soesdyke/Linden Highway home.

His body bore multiple stab wounds.

Police have since arrested four persons from the community who they believe were involved in the man's death.

Twenty-three-year old, Roy Ross, was reportedly found lifeless in his living room sometime after 06:00 hrs. by his neighbour.

Police have since estimated that the man met his demise sometime between 23:00 hrs. on Sunday and 06:00 hrs. on Monday.

H o w e v e r, K a i e t e u r News was informed that the father of two was last seen alive sometime around midnight on Sunday by his girlfriend, with whom he resided.

The woman, according to reports, was staying with her mother but had gone to check on Ross in the company of her brother.

The two had seen Ross walking in his yard shining his torchlight around the area.

This publication was informed that prior to this, Ross was seen consuming alcohol with a group of men at a shop located near the Swan ball-field.

While the circumstances leading to the man's death are yet to be ascertained, Kaieteur News was told that persons who saw Ross that night recounted seeing the suspects provoking him. But Ross, they said, had ignored them.

E v e n t u a l l y, t h i s publication was told, Ross decided to go home, and it is

Dead: Roy Ross

A lifeless Roy Ross was found lying in his home

Taxi driver beats, robs, then kicks out passenger

A

taxi driver, who goes by the name of 'Robin,' reportedly picked up a male passenger yesterday and took him to a location where he beat, robbed and then kicked him out of his car.

The robbery with violence took place around 01:50 hrs. in the vicinity of Tuschen “Blacka,” East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

The passenger, who police did not identify, had reported to police that he had just left his sister's residence and had caught the taxi to take him home. He also told

police that he was able to see that the taxi, a Toyota Fielder Wagon, was mauve in colour, before entering and giving the driver directions.

He noted that there was another man sitting in the back seat but he was not bothered as they drove off.

However, while in the vicinity of Tuschen “Blacka,” he told police that 'Robin' took a right turn at the junction and stopped.

The passenger further alleged to police that before he could react, 'Robin' turned and cuffed him several times to the body. The other man in

the back seat, the passenger claimed, assisted 'Robin' by beating him up too. They then relieved him of $20,000 cash before kicking him out of the car.

The driver then sped off in an easterly direction with his accomplice in the car.

The matter was reported and police ranks have since been trying to locate the car and the suspects.

Thus far, their efforts have been unsuccessful.

Nevertheless, police have committed to continuing the hunt for 'Robin' and his accomplice.

people that “I just feel to kill somebody tonight.”

According to the resident, she knew Ross well and he was never a person to “pick trouble with anybody or get himself

involved in any sort of problem.”

As the community comes to grip with Ross' demise, police are continuing their investigation.

PAGE 16

Kaieteur News

Tuesday April 06, 2021

Sophia man arrested for robbing men while dining at Pouderoyen restaurant

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West Bank Demerara.

In custody for the alleged robbery is Christopher Cornette, a clothes vendor, while a man hunt continues for his accomplice.

It is alleged that between 20:15hrs and 20:30hrs last Saturday, Kooblall and Dyal were dining at HONG XIANG, a Chinese restaurant, when Cornette in the company of another, both armed with handguns, walked into the restaurant and approached their table.

CCTV footage shows one of the bandits holding the men at gunpoint, while the other pulled the gold chains off Kooblall's neck. Both men stayed still with their hands in the air while the bandits continued relieving them of their valuables.

According to a police report, Kooblall was reportedly robbed of six gold chains val-

ued $2,145,000, two gold rings valued $220,000, one gold band valued $400,000, one iPhone pro 11 max cell phone valued $320,000, one Samsung A17 cell phone valued $150,000 and $300,000 cash.

The total worth of the items was $3,320,460. As for Dyal, he was robbed of one Samsung A50 cell phone, valued $60,000 and $195,000 in cash.

Based on the CCTV footage, after relieving Kooblall and Dyal of the items, the bandits then instructed them to walk to the back of the restaurant. The bandits then exited the restaurant and made good their escape in a white 212 motorcar.

According to the police, the motorcar registration number is unknown. The investigation into the alleged armed robbery is ongoing.

Labour Inspectors can conduct inspections but not initiate sanctions...

From page 14 punishments, including mandatory custody of the convicted person; meanwhile, non-custodial sentencing sees discharges, fines and community orders.

The report also outlined that," Labour inspections car-

ried out during the year targeted all sectors, including agriculture, mining, and construction.

Ministry follow-up of labour inspection findings varied, and compliance among employers was also inconsistent.”

Arrested: Christopher Cornette

Tuesday April 06, 2021

Kaieteur News

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Tuesday April 06, 2021

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Arrested party-goers Commander promises detailed investigation into woman's allegation continue revelry on GDF bus that cop wanted to touch her breast M

C

ommander of the Georgetown district, Simon McBean, has promised that a detailed investigation will be conducted following an allegation that one of his ranks wanted to touch a woman's breast instead of taking a report.

That allegation was made by 27-year-old, Sofia (not her real name), who is currently in the lock-ups for killing her exboyfriend, Darren Harris, 46, on Thursday last.

