Kaieteur News

Kaieteur News

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Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: Adam Harris Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210

EDITORIAL CORRUPTION AND ROGUE COPS

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ecently there have been a number of serious crimes and other illegal activities purportedly being committed and in some cases being proven to have been carried out against the public, by members of the police force, whose mandate is to serve and protect the people. The fact that ranks have been caught trafficking marijuana and cocaine, charged with fraudulent behaviour in driver’s licence examinations, arraigned for murder, and accepting bribes from errant drivers in exchange for not issuing traffic tickets, clearly shows that we have a disorderly police force. Police corruption is a form of misconduct in which law enforcement officers have violated their oath and code of conduct and abused their power for personal monetary gain or any other type of personal benefit gained illegally as a result of the officer’s position or authority. This type of corruption may involve one or a group of officers. It is a betrayal of public trust, departmental policies and human rights. It involves soliciting or accepting bribes in exchange for not reporting a crime, the selling of drugs, the theft of money from drug dealers, assaults, fabricated arrests, issuing false reports and falsifying evidence in order to secure convictions of civilians and suspects, stolen goods which officers have access to through their investigations, and ticket fixing by accepting bribe to cancel or not issue traffic tickets to drivers who violated the road ordinances. It has been known for years that corruption is endemic in the police force from the highest to the lowest level. The massive driver’s license examination scam that was unearthed last April is a classic case of police corruption in the country. Due to the lack of data, it is not possible to measure the level of corruption in the police force, thus the true scale is anybody’s guess. Despite this limitation, the public believe that police corruption is a widespread problem. The prevalence of police corruption in Guyana has somehow become the norm rather than the exception and may even be institutionalized. There is a code of silence among police officers that prevents many corrupt acts from coming to light - it discourages officers from reporting the misconduct of other officers. Due to the existing culture, many officers are willing to tolerate corrupt behaviour rather than expose their colleagues. Studies have pointed to the rotten apple theory which shows that most corruption stems from just a few dishonest or unethical officers, but the entire force is branded as corrupt due to the actions of just a handful of officers. However, many believe that police corruption is not just limited to a few rotten police officers as suggested. One of the reasons put forth for police corruption is that many policemen are underpaid and desperately in need of extra money to survive, and also because they have easy access to money – such as that seized from the sale of illegal drugs - or the means to get it without too much scrutiny, such as when there are massive drug busts. It is without a doubt that corruption has damaged the image of the police force, eroded its morale and undermined the public trust and confidence in law enforcement. The actions of too many of the ranks have caused crime and organized gangs to flourish in society. It is common knowledge that a properly functional, effective and disciplined police force is needed more than ever to curb crime in the country. The prospects for a sustainable reduction of crime in the future will depend on whether the issue of corruption by rogue cops is effectively addressed.

Editor’s Note; If your sent letter was not published and you felt its contents were valid and devoid of libel or personal attacks, please contact us by phone or email.

Prof. Thomas’ cash payout proposal: Don’t even go there DEAR EDITOR, Here is an idea that should be given top priority. Guyana needs to build up an entrepreneurial class. Guyana needs to develop a class of Guyana’s Product Brands. (Currently Guyana has only one such brand -15year-old rum. Europe and North America cannot get enough of Guyana’s rum). Guyana needs a dozen new export products not to supplant but to complement its all too few current export products - rice, rum, timber, gold, sugar, fish. Consider the following for its germinal ideas: (1) Is there an export market for, say, bora? Can an entrepreneur export one million dollars’ worth of packaged, frozen, bora annually to the regional and extra-regional market? Does he have a good business plan? Let govt. provide him with startup funds - and help him with marketing skills, help him build his processing plant, acquire freezer trucks, research facility, etc. Give him a 5year tax break. Benefits to the economy - he brings in

valuable FX, employs 20-50 persons, collects bora from small growers and exports their produce. (2) Is there an export market for furniture made of Guyana’s choice woods? Is there a willing, able entrepreneur? Can he partner with a foreign firm to obtain technology, furniture-design and marketing? Let govt. provide startup capital. Help him develop skilled labor. Provide him space in an Industrial park and tax-breaks. If we cannot find a Guyanese entrepreneur to produce a viable good for export market, then invite IKEA to build a plant in Guyana. (3) Does a company like Texas Instruments want to come to Guyana to make electronic goods? Give them tax breaks, industrial site, develop skilled labour at the local technology institutes. (This is an idea that largely e x p l a i n s S i n g a p o r e ’s development). Develop a list of 50 potential products that can be grown or manufactured in Guyana – with easily-

acquired skills, little capital and technology. China first started with stitching clothes and handbags (fabric, leather and design given to them); then they went high-tech – making computer harddrives and chips, software, and tons of high-tech manufactures. Today China is the factory of the world. S P E N D O I L REVENUES to develop an entrepreneurial class. This class makes and exports products, creates employment for local workers, skilled workforce develops. Incomes rise. GDP grows. Branded products get established. Consumer demand and stable markets f o r G u y a n a ’s b r a n d e d products develop. And, it all becomes sustainable in the long-run. Cash payouts must be considered an extremely bad idea. It would only create misery upon misery - high inflation, cheating, dependency class. Of course, the indigent, aged, disabled who already qualify for the dole - must be provided for by the State. But a

programme for wholesale handouts to every ablebodied citizen is at once inflationary. No new goods and services produced. Too many dollars chasing too few or same quantity of goods only raises the pricelevel (inflation). I think Prof. Clive Thomas should try to understand what happened in Venezuela. All the agriculture (beef, rice, sugar) that flourished before oil, have now collapsed. Today, Venezuela imports practically all its food. Oil transformed Venezuela into a hand-out society and a hand-out culture. (To be fair, a loony leader in the person of Chavez, together with a 90% oil-dependent economy helped to destroy Venezuela). Here my little anecdote on Chavez. Chavez did not understand that oil is a commodity that could be $100 a barrel one day, and $30 a year later. He did not understand the need for a Stabilization fund for the inevitable rainy (Continued on page 6)

Sunday August 19, 2018

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PNCR’s upcoming internal elections is a Incomplete works in Agriculture Road litmus test of the political meter of the party meters that now have two needs to be taken to court to DEAR EDITOR, DEAR EDITOR, The upcoming party election of the People’s National Congress Reform is a litmus test of the political meter of the party. While I commend every candidate vying for leadership within the party who each bring merits worth lauding, the trajectory of the PNC as the leading party within the APNU and the Coalition government necessitates a movement in which the strength, innovation, resilience and temerity of our youths are central. In this light, Comrades Joseph Harmon and Volda Lawrence have consistently demonstrated a deference for our youths and moreover our seniors. Going forward, we can no longer isolate youths or relegate them to subordinate positions in which they are taken for granted, their strengths underutilized and their novel ideas vilified. Nor should PNCR youths stand aside and watch their coalition comrades being positioned by their leaders without any meaningful representation for their consideration. The party leadership must reflect a youth presence. There is a movement across Guyana in which our youths are becoming more informed and they long to be acknowledged as participants in the advancement of our democracy. Those who do not engender to contribute to community and national development are often disenchanted by what they perceive as the sidelining of their concerns by the ‘old-guard’ of our political institutions, or, their economic plight veils the wealth of opportunity for them to actively participate in nation building from their eyes. Regardless the reason, Harmon

has established a reputation in which he bridges gaps, builds rapport and understands the value of our youths. Across the regions of Guyana, he extends himself, even expending his personal resources to empower the youths of Guyana while he was in opposition and throughout his tenure as a minister. I wish to single-out his salary increase, which he gives monthly to the needy and less fortunate across Guyana. Lawrence also has a similar penchant for looking into the affairs of those in need and has surrounded herself with youths since taking up her Ministerial post. The two leaders remain constantly connected to the needs of the common members and Guyanese as a whole. On the other hand, the incumbent leader cannot continue to preach his past efforts while in Opposition or for years before many of us were born, while displaying a lack of vigor, laid back attitude and disconnect with key party groups such as our youths. However, he remains a well-respected leader in his own right. Elitism in any leader is a heavy barrier that will only isolate the party and delineate from its agenda. Furthermore, maintaining the status quo will not bode well for both shoring up the Party’s support base and garnering new support. Therefore, the youthful voices of candidates such as Christopher Jones and Thandi McAlister deserve serious consideration. The election of a youth to the post of Vice Chairman, will also trigger some hope of ascendency for PNCR Youths and the change will be further

felt by all. To be sure, as we encounter new economic opportunities and challenges, both political veterans and novices must work collaboratively moving forward. Unfortunately, for too long we have embraced a culture contrary to this ideal. Both Joseph Harmon and Volda Lawrence have demonstrated an understanding that youth in politics leads to civic engagement, and that consequently our youths must be heard, their needs addressed and the value embraced. I can attest to their continued invaluable contributions in Region Ten and the hope that is stoked by their candidacy. The PNCR’s ascension to government should not make us complacent and ignore the threat of a lackluster performance in energizing the party base and mobilizing new entrants. After three years, it is about time the party support base feel the success of their efforts and it is time for the “brick-wall”, which existed at ministries for years to be fully dismantled. Ultimately, the mood, the energy level and the state of the party loyalists rest with the leader and if one is to reflect on the three campaigns for party leadership, the candidacy of Comrade Harmon followed by Comrade Lawrence clearly epitomizes the vibrancy needed for the prosperity of the party. Our Leader President David Arthur Granger has been doing an exemplary job holding the party together and can surely do with a vibrant Chair, as we look towards local government 2018 and general elections 2020. PNCR Forever. Carwyn Holland

After writing several letters about the deplorable state of Agriculture Road, I am compelled to write this letter again. About three weeks ago, I saw the same engineer sent by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure to patch the bad holes I highlighted on my previous letter by pictures I took. I believe this engineer was sent back to complete his “work’’ he left unfinished. I was happy that he came back to patch the holes in this road that I note with interest, he started the work from in front of NAREI. The holes in front of NAREI he patched properly. Then I noticed he just dug out the bad parts and threw in some crush and run and rolled it over and did not put bitumen for over 200

more holes already. What infuriates me was he worked a few days and left the work to go and fix two roads in Block 8. He fixed those two roads but left about 600 meters with deep holes and left to return to Agriculture Road to patch more holes he left unfinished in the rains. It’s mind boggling that this Engineer will work in the rains and not on the hot days. The middle of the road that had a big hole that broke the road into pieces he tried to fix properly but if you look at the bottom when it was dug out and what was thrown in, you know it cannot last a year. He failed to l e v e l t h e twisted parts of the road and sleeved the corners of the road.In my firm opinion, this man

refund the Ministry their money for deplorable road works. I am calling on the Minister of Public Infrastructure to send a team into Agriculture Road to examine the road work that is executed by this engineer. What bothers me is that the Min i s t r y s e n t b a c k this same man again to complete his work who is a total failure and he failed again to patch the holes again. I hope those in authority will address this issue in Agriculture Road I have raised here or the President will address it. Regards, Rev.Gideon Cecil

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Sunday August 19, 2018

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Guyanese are perplexed as to what actually is the fate of GuySuCo

Omarosa was silent as Trump attacked Barack Obama and insulted minorities

DEAR EDITOR, The greatest enigma Guyanese have experienced is the way forward for the Guyana Sugar Corporation-to close the estates, to diversify, to make all viable and then sell some, and to down-size and to ‘upsize’. Even the sugar workers who were dismissed are being fed with euphemistic epithets to give them some mental reprieve. We are told in February this year that $10-15 billion is needed to open the closed estates and then sell them to fetch a ‘good’ price and then a week later we were told that $30 billion is needed ‘to provide much capital injection, support infrastructure maintenance, and upgrades at Albion, Blairmont and Uitvlugt’. There are so many variations, combinations and permutations that Guyanese are perplexed and in a quandary as to what actually is the fate of GuySuCo and those who depend on it. The $15 billion loan was supposed to be finalized in March this year but that did not come to pass. However, what is more mysterious is the fact that although the $30 billion loan did materialize, it is just apparently sitting in the bank accumulating interest, which will cost us $US40 million. It was supposed to be utilized for capital injection and infrastructure maintenance and other upgrades. This apparently did not happen since the starting of the second crop was postponed because of impassable dams. The SPU had the entire outof-crop period to fix the dams but they did not and it is evi-

dent that any amount of rainfall will surely affect the achievement of this crop’s target. This is what happened in the first crop this year. If the SPU is so short-sighted as to not fix the dams it makes us wonder, how they are going to make GuySuCo viable. In fact, during the out of crop period, I saw a backbreaking exercise at one of the Estates where tractor and bell loader operators have to break concrete columns to fill holes at the back-dam. It just goes to show the ingenuity the Estate Managers must employ to get the crop started whilst the SPU is sitting on the $30 billion loan oblivious of the struggles faced by management.However, apart from the harsh economic realities, which the dismissed sugar workers have to grapple with, the depressed state of the communities affected and the overall economic decline, the embarrassingly shortsighted and dumb decision to close the Skeldon Estate is now affecting the profit making Skeldon Energy Company Incorporated (SECI), which despite millions being spent to get it in operation, there is not enough biomass to generate power. When the Estate was in operation, the source was the bagasse from sugarcane production but with the closure of the Estate and the downsizing of sugar production, this cannot be realized. In addition, though a meeting was held earlier this year to source wood, cone husk and rice straw to be substitutes, this is yet to be realized. The former President of the Central Corentyne Cham-

ber of Commerce, Mr Mohamed Raffik had bluntly said that ‘it is not possible’ and it seems that his prophecy is being fulfilled. Therefore, we can expect to have frequent blackouts since the backup from the SECI to the GPL grid will be unavailable. The Coalition Government, when in Opposition had lambasted the PPP/C Government for the subsidizing of Guysuco to keep it afloat, to inject much needed capital and to support infrastructure maintenance. During the period of 2011 to 2015, the PPP injected $26 billion dollars with all the estates in operation with no job loss. On the other hand, the Coalition Government in less than 3 years injected more than $32 billion, and managed to close 3 estates, dismiss 7,000 workers and could only manage to produce just over 100,000 tonnes of sugar. Now another $30 billion is needed to make the estates viable. It makes me wonder if this Coalition Government will ever make Guysuco viable or the $30 billion loan is just another victim of the gross mismanagement and squandermania we have witnessed during the past 3 years! In conclusion, I am in total agreement with the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo that the $30 billion could have gone into restructuring the industry while keeping all of the estates open and GuySuCo’s workforce employed and engaged. Yours sincerely, Haseef Yusuf RDC Councillor Region 6

Prof. Thomas’ cash payout proposal: ... From page 4 day. He chose to splurge his windfall oil revenues to promote socialism – and worse to try to embarrass the U.S. govt. So, he blew out half-a-billion dollars’ worth of free oil to heat houses for “poor” American households. When the Congressman heard about the programme, he helped send the message out to enroll thousands of Americans in the Boston area: ‘Come, get

some free oil, help the great Venezuela Socialist get rid of his largesse. It was a sad tale beyond comprehension. And, the Americans were not embarrassed, they were amused. He should have spent his oil money to build a balanced and sustainable economy for the Venezuelans. And, I think this is where Prof. Thomas’ idea will take Guyana. It is the ‘Free Money

model of Chavez’. President Reagan popularized the fish aphorism – Don’t give the unemployed a fish, teach him how to fish and that would feed him for the rest of his life. Today, Guyana with its oil revenues can go beyond that – don’t only teach the unemployed “how-tofish”, create the entrepreneurial engine that will also provide him life time employment. What we need in Guyana is an entrepreneurial-dominant economy. For decades now, 80 -90 percent of Guyanese workforce look out for and depend on a government job to survive. It should be the other way around – 80 to 90 percent should look to businesses for employment. America is an entrepreneurialdriven economy, and that is a major reason why it is so successful. Mike Persaud

DEAR EDITOR, The author has put to the test what she learnt from the best. While her book may not be news her behaviour certainly is. Omarosa Newman is doing no great favour for Black Americans or for that matter, Blacks the world over. The truth be told, she can do herself a personal favour—-–get hinged and quit while she’s slightly ahead. The former White House Staff member, learnt from the best as she once belonged to the lair of liars, and her recently released book, UNHINGED—An Insider ’s Account of the Trump’s White House is written testimony of mastered skills. The tell all mea culpa memoir paints a damning picture of President Trump, his habitual use of anti-black epithets, and claims the existence of tapes with him uttering the N-word as he filmed the reality series— The Apprentice on which shewas a serial contestant. Omarosa who was the highest ranking AfricanAmerican on the White House staff revealed that while employed at the White House, she surreptitiously taped a number of conversations, with the President in the Oval Office, and the Chief of Staff in the Situation Room, one of the most secured rooms in the world, where the nation’s most closely guarded secrets can be discussed. One cannot resist commending the skill with which she

masterminded the release of these tapes so as to maximally damage the credibility of the White House just as it was in the process of trying to abrogate hers. Needless to say, such behaviour in the White House will make her a pariah in conservative circles, while critics and legal experts alike denounced it as a huge breach of security. Since being fired from the White House last December, Newman has strategically dropped a series of ominous hints about her time spent there. The level of vitriol has increased as her tell all book is being promoted, with the author telling The Associated Press that the president is “a racist, a misogynist, a bigot.” No new discovery here as the President’s personal history is literally a hedge of backward racial ideas, including the use of the term birtherism that heralded the commencement of his presidential campaign, his equating Mexicans with rapists, and later proclaiming that Judge Gonzalo Curiel, on account of his Hispanic heritage should not preside over the Trump University lawsuit, and his public racist remark on the Central Park Five deserving the death penalty despite extensive DNA evidence exonerating them of guilt. In his most notso recent assail, he questioned the intelligence of CNN host Don Lemon, California Democratic Representative Maxine Walters and Lebron

James—all of whom are black. It is blatantly evident that the book in itself provides no new awakening, by giving first person affirmation that the President is really and truly what reasonable observers and the American public considers him to be , — a racist. Even if the book had been published prior to the elections the likelihood of it being a success, or purporting to be a benefit to Blacks would have been virtually nil. The President has been blessed with hard core supporters who have proven to be morally adaptable, and totally unconcerned about the multitude of his character failings. The public already knows what it needs to know or intractably believe regarding the president’s competence, fitness, moral stance and character; hence no new revelation lies within any of the lines, chapters or verse. Now on the outside with all floodgates open, Omarosa Manigault Newman is trying via the book to rally the black forces in order to gain traction against Trump. Such a move calls for a closer look, as it should not be forgotten that she has been associated with Trump for more than a decade. During an interview with Michael Strahan of Good Morning America fame, following her firing from the White House, Omarosa said, “As the only African-American woman in this White (Continued on page 7)

Monument and streets should be named after outstanding Guyanese DEAR EDITOR, A well-known Guyanese born professor is advocating that streets and monuments should be named after outstanding Guyanese. Dr. David Dabydeen, former Ambassador to China in a tribute to Dr. Yesu Persaud said that a street or a building in Georgetown should be named after the business magnate who is well recognized in and outside of Guyana. The University of Warwick in the UK has renamed its Centre for Caribbean Studies after the business tycoon Yesu Persaud who was also granted an honorary doctorate from that University for helping the restoration of democracy in Guyana in 1993; in addition to his extraordinary contribution as a businessman having served as Chairman in several government and private corporations in the country including Trust Company (Guyana) Limited, Guyana Trust Unit, Consultative Association of Guyanese Industry, Institute of Private Enterprise Development (IPED) an institution that stimulates and finances entrepreneurs and small micro businesses. IPED has been responsible for the establishment of some 40,000 businesses and the creation of some 50,000 jobs.He was the driving force behind Demerara Bank Limited that was the first indigenous Private Sector Bank, and still serves as Chairman, but he has retired as Head of Demerara Distilleries Lim-

ited, the manufacturer of the world famous Eldorado Rums. Yesu Persaud earned several awards and recognition, many of them from overseas countries including: The Pravsi Bharatiya Samman for his outstanding contributions to business and Indian history and culture, Gandhi Organization Plaque, the Glory of India Award, the Cacique Crown of Honour (CCH), Guyana’s third highest honour (some feel that he deserved a higher award).He would be celebrating his 90th birthday on October 18 and many professionals including Professor Dabydeen and several top businessmen feel that the Guyana government should name a street or structure after him . There are several outstanding Guyanese who are in their 90s and deserve recognition while they are still alive and they include Balram Singh Rai former Minister of HomeAffairs who is now 97 years old, Eusi Kwayana, who was a member of the 1953 Cabinet is now 93, Llewelyn John, 93, former Minister of Home Affairs and Local Government Minister, Ashton Chase SC, aged 92 who was the Minister of Labour in the short lived Cheddi Jagan government in 1953, Sir Shridath Ramphal, former Foreign Affairs Minister, who will be 90 on October 3, and Dr Fenton Ramsahoye who was born on 20th May 1929 and served as Attorney General with the PPP administration many moons ago. Yours sincerely Oscar Ramjeet

Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur M@ilbox Criticized as a man, but as a writer, Naipaul drew unparalleled admiration from the literate world DEAR EDITOR, Renowned West Indian author Vidya S. Naipaul drew his last breath on Saturday, 11thAugust 2018, just a week shy of his 86th birthday. Naipaul was perhaps the most controversial contemporary literary figure, vilified and criticized as a man, but as a writer, he drew unparalleled admiration from the literate world. Naipaul not only wrote in a lucid, unambiguous style but he playfully exposed men and women for their falsity. V.S. was just 18 years of age when he entered Oxford University in the United Kingdom in 1950. By 1957, he had published The Mystic Masseur, which lovingly poked fun at the Trinidad he grew up to and remembered from every angle but which also exposed false gods, men who were mimics and who had no sense of identity. His characters, like G. R. Muir, M.B.E., are emblematic of the wider society. We in fact came to that delightful book of short stories, simply titled Miguel Street (1959; Somerset Maugham Award), before we came to The Mystic Masseur, and those stories made us realize that ordinary people were the characters in fiction, that the purpose of fiction is to hold up a mirror to the society and who stared back was yourself (and many of us did not like what we saw in the mirror). Characters such as Hat, Bolo, Man-Man, B. Wordsworth, Bogart, and the unforgettable Laura became immortal for us of that age. Those characters are timeless. Novel after novel by V. S. Naipaul revealed the dilemma of being a colonial, the complex matters of dispossession, placelessness, and identity, the emptiness of the post-colonial world, the quest for self-knowledge and freedom. Among the fictional works, Naipaul wrote are The Suffrage of Elvira (1958); A House for Biswas (1961); The Mimic Men (1967; W.H. Smith Award); In a Free State (1971; Booker Prize); A Bend in the River (1979); The Enigma of Arrival (1987). Naipaul embarked on travel in 1960, and produced writings too many to list in this letter; in one of them, Finding the Centre (1984) is a perceptive discussion of his emergence as a writer. His travel writings were a way of questioning the imperialist form of the novel that we had inherited. He even ventured into the Muslim world in his pursuit of truth and said things, which angered Muslims. He angered Africans, women, and West Indians by saying, “History is built around achievement

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and creation; and nothing was created in the West Indies...”, but Naipaul did not care what people thought of him; he was a man with a mission even if he were accused of transferring his own neuroses onto his characters. A writer does not need philosophical training to write; he is the philosopher. Naipaul richly deserved the Nobel Prize (2001) and his Honour of Knighthood bestowed by Queen Elizabeth 11 in 1989.In 2007, on a visit to Trinidad, V. S. Naipaul appeared on a public platform, a few of us from Guyana (including Bernadette Persaud, Ryhaan Shah and I) travelled to Trinidad to celebrate Naipaul week with the hope of catching a glimpse of the man who had done us all proud. At question time, a man from the audience ventured a question whereupon, Naipaul, as gentle as a lamb, like a father to a four-year-old child, replied, “Please find another question, you asked me that one already.” That is the writer who people vilified as being “strange” and “cold”. At that meeting, I presented the writer with copies of The Arts Journal. I doubt he gave them a second glance, and I don’t fault him for that because I appreciate that he spent this life educating us, giving us a clear sense of who we are and our place in the scheme of things. V.S.’s younger brother, Shiva, was also a prolific writer whose Fireflies (1970; winnerof three awards including the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize, the Jock

Campbell New Statesman Award, and the Winifred Holtby Prize) and The ChipChip Gatherers (1973; Whitbread literary Award) are also profound statements onthe complicated questions of culture and place of Indians in Trinidad. Shiva died in 1985, at age forty but not before he had written four more works: North of South (1978); Black and White (1980); A Hot Country (1983); and Beyond the Dragon’s Mouth (1984).In fact, it was their father, Seepersaud Naipaul, a journalist, who was first bitten by the writing bug; by example, he led the family into a scalding awareness of the post-colonial world.His Gurudeva and Other Stories was ultimately published (1976) by Andre Deustch long after his death. Now, the news has it that their sister Savi has just released a book about her brother. Perhaps in her book we shall discover the reason her brother, so critical of the imperialist world, chose to spend his entire life in England. Trinidad and the English-speaking Caribbean owe much to this family and Hanuman House has a place in history. The Arts Journal records its condolences to family and admirers. V.S.’s passing has left a lamentable void; it would be decades before the West Indies produces a writer as fearless as Naipaul to tell us bluntly about ourselves. Ameena Gafoor Founder and Secretary, The Arts Forum Inc. Founding Editor, The Arts Journal.

