Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Letters... Where your views make the news...Letters... Where your views make the news
Some top countries on the globe Former Foreign Minister offers have legalized marijuana words of advice to PPP leadership DEAR EDITOR, From time to time members of the opposition including its leader, General Secretary of the PPP, and the former Attorney General, Mr. Anil Nandlall, raised several issues among them that of the transparency of certain actions of the Government. This in my view can be a constructive element in the evolution of a healthy political culture provided at least two conditions are satisfied. Firstly, the issues should not be raised vexatiously and should respect the canons of decency. Secondly, the Government’s response should honour the promises made in the APNU-AFC manifesto, and should be timely and respectful. I understand that in the legal profession there is a doctrine called the “clean hands doctrine.”I do not know whether this doctrine is applicable to the
field of politics. However, I do recall that when Fidel Castro was once asked whether he would shake the hands of a certain US President he readily responded; “Why not? My hands are clean.” Back to the local scene I believe that many observers were/are of the view that there were several transparency deficiencies over finance during the 23 years of PPP’s governance. The 2005 flood finances (much of it managed from State House), the Providence Stadium, Carifesta X, the Caribbean Press come to mind. Would it not be good for the Leader of the Opposition and/or the General Secretary of the PPP to give: (a) an acknowledgement of these deficiencies and (b) an undertaking that when the Party is elected to office again the government it then heads will abide by the norms of
transparency it now strenuously advocates. For now I hope that the public can be given some assurance that the major political stakeholders will greet and deal with each other with “clean hands.” As regards the former Attorney General, Mr. Anil Nandlall, it has been reported that he and a journalist had a conversation, the alleged contents of which have been placed in the public domain. Several of Mr. Nandlall’s observations and asseverations attracted harsh public comments. Mr. Nandlall, I believe has responded to some of his critics. Yet troubling questions about the contents of Mr. Nandlall’s conversation remain unanswered. In Mr. Nandlall’s case I suppose what is required of him in the future is adherence to the “clean mouth” doctrine. Rashleigh E. Jackson
This criminal is tormenting helpless old ladies DEAR EDITOR, I wish to bring to your esteemed attention the continuous attacks by a young man named Johnny aka Mechanic on the female residents of the Holy Family Home on Vlissengen Road. His late mother was a resident there prior to her demise. He has broken and entered there twice this week including last night. He was caught this morning with the vinolay rolled up and fled leaving his hammer. In the past he has stolen all the food from the fridge, gas bottles and fittings from their stoves. The part that is sad as well as infuriating is the fact that repeated reports have been made to the Albertown Police Station and never once have their attempted to visit or investigate. Detailed descriptions have been provided and the liming spot of the perpetrator have been provided, yet no action has been taken to arrest this Johnny from Leopold Street opposite the Trinity Manse.
Apparently, they are waiting until one of these women has been brutally murdered. They have put on laths on the windows and he has removed them, broken locks while they helplessly call for the police who never appear. I hereby ask you to please expedite the publishing of this letter because only when Mr. Glenn Lall exposes then action is taken. These women have contributed to this society; one even served in the Police Force. I beg the question: How can the police continue to ignore these women while they are preyed upon by a young man whose goal is to torment these helpless old women. Last night he took away every bulb from the sockets. Stop this abuse or these women may have to picket the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Office of the President with their walkers and wheel chairs. Is this the Year of the Eldery or is this slogan vain spouting. Tormented (name supplied)
DEAR EDITOR, Let’s not fool ourselves; marijuana was made illegal because of economic control of the plant by the USA. America did not have the expertise to mass produce this plant on a scale and quality that other countries did, so in the 1930s they launched an aggressive campaign to make marijuana illegal across the globe through high level political maneuvering and “strong arming” other countries. Today America stands as the leading example for making this plant legal again, now that they have the expertise to effectively profit from it. And for those who do not understand how US do things, they normally leave it to the states to start the process of legalization, and then it will be ratified by the Supreme Court. It has always puzzled me that a poisonous substance like cigarettes can be legal while we pretend that we are vanguards of morals by keeping marijuana illegal. We all know that anyone who wishes to smoke the ganja, still do regardless. And when I say anyone, I mean from the rich to poor across all races and cultures. Even many people that are judges and politicians today would have taken a sample and probably still do. The point here is that if there was any moral decay from this plant, it would have happened already. And if we use moral grounds to keep this plant illegal, how do we explain its critical role in religion on all continents since before the time of written history? From the Sages and Sadhus in the Himalayas, who smoke Marijuana as an unbroken tradition from the time of Lord Shiva to the great kings and
Queens of Ethiopia and Egypt that set the foundation for this modern world, marijuana was used as a source of enlightenment and healing. In some ways you can’t help but feel that we modern humans are out of our league by having the audacity to make this divine plant illegal. The most unrecognized irony is that marijuana has always been the base of our most revered and respected messengers of righteousness and liberation across the globe. Mahatma Ghandi, who was enlightened by those same Sages of the Himalayas, liberated not one but two countries on separate continents in his life time and inspired Martin Luther King to lead his revolution in the USA. Through words and sound we all embrace Bob Marley as the greatest musical messenger of righteousness in our history. We use his music to uplift and inspire, we even use his music in our political campaigns across the world to help spread our messages to the masses. Bob Marley and his fellow messengers of the great conscious reggae music use marijuana as a source of enlightenment. Therefore, it is hypocritical to embrace the
goodness of these great people but banish the source of their greatness. On an economic scale, marijuana is positioned to be the largest industry in the world rivaled only by information technology. In the first few months of marijuana becoming legal, the state of Colorado collected over US$10 million in tax revenue, a sum that has risen tenfold since. And we can say the same for Washington. There are untold economic gains for countries like Guyana to not only legalize this plant but to be a major export country to the world. We have the expertise and capacity to harvest this plant on a scale that will dwarf the sugar industry in the future. Holland, Uruguay, North Korea, Chile, Jamaica have all relaxed or made marijuana fully legal and Canada is now paving the way for legalizing Marijuana there too. It is time we wake up from 85 years of this outdated American law and make this plant a source of good for our people and country. Are we going to stand aside and watch the world take all the benefits of marijuana for themselves, while we remain under the control of a backward and oppressive law that keeps marijuana illegal? Malcolm Watkins
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Monday December 14, 2015
Worrying discrepancies...
LINMINE US$17.5M assets not properly accounted for with Brassington According to the forensic audit report on the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), the company’s directors have apparently failed to properly account for millions worth in assets for Linden Mining Enterprise (LINMINE). Additionally, Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran found that NICIL directors pumped hundreds of millions of dollars into LINMINE and are unable to properly justify it. Goolsarran said that NICIL’s total expenditure for the period 2002 to 2014 amounted to $8.6B. Its operating expenses, he said, amounted to $2.144 billion. Goolsarran said that LINMINE accounted for $1.260 billion or 59 percent of the operating expenses, including salaries of 75 staff members ($983.319 million) and rates and taxes ($122.342 million). In other words, LINMINE accounted for
…no evidence to justify additional hundreds of millions spent
Presidential Advisor Dr. Clive Thomas $1.914 billion or 22.3 percent of NICIL’s expenditure for the period 2002 to 2014. For the Forensic auditor, this was not adding up. Goolsarran in his report said that LINMINE which became a division of NICIL in 2004 could not have incurred so much expense. And NICIL was unable to prove this. Apart from the operations of the McKenzie-Wismar
Bridge, Goolsarran said that it remains a mystery as to what activities of LINMINE could have possibly warranted the expenditure of $1.914 billion during the period 2002-2014 or approximately $150 million annually by NICIL. On this matter NICIL’s Executive Director, Winston Brassington commented that “LINMINE represented a loss on the NICIL side with the expenses relatin g to securing the many assets that were still being held, pending a sale or lease in a transparent manner. In fact, by virtue of this being a NICIL department, the Treasury was insulated from supporting these operations.” Brassington further commented that in 2003, the LINMINE Secretariat was set up to: facilitate the privatization of LINMINE; manage the Watooka Complex and the McKenzie-Wismar Bridge; and safeguard the assets that were not part of the privatization. Addressing the second discrepancy, Goolsarran said that interestingly, in 2003, LINMINE was recorded in the books of NICIL as a subsidiary with a value of $3.5 billion (US$17m) billion. However, in 2004, the value was reduced to zero, and up to the time of reporting LINMIME remained a subsidiary of NICIL. Goolsarran noted that LINMINE’s latest audited accounts continued to show share capital of $3.5 billion. Wi t h t h i s i n m i n d , h e strongly contended that a significant discrepancy existed between the accounts of NICIL and those of
LINMINE. In defence, NICIL commented that in 2004 LINMINE was privatized and the assets that were not part of the privatization were vested in NICIL, hence the written-down value of the investment to zero. Notwithstanding NICIL’s explanation, Goolsarran said that the discrepancy still remained. Speaking to Kaieteur News in an invited comment, Presidential Advisor on Sustainable Development, Dr. Clive Thomas said, “We have a clear case of financial lawlessness once again taking place here. NICIL recorded the assets as being worth $3.5B and the last audited report on LINMINE stated same. Then the following year it
NICIL Executive Director, Winston Brassington
Forensic Auditor for NICIL, Anand Goolsarran
was placed at zero value by NICIL. Regardless of Brassington’s excuse, he knows all too well that avoiding proper financial bookkeeping of assets leads to the logical conclusion that you have it poised for your own corrupt uses.” Thomas added, “In the other case, we see Brassington unable to explain
what could have justified the need for hundreds of millions every year in LINMINE. Where was the money going? It seems as though Brassington cannot deal in anything without tainting it with corrupt thoughts and deeds. Rest assured that the State Assets Recovery Unit will be looking into this matter.”