Commander McBean said that he was made aware of the allegation following an article published in the Monday April 5, 2021 edition of this newspaper. Sofia had told this newspaper that on Saturday March 27, 2021 she and her father, Ivan Nedd, had gone to lodge a report against Harris at the Turkeyen Police Station. Harris had allegedly

Police Commander of the Georgetown district, Simon McBean threatened to stab both Sofia and her father with a broken bottle for “putting him out.”

While attempting to make that report, the woman alleged that a “tall, black, fat-up” policeman stationed there had called her into his office to deal with the matter.

However, instead of

Decomposed body found at Belleview foreshore

T

he body of a male was yesterday discovered lying face down between some boulders at the Belleview foreshore located on the West Bank of Demerara.

According to a police report, the corpse was discovered just around 13:45 hrs. and was in an advanced stage of decomposition.

So far, investigators have been unable to identify the

remains. Several persons have since been questioned, but have thus far failed to provide police with any useful information. Cops described the body to be that of a mixedrace individual probably in his 40s. Crime scene experts also noted that it was clad in a burgundy jersey and a pair of dark-grey long pants.

The corpse is currently at the Ezekiel Funeral Home awaiting identification.

JOB

OPPORTUNITY Are you a vibrant individual with a keen eye for news stories?

Well, a career in journalism awaits you at the nation's leading newspaper.

If you would like to take advantage of this opportunity, send your application (complete with CV) to Kaieteur News, 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown.

You can also email your application to kaieteurnews@yahoo.com.

(Please be advised that only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.)

taking her statement, he reportedly asked her if her breast was real and if he could touch them. Sofia had said that she became annoyed and in response said, “Look me ain't come hay fuh deh on stupidness.” She then walked out of the police station with her father without being able to make the report.

Her father had told this media house in a separate interview that he had reported the alleged sexual harassment his daughter endured to police ranks. McBean said that he had checked on the matter and so far, there was no record of the man making that report. In fact, he added that he could not find any record of a domestic violence report being made at the Turkeyen Police Station.

Nevertheless, he noted that the woman is in custody and her allegations will be included in her statement.

Once her official statement is included, McBean said that, “a detailed investigation will have to be carried out into the matter.”

oments after a group of individuals were arrested and placed on a Guyana Defence Force (GDF) bus for breaching the COVID-19 regulations, they chose to continue their revelry there.

Kaieteur News understands that over the Easter holiday, over 100 persons were arrested for breaching the COVID-19 regulations.

Many videos and pictures had surfaced over the weekend, with the National COVID-19 Task Force, along with members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) and the GDF, rounding up partygoers and loading them on to GDF buses and other vehicles.

In one of the videos seen by this publication, while on one of the GDF buses, two women were

seen dancing together, while others can be heard cheering them on. One of the women then went in front of a GDF rank and started dancing on him.

A woman said, “It's the backball for me, woiii,” followed by, “this is an enjoyable night.”

Based on the videos, a large number of persons were packed on the bus and transported to the nearest police station.

One of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) bus

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Kaieteur News

The lingering questions after the first Grand Prix of the Year From Road & Track - Last weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix marked Formula 1’s return, and this season is one of the strangest ever. A 2020 regulation freeze means that the 2021 cars are, on paper, almost identical to the cars from the year prior for the first time in decades. Yet, somehow, minor regulation changes to reduce total downforce have significantly altered the balance of power on the grid by damaging cars with a ‘low rake’ downforce concept, like the Mercedes, more than those built in another direction.

We saw the direct result at Bahrain. Sure, all-time Formula 1 wins leader Lewis Hamilton still grabbed a

memorable victory, but it came with shocking difficulty.

Hamilton not only lost the pole to Verstappen and Red Bull Racing, he lost it by nearly half a second. Hamilton won the race, but that win came from exceptional tire strategy and an all-out battle, not as a result of the oncedominant in-race pace for Mercedes.

This is the biggest question of the season.

Whether or not they are going to be consistently faster than their biggest competition, Red Bull is, at the very least, closer to the Mercedes team’s overall pace than they have been in years.

This puts them, and lead driver Max Verstappen, in

position to fight for driver’s and constructor’s championships for the first time since Verstappen joined the team in mid-2016. Red Bull has been building back up toward this since the day Sebastian Vettel’s reign of dominance with the team ended in 2014, but, now that it is actually time to execute, the team needs to prove that they can actually do it.

To do so, the team needs to start winning races. Red Bull’s first shot at a victory this year ended when Max Verstappen got overzealous in the battle for the lead, making an over-ambitious move that required him to exceed track limits and, in turn, give back the top position in

Tuesday April 06, 2021 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Don't feel like you have to rationalize everything, Aries.

Accept the fact that there are some things in life that occur without a specific logical explanation.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) You may feel indecisive today, Libra, especially in the morning. Other people's actions may confuse you.

Don't worry. Concentrate on your projects and goals.

TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) In order to reach your destination, you may have to take an unusual route today. Zigzag your way to the finish line.