Kaieteur M@ilbox Are base-stations in residential communities dangerous to health ? DEAR EDITOR, The area of concern is radiation, with people living or working in close vicinity of Cellular Tower (base-stations) will get the highest exposures. People sleeping in homes will also have nighttime exposure and a phone can be turned off, but a cell tower cannot. Scientists link this radiation to diseases, both long-term and short-term ; cancer, infertility, DNA, damage, damage to foetuses, sleep problems, memory and behaviour problems and many others.The World Health Organization International

Agency for research says that radiation from towers are more dangerous because they emit greater-intensity radiation 24x7.I am living between the G.T.T and Digicel Cellular Towers in Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara, Guyana and would like the respective agencies, Ministry of Health and the Environment Protection, reply in your letter column as to how safe the close residents (babies to elders) with regards to these radiation towers. Yours sincerely. Parmanand Ram.

Omarosa was silent as Trump attacked... From page 5 House, as a senior staff and assistant to the president, I have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, that has affected my community and my people.” sic. This is her first deployment of “my people” almost as if it were an outrider of things to come. Pics after pics show her standing faithfully by the side of the same president who she assuredly claims hurled insult after insult at Black people, and in addition she was publicly silent as Trump again and again attacked the American citizenship of previous president Barack Obama, insulted numerous minority groups and described some African nations as shithole countries. At the 2011 White House Correspondents Association Dinner, where Trump then considering a run for the presidency was mocked by Obama, Omarosa was reported as saying “Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump. It’s everyone who’s ever doubted Donald, whoever disagreed, whoever challenged him”, words coming from the lips of the very same individual who is leading us in the race towards being convinced that Trump is really a racist. The marriage of Omarosa Newman and Florida based pastor John Allen Newman took place April 8, 2017 at the Old Post Pavilion in Donald Trump’s hotel in Washington, D.C., a stone’s throw from the White House.Omarosa is indirectly assisting making America great again, except that she is trying to do it her way. She has followed in the footstep of her teacher. She achieved fame

as a contestant on the show, The Apprentice run by her mentor, where with the adroitness of a Shakespearean villain she lied, cheated, backstabbed while ruthlessly advancing her own interests and sabotaging her rivals. Such behaviour certainly met the admiration of the President, for he insisted on bringing her into the administration as a top-level advisor, even with her known utter lack of experience and qualifications. In the book, Newman clearly infers that she joined Trump’s campaign — despite the reservations, she said that she had about her longtime friend and mentor — after an arrangement to join Democrat Hillary Clinton’s campaign fell through and left her feeling disregarded. As the highest-profile African-American on the White House staff, she pushed back on accusations that Trump was racist. She writes that Trump and his campaign were “eager for my help” and she wanted to experience working on a campaign at a “high level.” And, “since Trump had little chance of winning, it would be ‘no harm, no foul’ for me to have worked with the campaign for however long it lasted,” she wrote. Omarosa is playing out exactly who she was on The Apprentice, while Donald Trump is reaping exactly what he taught her to do. She is serving him in the same plate in which he served her, hoping that he recognizes the utensil. Meanwhile, Blacks are in no way taken aback, as a clear message she did send – that she was merely fulfilling her own end. Trump’s poem about the snake once again has a familiar take. Yvonne Sam

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Pradoville Two transactions…

Report points to ex-Housing Minister’s personal involvement

A

forensic audit re port of the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) found that former Housing Minister, Irfaan Ali, played a critical role in the transactions of the Pradoville Two, the upscale, sea-side on the East Coast of Demerara. The house lots of that community were developed using state funds, from a number of agencies, and then sold under the market price to several former ministers with ex-president, Bharrat Jagdeo, receiving the biggest plot. At least two former ministers have since resold their developed properties for tens of millions of dollars in profits. The lands were sold below what normal Guyanese would have paid per square footage for government housing lands. The offers went to a few selected persons and were not opened to other Guyanese who would have been interested. Guyana only learnt of the exclusive scheme after seeing a few mansions being built, including the imposing one belonging to Jagdeo. Several hundred millions of dollars were spent to develop the scheme before the

A section of the “Pradoville Two” community plots were sold. The transactions have been investigated by the police’s Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) with more than 20 charges recommended for former government officials. The files have reportedly been submitted for legal advice a while now. According to the forensic audit report, done by former Auditor General Anand Goolsarran, examinations of the transactions led to the conclusion that the project was done outside of the established procedures of the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA). Ally, who was the hous-

ing minister at the time, “piloted every aspect of the transaction without recourse to the Authority. While the Minister has considerable powers under the Housing Act, his role in the issue of titles was well outside of his functions and powers,” the damning report said. The NICIL report said he appeared to have been willingly assisted by the then Registrar of Lands, Juliet Sattaur, who “breached or caused to be breached the statutory and administrative procedures” for the issuing of Certificates of Title. The report had also pointed out that the lands

though sold by the CH&PA should have never happened as it belonged to the National Communications Network (NCN), another state company that controls a number of radio and television stations across the country. CH&PA NOT EXONERATED The NICIL report was also highly critical of the CH&PA which seemed to have had some knowledge of the transactions. “At the same time however we do not believe that the CHPA can be exonerated for having abrogated their responsibility over an extended period of time.” It was reported that the almost 15 acres of land was valued at $1.2B but CH&PA collected a mere $40M from the former government ministers, and others who were hand-picked. The NICIL audit report

disclosed that extensive interviews were held with a number of senior persons of CH&PA including Myrna Pitt, Chief Executive Officer; Rawle Edinboro, Chief Development Officer; Taslim Baksh, Finance Director; Denise KingTudor, Director of Operations; and. S. Ali, a Sworn Land Surveyor. “Except for Mr. Ali who deposited the Plan, none of the persons interviewed admitted to having been involved in any direct role in the project.”Pitt, the CEO, claimed she was not aware of any strategic objective of the project, nor was she aware of any pre-determined qualification parameters for the allocation of lots at Sparendaam. However, according to the CEO, since the housing project was nominally administered by the Authority, the standard Terms and Conditions ought to have applied. Shockingly, as the CH&PA was concerned, there was no transaction trail for the Sparendaam project. “The relevant transactions appear to have been systematically excluded from the authority’s records with the instructions coming directly from the Minister Mr. Irfaan Ali. The decision to allocate the lots appears to have been made in 2010, but both the CH&PA and NICIL disclaimed any role in the allocation of lots. There was no evidence of any application made to CHPA nor was the

Former PPP Housing Minister, Irfaan Ali Authority able to produce Sale and Purchase Agreements signed by the allottees.”The story got even worse. Despite, CH&PA not owning the lands that were sold to the persons, they willingly overlooked this fact, in accepting payments for the lands. The development of the land was done by NICIL. Sitting at NICIL as the head was Winston Brassington, a controversial official who is facing charges for other state lands that he sold. NO OBJECTIONS “There is no indication that the CH&PA raised any questions about the project even as its staff performed functions in relation to the project under instructions from the Minister of Housing,” the NICIL report charged. “Moreover CHPA received the proceeds and banked them into its account, so it is disingenuous for the CHPA to wash its hands of processes that clearly violated all the rules under which it operates.”To compound (Continued on page 66 )

Sunday August 19, 2018

Ministry zeroing-in on schools producing CSEC failures

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ver 600 Guyanese candidates of the 12,269 who participated in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate [CSEC] examination this year failed to secure a grade. This is according to Chief Education Officer, Marcel Hutson, who was questioned about Guyana’s failure rate in the regional examination, in wake of the recent disclosure of the Caribbean Examinations Council [CXC] - which administers the exam - that 11,000 candidates gained no passes. Hutson revealed that while the Ministry had not in the past analysed this state of affairs, for this year it has been able to ascertain that 600-plus candidates from within the public education system may not have passed a subject. “We have actually looked at it now and that will be something that we will be addressing, because it is important to us. This is something new, we are doing it for the first time and it is something that we will do going forward, because we would like to see those numbers keep reducing,” said Hutson. Moreover, he divulged the Ministry’s plan to scrutinise the results in hopes of detecting where the shortcomings are. “We are actually doing the disaggregation

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- says ungraded issue to be probed by CXC where we isolate the schools so that we can recognise where we have that issue,” Hutson said. Meanwhile, the Education Ministry is also looking into yet another issue that has left a number of candidates ungraded, despite claims that they wrote the said ungraded examinations. At a press conference Friday at the Ministry’s National Centre for Educational Resource Development [NCERD], it was revealed that even the top student of Region 10, Zoe Sills, with 12 ones and one grade two, was a victim of the ungraded situation. Sharing concern about the development was popular media personality, Gordon Moseley, who also hails from Region 10. Based on Moseley’s information, the official CXC results for the Mackenzie High student indicated that the subject of Spanish was ungraded, despite evidence to suggest her full participation. Added to this, he shared information that the student was known to excel in the subject area. Addressing the concern Friday was Assistant Superintendent of Exams, Ms.

Dawn Griffith. She explained that the word ungraded alongside a subject, instead of a grade, usually means that the candidate d i d n o t complete some aspect of the examination in question. “Ungraded means that either the child did not submit an SBA [School Based Assessment] or the child was absent for a particular subject or for part of it - Paper One or Paper Two,” Griffith explained. She however noted that once this is not the case, candidates have the privilege of having the issue queried. “We do have persons who will come in and query,” said Griffith, who noted that private candidates can come directly into the Ministry, while public school candidates can commence the process through their respective schools. At the level of the school, Griffith said that a letter is prepared and sent to the Ministry of Education which in turn forwards the query to CXC to be investigated. “They can come in to us,” said Griffith of candidates facing the ungraded issue.

DEM BOYS SEH

Exxon can embarrass people When people got money dem believe that dem can buy health. All of a sudden nuff of dem does go and exercise. But a doctor got some hard news fuh dem. A man go to de doctor to find out if he gun live long once he exercise. De doctor tell him to sit down and explain to him that de heart only good fuh a certain number of pumps. De man tell him that once he exercise de heart gun pump more fast and that gun shorten he life. De doctor advise him to slow down. He run to Soulja Bai and tell him how he, Soulja Bai, got to stop that exercise that he doing all de time because he gun dead more quick. That is why some of dem

old Minster ending up getting fat. Dem decide that dem gun sit down and just eat. And while dem doing that, dem encouraging some people to mek friends wid Exxon. Dem was vex when dem lose de elections because dem couldn’t get dem hands on de oil money. Jagdeo even try a thing. He write to Exxon and ask if de oil company could support he party fuh de elections. Is de answer mek him tell de people how he don’t want no more courtesy call. De people tell him that dem don’t support political parties. Soulja Bai know that he got to get money from he supporters and when de Exxon people tell him ‘bout Jagdeo he seh how some people does do

anything to embarrass Guyana.Dem boys remember when Jagdeo and de Waterfalls boss man was going to Trinidad. Jagdeo see de boss man in first class wid Uncle Adam. He mek de mistake to tell de boss man how he rich fuh travel first class. De answer mek Uncle Adam shame. De boss man tell him how he is a rich coolie man and he was rich before Jagdeo. He seh he was travelling first class before Jagdeo even sit on a plane. Dem boys shock how he talk to a president but then again, even presidents got to know how dem talking to people. Talk half and watch who you begging fuh money.

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Sunday August 19, 2018

Coalition received a hellish inheritance from PPP administration

Upon assumption to office in 2015 on a promise of ‘the good life’, the coalition government found that financial mismanagement in the public sector was rife and billions of tax dollars went into bailouts. President David Granger, the leader of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) which is the largest party that comprises the Coalition Government, made the disclosure at the opening

… billions of tax dollars had to be used for bailout – Pres. Granger of the party’s 20th Delegates Congress on Friday at Congress Place, Sophia. He reported that the situation which the coalition found on assuming office following 23 years of People’s Progressive Party (PPP) rule was worse than could have been imagined. “It was a hellish inheritance,” Granger stated.

He said that financial mismanagement in the public sector was rife, pointing out that billions of dollars were used from the treasury to mop up.According to Granger, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) was bankrupt and required bailouts which drained the treasury of more than $30B in three years. The rice industry, he said,

had to be supported with $4B to pay paddy farmers owing to the mismanagement of the PetroCaribe Fund. PetroCaribe was an agreement struck between the governments of Guyana and Venezuela, where Guyana would receive concessionary prices for oil in exchange for rice.Granger noted that the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) was reeling from involuntary indebtedness and required an injection of $5.4B. NIS, whose Board was chaired by former head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon, had invested in the BBCI (Berbice Bridge Company Inc), but the institution has been wrestling for its return on investments. Granger said there were numerous unpaid liabilities, including court judgments in excess of G$7B that had to be settled. According to Granger, public infrastructure had been undermined by a proliferation of scandals as evident in the costly and shoddy construction of several structures. Among the scandals he listed was the bridge at Moruca and revetments at Kumaka, in the Barima-Waini Region; the stelling at Supenaam, in the PomeroonSupenaam Region; the bridge at Hope, in the DemeraraMahaica Region; the sugar factory at Skeldon, in the East Berbice-Corentyne Region; the secondary School at Kato, in the Potaro-Siparuni

PNCR Leader, President David Granger

Region; the fibre optic cable project, in the Rupununi Region; and, the head office of the Ministry of Social Protection in Georgetown. “These infrastructural fiascos were compounded by social distress. Society became plagued by high levels of criminality, disease, emigration, school dropouts, teenage pregnancies, unemployment, suicides and poverty which combined to create a climate of collective despair,” Granger stated. He said that the Government responded to a deluge of demands from the ordinary people most affected by social problems. According to Granger, people needed change and wanted to see immediate improvements in their lives. The nation, he said, cried out for safety, young people clamoured for jobs and everyone wanted better public services. HAUNTED NATION

During his address, Granger noted that the nation is haunted still by the ghosts of the dead who perished in the carnage and rampage of criminal violence of the deadly ‘troubles’ when there was a wave of criminality roughly between 2000 and 2010 under the PPP administration. The Inquiry into the Lindo Creek Massacre, for example, Granger said, was alarming, not only for the loss of life, but also for the loss of trust in a few officials and officers. “It is disquieting that not a single minister or senior official of the previous administration has ever come forward to provide evidence to assist in solving this atrocious crime. Their silence was eloquent testimony of the licence which criminal elements enjoyed during their troubled tenure… during the ‘troubles’,” Granger (Continued on page 11)

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Kaieteur News

Govt. revenue from Liza Phase 1 could be delayed due to lack of protection in oil deal Guyana could very well experience delays in receiving its portion of the profits from ExxonMobil’s Liza Phase One Project. This is due to the fact that the Government failed to include ring fencing provisions in the contract it signed with ExxonMobil. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) emphasized this point to the government during a four-day visit in March last. The Fund said that ring fencing provisions ensure that expenses associated with a particular well or even the entire field can only be deducted against revenue from the same well or field. The IMF noted that unfortunately, Guyana’s oil deal with Exxon Mobil lacks this type of protection. According to the Fund, ExxonMobil can allocate costs from any oil well or even the entire field, to another. This means that expenses from the entire Lisa Phase One Project can be carried over to Exxon’s Lisa Phase Two Programme. ExxonMobil has already told the IMF that the cost to develop the Lisa Phase One Project will be $4.1B. The Lisa Phase Two is projected to cost $10B.

…there will be implications for Guyana’s take of the profits - IMF

The Fund warned, “This asymmetrical (irregular) treatment of profit and cost oil will benefit the contractor at the expense of delaying government revenue. For example, in the case that multiple fields are developed, the amount of profit oil to be shared from the first producing field will be reduced by costs incurred in developing subsequent fields. This could have significant implications in terms of delaying government rev-

enue, especially in a large, multi-field project.” The IMF also bemoaned the size of the contract area ExxonMobil has control over. In this regard, it stated that the contract area of Stabroek block is disproportionately large by international standards. The IMF strongly suggested that the government consider a ring-fencing rule for future developments. (Kiana Wilburg)

Condoms, garlic, phones seized in New Amsterdam prison

An early morning s e a r c h y e s t e r d a y o f t h e N e w Amsterdam Prison by police and prison ranks, yielded a number of contraband items yet again. According to the police, marijuana, five cell phones, improvised weapons, lighters and phone chargers were found. There was even a pack of condoms as well as garlic seen.

Coalition received a hellish inheritance ... From page 10 stated.He told party supporters that the period was dominated by so-called ‘phantom’ death squads which roamed the countryside nightly and with impunity. According to Granger, it was a time of uncounted execution murders, uninvestigated massacres, unreported abuses, unimpeded narcoticstrafficking and seemingly unstoppable criminal violence.“The nation’s soul has been scarred by the criminality and atrocities of that period,” Granger said. He said the PNCR Congress has a duty, and the country has the right, to find out what happened and to learn the lessons of that criminal atrocity.

“Our coalition Government is bringing reconciliation to the nation and comfort to wounded families. It is pursuing truth and justice for the victims of the criminal violence perpetuated during the ‘troubles’, including the bloody massacres at Agricola, Bagotstown-Eccles, Black Bush Polder, Bourda, Buxton-Friendship, Kitty, La Bonne Intention, Lamaha Gardens, Lindo Creek Lusignan, Prashad Nagar and elsewhere,” Granger stated. He urged delegates to ensure that the country’s defence and security forces protect society, and are never again infiltrated or manipulated by criminal cartels or corrupt officials.

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Ramson for five-day course on Oil, Gas and Mining Governance Attorney-at-law and former People’s Progressive Party/Civic Member of Parliament, Charles Ramson Jr., will in three weeks participate in a short, but intensive Executive Course on Oil, Gas and Mining Governance—from the 10th–14th September—at the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government, described as one of the institution’s newest and most vibrant departments. Ramson told Kaieteur News that the course has been developed through a unique collaboration between the Blavatnik School of Government and the Natural Resource Governance Institute, which examines extractive resource management and develops strategies to transform resources into sustained prosperity. He said that the five-day course provides the training and insight required for policy leaders in the public and private sector to work towards better management and governance of oil, gas or mineral resources. It incorporates the latest knowledge from expert faculty, and participants will actively apply these insights during strategic planning sessions. Ramson said that the course will look at both technical policy aspects of managing resources and the complex interplay between governments, companies and citizens. Topics that will be covered include: taxing companies and combating tax abuses; directing stateowned enterprises; protecting local societies and the environment; managing revenues and investment and, implementing strategy and ensuring accountability.

Attorney-at-Law, Charles Ramson Jr. Some of the faculty teachings on the course will be conducted by Professor Paul Collier, Professor of Economics and Public Policy and Professor Eric Parrado - both of whom came to Guyana for a short visit in March 2018 to meet with the Government of Guyana. The course is geared for participants to develop a clear understanding of the elements of a national natural resource strategy and the ability to lead in, or influence, the formation of effective policies for the governance of these natural resources. Ramson, who completed a Masters in Oil and Gas from the University of Aberdeen on a Chevening Scholarship said, “It is a privilege to get this scholarship from such a world class university to learn about natural resource management from these world-renowned professors. Natural Resource Management, especially as it relates to oil, will be critical to Guyana’s potential prosperity, so this opportunity could not have come at a better time, and I intend report about my experience when I return.”

Sunday August 19, 2018

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GRA capable of auditing US$460M pre-contract costs By Kiana Wilburg The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has capable persons who can audit the controversial US$460M precontract costs which ExxonMobil inserted into its Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) with Guyana. Confirming this recently was GRA’s Commissioner General, Godfrey Statia. Statia, who is also a Chartered Accountant, said that indeed, GRA has four individuals who can conduct the required audit. He said however, that it might be at the expense of other industries. Challenged to say if he is also capable of getting the job done, the Commissioner General answered in the affirmative. Further to this, the tax chief was asked to say if the government has, at any time, approached his entity to carry out the audit, since the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) lacks the technical know-how and resources to do same. Statia said, “We don’t have to be approached. We have already asked Exxon for information regarding the precontracts. They have so far been compliant in supplying information we have asked for…So you can say that the process to audit has already been initiated by us.” Statia’s comments would be in stark contrast to those made by Finance Minister, Winston Jordan on August 8, last. Jordan told members of

…ExxonMobil already approached to submit info - Commissioner-General the media that Guyana currently lacks the capacity to get the audit done. “It is really a tough issue for us,” Jordan stated. He added, “We are still putting systems in place to do all the monitoring of expenses by ExxonMobil. I must admit that we hardly have any skills at the moment, but it is not as if we don’t audit this thing in 2015 then we’ve lost all chances…” Since making such remarks, Jordan has been heavily criticized by local anticorruption advocates. For example, Chartered Accountant Chris Ram has said that Jordan’s comment is “the most astounding admission of incompetence” to have emanated from the government. “If you can’t audit US$460M how are you going to be able to audit US$4B? Who did Mr. Jordan consult to know that the country does not have the capacity?” Ram questioned. The Attorney-at-law said, too, that the accounting professionals of the nation should take offence at Jordan’s statements and even the Audit Office. He suggested that Minister Jordan should seek advice from the Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Jaipaul Sharma, who has successfully piloted several investigative and complex audits. Ram had previously expressed the view that the US$460M which accounts for

Chartered Accountant, Chris Ram expenses by Exxon from1999 to 2015 is overstated by US$92M. He noted, too, that additional pre-contract cost should be expected for the period January 2016 to October 2016. In May last, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) held a workshop with government ministers and other officials, warning them that one matter of priority is for GRA to move forward with preparations to effectively carry out cost audits. The Fund said that this is time-sensitive since the PSA introduces a “relatively short” two-year limit on the audit period. Speaking to the Government’s deadline to carry out audits, ExxonMobil’s new head of Public Relations and Government Affairs, Deedra Moe, said, “The con-

ExxonMobil’s Head of Public Relations and Government Affairs, Deedra Moe tract states that the government does have two years to audit costs incurred from the end of a year. We view Guyana as a partner, and we will work with the Government on timing on this and other reviews or audits.” Government has less than two months to audit the controversial US$460M pre-contract costs.