Amendment to marijuana legislation…
Select Committee would be too slow and drawn out Attorney Nigel Hughes does not believe that the new Narcotics Drug and Psychotropic Substances (Control) (Amendment) bill 2015 should be sent to a Select Committee prior to it being tabled in the Parliament on Thursday. The Bill, which was drafted by Hughes and Mark Waldron, proposes the removal of the mandatory imprisonment of citizens in possession of small amounts of cannabis. A Peoples Progressive Party official had stated that the party’s executive body
- Nigel Hughes met last Friday to discuss the content of the Bill, and they all agreed that the legislation should be taken to a Select Committee for further consultation. The official stated that the body agreed that once the Bill is returned from the Select Committee then they would vote consciously. The official also added that there should be a public hearing on the content of the Bill. But Hughes yesterday said that the Bill will be tabled in the National Assembly on Thursday as planned and that he will be meeting with the political parties again for further dialogue. He purported that Select Committee deliberations were notoriously known for being “slow and protracted”. Thus, he proposed that if there is a view from members of the National Assembly who represent almost half of the House that there should be a conscience vote, then perhaps “We should allow the members of the House to consult with their constituencies and not other members of the National
Attorney-at-law Nigel Hughes Assembly in a Select Committee.” He also commended the PPP for their stance of conscious voting. “I applaud the move to have this Bill put to a conscience vote so we can avoid the politics that traditionally plagues our national deliberations,” he said. The Bill was drafted following the imprisonment of football coach, Vibert Butts, for possession of marijuana. Presently, the law indicates that anyone found in possession of marijuana is liable to a fine of $10,000 or (Continued on page 12)
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Powers back unity government in Libya to deter Islamic State Reuters - Global powers yesterday backed the formation of a national unity government in Libya, pledging economic and security support to help stabilise the chaotic North African country where Islamic State militants have a foothold. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Italian counterpart Paolo Gentiloni, joined by U.N. envoy Martin Kobler, were optimistic that the majority of the representatives of Libya’s two rival governments would sign a unity deal Wednesday. Representatives from 17 countries including Egypt, Germany, Russia, Turkey, and China signed a joint statement calling for an immediate ceasefire and promising to cut off contacts with factions that do not sign the deal. Fifteen Libyans from different groups also attended the meeting. Past deadlines have slipped amid internal disagreements in the sprawling, oil-producing country rife with armed groups. “We stand ready to support the implementation of the political agreement and underline our firm commitment to providing the Government of National
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry takes part in an international conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome yesterday. REUTERS/MANDEL NGAN/POOL Accord with full political backing and technical, economic, security and counter-terrorism assistance, as requested,” the statement said. Both Kerry and Gentiloni, who co-chaired the meeting, appeared confident a deal was around the corner, and stressed that a unity government was needed also to fight the growing threat from Islamic State militants. “The message of today’s meeting is clear,” Gentiloni said. “What matters is the stabilisation of Libya because this too can contribute to the
fight against terrorism.” Libya has sunk deeper and deeper into chaos since a Western-backed rebellion toppled Muammar Gaddafi four years ago. The OPEC member now has two rival governments and two parliaments each backed by competing armed factions. Divisions over the U.N. deal are raising questions about how opponents will react to any new government in the capital Tripoli. Former colonial power Italy has sought to focus international attention on the
OPEC country’s drift towards anarchy, particularly since last month’s deadly Islamic State attacks in Paris. Libya is less than 300 km (190 miles) across the Mediterranean Sea from the Italian island of Lampedusa. With around 3,000 fighters, Islamic State has solidified its foothold in Libya by taking over the central city of Sirte. It has attacked a hotel and a prison in Tripoli, oil fields and military checkpoints, and issued a video of its militants beheading 21 Egyptian Christians on a Libyan beach.
The U.N. brokered agreement would allow a new Libyan government to ask for international military assistance to fight Islamic State’s growing presence. The recognised government and elected House of Representatives have operated only in the east of Libya since last year, when the capital Tripoli was seized by a faction that set up its own government. Each side is backed by competing alliances of former antiGaddafi rebels. Both of Libya’s rival parliaments are splintered
between those who support or reject the U.N. deal. Moderates in the two camps back the accord, but Western officials blame the presidents of both legislatures for blocking a vote. Some representatives of Tripoli-based GNC parliament said GNC delegates attending the Rome talks did not represent their self-declared government. “In my opinion, the U.N.brokered political agreement will die just like the Rome conference will after today,” GNC lawmaker Abdulqader Hawaili told Reuters. The U.N. proposal calls for a presidential council with the House of Representatives as the legislature alongside a second consultative chamber, the State Council. The presidential council could form a government in 30 days once a deal is signed and that would be ratified by parliament and bolstered by a U.N. Security Council resolution. “We are prepared to meet with (the national unity government) rapidly in order to facilitate their capacity to govern,” Kerry said, addressing the country’s fragmentation than half of the 1.6 million barrels per day the OPEC state had before 2011.
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Kaieteur News
Monday December 14, 2015
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Dem boys seh... First Lady joins Bernice Mansell Foundation to fete Senior citizens CORRUPTION FINDINGS
CAN KILL SOULJA BAI
First Lady Mrs. Sandra Granger (left) shares a warm moment with a guest as her table mates look on. First Lady, Mrs. Sandra Granger, joined with the Bernice Mansell Foundation to treat over 200 Senior citizens from in and around Georgetown to a grand Christmas luncheon at Parc Rayne, Rahaman’s Park, Houston. The guests were drawn from the Diamond Group Senior Citizens Home, the Golden Age Senior Citizens Home, the Society of St. Vincent De Paul, the Coalition for the Blind Group, and other organisations. They were treated to a hearty lunch, accompanied by
music and carol-ing. First Lady, Mrs. Granger commended Mrs. Bernice Mansell for keeping this tradition alive, noting that events like these add to the festive season as they highlight the virtues of caring and sharing. This year’s event is the continuation of a 16-year-old tradition which Mrs. Mansell started through her Foundation in 1999. Each year the Foundation treats Senior citizens to lunch and hosts Christmas parties for underprivileged persons.
Cheddi get heart attack and dead when he find out that nuff of he party members was thiefing. He wife tun president and she too dead of a broken heart because Jagdeo silence she when she talk. She did tek it on. He was president. Donald come as de new president. He was a good man when he come in but instead of he tek on, he join dem. He end up swinging wid dem, left, right and centre. Up comes Soulja Bai but he got to deal wid de ravellings wha Jagdeo dem lef. Brassington is one, Clintie de Willy, Dindial de man who get ketch wid de GuySuCo fertilizer, Neeaz Subhan, Kwame and Welch, just to name a few. Clintie de Willy spend GGMC money eating and
drinking at cosy places. Dem boys want know wid who. Fuh sure, officials don’t go to cosy places wid business associates. Welch come and know what was going on under he bosses. All of dem gone and lef him but he know de system so he use de same system to collect he thing. But he never bargain that thief man don’t like see he mattie wid bag. He mattie thief man complain pun him. Dem go so far as to hack he computer and expose him to de prison door. If he did cannon he would a mek a good small piece. After all one million Uncle Sam dollar equal to $200 million could set a good life on one deal. Dem boys seh, just imagine how much millions he bosses got, not only through
meters but from poles, generators, wires and transformers and de whole long yard. Dem boys still remember when GPL use to rent generators at US$75,000 per month fuh a whole year when dem coulda buy de generator wid three months rent money. De bosses at de time was Manny, Brassington and both Bharats—Dindyal and Jagdeo. This call fuh a separate investigation. All this enough fuh mek Soulja Bai get a stroke or collapse. Dem boys suggest that he don’t look at de Waterfalls paper unless is fuh see he photo. Dem boys don’t want he suffer de same fate as Cheddi and de rest of dem. Talk half and pray fuh Soulja Bai.
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Cyber crime victims DIVERS JOIN SEARCH PARTY seek police intervention FOR MISSING BODIES Mazaruni boat collision…
- as more altered photographs appear on local porn site
A snapshot of the pornographic site By Romila Boodram Every time she meets someone, Emma (not her real name) wonders if they’ve seen her naked. Nude photos of her dot the internet, still popping up years after an ex-boyfriend posted them on a local porn site to seek revenge. Revenge porn is when people post explicit images of ex-partners online, to humiliate them following a break-up. Emma, 28, says her naked pictures have been on a number of websites and social media sites. It started with a man she sarcastically calls “Mr. Hot-butt.” She met him in 2010 and the pair dated briefly. During the course of the relationship, nude photographs were exchanged. It has been five years and those photographs are still being circulatedmoving from one local pornographic site to another. “I ended the relationship and he was upset and that’s when he started posting my pictures online,” Emma related.
The pictures first appeared on a site called, www.Guyanaxxx.com and now it is on www.Guyanaporn.com. According to Emma, when she was first informed about her pictures being on a pornographic site, she reported the matter to the police but nothing was done at that time. Today, years later, she wonders if the police can do anything, since the man at the center of the
allegation, migrated three years ago. Several persons have suffered similar fates. In August last, a Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara (ECD) woman said that a man who had befriended her on a social m e d i a w e b s i t e i n M a y, downloaded pictures of her, photo-shopped them and posted the pictures to a local pornographic site, www.Guyanaporn.com. Thirty-three other women, including teenagers around Guyana have also reported that they too have had the same experience. Some say that their pictures were stolen from social media sites including Facebook and Instagram and their faces were cropped and placed on nude bodies. Tw o s e n i o r p o l i c e officials had confirmed that the complaints were received but to date an update cannot be given. It is unclear whether any of investigation was done. One police official had said that the matter was brought to his attention in early May. “One young lady came into us and said that her pictures were not only stolen and posted on the site, but they were also photoshopped onto a nude body,” the police official said. He added, “The young lady told us that she suspects an individual and she provided us with photographs and a telephone number for that person, but when we tried to contact the individual, his phone was turned off.” This information was also given to the Crime Chief, Wendell Blanhum a while back. These incidents come at a time when Guyana is moving to get in line with the rest of the world with regard to tackling cyber crime.
Divers are now combing the bottom of the Mazaruni River in search of the bodies of two men who disappeared after a head-on boat collision that occurred sometime around 19:45 on Saturday. The missing men have been identified as Trevor Persaud and Roy Roopnarine, both of Itabali. Cleon Fortune, also of Itabali, who was in Persaud’s boat at the time of the collision, was injured and was treated at the Bartica Hospital. According to a police source, the two missing men were in separate boats; Persaud was heading from Bartica while Roopnarine was heading in the opposite direction. The source continued that, Persaud’s boat was supposedly on the wrong side of the river, resulting in his boat colliding with
Roopnarine’s bow. The trio was then catapulted into the river. The operator of another boat which was ahead of Roopnarine, heard the crash and upon investigating he saw the unmanned boat circling about uncontrollably in the river. The boat operator managed to rescue the wounded Fortune. An alarm was then raised and a search party was assembled and an initial search continued until 1 am yesterday. The search resumed around 6am, and later in the day, two divers were deployed to search the floorof the river. Up to press time yesterday, the bodies were yet to be found. Fortune, who was discharged from hospital was taken into custody and is assisting police with their investigations.
