Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL TEL:624-6456 Editor: Sharmain Grainger Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210

EDITORIAL

The Breadbasket of the Caribbean

In a detailed report to Richard Nolte, then Executive Director of the Washington, DC-based Institute of Current World Affairs, writer Frank McDonald, introduced the newly independent nation of Guyana thusly: “Though underdeveloped except for the coastal belt, Guyana is very rich in potential. In the interior, there are vast forests, mineral deposits of bauxite, gold, diamonds and manganese. But more important than any actual resource is the future of the country as a “breadbasket of the Caribbean.” The soil and climate of the interior particularly what is called the Savannah, is the ideal region for settling the excess populations of the smaller islands, a concept not lost on the governments of the West Indies. Already, there is a trickle of West Indians into the Guyanese interior to establish farming communities, a movement encouraged by the country’s government for reasons which have political consequences as well as the more obvious economic benefits.” This was on page two of a 27-page document sent to Nolte in November of 1969, a year before Guyana became a Republic, and four years before the Burnham government’s 1973, “Feed, Clothe and House the Nation” Initiative. This country’s relationship to agriculture of course has been a fundamental, historic one, beginning with the exploitative history of the sugar plantation from slavery through indentureship to colonialism through to nationalization and relative modernization. Parallel to sugar has been the primarily private but still consequential rice industry, our second most important agricultural export and foreign currency earner. In addition to that, we’ve had a vibrant and varied agricultural sector from coconut farming to vegetables to fisheries. Subsequent political administrations have wrestled with the challenges of transforming our agriculture in a way that both provides us with food security at the national level, but also helps us to sustainably achieve that title that McDonald communicated to Nolte fifty years ago, “the bread basket of the Caribbean.” That term has arguably had a greater national mythos for us than that of El Dorado – the problem of course is that, if gold exports have been any indication, it is the latter mythos that is true. The closest we’ve come is the then iteration of the regional Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) more commonly known as the Jagdeo Initiative, an ambitious plan put forward in 2003 by, yes, then Guyanese President Bharrat Jagdeo, with Guyana supposed to play a central role in bringing stability to CARICOM regional food security. Guyana’s National Strategy for Agriculture 2013-2020 goes as far as joining the two concepts with the lofty claim that: “Agriculture 2020 is consistent with Guyana’s destiny as the “bread basket of the Caribbean”. It is, therefore, consistent with the Regional Food and Nutrition Security Policy and Plan for CARICOM. It also is consistent with the CARICOM Agriculture Vision 2015 and takes into consideration the 10 Key Binding Constraints for Agriculture in CARICOM identified in the Jagdeo Initiative.” It is unclear whether that plan survived the tenure of then Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammmy, to make it into the Granger administration. One year into his presidency, Granger himself was looking at ‘reviewing’ the Jagdeo Initiative, but still kept the commitment to the breadbasket dream. According to a Kaieteur News report of June 2016, Granger “stated that the agricultural landscape will be transformed in the coming years and Guyana will be able to produce more food which can be processed and marketed in the Eastern Caribbean – which is important.” That of course did not happen. The reality is that despite all our potential, we have not ever been able to develop our food production to satisfy a diversified export market to the region, even within the framework of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy. Twenty years after the Jagdeo Initiative was started, we’re no closer to this breadbasket reality than we were in

Wednesday August 12, 2020

On the use of ‘Amerindian’ instead of ‘Indigenous’ DEAR EDITOR, In recent days, just after the swearing in of this new government, some members of local Amerindian organisations and some candidates and affiliates of opposition parties have expressed strong disagreement about the renaming the ‘Ministry of Indigenous Peoples Affairs’ back to its original name ‘Ministry of Amerindian Affairs’. I am very disturbed at some of the sentiments expressed in the news and on social media, and even an online petition has started in support of the word ‘Indigenous’. On one of my two attendances at the United Nations in 2016 and 2017, I sought advice from my professors there on this same issue in terms of its significance and how it applies to us here in Guyana. I am fully in support of ‘Amerindian’ instead of ‘Indigenous’ and here is why: ‘Amerindian’ and ‘Indigenous’’ are both valid names that can be used, BUT... ‘AMERINDIAN’ is actually more relevant in the Guyanese context. According to the Oxford Dictionary ‘Amerindian’ as a noun means: ‘’A member of one of the indigenous peoples of the Americas’’, and when used as an adjective the word ‘Amerindian’ means: ‘’Of or relating to the indigenous

peoples of the Americas’’. This same Oxford Dictionary says online that the word Amerindian has been in use since the late 1800s. Anyone is likewise free to do online research and they will discover that the word ‘Indigenous’ has only been in use by the United Nations since 1982. So it is a complete redherring to state that the word ‘Amerindian’ originated with the European villain known as Columbus – only the Latin word ‘Indio’ is attributed to him - as that is the word he used to describe the first Amerindian he met in the Caribbean. It is blatant emotional manipulation, seeking to convince us without any factual proof, in order to get us to adopt a position that others are promoting based on a false argument. The fact remains that the word ‘Indigenous’ is also of European origin, as the word ‘indigenous’ derives from the late Latin word ‘Indigenus’ and Indigena’ (native). Another important actual fact that we should consider is that while every Amerindian IS an Indigenous person, not every Indigenous person is an Amerindian. This is because ‘Amerindian’ is specific to our race of indigenous peoples who inhabited the entire Western Hemisphere before any other race arrived in the Americas, but the word ‘Indigenous’ is a very broad and

non-racially specific social definition. If we look at our neighbour Suriname, we can see that they have two races of Indigenous peoples - so therefore, it would be more appropriate for them to adopt the official use of the word ‘Indigenous’ over there, as Suriname has various Amerindian tribes of their first indigenous peoples, but since the early 1700s when African slaves escaped from the brutal plantations and restored their African tribal culture and community structure in the jungles - they became known to the world as ‘Maroons’ or ‘Bush Negroes’. Because of this continued authentic and unbroken non-assimilated African tribal culture, they too are considered to be ‘Indigenous people’ today, but they are not ‘Amerindian’. Hopefully, this helps in understanding a little better the difference between who is an ‘Amerindian’ and who can be ‘Indigenous’. In my opinion since we only have one race of ‘indigenous peoples’ in Guyana, it is completely legal and appropriate to continue to use the name ‘Amerindians’ - as we have been doing for over 200 years. While I do concede that the word ‘Indigenous’ is gaining more popularity in most countries of the Americas, and it is the terminology used at the United Nations and other International In-

struments (which is logical, because they have to cater to the entire world, not just one country), it is by no means the only word used officially to describe Amerindian peoples even in this Hemisphere. Here are just a few examples that you may or may not know about: In the USA, the most widely used words are ‘American Indians’ and ‘Native Americans’, and in the state of Alaska - the words ‘Alaska Natives’ is used instead. In Canada, Amerindians are called ‘Aboriginal Peoples’ officially, and they have a Ministry of ‘Aboriginal Affairs’, but Canadian Amerindians themselves prefer to be called ‘First Nations’ and this term even includes the ‘Metis’ who are mainly Amerindian and European mixed persons. However, in the French part of Canada called Quebec, they still use the official word ‘Amerindian’, and in Suriname, French Guiana and the English speaking states that comprise CARICOM, of which Guyana is a founder member, the word ‘Amerindian’ is still widely used. The term ‘Indigenous’ also leaves the door open for Afrocentrists like Eric Phillips to claim that Africans were Indigenous to the ‘Americas’ in a concocted effort to steal our rights and identity as the (Continued on page 5)

Research on paddy bug management was disrupted under the previous government DEAR EDITOR I will be happy if you can permit me space in your letter column to bring attention to matters of national importance. Before I do, I want to congratulate H.E. President Dr. Irfaan Ali and his newly appointed cabinet especially the subject minister, Hon. Zulfikar Mustapha, Minister of Agriculture (MoA), who I know will bring lot of newness, experience and energy to this ministry. Now for serious issues at hand need to be addressed immediately by the President and MoA. The General Manager and Deputy General Manager of GRDB should do the dignified thing and resign or be

investigated and fired for the very disturbing state they led the rice industry and the premier Rice Research Station, Burma, into. Many farmers like me have carefully and helplessly witnessed that no good can ever come out of the rice industry under the watch of those two politically appointed managers. The facts are glaring and the display of clear actions in support of their former political masters (APNU+AFC) that don’t care about the welfare of the staff, workers, poor rice farmers and rice industry of the country. They speedily discontinued the National Paddy Bug Management Unit, which was set up by the

1969. It is time perhaps that we aim for a more practical vision. Currently, we need to take hard and painful decisions on how we retool the agriculture sector to take into consideration a complex variety of factors including: climate change, particularly coastal flooding; economic diversification into new crops; market access, regionally and further; public infrastructure, particularly sector-specific initiatives like farm to market roads; value-added processing and manufacturing; mechanization and technological innovation, including AI integration; food culture, both nationally and regionally, something Burnham had disastrously ignored in his import substitution programme of the early 1980s; the disruptive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; and of, of course, capitalization. It is in that last area that we’ve had the most positive variable

PPP/C government and had a dedicated 110 million dollars funding put aside for conducting comprehensive studies for proper understanding of the paddy bug and development of comprehensive strategies for control of the pest in Guyana. Now five years after, we still have paddy bugs ripping the industry apart, because this programme was terminated. We see in the run up to the election, they started a spray programme two crop ago, where millions was spent as a political tool or putting a plaster on the sore with no substantial relief. This programme was carried out in some selected regions and truly lacked

transparency, with a few selected farmers having benefited. Much more needs to be done on paddy bug research so the rice industry can stay alive. I was told that there was a modernization plan for the research station that started by the PPP/C administration under Chair, Badri Persaud. This was discontinued as soon as the politically appointed managers took office. The evidence is there: you would see that the staff housing quarters are in a deplorable state; steps are falling off buildings; rain wetting staff; and houses are poorly maintained in the research compound; (Continued on page 6)

between 1969 and now, specifically with the revenue from our new oil and gas sector. With the financial year almost over, the new administration will next month be producing a four-month budget that will take us to the end of 2020. However, 2021 cannot come without some hard decisions taken when it comes to transforming the agricultural sector in keeping with long-term national sustainable development and not a short-term myopic politically expedient agenda. It may be that we are at long last within the dream of becoming the breadbasket of the Caribbean, but that will only come at the end of meaningful assessment and comprehensive planning for the future – anything less and all that we will be constructing for ourselves is a basket to fetch water.

Wednesday August 12, 2020

APNU+AFC WAS NEVER INTERESTED IN THE GROWTH OR SURVIVAL OF THE AGRICULTURE SECTOR DEAR EDITOR The now opposition APNU+AFC, when in government, was never interested in the growth or even survival of the agriculture sector. They saw it as a predominantly PPP/C support base, especially the rice and sugar industries. In fact, it treated these Sectors worse than stepchildren; they were treated as outcasts which must be crippled and allowed to die. The coalition had said categorically that rice is private business, but the stark example is GUYSUCO. In December 2017, I highlighted the fact that the Agriculture Capital Budget lacked the vision needed to transform the sector and that there was a progressive decline in the budgetary allocation since 2015. The 2018 Agriculture budgetary allocation was decreased by over $1.351 billion under the 2017 allocation with no reason proffered for this significant decrease. The 2019 Budget saw a similar trend with the sector’s budgetary allocation slashed by more than $1 billion to $19 billion. The Coalition has been continuously cutting the budgetary allocations for this sector and the deleterious effect was evidenced by the progressive decline experienced not only in rice and sugar but other sub-sectors as well. There simply was nothing, which the Coalition’s Agriculture Minister could have contributed in terms of policies, direction and control. It became clear that the political ploy took precedence and Mr. Holder was just a puppet who was just enjoying the good life whilst the sector was disintegrating all around him. Poor infrastructure, drainage and irrigations problems became a nightmare for rice farmers as rice production started to decline and less acreage came under cultivation. Many were faced with bankruptcy and

could not afford to service their loans at the banks and with creditors. The ‘White Paper’ on sugar to ‘right size’ the industry actually wrong sized it to utter destruction whilst the former Minister continued to regurgitate the PNC’s directive emanating from Sophia. Can you imagine that the Coalition had spent nearly $80 million on a Commission of Inquiry and then dumped the findings and recommendations? The COI never recommended closure of any estate but closed they did. Four of them. The COI had set out a turnaround plan to bring back the industry to profitability but the PNC’s political strategy must be adhered to. To this, I must add that the $42 billion subsidy granted to GUYSUCO by the Coalition should have been used to keep the entire industry operational. The $30 billion ‘largesse’ was meant to ensure that the fat cats are well fed and the monies were squandered, filling the pockets of those in the SPU and by extension some in the Government. It must be painfully recalled that even though GuySuCo was given an average annual subsidy of $5 billion by the PPP/C Government, all the estates were operational, foreign exchange in excess of $100 million US was garnered from exports, jobs were saved and workers were enjoying a reasonable standard of living, communities were thriving, and the US dollar was stabilized. In addition, there was little flooding, residents were getting assistance from GuySuCo, but the resources-starved entity could hardly help itself. The COI saw these benefits to the economy and had advised against any closure. Since the ‘right sizing’ the sugar industry continued to decline and the over 7,000 workers who were maliciously axed were reduced to mendicants. The annual targets were