Finance Minister, Winston Jordan

GRA Commissioner General, Godfrey Statia

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Kaieteur News

Tax Authority stems $$M racket involving duty-free concessions - Rampant abuse by hundreds of public servants

Statistics by the Ministry of Finance show that at midyear, there was a significant decline in concessions granted to public officials when compared to the previous period last year. At the end of June 30, 2017, duty free concessions worth $701,684,000 were given out. But for 2018, only $674,097,000 in concessions were granted. What was responsible for this notable decline? According to officials at the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), a huge racket involving the abuse of access to duty free concessions by public officials was finally busted. On Friday, a senior GRA

official explained, “Public officials would normally get duty free concessions for vehicles. They would get it for three or five years depending on whether it is a new vehicle or whether it is more than four years old. When these applications have to be renewed, you would see a fluctuation in the data the Ministry of Finance publishes. But this time, it is not about renewals.” The official added, “We have uncovered a racket where hundreds of public servants are actually abusing their duty free concessions. They get the vehicle and either give it promptly to some-

one else or just sell it. Some of these public servants were even putting these vehicles up for sale on Facebook. That is how sickening this thing is.” GRA’s Commissioner General, Godfrey Statia was contacted on the matter yesterday. He confirmed that the authority has been able to unearth the scheme that was taking place and even seize a few of the vehicles involved. Statia said that the authority is in the process of identifying all of the public officials involved. He declined to comment further on the matter. (Kiana Wilburg)

Suriname hairdresser nabbed with drugs at backtrack crossing

A female Surinamese was arrested yesterday morning at the Number 78 Foreshore, Corentyne, Berbice (Backtrack route) ,after a search of her person and that of her belongings revealed 247 grams of suspected cocaine and 100 grams of ecstasy (192 pills). According to the police, the 27-year-old who is said to

be a hairdresser of Charlesburg, Paramaribo, Suriname, arrived about 08:30h via the backtrack when a routine search was conducted by officers manning the port. She is being prepared for court. The police photo showed the drugs and pills lying on a blue bra, presumably belonging to the woman.

Karasabai man dies after mud incident in mining pit Police are investigating the death of 26 year-old Neville Rodrigues, a miner of Karasabai Village, South Pakaraima, who died Friday morning at Jawalla Health Post while receiving treatment. According to police, initial enquiries revealed that Rodrigues and other workers were working in a pit at Apanda Mines, Kamarang, about 09:00hrs Friday when a chunk of hard mud referred to as a “catch cow” reportedly fell on his head. He was rushed to the health centre in a serious condition where he succumbed. The body is at the Kamarang mortuary awaiting a post mortem, the police said.

Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News

Police looking into Dem. Bridge contract ‘irregularities’ – SOCU Head

Head of SOCU, Sydney James

Opposition Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira

Head of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), Sydney James has assured that the matter of the alleged irregularities surrounding the contract awarded for consultancy services for the new Demerara River Bridge is engaging the police. James made the disclosure in a letter to Opposition Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira who had submitted a request to SOCU for a police probe into the contract awarded in December 2016 to LievenseCSO Engineering Contracting BV, a Dutch company. According to James, Teixeira’s request for an investigation has also been brought to the attention of Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan; Acting Commissioner of Police, David Ramnarine and the Police Legal Advisor, Claudette Singh. On Thursday, Teixeira submitted a letter to SOCU requesting the investigation along with the findings from a probe conducted by the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) into the deal. In her letter to James, Teixeira said that the report was being submitted with a view to instituting criminal charges against the Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson. The PPC in its investigation found that Patterson’s request to Cabinet for approval of the contract was not forwarded through the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB). The Chief Whip had also written to the PPC requesting the investigation into the December 2016 contract award. The PPC noted that the reference tender was for $148M. The PPC found that the procurement procedure used to select the company did not

meet the requirement of any of the methods described in the Procurement Act. Additionally, the PPC probe highlighted that the General Manager of the DHBC, Rawlston Adams signed the agreement without the approval of the DHBC Board. LievenseCSO was one of 23 companies that responded to a November 2015 advertisement from the Ministry for the feasibility study for the new Demerara River Bridge. Twelve companies were shortlisted and were requested to submit detailed proposals. Only two companies submitted detailed proposals as requested. The Ministry noted that having reviewed the two proposals, an evaluation Committee deemed one of the two detailed submissions as being inconsistent with what was required, and the other, far in excess of budget, even after negotiations with the bidder. Consequently, the Ministry noted, with the agreement of the NPTAB, it annulled the tender process. According to the Ministry, this then left the Government “in a most peculiar situation of having faithfully and dutifully executed the outlined procurement process and having yielded zero result for a project which is of national importance”. The Ministry admitted that an unsolicited proposal was received from LievenseCSO Infrastructure & Environment with Econovision and Ace Consultancy. The Ministry stated that the proposal satisfied the government’s requirements. Further, it was noted that given the relevant time constraints, it was felt that it was in Guyana’s interest to take advantage of the proposal.

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Canadian company to assist G/T municipality with re-evaluation of city properties With support from central government and the aid of a Canadian company, the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown (M&CC) will undertake an exercise to reevaluate properties around the city. For more than 20 years, the Council, which is tasked with managing the day to day affairs of the city, has been unable to evaluate properties located in Georgetown. To w n C l e r k o f t h e Georgetown M&CC, Royston King told media operatives last week, that a new evaluation of building and properties located in the city is integral to helping the council calculate and collect the right amount of taxes from each property owner. King noted that the initiative will significantly as-

Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News

Town Clerk, Royston King sist the Council with its financial struggles. King told media operatives the council just wrapped up a meeting with representatives from the Canadian company which

is expected to undertake the project within the next few months. This project was initiated in 2017 by Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan after it was observed that properties in the city had not been evaluated in over two decades. The Minister of Communities noted that the purpose is to essentially assist the municipalities to garner more finances so as to allow a ‘weaning’ of them off the government’s support. “Not only have I been pursuing a very vigorous agenda to ensure that the legislative authority and autonomy is respected, but critically, that (municipalities) financial independence is secure,” Bulkan (Continued on page 70)

Govt confident of ICJ ruling reasserting invalidity of Venezuela’s claim The Coalition Administration is confident and anticipates an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on the Guyana/Venezuela border controversy that will reaffirm the “Award regarding the Boundary between the Colony of British Guiana and the United States of Venezuela of 1899” and reassert the invalidity of Venezuela’s claim to our territory. President David Granger on Friday, reassured Guyanese of his government’s commitment and efforts, as he addressed the party’s 20th Biennial Delegates Congress: “Our Coalition Government has been reasserting, forcefully, respect for our sovereignty and territorial integrity. Guyana, in the face of provocation, launched sustained engagements aimed at garnering international support for respect for our sovereignty and territorial integrity.” He reminded of

government’s efforts to bring the controversy to a peaceful and legal end, describing the case’s referral to the ICJ as one of the country’s greatest diplomatic achievements. Turning his attention to the internal situation in neighbouring Venezuela, the president noted the impact on the internal situation in Guyana, with scores of Venezuelan migrants entering the country, mainly through the Barima-Waini Region (Region One). In this regard, the Head of State said the Department of Citizenship, which falls under the purview of the Ministry of the Presidency, is ensuring that the influx of Venezuelans is humanely managed in accordance with international best practices. The foresight in establishing this department has now become evident, the president said. Pointing to the reenergising of external rela-

tions, President Granger said foreign policy is the basis for the pursuit of national interest in the international community. “We value our close ties with friendly states, including those within the Caribbean Community and the Federative Republic of Brazil whose support has been pivotal to ensuring respect for our nation’s security,” he noted. Reference was made to Guyana’s strengthened relations with Asia, China and the wider world with the country’s recent membership of the International Solar Alliance, the signing the Memorandum of Understanding with the People’s Republic of China, within the framework of “China’s Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st century Maritime Silk Road” as testimony to deepening cooperation. “Our coalition Government is proud of its record of achievements. It has brought about measurable and substantive change. It has made itself into an indispensable vehicle for continued national transformation,” President Granger emphasised.

Sunday August 19, 2018

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---Hinds’ Sight by Dr. David Hinds---

This Confounded Nonsense Must Stop: Give the Teachers the little they ask for Last Sunday, I sat through an Education Roundtable discussion organized by the Buxton First of August Movement as part of its Emancipation program. The topic of the discussion was “Restoring Education Excellence to Buxton: What is to be done?” Vincent Alexander opened the discussion by locating restoration of education excellence within a wider community framework. He placed the burden of education outcomes beyond the classroom to encompass the community. Critically, he tasked teachers with becoming more than employees; he urged them to become custodians of the education of the village. Alexander’s presentation was followed by almost two hours of testimony by teachers on a panel and from the floor about their experience in the classroom. By the end of the discussion, it was established that a convergence of efforts by parents, teachers, students and the wider community operating within both the formal and informal settings, was critical to restoring the kind of laudable outcomes the village craves. The gathering

agreed to pursue a holistic community initiative under the guidance of the Society for African Guyanese Empowerment-Buxton (SAGEBuxton) with the expressed aim of coming up with creative interventions targeting teachers, students and parents. As I reflected on the testimonies I heard from teachers that evening and from members of the wider community, I realized that while the burden of lifting the education standards lies with all of us, it was the teachers who would have to play the most defining role. As I listened to their pleas and recommendations, it occurred to me that they, the teachers, feel as if they have been abandoned by everyone—by the parents, by the community and above all, by the government. As a teacher myself, I share some of their pain—the sense of loneliness. Teachers are expected to create miracles, to clean up the mess of community and of those in authority. I heard from those teachers their frustration at the lack of vision from the top, the

authoritarian nature of management and the disrespect they face from parents and from the Ministry of Education. They were glad for the forum to tell their stories of doom, of challenges and of hope. They were passionate— these custodians of the country’s present and future. They directed their anger and angst and sense of alienation at Vincent and I because they felt we were listening and that we could intervene. The complaints ranged from ancient school-buildings without partitions to large class sizes to unsanitary conditions to lack of teaching aids to unruly children, to rigid rules to lack of administrative help to maladjusted and disinterested teachers to abusive parents to lack of community consciousness by teacher. I rather suspect that if I were to go to most communities, the cries would be the same. But the elephant in the room in Buxton that evening was the pitiful remuneration that teachers receive. I reflected on what it would be like if the Minister of Education were there to hear those testimonies.

The Baccoo Speaks The medical profession would be baffled by reports of a woman being neglected when in fact, she never visited a hospital. The news would come that the woman is a confidence trickster who was bent on extorting money from a private medical institution. This would be a talking point for some time. ** The teachers are worried

about the present reaction of the union in the face of a strike. The issue is striking at

the root of people’s political conviction. And this has always been the case. In the final analysis, the strike would be averted. ** A fire would strike a residence through a misunderstanding between spouses. This is just another case of domestic disputes turning violent. The perpetrator is going to flee, but he would be caught a few days later.

But I quickly realized that she was in the midst of negotiations with the teachers’ union over the long overdue pay raises for the teachers. And in any case, our Ministers don’t think that community meetings are part of their job description, except when they are seeking more power. I have often wondered why all governments, including the Burnham government, which was sympathetic to poor people, have treated teachers so badly when it comes to wages. And I have concluded that it has to do with a lack of appreciation for what education means for poor people . I think they understand the role of education in maintaining and lifting the privileged in our society. But somewhere not very deep in our elite psyche, there is doubt about what education can do for the collective poor and underprivileged. I have always had that lingering suspicion, but the swift ridicule of the poor by the elites in their frenzy over the proposal for cash transfers has confirmed my worst

fears—they think poor people are useless. That is why they can’t see the linkage between better pay for teachers and better education for the poor. Why must teachers beg for a living wage in a country that would be flush with money starting two years from now? If the government does not have the money, then it must rearrange its priorities to find the money. Or as a last resort, borrow the money against the expected oil revenues. If the government can borrow to fix sugar estates to sell them, then surely it can borrow to fix education. I stand with the teachers and urge them not to back down. And do not allow your government to intimidate you away from the threat to strike for your just demands. Here I invoke Eusi Kwayana’s famous refrain— This confounded nonsense must stop. The right to a living wage and to strike in pursuit of that God-given right should not be surrendered. Teachers need the good life too. And our children need

Dr David Hinds teachers who feel secure— secured teachers are better for improved education outcomes. The teachers’ cause is right for educational uplift. It is a just cause. If teachers are better paid, it puts the government in a better position to demand better standards from them. Pay them and link it to better performance. And I urge teachers to tie your demands for better pay to your vote in November and in 2020. Put a price on your vote. More of Dr. Hinds’ writings and commentaries can be found on his YouTube Channel Hinds’ Sight: Dr. David Hinds’ Guyana-Caribbean Politics and on his w e b s i t e www.guyanacaribbeanpolitics.news. Send comments to dhinds6106@aol.com

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Kaieteur News

A wife strangled in Germany and two dead women in Guyana

Sunday August 19, 2018

By Michael Jordan

T

he former American soldier looked me straight in the eye and told me that he was no killer. Maybe so, but surely he must be one of the unluckiest chaps I have ever met. How many guys end up being accused of brutally murdering their wife, their ex-girlfriend, and a teenage girl, in two different countries? I’d called him for an interview about these three still-unsolved murders. Half an hour later, this bearded, bespectacled guy was sitting in our interview room, and we were talking about his former wife’s murder in Germany, and the two dead women in New A m s t e r d a m . ”I killed no one,” he told me. “There are people in New Amsterdam who know what happened to those two young ladies. There are people that know who is responsible for my late wife’s death, and they know it’s not me.” From what he says, his troubles began around April 2004. Back then, he was a Specialist in the US Army, married to 30-year-old Chevonne Talbot, and living at a US base in Germany. Ac-

Chevonne Talbot

Alexis ‘Keisha’ George

Nekescia Rouse

cording to him, he was also serving in Iraq and his marriage was on the rocks. ”I came back from combat in April of that year to find that I no longer had a wife; that someone (else) was in my place.” The ex-soldier said he found out about his spouse’s infidelity from provocative text messages that were sent to her. The ex-soldier said that he confronted her and later told his wife that he wanted a divorce. But on October 12, 2004, Chevonne Talbot was found lying face-down on the bath-

room floor in the army housing unit at Hainerberg Housing Area, in Germany, where the couple had lived. It was her husband who found the body. ”I found her dead. I found her in the bathroom. From the way her body was positioned, she looked like she was trying to enter the tub and slipped. I moved her and tried to resuscitate her. I called my unit and they dispatched the MPs, and they dispatched the ambulance… and half an hour later, they pronounced her dead.” But a bathroom fall hadn’t

killed Chevonne Talbot. Someone had tied a scarf tightly around her neck and also used it to bind her hands behind her back. An autopsy would reveal that she had died of ligature strangulation. Her husband gave the police a statement, and it is this statement that reportedly turned him from grieving spouse to murder suspect. According to the ex-soldier, he had told police that it was he, and not his wife, who was having an affair. This apparently led detectives to believe that he was concealing a motive for the crime. He admitted that he had also tried to kill himself after her death. ”I became a suspect because of that lie. I had no reason to want her dead when I had already made up my mind, six months before her death, that I was divorcing her.” Several months later, he was charged with murder. However, he was eventually freed on May 1, 2007, since, according to the ex-soldier, he was able to account for his movements at the time of his wife’s death. He said that a female prosecution witness, who was also his next-door neighbour, also placed him away from the scene. ”There was conflict in the time of death, because I showed up at work early and left work and came back a few hours later; and what was being said was that I went home, killed her, and came back to work. ”But that young lady next door told investigators that there was no way that she (the wife) could have been dead before two o’clock in the afternoon, because she saw her taking out the garbage at around two. I found her two hours later. Her testimony debunked the testimony of the pathologist who said that she died in the morning. ”She was the person who gave me my salvation, because without her testimony of seeing my wife at two o’clock in the afternoon, I wouldn’t have been in this

interview with you, I would have been at Fort Leavenworth doing 99 years.” And according to his story, there was a prime suspect in his wife’s death. He said that the individual was a male friend of his wife. He claims that the individual told investigators that he was watching television at the time when Mrs. Talbot was slain. The former U.S. soldier returned to Guyana in December 2008, and shortly after, started a relationship with 25year-old Nekescia Rouse, who lived at Smythfield, New Amsterdam. He says that it was a one-week affair. ”I flew into Guyana a few days before Christmas 2008. I was walking down Main Street, New Amsterdam, and I saw her. It was brief…one week…but from there we developed a friendship.” But at around 06:30 a.m. on Sunday, February 15, 2009, a resident of Smythfield, New Amsterdam, stumbled on a gruesome scene. Lying in a yard, under a tree was the mutilated body of a young woman. She was identified as 18-year-old Alexis ‘Keisha’ George. About 30 minutes later, the body of another woman was found in a house some 150 metres away. The second victim was Nekescia Rouse, the former soldier’s ex-girlfriend. Both women had lived with Rouse’s mother at Smythfield. They had both sustained stab wounds to the neck and other parts of the body.Investigators suspected that the women were attacked in the house in which Rouse’s body was found, but that Alexis George had managed to run outside before collapsing and dying in a neighbour’s yard. It was unclear how the killer(s) had gained entry to the house to attack the two victims, though there were suggestions that the individual (s) had entered via a verandah door. One detective surmised that the women knew their killers. ”There was no forced entry to the house. Whoever did this was more or less invited in or frequented the premises.”Detectives scoured the murder scenes and even searched inside a septic tank for the murder weapon. They never found it. Detectives learned that Nekescia had gone out with friends on Valentine’s Night and had returned home during the early hours of the

Sunday on which the women were slain. According to reports, June Rouse, Nekescia’s mother, had received a rather strange call on her mobile phone at around 05:20 a.m. on Sunday, February 15. The caller, whom she did not recognize, reportedly enquired, ‘where Nicky deh?’ Shortly after the murders, police detained seven individuals from New Amsterdam. Among them was the retired US Army soldier who had been accused, then cleared, of killing his wife in Germany. A former policeman who had gone out with Nekescia Rouse on Valentine’s Night, and who had frequented the home, was also taken into custody. The former soldier told me that he had called Nekescia on February 14, to wish her ‘Happy Valentine’s Day.’ He estimates that this call was made some 12 hours before she was slain. Like the two slain women, he was also living in Smythfield, New Amsterdam. But he also claims that at the time of the tragedy, he was stricken with kidney stones. The painful condition, he says, had kept him in bed and practically unable to move around. He says that on Sunday, February 15, 2009, several armed policemen came to the house where he was staying. According to the man, he had known the purpose of their visit, since someone had already called him to inform him of Nekescia Rouse’s murder. He alleged that without mentioning the doublemurder, the policemen said they wanted to search the p r e m i s e s . ”One detective said that he saw blood on my clothing. They took my sandals, because they said they saw blood on the sandals. No blood was ever found on my belongings.” According to his story, without being read his rights, he was booked; and without ever producing a writ, police kept him in custody for over 72 hours.” I never thought that I would spend the next six days and nights handcuffed and locked behind prison walls.”He said that he was moved from one police station to the next…”every day, sent to someplace more inhumane.”On February 20, 2009, he was eventually released on $100,000 station bail. The former soldier says that police (Continued on page 49 )

Sunday August 19, 2018

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Kaieteur News

==THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN==

The self-destructive delegates at the PNC congress today

O

ne of the political theories running through these columns of mine over the past three decades is that the Guyanese society has suffered a deep, extensive laceration of its collective psyche, and this tragedy has effectively damaged the nation’s faculties to think, reflect, argue, analyze; in other words to be rational beings. I have traced this dystopian breakdown to the era of the Burnham/Rodney confrontation and have argued that the psychic consequences of this tragic confrontation has been so enduring, that the psychological recovery will take an enormous time to occur or redemption may not be possible. The manifestations of this psychic destruction is frightening, and puts Guyana in a class of its own when compared to other countries, in that the malaise, resignation, fear, pessimism, angst, mental loss run so deeply in Guyanese society that the values that hold civilization together are constantly slipping away from this country. No one in this land has a command of the sense of humanity. This is what makes this country so sad. No one has a sense of self-worth. I have polemized countless times in these columns that even in repressive societies, there are certain violations that those nations’ citizens would not be silent about. One of these I have repeated so many times in these articles is the complete mental bankruptcy of university life in Guyana. In all other countries, university students are just restless and waiting to snap at any instance of injustice. It could be the most repressive countries in the world, and students would come out. Not in Guyana. Read the papers of any nation in the world and you would see academics at the universities are the first ones to voice an opinion on the controversial topics of the day. Guyana has four daily newspapers carrying a combined thirty letters each day, and not one is from a university lecturer. That obtains in no other country on Planet Earth. Last week, there was a flood in a certain village in Trinidad. When the Attorney-General and a councillor went into the area to see the damage, the residents threw flood water on them and chased them out. In Guyana, such an action is virtually impossible. It will never happen. In no other country on the globe would people be discomforted by the most incon-

sequential mistakes of their government and live in mortal fear of being identified. I have an email which I will keep forever, because no other person than a Guyanese would descend to such sickening levels when contacting a media operative. This man describes someone living in a village, which he named who is the prime suspect in the murder of his father. He describes vividly the situation for me and offered names of the actors in the entire episode and offered the reason for his father’s murder

– rejection of the guy who was courting the daughter. He ended his email begging me that as I proceed to investigate, I must not mention his name. I will not detain you with the details of my reply. But in my response I did say – “man your own father”. One of the negatives that has taken over this country because of that psychic breakdown is the instinct of self-destruction. The more destructive the power-holder is, the more the ordinary voters cling to him/ her. I was passing the AFC

office on Thursday afternoon when I saw Leonard Craig outside. I stopped to talk to him with my dog in my arms. An AFC Minister came out to look at my dog and saw a large number of vehicles parked up the road outside a business for reconditioned cars. He looked at the site and said; “this is nonsense, I will do something about it”. I was so livid, I put my dog in the car, began to drive away, but said to him that the major highways don’t have lights, traffic lights don’t work, and he has time to move some cars

in a parapet, which is far less important than non-existent street lights. Finally, the PNC chairmanship election today. Don’t take my word for it, go to Congress Place and see the delegates who will be voting for a person that is likely to be the president in a few years’ time. Almost ninety percent are folks from the poorer sections of Guyanese society and from the working classes. But they will gleefully go out there and vote for one of three persons who are top policymakers in perhaps the

Frederick Kissoon most neo-liberal, anti-working class government Guyana has produced since Independence, and this includes the Hoyte administration. They will vote for their own destruction.

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Kaieteur News

Sunday August 19, 2018

IDPADA-G has a lens trained on ordinary folk

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omething very inter esting, and very up lifting, is underway in Guyana. In recent weeks, various local groups linked to the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent Assembly in Guyana (IDPADA-G) have been taking some bold and very innovate initiatives to really improve the economic circumstances and quality of life for the people they represent. For instance, the Guyana Assembly has been moving

around the country, taking the pulse of the nation in order to compile a true assessment of their needs, wants and the ubiquitous enabling environment. A lot of emphasis is being placed on the people who, in the past few years, showed that they have the intestinal fortitude to step out into the world of business in a nation where they had felt oppressed for over two decades. IDPADA-G also has a lens trained on ordinary folk, potential manufacturers and en-

trepreneurs who willing to start up businesses, but who just do not have enough information to lead them to step one, or they simply cannot raise the financing to move their cottage and kitchen industries to the next level. So, the IDPADA-G, as a result of comprehensive analyses, has come up with some particularly novel ideas. What they started out with has been met with overwhelming success, support and buy-in by the people it is targeted at.