Don't automatically assume that this is a bad thing.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Emotionally, you should be feeling quite good today, Scorpio. This is important since you may get thrown off balance by a strange, unexpected force.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Get out of the doldrums and enjoy life, Gemini. The situation is such that if you remain stagnant for a little while, you will soon sink into a spiral of depression and downward thinking.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) Free your mind and consider alternative options, Sagittarius. This is a time to throw away the old to make room for the new. There's a distinct advance in original and forward thinking today.

CANCER(June21–July22) This morning is your time t o s h i n e , C a n c e r. Yo u should be in a good mood, with a positive outlook that helps you attack the day's tasks with vitality.

CAPRI(Dec.22–Jan.19) You might find your energy comes in strong, erratic bursts today. Don't be surprised if you're high as a kite one moment and down in the dumps the next.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) You may get a bit frustrated in the morning because of a lack of commitment on the part of others, Leo. You may find it hard to pin down an answer when everything seems to be up in the air.

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) You may feel a tendency to do things the same old way today simply because it's what feels most comfortable.

Even though the familiar route may be tempting now, it's actually better if you seek a different way to go.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) The energy you put out today will most definitely fuel the fire, Virgo, so make sure you have an extinguisher within reach. There's a spark of excitement in the air indicating that something new and different is coming around the bend. You may feel anxiety building up.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) An extra log has been thrown on your fire today so don't be surprised if you burn especially hot. Use your internal furnace to make some breakthroughs and bring matters to a higher level. Turn up the intensity on certain issues that require more life.

the final laps of the race. With Lewis Hamilton and his Mercedes team eight years into exceptional in-race action together, Verstappen and Red Bull absolutely cannot make late-race mistakes like this if they hope to steal the final championship of this era of Formula 1 regulations.

They also need more from Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez. This, after all, was an external signing that required the team to admit that their many internal prospects were all separately unprepared to help Verstappen and the team contend for constructor’s championships.

Through one weekend, Perez has struggled in qualifying and spent his sole race with the team recovering from a mechanical issue that forced him to start from the pit lane.

He may not be fighting for poles every week like Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas does, but he will need to qualify in the top six and fight for regular wins if Red Bull is going to become constructor’s champions.

Mercedes still has time to recover, too. Their 2020 car was as dominant as F1 cars come, and, even after downforce changes effectively nerfed their advantage, the platform was still so successful so recently that it is not out of the question that the team simply improves again and returns to that level of advantage in two months. If they did so, any hope Red Bull would have of contending for a championship would immediately be rendered moot.

The other lingering questions are further back on the grid. The entire traditional mid pack of Alpine, Aston Martin, and McLaren have improved significantly in the past two years, and each hopes that they will be within reach of a championship when a new set of potentiallyrevolutionary regulations arrive in 2022. They will be joined by Ferrari, a traditional powerhouse that is showing signs of life early after a disastrous 2020 saw years of progress turn into catastrophe in just one offseason. None of these teams looked quick enough at Bahrain to be within reach of a fight for championships, but each has shown encouraging signs that they have something to look forward to.

McLaren, in particular, looks vastly improved on an already-successful 2020 season after recently switching to Mercedes power. Their new pairing of Daniel Ricciardo and Lando

Norris qualified just sixth and seventh for the GP, but Norris was a star of the race, charging immediately past Ricciardo and quickly getting past Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Scuderia AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly to move into fourth and never look back.

Norris finished fourth, while Ricciardo slotted in a respectful seventh. Whether or not they are fast enough to contend for wins, McLaren showed that they are still in an excellent position to again finish third in the Constructor’s standings.

Ferrari, too, has something to build on.

Improvements to their power unit and an offseason replacement of the out-offavor Sebastian Vettel turned into encouraging finishes of sixth and eighth, beating out everyone but the drivers at Mercedes, Red Bull, and McLaren. But Leclerc won the most poles of anyone in the series just two years ago, and Ferrari’s near-miraculous recovery still seems to have taken them to a level below that peak.

For Alpine and Aston Martin, the results are more worrying. Both teams changed their names this offseason to reflect auto manufacturers owned by their parent companies, and both now seem to be trailing not only Ferrari and McLaren but

the Red Bull-owned AlphaTauri, too. A sandwichrelated DNF and a qualifying snafu derailed the races of each team’s newly-signed multi-time champions, and there are serious causes for concern in both camps that had previously hoped to fight McLaren and Ferrari for third in the constructor’s standings.

Effectively, Formula 1 again seems to have divided itself into a three-tiered system, but those tiers are closer together than ever. At the top, Mercedes has a real threat in Red Bull Racing. In the battle for third, McLaren and Ferrari appear to have an early lead on AlphaTauri and real reason to believe that all three are ahead of the ambitious Alpine and Aston Martin programs. Only the third tier, housing the seemingly-lost Alfa Romeo, Williams, and Haas programs, is anything less than competitive; none of their six cars finished in the top ten in either qualifying or the race itself, and none seem particularly close to each other on pace.

Formula 1 returns to action at Imola in two weeks.

With the series returning to Europe after a relatively long pause, expect teams to bring upgrades and drivers to have serious hope that their cars have improved.

Kaieteur News

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Tuesday April 06, 2021

Masters 2021: Jordan Spieth’s Texas win adds to Augusta appeal

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BC Sport Masters week is always eagerly anticipated, even when it is only five months since the last one, and this week’s 85th running of the Augusta tournament became even more appealing after Jordan Spieth’s Texas Open victory.