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never achieved as the factories continued to break down, infrastructures deteriorated and the cultivations suffered low yields. It was evident that GUYSUCO was facing bankruptcy. This also resulted in the economy going on a downward spiral as communities experienced social upheavals and living became a heavy burden. Life was simply not the same for thousands of Guyanese. It must be recalled that this situation rekindled the MP’s conscience on the night of December 21, 2018. Furthermore, the attempts to sell the closed estates were just another devious ploy to loot them having spent millions to engage PricewaterhouseCoopers to do an evaluation of the closed estates. The SPU was just another corrupt entity created to siphon off hundreds of millions of cash and assets. Former Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan had said that 3 estates will be reopened since, ‘we cannot keep them closed and mothballed, because when buyers come, they would probably not be as impressed as if they were working’. This was to further squander the money. They sold the estates in parts including the land. The sale of the entities never happened as they were cannibalized and parts sold as ‘scrap iron’ and machinery and equipment in working conditions were sold for peanuts to cronies. Huge acreage of land was also sold under (Continued on page 6)

Sell the four closed sugar estates to DDL for a symbolic $1 DEAR EDITOR, I note the sugar union GAWU is calling for reopening of the closed sugar estates. One must recall that the government-owned GuySuCo had dominated the news when the Coalition took power following the 2015 elections. The company had needed a huge bailout to cover its operational expenses. A commission had been set up. We learned that world market price of sugar was 17 cents a pound, but average cost of production was 38 cents. Later, we learned that government had hired McKinsey to conduct a study to figure out the value of the assets and to find international investors to purchase some or all the sugar estates.Well none was sold. A new government has been elected and assumed office two weeks ago. And, again GuySuCo needs another multi-billiondollar bailout. How many times shall the government go around the mulberry bush – once, twice? And for what purpose? Spending money to perennially bail out GuySuCo is not a good idea. It is throwing good money down a black hole. It makes good sense to sell the four closed sugar estates for a symbolic $1 to DDL. Be done with sugar. Get government out of the sugar business. No more billiondollar bailouts. DDL is an iconic Guyanese-owned company. Unlike foreign investors, there will be no repatriation of profits; all profits will be reinvested in Guyana. DDL

had bid for one or several estates, then withdrew its bid (No one knows why – this matter needs to be investigated). DDL would continue to grow sugarcane and keep most or all the laid-off workers employed. DDL would also maintain the estates’ physical infrastructure – irrigation canals, dams, bridges, factory buildings housing the sugar processing machinery – and equally important, put an end to the social blight that swept over the villages since

the closure. Where can you get a better deal than this? Where can you get a better company than DDL? They will even pay corporation taxes on its profits (ExxonMobil pays no taxes on its profits to the Government of Guyana). I urge the Irfaan Ali government to put an end to this merry go-round. Sell those closed estates to GuySuCo for a symbolic $1 today. Yours truly, Mike Persaud

On the use of ‘Amerindian’... From page 4 first Peoples. Being an Amerindian is more specific in defining us as one of the six races with a platform advocating for equal rights and opportunities. My fellow Amerindians, let us just simply face the facts of the matter – Guyana is not like Suriname; we only have one race of Indigenous Peoples, the Amerindians. Why all of a sudden are some people trying to make it seem as though, the government in restoring the Ministry’s name back to ‘The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs’, is some kind of denial or diminishing of our rights? This is not a life and death issue for us like the COVID-19 pandemic is right now, so why launch into attack mode against the new government before it was even one day old, instead of trying to promote unity and pledging your support to actually saving Amerindian lives? Yours truly, Pierre Andrews Former Toshao St. Cuthbert’s/Pakuri Village

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Wednesday August 12, 2020

May all of Guyana enjoy the Ashirvad of Shri Krishna and remain protected under His umbrella

DEAR EDITOR, In Guyana and throughout the world, Shri Krishna Janmashtmi or Gokulashtmi is being celebrated today and spilling over to tomorrow as it is a midnight celebration, the time when the Lord manifested on Mother Earth in Mathura, as Shri Krishna (the dark complexioned Lord) and fondly referred to as Gopal (one who plays the cowherds), or Govinda (one who pleases the cows, land and nature) or Mohan (all attractive God) or Vasudev (all prevailing Lord) or Yogi (the supreme master) or any of the remaining 108 names. Shri Krishna came into the imprisoned abode of His earthly parents, Devaki and Vasudeva and immediately afterwards, Vasudeva took him across the Yamuna River to his foster parents, Yashoda and Nanda in Gokul. Shri Krishna took the 8th Avatar (Incarnation) of Vishnu, the Preserver (One of the Trilogy of Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh- Creator, Sustainer, Annihilator) at a time when it was a dark era, freedom was curtailed, evil

was rampant and there was a threat to his life by his Uncle, King Kansa. Eventually, good triumphed over evil, light replaced darkness and truth conquered lies when Gopal demolished Kansa and righteousness again prevailed over unrighteousness. Some 1.25 billion followers of Hinduism will participate in different customs and traditions as is culturally practised globally but curtailed and limited this year in restricted and controlled COVID-19 protocols. The large conglomerate gathering of devotees will be disallowed by only a handful of attendees in the Mandirs, but, there are various virtual programmes for participation and Hindus will perform personal home services. Hinduism is more than just a religion and traditionally and significantly, a “way of life” that embraces religious, philosophical and cultural ideals and practices that originated thousands of years before the birth of Christ. Hinduism is called the world’s oldest religion and many practitioners refer to their religion as “Sanatana

Dharma,” “the eternal way,” which makes reference to its origins stretching beyond human history as revealed in the Hindu Texts. One of the most powerful books gifted to mankind is the Hindu Text, “The Bhagavad Gita,” simply referred to as “The Gita.” President Barack Obama is a prolific reader of this text and he once reflected that the Gita was one of the books that moulded his character and helped to influence his work towards the nation. The Gita is an eighteen chapters, 700verse Hindu Scripture that is part of the Hindu Text, “The Mahabharata,” (Chapters 2340 of Bhishma Parva). It is set in a narrative framework of a dialogue between Arjuna, the Pandava prince and his guide and charioteer Shri Krishna. On the brink of a great war on the battlefield of Kurushetra between two sets of cousins, the Pandavas and the Kauravas, over the throne of Hastinapur, Arjuna is suddenly overwhelmed with misgivings about the justice of fighting his brothers, uncles, friends and teacher on the opposite side. Shri Krishna’s

Belle Vue Pilot Scheme Co-op congratulates Dr. Irfaan Ali and PPP/C Govt. DEAR EDITOR, We, the people from Belle Vue Pilot Scheme, West Bank Demerara, Toevult-Patentia – NDC, Region # 3, that are made up of Cane Farmers Coop Members, sugar workers and our families, feel tremendously proud in extending warmest congratulations to Hon. President, Irfaan Ali, Hon. Prime Minister, Mark Phillips, and all Cabinet Ministers of this PPP/C led Government, on its election vict o r y . In addition, we will like to give thanks and congratulate all of the PPP/C leaders, especially

Hon. Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo-VP, for his unwavering fight for the Election Declaration based on the Recount, Democracy, Human Rights and Law and Order in Guyana. We, the Belle Vue Pilot Scheme people, are looking forward to have an early opportunity to meet with you, the Hon. President Irfaan Ali and/or the Ministers of government responsible for Agriculture, Labour and Co-operative Society to further strengthen our relations and foster close ties of friendship and cooperation, for Rural Development, Alleviation of

Rural Poverty and for the promotion of Law and Order and Social Justice. All the legitimate members and their Representatives of the Belle Vue Pilot Scheme, Sugar Cane Farmers’ Marketing Co-operative Society – Reg. # 967, are also looking forward to meeting with you and/or the Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Labour and Co-operative as soon as possible, to help them get justice, Land Rights, compensation for crops damage and assistance to develop their Village Economy. Thank you. Yours cooperatively, Balram Balkarran On Behalf of the residents of Belle Vue Pilot Scheme

reply to him forms the themes of the Gita, teaching him and the world the mind-body dualism, self-consciousness, the immortality of the soul, transmigration of the soul into another body at death, the purpose of life, Nirvana/Moksha (God Realization), performing one’s duty, in-action is impossible, bravery from fear, freedom from the cycle of birth and death through Jnana Yoga (the path of knowledge), Bhakti Yoga (the path of devotion) and Karma Yoga (the path of selfless action). Two main principles are expounded, one is, of every action carries an equal or opposite reaction and the source of evil is not in actions but in the passions and desires, i.e. “The intentions behind the actions.” Two American philosophers, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau considered the Gita to be the pivotal Hindu text. There are eight basic and fundamental concepts today’s society can adopt, digest and practice in the applications of our lives from the teachings of Lord Krishna: (1) Attachment -Because nothing is permanent and will perish, man should quickly detach himself from material attachments - attachment breeds misery and detachment ferments happiness, (2) False pride - Inaction is misappre-

hension and trying to escape responsibilities by failing to perform your worldly duties is being delusive. Not shunning your humanitarian commitments allows true liberation, (3) Renunciation – Give as much of yourself as long as you can and don’t be concerned with the result and reward, (4) Lust – Conquer desire for a want is not always a need. Have a stable mind to understand the nature and structure of desires so that we can exercise control, (5) Covetousness – Selfishness blinds wisdom and when put aside, then clarity of the mind steps in. A clouded mind with selfishness is a mirror covered with mist or dust, (6) Greed – Avoid extremities and embrace moderation. Too much or too little creates imbalance in life and it can be food, sleep, physical pleasures, money and even knowledge. Moderation is the control key, (7) Anger – Rage deludes and confuses us when we fall in a fit and actions performed are futile. We cannot apply logic or reason and anger can be the reason for the downfall of even the greatest man who will later regret this mood, (8) Realization – God is seated within. God is omniscient (all knower) omnipresent (here, there and everywhere) and omnipotent (all powerful). A human being is only a small piece of the

whole and most of the circumstances are a play of a bigger entity, whole or force i.e. an unmanifested source. It is thought that the theory of relativity discovered by Albert Einstein owed its existence to the wisdom contained in the Bhagavad Gita. Einstein seriously indulged in the teachings of the Gita in his later life, believing in the efficacy of the Gita from initial stages of life. Philosophy and politics are blood related and inseparable and is influential in its “rubbing effect.” Today is a day of reflection as the celebration of Janmashtmi is a commemoration of good over evil and the reestablishment of righteousness over unrighteousness. Many lessons can be learnt from the past five months in Guyana and one of them is that truth will always ultimately prevail and people will always seek the blessings of happiness and blissfulness. Gandhi had remarked that every time a problem appears as an obstacle, he turned to the pages of the Gita for its answer. Janamdin Mubarak ho… May all of Guyana enjoy the Ashirvad of Shri Krishna and remain protected under His umbrella. May the government and its officers be guided by His influence. Yours truly, Jai Lall

From page 5 corrupt deals and not given to sugar workers as Nagamootoo had wanted Guyanese to believe. Today, the four closed estates stand as a stark testimony to the diabolical acts of the Coalition to just destroy and steal. If the closed estates had remained operational, it would have been a quite easy task to get them going again. This is the opportune time for a COI to be held to bring to justice those who are accountable for this massive corrup-

tion. The newly appointed Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Zulfikar Mustapha, has hit the ground running and has already shown that he will not be confined to the office but will go out and meet the farmers in the field and get firsthand information and knowledge of what is required. His resolution of the recent flood in the Upper Corentyne speaks volumes. His method of participative interaction and contribution is what the sector needs so that policies can be formu-

lated and implemented. The Minister was born into agriculture and he has brought to his Ministry the vast knowledge of dealing with issues relating specifically to the sugar industry and his years of experience as the Regional Chairman for Region 6 dealing with general and specific agricultural issues. The sector is in good and capable hands and indeed the closed estates will be reopened and returned to profitability. Yours truly, Haseef Yusuf

APNU+AFC was never interested in the ...