This approach is really worthy of emulation by other groupings in the various social and business sectors of Guyana. So this local executor of the United Nations’ global mandate reached out in early July and invited hundreds of citizens including micro and small business owners to a One-Stop business conference at the Critchlow Labour College on Woolford Avenue, Georgetown. Their intention was to bring key Government agencies such as the NIS; private sector business support bodies such as Empretec and CreditInfo; commercial banks and other financial agencies; GO-Invest, IPED, the Small Business Bureau and other organisations of the same ilk into one arena at the same time to provide necessary assistance. Not surprisingly, more than 800 people representing every age groupi n g crammed into the main auditorium at the Critchlow Labour College to hear presentations by representatives of Citizens Bank, the Hand-in-Hand Trust company, the Small Business Bureau, nationally acclaimed micro lending agency IPED, the Guyana Marketing Corporation, the Commercial Registry, the Guyana Revenue Au-

thority and others. Many among the hundreds who grasped the opportunity to attend, said that this was the first time they had come face to face with representatives from any of these agencies, the first time they had the opportunity to hear them talk about their functions, the goals of their organizations, and the systems they employ to assist individuals with financing, insurance, and business development advice. Also not surprisingly, this was the first time that many who came had ever filled out an application for any of these services. The glee and the gratitude were real, especially for the dozens who were happy to interface for the very first time with the Commercial Registry. Their representatives did a fantastic job of explaining the benefits for micro and small business owners when they register their enterprises with a trading name. The recipients did the follow-up work in the days following that first conference, and today they are much better equipped to ask for and receive financing that will grow their businesses. The same team of services providers went along with

IDPADA-G to the Len Building in Linden on Saturday August 4, and to RoseHall Town in Berbice two weeks later, both finishing with similar results. Going forward, Conferences and business support interventions will be held at Den Amstel, West Coast Demerara; Queenstown, Essequibo Coast; and at a venue to be named in Region Five. The organizers were happy that the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) also took the opportunity to underline the importance of business owners getting their TIN certificates, and ensuring that their taxes are always paid up. The biggest take-away from GRA was that lending agencies always require TIN and tax compliance certificates before agreeing to do business with customers. The Guyana Marketing Corporation (GMC) was also very present and offered to assist manufacturers with designing product labels and inserting accurate content data, e.g. expiry dates, caloric content and ingredients. Advice on attractive packaging and marketing was also given. The sessions held so far paint a telling picture that our Government cannot ignore. As officials from the Small Business Bureau (SBB) have been explaining, the subvention they received for non-repayable grants has dried up, but there are funds available for small loans that are repayable at a mere six percent, i.e. six cents on every dollar borrowed. The fact that no more grants are available in the SBB’s budget as at July 2018 was not exactly good news for the hundreds of entrepreneurs and potentials who now feel empowered to start up new businesses. In the face of what’s facing us – a brand new hydrocarbon industry and its accompanying risks, and the doomsday scenarios that the public is being bombarded with by the political opposition on a daily basis – it makes sense for the Government to mov e quickly to close this economic gap. I D PA D A - G, o n t h e strength of the United Nations, has inte r v e n e d in communities nearshore and inland, and will continue to seek out the people who badly need assistance. With the strength of our own Government added, we will be on the way to erasing the likelihood of the ‘resource curse’ associated with Oil and Gas.

Sunday August 19, 2018

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Kaieteur News

My column

The Chinese are flexing their muscles in Guyana

G

uyana is home to a multitude of people from all over the world. More recently, the Chinese have been making an impact on the social landscape. They own businesses, operate in the goldfields, and some even own properties. Recently, there have been a slew of reports of how the Chinese treat foreigners. For starters, foreigners cannot own property in China. There is also talk of racism, something that seems to be common the world over where there is a clash of black people with other races. A walk along the business area would reveal a large presence of Chinese. Regent Street, which once featured large Guyanese businesses now has Chinese to the extent that they are causing a serious impact on the local businesses. The Guyanese businessmen complain that business is slow, but a look at the Chinese stores would reveal a large presence of shoppers. It is common knowledge that the influx of Cubans with their hard currency is actually causing the Chinese businesses to boom. Such is the case, that the Central Bank is moving to clampdown on this source of foreign currency. And this all started when the Chinese came and offered the local businessmen money that they could not refuse. So the locals turned over their stores. Today, many are expressing regret, although they pocket the Chinese money. Should Guyana change the laws prohibiting Chinese from owning property in Guyana? If China does the same to foreigners, then they should expect likewise. However, this is not the case. The view is that the Chinese acquire cheap goods and could therefore undersell the Guyanese. These days one sees men with large guns outside some of the Chinese stores. This suggests that the business is so good that there is need for protection. At the same time, Guyanese who enter these stores speak of being made to feel uncomfortable. I would be incensed if a foreigner attempts to make me feel uncomfortable in my own country. This past week as I was on holiday, I read about a Chinese hairdresser in Brooklyn beating a black woman with a broom. This happening in Brooklyn is almost unthinkable. I said to myself that this assaulted woman should have dealt a severe beating to her attacker. I just could not imagine a Chinese woman beating a black woman in Brooklyn and others standing by merely as observers.

It happened once in Guyana and people attacked the Chinese. The police came in and arrested the Chinese. On the internet, I saw a Chinese man punching a woman in the face because the man dared to challenge her child of shoplifting. The man was arrested but not beaten by the spectators. On one occasion, a Chinese embassy official visited Kaieteur News. He was angry about an allegation that the embassy was importing goods for the Chinese community and enjoying duty free concessions. This official was so angry that during the conversation he asked whether Kaieteur News is picking on the Chinese. “Is it because you think we are weak?” I hear these things and wonder how it is that the Chinese can be so aggressive in another country when visitors are allowed no such privilege in China. There was the Chinese company, BaiShanLin, that exploited the resources of Guyana. That company took, courtesy of the Jagdeo administration, and left nothing in return. In the end, the Granger administration terminated the lease arrangement. I doubt that the Chinese pay their fair share of taxes. If the Cubans pay in hard currency, the government has no way of knowing how much sale is made and how much money is collected. The Guyana Revenue Authority should be making routine investigations of these business places. There should be audits. It would not be a bad thing for the police immigration officers to check on whether some of the foreigners working in these establishments have work permits. The truth is that we are a very laid back people and more often than not, we are made to pay for our laid back

position. Our people would not be allowed to behave in the same manner in that foreign country. Of course, there are other nationalities who are making an impact on the local landscape. The Brazilians have already taken possession of swaths of Georgetown. Some places look like little Brazil, because the Brazilians actually acquired assets. There are Brazilian churches operating in Guyana. However, they are not as clannish as the Chinese. They mingle with the local population and share some common things. For example, during the recent FIFA World Cup Guyanese were almost all Brazilian supporters. There were Guyanese driving around with the Brazilian flag attached to their cars and motorcycles. Many wore the jerseys, much to the approval of the resident Brazilians. Perhaps because Brazil is a neighbour we tend to be more accommodating. The language barrier seems not to be a deterrent. It is not the same with the Chinese. They tend to be clannish, intent on keeping outsiders from their ranks. Of interest is the fact that the Chinese Government is bent on extending its reach across the Caribbean. It reached out to Guyana with money to the extent that there is now the expansion of the East Coast Demerara roadway. The Cheddi Jagan International Airport expansion project is being undertaken with Chinese money. We constructed the now dead Skeldon Sugar Factory with Chinese money and more recently, the Marriott Hotel with Chinese labour and with initial Chinese money. We are indebted to China. We reached out for the One Laptop project at a hefty cost of US$27 million. That project saw many non-func-

tioning computers being injected. At one time there was talk of Haier, a Chinese electric company, setting up an office in Guyana. And I wonder which Guyanese company can open its doors in China. Kaieteur News has been highlighting some of the effects of too much Chinese money. In Sri Lanka a port built with Chinese money is now Chinese property because the Sri Lankans simply could not repay. It has been discovered that the same thing has happened in Malaysia, to the point that the new govern-

ment has halted some of the projects, accusing the previous administration of corrupt dealings with the Chinese. Just recently, Guyana signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese Government and caused some consternation. There is fear that Guyana is selling itself to the Chinese. Jamaica recently clamped down on a large Chinese business that dealt in counterfeit goods. We know that there are a lot of counterfeit goods in Guyana, but there is no move to take them off the market. The question therefore arises, “Is Guyana beholden

Adam Harris to the Chinese?” At the same time oil is coming. Rest assured that on the heels of the oil there will be another influx of Chinese.

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Sunday August 19, 2018

APNU believes in giving power to the People On November 12, 2018, Guyanese will once again get an opportunity to elect new councillors to the six old municipalities, the four new ones; and sixty-five neighbourhood democratic councils. These elections will be extremely important, for, after all, they are a democratic constitutional right. President Granger has vowed that so long as he remains in office, these elections will be held as mandated by the Constitu-

tion. Local government is a vital level of public administration because it deals with people’s daily lives, in their communities. Elections should be held every three years to allow people to democratically elect their representatives to govern their communities. Unfortunately, for several local elections cycles, this vital cornerstone of our democracy was denied. At the heart

of the urban and rural development crisis is the question of who wields power in the municipal and neighbourhood councils. There must be change at the local level if Guyana is to become a more equal and inclusive society and a less unbalanced and undemocratic state. The Peoples Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) while in office, demonstrated its reluctance to introduce the type of

root-and-branch local government reforms that would have led to greater inclusionary democracy. Six months after taking office, the Coalition administration - A Partnership for National Unity and the Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) - held local elections and began the process of reforming the broken system. Reforms are essential to give effect to the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic

of Guyana, which states, at Article 12: “Local Government by freely elected representatives of the people is an integral part of the democratic organisation of the state.” It states further, at Article 13, “The principal objective of the political system of the state is to establish an inclusionary democracy by providing increasing opportunities for the participation of citizens and their organisations in the management and decision-making that directly affect their wellbeing.” While in power, the PPPC showed little interest in empowering the people to enable them to exercise greater control over their daily lives. The PPPC was more concerned with concentrating power in the hands of its appointed Ministers of Local Government and Regional Development. They purposely undermined democratically-elected local councils and underdeveloped communities by impeding the provision of public-services to residents. The neighbourhood and municipal councils, starved of funding, were unable to meet their statutory needs, thereby making them ineffectual. This led to the total breakdown of the system of local governance in Guyana. A Partnership for National Unity’s struggles for local government reform while in opposition are well documented. For many weeks, led by the then Leader of the Opposition Brigadier David Granger, APNU picketed the Office of the President, demanding a date for the holding of local government elections. On several occasions, Granger wrote President Ramotar reminding him that local government elections, like general and regional elections, are a constitutional right and not favours to be bestowed by political parties whenever they chose. Ramotar was reminded that holding local elections was an obligation and not an option, anything else was acting

counter to the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. APNU believes in giving people the power to design the systems and determine the services that effect their everyday lives. To achieve this, the relationship between the central and local government must be altered. Our partnership has visited all of the local government areas and we have seen first-hand the problems at the community level. In his address to Parliament on June 10, 2015, His Excellency the President Granger proclaimed; “Your government will adhere to an empowerment policy that regularly renews local democracy by ensuring that local government elections are held- as is stipulated in our constitution. We shall fortify grassroots democracy by ensuring that local residents are allowed to play a greater role in managing their own towns and villages.” In an address to regional leader on January 20, 2017, the President said; “The local government system was given a lease of life in March 2016 with the conduct of Local Government Elections after over 18 years. That system is still beset by challenges and these challenges can be overcome through greater consultation, through collaboration, through communication, through cooperation and coordination between the local government organs across this great country…our Constitution demands cooperative forms of governance on the part of local democratic organs. A mechanism needs to be created to ensure that the Regional Democratic Councils, the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils, the municipalities, the village councils and other regional stakeholders are able to meet, discuss and plan for development and thereby give effect to popular participation in government”.

Sunday August 19, 2018

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How can you know if your body is resisting the insulin it’s producing? By Dr Zulfikar Bux Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine iabetes is very prevalent in Guyana. Persons often think that it has to do with not having insulin in their body. While that is partially true, insulin resistance is the main reason behind many diabetes cases. There are instances where this can be avoided and today we will try to highlight some of them. WHAT IS INSULIN RESISTANCE? Insulin resistance is a condition linked to pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance means your body is unable to respond to the amount of the hormone insulin it is producing. Insulin is made by your pancreas, one of your body’s organs. It helps protect your body from getting too much sugar (glucose). Glucose gives you energy. However, too much sugar is harmful to your health. SYMPTOMS OF INSULIN RESISTANCE Most people don’t realize they have insulin resistance until they have a blood test. Everyone has high blood

D

sugar levels from time to time. However, when your body’s sugar level is consistently high, you may notice you are more thirsty, urinate more, are more tired, have blurred vision, and have some tingling on the bottom of your feet. WHAT CAUSES INSULIN RESISTANCE? Obesity (being significantly overweight and belly fat), an inactive lifestyle, and a diet high in carbohydrates are the primary causes of insulin resistance. Some women develop insulin resistance while they are pregnant. This is called gestational diabetes. Certain diseases are associated with insulin resistance. That includes heart disease, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and polycystic ovary syndrome. Certain risk factors are associated with insulin resistance, including: · A family history of diabetes. · A sedentary (not active) lifestyle. · Race (especially if you are of Indian or African descent). · Age (the older you get, the more your risk increases). · Hormones. · Steroid use. · Some medicines.

· Poor sleep habits. · Smoking. HOW IS INSULIN RESISTANCE DIAGNOSED? During a doctor visit, your doctor will ask you questions about your symptoms, your personal and family medical history, evaluate your weight, and take your blood pressure. Diagnosing insulin resistance requires a blood test. This might be done through a small finger prick or by having a small needle inserted into a vein to take a sample of blood. It is usually called the fasting blood sugar. Your doctor also may have the lab test your cholesterol levels (from the same blood sample). People with insulin resistance often have high cholesterol. CAN INSULIN RESISTANCE BE PREVENTED OR AVOIDED? You cannot prevent or avoid risk factors, such as race, age, and a family medical history. You can take steps to reduce your insulin resistance by losing weight (even 10% can make a differ-

ence), exercising regularly, and eating a healthy diet. Choose healthy carbohydrates. For example, eat whole grain bread instead of white bread, drink water instead of soda, and reduce your intake of sugary foods. If you have or have had gestational diabetes, insulin resistance typically goes away after you give birth. However, you are at greater risk of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes when you are older. That should be a warning to change your diet and lifestyle early so that you can delay it for as long as possible.

HOW CAN INSULIN RESISTANCE BE TREATED? Diet, weight loss, and exercise can improve insulin resistance. However, most people need medicine, as well. Your doctor will prescribe a medicine that works best for your health and lifestyle needs. If your insulin resistance leads to uncontrolled type 2 diabetes, you may need insulin (given through a pump or daily injection). Living with insulin resistance requires lifestyle changes, as well regular use of prescription medicine. You

Dr. Zulfikar Bux will have to be more careful in making meal and snack choices, reading labels, and maintaining a lower weight. You also will have to commit to regular exercise and take your medicines as prescribed.

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SUNDAY Cops panic after gunning down Brazilian miner – attempt to dump body Reports coming out from the Puruni Landing in Region 7, Essequibo, late last Saturday, revealed that two Police ranks who were in the process of raiding a mining camp some 20 minutes up the Puruni River from the Landing, shot and killed a 29-year-old undocumented Brazilian miner named Estevao Costa Marques, after he ran as the ranks were carrying out the raid. A witness to the tragic episode claimed that he was not too far from where the incident occurred. The man told this publication through a translator, that the police would normally come and raid the camps – looking to take money from undocumented Brazilian miners in the area. Around 13:00 hrs Saturday one such raid was being carried out by the two police ranks. As they approached the camp owned by the victim’s mother, a Brazilian miner known as Maria de Nazaré Costa Marques, the man made a run for the bushes. The witness claims that “the police just point his gun and fired two shots”, with one hitting the young Marques in his back and the other hitting him at the back of his head. The witness opined that the man fell dead instantly, as “his head exploded”. The witness said after the police shot the man, they clearly began to panic. “They were attempting to dispose of the body; at one time they even tried to burn the body, but other miners started to create a scene. They (police) were telling the people to clear the area, but all the miners in the area came out and kept a watchful eye on them.”

The two cops as they made their way from the Puruni Landing with the body of the dead Brazilian

Estevao Costa Marques, the Brazilian miner who was shot and killed by police China’s Belt and Road Initiative is another debt trap… Ex-Malaysian PM charged after huffing millions; reportedly “made deal with China” to replace money The family has links to a yacht worth over US$200M. Their net worth, if all assets are accumulated, would be way over US$5 Billion. In fact, one family member owns jewellery and bags that carry a whopping cost of over US$273M. This is not the royal family. It is just a glimpse of the lavish lifestyle of the former first family of Malaysia. For years, former Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak, lived off of the people of his country. He was able to do this by tapping into billions of US dollars stored in the state investment company 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB)—the country’s Sovereign Wealth Fund.

Also, the recently elected government strongly suspects that PM Najib misappropriated money that was loaned to the country from China under the Belt and Road Initiative. It was reported that the allegedly corrupt former PM “made a deal with China” so he could repay money spent from 1MDB fund and maintain the lavish lifestyle he and his family enjoyed. The burden to repay China will now be on the backs of Malaysians who are already crying out. Each of the countries trapped by China’s glitz and glamour in the likes of the Belt and Road Initiative are coping with the repercussions differently. While Sri Lanka is trying to keep its head above water by allowing China to take over the US$1.2 B deepwater port they built, Pakistan is looking to secure international financial bailout. But Malaysia is handling its problems more

Former Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib Razak pictured arriving at court (BBC photo)

assertively. Malaysia is already making the links between the China initiative and the “1MDB scandal.” Several China-backed projects with “inflated prices” have been put on hold and the former PM has been slapped with a number of criminal charges. In addition to this, Malaysian investigators traced some US$700 million wired into PM Najib’s bank accounts. Funds were allegedly transferred from SRC International, a former subsidiary of 1MDB ,into Najib’s personal account. For all the charges made against PM Najib so far, he has been granted bail. MONDAY Govt. initiates process to undertake crucial Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability Assessment The coalition administration has begun the process for undertaking the next Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) Assessment, which is regarded as the hallmark for assessing public financial management (PFM). While the existing PEFA Action Plan continues to be implemented, the next assessment will be conducted in 2019 and will feed into the development of a new PEFA Action Plan. According to the Ministry of Finance, while public investments are captured in the PEFA Assessment, the more specific Public Investment Management Assessment (PIMA), which was completed in 2017, serves as the backbone for systemic reforms to the way Government undertakes capital investments. Having successfully developed a draft PIMA Action

Plan that seeks to address the areas of deficiency within the Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP), preliminary work on overhauling public investment management has begun. For Budget 2019, the Government has instituted a preappraisal mechanism that allows for proposed new investments to be screened for vital markers such as readiness, strategic alignment, articulation of intended outcomes and impacts and adequate justifications. The intention is to ensure that Budget Agencies are undertaking the required conceptual processes when developing future interventions, so that investments, going forward, are well thought-out. This would reduce implementation delays and maximise value for money and social outcomes for Guyanese. Another key area, where significant work is ongoing, is procurement. According to the Finance Ministry, the terms of reference for training on procurement planning has been completed and training is anticipated to commence, in the second half of 2018. The Ministry said that the National Procurement and Tender Administration will partner with the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) to strengthen the regulatory framework for procurement. The drafting of recommendations, stemming from this exercise, is expected to be completed by end 2018, and will include a requirement that all suppliers must be registered on the suppliers register. Further, draft debarment procedures have been submitted to the PPC for review and operationalization. Also, the Ministry revealed that the central list of evaluators will continue to undergo upgrading. All of these initiatives will

serve to improve the efficiency of public procurement and reinforce the concept of value for money. $367M HDM Labs Inc. contract smacks of corruption -Former Minister calls for probe Former Minister, Dr. Frank Anthony said there are many discrepancies in the narrative provided by Minster of Public Health, Volda Lawrence over the $367M contract awarded to HDM Labs Inc. According to Dr. Anthony, the revelations surrounding the contract make a mockery of the government’s claim that it is fighting corruption, while, on the contrary, it seems that they are actively involved. ”If they are not involved in corruption, then they should have no problem with the various statutory agencies investigating this matter urgently and thoroughly,” Dr. Anthony told Kaieteur News. ”I therefore call on the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) to launch an immediate investigation into the multiple breaches of the Procurement Act and those culpable must be brought to justice.” He also called on the Auditor General’s Office to carry out a value for money audit to determine whether the medicines acquired by the Ministry of Public Health through this arrangement gave the Guyanese people the best value for their tax dollars.Dr. Anthony stated that the Government Analyst Food and Drug Department (GA-FDD) must immediately investigate the quality of medication to determine if it met the minimum safety standards.Providing a sequence of events based on (Continued on page 33)

Sunday August 19, 2018

From page 32 information provided by the Minister and press reports, Dr. Anthony explained that in the first restrictive tender, of the six companies that were requested to bid, only three submitted bids. These included the International Pharmaceutical Agency (IPA), Caribbean Medical Supplies (CMS) and ANSA Mcal Trading Limited (AMTL). Although HDM Labs Inc. was requested to submit a bid, this was not done in the first round of restrictive tenders. He stated that it is instructive that of the three companies that submitted bids, IPA, Caribbean Medical Suppliers, ANSA Mcal Trading Limited (AMTL) were all disqualified. Dr. Anthony, the Opposition’s Shadow Minister of Health, noted press reports that IPA’s bid was $187M; Caribbean Medical Suppliers, $95.5M; while ANSA Mcal Trading Limited (AMTL) was for $190.6M. Having disqualified the three responsive bidders in the first round, Dr. Anthony noted that the Ministry of Public Health requested permission from the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) on June 30, 2017, for a second round of restrictive tendering. TUESDAY Finance Minister Jordan says… Guyana still lacks capacity to audit Exxon’s pre-contract cost The pre-contract cost that Guyana has agreed to repay ExxonMobil continues to generate concerns among industry officials. However, being able to audit these costs will help mitigate Guyana overpaying on bills provided by ExxonMobil. So far, US$460M in pre-contract costs has been built into the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) signed in late 2016 between the current Government and ExxonMobil. Nearly two years after the PSA was signed, and with first oil expected in 2020, Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan has admitted that Guyana currently still lacks the capacity to get the audit done. ”It is really a tough issue for us,” Jordan stated. He added, “We are still putting systems in place to do all the monitoring of expenses by ExxonMobil. I must admit that we hardly have any skills at the moment, but it is not as if we don’t audit this thing in 2015 then we’ve lost all chances.” Chartered Accountant, Christopher Ram believes that Guyana should not have included the US$460M pre-con-