Very few wins will prove more popular than the 27year-old’s triumph in his home state last Sunday. It ended a losing run that stretches back to July 2017 when he collected the Claret Jug at Royal Birkdale for his third major title.

“It’s been a road that’s had a lot of tough days,” Spieth admitted before turning his attention to this week’s attempt to collect a second Masters Green Jacket.

He has always been a fan favourite and his standing among golf followers has only been enhanced by his dignified stoicism through the worst period of an otherwise brilliant career.

Spieth had lost his game.

Humbled, he tumbled out of t h e w o r l d ’s t o p 1 0 0 , enduring 1,351 winless days while a string of US compatriots and rivals surged into a limelight he once occupied.

It must have hurt as Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka added to their major tallies while Justin Thomas, Patrick Reed, Collin Morikawa and Bryson DeChambeau broke through in the tournaments that define careers.

Spieth had become an ephemeral figure, one that had lit the golfing world with

his Masters and US Open successes of 2015 but then cruelly extinguished, almost as quickly as he had burst on to the scene.

Thankfully this notion can now be laid to rest.

Winning the Texas Open is as big as it gets for the Dallas native among any of the regular tour stops and it marks the 12th victory of his career.

It offered confirmation that he is truly back. Spieth was already among the favourites for this week’s Masters following three top fives earlier in 2021.

Having overcome a previously unmentioned chipped bone in his left hand, those results indicated a welcome resurgence. It is rooted in significantly improved approach play and putting.

Now the question is whether he can go back to back and land his fourth major. Fans would love to see it because the effort and emotion that goes into every shot he strikes is obvious.

The twitches and mannerisms, the animated conversations with caddie Michael Greller leave no one in any doubt about how much he cares. Throw into the mix the sharply undulating graph of his career and Spieth becomes a compelling figure.

Phil Mickelson was the last man to win the week before the Masters and then depart Augusta with the Green Jacket. That was back in 2006 and Spieth’s attempt to emulate ‘Lefty’ is now a primary storyline for the week.

J o h n s o n ’s r e c o r d -

breaking victory in a unique November Masters is still fresh in the memory, but this time we can expect a significantly different test for the world’s best.

The Augusta National will not want to see another 20-under-par tally such as Johnson’s, which, admittedly, was compiled in soft autumnal conditions.

Early indications suggest a fast and firm Masters with significantly higher scoring.

Despite remaining a commanding world number one, Johnson’s recent form only one top 10 since winning in Saudi Arabia in February - does not indicate the first successful title defence since Tiger Woods in 2002.

Justin Thomas, after winning the Players Championship last month, is arguably the strongest candidate. He has always made the cut at Augusta and his results have improved with every visit, culminating in finishing fourth last November.

Jon Rahm is the latest to be touted with ‘the nappy factor’ after becoming a father for the first time last week. The world number three awaits a first major title. Could he emulate 2016 winner Danny Willett in becoming a new-dad champion? It is the sort of narrative that suits the romance of the Masters and this is a tournament that often yields first time major winners.

And this is another edition where the list of potential winners looks pretty lengthy.

Morikawa’s approach

As well as a trophy and $1.38m (£1m) prize money, Jordan Spieth was given a pair of boots for winning the Texas Open. (Reuters) play makes him a potential candidate, especially if the US PGA champion’s new claw putting grip withstands the pressure of Augusta’s treacherous greens.

US Open winner DeChambeau, meanwhile, insists the par-72 layout is still a regulation 68 for him, given his length. Fiery firmness will test his wedge game, though, and he readily admits that is still a work in progress.

According to the rankings, Tyrrell Hatton is the leading UK player but his recent form has not been encouraging and a share of 44th is the Englishman’s best finish in four previous attempts.

There is no doubt he has a game to beat the best, but can he tap into it when he most needs it on the biggest stage?

It should happen one day, but the portents are not overly encouraging for this week.

The same can be said of Rory McIlroy, a decade on from his implosion, when he led by four going into the final round but posted an 80 to fall away. For the seventh time the four-time major champion is in Georgia looking to complete the career Grand Slam.

But the Northern Irishman’s swing has been out of kilter with a dreaded two-way miss undermining his authority. It asks a lot of renowned teacher Pete Cowen, recently added to McIlroy’s coaching set-up, to have diagnosed and embedded the necessary quick fix in time.

Britain’s best hope may lie with Matt Fitzpatrick, who loves to putt on fast greens and has a game to make the most of similarly slick fairways. The Englishman tied for seventh in 2016 when scoring was high with Willett triumphing

at only five under par.

L e e We s t w o o d h a s offered plenty of encouragement with recent runners-up finishes at Bay Hill and the Players, but triumphing in the same month as his 48th birthday looks a monumental task, even with the extraordinary enduring qualities of the Worksop professional.

The American Daniel Berger is a real threat. He was not eligible last time because the November field was assembled for the original April date so it did not take account of his two subsequent PGA Tour wins.

Berger contended on a fast, firm Shinnecock Hills in the 2018 US Open. The 27-year-old has overcome a recent rib injury and was top 10 at the Players.