Research on paddy bug management was... From page 4 laboratories facilities are grossly neglected with numerous electrical and other defects; and all infrastructure at the Research Station was left to run down to the ground. Likewise, the poor maintenance policies of machineries, equipment and vehicles at the Research Station is known and evident. These issues and many more caused the research programme to suffer tremendously due to inadequate funds to purchase basic items. I was told by researchers that these managers are giving them basket to fetch water. How can you deliver under these deplorable conditions and why should this be allowed to continue? Another big problem is the gross mismanagement of the rice export market, particularly, the Panama rice deal and milling licence. This caused many millers to owe farmers for prolonged and extended periods, resulting in destabilization of the rice

industry. Farmers and their families continued to punish with some unable to even plant again. Millers who owe large sums to farmers were given licence to continue to operate. Further, these politically appointed managers give away millions to the Special Purpose Unit/ GUYSUCO for the Wales rice project. That put the organization in serious financial woes. Until now, not a single farmer benefited for any seed paddy from that project. Not a single dollar was repaid to the Board. I respectfully asked you President H.E. Dr. Ali, Hon. Minister of Agriculture and government team to step in now, and save the rice industry so that each and every one of the citizens of this beautiful land of Guyana can truly reap the benefits and services of this noble organization. Yours truly, Suresh Rampersad

Wednesday August 12, 2020

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Ex-magistrates, lawyer, Deputy Mayor, businessmen dragged to court for breaching COVID-19 regulations

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o one is above the law and ranks of the Guyana Police Force in Region Six have been making this pellucid when dealing with those opting to flout the COVID-19 regulations. In light of this, a number of prominent members of society who reside in the Ancient County were brought to the New Amsterdam Magistrate’s Court yesterday to answer charges for breaching the regulations. Appearing before Magistrate Peter Hugh were: former Magistrates Charlyn Artiga and Chandra Sohan; attorney-at-law, Ramesh Rajkumar; businessman/contractor, Rafeek Kassim; contractor, Krishna Jagdeo and Deputy Mayor of New Amsterdam, Wainwright McIntosh. Artiga, Sohan, Rajkumar, Jagdeo and McIntosh were all charged with breach of restriction on social activities in contravention of the COVID19 emergency measures contrary to Section 21 (2) of the Public Health Ordinance Act, Chapter 145. It is alleged that on Wednesday, July 29, at Number 2 Village, East Canje, Berbice, they attended a private party. They pleaded not guilty to the charge and were placed on selfbail by Magistrate Hugh. Kassim was charged for hosting the private party. He also pleaded not guilty and was placed on self-bail. They are set to return to court on August 20, 2020.

Ex-Magistrate: Chandra Sohan

Ex-Magistrate: Charlyn Artiga

Charged: Businessman: Krishna Jagdeo

Charged: Businessman: Rafeek Kassim

Attorney-at-law: Ramesh Rajkumar

Charged: Deputy Mayor: Wainright McIntosh

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Domestic dispute ends in German authorities seize over US$300M in cocaine stashed shooting death of Cotton Tree man Police in Region Five are in rice shipmentcontainer from Guyana on the hunt for a man wanted yard. When this container was ex- in connection with the shoot-

German authorities yesterday seized over US$300M worth in cocaine stashed in a shipment of rice originating from Guyana. Reports suggest that Custom Officers discovered more than 1.5 tons of cocaine hidden in a container arriving aboard a ship from South America and coined it as one of the largest ever made at the port of Hamburg, Germany. The police reported that the container had arrived at the end of June aboard the 300-meterlong container ship “CMA CGM Jean Gabriel” at the Hamburg port. After being offloaded in Hamburg, the container was being stored in a container yard scheduled to be transshipped to Poland. German investigators reportedly received a confidential tip about a drug smuggling operation and began a thorough search of the

amined, officers found 47 large packages hidden between the rice sacks and within those packages, a total of 1,277 small parcels containing cocaine. The estimated street value of the cocaine is placed at US$353 million. The parcels all had various symbols on them, including a cat’s face, the Gallic rooster, and the Ampelmännchen (red and green traffic light symbols shown on pedestrian signals in Germany). Several hundred of the packages were marked with the same logo. Lesley Ramlall, Deputy Head of Guyana’s Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU, in an invited comment, told Kaieteur News that local investigators have since launched a probe into the massive bust.

ing to death of a 30-year-old man from West Coast Berbice. According to reports, the victim died yesterday morning at the New Amsterdam Hospital hours after the shooting. He was shot in the region of his chest. Dead is Winston Robertson of Cotton Tree, West Coast Berbice, a father of three. The suspect has been identified as Ricardo Mitchell. Police disclosed that the suspect and his wife were engaged in an intense argument on Sunday night about her alleged romantic involvement with someone else. That argument reportedly turned physical, prompting the woman to seek refuge at a friend’s home. Robertson, according to reports, was at the house when the woman arrived. It was revealed that Mitchell got word that his wife was at the house and ventured over there Monday night. It is alleged that Mitchell became enraged and shot Robertson because he (Robertson) was engaged in a conversation with his (Mitchell’s) wife. Mitchell then proceeded to beat his wife with the very gun, which he used to shoot Robertson. The woman sustained lacerations about her body and is currently hospitalized at the Fort Wellington Hospital. Meanwhile, mother of the dead man, Beverley Robertson of Mahaicony, East Coast Demerara, told this publication that she received a call around 20:00hrs Monday night from someone who

Dead: Winston Robertson

informed her that her son was shot. She disclosed that she left her home and headed to Berbice. “When we went to the place where he got shot, the guy and his wife that live there said that the guy that shot my son believed that he was having an affair with his wife and the wife was staying by these people because her husband beat her badly,” the woman related. She added, “They told me that the suspect jumped the back fence and went in with the gun and then is when he shot him.” According to the grieving mother, she was told that there was no argument between her son and the suspect before he was shot. She said too that she was told that, the suspect, after entering the premises had pointed the gun at the couple’s 11-year-old daughter before he turned the gun on the victim. “The guy point the gun to the daughter first before he shot my son. These people have a car wash so my son would normally go there and wash his car and he is friends

with them as well,” she said. The woman said, based on the information she received, her son was shot once. However, she said that her sister told her that a doctor has since advised that her son was shot twice. Beverley Robertson said that she spent the entire night at the hospital since her son was rushed into surgery and it wasn’t “until this morning (yesterday) they came out the theatre and they told us that they took him to the recovery room and that he was stable and everything and we can’t see him. So we decided to come home and we would have gone back for 4pm visit but when we came home, then we got the call that he died.” She noted that she never heard of her son having any issues with the suspect. In addition to his mother, Robertson, who was employed in the fishing industry, leaves to mourn three siblings. He was described as a jovial person who had a good relationship with friends, family and the community.

Wednesday August 12, 2020

Kaieteur News

The word for today is nepotism

T

he programme, “From Word to Word, is aired Mondays to Fridays on stateowned radio. It is narrated by Dr. Rovin Deodat, and is an educational programme that explains the origins, meaning and uses of words. It so happened that the featured word for yesterday was “nepotism”. The word means “the practice among those with power or influence of favouring relatives or friends, especially by giving them jobs.” In common political parlance, it means “jobs for the boys and girls” or for friends, family and cronies.” According to Dr. Deodat, “nepotism” comes from the Italian root ‘nipote’, which means nephew and ‘nepotismo’ which refers to the practice of Italian Popes in the 17th century of privileges on their illegitimate children whom, for practical purposes, they referred to as their nephews. The APNU+AFC had many ‘nephews’ within the government system. The former administration took care of not only its nephews but also its nieces, handing some of them top jobs within government Ministries. The truth is now emerging about the level of nepotism, which was being practised over the past five years. And what is being revealed in the level of political patronage which friends and members of the APNU and AFC enjoyed within the state sector. The Kaieteur News reported the new Minister of Local government as saying that there were 23 staff members of the former Minister’s

Secretariat who were earning as much as, in total per month, $7.73M and that numbered amongst those persons were political figures associated with the APNU+AFC. The APNU+AFC had come into office on a strong platform of railing against cronyism and corruption. It had pledged to bring an end to cronyism in government and to reduce waste and extravagance. In one of his first public comments, the head of the APNU+AFC Coalition, David Granger, had said that the time had come to bring an end to corruption, nepotism and squander mania. Instead of removing nepotism, the APNU+AFC outclassed the undisputed champion when it came to packing the government system with political loyalists. It was also accused from its early days of issuing a contract, untendered and for the storage of medicines, to one of its cronies. The APNU was stacked with military veterans and a number of ex-army personnel, way past retirement, were manoeuvred into key government jobs, even though there were younger persons who could fill those positions. One ministry had four public relations officers. And this, despite the fact that government had at its disposal, the Guyana Chronicle, the National Communications Network and the Department of Public Information, all of which are heavily bloated. It is also being reported that an associate of the PNC/ R leaders, enjoyed generous emoluments even though the individual spends a great deal of his time abroad. Yet he was paid a net salary of more than

a half of a million dollars per month. His electricity, internet and telephone bills were all paid by the government. He enjoyed state-paid security at his home and was assigned a driver and a vehicle along with duty-free allowances and a healthy gratuity which amounts to more than onefifth of his gross salary tax free. The full extent of the nepotism is now being fully understood. One of the dangers of favouring friends, family and cronies is that the professionals get shunted aside. And as a consequence, the quality of the public service becomes compromised. A number of the persons whose names appeared on the list of the APNU+AFC candidates were working already within the public service and public sector. By convention, these persons should have resigned. The principle behind this convention is that anyone who is contesting for political office cannot be expected to support the very government, which they are opposing in the government. And so the ethical thing for them to do was to resign prior to the elections. Nepotism is not unique to the PNC/R but they took it to a higher level than was expected, especially considering their promise to end this practice. (The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

Dem boys seh ...

Soulja Bai gat fuh choose between Presidential pension and parliamentary pay

Dem boys realize why de Hap-New+Hay-Eff-See government bin under strain. Dem was like some of dem mini-bus during peak hour. De government bin overload. Was more than just doubling up and tripling up tekin place. Wan Minister alone had 58 advisors. And dem bin wukin fuh fat, fat salaries and allowances. And de new government still trying to determine wah dem bin do pon de wuk. Some of dem bin wukin from home even before the coronavirus struck. Dem used to call it homework. Every government does create jobs fuh dem friends

and family. But dem boys shock dat was suh many jobs bin create in one Ministry alone. In dat Ministry alone, dem contract workers costing de taxpayers more than $30M every month. In another Ministry, it cost de treasury $800M just fuh pay dem political appointee. All of dat money pay out and still people nah get proper light and water. Dat nah right at all. If yuh finding wuk fuh yuh friends and cronies, the least yuh could ask dem fuh provide is a proper service. Dem boys want find out how many of dem political appointees bin drawing money under false pretence.

Dem boys seh if dem can’t show de wuk wah dem do, dem should pay back all dem fat salary wah dem bin receive. Soulja Bai gan help some of dem wah gan get send home. He gan mek some of dem MPs. Dem boys read how Soulja Bai is head of de List. But dem boys wan know whether he going back to de National Assembly as Leader of the Opposition. If he do dat, he gan lose dat fat Presidential pension. De law seh no double dipping. Is either de fat pension or the slim MP pay. Talk half and hope Soulja Bai choose right.

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Wednesday August 12, 2020

Kaieteur News

=== The Freddie Kissoon column ===

Vincent Alexander and others are letting down African Guyanese?