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The Equanimity- the 58th largest Yacht in the world which is worth about US$250 million. (Photo belongs to asiancorrespondent.com)

tract cost in the PSA without having it audited. He reminded that the US$460M only accounts for 1999 to 2015. Ram is of the opinion that the cost is overstated by US$92M and that additional pre-contract cost should be expected for the period January 2016 to October 2016. The PSA states that the pre-contract cost “shall include US$460,237,918 in respect of all such costs incurred under the 1999 Petroleum Agreement prior to the year ended 2015, “and (2) such cost as incurred under the 1999 Petroleum Agreement between January 1, 2016 and effective date which shall be provided to the Minister on or before October 3, 2016 and such number agreed on or before April 30, 2017. International Lawyer, Melinda Janki indicates that Guyana is already in a US$900M hole as of October, 2016. Costs continue to be incurred from 2016 to now towards the development of the Liza Phase One Project. This will be added on top of the pre-contract cost, which is all cost recoverable. Procurement irregularities due to urgent need for new bridge – Govt. claims The Ministry of Public Infrastructure Monday responded to media reports that detail procurement breaches in the award of contract to a Dutch company that conducted a feasibility study for

a new Demerara River Bridge. At no time in the press release did the Ministry mention the report from the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) which investigated the circumstances surrounding the award of the contract. Instead, MPI said that it rejects and strongly condemns the misinformation campaign by the Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo and what amounts to unwarranted attacks on the integrity of dedicated public servants. The deal signed in December 2016 between the Demerara Harbour Bridge Company (DHBC) and LievenseCSO Engineering Contracting BV is now at the centre of corruption claims. The PPC noted that the reference tender was for $148M. The PPC in its investigation found that the Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson’s request to Cabinet for approval of the contract was not forwarded through the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB). Based on the PPC report, the submission by Patterson, directly to Cabinet, was in breach of the Procurement Act. The PPC found that the procurement procedure used to select the company did not meet the requirement of any of the methods described in the Procurement Act. Additionally, the PPC probe highlighted that the General Manager of the DHBC, Rawlston Adams signed the agreement without

the approval of the DHBC Board. The Infrastructure Ministry’s release did not address this finding. The Ministry stated that prior to receiving the proposal from LievenseCSO, a lengthy procurement process ‘was faithfully followed which did not yield suitable results’. Driver’s licence exam scam… Police Sergeant faces multiple felony charges, granted $1.2M bail A third member of the Guyana Police Force was Monday placed before the court to answer to charges in relation to the massive driver’s licence examination scam that was unearthed last April at the Felix Austin Police College. Fifty-year-old Alfred Park, of 1129 Diamond, East Bank Demerara, appeared before Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts were he was slapped with 12 felony counts.It is alleged that on April 12, at Georgetown, with intent to defraud the public, he conspired with persons to commit a felony, to which he uttered 12 questionnaires, knowing them to get forged, in that it was not written by 12 persons, whose names they were in. He was not required to plead to the charges. The man’s lawyer, Patrice Henry, in an application to secure bail for his client, told the court that Park has been part of the Guyana Police Force for the past 30 years and has an unblemished

record. Court Prosecutor Visram Ramjattan made no objections to bail being granted to Park, but asked that it be in a substantial amount, citing the serious nature of the offences. Facts presented by the prosecutor stated that on the day in question, Park was responsible for invigilating the examination. According to information, on April 12, last, a total of 174 candidates were slated to write the theoretical exam at the Felix Austin Police College, Georgetown. On the day of the examination, a total of 106 candidates turned up at the training school to write the examination. The court heard that on conclusion of the examination, it was discovered that a total of 207 examination papers were submitted to the invigilators. It was reported that after the examination, pastors who allegedly invigilated the examination reported to officers of the wrongdoing, hence an investigation was launched. The Magistrate after listening to the prosecutor’s facts granted Park bail in the sum of $1.2M. WEDNESDAY It is deceitful for ExxonMobil to compare 1999 contract with 2016 …Guyana did not get a good deal – Research Centre Director ExxonMobil has been un-

ceasing in its efforts to delude the international community and even the citizenry into thinking that Guyana got a good deal. In fact, the company took to its Facebook page recently and made a comparison between the 1999 agreement and the one that was revised in 2016 by the David Granger-led administration. In its comparison, Exxon points out that Guyana did not get a signing bonus in 1999, but it did in 2017. In 1999, the annual rental fee was US$240,000 but it was increased to US$1M per year in the 2016 contract. It noted that the annual training fee was US$45,000 but it was increased to US$300,000 per year. It also tried to paint the contract as a “good deal” by stating that Guyana will get annual social environmental support to the tune of US$300,000 and two percent royalty. In a recent interview on AlJazeera, (http:// stream.aljazeera.com/story/ 201807302226-0025687), Oil and Gas Academic, Chris Ram and Lisa Sachs, Director, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, agreed that not only is the comparison by ExxonMobil without merit but, that the 2016 oil and gas deal leaves Guyana catching crumby profits for the exploitation of its oil. Sachs in particular was quick to note that the circumstances have changed entirely from 1999 to 2016. As such, the two should not be (Continued on page 34)

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From page 33 compared. In 1999, she said, there was a period of exploration and it was unknown what the quality of the resource was. In 2016, the citizenry now knows what it has, Sachs stated. ”And so it is disingenuous of Exxon, frankly, to be making that comparison. What we should be looking at is whether the deal in 2016 is appropriate for the Government, and it is widely agreed and widely acknowledged that it is not. Guyana did not get a good deal. I would say, although somewhat controversial, I wouldn’t be afraid of having an honest conversation about whether this is a good deal and talking about how to rebalance the deal.” Sachs added, “Investors and frankly the media always make governments scared of approaching that, but there are dozens, hundreds of renegotiations in the resource sector around the world, in developed countries, in the UK, in Canada, etc…” Ram was in total agreement with Sachs. He also sought to clarify statements by ExxonMobil that it could have continued with the 1999 agreement, but it was government that requested to do an early review. Ram said that the public should be aware that ExxonMobil and its partners had no choice but to return to the table since the contract had expired. Jagdeo has convicted himself and former Cabinet ministers – must be charged with Pradoville Two transactions – Minister Sharma Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Jaipaul Sharma is “thanking” former President Bharrat Jagdeo for further opening up the way for him to be charged with crimes that were allegedly committed while he was in office. Jagdeo completed his constitutional two terms in office back in November 2011, with the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) recently blocking him from running again. One of the arguments used by Jagdeo’s party, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), against criminal prosecution is that ex-public officials, including the likes of Winston Brassington, former head of the Privatisation Unit, were covered under the protection of the Cabinet of Ministers. It was contended by the PPP several times that a public official acting on the instructions of Cabinet is merely a “creature” of that Cabinet. However, legal minds had different views on that matter. Minister Sharma said that he has taken note of recent statements of Jagdeo, now the Opposition Leader, on the $148M contract to Dutch firm, LievenseCSO, for a feasibility study

Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News

on a new crossing for the Demerara River. A recent report of the Public Procurement Commission was critical of the process used by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure to award the contract to the firm. According to Jagdeo, the award is a documented case of corruption of unbelievable proportions, directly involving a Minister of the Government who bypassed the laws and the designated authority according to our laws, to a Cabinet, to approve an illegality. Jagdeo was speaking to reporters on Thursday. The Opposition plans to test a call made by the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU) for evidence of Government corruption. They want to send the report there. However, according to Minister Sharma, the statements of Jagdeo speak volumes, ”Mr. Jagdeo has sunk himself. He is saying that Cabinet protection does not cover a minister whose actions have been approved or an official who has received approval from Cabinet. Then this opens the way for Mr. Brassington to be investigated and charged also. So too are other former ministers who believe that they can escape investigations for wrongdoing.” An accountant by profession, the minister pointed out that the Marriott Hotel transactions, including award of contracts, never made it to National Procurement and Tender Administration Board. Alleged assault on local miner in interior…Ukrainians remanded, Guyanese bailed Following a well publicized video showing a Guyanese mining ranger being allegedly assaulted by two Ukrainians working with the West Bank Demerara Gold Inc. Security Services, the accused assailants were handcuffed and brought before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan to face criminal charges. The Ukrainians, Vitaly Parashuck, 38, and Maksym Furtak, 33, of Bel Air, Georgetown, along with Guyanese National Charles Clark, 33, of BlueBerry Hill, Wismar, Linden, pleaded not guilty to all the charges leveled against them. Parashuck and Furtak denied separate charges which alleged that on August 3, 2018, while being employed with the West Bank Demerara Gold Incorporated Security Services, as a Camp Coordinator and Security Officer respectively, they failed to wear uniforms while on duty. Parashuck was charged for making use of threatening language to Clark, whereby a breach of the peace may have occasioned. It was further alleged that on August 3, 2018, he assaulted Clark so as to cause him actual bodily harm. And Furtak was charged separately for making use of threatening language to Rudolph Deen, whereby a breach of the peace may have been occasioned. The foreigners, who spoke to the court through an interpreter, were remanded to prison. Meanwhile, Clark was released

ON BAIL: Charles Clark

REMANDED: Vitaly Parashuck

REMANDED: Maksym Furtak

on $20,000 bail after denying a charge which alleged that on August 3, 2018, while being employed as a Security Officer with the Hopkinson Mining Company Security Services, he failed to wear his uniform while on duty. The parties involved were arrested after a video that purportedly showed Russian-speaking security personnel assaulting a Guyanese mining ranger. The video sparked an investigation by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), and Guyana Police Force (GPF). The video allegedly shows a Guyanese being confronted by two foreigners.

Headquarters, Eve Leary, Tuesday, after being brought to Georgetown on Monday. They are in custody at the Tactical Services Unit. Investigators are likely to arrange a confrontation today between the ranks, the slain Brazilian’s mother and at least one other eyewitness. A post mortem is also likely today. The investigators reportedly have evidence that the constable signed for and uplifted the rifle with which the Brazilian was shot. Sources who have seen photographs of the body have stated that he was shot at the back of the head. He did not appear to have been shot at close range. Eyewitnesses said that Marques, 29, was unarmed and fleeing when the constable shot him. He is said to have been undocumented. No firearm was recovered from the slain man. In video footage received by Kaieteur News, the slain man’s mother, Maria de Nazaré Costa Marques, is seen showing the police how the rank came into the camp; the path which her son ran; and even where he was shot and killed. The police could be seen in the video gesturing to the woman to be calm. The mother is also heard saying in English, “me tell police, no please, no please, no don’t shoot this man, this man good man, don’t shoot, don’t shoot… DON’T SHOOT.” The incident occurred last Saturday when the ranks were carrying out an unauthorised raid in the area.

Constable admits to killing Brazilian miner– tells investigators that he was shot at, although no gun recovered The police constable who was arrested with his senior colleague in relation to the shooting death of Estevao Costa Marques has reportedly admitted that it was he who shot the Brazilian. But he is maintaining that he had responded after Marques opened fire. He claims that this occurred after he came upon individuals in the Puruni camp who were smoking marijuana. Kaieteur News understands that both ranks are also claiming that they were unaware that their patrol area did not extend to Puruni, where the tragedy occurred. The constable and corporal were subjected to a video interview at CID

There have been numerous complaints about rogue cops raiding camps and relieving miners of gold and money. THURSDAY Lack of capacity to audit ExxonMobil’s pre-contract cost… This is an astounding admission of incompetence by Govt– Chartered Accountant Chris Ram Chartered Accountant, Christopher Ram has questioned the statements made by Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan regarding the lack of capacity to audit the pre-contact cost submitted by ExxonMobil. ”That is the most astounding admission of incompetence to have emanated from this government. If you can’t audit US$460M how are you going to be able to audit US$4B? Who did Mr. Jordan consult to know that the country does not have the capacity?” Ram questioned. Nearly two years after the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) was signed between the current Government and ExxonMobil, Jordan told reporters last week that Guyana currently still lacks the capacity to audit the US$460M. ”It is really a tough issue for us,” Jordan stated. He added, “We are still putting systems in place to do all the monitoring of expenses by ExxonMobil. I (Continued on page 35)

Sunday August 19, 2018

From page 34 must admit that we hardly have any skills at the moment, but it is not as if we don’t audit this thing in 2015 then we’ve lost all chances.” Ram stated that ExxonMobil must be laughing at the ridiculousness of some of the statements emanating from Guyana’s Government. He described it as ‘simply mind boggling’. ”The accounting professionals should take offence at such a statement and even our Audit Office,” Ram noted. He suggested that Minister Jordan should consult with the Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Jaipaul Sharma, who has successfully piloted several investigative and complex audits. ”Sharma oversaw dozens of audits, often of a far more complex nature. We do have the capacity. In the case of the audits that Mr. Sharma supervised, you didn’t always get the cooperation of some of the auditees. The document trail might have been missing or gone cold. In the case of ExxonMobil, they have a contractual duty to maintain records which need to be verified,” Ram noted. Ram had previously expressed the view that Guyana should not have included the US$460M pre-contract cost in the PSA without having it audited. He had also pointed out that the US$460M only accounts for 1999 to 2015. Ram is of the opinion that the cost is overstated by US$92M and that additional pre-contract cost should be expected for the period January 2016 to October 2016. International Lawyer Melinda Janki indicates that Guyana is already in a US$900M hole as of October 2016. Oil production figures… ExxonMobil calls the shots in absence of independent verification – Int’l Lawyer For the last three years, American oil giant, ExxonMobil has been the only source regarding Guyana’s oil production figures come 2020 and beyond. To date, Exxon has said that Guyana is set to produce over 700,000 barrels of oil per day. But not a single minister of Government has called for these figures to be independently verified. This is in spite of the fact that several international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have said that they have the right, and power, to do so. In fact, international lawyer, Melinda Janki during a

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panel discussion at Moray House criticized the government for failing to exercise its right to verify the figures being released by ExxonMobil. Janki said that in the absence of independent verification, ExxonMobil is essentially calling the shots. Janki said, “Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan told a mining conference in Canada that Guyana has 3.7 billion barrels of oil. He got that figure from Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited…Has this figure been independently verified? No! Without independent verification, the Minister does not know what he is talking about.” The lawyer added, “He may want to believe what he is told, but he does not know. For now, the amount of oil in our reserves is whatever ExxonMobil says it is.” Pradoville 2 investigations… Housing Authority only collected US$200,000 for land worth US$6M A forensic audit report into the Pradoville Two land at Sparendaam that was allocated to former President Bharrat Jagdeo and several top officials, including ministers of his last administration, is pointing to several irregularities. Using state funds from a mixture of entities controlled by Government, infrastructure was built, including roads and drains and utilities, with some of them laid underground over a 15-acre plot. At the end the day, the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) which should have overlooked the project had little say in the transactions. Rather, the agency acted a mere collector of fees. CH&PA inexplicably collected only US$200,000 ($40M) for the prime land. Former Auditor General Dr. Anand Goolsarran, using conservative 2009 estimates tagged to the Marriott Hotel property, said the lands are valued about $1.24B (US$6M) or about $82.8M (US$400,000) per acre. Auditors found the 15acre plot was converted to 28 house lots, covering 12 acres. The remaining lands were used up for roads. There was no evidence that the rest of Guyana had opportunities to express an interest in the lands. It is how the lands were allocated that saw Jagdeo, and several officials, including ministers, questioned extensively about how they ended up with plots of lands which cost between $1.5M to about $2M. Jagdeo paid a little

Valuation officials in the Pradoville Two area earlier this year. more for his two-acre plot. The police’s Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) has completed its complex investigations which covered several months and involved the hiring of a valuator. Investigators had even visited Jagdeo’s Opposition Leader offices on Church Street, in search of a number of ex-officials to question them. Already in court are former Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh and Winston Brassington, former head of the Privatisation Unit, who both live and work in the US now. They have been slapped with charges of Misconduct in Public Office for other questionable land transactions. Both men are challenging the charges in the High Court. FRIDAY Based on agreement with Exxon…Guyana has less than two months left to audit US$460M pre-contract costs Since the announcement that Guyana would have to pay ExxonMobil a whopping US$460M in pre-contract costs up to December 31, 2015, the Government has made no move to ascertain whether this figure is inflated or not. This is in spite of the fact that the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) Government has with Exxon specifically states that it has a twoyear deadline to do cost audits. In fact, the Government’s deadline is October 7, 2018 – less than two months away. In spite of the relatively short deadline, there have

been no advertisements in the local newspapers or online media sites for External Auditors. The Office of the Auditor General, which is the country’s official and constitutional auditor, has not been approached to render its services. Local Chartered Accountants with professional training in audits have not been asked to lend a helping hand. Indeed, the Government has not done even the most cursory attempt to comb through its systems to determine whether there is a single person capable of auditing the figures. Taking these factors into consideration, local critics believe that the government has displayed a nonchalant attitude towards auditing the controversial figure. In fact, some critics have asked whether the government is interested at all in ensuring that Guyana is not paying more than it should. Still no compromise reached on increased wages for teachers – GTU to continue with national strike action – Govt. prepared to activate contingency plan Despite continued talks with Government Thursday, public school teachers will from August 27 engage planned strike action. This is in light of the fact that government has not expressed its willingness to revise its offer

for a multi-year salary package for teachers. According to President of the Guyana Teachers’ Union [GTU], Mr. Mark Lyte, government’s action has clearly suggested that it is uncaring and is not willing to meet the needs of teachers. Lyte revealed that while the government has agreed to some non-salary aspects of its proposal, it has remained unyielding to the financial aspects. “When it comes to salary increases, de-bunching, clothing allowances they are not prepared to budge…they are not prepared to increase anything based on what they offered us before,” said Lyte Last week Thursday following an initial meeting to hear government’s response to its proposal, government said that it was only committed to paying teachers a $7 million one-off pay out and once agreed upon a specialist will be contracted to determine a suitable percentage increase. The union had proposed, among other things, a 40 percent across the board increase for teachers for 2016; 45 percent increase for last year and 50 percent for this year and the following two years (20192020) for all categories of teachers. The meeting Thursday which was again spearhead by Minister of Education, Ms. Nicolette Henry, is the second one within recent days

in hopes of arriving at an amicable resolution. Even Minister of State Joseph Harmon, at Thursday post-Cabinet press briefing, had assured that government has every intention of offering teachers a better package. But following the meeting Thursday, Lyte and the GTU membership were not convinced that this was the case. GTT shares…NICIL heads to court again for US$5M owed by Hong Kong company The National Industrial and Commercial Investment Inc (NICIL) is again looking to head to the courts in the United Kingdom (UK) in an effort to recover the US$5M owed to Guyana. This was confirmed Thursday by Minister of State, Joseph Harmon. Harmon said that NICIL rejected an offer from Hong Kong Golden Telecom Limited (HKGT) in relation to the outstanding US$5M for the purchase of government shares in the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT). The offer is apparently way below what is owed to Guyana. Harmon said that as a result, NICIL has decided to head to the court. He said, “I know that they have actually been pursuing legal assistance to be able to go to that level. The contract (Continued on page 36)

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From page 35 stipulates the jurisdiction where the matters are to be dealt with—UK. I know NICIL has actually gone through a certain process of identifying lawyers, and it is a question of the cost involved, and that is what they have to come back to Cabinet with.” Government’s 20 percent shares in GTT were sold to the Chinese firm in 2012. The deal was entered into by the PPP/C administration but only US$25 million of the agreed US$30 million was known to have been paid. In March 2016, Harmon and a delegation travelled to China to engage in discussions regarding the outstanding money. Harmon had reportedly obtained documents which showed that the money was paid over prior to the APNU+AFC Coalition taking office and efforts were underway to track the money. However, NICIL subsequently said that it had not received the outstanding balance. The government later clarified that no such documents were received. SATURDAY Govt. will not be intoxicated by oil – Granger tells PNCR Congress - Says sector is best managed under an inclusionary system Leader of the People’s

National Congress Reform (PNCR), David Granger on Friday assured the party’s congress that the coalition government is committed to managing oil revenues in a responsible manner. Granger was at the time speaking at the opening of the party’s three-day 20th Biennial Delegates Congress at Congress Place, Sophia, which was attended by supporters from across the country, political partners that make up the coalition Government, and the diplomatic corps. “Guyanese can be assured that the coalition Government will not be intoxicated by oil. It will manage this new resource in a responsible manner for the benefit of present and future generations,” Granger stated. The party’s congress is the last such gathering before two significant national events in 2020 – general elections and the commencement of the production of commercial quantities of oil by ExxonMobil. While not providing indepth details about preparations for first oil during his speech that lasted close to one hour, Granger outlined that the coalition Government is conscious of the country’s inexperience and inadequate human resources in the new field. However, he stated that Government has been prudently laying the groundwork for the petroleum sector to be

PNCR Leader David Granger and his wife Mrs. Sandra Granger arrive at the opening of the Congress flanked by senior party members

managed in accordance with international best practices. QC again reigns supreme as 2018 CSEC results released With Queen’s College [QC] claiming seven out of the 10 top spots, the results of the 2018 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate [CSEC] examination was announced on Friday by Minister of Education, Ms. Nicolette Henry. Claiming the top spot this year is QC’s Christian Pile with

19 grade ones. With 18 Ones and 2 Twos, Shakira Bholo of the Anna Regina Secondary School was named the second best performer. Following with 18 Grade Ones is Salma Majeed of ISA Islamic, while Areeb Ali of QC claimed the fourth best performing position with 17 Ones, 3 Twos and 1 Three. Anna Regina’s Secondary Camecia De LaCruz is fifth this year with 17 Ones, 2 Twos and 1 Three. The sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th places all went to QC students

A section of the delegates at the opening of the PNCR’s Congress

Haema Dasrath [17 Ones, 1 Two and 1 Three]; Aarti Hooblall [17 Ones and 3 Twos]; Reseda Hack [15 Ones, 3 Twos and 1 Three]; Leshanna Bindah [15 Ones, 2 Twos and 2 Three] and Yashoda Samaroo [15 Ones and 2 Twos]. Puruni River fatal shooting…Constable charged with murder of Brazilian miner A Police Constable who fatally shot a Brazilian miner last Saturday during an unauthorized raid at a mining camp in Puruni, on Friday appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan to face a murder charge. Twenty-three-year-old Robert Daniels, of Victoria Road, Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, arrived shortly after 15:00 hrs yesterday at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court shackled and handcuffed, and was sent through the prisoner’s chute and into the Chief Magistrate’s courtroom. While seated in the dock, a visibly upset Daniels turned to his colleagues who escorted him into the courtroom and stated “All three y’all is a set of f***ing crosses.” Soon after the Chief Magistrate exited her chambers and read the murder charge to him. Daniels was not required to plead to the charge which stated that on August 11, last, at Puruni River Bank, in the Essequibo Magisterial Dis-

trict, he murdered 37-year-old miner Estevao Costa Marques, a Brazilian national. Attorney-at-Law Patrice Henry who represented Daniels raised several concerns in relation to the amount of gunshots that were heard by his client and eyewitnesses at the crime scene. He added that persons at the crime scene heard what appeared to be two gunshots, but the autopsy report revealed that the miner sustained one gunshot wound to the back of the head. The lawyer argued that due to the findings of the autopsy report, eyewitnesses have altered their statements to suggest that only one gunshot was heard. The lawyer went on to tell the court that due to the alteration in the witnesses’ statements, the investigation into the matter has been compromised. He added that the case file should be sent back to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) for revision. Henry further went on to state that Daniels shot the miner in self-defence and should be charged with manslaughter instead. The Chief Magistrate instructed Daniels to make his next court appearance on August 30 for report at the Bartica Magistrate’s Court. Meanwhile the Police Corporal who accompanied Daniels to conduct the unauthorized raid at mining camp is still in custody. Further investigation is ongoing.

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Miner gets 8 years for drinking buddy’s chopping death A 28-year-old miner was last Tuesday sentenced to serve eight years imprisonment after he was found guilty of manslaughter. Gregory France, also known as Balbo, was sentenced by Judge BovellDrakes at the Suddie High Court. The victim, 36-year-old Sheldon Rodrigues, was killed on the 2nd of November 2015 at Arimu Falls, Cuyuni River, Essequibo. On the day in question the two men were drinking high wine, rum and vodka, along with another friend, who was later identified as 29-year old Levei Thomas of Maicobie Village, Potaro River. The drinking later resulted in an argument and fight, when Rodrigues who France said was armed with a cutlass, was chopped about his body by Thomas. The court heard that France participated in the killing of his drinking buddy, since he sat on the now dead man, and told Thomas to chop him. France was also accidentally chopped on his elbow by Thomas during the ordeal. In sworn testimony, France said that it was Rodrigues who had chopped him, and that the police had erred when writing his statement. The post mortem revealed that Rodrigues died of

multiple incised wounds. Thomas was found guilty of manslaughter in March, last, and sentenced to 25 years. Evidence was laid against France by a witness who was identified as Delroy Brown. According to Brown, on the 2nd November 2015, at about 02:20 hrs, he heard a knocking on his door. Brown said that when he opened the door and looked outside, the persons who were there had moved away. He testified that when he ventured out of the house, he saw Sheldon Rodrigues’ body with multiple lacerations which appeared to be chop wounds.. The man added, “I walked like about two miles and then I saw Balbo, lying in grass with blood all over and with a cutlass in his hand.” When given the opportunity to cross question the witness, France did not do so. Judge Bovell-Drakes said that since the accused did not question the witness’ account of what he had seen, then the evidence has to be factual. The judge said that in those circumstances, his views were that France was armed with a cutlass and inflicted wounds on Rodrigues. With that the accused was ordered by Justice Bovell-Drakes to “remain in the control of the prison service for eight years”.