Others to consider include Australia’s Cameron Smith, who became the first man to shoot all four rounds in the 60s when runner-up in November, and Paul Casey, who has five Augusta top-10 finishes.

It has been an intriguing build-up and the tournament comes off the back of a superb opening major with P a t t y Ta v a t a n a k i t ’s exceptional wire-to-wire win at last Sunday’s ANA Inspiration.

She burst into the major winner’s circle in much the same way as Spieth did in 2015. Each came of age on the biggest stages as precocious 21-year-olds.

Both enjoyed significant wins on the same day last Sunday and they have set us up perfectly for another hugely anticipated Masters tournament.

Adam Yates sixth as Primoz Roglic wins Basque Country time trial Yates has already won the Volta a Catalunya this season.

(Getty Images)

B

BC Sport - Adam Yates finished sixth in the Itzulia Basque Country’s opening time trial, as Primoz Roglic took victory.

Jumbo-Visma’s Roglic finished 28 seconds ahead of Ineos Grenadiers’ Yates after the 14km stage in Bilbao.

Hugh Carty of EF Education-Nippo was one minute six seconds down, with Yates’ British team-mate Tao Geoghegan Hart a further two seconds back.

Last year’s Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar of UAE-Team Emirates was also 28 seconds down in fifth.

Pogacar’s team-mate Brandon McNulty was second, two seconds behind Roglic.

Last year ’s Giro d’Italia winner

Geoghegan Hart was the first of the main British contenders to take on the challenging course in glorious sunshine in northern Spain.

But it was in-form Yates - winner of last month’s Volta a Catalunya - who more effectively tackled the largely high-speed downhill course into the city, which was bookended by two technical climbs.

As Ineos dominated the race in Catalunya, taking the top three places in the general classification, it was Jumbo-Visma who are showing immense strength here, with Roglic first and the in-form Jonas Vingegaard of Denmark third, with Norway’s Tobias Foss fourth.

Today’s second stage is a hilly 155km run from Zalla to Sestao.

Kaieteur News

Tuesday April 06, 2021

PAGE 23

Diakhaby was subjected to an ‘extremely serious racial insult’, claims Valencia president SportsMax - Valencia president Anil Murthy has called on LaLiga to do more in the fight against racism after Mouctar Diakhaby was subjected to what he described as an “extremely serious racial insult” against Cadiz.

The top-flight meeting on Sunday – which finished 2-1 to Cadiz – was stopped for 20 minutes after Valencia’s players left the field following an altercation between Diakhaby and Cadiz defender Juan Cala.

Va l e n c i a ’s p l a y e r s subsequently walked off the pitch, before returning to the field without Diakhaby, who asked to be taken off.

After the match had restarted, Valencia tweeted their version of events, stating Diakhaby had suffered a “racist insult”.

Cadiz issued a statement following the game,

insisting any form of racism was not tolerated.

They also added they had no doubts over the honesty of their squad, with Cala having been picked up by television cameras pleading his innocence during the game.

Cadiz coach Alvaro Cervera said: “I saw the same as you did. They left the field alongside the referee because they said that Cala had insulted one of their players.

“Cala says that at no point did he insult the opposition player.”

Cadiz confirmed on Monday that Cala would address the media on the subject after training today.

Speaking alongside Diakhaby in a video posted o n Valen cia’s o ff icial website, Murthy said: “Yesterday, in our game against Cadiz, we witnessed a flagrant incident of racism.

“There is no other way to describe it. Our player, Mouctar Diakhaby, was the recipient of an extremely serious racial insult by Juan Cala.

“Although Cala may deny it, we believe Mouctar completely. This type of behaviour should not be tolerated in football and in society in general, and we at Valencia condemn racism in any form. We fully support our player.

“There should be no doubt that Valencia will defend Mouctar Diakhaby to the fullest, and fight to ensure that such lamentable events are not repeated.”

Valencia captain Jose Luis Gaya said the team had been told they would be penalised if they did not return to finish the game – a claim backed up by head coach Javi Gracia.

Murthy described

Sunday’s incident as a “step back in the fight against racism” and has demanded LaLiga change the rules to better protect those who suffer racist abuse.

“We spoke with LaLiga this morning to encourage them to also see their investigation through to the end,” he added. ”This incident cannot be left behind, and cannot be repeated with any other player for any other team.

“We are saddened that, following the incident, there was no reaction to stop the game, and that it was our players who were the ones to leave the field of play. There cannot be a lack of action in light of these types of situations.

“From now on, we would like to see some kind of reaction to change these protocols, in order to protect those who are vulnerable. If

Barty hits out at number one ranking critics (Reuters) - Ash Barty dismissed suggestions that she had unfairly held on to the top ranking while opting not to compete on the WTA Tour for most of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the pandemic preventing many from competing on the tour since March 2020, the WTA tweaked the ranking system last year to ensure that players were not penalised for their no-shows.

The format allowed the Australian to stay on top of the world even though rivals such as Naomi Osaka won Grand Slam titles during Barty’s absence.