I

f you belong to another planet, and you descended upon Guyana on Monday, August 10, 2020 and you read a letter by Vincent Alexander in the Kaieteur News and Stabroek News on the recent election insanity, you will not survive apoplexy when you are told who Vincent Alexander is. In order to understand how the visitor will get a stroke, you have to read some of the things in Alexander’s

letter. Here goes: “The International Decade for People of African DescentGuyana wrote to Prime Minister Mottley, the then Chairperson of CARICOM, on the occasion of the visit of five CARICOM Prime Ministers, indicating that Guyana’s problems are deepseated and that elections only manifest the problem. We beseeched them to look beyond elections, if their real interest was to lend a helping

hand to the peoples of Guyana. To date the honourable ones, with our lives in their hands, have not even acknowledged receipt of our exhortations.” Why did Alexander hope for a reply? The answer is that he thought the five prime ministers were stupid. Alexander signed the letter but the CARICOM PMs knew he was part of rigging the election. They had to figure

that if this gentleman sees a larger picture than the meaning of election, then why is he part of a three-man team from one of the parties that contested the election and is rigging it to get his party in power only to further the ethnic divide. The question is: was Alexander involved in election fraud? The answer is yes. He would have had access to the Statements of Polls (SOPs) as a GECOM commissioner on the early morning of March 3, 2020 that the Chief Elections Officer (CEO) had in his possession. Those SOPs showed APNU+AFC lost. Yet on, Saturday, March 7, the CEO was summoning a formal meeting of GECOM to endorse the fraud thus allowing for the swearing in of the loser. From March 7, until the end of July when the Court of Appeal ruled on the validity of the recount, Alexander tenaciously clung to the advocacy that the March 7 declaration of an APNU+AFC victory was valid and should be used to declare a result. Alexander even tabled a motion for that declaration to be adopted by GECOM. This very gentleman wrote the five PMs exhorting them to use context to see the deeper meaning of Guyana’s sociology than the periodic presence of national elections. But the five PMs had to see it as an act of selfinsult that they would accept the exhortation of a GECOM commissioner, involved in election fraud, using the name

of an African organization. Let’s quote Alexander again: “Similarly, after the riotous day, post E-Day, on the West Coast of Berbice, the United Nations Human Rights Council was written to, drawing their attention to the situation which we considered to be a Human Rights issue being manifest at elections time. They too have not taken any action.” In the case of the five CARICOM PMs, Alexander thought the UN Human Rights Council consisted of stupid people. The election violence was a response to Mingo’s imposition of fictional figures thereby destroying the legitimacy of a country’s national election in which GECOM commissioners like Alexander were guilty participants. Alexander’s implorations to five CARICOM PMs and the UN had to be met with non-reply because the advocacy was coming from someone who was a GECOM commissioner and GECOM was accused by respected international organizations and governments close to CARICOM countries of electoral fraud. I have always perceived Alexander as being very intelligent but did he really think that the five PMs and the UN would have listened to him as head of the International Decade for People of African DescentGuyana and ignore what he was doing as a GECOM commissioner? One final quote from

Frederick Kissoon Alexander: “Elections and Democracy are well and good, all things being equal. In Guyana, all things are not equal. Elections and the “so called democracy” are therefore dysfunctional and only exacerbate rather than resolve our problems.” This is either amazing dishonesty or depraved barefacedness. If Alexander believes that elections exacerbate Guyana’s perennial ethnic animosities and democracy cannot be secured through so-call election victories, then how this same gentleman could have done two things. One is table a motion at a statutory meeting of GECOM to accept the declaration that contained Mingo’s fraudulent numbers. The other is why from March 7 to July, almost five months, he persisted in upholding and calling for a declaration based on Mingo’s illegal numbers? Alexander did not serve the cause of African Guyanese when he wrote the five PMs and the UN, on the contrary, he let them down. (The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

Wednesday August 12, 2020

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Wednesday August 12, 2020

Region Two REO, six others given marching orders The Regional Executive Officer (REO) of Region Two, Denis Jaikaran, was yesterday issued with a letter of Termination of Contract Service from the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development. The letter, which was shown to media representatives yesterday, stated that Jaikaran is to proceed on administrative leave and his termination of contract will take effect from October 27, 2020. The letter in part, read: “Your contract for service as Regional Executive Officer Pomeroon Supenaam Region within the Ministry of Communities dated 2018-10-01 to 2021-09-30, inclusive, is hereby terminated with effect from 2020-10-27, pursuant to clause 7 (a) of the said contract.” The letter went on to state that “You are hereby directed to proceed upon administrative leave with immediate effect until the said contract comes to an end, that is to say, 2020-10-27…You are hereby requested to immediately return any property and records of the Government of Guyana, which may still be in your custody.” Jaikaran was assigned to Region Two [Pomeroon/ Supenaam] in January 2018, replacing then REO, Rupert Hopkinson. After serving the Region for over two years, Jaikaran was heavily scruti-

Terminated REO: Denis Jaikaran nized for several reports of misconduct. Based on reports, the public officer, who represented the former coalition government, executed his duties as REO in dictatorial fashion. Jaikaran was often accused of being biased and vindictive towards staff, residents and even elected officials, if he suspected they were aligned with the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/ C). Kaieteur News understands that Jaikaran has a pending court matter, which alleges that he assaulted the Regional Vice Chairman in 2018. The now former REO is also said to be responsible for singlehandedly obstructing the democratic functioning of the Regional Council. There are other unflattering allegations levelled against Jaikaran. Shortly after he vacated his Anna Regina Office, Re-

gional Chairman, Devenand Ramdatt, spoke with this publication. Ramdatt said, “He [Jaikaran] was given a letter of termination. We just witnessed the handover and the process went smoothly as he handed over to the programme managers.” When asked how soon the now vacant position of REO will be filled, Ramdatt said, “We are not certain when someone will fill his position, but we are certain the development agenda of our country, it has to start and so we’ll have to wait on that contract of a new REO for now.” Six other REOs were also given marching orders by the Ministry. These include: Randolph Storm, Region One; Jennifer Ferreira Dougal, Region Three; Ovid Morrison, Region Five; Kim StephenWilliams, Region Six; Carl Parker, Region Nine, and Orrin Gordon, Region 10.

The Letter of Termination, which was issued to Jaikaran.

Wednesday August 12, 2020

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Kaieteur News

MotP assistant researcher Suriname issues arrest warrant for former paid super salary of $300k Finance Minister on corruption charges According to new details, a research assistant attached to the Ministry of the Presidency (MotP) had secured a salary of over $300,000 a month, complemented by many benefits. In fact, a document details that the employee, Ronald Austin Jr., had not only secured a salary of $324,586 a month, but he also benefitted from a travel allowance of $10,000 that was free of tax; owned a government-paid landline and was provided with cellular service on which the internet was paid for by the government too. The benefits did not stop there. It included a gratuity of 22½ percent of his basic salary calculated at half yearly intervals. Austin Jr. was also the beneficiary of an annual vacation allowance of one month’s basic salary earned at the anniversary date of his employment. Notably, his contract was renewed one month before the March 2, General and Regional Elections. Austin Jr’s., contract was released shortly after he posted to Facebook that he worked his “socks off for years” and had received no special treatments. He said, in fact that he worked all across the 10 administrative regions with what he considered to be a “basic contract and salary” and insisted that he “never got the big perks.” His post went on to state that, “It seems as if professionals are being sent a subtle message that you must join the party to get these fat salaries. We need meritocracy. Persons must be rewarded based on volume of work and a clear merit system.”

- contract renewed one month before elections Research assistant attached to the MotP, Ronald Austin Jr.

Some transparency advocates, however, have raised concerns on how it is that a research assistant like Austin Jr., could secure the benefits that he has. This research assistant is only one out of a list of possibly hundreds, who were paid big bucks by the previous coalition administration for holding obscure positions, and no proof can be unearthed to show that these employees did any actual work. Kaieteur News, only two days ago, reported that the Ministry of Communities, under the previous ministry, had paid over $800M to some 56 contract workers for their work since 2015. Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall, made that disclosure during his first press engagement at the

Arthur Chung Conference Centre after a review of the records was conducted. “We found that in the Minister’s Secretariat of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, 23 staffers were earning as much as, in total per month, $7.73M,” he told the press. Among those staffers, he said, were political appointees of the previous A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) administration. Since the new People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) government took office a week ago, none of the 56 staffers showed up to work. Between the Community Development Council (CDC), and former Minister Ronald Bulkan’s Secretariat, the Minister said, the payroll was approximately $13.5 million per month.

The police in Suriname have issued an arrest warrant for former Finance Minister, Gillmore Hoefdraad. He is suspected of 11 criminal offences, including violations of the banking and anti-corruption laws, fraud and embezzlement. The nos.nl online news reported yesterday that Hoefdraad was banned from leaving Suriname at the end of July but still managed to elude authorities. He was reportedly seen in the Corentyne area, Region Six, in Guyana. He is suspected of crossing the Corentyne River, which had been closed to traffic because of COVID-19 restrictions in both Suriname and Guyana. Since then he has been on the run. According to the news report yesterday, there are serious suspicions against Hoefdraad, who, together with the former boss of the Central Bank of Suriname (CBvS), Robert-Gray van Trikt, allegedly committed fraud. Hoefdraad, for example, would have sold 17 government buildings to the Central Bank for 105 million euros. He is also said to have misused royalty income on

Wanted in Suriname for fraud: Former Finance Minister, Gillmore Hoefdraad

gold. According to local media, Hoefdraad had instituted summary proceedings against the Surinamese state because he thinks he is being unjustly prosecuted. According to his lawyers, the decision to prosecute him is illegal because he has not been heard by Parliament and has therefore not been able to defend himself. Hoefdraad was previously heard and his defense was accepted by the then parliament, where expresident Desi Bouterse’s

party had the majority. However, his government lost power during elections a few weeks ago. Bouterse, a former army strongman who had ruled Suriname for years in the 80s, would have conceded. After the new parliament took office, after the elections on May 25, it was decided that Hoefdraad should be prosecuted. According to Hoefdraad and his lawyers, this is not allowed because parliament cannot handle the same case twice.

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Kaieteur News

Wednesday August 12, 2020

UN asks Guyana to explain polarization, misinformation and insufficiencies of 2020 elections

The United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHCR) has asked Guyana to explain a series of issues

stemming from its contentious 2020 General and Regional Elections. The Committee raised

concerns that the “current electoral system exacerbates the existing ethno-political polarization and, therefore,

does not promote social cohesion and diversity…” The United Nations has taken note of reports that Guyana’s politics is dominated by two parties, the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) and the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC), which have contributed to the “political marginalization of ethnic minorities...” To that end, the Committee noted reports that the elections in March were characterized by such factors such as polarization through widespread hate speech and misinformation. It also noted insufficient measures to ensure a peaceful and inclusive electoral process. The protraction of the electoral process was characterized by several attempts to fraudulently alter the results to favour the APNU+AFC coalition, and a series of court cases. The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) fielded a three-member team to scrutinize the national recount of votes, and that team eventually produced a report that

From left: Major candidates in elections 2020, David Granger and Irfaan Ali sufficiently informed the international community of the developments of the elections and of the credibility of the recount process. The report was keen to note several issues with the composition of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), and what those mean for its ability to produce elections that are impartial and fair. The United Nations

TT hits 300 covid19 cases

NEWSDAY - The Ministry of Health said five more people have tested positive for covid19 in its update at 6 pm yesterday. That brings the total number of covid19 cases to 300. Four of the five cases were contacts of recently positive covid19 cases while the fifth was currently the subject of an epidemiological investigation. The five additional cases brought the number of active covid19 cases in TT to 153. The total number of samples sent to the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) for testing was 10,609. The Ministry of Health is reminding the public to exercise caution and observe the public health regulations when outdoors, this includes physically distancing, wearing face masks, hand sanitising and observing good personal hygiene.

asked Guyana to “discuss the independence, impartiality and efficacy of the Guyana Elections Commission in supervising the electoral process and ensuring that elections are conducted fairly and impartially, including detailed information on the selection of its chairperson.” It asked Guyana to speak, as well, to the frameworks in place to monitor campaign financing, “including information on disclosure of contributions and expenditures and any existing oversight mechanisms…” In this regard, there is no legislation, which governs campaign financing. Finally, on the elections, the Committee raised concerns about allegations that arrangements to facilitate persons with disabilities and pretrial detainees to participate in the elections effectively and not deprive them of their right to vote.