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A wife strangled in Germany... From page 26) never returned his belongings. Investigators apparently are yet to unearth any tangible evidence to implicate anyone in the double-homicide. He insists that he could not have committed the heinous double-murder without someone spotting him, since there is only one way in and out of the area where the victims lived. But the ex-soldier complains that although “my integrity has been cleared,” there are still some individuals who continue to tarnish his name. He was reportedly also threatened. ”I’m constantly vilified. Wherever I go, I’m accused of being a murderer,” he says. You know what? I’ve spoken to killers before. I’ve spoken to a guy on death row; an affable, smiling guy, who they say gutted a woman like a fish and tied a crankshaft and cement block to her body so it could sink in the Demerara River. He says he didn’t do it. There’s another gentleman — an upright individual in soci-

ety— who missed death row by the skin of his teeth. I believe, in my bones, that he strangled an 11-year-old girl and tried to make it look like suicide. He says he’s innocent. And at the time when I did that interview, I wasn’t sure if this man was innocent or not. But about a week later, I spoke to a pastor who told me about a disturbing encounter he’d had with an individual who was questioned by the police about this case. The pastor told me that the individual had issued violent threats to him. That interview left me with a sense of unease, an eerie feel-

ing that the circumstances surrounding a strangled woman in Germany, and two others young women knifed to death in Guyana, may possess a common thread. If you have any information about this or any other unusual case, please contact Kaieteur News by letter or telephone at our Lot 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown offices. Our numbers are 592-225-8465, 592-2258473 and 592-225-8458. You need not disclose your identity. You can also contact Michael Jordan at his email address kamarangnight @gmail.com.

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Sarah Drew Opens Up About Getting Let Go From Grey’s Anatomy Sarah Drew remembers the day she was let go from Grey’s Anatomy well. The actress, who directed Grey’s Anatomy’s Emmy-nominated webseries, opened up about the day she was told she would not be asked back for Grey’s Anatomy season 15. Drew was shadowing her costar Kevin McKidd who was serving as director for the episode they were shooting. “It was in the afternoon and I

went back to my trailer and I did my crying and called my people. A whole bunch of people came into my trailer to give me hugs and cry with me and tell me they were so sad I was leaving. I was supposed to be shadowing Kevin this whole episode with the hope that I would get to direct an episode of Grey’s but [after being let go] it seemed like wasn’t a possibility anymore,” she

said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.“I wondered if I should keep shadowing Kevin. My husband was like, ‘Of course you go.’ I had this incredible opportunity to grow as a director and as an artist with a director that I respect so much. I had nothing to be ashamed of and didn’t need to hide. So that’s what I did: I showed up the next morning at 6 a.m. and shadowed Kevin until I got

cast as Cagney and had to leave to go shoot CBS’ Cagney and Lacey,” she continued. Cagney and Lacey was not picked up to series. Drew said being let go was “painful,” but she is “a believer in things happening for a reason and finding beauty in the midst of grief.” “I don’t regret or begrudge anybody this season of my life. I’m embracing it. I

had a profound and incredible season of my life on Grey’s Anatomy. I got to tell stories I believed in. I got to work with Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers and learn from the best. I got to work with an incredible community of people that I will have lifelong friendships with,” she said. “I got to build a platform and have my children in an environment where I was cared for because of who Shonda is and how she

takes care of her mamas and her women. It’s hard for me to come up with anything I could be angry about.” ABC announced Drew and Jessica Capshaw would be departing the show in March 2018. “The characters of Arizona and April are permanently woven into the fabric of Grey’s Anatomythanks to the extraordinary work of Jessica Capshaw and Sarah Drew,” Krista Vernoff, coshowrunner and executive producer on Grey’s Anatomy, said in a statement. “As writers, our job is to follow the stories where they want to go and sometimes that means saying goodbye to characters we love. It has been a joy and a privilege to work with these phenomenally talented actresses.” Drew told THR that she was told the show has too many characters and “they needed to downsize because they couldn’t service all of the characters effectively.” “They didn’t want any of us to be left in the background and not getting much of a story,” she said. “Krista Vernoff said that she felt like April had been through so much and had come out the other side and that she didn’t know what she could put her through again. It was really hard to hear that. But Krista had a lot of very complimentary things to say about the work that I had done — especially this past season — and that April was going to have her happy ending,” Drew added. The character of Dr. April Kepner quit the hospital, got married and started working with the homeless following a near-death accident. Drew, whose credits also include Everwood and Mad Men, said being let go was “painful” and it had “shaken” her confidence, but now after her webseries was nominated for an Emmy she’s taking meetings about directing more projects. (www.eonline.com)

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Plant-based milk vs. cow’s milk: What’s the difference? Though non-dairy milks have been around for a while, they’ve recently experienced soaring sales and enormous popularity — due, in part, to environmental concerns, dairy issues (from allergies to lactose intolerance), and just general interest in dairy alternatives. From the variety of base ingredients to the assortment of flavors, there have never been more knock-offs to choose from. But if the number of choices has left you udderly confused (see what I did there?), here’s a quick guide to help you navigate the dairy and non-dairy aisle. DAIRY MILK Most non-dairy milks are compared to cow’s milk, which has a strong nutritional package. Cow’s milk contains 8 g of protein — more than a hard boiled egg — along with 300 mg of bone-building calcium and 400 mg of potassium, a nutrient that’s lacking in most Americans’ diets. It’s hard to argue with the spectrum of nutrients in milk, unless of course, you have lactose intolerance (which causes troubling symptoms, such as gas and bloating) or a milk protein allergy. Speaking of lactose, the 12 g of sugar listed on a milk label are all from this natural sugar. Milk itself comes in many varieties, from fat-free (skim) to whole, organic and lactose free. I generally recommend

1% milk since as the percentage goes up, so does that saturated fat. That said, if you’re otherwise healthy and consuming mostly good fats from foods like avocados, nuts, olives, and oily fish, I’m less concerned about 2% milk.As far as organic goes, it’s a term that refers to the farm’s sustainability and management practices. Though I choose organic milk for my home, organic and conventional milk have the same nutrition and safety profile, so deciding between the two comes down to a personal choice. Nutritional notes (per cup; based on 1% milk): 110 calories; 2.5g fat (1.5g sat fat); 8g protein; 12g carbohydrate; 12g sugar; 0g fiber Tasting notes: Ranges from a little thin and watery (fat free) to luscious and rich (whole). SOY MILK In the non-dairy milk wars, soy milk was just declared the winner, according to a new scientific review of four plant-based milks. Unlike its competitors (almond milk, coconut milk, and rice milk), soy packs the same amount of protein as cow’s milk, giving it the edge. Newer plant protein milks (made with pea protein) weren’t included in the study. For those allergic to soy or who have other soyrelated concerns, these milks

are a good, protein-rich option. Though there was once a worry that soy foods raise the risk of certain cancers, the most recent evidence doesn’t support the association. Nutritional notes (per cup; based on Silk original): 110 calories; 4.5g fat (0.5g sat fat); 8g protein; 9g carbohydrate; 6g sugar; 2g fiber Tasting notes: The 6 g of added sugar masks the slightly beany flavor. Overall, the creaminess is in line with low-fat milk. PEA PROTEIN MILK With less impact on the land than almond milk and more protein than soy or cow’s milk, milks made from pea protein have a lot to love. For those seeking the hungerbusting power of protein, this drink has 10 grams per cup. Nutritional notes (per cup; based on unsweetened Bolthouse Farms): 90 calories; 5g fat (0.5g sat fat); 10g protein; 1g carbohydrate; 0g

sugar; 0g fiber Tasting notes: Creamy, smooth, and clean tasting. RICE MILK Unlike soy, milk, and nuts, which are among the top eight food allergens, rice is very well tolerated, making rice milk a great option for those whose choices are limited. My family turned to rice milk when my son’s food allergies necessitated it, and I’m thankful products like this exist. That said, though it’s made with brown rice, it’s actually quite weak on nutrition, with nearly twice as many carbs as milk yet hardly any protein. I’m also concerned about arsenic in rice, particularly for infants and pregnant women. Though I still enjoy rice and rice products, the FDA advises varying your grains to limit arsenic exposure. That means if you’re drinking rice milk exclusively, look for

crackers, cereals, and side dishes that have other grains, such as quinoa, oats, or sorghum. Nutritional notes (per cup; based on original enriched Rice Dream): 120 calories; 2.5g fat (0g sat fat); 1g protein; 23g carbohydrate; 10g sugar; 0g fiber Tasting notes: Watery and somewhat sweet. OAT MILK Like rice milk, oat milk is generally well tolerated, making it suitable for people with food allergies and intolerances. Unlike other non-dairy contenders, this beverage boasts soluble fiber — the kind that helps lower cholesterol. Still, you get more of these beta glucans in a cup of oats than you do in oat milk.Nutritional notes (per

cup; based on Original Oatly): 120 calories; 5g fat (0.5g sat fat); 2g protein; 6g carbohydrate; 5g sugar; 2g fiber

Tasting notes: Similar to the milk left over after a bowl of Cheerios—in a good way! ALMOND MILK Almond milk is the darling of the non-dairy milk world, probably because almonds themselves are deserving of nutritional praise. With protein, fiber, calcium, vitamin E, and healthy monounsaturated fats (MUFAs), almonds have a lot going for them. But the mill-

ing and processing means that a lot of that goodness doesn’t end up in the drinkable version. Almond milk does not have the healthy fats, protein, and fiber that you’d expect from this nutbased beverage. Plus, it isn’t appropriate for those with nut allergies. Nutritional notes (per cup; based on original Blue Diamond): 30 calories; 0g fat (0g sat fat); 1g protein; 1g carbohydrate; 0g sugar; 1g fiber Tasting notes: Lightly sweet with a very slight nutty flavor. COCONUT MILK You may hear mixed messages about coconut milk because of its high saturated fat content. Cardiologists generally recommend avoiding saturated fat in favor of monounsaturated fats from foods like almonds and olive oil. However, the type of saturated fat in coconut milk is probably more neutral than harmful so if you’re avoiding other prime sources of saturated fat (such as whole milk, cream, cheeses, and fatty cuts of red meat), and are eating lots of produce, adding coconut milk to coffee and other foods is probably OK. Nutritional notes (per cup; based on Unsweetened So Delicious): 45 calories; 4.5g fat (4g sat fat); 0g protein; 1g carbohydrate; <1g sugar; 0g fiber

FDA recalls are a reminder that China controls much of world’s drug supply The Food and Drug Administration has broadened a recall of the common blood pressure drug valsartan, saying some batches have been contaminated with a potentially cancer-causing chemical. Several generic valsartan products sold in the U.S. have been found to be contaminated with NDMA, which has the potential to cause cancer. The process used to make some generic versions of valsartan has the potential to generate the compound, said Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “These are present at very minute levels. But because they are toxic to the DNA, you have to control them,” Woodcock told NBC News. The FDA has told patients to keep taking their drugs until they can be sure that they’re either using an unaffected brand or that they can be switched to a safer one. The threat is not immediate, Woodcock said. “It is the lifetime exposure to this that is dangerous. It’s not like it would give you cancer tomorrow,” she said. But the case does illustrate the challenges that FDA must overcome in regulating a drug market that’s increasingly outsourced to other countries, especially China.

While Woodcock says the FDA is on top of things, other experts say these cases illustrate just how vulnerable the U.S. is when it depends on other countries to make essential drugs.“China doesn’t have anything like the consumer protection laws and product liability laws like the United States does,” said Rosemary Gibson, a health care expert at the Hastings Center who wrote a book titled “China Rx: Exposing the Risks of America’s Dependence on China for Medicine.” A Chinese manufacturer was the source of contaminated heparin — a commonly used blood thinner — that killed at least 81 people in 2007 and 2008. An FDA inspection showed that the Chinese factory where the contaminated product was made had serious deficiencies in what’s known as good manufacturing practice. Woodcock said the FDA has other ways of ensuring product safety. It regularly sends inspectors to scrutinize Chinese facilities, for instance. “We have the exact same standards for drugs marketed in the U.S. regardless of where they are made,” she said. But no inspection would have found the NDMA contaminant, which is a byproduct of processing foods such as bacon and is a water contaminant as well, Woodcock

noted. It had to be discovered using a specific chemical test designed to find this particular compound. “We are planning to test all the valsartan products in the United States for this impurity,” she said. Woodcock said the FDA has issued new guidance to all makers of drug ingredients to make sure that NDMA and other potential cancercausing chemicals that can be made as part of the manufacturing process stay out of any finished product. Still, Woodcock said, it’s a big job.“The field is stretched,” she said. FDA inspectors must keep an eye on U.S. makers of pharmaceuticals, including large and small outfits that make specialty compounded drugs. “But we do what we can. We get to the highest-risk places every year,” she added. Outside experts point out that the FDA cannot control what manufacturers in other countries do, and say no amount of FDA inspection can ensure a reliable supply of vital medical products. “It’s a major national security risk for us in two ways,” said Mike Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota and an expert on biosecurity. “We are very concerned about the quality of these drugs.” And the Trump administration has been engaged in months of ver-

bal and bureaucratic battles with China over tariffs. “Now we are caught up in an economic war in the sense of tariffs,” Osterholm added in an interview. “If we were ever in an international incident with China, they would literally have their hands around our necks in terms of critical drugs. They wouldn’t even have to fire a shot.”Gibson estimates in her book that 80 percent of the ingredients in U.S.-branded pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter drugs start out in either China or India. “Food has been used as a weapon of war. Our medicines can be used like that, too,” she said. China made a strategic decision to develop its pharmaceuticals industry and has succeeded, Gibson said, undercutting prices and grabbing market share from other countries. “Penicillin is a good example,” she said. “We don’t make penicillin ingredients in this country anymore. That happened because Chinese companies came in and dumped it on the global market at a very low price. Now they are the largest producer of penicillin industrial ingredients in the whole world.” The U.S. market is vulnerable to products that are contaminated but is even more vulnerable if some kind of accident, problem or disaster shuts down factories, Gibson said.

“Imagine if a major earthquake hit or civil war broke out in some of the major pharmaceutical-producing cities,” Gibson said. “It would be disastrous. India still produces some of the drugs for us but most of the essential compounds for them come from China, so they would shut down too.” Osterholm points to the damage done in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria last year. Medical supplier Baxter makes a large percentage of saline solution in Puerto Rico, and the 2017 hurricane shut down manufacturing for months, worsening an ongoing shortage of saline intravenous drip bags. “If we think the IV bag situation in Puerto Rico was serious, it pales in comparison with what could happen with any kind of hiccup with China,” he said. Gibson agreed. “I can think of nothing that would make us more vulnerable than shutting off all these drugs we depend on every day,” she said. “Hospitals would become centers of chaos and death . We are not talking about expensive designer drugs. You couldn’t do surgery. You wouldn’t have anesthesia. You couldn’t provide dialysis.” (https://www.nbcnews.com/ health/health-news/fda-recalls-arereminder-china-controls-muchworld-s-drug-n900716)

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Green paper on NRF states…

“Govt.-stacked” committee to control 97% while House decides on 3% of annual oil revenue… It’s ridiculous – Peter Ramsaroop

Economic Analyst, Peter Ramsaroop Economic Analyst, Dr. Peter Ramsaroop thinks that the government is seeking to design Guyana’s Natural Resource Fund (NRF) in such a way where it can be easily used as a slush fund with little or no accountability to the nation. He said that this is evident from what is outlined in the Green Paper recently presented in the National Assembly. According to Ramsaroop, based on the model presented in the Green P a p e r, the government plans to “take a three per cent from whatever is earned in a given year and put that in the Budget, the remainder will be invested overseas.”

Ramsaroop also has a problem with the fact that the National Assembly will have little say over how the money is to be invested. “It is clear that the monies that will be coming into the country from oil will not be governed by the 65 elected members of the National Assembly but rather, a few members of a cabal to be put in place by Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, no doubt at the behest of (President David) Granger.” Ramsaroop noted that many oil-producing countries have Sovereign Wealth Funds, but there are strict control measures, “they are not designed from the get-go as a slush fund for billions of US

dollars.” He said that while most economists would agree it would be unwise to just have an influx of US currency pumped into the economy, the danger lies in having the Minister decide on the seven persons that will make up the Sovereign Investment Committee. According to the document submitted by Minister Jordan, the Sovereign Investment Committee will be made up of a representative of the Ministry of Finance, two ex-officio members - one recommended by the Natural Resources Minister and another recommended by the Governor of the Bank of Guyana, while the remaining positions will be a representative from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Guyana; a Representative nominated by the Bankers’ Association; a representative to be nominated by the Opposition Leader, along with an Investment Analyst. That analyst will have to be hired to assist the Minister. Ramsaroop noted that the Fund is being set up using an act of Law. He continued, “This is not by accident, since this decision will immediately

allow the sitting government to circumvent the constitutional provision that dictates that all revenues be placed in the Consolidated Fund or what is known as the country’s Treasury.” Ramsaroop explained that by creating a fund under a Law, “This will invoke the caveat in the Constitution which speaks to the revenues being placed in the Consolidated

Fund, the part that speaks to except where provided for under a law.” According to Ramsaroop, while the Constitution does demand that all government earnings be placed in the Consolidated Fund, “There are provisions to allow monies to be retained outside, but it should be downright criminal for government to take this route to withhold access to what is now clearly the

most valuable and indemand resource.” He said too, this is but one piece of the puzzle. “The law is only for them to have some legal s t a n d i n g i n p reparing a special account for the oil monies, but the rules that are being put in place, at least in the way it is currently worded, represents a clea r a n d present danger to the economic future of all Guyanese.”

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Report points to... from page 8 matters, it appeared that CH&PA was kept in the dark with how the Pradoville Two scheme received electricity, a function it would perform for normal house lots. “No files are available for any of the allottees nor does the CHPA have any documentation other than receipts for sums paid to the CHPA.” In fact, the report said that a separate forensic audit report, prepared by Ram & McRae, found that Minister Ali personally handled the application and the Certificates of Title for the lots at Sparendaam/Goedverwagting by directing a senior CH&PA Conveyancing Officer to take sealed envelopes to the Registrar of Lands, Ms. Juliet Sattaur. “Our inquiries also revealed that sealed envelopes, presumably containing Certificates of Title were collected by the Senior Conveyancing Officer from the Registry of Lands and taken directly to the Minister.” To strengthen the case that Ali played a strategic role in handling the transactions, the report said that former army chief, Rear Admiral (Retired) Gary Best, who bought a piece of the land, disclosed that he collected the title to his lot direct from the Minister of Housing. “It is unclear why the Minister, who is responsible for directing CHPA policy, should be actively involved in a routine operational matter such as the preparation and distribution of certificates of title . We were unable to determine the process involved in the allocation of the house lots, with both NICIL and CH&PA claiming that they were not involved in the application process, the setting of the price per house.” The NICIL audit report said that from interviews held, it led the interviewers to believe that the identification of persons for house lots and the price per lot were determined by the then Cabinet, led by Jagdeo, or at the very least, a subcommittee of Cabinet. At the Ministry of the Presidency, when the new Government took office, there were no records there of the transactions of Pradoville Two. “There is a similar absence of records at the CHPA and the Land Registry despite the practice, and indeed the absolute necessity, for these two statutory bodies to maintain records of these transactions.”

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Kaieteur News

STANDARDS IN FOCUS

GNBS VERIFIES THOUSANDS OF MEASURING DEVICES SO FAR FOR 2018 The Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) coordinates and spearheads the National Legal Metrology Programme, which ensures that weighing and measuring devices used in trade are accurate and reliable. So far for this year, Inspectors of the GNBS and Weights and Measures Officers from the various administrative regions have managed to verify a significant majority of the devices used in trade. Usually, verification exercises are conducted twice yearly to ensure all devices including scales, masses, measures, fuel pumps, and bulk meters, initially and continuously used in commercial trade, are accurate and fit for use. Similarly, unverified or illegal devices are seized, removed and in some instances, destroyed to prevent defaulters from taking advantage of

consumers through their unscrupulous practices. These defaulters can be prosecuted for infringements of the Weights and Measures Act. Verification exercises conducted during the first half of 2018 (January to July) continued to show that a relatively large quantity of new devices are being imported or manufactured for use in trade. For that period, these new devices totaled 310 scales, 840 masses and 1200 electricity meters. Meanwhile, the GNBS continued to verify devices already in use for the corresponding period. These devices totaled 3437 scales and 7416 masses used by vendors, shopkeepers and other users throughout the various sectors including manufacturing, transportation and health. In addition, the Guyana Power and Light Company submitted 205 electricity meters,

which were already put into use but required re-verification before reinstallation. In order to ensure reliable measurements at the bulk level, 82 large capacity weighbridge scales and four large capacity storage tanks were verified for the first half of the year. As it relates to the petroleum industry, the GNBS continued to ensure confidence in the measurements offered at all levels, from importation at the terminals to dispensation into the vehicles of consumers. Particularly, verification exercises were conducted to ensure that fuel dispensed was neither under delivering nor over delivering. As a result, a total of 940 petrol pumps at gas stations countrywide were tested, 135 bulk meters at terminals were verified, and 89 tanker wagons were inspected and verified.

Currently, verification of devices is ongoing for the second half of 2018. For the period, July to September, Inspectors of the GNBS will be facilitating the verification process by making themselves available at various locations including markets, NDCs and Community Centres across the country. Efforts will also be made by Inspectors to visit the larger companies, health facilities, cargo agencies and airports to have all devices in use verified and sealed. Users of weighing and measuring devices are encouraged to take advantage of this verification period by submitting their de-

vices or arranging with the GNBS early. By doing this, they will avoid their devices being confiscated by Inspectors during the surveillance period later in the year. Meanwhile, early verification guarantees that users are not over delivering or under delivering or over charging or undercharging for products and services they are offering to their respective customers. Finally, consumers are urged to become knowledgeable of the requirements as it relates to the use of devices. This information is available on the GNBS website or contact can be made with the

GNBS to acquire same. It is also important for consumers keenly observe the weighing process, query when it is not properly done, and contact the GNBS if they observe continuous weights and measures malpractices. For further information, please contact the GNBS on Tel: 219-0069 or visit our website: www.gnbsgy.org or like us on Facebook: gnbsgy.

A mini health check is the first step to donating blood

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Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News

Maintaining independence: the imperative...

SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION, W E D D I N G S , ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 Visa Application: U.S.A, Canada & UK;Guyanapassport application. G r a p h i c s design, advertisement. Tel: 626-7040; 265-4535. ICONIC MARKETING & PRINTING –TEL: 6006887: We create A/works, logos, busi ness cards, posters, etc, placements of ads included. Installations, Repairs and parts for AC, Fridge, Washing machine, Stove etc call Nick 627-3206, 630-1600 Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezerCall: 610-5846 or 661-8158 HOUSE PLAN TO BE DRAWN OR YOU JUST NEED AN ESTIMATE. CALL: 216-0671/6928464/622-0267 Guyana Business. For everything on setting up & doing business. Check: Guyanaconnection.com; (f) Guyanaconnection; Guyanaconnection100 @gmail.com

FOR SALE Generac Pressure Wash for sale 3100 PSI. Tel#654-5267/ 652-2244/220-4203 1- Honda 450 ATV. Contact # 275-0367/683-7225 Local Minibus seats, original supercustom seats, B12 Nissan Sunny for parts, Super custom minibus for parts. #644-0802 1 Toyota pick up, Good condition, 1 MF 290 Tractor Good condition, Stihl chain saw, tractor parts etc. Call: 685-7879/641-1087

September Cosmetology Courses $40,000 Nail Technology $25,000 Advance Make-up $15,000, All products provided. Abby #614-6749 HEALTH Herbal remedies: Diabetes, Hypertension, Infertility, Menstrual disorders, Enlarged prostate, Kidney,Gall stones & Arthritis etc. Call Sparman #676-5924 LEARN TO DRIVE N. Outar Driving School, Learn to Drive the right way. Affordable package. Call: 644-5166/691-2561

WANTED

VACANCY

PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620

1 Air compressor 5HP 3 Phase 230/220 volts. Call: 628-1486/698-1134.

Fantastic Job Opportunities. Architects, Engineers, Draftsmen, Construction workers. CXC Graduates. Email Experience & Q u a l i f i c a t i o n s guyanajobs@yahoo.com Tel# 656-0075

Newly constructed 2 bedroom apt in a safe and healthy environment. Call: 698-6496/622-6512 2 Two bedroom apartment with AC, ceiling fans, grilled and 24-7 water system & parking. Herstelling. Tel# 265-2171, 676-5824, 601-0223 Spacious three bedroom bottom flat, parking space 188 BB Eccles #645-0656 #2332223 Providence: 2 bedroom furnished apartment. Call: 625-0007

CAT 320 DL, 2 complete 6'’ land dredge, 2 Perkins engine, MWM 6'’ Cylinder, Miller, Kubota, Boats , Yamaha. Call: 613-5062 $22M

Foreign used GE stainless steel French door refrigerator $140,000 commercial gas deep fryer $125,000 #2201716

LAND FOR SALE Prime land to build that dream home. Not far from Princess, New Thriving, Massy, HJ water world $13M neg- Call: 669-8397

2008 American Automatic Honda Accord. Blue/Black Metallic. PTT plates. Great condition. Contact #346-8180822

Farm $1.8M Parfaite Harmonie $1M Herstelling $2.8M Schnoord $1.5M Uitvlugt $1.8M Tel#648-1635 Parfaite Harmonie- $1.4M Herstelling- $ (110ft x 60ft) $4.2M Farm $2.4M Schnoord $2.3M Uivlugt $2.5M Tel#6511969/611-7223

PROGRESSIVE CAR RENTAL: CARS FROM $4000 & UP, SUV’S PER DAY- CALL:643-5122/ 6 5 6 - 0 0 8 7 , ,EMAIL:PRO_AUTO RENTAL@YAHOO.COM DOLLY’S CAR RENTALCALL:225-7126/ 2263 6 9 3 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL @YAHOO.COM/ WWW.D OLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM WING’S CAR & PICKUP RENTAL: LOW DOWN PAYMENT, CHEAP RATES,SPECIAL OFFERS! . CALL: 690-6494 AIDAN’S CAR RENTAL:PICKUP,9-11 SEAT MINI BUS, GOOD FOR AIRPORT & FAMILY OUTINGS, CHEAPEST RATE . Call: 698-7807

Wanted experienced hire car drivers at Ramada Princess Hotel, Providence E.B.D. Contact on 616-5419, 2657075 1 Female cook to cook for family in the interior #6889450 Live in or live out babysitter/ domestic- Call: 223-7500 Monday to Saturday 8:15am4:15pm 1 Male to look after layer birds in the interior. #688-9450 Experienced Salesman and Porter to sell Flour. Call: 2258985 Private and Hire car drivers. #225-3234/225-9223 Wanted maid to work between the age of 25 to 35 yrs old. Call: 226-7766

1 Nissan Bluebird 75,000 1 Toyota AE 81 75,000. Tel#685-4485

CAR RENTAL

SALON

FOR RENT

Five Commercial Prime house lots at Diamond Scheme, 22,500 sq ft $27M Negotiable. Call or Whatsapp #610-0343/ 339-4488 PROPERTY FOR SALE House lots for sale at Blankenburg WCD 40ft x 150ft $3.9M. Contact #6500402/603-1402 Prime Residential houselotHerstelling with new air conditioned unit, honda engine & lobby set $4.8M Tel# 651-1969 House lots for salePayments as low as 10k monthly. Easy loan approval. Contact #622-1957,2336997,600-8457 Newly Built 30x39 concrete immaculate property W.C.D, pay $2.7 Million to owner, $80,000 monthly to bank #220-1716 3 Bedroom house in Diamond/Grove housing scheme. Tel 226-3562

One Live-in domestic must know to cook indian dishes 25-50 yrs, Salary $20,000 wkly. #610-5043 Small live-in family, husband car & van driving, mechanical skills asset, wife- domestic. Tel#227-1830 Experienced cook to work on fish & chips truck. Regent and Wellington St. Call: 615-2100 9:00-5:00 VEHICLE FOR SALE 1 Tundra $800,000. Contact #650-0402/603-1402

Salesmen - Age 18-40 knowledge in stocktaking & salesmanship, apply with written application KeyFood McDoom Village. Administrative assistant/ Accounts clerk, Male or Female 25-55. Call: 629-9450 Security supervisor/Manager must have valid driver’s license 30-55. Call: 629-9450 Vacancy for Security Guard S&S Security. Call: 225-8645/ 223-5180/691-6081 Experienced Pharmacy assistants to work @ Reputable pharmacy in G/ town. Interested persons call #227-0630/628-8811 between 8am-4pm One experienced legal computer clerk. Call: 624-7087/ 226-4283/258-0213/ email: husainsaphier@yahoo.com Supervisor, Room attendant 30-50 yrs, 233 South Road, Lacytown. Tel#225-0198 Maid for East Bank to cook and clean. 614-4358 Looking for honest and reliable person for household cleaning. Age 40-50. Tucville area. Tel#231-4933

Unregistered black BMW for sale (Sunroof) $6.3M Negotiable.Call: 646-4509/ 641-4928 2011 Ford Raptor fully loaded, 6.2 litres 4x4 excellent condition blue #610-5370

From page 22 blacklists that would harm the economy; arguing against arbitrary reports that adversely affect a nation’s interests in tourism and financial services, and threatens its participation in the world’s banking and trading system; and standing-up for respect for international law and the rules of the international system without which the rights, independence and territorial integrity of one’s country would be even more jeopardized than they already are. In other words, working in the interest of the livelihood and well-being of every man, woman and child in their home countries. Therefore, diplomacy and the machinery for deploying it, should not be undervalued by Caribbean countries. It is both a shield and a trumpet in the struggle for their causes in the international community. The solution to effective international representation in the global community is well-trained and competent diplomatic personnel who understand that the purpose of their vocation is to negotiate with states and agencies to safeguard their country’s rights and security, and to promote and advance its economic and social development, including forming alliances with others when interests coincide. Diplomacy should not be discounted; every other area of the world invests in it for the benefits it can deliver when properly executed. (The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the U.S. and the OAS and High Commissioner to Canada. The views expressed are his own) Responses and previous c o m m e n t a r i e s : www.sirronaldsanders.com

EDUCATION

WANTED

Pickup truck from Canada, extra-cab 2005 Tacoma $1.950, Ford F150 sport $1.3M, Ford ranger sport $1.1M. Call: 682-5230, 6154414

IAE- Register for full time school (Grade 7-11) Lessons, Day & Evening CSEC adult classes. Call/Whatsapp #683-5742

Watchman, handyman required. Apply with ID proof, Police Clearance, permanent address: Call: 2310734/653-4537

Tractor (foreign used) Massey Ferguson excellent condition 165 $1.4M MF 135 $1.50M MF 265 $1.9M 165 loader, tractor $2.1M @ Vreeden-Hoop. Call 682-5230/6154414

Loving, Protective & Generous man seeks special friend, 36 or under, whatsapp me with picture today # 1-246835-6908

Bubble back Toyota Tundra V8 4x4 in immaculate condition 22'’ crom rim etc. $2.1M #220-1716 1 AE 100 Marino $400,000 1 AT 170 $190,000 1 Z20 Engine, 1 pressure washer & vacuum Tel#601-4929

PEN PAL

TOLET Upper flat of concrete building with 3 bedrooms, located @ Durban Street, Wortmanville for $75,000 monthly. Call: 6002828 Executive type 2 bedroom air conditioned bottom flat with modern convenience in South Ruimveldt Gardens, Call: 6188436

Sunday August 19, 2018

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Kaieteur News

CONSUMER CONCERNS

FIRM AND FOCUSED ACTION COULD ELIMINATE SQUATTING BY PAT DIAL Squatting is one of the continuous illegalities which the Authorities responsible for dealing with this unacceptable behaviour have only been sporadically addressing. This failure of the Authorities to continuously and firmly address squatting has led to squatters and would-be squatters realizing that they could take a very good chance of squatting undisturbed on both public and private land. In the political-inspired disturbances of the 1960's, several thousand persons were forced to leave their villages and settle elsewhere where they would be safe from racio-political attacks. These "refugees" settled on any available state lands they could find and even private property, and the exigencies of the time caused officials and private persons to have some sympathy for the plight of the squatters and were lenient to them, since the assumption was that the squatting would be only temporary until normality returned. Several of these squatter settlements remained and years after were "regularized", but this squatter episode of the 1960â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s initiated the culture where squatters began to assume that they could squat with impunity and that the Authorities, and even private owners, would be dilatory and take no action to evict them. Government has been giving agricultural leases to all who apply, as well as distributing thousands of house lots. Everyone could now acquire freehold house lots or leasehold agricultural land at

subsidized costs. No one now has any justification for squatting. But the culture of squatting which made its appearance in the 1960's still survives. This culture has now been reinforced with the greed of squatters who squat in company with relatives, who together squat on large portions of public and private lands, and expect to speculate on the land, fraudulently "selling" house lots to the gullible. Squatting today is not caused by need, but by the culture of lawlessness and greed, since state land leases and house lots are there for the asking. Two recent squatting incidents which were reported in the press would illustrate the present attitude of squatters, and indeed, of officials. Last year, the Local Authority wished to execute some fairly urgent infrastructural works in the Sophia area, but the structures which the squatters had erected on the state reserves made it impossible to extend or widen the roads or to clean the drainage trenches. Despite the presence of Police and Local Government officials, a few new squatters still defiantly continued to erect structures. It was only when stern action was taken and some structures were demolished that two fields were cleared. The squatters in the third field armed themselves and would have attacked the officials who had to withdraw. The standoff went on for two days and most of these third field squatters managed to remain. The other incident occurred a few months ago when a family which had returned from Venezuela to Region 2 wished to erect a struc-

ture to house their family of four. The family approached the NDC chairman, who understood that the family were in effect "refugees" in their own country and told them that he had no objection if they built a temporary structure and would remove such whenever the NDC requested it. The Regional Executive Officer (REO) seized the family's building material which they had bought on credit and forbade them to build, though in the same area there were several other squatters who had built structures without any official objection. The REO demanded that they should apply for a house lot and only when that was given could they build any shelter. The root cause of this problem was the failure of the officials to prevent squatting in the first place. Squatter settlements or ghettos are incubators of criminals. They are usually insanitary, since electricity and water could not be supplied them by the Utilities. Their conglomeration of shacks or poorly built houses are fire hazards. Children do not attend school regularly or not at all. Squatting is antisocial and out of consonance with National Development and should be eradicated. Squatting may appear to be very difficult or even impossible to control or eliminate. Actually, with firm and focused action it could be gradually ended. The Departments responsible for land - The Lands and Surveys Commission and the Ministry of Housing - should create small units of one or two persons who would devise and execute programs of Education on squatting. Two

points such programmes should underline, the first being that squatters have no rights and the other that whatever structure a squatter may have erected belongs to the land when it would have been re-possessed by the owners. The Law needs to be strengthened by repealing the present 12-year rule and resuscitating the 33-year rule whereby no squatting or prescriptive rights claim could be made before 33 years. The 12year rule was adopted from English legislation and is highly inappropriate to

Guyana. The 12-year rule is appropriate to an urban society like England, but is inappropriate to a largely rural society like Guyana. And secondly, proportionally, Guyana has the highest emigration rate in the world and emigrant owners' property may not always be taken care of by the relatives and friends left in charge. When owners return, they are shocked to see their property had been sequestered. The Police should be more proactive in investigating and being involved in squatting complaints since squatting is

lawlessness and squatting often results in dangerous altercations and violence. And finally, the Courts should also try in their own ways to control squatting. The Guyana Bar Association are the best informed group of the dangers of squatting and would render the country a positive social benefit if they strongly petitioned Government to amend and strengthen the laws relating to squatting. If focused action is taken, squatting could be controlled and eliminated in a reasonable time.

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Sunday August 19, 2018

E’bo Coast rocked by outages as GPL rushes in generators The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) is hoping to stabilize the electricity situation, which has rocked the Essequibo Coast. GPL says it is rushing down two generators to the area with “normalcy” expected as early as tomorrow. According to the power company, there were frequent service interruptions being experienced on the Essequibo Coast. The problems caused the power station in Anna Regina not to meet the approximately 4.2 Megawatts (MWs) peak demand. “The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) wishes to outline the events that led to the frequent service interruptions currently being experienced on the Essequibo Coast, and to inform customers of our efforts to meet the approxim a t e l y 4 .2 Megawatts (MWs) peak demand.” The company explained that on Monday last, and Thursday, two of the GPL’s units, the No. 3 and No. 8 with an aggregate capacity of 2.8 MWs, became inoperable due to major mechanical and electrical issues respectively. “Since the No 5 Unit with a capacity of 1.4 MWs was unavailable due to a major

The Anna Regina power station

overhaul, only two units totaling 3 MWs are currently in operation. As this cannot satisfy the demand of the entire Coast, load shedding was implemented.” As a result, the company said that it was forced to introduce a fiveday load-shedding schedule which was issued to residents until the expected return to normalcy

tomorrow. GPL said it is arranging the transfer of two Caterpillar units of 2.8 MWs total capacity from its Canefield, Berbice Generating Station to Essequibo. “The generators will arrive during Sunday, August 19 and Tuesday, August 21. When installation is completed, the units will provide adequate genera-

tion capacity to meet peak demand.” The power company said it will continue to pursue a permanent solution to the power shortages on the Coast with steady progress being made to meet its goal of having the new power station commissioned and operational during the last quarter of this year.

Canadian company to assist G/T municipality with ... From page 16 said. The Minister noted that for this reason, efforts have been made to seek Cabinet’s approval for the reform of the valuation system, “which would re-value properties to be able to provide realistic values which have not been done for over two decades; which will `wean’ them off of central government’s subventions and allow them to exercise greater autonomy.” “This must not be seen as an exercise in taxation, but merely to provide accurate property values to councils countrywide, for the use and determination of individual councils as to what rates they would want to effect. That will be a determination that will be made individually and independently by the respective councils,” Bulkan informed. The valuation exercise will require at least 12 to 18 months and the government has engaged a Canadian institution, the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC), which does property evaluations for the state of Ontario and other jurisdictions in Canada and internationally.

Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News

Cost of renting generators for GPL ... From page 2 rental set provides additional generation capacity to meet peak demand,” GPL said. The company stressed that currently, two new power stations are under construction in Anna Regina, Essequibo and Dogg Point, Bartica. “Once these are in operation, there will be no need to continue rental arrangements. The stations should be completed for commissioning at Anna Regina during the fourth quarter of 2018 and the first Quarter of 2019 at Bartica.” GPL insisted that the rental units provide additional generation capacity that enables it to better meet its mandate to provide stable and reliable power supply to customers. “Each set is billed per running hour and the cost is capped at 75,000 USD per month. The cost includes after sales service inclusive of spare parts and technical expertise. No cost is incurred if the unit is not used.”

GPL also disclosed that it bought two Caterpillar sets from MACORP- in July 2017 and June 2018 respectively. “The purchases were necessary due to an urgent need for additional generation

capacity at Anna Regina and Bartica. Also, given the expected period before commissioning of the new stations, purchasing was more economical than paying rental costs.”

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Sunday August 19, 2018

Sunday August 19, 2018

BCB/Raffik Construction 100 balls Knockout Cricket Tournament

Rose Hall Town Bakewell, Tamarind Root and Chesney advance The historic Raffik Construction 100 balls Cricket Tournament organised by the Berbice Cricket Board for teams in the Lower Corentyne area bowled off last Sunday. Heavy rain washed out five matches but there play was in three matches at the Area ‘H’, Hampshire and Chesney Grounds. The Tournament, the first of its kind to be played in the Caribbean, consists of fourteen six deliveries overs and two eight balls overs per side. A total of sixteen teams including Albion, Port Mourant, Whim, Rose Hall Town Tigers, Courtland, Kildonan, Tain and Big Star are taking part in the Tournament which is being sponsored by popular Berbice Businessman, Mohamed Raffik. At the Area ‘H’ Ground in Rose Hall Town, the home team defeated Whim by nine wickets. The match was played at the Area ‘H’ Ground after the Whim Ground was unavailable. Whim batted first and reached 93 for 9 off their allotted Overs with Joshua Persaud 19, Yogendra Sooknandan 19, being the principal scorers. Former Guyana Under-19 offspinner Murphy La Rose took 3 wickets for 10 runs, Randall Lewis 2 for 14 and Captain Keith Simpson 2 for 16. In response, openers Vidal Crandon and

Surendra Kissoonlall added 53 for the first wicket in 10-Overs before Crandon was dismissed by T. Harrinarine for a well played 35. Kissoonlall and Berbice Under-17 Player Chanderpaul Govindan then took their team to 96 for 1 in fourteen overs. Kissoonlall was left unbeaten on 32, while Govindan was on 14. At the Hampshire Ground, Tamarind Root defeated Toopoo by five wickets. Toopoo were bowled out for 53 in fourteen overs. R. Sookram topscored with sixteen, while Devindra Latchman 3 for 16, Michael Ram 2 for 18 and Seenauth Joseph 5 for 4 were the main bowlers for Tamarind Root. The home team lost five wickets to achieve victory off just eleven overs. Dillip Ramsammy blasted a quick fine 26, while Surendra Permaul took 3 for 10 in a losing cause. Veteran Imran Khan of the Stanford 20/20 fame rolled back the years with a superb 109 not out as Chesney defeated Tain Block 4 by 134 runs. Chesney batting first 195 for 4 off their 100 balls with Andy Naidu 39 supporting Khan. Ravindra Nauth took 2 for 26 for Tain. The visitors were then bowled out for 61 from eight overs as Khan returned with the ball from four Overs. Chemendra Goberdhan supported with 3 for 34.

Sunday August 19, 2018 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Aries, you'll probably find that you have a ton of energy to put into all kinds of activities. You work hard most of the time, so do your body and mind some good and just relax

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) Get into doing things today, Libra. Activities that require focus or creativity are supported. Your physical strength and energy will compel you to do something active.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20) This is an excellent day to express your natural creativity. Finish any work that still needs completion, consider doing some cleaning and organizing

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Your active side may really show today. This is a good day to get a lot accomplished.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) If you feel tired, you may need to close your eyes and listen to soothing music. CANCER (June 21–July 22) Today could bring some strong feelings, Cancer. This may not be new, as you generally have a tendency to feel things deeply.

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SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) If you've been feeling tired or sick lately, this will probably turn around for you today. Bouts of moodiness can be a real drain. CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) You'll probably be busy today, Capricorn, and this may suit you just fine. This can really work in favor if you have some tasks to catch up on.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Leo, consider that artistic expression can happen in many ways. It isn't always about drawing a picture, singing a song, playing music, or acting.

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) Today, your ability to stand up for your decisions and not let others sway you may be enhanced.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) You may find that today brings great physical strength and energy. You may want to do some really challenging, physical work.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) You may feel a need to get moving today, Pisces. Almost everyone at times prefers quiet activities, books, art, and even just sitting around to physical activity.

Peter Barry weaves along... From page 74 in international duties,” the young trainer explained. This included an outreach social regeneration project in Mombasa, Kenya and a similar vocation in Bucharest, Romania, under the auspices of the Solid Rock Ministries. He resided in England but love for his country caused him to contribute to the general local sports mechanism; he returned to his homeland and between 2010 and 2014. Barry was appointed as a team official, representing Guyana at the 2012 London Olympic Games as Olympic attaché for Team Guyana. A few years earlier, he was appointed assistant coach of the women’s national team at the 2010 CONCACAF Gold cup finals. Barry remains focused even as he endeavors to upgrade his knowledge in the sport. “It’s a fast paced world where coaches are required to implement constant changes in their teaching applications and I am always open to the sound strategies for the good of the game,” pronounced Barry in response to a question posed to him. Indeed, the learning process never stops and Barry retains his hunger for knowledge as he endeavors to make a mark in the

Moore, Romeo... From page 76 four-member team included one female. St Lucia’s team has only one boxer. Before the action began, President of the GBA Steve Ninvalle told the gathering that winning was not important as seeing the sport grow in the Caribbean and producing Olympic Champions. “We (Caribbean officials) backed the concept of holding this Championship as the nursery for developing Caribbean boxers. Guyana’s Silver Medallist at the Commonwealth Youth games Keevin Allicock is a product of our under-16 programme” informed Ninvalle, an International Boxing Association (AIBA) Executive Bureau Member. “Given Guyana’s dominance in regional amateur tournaments after having a strong breeding ground for competent fighters, the country has essentially become an understudy regarding the recipe for successful boxers,” the GBA Head concluded. Cecil Forde, President of the Trinidad & Tobago Boxing Association (TTBA) said this tournament was a great concept adding that hopefully is gets bigger and better in the future

coaching sector. His qualifications speak volumes and among them are his FA badges among other accolades. “One of my dreams is to give back to the football fraternity in Guyana by way of coaching,” Barry divulged. Today, he fondly reminisces on his embryonic days as a coach even as he hopefully nurtures hopes of offering his services to the local football federation. Asked to present a case for such a position he quietly replied, “I am a confident communicator who is able to listen, engage and negotiate, adopting a broad minded approach. I am also self-driven and organized when given

challenging tasks. “I am a strong leader and problem solver who can lead groups of any size, age and gender and I have procured valuable experience in the sport while traveling to many different countries with different cultures,” he exhorted. As Barry continues to pursue his goals he is wary of the many challenges that lie before him. He is also confident that he could overcome any hurdle that threatens to impede his progress. His word to today’s youths is ‘perseverance.’ “It is the most important variable to possess as you weave your way along the winding road of success,” he affirms.

Guyanese has sight set on... From page 79 Guyana (AAG) and the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) but those calls were made to no avail,” Walcott posited. And, after inheriting 20 acres of land at the East Bank village, Walcott explained that his ambitions received a major boost. He noted that the facility which will aim to bring overseas athletes to Guyana will only use up half acre of the land while the remainder will be utilised for agricultural purposes. Among the proposed services for ‘Exercise is Medicine”, which is targeted to be completed in 2019, will include organic food production, home care, physiotherapy, gym, sauna, athletics training and exercise, health food shop, sport nutrition therapy along with health and fitness consultancy.

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BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Football semifinals set for this evening The BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Emancipation Cohesion Football League, which is largely spon-

sored by Bakewell/Lloyd W P Britton/G O Benjamin/ GLDA/NAREI/ROCK and Roy’s Pharmacy, culminated

its preliminary rounds in fantastic fashion on Friday at Beterverwagting (BV) ground and with such today’s semifi-

nal fixtures have been decided. In an evening full of excitement, flowing mainly from the teams’ final opportunity to make the semifinals, Mahaica created a great opportunity for themselves after drubbing St. John’s Basco Orphange 8-0 in a one-sided affair. Kirt Roberts scored four goals for Mahaica. In the second match of the evening, the superior skill of Tucville overshadowed the apparent mixture of youth and seasonal veterans of GWI, to hand the ‘waterworks’ men a devastating 4-0 defeat.The third match on Friday between Plaisance and Eastveldt had circulated a high level of interest, owing to the fact that Plaisance required a victory by three or more goals over Eastveldt, to

be assured of a place in the semi-finals, both teams evidently competed courageously, with Eastveldt, marking their name in just the third minute of the match, when Mario Eastman netted a rightfooted goal. Eastveldt’ striker O’Neil Glasgow scored in the 60th minute but no more goals followed for the Georgetown club during the remainder of the match. In the feature match of the night, Mahaicony had to achieve the mammoth goal of defeating league favorites, BV, by a margin of 8 goals, to be assured of a place in the semi-finals, and although they didn’t win, Mahaicony gave an excellent account of themselves, holding BV to 22 draw at the conclusion of the 60 minute engagement. Semifinal action in the in-

augural BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement Emancipation Cohesion Senior Cup continues tonight under floodlights at the BV ground. Group A preliminary point standing leaders’ Eastveldt with battle with Group B runner’s up Tucville from 19:00 hours, while Group B leaders, BV, will tackle Group A runner’s up, Mahaica, from 21:00 hours. All semi-final matches will be played for 90 minutes. The Junior Shield two Semi-final matches, will be played earlier in the day from 15:15hrs and 17:00hrs respectively at the said venue. The BV/Triumph 8th of May Movement encourages the general public to attend the activities. Gates open at 14:30 hours today for both the Junior Shield and Senior Cup Semi-final action.