“I never have to prove anything to anyone,” Barty told reporters on Saturday after she retained her Miami Open title when Canada’s Bianca Andreescu retired midway through the final due to an ankle injury.

“I know there has been a lot of talk about the ranking, but I didn’t play at all last year and I didn’t improve any of my points whatsoever.

Yes, I didn’t drop but I didn’t improve any. I didn’t play any at all.

“There were girls who had the chance to improve theirs, so I felt like I thoroughly deserve my spot at the top of the rankings.

The year we had in 2019 was incredible,” added Barty, who opted not to travel out of Australia for 12 months from

we don’t change this, then it will give a bad example to everybody.

“We are proud of the reaction from our team, and we still do not understand why Diakhaby, the recipient of this racial insult, received a yellow card. “ We a l s o d o n o t understand why the players had to return to the pitch due to the regulations not protecting the victims and

Mouctar Diakhaby

the team in such cases.

“This must change.

Changes have been made in other leagues, and now the same must be done in Spain.

“We cannot turn a blind eye to something as serious as racism. It is time for a change, and Valencia will go all the way in our support of our player and the fight against racism. A step back in the fight against racism was taken yesterday.”

Miller-Uibo stuns with world-leading 22.03 200m opener at Pure Athletics Spring Invitational

Ashleigh Barty of Australia poses with the trophy after winning her match against Bianca Andreescu of Canada during the finals at the Miami Open tennis tournament, Saturday, April 3, 2021, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

March 2020.

Barty clinched the Miami Open in 2019 before capturing the French Open and WTA Finals. She started off 2020 by triumphing at the Adelaide International before the COVID-19 pandemic caused the Tour to shut down for five months.

“I can’t control what anyone else thinks or what anyone else says,” said

Barty, who was playing in her first tournament abroad since February 2020.

“Everyone needs to understand that it’s a pandemic. It’s probably a once-in-a-lifetime thing for a lot of us to go through, so it’s a bit of a difficult situation.”

On Saturday the 24-yearold Australian was leading 63 3-0 when Andreescu took a medical timeout to have her

foot and ankle taped.

It failed to make a difference and after Barty extended her second-set lead to 4-0, a dejected Andreescu shook her head and covered her face with her hands before tearfully retiring from the match.

Barty said she plans to compete in Charleston next week before heading to the Stuttgart Open in Germany.

SportsMax - Bahamian sprint queen Shaunae Miller-Uibo threw down the gauntlet to would-be challengers over the 200m on Sunday when she sped to a world-leading 22.03 run with a trailing wind of 1.5m/s at the Pure Athletics Spring Invitational in Clermont Florida.

The time that was her fastest-ever wind-legal outdoor opener, eclipsed the previous best in the world this year of 22.17 set in Texas by Gabrielle Thomas on March 27 and would have sent shivers down the spines of potential 200m finalists at this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.

The extraordinary Bahamian was also more than a half-second faster than second-placed Quanera Haynes, who clocked 22.68.

Lynna Irby was third in 22.75. The next fastest Caribbean athlete was Jamaica’s Natalliah Whyte who finished fourth in 23.28, a time slower than the 22.88 she ran in Miami on March 20.

In the men’s event, Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards, the 2019

Pan American Games silver medalist, lost out on a second-place finish by 0 . 0 0 1 s t o t h e U S A’s Josephus Lyles. Both were given 20.37. However, Lyles was time given a time of 20.361 to Richards’ 20.362.

None of that mattered to Erriyon Knighton, who won the race in 20.31.

Trinidadian quartermiler Machel Cedenio finished fifth in 20.84 while Antigua and Barbuda’s Cejhae Green was sixth in 20.86.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s Akeem Bloomfield, who opened with a 20.75s run in the 200m last month, ran 45.78 to finish second in the 400m won by Matthew Hudson-Smith in 45.51.

Musa Isah was a distant third in 46.68.

In the 110-metre hurdles won by Nicholas Anderson in 13.49, Jamaica’s oftinjured Andrew Riley was second in 13.60 while Wellington ZaZa was third in 13.74.

The Bahamas’ Devynne Charlton won the women’s sprint hurdles in a windaided 13.08.

Kaieteur News

PAGE 24

Tuesday April 06, 2021

NBA roundup: Bulls clip Nets to end six-game skid Bulls 115, Nets 107 The Bulls halted a sixgame losing streak, and breathed life into their playoff hopes by handling a Brooklyn lineup that was missing James Harden and Kevin Durant in Chicago.

The Nets, who had a four-game winning streak snapped, looked lethargic and out of sync playing without Harden and Durant, who continue to nurse hamstring injuries.

The Bulls got a gamehigh 25 points from Zach LaVine and a strong effort from Tomas Satoransky, who added 19 points and 11 assists. Nikola Vucevic contributed 22 points and 13 rebounds for Chicago, while Kyrie Irving led six Nets in double figures with 24 points and a season-high 15 assists.

Clippers 104, Lakers 86 The battle of Los Angeles turned into a lopsided affair as the Clippers clobbered the Lakers.

The Clippers never trailed, starting the game on a 13-2 run and leading by as many as 24 points.