Carpenter dies after car crashes into tree at Mahaicony A man was killed on Saturday night after he allegedly lost control of the motorcar he was driving and crashed into a tree, at Letter T, Mahaicony, East Coast Demerara. Dead is 40-year-old, Darwyn Michael Gordon, a carpenter, of Lot 3D De Kinderen, Mahaicony. Kaieteur News understands that the man was returning home from Belladrum, West Coast Berbice, when tragedy struck around 20:30hrs. The police in a statement said that Gordon was driving a motor vehicle allegedly at a fast rate, when he lost control of the vehicle and collided with a tree. He received injuries and was taken to the Mahaicony Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Gordon’s sister, Jacquelyn Roberts told this newspaper that her brother left home on Saturday, to visit the ancient county. She said that she is unclear of her brother’s reason for the visit, but related that he left in a hurry. But Nicola Mason, another one of the dead man’s sisters, said that her brother had left home to carry one of his friends to Berbice. According to Roberts, Gordon had asked her son, Jason Sumner, to give him a ride to his destination. However, she said that after
DEAD: Darwyn Gordon her son told her brother he had to “freshen up”, Gordon hopped into his Toyota Premio and went his way. The distraught sister recalled that an hour after he left, she received a telephone call from her son, who told her of the accident. “A guy who was going up to Corentyne at the time called my son and
told him about the accident,” she said. She stated that her son rushed to the accident scene and she later received another call, this time from her son’s girlfriend. Roberts added that the woman began to sob over the phone, and that confirmed her worst fears—she was told that her sibling had died. Family members related that Gordon was a very careful driver and that he was not driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. According to reports, his body, which was reportedly left hanging out of his car after the collision, was pulled from the vehicle by police and taken to the Mahaicony Hospital. Gordon, who has no children, leaves to mourn his girlfriend, sisters, nephew and other relatives and friends. The police are conducting investigations.
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Kaieteur News
Monday December 14, 2015
Cops detain teen for Govt. to review “Wandering” charge restaurant owner’s murder Police are hoping that they have finally made a breakthrough in the murder of Chinese businessman Zhenjz Su, who was bound and hacked to death in his Mandela Avenue, East Ruimveldt restaurant four months ago. They have detained an 18-year-old man who they say may be one of the bandits who killed Su, and badly battered his wife before escaping with an undisclosed sum of cash. The suspect was arrested last Thursday and is being detained at the Golden Grove Police Station. Kaieteur News understands that the youth, who is from East Ruimveldt, was chopped in the head last Thursday during an altercation. It was when he went to make a report that police informed him that he was a suspect in Su’s murder and took him into custody. The teen has reportedly insisted that he was with his girlfriend at the time of the murder. Su, 35, was found gagged and bound in the kitchen area of the Jade Stone Restaurant, on August 7. He had been chopped to the head.
Murdered: Zhenjz Su There are reports that the intruders killed Su after he refused to open a money-safe for them. The intruders also inflicted a savage beating on the businessman’s wife, 32year-old Fei Su, who was attacked in her bedroom. Some of her teeth were knocked out. A bloodstained cutlass was found at the scene. Detectives also found a piece of lumber that they believe the intruders used to club the man’s wife. The victims have five dogs, but no one apparently heard the animals barking while the family was under attack. The bandits had also tampered with surveillance
cameras on the property. It is believed that the killers gained entry via a door in the bottom flat that the business couple had mistakenly left open. Zhenjz Su, a source said, would close the restaurant at around 21:00 hrs and attend to customers through that door. A friend of the family said that after killing Su, the bandits used the dead man’s keys to open a door leading to the couple’s living quarters. Police said that Fei Su, the wife, was confronted in her home above the restaurant by a group of men who assaulted her and took away an undisclosed sum of money before escaping. On checking later, she found the body of her husband downstairs on the kitchen floor with chop wounds to his head. Police had detained, but later released a suspect. Some members of the business community have posted a $2M reward for information that could lead to the arrest of his killers. Persons with information can call telephone number 6624076 and all information will be confidential.
Select Committee would be... (From page 6) three times the monetary value of the drug. If in excess of 15 grams of cannabis, it is mandated that the offender should be sentenced to a minimum of three years of imprisonment. Almost on a daily basis people are being charged for possession of small amounts of marijuana. Butts was one such person but he has since been released on bail pending an appeal. He is being
represented by Hughes and Waldron. Divided into three sections—Amendment of Section 4 of the Principal Act; the Amendment of Section 5 of the Principal Act; and the Amendment of Section 12 of the Principle Act—the Bill is expected to remove the mandatory imprisonment of persons who have been accused of having in their possession relatively small amounts of cannabis, and cannabis resin whilst
increasing the qua n t i t y which will constitute trafficking in cannabis or c a n n a b is resin to one thousand grams. The Bill is founded on the experience of several citizens—predominantly youths who have been incarcerated for small quantities of cannabis or cannabis resin and who as a result of their incarceration have been unnecessarily economically and socially disadvantaged.
During a recent courtesy call made to the Ministry of Public Security, members of the Rights of the Child Commission, proposed the decriminalization of wandering in Guyana. Children who are found wandering without adult supervision are often charged by the police and taken before the courts. Many of these children are often sent to the New Opportunity Corps by the presiding Magistrate. “Often,” said Commission member Nicole Cole, “children who are unsupervised get arrested, (but) unsupervised children don’t need to be locked away, they need love and attention so (what) we need to do (is have) more community interventions.” She also related how “heartened” she was that the Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, agreed that the charge should be decriminalized. In a telephone interview with this publication, Ramjattan related that while the proposal has been made and he would like to see the decriminalization of wandering soon, “it will not happen tomorrow.” He stated that before a final decision is made, he will first seek the sentiments of the relevant authorities as what he has learnt in Government is “that despite
what you may think is right, there are thousands of people who will think it is wrong…and that’s the dilemma of democracy.” Wandering, he said, is one of those socio-economic crimes that discriminate against people who have more complex reasons to be on the streets than one might think. While the law books state that these children found wandering can be locked up, this should not be the case….I don’t believe it is the right thing. We have to get shelters; we have to get other methods of dealing with that.” Ramjattan expressed his view that the time has come for the review of several legislations, which will tackle things such as wandering and marijuana possession as the prison system gets “overburdened” with them. UNICEF had earlier in this year conducted a survey on the number of children who are sent to the NOC and found that 75% of them were found to be charged for wandering. Meanwhile, the Rights of the Child Commission also took the opportunity to advocate for the rejuvenation of the national committee of prevention of interpersonal violence as quite often, children get “caught up in the violence.” Cole related that while Guyana does have a
Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan Domestic Violence Act which was implemented in 1996, the question of how much protection it actually provides to women can be asked. “What we need to have is an attitudinal change from the very top,” said Cole, while suggesting the country implement “femicide laws.” Several countries around the world, the most recent, Brazil, have implemented “femicide” laws to further raise awareness to the “wrong” nature of killing the world’s women. Cole also made reference to the “National Violence Prevention Committee,” which was set up in 2013, stating that despite looking at 58 recommendations which were taken to them, the Committee has so far remained dormant and “it tells me that they are just providing lip service.”
Man, brother-in-law held for attempted robbery at Meadow Bank Wharf Almost two weeks after a man was shot during a botched robbery at the Meadow Bank Wharf, a Tucville, Georgetown resident and his brother-inlaw have been detained. A senior police official confirmed this development and informed that the men were taken into custody Thursday night in South Ruimveldt. Kaieteur News understands that eyewitnesses to the shooting which occurred on November 30 last, had identified one of the suspected bandits who shot Zhifa Lu during an attempted robbery at the wharf around 07:20 hrs. Police were since looking for the individual for questioning. On Thursday,
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ranks received information that the “wanted man” was seen in the South Ruimveldt area with an accomplice. This newspaper was told that police went to the scene and apprehended the men while they were on the move. There are reports that the prime suspect told ranks that he is a taxi driver and although his name had been called in a number of robberies before, he had nothing to do with the shooting of Lu, who had gone to the wharf to purchase fish. The other individual reportedly told ranks that the prime suspect is his brotherin-law and he had nothing to do with any robbery also. He said that on the night he was arrested, he and his in-law were heading home after taking a “drink” in the area. According to reports, four Chinese nationals went to the wharf to purchase fish on the day in question. Kaieteur News was told that when the men arrived at the wharf, they parked their vehicle outside and walked into the Fisherman’s Co-op
Society compound. While there, a white tinted car pulled up and parked alongside the Chinese nationals’ vehicle. An eyewitness said that two armed men exited the white car and broke into Lu’s vehicle and collected all the valuables, including the battery. “They packed the things into their car and sat and waited on the men (Chinese nationals) to come out from the wharf. But a short while later, only one man (Lu) come out from the wharf and walk towards his vehicle. That’s when one of them bandits rush up to he,” the eyewitness recalled. Kaieteur News was further told that a fight ensued after which two shots were fired, one of which struck Lu. “After the shooting, the man run through a crack that lead straight out to Rahaman’s Park and the other gunman drive away…like he went to meet up the shooter. They didn’t get anything from the Chinese man other than what they took from his vehicle,” the eyewitness said. An identification parade (ID) will be held shortly.