Wednesday August 12, 2020

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Kaieteur News

Lincoln Lewis in land dispute with Kingelly residents Veteran trade unionist, Lincoln Lewis, is locked in a bitter land dispute with residents of Kingelly Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB), Region Five. Over 30 residents travelled to Georgetown from the WCB village yesterday to meet with the authorities and have the issue highlighted by the media. The residents are accusing Lewis of a barefaced attempt to seize hundreds of acres of land at Kingelly already in their possession. Kaieteur News understands that the issue stems from a dispute over ancestral properties dating back to the 1960s. Since then, the issue has resulted in various forms of litigation as well as a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into claims made by Lewis that the properties are part of his ancestral inheritance. The villagers complained that this is despite their occupation of properties for in excess of three decades. “We live there and farm the lands for years. Most people grew up in Kingelly and inherit the property from their parents or grandparents,” said Sharmella Abel a resident of Kingelly for over 30 years. The woman said that their troubles started after Lewis claims of ancestral inheritance to Kingelly surfaced a few years ago. Abel divulged that as a result, several members of the farming community took steps to secure prescriptive title for the land. She said that she thought the matter had been put to rest, up until last weekend when Lewis and two other persons, including a member

Lincoln Lewis of the Kingelly Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), joined in fencing large sections of the land, again claiming ancestral rights to the properties. “He just come over the weekend, and start fence the lands that we using as pasture. When we tell he can’t do that, he say he got transport for the land. He say that his great grandfather de own de land but he ain’t produce no transport. Those lands were passed down. I grow up there and we never had issues with the land except when Lincoln Lewis come and claim that the land belongs to him. He is taking advantage of these people and have respect for nobody, especially poor people,” Abel asserted. She told Kaieteur News that Lewis’ illegal occupancy of the lands has severely affected their livelihood. The woman accused Lewis of putting up a fence to stop the villagers from grazing their animals and living peacefully…” Jackelyn Hart another resident, who spoke on behalf of residents of Kingelly, told this newspaper that Lewis has

Over 30 residents travelled from Kingelly, WCB to Georgetown to highlight their concerns. been taking possession of the properties to sell to friends and family. She too explained that Lewis’ claims that his great grandfather, Kojo McPherson, brought all the lands and even testify before a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into African ancestral land matters. “His claim of a transport is questionable since the State only produced documentation for the lands from the 1970s but he come and breaking down people fence and taking over the pasture and building he own fence blocking people’s entrance and all sorts of things. It is just barefaced bullyism,” the woman said. She said that she hopes by raising the matter with the authorities, it would result in some redress for the residents of Kingelly. Kaieteur News made ef-

forts to contact Lewis for a comment on the matter but all calls to his mobile phone went unanswered. However, during an appearance before a CoI into African ancestral land matters in 2017, Lewis made claims that his grandfather had owned the properties. Lewis reportedly produced a transport for the land but told there was no will to prove his inheritance. He had explained “…That my great, great, great grandfather Kojo did not leave a will for his descendants is a matter of perspective in the era that he lived; that the absence of such document may have caused others not of his lineage to think that it is acceptable to claim land that they did not purchase nor could not have inherited, our submission to this commission is to have this injustice corrected.”

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Wednesday August 12, 2020

Kaieteur News

Guyanese Critic’s building riddled with bullets

A Lusignan, East Coast Demerara building, owned by Mikail Rodrigues aka Guyanese Critic, was last night riddled with bullets. The perpetrator(s) up to press time were unknown. Based on information obtained by Kaieteur News, no one was hurt. Critic, in an invited comment, said he and a few others were inside the building when it came under attack around 21:20hrs. He said he heard “rapid gun fire”.

“We deh inside chilling and all we hear is rapid gunfire, about seven to 10 shots. When we come outside, we saw nobody but we found spent shells,” he told Kaieteur News. The Social Media commentator said that he found about four war heads along with two spent shells at the front of the building. When asked who would want to hurt him, Critic said, “I got problems with everybody.” Police were summoned to the scene and an investigation has been launched.

A few spent shells and war heads found at the scene last night.

COVID-19 cases jump to over 600

The Ministry of Health COVID-19 Bulletin shows Guyana has over 600 COVID-19 cases Guyana’s COVID -19 cases have surpassed 600. According to new information disseminated by the Ministry of Health, 34 new cases were discovered from tests within the last 24 hours. The new cases represent 18 males and 16 females who were tested for the disease. This has increased the total number of cases to 602. The total number of persons tested thus far is 5,366. From that total, the number of persons in institutional isolation is 391 with four in the ICU; 49 in institutional quarantine. The death toll remains at 22 and 189 persons have

recovered. The Ministry’s COVID-19 bulletin showed a regional breakdown of the cases of which Region Four has the highest incidence of COVID-19 transmission with 26 percent of the cases. Region Seven has 24 percent of the cases; Region Nine has 21 percent; Region One has 17 percent; Region Two has one percent; Region Three has five percent, Region Eight has two percent and Region 10 has five percent. Meanwhile, the information revealed that Regions Five and Six are COVID-19 free.

Wednesday August 12, 2020

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Wednesday August 12, 2020

Car stolen in broad daylight at Meadow Bank Public Road WANTED

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Anil Singh’s red Toyota Allion, PMM 9484 The car of a Banks DIH salesman, Anil Singh, was on Monday stolen, in broad daylight. The car was parked on the Meadow Bank Public Road just outside of Thirst Park. Singh’s red Toyota Allion, PMM 9484, was stolen at around 14:30hrs while it was parked on the side of the road in close proximity to his workplace, Banks DIH. The salesman said that he had parked his car earlier that day and reported for his duties at the Thirst Park location. However, later that afternoon when he exited the compound to go home, he could not find his car. He immediately made a post on Facebook about his missing car and lodged a report at the Ruimveldt Police Station. Within minutes, he said, someone told him that his car was spotted at the Demerara Harbour Bridge. Singh accompanied by a police officer rushed to that location but when they arrived, the car was

gone. Video footage obtained from nearby CCTV cameras revealed that at approximately 14:30hrs, a vehicle pulled up beside the man’s car and an individual exited and was seen bracing against it. The individual remained in that position for at least five minutes. It would appear that the individual was picking the lock. The individual then entered Singh’s car and spent close to 10 minutes presumably “hot wiring” the car before driving off. The other vehicle sped away as well. Singh told Kaieteur News that he has been parking his car along the Meadow Bank Public Road almost every day for the last two years. Anyone with information about Singh’s car can contact him on cell phone numbers: 621-5517 or 642-3617 or the nearest police station.

Wednesday August 12, 2020

Kaieteur News

“I did not concede, I accepted President, the declaration” - Former David Granger

Guyana’s former President, David Granger, sought to clear up the public misconception that he conceded to his loss at the March 2, 2020 elections. He made it known that he merely “accepted the declaration.” “I did not concede,” Granger said during an interview with Social Activist, Mark Benschop, last evening. “What I did,” he clarified “is accept the declaration issued by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).” Exactly five months after Guyanese ventured to the polls on March 2, the GECOM Chair, Justice Retired Claudette Singh, issued a declaration, ending the stalemate following a unanimous Court of Appeal ruling in the Misenga Jones, et al case. However, before that declaration was made, APNU+AFC Commissioners had suggested that then President, Granger, and then Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo, meet to devise a way forward. That meet did not come to fruition after Jagdeo made it clear that he would only hold talks “after a declaration is made”. Shortly after, Granger issued a statement saying “…as far as a proposed declaration is concerned, he recognised that the Commission has a legal obligation as

a result of the recent ruling of the Court of Appeal, to proceed with a declaration.” It was this statement that hinted at him conceding to his loss. “I did not concede. I never used the word conceded, I never…we abide by the ruling of the Court,” Granger added. Responding to questions on why he did not declare a state of emergency to prevent the GECOM from making a declaration with what his party believed were tainted results, Granger maintained his party has been “consistent in its adherence to the law.” “At no time did I ever say that we will not accept the declaration,” Granger said, adding that his party ventured to the Courts on numerous occasions to defend their claims. “We went to the Magistrates’ Court, the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and the Caribbean Court of Justice. We are a law abiding party,” he added. His party, Granger continued, pledged to abide by the Constitution and such a decision was not made by the whim of one person but as a collective decision. Elections petition On the filing of an elections petition, Granger said

Former President, David Granger the case should be filed by next Monday. The former President explained that the dossier entitled “The Guyana Situation” will be used as the basis for the case. Granger also maintained that there is concrete evidence to prove that there were attempts to manipulate the elections using a “bloated list” along with clear evidence of dead and migrant voters that the party claimed were discovered during the National Recount. It should be noted that these allegations were publicly debunked in a series of articles done by Kaieteur News and no other evidence was provided to back up the claims.

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Morbidelli: Maiden MotoGP podium because of “big brother” Rossi Autosport - Franco Morbidelli says his maiden MotoGP podium in the Czech Grand Prix is “mostly because of” his mentor Valentino Rossi, who he says is “like a big brother” to him. The Petronas SRT rider led for the first 12 laps of Sunday’s Brno race on his Petronas SRT Yamaha, before ultimately taking his first podium in second place after eventual race winner Brad Binder passed him on the 13th tour. Morbidelli made his MotoGP debut in 2018 as the reigning Moto2 world champion, becoming the first rider from the VR46 Academy to make the step to the premier class. The Italian’s route to MotoGP was unconventional,

Franco Morbidelli celebrates with trophy. having stepped to Moto2 from the European Superstock 600 series. Commenting on the role Rossi played in his Brno

podium, Morbidelli said: “I am here mostly because of him, because he believed in me when I was a nobody. “So, I know it’s a bit of a

Wednesday August 12, 2020 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) OK, up and at 'em, Aries! You might feel like you're walking through sand today, but you really need to shake your booty and get the blood flowing.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) You'll want to respond to your creative juices, which will be flowing freely today, Libra. Don't suppress the urge to sing, compose, paint, or write.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20) You could be startled to find that your artistic talents, although dormant for a while, are called into service today. A particular undertaking of those around you could benefit from your gift in this area.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Tugs on the home front could be pulling you away from attending an event with friends that you've been looking forward to for some time.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) This could be a tough day for you emotionally. It might surprise you to find that some very old, deep-seated feelings get churned up in the course of investigating a subject of keen interest to you. CANCER (June 21–July 22) Things could be up and down for you today. You might experience some confusion as a result of communication snafus or computer glitches that affect financial issues you're trying to solve. LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) You might be feeling a little tense because you and your partner are grappling with some thorny financial issues right now, Leo. VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) This will be an exciting day for you intellectually. A number of intriguing concepts will catch your fancy, and you'll be hungry to learn more about them right away. Your research could take you to a library or onto the Internet.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) Cool heads will be needed today, Sagittarius, as tempers may flare at work because of frustration with ongoing problems. CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) If you find yourself secondguessing plans you made earlier, Capricorn, perhaps for a plane trip, try to look objectively at your concerns. AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) You might find yourself wrestling some ongoing, unresolved issues that could interfere with your ability to do your job. Be mindful that you're a bit brittle today, particularly if you're working on financial matters, Aquarius. PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) There is a possibility that you'll fall into a bit of a regression today as old feelings of anxiety or inadequacy surface. Although you've reached a good place in terms of self-confidence, some old childhood fears could resurface.

Franco Morbidelli (left) says his maiden MotoGP podium in the Czech Grand Prix is “mostly because of” his mentor Valentino Rossi (centre). strange situation because we race one against the other, but finally when the race is over we are... he is a great friend of mine. “He’s like a big uncle to me, even more, he’s like a big brother. “So after the race I just wanted to hug him, I wanted to huge all the academy riders, [Andrea] Migno, [Celestino] Vietti and [Marco] Bezzecchi, they were there. “It was a great moment.” Rossi - who was fifth in the Brno race - expressed his pride in Morbidelli’s podium, and says he “deserves it” having been strong from the winter tests to now. “We are very proud of Franco, he did a great race after a great weekend,” Rossi said when asked by Autosport for his thoughts on Morbidelli’s podium. “He was always very fast, very strong. “He deserves the podium because this year already from the winter tests he was very strong. “We are very proud of Franco and all the riders of the Academy. “I think we do a very good job, because we helped them to find a good team, a good

Federer handed retirement advice from Edberg... From page 26 if you’re going to announce it, I would do it just before my last tournament…or have it in my mind but not for anybody else to know.” Edberg was feted from tournament to tournament in his final year and he failed to win a title, going closest when he reached the Queen’s Club final. He said: “It’s just very tough to handle but at the same time, it was a memorable year. But, I would not recommend it.”

bike, so not just managing and training. “It’s very difficult, because Franco, Pecco [Bagnaia]... in MotoGP, there’s not a lot of good bikes. “But we were able to put

them in good teams with good bikes and I think they can demonstrate their value. “I think they are very strong and I think they can be protagonists for the future.”