Swingman Marcus Morris Sr. led the charge, with 17 of his game-high 22 points in the first half. Kawhi Leonard totaled 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

Paul George contributed 16 points and seven rebounds, while Luke Kennard chipped in 15 for the Clippers.

The Clippers snapped a

Chicago Bulls guard Tomas Satoransky (31) scores over Brooklyn Nets center LaMarcus Aldridge (21) during the third quarter at the United Center.

(Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports) two-game home losing streak. They also won the earlier matchup of the season between the two L.A. teams, a 116-109 decision in the season opener on Dec. 22.

Celtics 116, Hornets 86 Jayson Tatum scored 22 points with eight rebounds, and Boston rode dominant middle quarters to a rout of Charlotte at TD Garden.

A 19-4 run to open the second quarter, kicked off when Romeo Langford knocked down one of Boston’s 21 made 3-pointers on the night, turned a onepoint deficit into a lead that never dipped below eight for the rest of the way.

The Celtics closed the period on a 9-2 run to finish the period with a 33-17 edge, then carried the momentum into a 40-27 third quarter.

Tatum closed the third with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

Grizzlies 116, 76ers 100 Dillon Brooks recorded 17 points to lead seven players in double-digit scoring as the visiting Memphis breezed to a 116100 victory over Philadelphia.

J o n a s Va l a n c i u n a s collected 16 points and 12 rebounds to notch his career-high-tying 10th consecutive double-double for the Grizzlies, who

erupted for 45 points in the third quarter. Memphis, which has won three of its past four games overall, completed a season sweep of Philadelphia after posting a 106-104 win over the 76ers on Jan. 16.

Tobias Harris scored 21 points, 13 in the first half, and Shake Milton added 14 off the bench for Philadelphia, which played without Joel Embiid. The four-time All-Star center was given the night off after he returned from a 10-game absence due to a bone bruise in his left knee during the 76ers’ 122-113 victory over Minnesota on Saturday.

Hawks 117, Warriors 111 Danilo Gallinari and Clint Capela combined for 49 points and 28 rebounds and Atlanta defeated visiting Golden State for its third straight win.

Gallinari, playing with an ailing left Achilles, had 25 points and 10 rebounds, and Capela had 24 points, 18 rebounds and two blocked shots to help the Hawks sweep the two-game season series against Golden State for the first time since the 2010-11 season.

Golden State lost its third straight game despite a 37point effort from Steph Curry, who returned after missing the last game with a tailbone contusion. Curry went to the locker room at the third-quarter break and did not re-enter the game until 6:15 remaining. He was only 3-for-12 on 3-point attempts.

Pelicans 122, Rockets 115 Lonzo Ball made a career-high eight 3-pointers to pace a balanced scoring attack as New Orleans fended off host Houston.

Ball, who missed the previous seven games with a hip injury, paired 27 points with nine assists to lead the Pelicans — who were without forwards Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Six of his teammates also scored in double figures.

Down the stretch, multiple hands played a role in keeping the Rockets at

bay, with Wes Iwundu and Naji Marshall drilling timely 3-pointers while Willy Hernangomez converted in the paint for New Orleans.

Hernangomez had 15 points and 12 rebounds off the bench, while Eric Bledsoe scored 19 points and James Johnson added 18.

Nuggets 119, Magic 109 Aaron Gordon scored 24 points against his former team, Jamal Murray had 22, and host Denver rallied from 18 down to beat Orlando on Sunday night. Nikola Jokic had 17 points, 16 assists and nine rebounds, Michael Porter Jr. finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds, Will Barton scored 15 points and Monte Morris had 10 points off the bench for Denver.

Te r r e n c e R o s s a n d Chuma Okeke scored 19 points apiece, James Ennis III had 17 points, Wendell Carter Jr. and R.J. Hampton finished with 16 each and Mo Bamba scored 11 for Orlando.

Gordon’s dunk and Porter ’s putback gave Denver a 105-102 lead with 3:37 left in the fourth quarter.

Okeke hit a layup but Murray made two free throws and a 3-pointer to put the Nuggets ahead 110-104 with 2:25 left. Hampton and Carter airballed two 3-point attempts, allowing Denver to score five straight to go ahead by 11, and the Nuggets closed it out.

(Field Level Media)

Quinton de Kock unlikely to face any sanction for Fakhar Zaman dismissal - Match officials did not find the keeper in breach of Law 41.5.1 on fake fielding ESPNcricinfo - Quinton de Kock did not intend to deceive Fakhar Zaman when the batsman was run out in the second ODI between Pakistan and South Africa, and is not in breach of Law 41.5.1 on fake fielding. That is the conclusion match officials are believed to have come to after reviewing footage of Sunday’s match, in which Zaman was dismissed on 193 in the final over, with Pakistan 30 runs away from victory.

At the time, Zaman was pushing for a second run to keep strike and de Kock gestured towards the bowler’s end, but a direct hit from Aiden Markram at long-off caught Zaman short

of his ground at the striker’s end.