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
Page 21
COME MISTER TALLYMAN Some of us older folk in Trinidad still refer to bananas as “figs” even though we know the two fruits are different. My cousin Savi took the easy way out and used the term “banana figs”. Banana is a fruit which all of us in the Caribbean have grown up with and have eaten “green” or ripe. Whether in soups, salads, mashed, boiled, baked, fried, “soused” in a salty lime pickle or just consumed greedily to fill the spaces in our hunger, we know it well. I remember Sophia Loren speaking about growing up in Italy during the Second World War. Life was difficult and people were starving. Someone gave her a shrivelled-up banana and, never having seen one before and not knowing that it should be peeled, she just gobbled it down. We do not only know the banana well but are known for it, not just its production but as a metaphor for our governance. William Sydney Porter, known as O. Henry, was famous for his short stories (including “Cabbages and Kings”). He first coined the term, “Banana Republic”
not the clothing retailer owned by The Gap but as a term for a politically unstable country whose economy is largely dependent on exporting a limited-resource product such as bananas, oil, sugar-cane or even tourism. It is distinguished by a ruling group of business, political or army elites and a large, poor working class. This small group or oligarchy controls the national economy. Whoever leads it is the “Top Banana”. The top political bananas of the Caribbean are known as the Heads of Government with the unfortunate acronym HOGs. Because Trinidad, like some of the other Caribbean countries, was not dependent on bananas, we were unaware of its importance and more, its history. I remember laughing at a Grenadian boy who recited a couplet at a concert in our elementary school, “Saltfish and plantain me never eat at all/ But when the hard time come, me eat the skin and all.” Eating plantain or banana skin? You mad or what? Even the poem “The Song Of The Banana Man” by Jamaican, Evan Jones, while stirring and
powerful did not reach us with its theme so much as its tone. It might have reached the “cocoa panyols” or people of Spanish-descent, who farmed bananas in the forested areas, but almost every yard in our village had some bananas growing and the market always had more than we needed. We had no idea that the “Gros Michel” (which we called “Grammyshell”) had been wiped out by what is known in the trade as “Race 1” of a particularly virulent disease called Fusarium wilt or Panama Disease and was replaced by a species called Cavendish. In fact, up to last week when I read an article on the threat of complete extinction of bananas in Latin America and the Caribbean, I still thought of the large local or imported bananas as “Gros Michel” not knowing they had been replaced. In Trinidad, we also have a medium sized and very sweet type we call “silk fig” (known in Guyana as “apple” bananas). The best tasting though is a very small one we know as “chiquito” (Spanish for “tiny”). Every year when I see our President on the
back of a pickup truck reviewing the motley troops in our Independence celebrations, something that happens in the other Caribbean countries as well, I always regard it as proof that we are the “chiquito” of Banana Republics and wonder what my hero O. Henry would have made of it all. Now our status as “Banana” Republics is threatened not by new visions of ourselves, better governance, or less pomp and ceremony but by a new circumstance. A new strain of Fusarium wilt (Tropical Race 4 or TR4) has moved from South East Asia to Africa and while not yet in the Americas the experts predict that a jump from these areas to the Americas is extremely possible. In fact, it is not an “if” but a “when”. What makes this story both poignant and urgent is that there is no cultural, physical or biological treatment to manage TR4. According to a report in the Washington Post, “While dozens of different varieties are grown around the world, often in close proximity to one
Banking Exec. calls for clearer rules to govern operations of the Public Service Bank of Guyana Governor, Dr. Gobind Ganga has said that there should be more transparent rules governing the operations of the Public Service Sector. Dr. Ganga made this recommendation at the Commission of Inquiry, (COI) established to inquire into the operations of the Public Service, last Friday. His submissions were based on the terms of reference, outlined by the Commission. According to the BOG Governor, having transparent rules which are available to both civil servants and members of the public, is a method of ensuring better accountability and improved efficiency in the sector. Dr Ganga stressed that ”rules must be equally available to the civil servants as well as member of the public.” The witness told the
Commission that while most Public Servants are cognizant of the fact that they work for the Government, “it is important that workers remember that their duty is to ensure that there is growth and development in the country, in every way possible.” In terms of recruitment process, Dr. Ganga opined that education, experience as well other factors such as ethnicity, race, gender, and the levels of disability or ability, are equally important, when hiring persons to work in the Public Service. Speaking specifically on the subject of salaries and wages for workers, the Banker asserted that payment for civil servants should be fixed, based on very clear guidelines. Dr. Ganga is of the opinion that salary increases should be subject to the levels of inflations. He asserted that
Bandit’s eye shot... (From page 14) ain’t come for a while. Like about 7 o’clock, he girl Kiesha call me son phone saying that she hear he get shoot. And when we come down here he was already in the Accident and Emergency room. He never had any big trouble with the police before just lil days lock up for loitering.” He most likely will be spending more than a few days in custody this time. The police investigations are continuing.
salary increase should be based on the ability to pay and competitiveness of the sector. He posited that one must consider what impact a salary increase would have on the private sector. “If you have a sizable increase in the Public Servants wages in Guyana it can have a detrimental effect on the Private Sector, in which you can have businesses going bankrupt.” In terms of retirement, the witness recommended that it should by 62 years. He said that it can be beneficial to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) as well as the persons, who are set to retire. The COI was established as part of a plan to support President Granger’s vision for a modern Public Service and the establishment of a Public Service Staff College. Following his appointment to office, President David Granger had stressed the need for a more efficient and satisfactory sector. According to President Granger, Public Servants must possess expert knowledge and high standard academic education. He expressed his intention to introduce a Public Service Staff College, in which persons entering the administrative branches of the Guyana Public Service are
required to undergo training. The President had promised, too, that this would ensure that persons serving the nation would be more equipped with the basics of Public Service delivery and a better understanding of how the Public Service is meant to operate. As such, the COI was established to inquire into, report on and make recommendations on the role, functions, recruitment process, remuneration, conditions and other matters pertaining to the personnel employed in the Guyana Public Service. The Commission is expected to determine measures to improve the efficiency of the Public Service, to review the methodology used in the classification and recruitment of Public Servants. The Inquiry is also slated to conduct a detailed examination of how the salaries and wages of Public Servants are determined and allocated; review the age of Public Servant retirement and make recommendations in this regard. The hearings are being held in the various regions. Professor Harold Lutchman, and Commissioners Samuel Goolsaran and Sandra Jones are facilitating the exercise.
another, commercially produced bananas are all the same (quite literally in fact, because they are effectively clones of each other).” The banana is the world’s most important fruit and is the main source of livelihood for many Caribbean people. The Post concludes, “We don’t have a formidable replacement that’s resistant to the new strain of Panama Disease. Once it reaches Latin America, as it is expected to, it could be only a matter of decades before the most popular banana on the planet once again disappears.” There was a hit song from a Broadway musical of the 1920s which owed its popularity to the play on words, “Yes, we have no bananas”. Now, following the death of King Sugar which should have taught us to diversify, we are facing
another slippery slope. In a grisly pun, it has been suggested the now is not the time to go bananas but really if we give a fig for the region to come up with ideas and solutions. God and the big right hand will certainly help but we need to work with the scientists and companies like Chiquita to find a way out. Gros Michel, now Cavendish, perhaps something else, who knows? In the meantime, I think of my friend Errol who, we teased, could put a Gros Michel “fig” in his mouth sideways and whistle, and I mourn the carefree days of plenty, the passing of time and the time of many passings. *Tony Deyal was last seen trying to cheer himself up with a banana riddle: What do you call two banana peels? A pair of slippers.
Page 22
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Kaieteur News
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Monday December 14, 2015
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Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
Page 23
Letters... Where your views make the news...Letters... Where your views make the news
Death inside a water tank or behind it? DEAR EDITOR, There is a lot that should bother the saner heads among us. But one thing stands out, and that is the nonsense that we hear peddled by high officials. Two young men are shot dead by the police in circumstances that are not very clear, but we are told by a senior police officer that no complaint about excesses has
been made, and what the consequence will be if anyone shoots at law enforcers. One individual who was directly involved is claiming that the two men were hiding in a water tank when they were shot, but the police are saying that they were hiding behind the tank. According to media reports, the shootout lasted for a considerable length of
time yet only a few spent shell were recovered from the scene. Incidentally a .38 revolver was one of two weapons recovered by the police which means that the spent shells from that weapon would have been in the revolving chamber. Editor, one letter writer advised the police sometime back of the importance of after-incident
reviews, but we are still to be told whether these are done. An after-action review would have highlighted the fact that police were on that South Ruimveldt scene without proper safety gear. A review would have determined if a supervisor inspected the ranks before they were detailed for duty. I would not be surprised if the police tell us that indeed ranks
The golden bird is flying past us DEAR EDITOR, I currently do not live in Guyana but I make it a habit to read the news on Guyana daily. My thoughts are that we spend far too much time bashing politicians without being agents of change. Anyone who regards himself/herself as an agent of change must try to reform the system that allows people to operate the way they do. Currently in Guyana we seem to be on the wrong course. There are people who use the public space to criticize. Politicians seem to play up to their base and exonerate themselves by blaming the other side.
We had years of corruption and dictatorship under the PNC that ravaged a beautiful country and brought us to our knees. The PPP/ CIVIC under Cheddie Jagan offered a new day to Guyanese but with his demise his successors lost his vision for a better Guyana. The current government is heading in the wrong direction and the golden bird is flying past us. Delay in making good use of opportunities is proving detrimental. Instead of trying to defend mistakes that are being made, why not acknowledge them and move on with corrective actions?