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Four-goal Shakhtar set up Europa semi against Inter GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany (Reuters) - Shakhtar Donetsk booked a clash with Inter Milan in the Europa League semi-finals after goals from Brazilians Junior Moraes, Taison, Alan Patrick and Dodo gave them a 4-1 win over FC Basel in a one-sided last-eight clash yesterday. The Ukrainian champions will take on Inter in Duesseldorf on Monday after Sunday’s semi-final in Cologne between 2017 Europa League winners Manchester United and Sevilla, who have won Europe’s second-tier competition a record five times. The final is set for Aug. 21 in Cologne. Sevilla clinched their berth with a 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in yesterday’s other quarterfinal thanks to a late goal by Lucas Ocampos. Shakhtar, who won Europe’s second-tier club competition in 2009, missed a string of chances to triumph by an even bigger margin as they dominated the match with crisp onetouch passing and superior close control. Moraes headed the

Ukrainian side into a secondminute lead after a howler by Basel’s Serbian goalkeeper Djordje Nikolic, who was beaten to the ball by the striker after rushing off his line to meet a Marlos corner. Nikolic made amends with several good saves in the first half but was powerless in the 22nd minute when Taison capped a lightning Shakhtar break with a deflected shot after good work by Marlos and a clever dummy by Patrick. Marcos Antonio rattled the woodwork with a longrange effort in the 40th minute before Shakhtar took their foot off the pedal in the second half, content with keeping possession as their rivals chased shadows. Still, Patrick made it 3-0 with a 75th-minute penalty after Yannick Marchand fouled livewire Taison in the area and right back Dodo added the fourth in the 89th minute, with the goal awarded after a VAR check for offside. Substitute Ricky van Wolfswinkel netted a stoppage time consolation for Basel from close range but the Swiss side had little to cheer after being blown away by their opponents.

Shakhtar Donetsk’s Alan Patrick celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). (Pool via REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay)

Federer handed retirement advice from Williams wins feature but Edberg, urged to avoid farewell tour Walcott, Whitehall also shine Omnisport - Roger Federer has been urged by his boyhood idol and former coach Stefan Edberg to avoid a drawn-out farewell to tennis. Swedish great Edberg announced in December 1995 that he would be retiring at the end of the following season, but he regrets the way he bowed out. He endured a sticky 1996 campaign and is convinced his mind became muddled because there was so much discussion of his departure from the sport. The former Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open champion - who won each of those grand slams twice - revealed he and Federer have spoken about how best to walk away.

At the age of 39, Federer is sitting out the rest of the 2020 season after knee surgery but looks set to return in 2021, even if tennis continues to be played behind closed doors. The 20-time grand slam winner may elect to depart after one of his favourite tournaments and Edberg says the Swiss should make a sharp exit, rather than repeat his own mistake. Edberg told The Tennis Podcast: “We actually talked a little bit about it and I would not recommend it to anybody actually, even if it’s a nice thing to do, because it does put too much pressure on yourself and there will be too many things going on in your mind. “So, (Continued on page 25)

Roger Federer has been urged by his boyhood idol and former coach Stefan Edberg to avoid a drawn-out farewell to tennis.

EDMONTON, Alberta, CMC – Championship leader Rico Walcott and Antonio Whitehall both rode braces but it was their Barbadian counterpart Rey Williams who took top honours by capturing the feature CAN$40 000 Spangled Jimmy Handicap with 3-1 choice Deuces Are Wild here Sunday. Going seven furlongs for the three-year-olds and upward in race eight, Williams carried the four-year-old chestnut gelding gate-to-wire to claim victory by 1-¼ lengths in a time of one minute, 22.40 seconds. Favourite Stone Carver, ridden by Venezuelan Rigo Sarmiento, finished second while Walcott brought 2-1 chance Trooper John in to be third. Deuces Are Wild outsprinted his rivals to the lead to produce splits of 22.65 seconds for the quarter and 44.97 for the half, with Stone Carver, Whitehall’s Chaska and Sharp Dressed Beau, ridden by Jamaican Shamaree Muir, duelling for second. Pressed at the quarter pole by Stone Carver, Deuces Are Wild responded well with a determined run through the lane to finish strongly. Despite his

Barbadian Rey Williams. disappointment in the feature, Walcott continued to stretch his lead in the standings with another successful outing on the 10-race card. Walcott won a 4-½ furlong sprint in race two with favourite Lightening Anna, carrying the bay gelding to a dominant eight-length victory over the two-year-old maidens. He returned in race seven to score with 3-1 bet Raiden, combining with the five-yearold chestnut gelding to trounce the three-year-olds and upward by 2-¼ lengths over a mile and sixteenth. Whitehall, meanwhile, continued to compete successfully on two fronts with wins in race four over 6-

½ furlongs with favourite Midnight Shake and in race nine over six furlongs with another favourite Coco Tiger. The championship leader at Assiniboia Downs, 700 miles south in Winnipeg, Whitehall carried the fouryear-old gelding Midnight Shake to a narrow win by a head over the the three-yearolds and upward before piloting another four-yearold gelding Coco Tiger to a 2-¼ length victory also over the three-year-olds and upward. Walcott is the runaway leader with 31 wins with Sarmiento 13 back in second and Whitehall lying third on 15 wins, in the season which wraps November 1.

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UTECH sports coaches in limbo as college navigates COVID-19 landscape SportsMax The contracts of all sports coaches, including head track coach Paul Francis and Stephen Francis, employed by the University of Technology (UTECH), have not been renewed for the coming academic year as the college moves to protect its staff and student population from possible COVID-19 infection. The pandemic has forced the school to suspend its sports programmes until it decides how many students they will allow on campus for the academic year set to begin on August 26, 2020. Paul and Stephen Francis run the university’s track and field programme, and who under a Memorandum of Understanding with the university, also operate the MVP Track Club at the school’s Papine campus. The university informed the coaches by letter on M o n d a y, S p o r t s m a x . T V understands.

However, the school said the move is temporary. “We have not made any f i n a l d e c i s i o n . We a r e waiting to hear from Intercol (Jamaica Intercollegiate Sports Association) and a directive from the Acting President (Professor Colin Gyles) in terms of how many students will be allowed on campus,” said Kamilah Hylton, the Dean of the Faculty of Sports and Science while speaking with Sportsmax.TV on Monday night. “ We h a v e t o m a k e d e c i s i o n s o n h o w they (athletes) would train in a safe manner,” she said while explaining that the school will have to determine how athletes would function under existing COVID-19 protocols, meaning how many athletes would be able to train together, adhere to the required physical distancing requirements and other related safety measures. Hylton explained that depending on the state of the pandemic some contracts

UTECH have not been renewed its coaches contracts for the coming academic year as they look to protect their students and staff. could be renewed as early as the second school semester. “Of paramount importance is the safety of the athletes. We have to ensure that we have the necessary resources to facilitate the safety of our studentathletes,” Ms Hylton said. Ms Hylton also confirmed that, so far, no new

sports scholarships have been offered to studentathletes. As it relates to students who are already on scholarship, Ms Hylton said the school would maintain its obligations to them and they would attend classes as usual. “We are bound by

contract, so those students would continue to be supported once they continue to meet academic criteria,” she said. Among other measures being taken by the school is the limiting of the number of students allowed to share dorm rooms on the campus. For now, only one student will

be allowed to a room. The college prides itself as being home to a number of Jamaica’s world-class athletes. Former 100m world-record holder Asafa Powell, Olympic medalists Shelly-Ann FraserPryce and Sherone Simpson were all members of the UTECH track programme.

Sevilla reach Europa semis as Neymar will put on a big performance Wolves pay for penalty miss against Atalanta - PSG boss Tuchel

Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Ruben Vinagre looks dejected after the match, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). (Pool via REUTERS/Friedemann Vogel) DUISBURG, Germany (Reuters) - Sevilla midfielder Lucas Ocampos headed a late goal to snatch a 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers as they reached the Europa League semi-finals yesterday after the English side paid the price for an early penalty miss. Raul Jimenez saw his hesitant spot kick easily saved by goalkeeper Bono in the 13th minute of the singleleg tie and Wolves failed to muster a shot on target after that as former Real Madrid and Spain coach Julen Lopetegui’s side took control. Five-times winners Sevilla, who will face Manchester United in the last four in Cologne on Sunday, enjoyed 73% of possession and won 14 corners to none

for Wolves in a one-sided game. Wolves, playing in their first European quarter-final for 48 years, appeared to feel the effects of a marathon season which saw them play 59 matches, including 17 in the Europa League starting at home to Crusaders on July 25 last year. Yet the Midlands team made a promising start with Adama Traore at the centre of things. Having set up an early chance which Raul Jimenez headed straight at Bono, the Spaniard powered into the area and was tripped from behind by Diego Carlos. Jimenez, who usually waits for the keeper to move, appeared caught in two minds and his effort was comfortably stopped by Bono with a dive to his left. It

was the Mexican’s first penalty miss for Wolves after converting his previous eight efforts. Sevilla dominated the match after that, passing the ball around in the centre of the pitch, but it was fairly unproductive possession and they created few openings. The second half was a similar story with Wolves apparently happy to allow Sevilla to knock the ball around in midfield. But the Spaniards grew more dangerous towards the end and broke through with two minutes left. Their 13th corner was rolled to Ever Banega and he curled a cross into the area which Ocampos flicked past keeper Rui Patricio.

SportsMax - Thomas Tuchel is convinced Neymar will play a pivotal role for Paris Saint-Germain against Atalanta in the Champions League quarter-finals today. Neymar was on target in both legs as PSG dispatched Borussia Dortmund in the last16 and has been in fine form since returning to action after Ligue 1 was cancelled amid the coronavirus pandemic in April. The Brazil international scored in warm-up friendlies against Le Havre, WaaslandBeveren and Celtic before notching the winner in the Coupe de France final against Saint-Etienne. Tuchel is banking on Neymar again coming to the fore, particularly with Kylian Mbappe set to be limited to the role of substitute following an ankle injury sustained in the meeting with Saint-Etienne. “I have the impression there’s always a lot of pressure on Neymar. You can’t imagine the pressure that’s on Ney. But he is a lad who likes that, who’s used to playing with that pressure,” Tuchel told his pre-match news conference yesterday. “We’re glad he has the possibility of finishing the match with Kylian [as] they like playing together a lot. “He likes the big matches and he likes decisive matches.

Neymar He’s a player you can trust in the big matches. “I’m absolutely convinced he will put on a big performance and that he holds the keys for us, he has the mentality for situations like this.” PSG defeated Lyon in the Coupe de la Ligue final on July 31 to complete a domestic treble, with a final friendly against Sochaux taking place last week. The squad travelled to Lisbon for the Champions League finale following a short training camp in Faro and Tuchel believes they are ready for the challenge of knockout football. “It is hard to play against Atalanta. It is a huge

challenge but there are always possibilities,” he said. “It will be a tactical game, but also a mental game. Our latest training sessions were a good mix of concentration and team spirit. We suffer together, but we also fight and play together. “We all have the feeling we’ve prepared in the best fashion. For us it was really important to win the two finals. “It wasn’t easy to restart after a four-month pause and then four weeks’ preparation to play two finals as the big favourites. That was a big challenge mentally for the players but to win was the best preparation for this tournament.”

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Serena Williams makes winning Ex-WI batsman Sarwan return in three-set battle with Pera pulls out 2020 CPL SportsMax - Serena Williams needed three sets to defeat Bernarda Pera at the Top Seed Open yesterday in her first match since February. The 23-time grand slam singles champion came from a set down to beat her compatriot 4-6 6-4 6-1 in two hours and 16 minutes in Lexington. Williams’ previous match was in the Fed Cup clash with Latvia in February, while she has not played a tournament match since January’s Australian Open, the WTA Tour having been shut down since early match due to the coronavirus pandemic. World number 60 Pera broke in the fifth game and fought off two break points on her own serve before a thumping winner sealed the first set. Williams saw a 3-1 lead

pegged back in the second and saved four break points to deny Pera the chance to serve for the match, but the 38-year-old found some of her famous fighting spirit to level the match after forcing a Pera error. She then made comparatively light work of the decider to set up a second-round clash with either Victoria Azarenka or sister Venus Williams. “I’ve been practicing really well and I wasn’t getting a good rhythm out here, and I just kept thinking, ‘Serena, play like you’ve been practicing’,” she said afterwards. “I knew I could play a little bit better if I just hung in there. “I feel like I always play Venus first or second round, every tournament, so that’s annoying. And I always play Vika early, so we’ll see.”