From Guyana to the United Kingdom

Peter Barry weaves along the winding road of success At the tender age of 23, after completing his secondary education at the East Ruimveldt Secondary School, Peter Barry commenced his tertiary tenure at the University of Guyana in pursuit of a degree in Sociology. It was during his attendance at the former institution that the ambitious young man established himself as a competent footballer, also with exceptional coaching propensities. Barry actually recognized his ability to skillfully juggle the ball during Physical Education sessions and later on, he uncovered another skill, shrewd organizing ability. He subsequently organized a football encounter between Robin Hood, a football club that competed in the then SVB Toppklasse tournament in Paramaribo, Suriname, against their Guyanese counterparts. That venture brought him much acclaim and served as the catalyst to other successful promotions. Though occurring more than two decades ago, those feats remain the lynchpin of a flourishing career, firstly as a footballer and subsequently, a top coach of the sport, two accolades which leave indelible memories in Peter Barry’s mind. In those days, ‘sports’ at the school level was compulsory, under the subject, ‘Physical Education’ and constituted an integral part of the curriculum. It was during these sessions that Barry realized he loved to juggle the ball and so football became a natural choice. At his alma mater, the administrators had formulated a vibrant football

Peter Barry programme and over time, he honed his skill to such perfection that he was singled out for special duties. “I was appointed head coach for the U-17 lads in 1991,” Barry reflected during a recent chat with this publication at his newly adopted home in England. The enterprising youth clinched a similar position at the St. Stanislaus College, merely one year after he had earned a transfer to that institution. Over the next few years he honed his skill as a footballer but always felt he possessed the propensities to coach youngsters to stardom. As such, he was constantly reaching out to his fellow teammates, advising, demonstrating and correcting their errors. He is also an ardent Christian and found balance in spiritual and physical methodology to mold his charges. Barry attests to the strong focus placed by the government in sports as, during his

school tenure, physical education and games constituted a major aspect of the curriculum. Consequently, following his introduction to the sport in school, he joined up with the legendary Santos Football Club where he was instrumental in that institution’s success for the 1990/91 champion’s title. His outstanding contribution earned him a call up to the National Junior and Senior trials merely one year later. He continued honing his skills but it was not until in 1997 that the young player received a highly probable opportunity to gain international exposure when he migrated to the United Kingdom. Though he had been a proficient player, Peter always felt that his calling revolved around the coaching fraternity. “As a coach I am able to interact with the youths and really assist in their all-round development which essentially, is my major objective for young people,” Barry exhorted. His journey to the United Kingdom presented vast opportunities and he has managed to chalk up a glowing resume while rendering valuable service to the children in his new homeland. Between 1999 and 2012 he was appointed U-15 head coach for Addington Victors FC and the Wickham Wanderers FC, two noted units in the UK. Barry also gained valuable experience in the sector following coaching engagements at the Tooting & Mitcham United FC. “I also acquired on the job experience while engaged (Continued on page 73)

Sunday August 19, 2018

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Kaieteur News

BCB/Ramnaresh Sarwan Under-17 Knockout Tournament

Albion, Port Mourant and Rose Hall Town Bakewell advance to 2nd Round

The Winning Port Mourant Cricket Team

Doorsammy Mahadeo The Ramnaresh Sarwan Under-17 Knockout 50-Overs Cricket Tournament organised by the Berbice Cricket Board bowled off last Tuesday at Grounds across the Ancient County. Some of the matches were affected by the weather but play was possible in three matches. Albion Cricket Club, Port Mourant Cricket Club and defending Berbice Under-17 Champions, Rose Hall Town Bakewell advanced to the second round after recording victories against Tamarind Root

Cricket Club, No. 73 Cricket Club and Rose Hall Canje, respectively. At the Port Mourant Ground, the home team defeated No. 73 by nine wickets. Batting first after losing the toss, No. 73 were bowled out for 74 off 22-Overs as only Vettori Latchman 12, Zameer Shaw 26 and Niraj Singh 10 reached double figures. Shaw struck two boundaries as he tried to hold his team’s innings together. Bowling for Port Mourant, leg spinner Doorsammy Mahadeo had

remarkable figures of 7 wickets for 14 runs from 7.3 Overs. Port Mourant Cricket Club in response reached 75 for 1 in 21 Overs with Rampertab Ramnauth 19 not out and Dave Ramgoolam 19 not out at the crease. Fardeen Khan supported with 18 before he was bowled by L. Singh. Albion Cricket Club crushed Tamarind Root Cricket Club of Hampshire by ten wickets at the Albion Ground. Tamarind Root Cricket Club batting first were

bowled out for a paltry 40 off 17.2 Overs as Sarwan Chaitnarine claimed five wickets for 12. Chaitnarine then returned with the bat to score 29 not out along with Hemendra Goordial 10 not out as Albion reached 42 without loss in 8.3 Overs. Rose Hall Town Bakewell defeated Rose Hall Canje Cricket Club by 30 runs at the Area ‘H’ Ground. The defending champions had to dig deep after being reduced to 40 for 4. National Under-15 player Jonathan Rampersaud

and Mahendra Gopilall both scored 28 each as Rose Hall Town Bakewell reached 132 all out in 30-Overs. Tyrese Sealey supported with 19, while Lucas Arthur made 15. Pacer Isiah Thorne 3 for 27, offspinner Ricardo Ramdehol 3 for 24 and Bhaskar Dhanai 2 for 31 were the best bowlers Rose Hall Canje Cricket Club. In response the visitors were given a solid opening stand of 49 from 18-Overs by Ricardo Ramdehol and Avishkar before Ramdehol was dismissed by National

Buxton Cricket Camp beat TSC by 10 runs The 13th annual Buxton Cricket Camp seems to be surviving its intended purpose as Friday’s sessions included a talk on leadership and working as a team by Tion Abrams, WPA’s Chairman of Buxton/ Fowls NDC, a tour of prominent places in Buxton before ending the day by beating City side TSC in their first match. THE two-week camp caters for children between the ages of 7-19 and caters for 40 participants from Buxton and Villages in close proximity to Buxton. Sessions includes technical, practical, physical and off-the field actives and run from 09:30hrs to 15:00hrs. Buxton CC was formed in 1993 and played in tapeball competition before being officially launched as the Buxton ‘Carl Hooper’ Club in 2002 when Hooper was appointed West Indies Captain. “When you are a leader like a Captain you can’t just give orders but lead by example and try to help your

teammates to perform,” Abrams told the youngsters. The participants were taken on a tour around the Village to see the NDC Office, the recently constructed Auditorium, schools, churches, the practical instruction centre, the health Centre, the post office and the reconstructed Tipperary Hall which host sporting and cultural activities. B u x t o n Vi l l a g e w a s founded in 1840 by a group of freed Afro-Guyanese, who purchased the former Plantation Orange Nassau. . . . B u x t o n Vi l l a g e w a s founded when a group of 128–132 former slaves from Annandale, purchased the 580-acre plantation for 50,000 dollars. After the Education tour the match was played and the Buxton Cricket Camp batted first and made 157 with Kurt Booker leading the way with 57, while TSC were bowled out for 147. After a break for the weekend the last week of the Camp resumes on Monday when a

Under-15 spinner Jeremy Sandia for 19. The Rose Hall Town Bakewell spinner then claimed the next nine wickets for 53 runs as Rose Hall Canje Cricket Club were bowled out for 102. Avishkar Persaud 16, Imtiaz Janudoo 13, Isiah Thorne 11 and Jaron France 12 started well but failed to carry on. Sandia 3 for 19, Jonathan Rampersaud 2 for 20, Matthew Pattaya 2 for 18 and Tyrese Sealey 2 for 20 were the principal wicket takers for the winners.

- Taken on tour of prominent places in Buxton

President Peters (foreground) with the Buxton Cricket Camp and TSC teams. lecture will be done by East Coast Cricket Board Official Ray Barton. On Tuesday former Berbice and Guyana off-spin-

ner Sean Devers, who is now an international cricket commentator and Sports Journalist, will speak on the importance of Education for your

life after cricket and will also conduct a session with the spinners. Buxton CC President Esse Peter is the back bone of this

Camp and said that while the Camp is scheduled to conclude on Wednesday a sponsor has requested that the Camp go up to Friday

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Sunday August 19, 2018

Kaieteur News

Pepsi C’bean School Boys & Girls Boxing C/Ship

Moore, Romeo register victories on opening night - Wins for Jamaica’s (female) &T&T’s (male) Boxers

Guyana’s Christopher Romeo (right) beat T&Ts Juan Rodriguez. By Sean Devers At age 16, Leon Moore seemed destined to follow in the footsteps of his father Leon ‘Hurry up’ Moore who won the several titles during his illustrious career including the coveted Pan Asian Boxing Association (PABA) super-bantam weight title before becoming the youngest Guyanese Boxing promoter in 2010 at 31, while still being active in the ring. Young Moore began the ‘International’ segment of the third annual three-night Caribbean School Boys and Girls Boxing Championships at the National Gymnasium on Friday auspiciously by defeating Trinidadian Nyrell Hosein in the most entertaining contest of the opening night. Moore and Christopher Romeo, who beat T&T’s Juan Rodriguez, got double defending Champions Guyana off to a winning start. There were also victories for the Trini Blessings Waldron who clinched a slightly surprising verdict against Jamaican’s Arnold Anderson and Britney McFarlane of Jamaica, who got the better of T&T’s Shakira Flias in the only female fight of night. In the three local bouts which preceded the four international fights, Dwayne Baptise beat Daniel Pompey, Fitz Haywood battered Jeron McKenzie into submission at the end of the first round and Shermon Stephens defeated Jaden Graham. Watched by a disappointing turn out which included former WBC-CABOFE Super

Lightweight Champion Clive Atwell and his wife and son and the wife and daughter of Guyana’s only Olympic Medallist, Mike Parris, both Moore and Hosein traded punches in the first round of their three-round contest. The Boxers went toe-totoe and shared the exchanges with good combinations but Moore held a slight advantage at the end of the first stanza of their Light Bantamweight affair. In the second round Moore kept moving forward and caught the Trini with some hard shots as Hosein tried to counter-punch. A left jab was followed up by a powerful right to the head and Hosein was given standing 8 count as the Guyanese dominated the round. In the final round the skilful Moore was all over his man as he threw punches in bunches as Hosein fought back gamely but some wicked ‘combos’ to the head and body floored Hosein who quickly got to his feet. With the large Guyanese team urging Moore on, the Guyanese caught Hosein was a crunching upper cut to the mid-section which seemed to knock the wind out of the lad from Carnival Country. With Hosein running out a gas, Moore jumped on him with several brutal shots which backed him up against the ropes as he covered up for dear life before he was eventually saved by the bell. Both boxers received a standing ovation from the small but vocal crowd. Romeo gained the Judges’

verdict in a close and very keenly contested Featherweight battle over Rodriguez as the powerfully built Trini matched Romeo punch for punch in the first round. In the second round Rodriguez was hit with a straight right which rocked his head back and he was given a standing 8 count. However, although both boxers shared shots, their punches lacked venom and Romeo was awarded the fight. The Lightweight contest between Waldron and Anderson was highlighted by the nimble evasive action on the part of Trinidadian Waldron who employed the ‘Drunken Master’ antics; faking being hurt only to dance out range of the shots from Anderson. But as the fight progressed, Waldron who had the fans in the stands in laughter with his funny antics, rarely threw punches and was caught with a clinical right to his head which send him backwards. But in the end it was Waldron who was adjudged the winner to the surprise of many. In the lone female bout, both fighters showed aggression but Jamaican McFarlane used her longer reach to out jab her opponent and keep her at bay to win the last fight of the night. In addition to Guyana, T&T, coached by former female World Champion Ria Ramnarine, had a nine-member team which included three girls, while Jamaica’s (Continued on page 73)

Kaieteur News

Sunday August 19, 2018

PAGE 77

Brazil Train and Play Camp

Learning and building process continues; Jaguars go down to Madureira Sport Club Kevin Layne is closely watched by this Madureira duo.

Ryan Hackett on the move.

As the historic Brazil Train and Play Camp taking place in Rio de Janeiro continues, the Golden Jaguars played their second of four practice matches on Friday afternoon against the Madureira Sport Club in Rio and went down 0-3. The team, which is still gelling together under new Head Coach Michael Johnson and his Te c h n i c a l t e a m , conceded two goals in the first half and another in the second as yet again, all the

players on tour, except Trinidad and Tobago-based Sheldon Holder, who joined the squad on Friday, played either half. Coach Johnson commenting on the match said the host team moved the ball very well but also noted that the young Golden Jaguars have had a tough week so far but should be playing better than they did in this second match: “To say that it was a tremendous performance, I would be

lying but there are so many things that gave us opportunities to work on and that’s the way we look at it. It’s what can we do now to help some of these younger players. There may be four or five that we can actually pull into our squad so we’ll go again tomorrow and work with them and really try to help them in their pattern of play, style of play, their decision making; but it has been a worthy exercise so far.” A number of the players

in Rio are U-20s and U-23s and are being groomed for the future as they rub shoulders with some of the more seasoned campaigners. “We guarantee that when they leave here they’ll be a lot better conditioned, in a lot better shape and have a stronger mentality based on what we are giving them,” said Johnson while noting that fitness was emphasized during the week. “So, it’s been a real taxing couple of days and that’s what these camps are

for; you want to come out of these camps, fitter, stronger and with a little bit more knowledge. We’re not looking at the results as of yet because we know if it is about results we wouldn’t have trained the players the way we did in the last few days.” On Thursday, the team was involved in some circuit training as well as enjoyed some time in the warm pool and hot and cold saunas under the guidance of Dr. Mark Faghy, the Head of

Sports Science on the team. Coach Johnson: “So there were sit ups, press ups, burpees among other exercises for half an hour and that was on the back of a morning session, which lasted an hour and a half and looked at pressing up to the ball, looking at intensity of how we defend, 2v2, 3v3, 4v4 and then we did some shooting practice.” Johnson noted that all they are asking of the players is to take on board what they are being taught in Rio.

FIFA team in Guyana to visit North Pakaraimas football tournament

File Photo - Véron Mosengo-Omba meets Minister Valarie Garrido-Lowe.

F I FA’s D i r e c t o r o f Member Associations, Veron Mosengo-Omba, is in Guyana to participate in the North Pakaraima’s Football tournament scheduled to open today at Kato, Region 8. Mosengo-Omba is in Guyana on invitation from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and will be accompanied by President Wayne Forde, Hon. Minister within the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs and Patron of Women’s Football In Guyana, Valerie Garrido-Lowe and a video documentary team as they capture the tournament and the challenges of hinterland

football development. In an invited comment, Mosengo-Omba said he was happy to be in Guyana and to support the work of the GFF and ensure football is accessible across Guyana: “President Gianni Infantino is determined to ensure that everyone has a fair and equal access to football. In fact, that is the true spirit of the FIFA Forward Programme. T h e F I FA F o r w a r d Programme allows MAs to create hope and new opportunities in some of the most remote corners of the world. I am here to support the efforts of President Forde and the Executive Committee to extend the reach of the game in Guyana.” President of the GFF Wayne Forde said while the population of the hinterland is eager about football and the talent is expansive, football development is challenged, in part, by the rough geographical terrain: “The hinterland is diverse but the people are extremely

passionate about football. While raw talent is in no short supply, access to the communities to foster sustainable football development has been extremely challenging. This has placed a tremendous burden on the Federation’s logistical and financial capacity to respond to these challenges and advance football development in the various communities. However, we are confident with FIFA’s support we will be able to accomplish this goal.”This is the second time the GFF is participating in the major annual tournament held in Region 8. Last year, President Forde accompanied Minister Garrido-Lowe and he donated football gears to the participating teams. The North Pakaraimas Football Tournament is scheduled to have the participation of over 20 teams, consisting of both males and females, from Kato and surrounding villages.

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Sunday August 19, 2018

Colours Boutique continues support of Ninvalle Trophy Stall Dominoes set Colours Boutique Sales Representative Creanna Damon (L) presenting Kaysan Ninvalle with new table tennis gear.

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aysan Ninvalle, a member of team Guyana for the Caribbean Mini and Pre-Cadet Championships, yesterday was once again supported by Colours Boutique. The Championship which will be hosted in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, will run from Sunday August 26, to Friday August 31, where Ninvalle is hoping to add to his legacy in the sport. Ninvalle, 13, the youngest to be named Junior Sportsman-of-the-year, will compete in the 13 and under category in Santo Domingo and told reporters during the presentation yesterday at the Robb Street Establishment that he was happy to once again be backed by Colours Boutique.

According to Ninvalle, Colours Boutique’s role in helping him with gear as a player is unmatched and his best way of repaying them is continuing to excel in the sport he loves; table tennis. Meanwhile, Colours Boutique Sales Representative Creanna Damon, said her company is no stranger to supporting Guyana’s sportsmen and women, but Ninvalle’s support means a lot to them, since they have been witnessing his steady progression in table tennis, where he is now Guyana’s leading junior player. Damon noted that Colours Boutique will continue to support Ninvalle’s table tennis career and she also wished him well at the upcoming tournament.

Persaud sets new 200m individual medley relay record at Goodwill games

for today in Wakenaam Malenee Narine (left) of Trophy Stall and Bryan Sealey display the trophies.

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ulsating dominoes action is expected today at Carlosh Sports bar in Good Success, Wakenaam when the Trophy Stall competition commences at 09:00hrs. The tournament has attracted the top teams from across the 18-square mile island and prizes will be given to the winning and runner up teams as well as the Most Valuable Player. Among the teams expected to participate are All stars, Seawall Boys,

Eastern Wakenaam, Melville, Good Success, Sans Souci, Maria’s Pleasure and Zeelandia. Malenee Narine of Trophy Stall handed over the trophies to Bryan Sealey who accepted on behalf of the Wakenaam Dominoes Association at their Bourda Market location yesterday. Narine wished the teams well and said she is looking forward to an exciting tournament while Sealey expressed gratitude to Trophy Stall for their gesture.

CAREBACO International Under-19 Junior Championships 2018

Priyanna Ramdhani through to semis after impressive showing

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Gold for the boys 11-12 4x100 medley relay. Guyana’s Aleka Persaud kept the Golden Arrow Head aloft when she captured yet another gold medal at the Goodwill swimming championships which is currently ongoing in Barbados. Persaud used her skill, knowledge and strength well to win the event in a time of 2 minutes 36.50 seconds erasing the old record of 2:39.67. Fellow Guyanese Monique Watson took bronze. The Guyana 11-12 boys’ team won gold in the 4x100m medley relay, while their girls’ 11-12 team won bronze in the 4x100m medley race. Guyana also captured bronze in the boys’ 15-17 4x100m medley relay event; Guyanese Ethan Gonsalves took silver in the 11-12 200m individual medley event, while his team mate Daniel Scott captured bronze in the boys 15-17 200m individual medley race.

he Caribbean International & Regional Junior & Senior Badminton Championships is currently taking place in Paramaribo Suriname. The Under-19 International Championships continued Friday at the Ring Sports Center in Ringweg Noord Paramaribo Suriname. Guyanese top Junior and Senior Champion, 16 year old Priyanna Ramdhani continued her impressive performance to reach the Semi-Finals and Medal Round in the Under19 Girl Singles. She was seeded No.2 in the draw and gained a bye in the first round to reach the Quarter Finals where she defeated Sion Zeegelaar of Suriname: 21-8, 21-13 to reach into the Semi-Finals. In the Boys Under-19 Singles & Doubles QuarterFinals, Guyana lost both and missed getting into the Medal Rounds by a close margin. In the Boys Singles, Tyrese Jeffrey lost to Kodie

Priyanna Ramdhani continued her impressive performance to reach the Semi-Finals.

King of Barbados: 21-15, 21-15 while in the Boys Doubles Tyrese Jeffrey & Akili Haynes lost to Jun L i m C heung & Jason Cheung: 21-10, 21-9. The tournament continues today from 6:00pm where Priyanna will be playing in the

Semi-Finals to get into the Finals in Both her Singles & Doubles Events. The GBA expressed pleasure that all three Guyanese Players participating in the Championships passed their CSEC/CXC examinations with outstanding grades.

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Sunday August 19, 2018

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Guyana Cup runs off today from 12:00hrs at Rising Sun Turf Club

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ith over 80 top horses from Guyana, the Caribbean and North America, confirmed to participate in today’s 12th Guyana Cup horse race meet, a riveting day of horseracing for the entire family is anticipated at the Rising Sun Turf Club, Number 6 Village, West Coast, Berbice. Thousands are expected to flock the venue for the 10race meet, which is dubbed the most lucrative horserace meet in Guyana with the 2018 edition carrying a total of over $15 million in cash and prizes.In an invited c o m m e n t y e s t e r d a y, chairman of the organising committee, Nazrudeen Mohamed Jr., disclosed that all systems are in place for the mega event that runs off with the first race from 12:00hrs, thanks to favourable weather that allowed the track to be in tip top shape.Mohamed pointed out that due to the superb condition of the track, some fast times are expected to be recorded in the grand showdown. Some of the top animals expected to be on show today include Just Call Me Bass, Crown the King (Jamaica), Doublin Fashion (USA), Chameli (Jamaica), Safara (Jamaica), Southern Express (T&T), Silver & Things (T&T), Sitarr (T&T), Kentucky Woman (T&T), Super Easy (T&T) and She’s a Princess. Apart from the foreign

contingent of horses to be on show, several leading jockeys from overseas are also expected to participate, which will add that international flavour to the day’s event. The day’s full race programme reads as follows: 1) C class and lower, 1 6 0 0 m . To t a l p u r s e : $3,875,000 2) 3yr old Derby 1100M – purse: $2,000,000. 3) G1 and lower 1400M – purse: $1,550,000. 4) H3 and lower 1100M – purse $1,350,000. 5) 2yrs old Guyana Bred 1100M – purse: $680,000. 6) I class and lower 1400M – Purse: $581,000. 7) J3 and lower 1400M. Purse: $485,000. 8) L class 1400M – purse $390,000. 9) L class 1400M – purse $390,000. 10) L class 1100M – purse $290,000. The top five finishers in all eight races would receive cash incentives and admission to the venue is $2,000 for adults; children will be admitted free. The sponsors for the event include Mohamed’s Enterprise, Trophy Stall Impressive Signs of New Amsterdam, Berbice, Discount Store, Hand-inhand Insurance, Superbet, Gizmos and Gadgets, B.M. Soat, Mazi Night Club, Hyper Malt and Rohan Auto Spares, Big L Lumber Yard, Banks DIH along with Elvis and D’ Emperor Trucking Services.

Guyanese has sight set on developing sports science facility Overseas based Guyanese Wayne Walcott, a former track and field coach, has big plans for building Guyana’s first sports science facility. Under the name ‘Exercise is Medicine’, the project will be erected at Coverden, East Bank Demerara (EBD) and plans have already been approved by the relevant authorities. The former Betford Stars coach that had worked with former Guyana 100m record holder Rawle Green at the former National Park based club, explained that after attending a sports medicine programme in Rio de Janeiro in 2004 which was held as a precursor to the 2012

Wayne Walcott Olympics and 2014 World Cup, he brainstormed the initiative. “After the course, I came back to Guyana with the idea and tried sharing it with the Athletics Association of (Continued on page 73)

The Rising Sun Turf Club being spruced up during the week for today’s grand event.

t r o Sp Pepsi C’bean School Boys & Girls Boxing C/Ship

P. 76

Moore, Romeo register victories on opening night - Wins for Jamaica’s (female) &T&T’s (male) Boxers

Jamaica’s Britney McFarlane (right) out boxed T&Ts Shakira Anderson in the lone female bout of the night. (Sean Devers photo)

Guyana’s Leon Moore floors Nyrell Hosein of T&T in the 2nd round of the most entertaining bout of the night. (Sean Devers photo)

Aleka Persaud (center) and Monique Watson (right) on the podium after winning gold and bronze respectively.

Persaud sets new 200m individual medley relay record at Goodwill games P. 78

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