The public will respect you. Let us have complete separation of the three arms of government with the judiciary becoming totally independent and impartial. The judiciary will also have to handle cases expeditiously. I remembered the case brought against a former PNC Minister of Housing by a private citizen. The Minister was found guilty of corruption and forced to resign. Today we are hearing every day of corruption and millions of dollars are spent on investigations. Did no one think of moving to the courts when
the acts were being perpetuated or were the courts muzzled? I do not think the latter is true. It is just that the politicians wanted people to bash up and create the impression that they are acting in the best interest of the population. In conclusion I wish to encourage all the political commentators to work to reform the political system. Personnel change is never the answer. We need to change the system that allows people to do what they are doing Surujpaul Rampersaud Texas, USA
were inspected and supplied with the necessary bulletproof vests etc., but an examination of the relevant records could put any doubts to rest. In other jurisdictions, the family of the slain Antonio Dawson would have sued the Commissioner of Police if it was found that the constable had been allowed to go on duty without adequate body protection. Police ranks were seen operating in a directionless fashion and it would come as no surprise if one had fallen victim to friendly fire. How could anyone escape on foot if order and tactics prevailed? Then, the comedic scene of ranks having to push a vehicle in height of the incident. Who manages the maintenance of police vehicles? Where was the swat unit in all of this
drama? President Granger is demonstrating daily that he will not be bluffed by superficiality and bombast and therefore his admonition of less deaths and more arrests and interrogation should be noted and acted upon. Yes, we all want to see the end to criminality in all its forms. But Editor, aren’t we opening the floodgates when we unquestioningly accept the police version of events even in the face of disputative accounts? What we should be deathly afraid of is if those involved take official acquiescence as a license to engage in further questionable actions without fear of review. We might just be bringing down all kinds of irrevocable situations on our heads. Julius Laundry
From page 22
Avoid shooting people down at all cost DEAR EDITOR, That’s right. Law enforcement under APNUAFC should, at all cost, avoid shooting people down. P r e s i d e n t Granger(Chronicle, 12/12/ 2015) is clearly a sober and organised leader, believing that reason and the proper application of law, rather than loud mouthed bravado and mindless violence, are the preferred routes to solving problems in a civilized country. He is right about the approach to dealing with suspects, and Guyanese should support him in this approach. It is obvious why. If you ‘shoot people down’ you run the risk that innocent people may have
been slain. If you ‘shoot them down’ how will you gather intelligence to understand, much less solve the crime problem?. If you ‘shoot people down’ you can rightfully be accused of murder. Who decides the innocence or guilt of a citizen, and the penalty for an offense? Certainly not the police, or any civilian, or government official. This is the jurisdiction of the Court, is it not? Let it remain there. If you ‘shoot people down’ it may be extrajudicial killing. It looks lawless. The public’s perception will be that law enforcement personnel are acting as accusers, trial lawyers, jury, judge and executioner. You
In support of the... From page 4 The local aquaculture sub-sector is another area that is somewhat stagnated, again because of issues related to financing and sustainability. If affordable credit becomes available, this can be an area for quick revival. So there are enough reasons that justify our government taking the step to re-establish an agricultural development bank. However, the approaches described in the foregoing, cannot be construed as economically sustainable, lest its retention encourages dependency. Inherent in the operations of any development bank is the fact that there is a deadweight loss to society, but one that is necessary to bear because of the fledgling industries they are intended to support. At some stage the operations of such an agricultural development bank must be reviewed, with the objectives of weaning-off borrowers – sort of graduating them to become customers of fully Khemraj Tulsie
don’t want this on your record as a government, or as a society If you’ shoot them down’ rather than arrest them it sometimes looks suspicious, especially in a country like Guyana, where the PPP corrupted the police. Ranks have been known to be susceptible to bribery, and to be involved in serious nefarious activities, including in cahoots with Phantom Gangs. Guyanese may think, and not without justification, that the police want some offenders dead, because dead men tell no tales. Let the PPP keep this nasty record alone. If you ‘shoot them down’ it looks ignorant, crude, uncivilized and indeed barbaric. And it is not only law enforcement that gets the blame. The Government, APNU-AFC ultimately gets the blame. Mr. Editor, if an offender chooses to die rather than surrender there may be nothing more that may be possible. However, the police can lay siege (depending on the circumstances). Cut off electricity, water, telephone, food supply, and
try talking offenders into surrender. A two hour siege (even 24 hours) may not be enough time to bring out an offender(s) alive. Justice requires patience by law enforcement, after taking precautions to protect the police and civilians from harm. Considering the kind of country that Guyana has become, the youthfulness of some offenders and the proliferation of guns, the preferred weapon, a specially trained ‘Siege Unit’ which includes expert crime negotiators should be built. An APNU-AFC government does not want to look simple, ignorant, crude and lawless, using mindless violence, the things that the PPP seemed to have become. APNU-AFC must, in the eyes of Guyanese, be perceived as a sophisticated government. Raise the level please. The APNU-AFC does not wish to give the PPP cheap talking points, such as, you see, they accused us of a murderous extra-judicial rampage, now look what they are doing. The last to be accused always look worse than processors. Ivor Carryl
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Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
Merkel dismisses U.S. request for more military help against Islamic State Reuters - Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday brushed off what a Germany magazine said was a request from the United States to provide more military help in the fight against Islamic State. “I believe Germany is fulfilling its part and we don’t need to talk about new issues related to this question at the moment,” Merkel told the ZDF broadcaster when asked about the Der Spiegel magazine report of the U.S. request. Der Spiegel reported on Saturday that U.S. Defence Secretary Ashton Carter had sent a letter asking for a bigger military contribution from Germany, a week after parliament approved a plan to join the campaign in Syria. A German Defence Ministry spokesman confirmed a letter had been received from the United States and its content was under consideration, giving
Angela Merkel no further details. Der Spiegel said the letter did not make specific demands and was similar to requests sent to other U.S. partners. Germany’s mission includes six Tornado reconnaissance jets, a frigate to protect the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle,
refuelling aircraft and up to 1,200 troops. The deployment is a direct response to a French appeal for solidarity after militant attacks in Paris killed 130 people. Germany does not plan to carry out air strikes in Syria. Germany has over the past two years shown a growing readiness to commit troops to foreign missions. Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen said last week Germany might need bigger armed forces to cope with the more assertive role. More than 3,000 personnel are currently deployed overseas and the Syria mission will raise that by up to 1,200. Von der Leyen also wants to send 650 troops to Mali to help the French campaign against Islamist militants there. Germany last year started arming Iraqi Kurds fighting Islamic State.
Officer questioned in shooting of Palestinian assailant
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli authorities yesterday said they have opened an investigation into the actions of a police officer who fatally shot a 16-year-old Palestinian girl during a stabbing attack in Jerusalem last month. In a statement, the Justice Ministry said it was looking into whether the officer used excessive force while stopping a stabbing attack by two teenage Palestinian girls. In the Nov. 23 incident, the 16-year-old girl, along with a 14-year-old accomplice, stabbed and wounded a 70-yearold man with scissors before they were shot by the officer. The ministry said the attorney general had requested the investigation into claims that the officer shot the 16-year-old girl after she had already been restrained. During questioning, the officer said he believed the girl still posed a threat, the statement said. The incident was filmed by a security camera and the footage was released to the media. The younger girl was wounded. Palestinians have accused Israel of using excessive force during a three-month wave of violence, and Sunday’s announcement appeared to be the first official investigation into the actions of Israeli security forces during the unrest. Israel says its tactics are a legitimate response to stabbings and other attacks. A total of 19 Israelis and an American seminary student have been killed by
Palestinian attacks, mostly stabbings, while at least 112 have been killed on the Palestinian side, including 75 people said by Israel to be attackers. In the latest unrest, Israeli forces shot a young Palestinian woman yesterday after she allegedly attempted to stab a pedestrian in the West Bank. The military said the woman was evacuated to a Jerusalem hospital. It did not say how close the woman got to her target. The incident occurred Sunday in Hebron, a frequent flashpoint of violence. Several hundred Israeli settlers live in heavily guarded enclaves in the city, which is home to 270,000 Palestinians. Israel says the violence is fueled by a Palestinian campaign of lies and incitement. The Palestinians say it is the result of
frustrations rooted in Israel’s nearly 50-year occupation. Late yesterday, the Israeli army said Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket that landed in an open area of southern Israel. No injuries were reported. ‘Early Monday, Israeli aircraft struck what the military said were two military posts belonging to Hamas, the Islamic militant group that controls Gaza. Israel and Hamas fought a 50 day war last year. Although Hamas has largely observed a cease fire since then, Israel said it holds the group responsible for “all attacks emanating from the Gaza Strip.” There were no immediate reports of casualties.
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How the world learned its lesson and got a climate deal
From left: Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, French Foreign Affairs Minister Laurent Fabius, President-designate of COP21 and French President Francois Hollande applaud during the final plenary session at the World Climate Change Conference. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe Reuters - It was an agreement born from a fear of failure, delivered by the smoothness of French diplomacy. Six years earlier, countries had bitterly walked away from global climate talks in Copenhagen without a deal. The decision to reassemble in Paris to try again at getting almost 200 countries to sign a pact on cutting carbon emissions was a gamble: another collapse could the end world’s ability to forge a common approach to dealing with climate change. And no political leader wanted his reputation stained by a repeat of the debacle in Copenhagen. So there was no detail of hospitality too small for the French hosts this time, no country negotiator who would go unflattered by Laurent Fabius, the French foreign minister who presided over the conference. Fabius had been the youngest French prime
minister in history in the 1980s; now he was an elder statesman looking to carve a bigger place in it. Over two weeks under the global spotlight, his sonorous voice and relentless optimism would come to define the public tone of the proceedings. But behind the scenes, the talks witnessed the confrontations and five-pastmidnight compromises to be expected when sleepdeprived negotiators from almost every country in the world are supposed to come to a consensus. They ultimately found it, remarkably only one day later than planned. But the path to the standing ovations at the end was strewn with disputes over money, the emergence of an effective new climate coalition of states, and hours of wrangling over what
“should” or “shall” be done. For the survivors of Copenhagen, the key to success in Paris would be preparation. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon complained that the political leaders had not been well-prepared for the Copenhagen meeting, and this time he and the French conducted extensive advance work to get other leaders personally engaged. They also decided that, if leaders were to come to Paris, they would do so at the beginning to lend the talks some political oxygen, rather than arriving for a scramble at the end.
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Kaieteur News
Monday December 14, 2015
‘Proud’ women win seats in historic Saudi vote
Saudi women prepare to vote at a polling center during the country’s municipal elections in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Saturday. (AP Photo/Aya Batrawy) Riyadh (AFP) - At least 14 women won municipal council seats in Saudi Arabia’s first ever election open to female voters and candidates, officials said yesterday, far exceeding expectations in the ultraconservative kingdom. “Even if it was only one woman, we’re really proud of that. Honestly, we weren’t expecting anyone to win,” said Sahar Hassan Nasief, a women’s rights activist in the Red Sea city of Jeddah. But with 2,106 seats up for election in Saturday’s polls, the 14 women will constitute less than one percent of Saudi Arabia’s elected
council membership. “We need more,” said Aljazi al-Hossaini, who was defeated in Diriyah on the edge of Riyadh, where three women won seats, according to Saudi news channel Al-Ekhbaria. She hoped women would be also included among the one-third of council seats which are appointed by the municipal affairs ministry. A teacher from the small bedouin town of Mudrika outside the holy city of Mecca was the first woman to be declared a winner. “My whole life has been a struggle,” Salma bint Hizab al-Oteibi told AFP.
Russia warns Turkey over Aegean warship incident
MOSCOW (Reuters) Russia yesterday warned Turkey to stop staging what it called provocations against its forces in or near Syria after one of its warships fired warning shots at a Turkish vessel in the Aegean to avoid a collision. The Russian Defence Ministry said one of its warships, the destroyer Smetlivy, had been forced to fire the warning shots yesterday morning and that it had summoned the Turkish military attaché over the incident. “The Turkish military diplomat was given a tough explanation about the potentially disastrous consequences from Ankara’s reckless actions towards Russia’s military contingent fighting against international terrorism in Syria,” the Defence Ministry said in a statement. “In particular, our deep concerns about more Turkish provocations towards the Russian destroyer Smetlivy were conveyed.” Yesterday, the ministry said that the Turkish fishing vessel failed to respond to Smetlivy’s warnings and changed course sharply only
Mevlut Cavusoglu
Vladimir Putin
after shots were fired before passing within just over 500 meters of the warship. “Only by luck was tragedy avoided,” the ministry said. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, who was in Rome for talks on Libya, said Ankara was investigating the matter and would make a statement once it had more information. He also reiterated Turkey’s position that it wanted to resolve its difficulties with Russia. “We want to solve the tension with dialogue,” he said, in comments broadcast by TRT Turk.