Serena Williams needed three sets to defeat Bernarda Pera at the Top Seed Open.

Shakib Al Hasan could make international comeback on Sri Lanka tour ESPNcricinfo - Shakib Al Hasan is likely to make an immediate return to the Bangladesh team after his suspension deadline ends on October 29, with Sri Lanka the assumed venue of his comeback. Bangladesh’s tour of Sri Lanka is all but confirmed and given how the tour schedule is shaping up, it is more than likely that Shakib will at least feature in the proposed three-match T20I series. According to SLC chief executive Mohan de Silva, the two boards have reached an agreement on Bangladesh’s departure date, but they are still in discussions over whether it will be a two or three-match Test series after the BCB requested a three-match T20I series in addition to the original tour schedule. Shakib will be training at the BKSP - Bangladesh’s largest sporting institute from next month, so it is likely that the Bangladesh team management will have one eye on his progress towards full fitness. Head coach Russell Domingo has said Shakib’s return will depend on his fitness levels and possibly some match-time under his

belt. However, he compared Shakib’s year-long break from cricket with the current Bangladesh players also having had to sit out for six months without any on-field action, thanks to the Covid19 pandemic. “I think Shakib being out for a year is not that much different to the rest of our squad who have been out for six or seven months as well,” Domingo told ESPNcricinfo. “We are hoping all the players are fit. Obviously, there are standards that they need to attain in terms of fitness level. We have to organize a bit of game time for Shakib, as well as for all the players. It is very difficult to get into international cricket without any sort of cricket. I think we need to try to find some opportunities for him to play some games. He is a worldclass player so I am sure he will get back into it pretty soon, but fitness is an important thing.” Domingo, however, said Shakib would have to play unofficial cricket matches as a suspended cricketer, so a lot would depend on his fitness regime and net practice during the next couple of months. “It is something that we have to discuss with the selectors. I

Shakib Al Hasan’s international ban ends on October 29 this year. (Getty Images) don’t think he can play any official game before October 29, so all games that he plays have to be unofficial games. It might be inter-squad games but we need to have clarity if he is allowed to play that. “He has to make sure he is fit and that he starts hitting balls and bowling some balls. Once we assemble before heading off to Sri Lanka when that tour is confirmed we will get closer to making a decision. There’s still a while

to go; it is only August now. His ban finishes in two-anda-half months. When he is fit and available, we will cross that bridge.” Yesterday, SLC chief de Silva said Bangladesh’s departure date, September 24, is nearly confirmed but the boards are still a couple of days away from finalising the tour schedule. “It is more or less [finalized],” de Silva told the Dhaka-based TV channel Maasranga. “We are actually negotiating. They [BCB] want to play three T20Is and three Tests. So we are actually negotiating with them to reduce one Test and then play the T20Is. We will be able to confirm it within a day or two.”

Trinidad and Tobago Newsday - FORMER West Indies batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan will not be the assistant coach of the Jamaica Tallawahs for the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20 tournament after being granted personal leave to travel to his home country of Guyana. Sarwan was seen in a photograph on social media with new Guyanese president Irfaan Ali. Ali was the presidential candidate for the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic during the recent elections, and was sworn in on August 2. Sarwan, the former Guyanese and West Indies cricketer, left the Tallawahs franchise last Thursday. In an interview with Newsday, Tallawahs CEO Jeff Miller said, “No he (Sarwan) is not part of us this year.” Sarwan will be replaced by former West Indies spinner Ryan Austin. The Trinidad-born Austin played 74 First Class matches for Barbados and the Combined Colleges and Campuses (CCC). “Mr Sarwan requested a leave for personal reasons and that was granted,” Miller said. The overseas players and officials of the six CPL franchises have been in quarantine at the Hilton Hotel, St Ann’s for the past week leading up to the start of the tournament on August 18. The entire tournament will be played in Trinidad to limit the amount of travelling done by players during the covid19 pandemic. Miller knows Sarwan will be missed because of his wealth of experience, but is confident in the franchise’s chances this season. “Yes it’s a big loss,” said Miller. “Sars (Sarwan) brings a lot to the game - his knowledge, his experience and the way he has dealt with the players over the years, so it is a great loss. “We are going to look to move forward. This is a rebuilding year for us, (but) I don’t just want to say rebuilding. We here to win the tournament. I think we have a great team and the guys are keen and ready to go and let’s see at the end what happens, but we definitely looking forward to having a great tournament this year.” Miller said the players are focused on the tournament despite the off-field distractions in recent months. In April, former Tallawahs captain Chris Gayle went on a rant on Youtube after being

Ramnaresh Sarwan (WICB) released by the franchise. Gayle gave reasons why he thought he was let go by the Tallawahs, which included blaming Sarwan. However, Sarwan denied having anything to do with Gayle’s release. “That is behind us. We have 12 new players on our franchise this year from last year so there is no baggage from last year. We are focused this year and the guys are focused on CPL not what happened in the past,” Miller said. Gayle claimed that Sarwan wanted to be the head coach instead of Donovan Miller. Gayle said he was honest with Sarwan, as he informed the former right-handed batsman that he has no experience being a head coach and it is not an easy job. Gayle said Sarwan was upset by his opinion and held that against him when Miller (D) was selected as head coach. Gayle also claimed the decision to release him from the team was political. The hard-hitting Jamaican was invited by the People’s National Congress Reform in Guyana to visit a community. Gayle said Tallawahs owner Kris Persaud is an affiliate of another political party in Guyana, therefore Gayle’s visit ruffled some feathers. Gayle, who believes Persaud was influenced to get rid of him, said the owner and Sarwan share a close relationship. The Tallawahs said the franchise is not involved in politics. The Tallawahs also said the ownership and management of the team, which did not include Sarwan, decided to release Gayle because of business and cricketing reasoning. Some of the players expected to lead from the front for the Tallawahs in the 2020 edition are appointed captain Rovman Powell, ex-WI T20 skipper Carlos Brathwaite, Andre Russell, Oshane Thomas, Chadwick Walton, Jermaine Blackwood and New Zealand’s Glenn Phillips.

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Halep labours to victory on IPL 2020: CSK, KKR to carry 10 comeback at Prague Open exclusive net bowlers to UAE (Reuters) - World number two Simona Halep made a rusty start on her return from the COVID-19 shutdown as she edged a seesaw battle against Slovenian Polona Hercog 6-1 1-6 7-6(3) in the opening round of the Prague Open yesterday. Having secured a crucial break to move 5-3 ahead in the third set, Halep dropped her own serve before squandering three match points. The tension increased as three more match points went begging for Halep, who eventually converted her seventh chance to close out the match in a tiebreak. Halep, who skipped the Palermo Ladies Open last week, was making her first appearance on the WTA Tour since her title triumph a t t h e D u b a i Te n n i s Championships in February. “I’m happy because I could win after a six-month break,” the 28-year-old Romanian told a news conference. “I felt tension in my back after the first set, even though it was short and I played well. “After the second set, I felt tired. But I knew she was in the same position so I just had to stick to the plan and fight the fighting helped me to win the match. “Sometimes it’s good to call it a good match - but I

Romania’s Simona Halep reacts during her semi final match against Jennifer Brady of the U.S. at the Dubai Tennis Championships. (REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah/File Photo) don’t wish for the next one to play three hours!” The WTA Tour restarted the season last week in Palermo with strict health protocols, including a limited number of fans and no handshakes between players after the match. “Emotionally it’s not easy, but we have to adjust - we live in tough times,” Halep said. “I’m all in and respect everything.” The Romanian has said she will make a decision on

her participation in the U.S. Open, which starts on Aug. 31, after playing in this week’s claycourt tournament in Prague. Second seed Petra Martic, who suffered a semi-final defeat in Palermo last weekend, rebounded with a 76(2) 6-3 win over Russian youngster Varvara Gracheva. Despite needing a medical timeout between sets, Martic went on to break her opponent’s serve twice to seal a convincing victory.

Stuart Broad fined by father Chris for using inappropriate language ESPNcricinfo - Stuart Broad has been docked 15% of his match fee by referee Chris Broad for using inappropriate language in the first Test against Pakistan, thus becoming the first player to be fined by his father. As a result, one demerit point was added against him owing to that being a Level 1 offence. Broad was found guilty of breaching Article 2.5 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batter upon his/her dismissal during an International Match.” The incident took place in the 46th over of Pakistan’s second innings on the fourth morning of the match, when Broad used inappropriate

language after having Yasir Shah caught behind. Broad admitted to the offence and accepted the sanction given, with no need of a formal hearing. He now has an aggregate of three demerit points in the last twenty four months, with the first one levied against India at Trent Bridge in 2018 and the next coming at the Wanderers this January. Before England hosted West Indies in the first Test of the rejigged home summer, Broad had told the Mail on Sunday he remained wary of the fact that his father would be the match referee owing to the travel restrictions in place due to Covid-19. “Sure, if he was an umpire I could understand that because he could have a subconscious influence on decisions that are made on the field,” Broad said. “No offence to him here but he sits

in an office and if I, or anyone else, breaks the code of conduct he simply looks up the regulations in a handbook and determines the appropriate sanction from the relevant section. “There is no emotion in a match referee’s job. From experience - and I’ve played 138 Tests - you only see a match ref if you’re in trouble. Often they are sat in a different building. You only tend to meet at breakfast in the hotel or on the outfield before the start of play. From a selfish point of view, I’d love the chance to be able to have a coffee and catch-up with dad in a biosecure environment.” Ironically, it was right under the nose of match referee Chris that Stuart also got his 500th Test wicket in the third Test against West Indies a few weeks back.

ESPNcricinfo - The Indian Premier League 2020 shifting its base to the United Arab Emirates may prove to be a blessing in disguise for at least 50 unheralded cricketers, who are set to travel with the eight teams as “exclusive” net bowlers. At least three franchises, Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals confirmed that they are preparing a roster of net bowlers. The list comprises mostly first-class, Under-19 and Under-23 state-level players who will get to bowl to the likes of MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Rishabh Pant for close to a month. The convention all these years has been using local bowlers for nets apart from the junior fringe players but the strict biosecurity measures for the tournament this time means that all franchises will have to arrange for quality bowlers during practice sessions. The franchises have not

been specified by the IPL how large a contingent they can fly to the UAE but it could be safely assumed that most of the eight sides will not avail any local net bowlers. “If all goes well, we are planning to take around 10 bowlers exclusively to UAE for the practice sessions. They will be accompanying the team and will remain till the tournament starts,” Super Kings CEO Kasi Vishwanathan told PTI yesterday. The Knight Riders confirmed that they will also have 10 net bowlers in their roster, likely to be handpicked by former Mumbai captain and their academy coach Abhishek Nayar. “It will be a blend of players who have played Ranji Trophy while some of them have played U-23 and U-19 national level tournaments,” someone privy to developments in the Knight Riders camp informed. The Capitals are also

taking around six net bowlers who will be a part of the team’s “bio bubble”. “They will be staying with the squad and will travel with the team for the net sessions,” a franchise source said. Rajasthan Royals are also on course to finalise the number of net bowlers they will carry. The Royals as well as Royal Challengers Bangalore can fly out bowlers from their own respective academies. It is expected that there will be a healthy number of spinners in overall net bowlers’ list. “On slow Dubai tracks, it will be important that teams stack up their line-up with more spinners especially for humid conditions. You will see a lot of left-arm spinners and wristspinners, who have played a decent level of cricket, being included apart from the pacers,” a senior talent scout of a franchise said.