ESPNcricinfo understands that in a postmatch meeting, which officials regularly have to discuss the game, match officials re-looked at the dismissal and on studying all frames, were happy that de Kock called “bowler’s end,” even before the first run was complete. Although the law states that “it is unfair for any fielder willfully to attempt, by word or action, to distract, deceive or obstruct either batsman after the striker has received the ball,” de Kock’s actions were not deemed to have been a trick, with officials satisfied that he was indicating for the throw to go

Quinton de Kock is congratulated by his team-mates after the Fakhar Zaman run-out. (Gallo Images/Getty Images) to the bowler’s end even as it came in at his end. Tabraiz Shamsi tweeted that de Kock was calling for a fielder to back up the throw at the nonstriker’s end.

In the immediate aftermath of the game,

Zaman agreed with that assessment and said it was his “own fault,” that he slowed down in completing the second run, because he looked back to see whether his partner, Haris Rauf, was safe. South Africa’s captain

Temba Bavuma called de Kock’s actions “clever,” and said, “I don’t think he broke the rules in any kind of way.”

Pakistan management is believed to have spoken to Andy Pycroft immediately after the incident, and drew

his attention to the relevant law. That, it is believed, was not an official complaint as much as a reminder about the law and there appears to be an acceptance that the law is there for match officials to interpret and implement.

Kaieteur News

Tuesday April 06, 2021

PAGE 25

Crawford cops Mohabir Baljeet Sukhpaul Memorial title Romello Crawford turned in a spirited performance to win the Mohabir Baljeet Sukhpaul memorial 46-mile road race which was contested on Sunday.

The Flying Ace Cycling Club organised event began in front of the Sukhpaul gas station at New Amsterdam and proceeded to Sukhpaul’s gas station in Corriverton.

Crawford withstood stern competition from his rivals to cross the finish line in two hours and 11 minutes.

Brothers Andrew and David Hicks placed second and third respectively while taking three primes each.

Mario Washington placed fourth and Jason Cameron was fifth in the senior category.

David Hicks won the junior division while Washington finished second and Jeremiah Joseph was third.

In the Juveniles division, Richard Crandon and Raj Mootoo placed first and second respectively.

In the Veterans category,

Respective prize winners at the conclusion of the presentation.

Syborne Fernandes copped first place and Fitzroy Tang finished second. 16 riders

entered the race.

Coach Randolph Roberts said the race was done in a

National C/Ships pushed back AAG 4th development meet set for the 18th

Kaieteur Sport has been made aware that the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) has made a concerted decision to postpone the highly anticipated National Senior Championships which was scheduled for the weekend of April 17-18 at the National Track & Field Center, to a date in late May that is yet to be determined.

According to the head of the AAG, Aubrey Hutson, this decision was made to accommodate athletes to ensure that they are running at 100% which will give them a better chance to record their best performances with the ultimate goal being qualification for the Tokyo Olympics from July 23. Hutson mentioned that, “The season is now heating up and our athletes should be at their peak in about six to eight weeks.”

However, the administrator is adamant that he will not allow his athletes to miss out on competition due to the postponement of the National Championships and he has noted that the AAG will host a fourth development meet on Sunday April 18th instead.

The AAG boss explained that in terms of

Arinze Chance (left) may be part of the Guyana team that will compete at the South American Championships in Argentina next month.

accumulating ranking points that will help qualification chances for the Tokyo Games, the National Championships offers the highest possible points an athlete can get from a single meet with the South American Championships being second on that list, hence why the AAG is intent on having their athletes going at full steam for the National Championships.

However, the National Championships was initially set to be used as the gauge to determine which athletes will represent Guyana at the South American Championships, which will be contested in Argentina next month, but instead, the Executive of the AAG may have to consult with the various coaches and assess who will make the cut.

Some of the athletes that may make the cut for the South American Championships would include, Arinze Chance, Emanuel Archibald, Aaliyah Abrams, Chantoba Bright, Natricia Hooper, Leslain Baird (if he recovers from his injury in time) and Devaun Barrington.

safe environment and lauded the Police Commander and ranks in Berbice and the

National Covid-19 task force.

He also thanked the

Sukhpaul family for their support in the development of cycling.

GABF issues warning about Fake ‘Guyana Basketball’ Facebook Account

T

he Guyana A m a t e u r Basketball Federation (GABF) is advising the public to be aware of a fake Facebook account, purporting to be the official Facebook of the GABF. The fake account ‘Guy AnaBall’ is making colourful commentary as it relates to the selection of Guyana’s senior men’s team.

In a release to the media, the GABF is advising that the public be aware that the Facebook account is fraudulent, and it does not represent the views and image for the GABF, and they should NOT engage with this page.

The page surfaced in the aftermath of heavy criticism from sections of the basketball fraternity who expressed their disappointment with the omission of Ravens Basketball Club Point Guard (PG) Dominic Vincente.

Vincente, who captained Guyana to a 3-0 series sweep against Grenada at home at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH) in December 2019, did not find a place in coach Junior Hercules 12man squad that will travel to the El Salvador later this

Junior Hercules National Basketball Coach month to participate in the CONCECABA FIBA 2023 World Cup pre-qualifiers.

This is the first time Guyana will be participating in the FIBA World Cup pre-

qualifiers after Coach Hercules, against all odds had guided the national men’s side to their first Caribbean Basketball Championship in 2018.