The incident is likely to heighten tensions between the two nations who are seriously at odds over Syria and the Turkish shooting down of a Russian military jet last month. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who called the downing of the plane a “stab in the back”, has since imposed economic sanctions on Turkey as a retaliatory measure. Earlier this month, Turkey complained to Russia over an incident in which a Russian sailor was pictured brandishing a rocket launcher on the deck of a naval ship passing through Istanbul.
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Venezuelan president addresses military after election loss (AP) — President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday told Venezuela’s military to be prepared for a fight as the country remains tense after a landslide defeat for his socialist party in congressional elections. Maduro told troops at a year-end celebration in Caracas that the coming year could see a political showdown between the socialist administration and its enemies. Soldiers listened solemnly as the late President Hugo Chavez’s voice rang out over loudspeakers, and they applauded when Maduro reminded them of his quick acceptance of the crushing legislative election loss on Dec. 6. Maduro also said he had ordered the military to return to barracks after troops were deployed across the country to public spaces to maintain order during the election campaign and the vote itself. All eyes are on the country’s military after the opposition’s victory because the armed forces have traditionally been the arbiter of major political fights in
Democratic Unity opposition coalition congressman Miguel Pizarro, center, greets supporters during a rally to thank those that voted for him, at the Petare neighborhood in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano) Venezuela. Maduro kept up the combative tone he has taken with the opposition, repeating the government’s
longstanding contention that Venezuela’s enemies are waging a war on its socialist system. While Maduro spoke,
some opposition members took to the capital’s streets to celebrate their election victory, which was the socialists’ first rebuff in
electoral contests since Chavez was first elected president 17 years ago. In the city’s poor Petare neighborhood, a street party
atmosphere reigned as reelected opposition lawmaker Miguel Pizarro made the rounds, hugging his supporters and drawing cheers of “Long live Venezuela!” Opposition backers sang and danced in the steep, narrow streets linked with simple brick homes. “We were hoping for a change. It is justice that we make a change after 17 years of the same people ... We all hope with this new congress to solve the problems of crime and economic crisis,” a tearyeyed Elena Moreira said after embracing Pizarro. The opposition Democratic Unity coalition won a huge victory in the legislative contest, which came amid widespread discontent over Venezuela’s high crime, widespread shortages and triple-digit inflation. The opposition ended up with 112 of the National Assembly’s 167 seats, giving it an important two-thirds majority that dramatically strengthens its hand in challenging Maduro. The socialist party and its allies hold 55 seats.
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Kaieteur News
Monday December 14, 2015
Brazilians protest to demand President Rousseff’s impeachment
Demonstrators carry a coffin with the Worker’s Party flag and an image depicting Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff during a protest calling for the impeachment of Rousseff in front of the National Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, yesterday. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Thousands of Brazilians took to the streets yesterday to demand President Dilma Rousseff’s ouster in the first nationwide protests since formal impeachment proceedings began against the leftist leader. A congressional committee is considering her impeachment for allegedly violating budget laws to increase spending during her 2014 re-election campaign. But many Brazilians are more upset about a deepening recession and a corruption scandal that has ensnared many in her party. “We are tired. We want change. Out with this corrupt gang!” one activist shouted into a loudspeaker in the capital Brasilia, where police estimated a maximum 6,000 people were gathered in front of Congress, in the smallest of four main protests this year.Lower House Speaker Eduardo Cunha opened impeachment proceedings on Dec 2. Currently the opposition is not thought to have the votes to impeach Rousseff, who denies mishandling public accounts and has pledged to fight
impeachment with all legal tools available in order to finish her second term. If the house committee decides in favor of impeachment, the process will go to a full vote on the house floor, where the opposition needs two-thirds of the votes to begin a 180day impeachment trial in the Senate. During that trial, Rousseff would be suspended and replaced by Vice President Michel Temer. The Supreme Court has suspended impeachment proceedings until it rules on the validity of a secret ballot vote that selected the members of the house committee. Meanwhile Cunha, a former ally who broke with Rousseff this year, is facing formal charges for allegedly taking bribes in a massive corruption scandal focused on staterun oil firm Petrobras. A house ethics committee is also deciding whether to investigate Cunha for lying about having Swiss bank accounts, which could cost him his seat and favor Rousseff’s chances of surviving impeachment proceedings.
Cuba seeking foreign investment, says minister
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (ACN) — Cuba is making efforts to attract new businesses as part of its economic model update, Rodrigo Malmierca, minister of foreign trade and foreign investment, said in Argentina, Prensa Latina reported. He also referred to his recent visits to Arab countries, as well as Vietnam, China, Spain and France and said during the tours he saw great interest by entrepreneurs to meet the guarantees and incentives to invest in Cuba provided by new legislation. He stressed the new business project portfolio that Cuba promotes to facilitate these opportunities. Malmierca, who traveled to Argentina for the inauguration of President Mauricio Macri, held a meeting with local businessmen, to whom he presented the package of
Rodrigo Malmierca proposals to clarify and answer their questions. This new portfolio offers 326 projects in 12 sectors of the economy, and the common denominator is that they are supported by feasibility studies. They help foreign investors to contact Cuban companies operating in their
areas and expedite the negotiation of the proposals, he said. The minister stressed that the Cuban government wants to have a diverse economy with relationships in every country in the world and remarked: “We do not want to depend on a single market and this is a fundamental policy of the economic renovation program the state is boosting.” He dispelled concerns of business people thinking that when the United States removes the trade embargo and allows businesses in Cuba, the nation would abandon operations with companies from other countries. Regarding economic ties between Argentina and Cuba, he noted that they are brother countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, and there is much complementarity between them that should be explored. (Caribbean News)
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Steel and mining company disagrees with union’s figure on workers dismissed PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad - CMC – ArcelorMittal Point Lisas, a subsidiary of the world’s leading steel and mining company is disagreeing with the figures provided by the Steel Workers Union of Trinidad and Tobago (SWUTT) regarding the number of workers laid off last week. ArcelorMittal has said “it was completely untrue and misleading” that it had sent home workers without any financial assistance during the holiday period and that more than “have already signed up to receive vacation encashment”. The steel and mining company said it wanted to clarify “that it has laid off 480 workers of 533 bargaining unit workers” and not the figures quoted by the union. Last Monday, the SWUTT said it denounced the decision of the ArcelorMittal Point Lisas, to lay off 600 employees with immediate effect. The SWUTT said that the company, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, had sent letters to “all it workers” laying them off “with immediate effect”. The union said that only a few workers would remain
on the pant for maintenance purposes from the period December 7 to January 15 next year. The action of the company has been criticized by the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) and last Friday, prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley said his administration would seek to hold talks with the company and the union on the matter. In a statement, ArcelorMittal said managers with accrued vacation leave and knowing the company’s position in the international steel market had taken up the offer to proceed on paid vacation leave while managers without accrued vacation leave have been engaged to do alternative work at the Point Lisas plant. The company said that over the last 10 years of its operations, it has suffered major financial losses for seven of those years and that with uncertainties in the international steel market it has not laid off or retrenched any of its permanent work force in recent times and only laid off workers in December as a last resort. The company said that challenges became critical at the start of this year when it initiated discussions with
Immigration officers must be alert at all times — PICA CEO
Jennifer McDonald KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) – Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) Jennifer McDonald, says the country’s Immigration
Officers must be alert at all times, to detect persons with ill intent entering the country. She said with terrorism now a global concern, border security and the role of immigration officers are of the utmost importance at this time. “As guardians of the nation’s borders, we have to be alert and intuitive to any signs of perforation in the safety and security of our borders,” McDonald told a recent graduation ceremony for Immigration Officers, held at the Knutsford Court Hotel, in Kingston. The CEO told the new officers that the profession needs persons of the highest integrity, and before they act, they should consider the consequences for themselves and their country.
SWUTT on possible revisions to its footprint. Arcelor Mittal said the lay-offs “came only after the SWUTT was asked to present to workers a proposal from the company to proceed on accrued vacation days till mid-January with pay as they are entitled to in their industrial agreement and any worker without sufficient holidays would be employed in alternative duties”. It said in spite of continuing decline in the production of steel products over the last year due to uncompetitive costs and a
slow-down in production, ArcelorMittal said, it “never once laid off and retrenched its permanent workforce this year,” but engaged SWUTT in discussions every step of the way. The company said that labour costs per ton at the Point Lisas plant over the last five years have been in the highest percentile of companies within the ArcelorMittal Group. It said the figures “give a true picture of the operations of ArcelorMittal at Point Lisas and erase the false picture being painted by the Union
that the Company has been making large amounts of profit and exploiting labour”. The company said the difficult financial situation at ArcelorMittal has been caused by oversupply of steel on the international market by China and the crash in prices for steel. It added that this is compounded by the soft prices and major reduction in the number of orders received for products at Point Lisas which have impacted severely on the financial and production operations of the company.