IPL gets government nod for UAE, invites new title sponsor NEW DELHI (Reuters) India’s cricket board (BCCI) has received government permission to stage this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) in the United Arab Emirates, the league’s chairman Brijesh Patel told Reuters on Monday. The BCCI had earlier announced the popular Twenty20 competition, which could not begin in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic, would be played in the UAE from Sept. 19, subject to government approval. “Yes, we have received the permission from the government to stage the tournament in the UAE,” Patel said by telephone. “We have also invited expressions of interest for a new title sponsor,” he added. The matches will be played in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi as India continues to grapple with the pandemic with cases surging past 2.2 million on Monday and over 44,000 dead. It is not the first time that the popular competition will be held outside India. The 2009 edition took place in South Africa as it coincided with India’s elections and the UAE hosted the early matches of the eightteam tournament five years later for the same reason. IPL 2020 will have a new title sponsor after Vivo, which

A policeman walks past a logo of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) during a governing council meeting of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at BCCI headquarters in Mumbai April 26, 2010. (REUTERS/Arko Datta/File Photo) had secured the 2018-2022 rights for nearly $293 million, pulled out of this year’s edition citing a weak business environment following the pandemic. Companies with a minimum turnover of about $40 million can send expressions of interest by Friday and final bids would be accepted until Aug. 18, BCCI secretary Jay Shah said in a statement later on Monday. Doubts remain if the BCCI would get anything remotely close to the 4.4 billion rupees

(45 million pounds) it was getting from Chinese smartphone maker Vivo for each edition of the franchisebased league. Coca-Cola is one of the several names doing the rounds as a potential title sponsor this year. “At this moment, we are currently observing how the market situation is evolving and we are evaluating the opportunities that are available,” Coca Cola India said in a statement mailed to Reuters.

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NBA roundup: Kuzma’s trey carries Lakers past Nuggets Kyle Kuzma’s 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left lifted the Los Angeles Lakers to a 124121 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Monday night near Orlando. LeBron James had 29 points and 12 assists for the Lakers, who snapped a threegame losing streak. Anthony Davis finished with 27 points, and Kuzma contributed 25. Reserve guard PJ Dozier had 18 points to lead the Nuggets, who had eight players reach double figures. Michael Porter Jr. had 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting, including 3-of-3 on 3pointers. Jamal Murray had 14 points, Paul Millsap scored 13 and Nikola Jokic chipped in 12 for Denver. The Nuggets rested their starters for much of the fourth quarter, and the loss left them 1 1/2 games back of the Los Angeles Clippers for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with two games remaining. The two teams meet today. Toronto Raptors 114 Milwaukee Bucks 106 Chris Boucher had a career-best 25 points to go with 11 rebounds, and Toronto defeated Milwaukee for the first time this season as both teams played without key players. Matt Thomas added a career-best 22 points for the

Los Angeles Lakers’ Kyle Kuzma (0) tries to outrun Denver Nuggets’ PJ Dozier (35) on a drive to the basket during the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday, Aug. 10, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. at AdventHealth Arena. (Ashley Landis/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports) Raptors and Norman Powell had 21 points and eight rebounds. Pascal Siakam added 14 points for Toronto. Kyle Korver scored 19 points for Milwaukee, Khris Middleton had 17, and George Hill netted 14. Phoenix Suns 128 Oklahoma City Thunder 101 Devin Booker scored 35 points and Phoenix continued its surprising undefeated run

through the NBA bubble, cruising past short-handed Oklahoma City. Booker, who sat out the fourth quarter, notched his 90th career 30-point game and tied Suns legend Walter Davis for most 30-point games in franchise history. Mikal Bridges and rookie Cameron Johnson added 18 points each for the Suns, who have won all six seeding games in the bubble and

Konta in good spirits day after health scare at Top Seed Open (Reuters) - Britain’s Johanna Konta appeared to be in good spirits yesterday, posting an upbeat note on social media the day after suffering heart palpitations during her 6-4 6-4 loss to Czech Marie Bouzkova at the Top Seed Open. The world No. 15 needed medical attention just minutes into her opening round match in Lexington, Kentucky, on Monday, before she was able to continue playing. In a Twitter post yesterday, 29-year-old Konta did not mention her heart scare but said she was disappointed by her result at the Top Seed Open. “Not the result I wanted, however so incredibly grateful to be competing again,” the third-seeded Konta tweeted. “Looking forward to my next

Britain’s Johanna Konta reacts during the match against Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur at the Australian Open. (REUTERS/Ciro De Luca) opportunity.” The Top Seed Open marks the first WTA Tour tournament in the United

States since the COVID-19 outbreak put much of the professional sports calendar on hold.

remain in the thick of the race for a postseason berth.

Darius Bazley’s 22 points and 10 rebounds led the Thunder. Oklahoma City, which lost a 15-point lead in the first half, has already clinched a playoff spot and is 3-3 in the bubble. Dallas Mavericks 122 - Utah Jazz 114 Tim Hardaway Jr. led Dallas with 27 points and Seth Curry added 22 to lead the Mavericks to a victory over Utah. Boban Marjanovic added 20 points and nine rebounds and J.J. Barea chipped in 18 for the Mavericks, who rallied from a 22-point deficit. Jordan Clarkson scored 18 points to lead Utah. Rayjon Tucker added a career-high 17 points while Emmanuel Mudiay added 14 and Georges Niang chipped in 13 for the Jazz, who blew a late double-digit lead for a second straight game. Miami Heat 114 - Indiana Pacers 92 Jimmy Butler, returning

from a three-game injury absence, had game highs with 19 points, 11 rebounds and four steals to lead Miami past Indiana and into sole possession of fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Butler, who also had five assists in 29 minutes, had been out with a sore right foot. The teams were tied at halftime, but the Heat led by as many as 18 points in an explosive third quarter and cruised from there, cooling off Pacers star T.J. Warren along the way. Warren entered Monday as the league’s top scorer in the restart, averaging an impressive 34.8 points on 60.5 percent shooting from the floor and 55.6 percent on 3point attempts. However, Miami held him to 12 points on 5-for-14 shooting, including 2-for-6 on 3-point attempts. Victor Oladipo led Indiana with 14 points. (Field Level Media)

‘Thousands have tried’ - Bayern ponder how to stop Messi AFP - Bayern Munich midfielder Leon Goretzka said the German giants are working out how to curb the legendary talents of Barcelona star Lionel Messi ahead of Friday’s Champions League quarter-final. “Thousands of people before me have tried to answer this question,” Goretzka replied Tuesday in Lisbon when asked how to stop Messi. “It is nice - after playing against (Juventus star Cristiano) Ronaldo a few times - to play the other formative player of the last decade. “That can only be done collectively,” the 25-year-old central midfielder said of Messi, “because he is a gifted footballer”. “I don’t know how, but we have to force our game on them.” Messi scored his 31st goal this season on Saturday and is looking to lift the Champions League for the fifth time in his career with Barcelona. Treble-chasing Bayern, however, have won all 13 games since the coronavirus lockdown restart. They underlined their impressive form on Saturday when Robert Lewandowski, the Champions League’s top scorer, netted twice and created two more in the last 16, second-leg rout of Chelsea to seal a 7-1 thrashing on aggregate. Bayern are chasing the

Lionel Messi celebrates scoring for Barcelona in last Saturday’s win over Napoli to set up their Champions League quarter-final clash with Bayern Munich. treble having already won an eigth straight Bundesliga title and lifted the German Cup, but Goretzka says Barcelona present a true test. “There is no easy way now. We are here in the sun in Portugal and are preparing for a knockout game in the Champions League,” he said. “We’re really up for it. Knockout matches are great.” While Barcelona are packed with stars alongside Messi, Goretzka says Bayern are far more than just Lewandowski’s goals. “At the moment, we’re playing as a unit, in addition

to the quality of the individual players. “We have a clear plan in hand and our intensity without the ball can make the difference.” But he admitted being wary of Arturo Vidal, Barca’s ex-Bayern midfielder. “I got to know him for a few weeks and played against him many times. He has a first-class mentality with amazing fitness,” added Goretzka. “I noticed that during fitness tests - which I took next to him - he can go beyond the pain threshold.”

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A moment in time - Picture CPL players, staff residing of the day in T&T cleared after Aug. 11 negative COVID-19 tests

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Mo Farah and Usain Bolt trade trademark celebrations at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

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A Sport - Mo Farah grabbed his second gold of the London 2012 Olympics with a thrilling 5,000 metres victory. Farah, who won the 10,000 metres title earlier in the Games, was roared home by a crowd of 80,000 in the Olympic Stadium. Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt won 4x100m relay gold on the same night and the pair swapped celebrations on the podium – Bolt doing Farah’s ‘mobot’ and Farah performing Bolt’s trademark ‘lightning Bolt’ pose.

Farah hit the front with 700 metres to go in the 5,000 final and ran the last lap under 53 seconds to hold off Ethiopia’s Dejen Gebremeskel in a winning time of 13 minutes and 41.66 seconds. Kenyan Thomas Longosiwa took the bronze. Farah became the sixth man to secure the 5,000m and 10,000m Olympic gold double. Bolt anchored Jamaica’s victory in the relay, as they finished with a world record time of 36.84. It meant he overtook Carl Lewis as the most decorated Olympic sprinter, with six gold medals.

‘I didn’t want to watch anymore’ - Windies pacer Cottrell recalls IPL draft anxiety, ready to rock competition

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portsMax - West Indies fast bowler, Sheldon Cottrell, has admitted he was too nervous to keep watching the IPL draft bidding process, once it landed on his name, but is now eager to give it his all in a first season with Kings XI Punjab. The Mohali-based franchise splashed out a handsome Rs 8.5 crore (US$1,139,160.65) for the fast bowler who has become known as much for his blistering pace as his Rockstar style salute. During the draft, however, the former Cottrell admits that had simply hoped to be selected and could not stand to watch for the figure the gavel would eventually rest at. “I was in a hotel room with Evin Lewis. So, I watched everyone’s auction before me and I was comfortable watching it. But then when my turn came, I was like ‘oh man!’. And when I was heard the first bid on me, I just went to the

Sheldon Cottrell

balcony and I was like ‘yes!’. I didn’t want to see it anymore, I wanted to see just one bid, to be honest. ‘Yes, I am going to play in the IPL!’. But then two minutes after the bidding was still going, I took a peek and Evin Lewis was more excited than I was. I was just nervous. But yes, it was a great feeling. I can never forget that feeling and moment ever in my life,” Cottrell said in a recent interview with WION. The onset of the COVID19 epidemic, however, put the players dream debut on hold. With the tournament, which will now be held in the

United Arab Emirates, scheduled to bowl off next month, Cottrell is shifting into competition mode. “I am really looking forward to it. I have been waiting for this for all my cricketing career, to tell you the truth. But more eagerly in the past four to five months. I have been ready mentally and physically. Even with the lockdown, I have been keeping myself in shape. Ready. Just in case the call comes. So I am totally ready and can’t wait to go onto the park with the Kings XI Punjab.”

PL - PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — The Caribbean Premier League (CPL) says its players and staff residing in Trinidad and Tobago have all tested negative for COVID-19 and will join the tournament bubble at the official hotel over the coming days. The CPL said the St Lucia Zouks squad and the members of the Trinbago Knight Riders squad who travelled into Trinidad have also tested negative for COVID-19 and they will begin training today, with other teams doing so in the coming days. Results from further testing of all other members of the travelling cohort are expected today after a second round of testing on Monday. Michael Hall, tournament operations director, said: “We have been extremely careful in how we have gone about introducing those who are resident in Trinidad and Tobago into the tournament bubble and these tests coming back negative is very good news for the tournament. We will continue to be vigilant to ensure the health and well-being of everyone, both inside the tournament bubble and the wider public.” The Twenty20 tournament gets underway on August 18 and will see 33 games played at

two venues in Trinidad. The first match will see last year’s runners-up, the Guyana Amazon Warriors, take on the Trinbago Knight Riders. The final will take place on September 10. Barbados Tridents are the defending champions. The other teams are St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, St Lucia Zouks and Jamaica Tallawahs.

Sheldon Cottrell

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‘I didn’t want to watch anymore’ - Windies pacer Cottrell recalls IPL draft anxiety, ready to rock competition Stuart Broad breaks through at Old Trafford. (Getty Images)

Serena Williams needed three sets to defeat Bernarda Pera at the Top Seed Open.

Serena Williams makes winning return in three-set battle with Pera Ramnaresh Sarwan (WICB)

Stuart Broad fined by father Chris for using Ex-WI batsman inappropriate language Sarwan pulls out 2020 CPL Printed and published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd., 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown. Tel: 225-8458, 225-8465, 225-8491 or Fax: 225-8473/226-8210.