Dr. Keith Rowley
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Kaieteur News
PM slams ‘reckless’ CB Governor…
JAWLA ON THE BRINK Trinidad Guardian Support from the Opposition and an online petition may not be enough to keep Central Bank Governor Jwala Rambarran in office. In a stinging statement Saturday, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said that Rambarran has engaged in a series of “reckless and even illegal” actions during his time as governor which made “his own situation untenable.” Rowley, in a text exchange with the Sunday Guardian Saturday, said the media “missed the point” of his statements in Parliament on Friday and sought to further clarify the context of his debate contribution on the future of the Central Bank governor. Rowley said contrary to media reports that his Government would not take action against Rambarran, the Government now has to act to protect the citizenry, “The Government would simply be responding to protect the wider public interest,” Rowley said. Rowley reiterated his denial that his Government was seeking to “hound” Rambarran out of office but said that Rambarran was in an “untenable” situation. Hours after the media reports of Rowley’s contribution in Parliament Friday night, the Office of the Prime Minister sought to clarify the misinformation that Rambarran’s position was safe. “The report in the media stating that the Prime Minister has told the Parliament that Government has no intention of dismissing the Governor of the Central Bank is entirely incorrect and is a patent misrepresentation of what
Jwala Rambarran was said in the House,” the release said. “In response to a question as to whether the Government was taking action which could result in the dismissal of the Governor of the Central Bank the Hon Prime Minister replied that if any action was being taken which could result in the Governor being dismissed ‘such action was not being taken by the Government’,” the statement noted. However, it added that “if it turns out that the Governor is dismissed it would be as a result of a series of his own actions and not by any action initiated by the Government. The Government would wish to make it quite clear that no public officer, regardless of what office he or she may hold, is beyond the requisite disciplinary procedures which are open to the employer acting lawfully in the interest of the people of Trinidad and Tobago”. “The statement was issued immediately upon my observation that the media missed my point,” Rowley told the Sunday Guardian. “If the Governor ends up being removed, it would not
be because of any action initiated by the Government but as a result of his own series of reckless and illegal actions,” Rowley said in a text to the Sunday Guardian. Speaking at the PNM’s children’s Christmas treat yesterday, Rowley said the issue was “diminishing the public’s confidence in the Central Bank’s ability to conduct public’s business in finance, and two, diminishing the public’s confidence in the Governor himself. If the Government allows this to continue unimpeded it will diminish the population’s confidence in the Government itself.” Rowley said there are laws which govern the conduct of the Central Bank affairs. “If the Governor breaches those laws then the Minister of Finance would have to look at the matter....and the Minister of Finance is looking at the matter.” Rowley said he trusts that good sense will prevail. On Wednesday, the Opposition Leader, former prime minister Kamla PersadBissessar, defended Rambarran, saying that he was being “hounded” out of office by the People’s National Movement (PNM) Government. Rambarran was appointed by the People’s Partnership on Friday, July 13, 2012, after a series of meetings at a governmental retreat in Tobago. Two years later, Rambarran implemented a revision of the 20-year old foreign exchange allocation system, increasing the number of financial institutions accessing forex from eight to 12. Rambarran came under fire earlier in the month for announcing that the country was in a recession without first informing Finance Minister Colm Imbert. Rambarran also faced criticism from the business sector and Chamber of Commerce for revealing the companies utilising the largest chunk of foreign exchange. Rambarran is also facing possible legal action by the Massy conglomerate for breaching confidentiality when he revealed the names of the companies using forex. The Sunday Guardian attempted to contact both Rambarran and Central Bank communications manager Charlene Ramdhanie by mobile phone and email but was unsuccessful. Meanwhile, president of the Penal/Debe Chamber of Commerce Shiva Roopnarine is calling on Rambarran and Minister of Finance Colm Imbert to settle the debate privately.
Monday December 14, 2015
No Massive Job Cuts – Phillips
Finance Minister Dr. Peter Phillips (right) greets IMF representative Uma Ramakrishnan at the Fund’s 8th review press briefing in May. The Gleaner - Finance and Planning Minister Dr Peter Phillips has rubbished claims that there will be massive job cuts as the Government introduces a public-sector reform exercise to reduce the wage bill as agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He, however, admitted that some public-sector employees could lose their jobs as the administration moves to ensure wages are reduced to nine per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP). “There are those who think that when we talk about public-sector reform that it is a code word for massive layoffs in the public sector,” said Phillips, while speaking at a discussion on the economy in Montego Bay, St James, last Friday. “Let me say here, say it definitively: we have no such plans for massive layoff or layoffs at all in the public sector. “We will need to contain cost in the public sector. We will need to ensure that our wage-to-GDP ratio doesn’t get out of line,” added Phillips. According to the finance minister, the Government will be on a path of pursuing greater efficiency. “We will need to prevent excessive duplication of organisations. We will need to divest ourselves of many services presently being offered by the State that don’t need to be offered by the State...We will need to outsource the delivery of many services.” In its latest country report
on Jamaica, the IMF said the country would be limited to the undesirable policy options like tax increases and job cuts if it is to achieve the wage-to-GDP target. The Fund noted that the Government has signed new wage agreements with some unions, with the wage bill for the 2015-2016 financial year projected at 10.1 per cent, exceeding the nine per cent target. But Phillips argued that the Government is pushing for the use of the most modern information technology, which he said would make the State more efficient. “If it takes 10 hours to process an application in Jamaica, which takes one hour in another jurisdiction, we are putting the person who is seeking that authority at a competitive disadvantage,” said Phillips. “And so we have to do all those things, but we need to do [them] in a systematic way and in ways that may result in reduced employment over time, but the fundamental purpose is not to remove people from employment,
but to create a more efficient State.” Phillips argued that the performance of industries such as the tourism, BPO and renewable energy sectors are good indicators as to the confidence of investors. He said the problem with agriculture was that it was too archaic. “The problem with agriculture is that our production systems have been archaic. Too many of our farmers have been operating on production systems which would be easily recognisable if you came from the 19th century. Take a look at us today hoe and the machete as the major production instruments,” said Phillips. “You cannot produce efficiently in that way. So a challenge going forward is to address some of the fundamentals of a modern agricultural arrangement, not just for a couple of export crops, but the entire gamut of crops. We have managed some success over the past few years ... [as] we have managed to cut $5 billion off our food import bill,” added Phillips.
14-yr-old boy charged with father’s murder KINGSTON, Jamaica – A 14-year-old boy is to appear in court next week to answer to murder charges. The victim: his father – 37-year-old Dwight McKenzie of Cambridge Street in Franklyn Town, St Andrew. The police say another person is also to be charged in connection with McKenzie’s murder. Reports from the police are that while McKenzie was scolding his son on Monday, December 7, a knife was brought into play and he was stabbed. (JAMAICA Observer)
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
Spurs shut down Hawks again
San Antonio Spurs center Tim Duncan (21) makes a move against Atlanta Hawks forward Paul Millsap (4) in the third quarter of their game at Philips Arena. (Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports) Reuters (The Sports Xchange) - The San Antonio Spurs’ winning streak against the Atlanta Hawks is now 11 games and Mike Budenholzer is 0-6 against coaching mentor Gregg Popovich. The Spurs — the NBA’s top defensive team at 88.2 points per game — held Atlanta to 25 points in the first half and romped to a 103-78 victory over the Hawks. Kawhi Leonard scored 22 points to lead San Antonio in scoring for the 15th time. Manu Ginobili added 17 off the bench as the Spurs led by as many as 28 in the third quarter. “It was one of those NBA nights. We had a good night and they had a poor night,” Popovich said. “It happens now and then with good teams. We’ve had our games where we’ve basically laid an egg and the other team played well on top of it.” It is rare when San Antonio plays poorly, though. The victory was the 17th in the past 20 games for the Spurs, who have the league’s second-best record at 20-5. “They’re a good team. They’ve done this defensively to a lot of opponents this year,” said Budenholzer, a former San Antonio assistant. Leonard added eight rebounds, four assists and five steals to his point total and the Spurs won easily despite 23 turnovers. The Hawks’ final output was their lowest of the season, falling below what they had done in a 108-88 loss at San Antonio on Nov. 28. It was the second half of a back-to-back for the Spurs, who arrived in Atlanta from San Antonio early in the morning.
They hardly looked sleep deprived though. “It’s hard to keep teams under 80, especially on the road,” Ginobili said. “For three of the quarters, we were incredible. It was as good as it gets.” Paul Millsap was the only member of the Hawks to get going offensively, scoring 22 points on nine-for-13 shooting from the floor. Hawks guard Jeff Teague was held to five points by Tony Parker and had five turnovers to three assists. “Tony’s been wonderful at playing both ends of the court,” Popovich said. “He set the tone for us defensively.” The Spurs led 47-25 at halftime despite 12 turnovers as the Hawks shot just 24.3 percent and had 12 less points than in their previous worst offensive half. The Hawks’ 12 points in the second quarter matched
their low set in the same period during the loss at San Antonio and they missed 11 shots from point-blank range in the first half. “We’ve got to finish better in the paint,” Budenholzer said. “We’ve got to make more of our shots close to the basket.” Atlanta made just three of their first 17 shots and had to score the final four points of the first quarter to get within 22-13. Leonard had 11 points and Ginobili added 10 in the first half. The Spurs were four of six from behind the threepoint arc while the Hawks were one of nine. The Hawks finally got going offensively in the third quarter, more than matching their first-half point total as Millsap scored 17 points. The Spurs, though, still outscored Atlanta 32-30 for a 79-55 lead going into the final period.
Warriors record streak ends with loss to Bucks
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) reacts in the fourth quarter during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at BMO Harris Bradley Center. (Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports) Reuters - Golden State’s record 24-game winning streak to start the season came to an end on Saturday in a 108-95 loss to the Bucks in Milwaukee, with interim coach Luke Walton saying the Warriors “ran of gas”. A night after scraping past Boston in double overtime, the weary National Basketball Association champions succumbed in Milwaukee on the final stop of a seven-game road trip. Golden State’s winning streak, the longest to start a season in NBA history, is the third longest in a single season behind the Los Angeles Lakers, who won 33 in a row in 1971-72, while the Miami Heat won 27 straight in 2013. The Bucks also stopped the Lakers’ winning steak in 1972.
Windies in new blow as Samuels handed bowling ban
Marlon Samuels (file photo) DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) – West Indies all-rounder Marlon Samuels
was on Sunday handed a 12month bowling ban by the International Cricket Council for an illegal action as the beleaguered Caribbean side were dealt another blow. Samuels, 34, had already been banned from bowling his quicker delivery in 2013 and his latest setback comes after he was forced to undergo an assessment after being reported by the umpires in the first Test defeat against Sri Lanka in Galle in October. “The assessment (which took place in Brisbane) revealed that Samuel’s elbow extension exceeded 15 degrees while bowling and, thus, he employed an illegal
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bowling action,” said a statement from the Dubaibased ICC. “As this report constitutes the player’s second suspension within a two-year period, he is now automatically suspended from bowling in international cricket for a 12-month period.” Samuels played as a batsman only in the West Indies’ humiliating innings and 212-run loss to Australia in the first Test in Hobart which ended inside three days in Hobart on Saturday. He has played 62 Tests for the West Indies, 177 ODIs and 40 T20s taking 41, 85 and 19 wickets respectively with his gentle off-spin.
Stretching back to the end of last season, Golden State won 28 consecutive regular season games. The normally sharpshooting Warriors struggled offensively, shooting barely 40 percent from the floor, with guards Stephen Curry (10-for21 for 28 points) and Klay Thompson (four-for-14 for 12 points) struggling to find their range. “We didn’t have it tonight,” Walton told reporters. “That’s why it’s so hard to do what these guys have done so far. Tonight it caught up to us. “To me, they (the Bucks) looked like they wanted it a little more tonight. We looked like we ran out of gas. “Even if you’re 24-and-1, losing still sucks.” Walton, filling in for head coach Steve Kerr, who is recovering from back surgery,
said his players should be proud of their accomplishment. “There’s no reason for anyone to hang their heads in that locker room for losing that game. They’ve been incredible all year, and the losses are going to come. “It’s important for us to realize that hey, that was great .. but we’re a quarter of the way through the regular season,” he added. “What we’re trying to do is be an NBA championship team, and that requires a lot of work and getting back to the fundamentals and the basics. That’s what we’ll be doing after giving them a day off tomorrow. Milwaukee, who also played on Friday in Toronto before flying home, improved to 10-15 with the win. Greg Monroe was the team’s top scorer with 28 points.
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Kaieteur News
New Zealand sniff victory in Dunedin test Reuters - Wicketkeeper BJ Watling took a recordequalling ninth catch as New Zealand inched their way to a probable victory over Sri Lanka in the first test as they reduced the visitors to 109 for three at the close of the fourth day’s play on Sunday. Wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal was on 31 at University Oval, which had weathered heavy, but brief, rain and hail showers that forced the players from the field three times. The last shower forced them off the ground with 20 overs remaining and umpires abandoned play at 1745 (0445 GMT) with captain Angelo Mathews scheduled as the next man in. He will join Chandimal on Monday, when they have almost 98 overs to score an additional 296 runs. “If we can get a good partnership in the morning session, the game is on,” leftarm spinner Rangana Herath told reporters. “We need to play our brand of cricket and I’m sure Angie and Chandimal will do that.” The visitors, who batted for 117 overs in their first innings, had been given 160 overs to score the 405 needed for an improbable victory after New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum had made a surprise declaration at 2673 just before lunch. Sri Lanka, just like their first innings, did not seem too pressed to take any unnecessary risks as they set
Neil Wagner and BJ Watling celebrate a wicket, New Zealand v Sri Lanka, 1st Test, Dunedin, 4th day, December 13, 2015. (Getty Images) about their run chase with openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Mendis taking 23 overs to reach 50. Karunaratne (29) was the first batsman to fall when he tried to lift a short ball from Tim Southee over the slips to be caught by Watling, before Neil Wagner had Udara Jayasundera caught down the leg side by the wicketkeeper for three to leave them 69-2 at tea. Mendis, who was dropped by Martin Guptill at second slip on 13 and by Watling on 25, was within sight of his first test half century on 46 when he nicked a Southee delivery to Watling, who took his ninth
catch of the test. Rain and hail then forced the players off. The catch equalled the record for most dismissals in a test by a New Zealand wicketkeeper. Watling also made nine dismissals against India in 2014, while Brendon McCullum had nine against Pakistan in 2009. McCullum, no doubt aware of possible disruptions with expected poor weather in Dunedin throughout Sunday, had surprisingly declared before lunch when he was on 17, having hit a six to take their lead past 400. The six, the second of his short innings, also moved him into a tie with former
Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist with 100 career sixes, the most in test cricket. Opener Tom Latham was left on 109 not out having scored his first test century in New Zealand. His previous two test centuries were scored in the United Arab Emirates last year against Pakistan. Scores: Sri Lanka 294 (Karunaratne 84, Chandimal 83) and 109 for 3 (Mendis 46, Chandimal 31*) need 296 runs to beat New Zealand 431 (Guptill 156, Williamson 88, McCullum 75, Pradeep 4112) and 267 for 3 dec (Latham 109*, Williamson 71).
WI fined by ICC for slow over rate in Hobart Test
Monday December 14, 2015
Vitamalt Plus/Rainforest Water/WDFA/Josiah KO Cup
Uitvlugt hammer Bagotsville; Pouderoyen edge Eagles on PKs When the second edition of the Josiah KO Cup sponsored by Vitamalt Plus/ Rainforest Water and organized by the West Demerara Football Association (WDFA) kicked off at the Den Amstel Community ground, there were contrasting wins for Uitvlugt and Pouderoyen. Uitvlugt were easy 4-0 winners over Bagotsville led by a Seon Bobb brace. Kevin Duke also got on the score sheet along with Daniel Floy. In the feature game of the night, eventual winners Pouderoyen and Eagles had battled to a 1-1 stalemate in regulation and extra time before penalty kicks were employed to decide the winner. Pouderoyen’s goalkeeper Sherwin Bernard was outstanding between the uprights as he orchestrated his side’s win. Pouderoyen took the early lead through a Nathan
Allicock strike midway through the opening half but that was cancelled out by Jewel Stephen’s goal following good work by Kerrron Schmidt whose shot was initially blocked by the custodian just before the halftime whistle. The advantage swayed back and forth for both sides during the second half with neither being able to break the deadlock as defenders and goalkeepers stood firm. With penalty kicks the last resort to decide the winner, Pouderoyen’s man between the uprights, Sherwin Bernard, took it home for his side to ensure their advance to the next round. Action continued last evening when Young Achievers faced Stewartville and home team Den Amstel opposed Beavers. The semifinals will be played on December 20 with the final and third placed set for Leonora on December 27th.
New GFF Executive Committee endorses FIFA Goal Project The Executive Committee of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) met recently and unanimously approved for the ‘go-ahead’ for commencement of work on Guyana’s FIFA Goal Project, a release from the GFF stated. Under the Normalisation Committee, the GFF and the Eccles/Ramsburg Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) signed an agreement that saw the local governing body for the sport of football get a 30-year lease for the 8.5 acres Providence Community Centre ground.
President of the GFF Wayne Forde highlighted the need for the GFF to have a home and one which will aid in the development of the game. The project will now be sent out for International Tender by FIFA and once the World body identifies a supplier of the artificial turf, work is expected to begin and a timeline of five months of completion has been set from commencement. This is Guyana’s second attempt at a Goal Project which is funded by FIFA under their development initiatives.
WICB retains noted...
Windies team were fined for a slow overrate. (file photo) HOBART, Australia (AFP) – West Indies have suffered more fallout over their dispiriting first Test loss to Australia with the ICC fining the team Sunday for maintaining a slow over-rate in Hobart. The Australians demolished the Caribbean tourists by an innings and 212 runs inside three days on Saturday. Match referee Chris Broad imposed the fine after Jason Holder’s touring side was ruled to have been three overs short of its 90-over target when time allowances were taken into consideration on Thursday’s opening day’s play of the Hobart Test. The players were fined 30 percent of their match fees — 10
percent for every over their side failed to bowl in the allotted time — with the captain Holder fined 60 percent of his fee. If the West Indies commit another minor over-rate breach in Tests within 12 months of this offence with Holder as captain, it will be deemed his second offence and he will face a suspension, the ICC said. Holder pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed sanction, so there was no need for a formal hearing. The West Indies face the Australians in the second Test of the three-Test series, starting in Melbourne on December 26.
From page 37 were part of the process that agreed to set up this committee and to accept its recommendations and to implement it, I don’t see how they can afford to do otherwise,” Mitchell said at a press conference in St George’s to announce the recommendations of the report. WICB president Dave Cameron has since expressed concerns about the involvement of governments in the affairs of the regional cricket body, stressing that it was important for sporting bodies to remain autonomous. “We’re not saying we don’t want the Governments to participate. We’re saying that the decisions of the organisations must not be influenced by governments,” the Jamaican said last month. The Governance Report Panel was chaired by UWI Cave Hill Campus principal, Professor Eudine Barriteau, and also comprised Sir Dennis Byron, president of the Caribbean Court of Justice; West Indies cricket legend Deryck Murray; Warren Smith, president of the Caribbean Development Bank, and Dwain Gill, president of the Grenada Cricket Association.
Monday December 14, 2015
Kaieteur News
Arsenal on top as Spurs and Liverpool drop points
Olivier Giroud scores the first goal for Arsenal from the penalty spot. (Reuters / Darren Staples) LONDON (Reuters) Silky Arsenal eased to a comfortable 2-0 win at Aston Villa to soar to the Premier League summit and leave their hapless opponents rooted to the bottom while Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool dropped points on Sunday. What manager Arsene Wenger described as a “great week” for Arsenal had the perfect conclusion when rivals Spurs stalled in pursuit, their long unbeaten run ending in a 2-1 defeat by Newcastle United with a lastgasp Ayoze Perez goal. Liverpool’s challenge under Juergen Klopp also stuttered before they escaped with a 2-2 draw at home to West Bromwich Albion thanks to a deflected stoppage time Divock Origi effort and the players went to celebrate in front of the Anfield Kop. Arsenal celebrated a 50th Premier League goal for Olivier Giroud — a penalty converted four days after his Champions League hat-trick against Olympiakos Piraeus — which swiftly brought more gloom to Villa Park after eight minutes. Me s u t Ozil then produced his 13th assist of the season to allow Aaron Ramsey to slot home in the 38th minute and enable Arsenal to move on to 33 points, one point clear of Manchester City and Leicester City and four ahead of Manchester United. Leicester have the chance to regain the leadership when they entertain Chelsea on Monday. “Overall for us, it was a great week,” Wenger said on Sky Sports, referring to his side’s heroics when they managed, against the odds, to qualify for the knockout
phase of the Champions League for the 16th straight season. The defeat left Villa stranded at the foot of the table on six points from 16 games, six adrift of 19thplaced Sunderland. CLEAN SHEET Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech equalled David James’s all-time Premier League record with his 169th clean sheet, in 349 games, prompting Wenger to hail him as “an absolute all-time great”. Giroud’s splendid week quickly gained a new sheen when Arsenal were awarded a penalty, which referee Kevin Friend took a while to consider before adjudging that Theo Walcott had been bundled over unfairly in the area by Alan Hutton. From the spot, Giroud converted his 14th goal of the season and 50th Premier League goal in all for Arsenal in 113 appearances, a landmark reached quicker for the Gunners only by Ian Wright and Thierry Henry. Arsenal, in effortless command, struck again thanks to the industry of Ramsey, who won the ball not far outside his own box from Idrissa Gueye to set up a dazzling counter, then sprinted upfield to get on the end of Ozil’s unselfish square pass and double the lead. “We believe we have an opportunity to win the title,” man of the match Ramsey told Sky Sports. “We have to maintain our focus and belief.” NEWCASTLE REVIVAL Spurs, unbeaten for 14 league games since their opening day defeat at Manchester United, were stunned to become victims of Newcastle’s mini-revival under Steve McClaren at
White Hart Lane. The defeat means the Londoners stay fifth on 26 points, missing the chance to move into the top four ahead of Manchester United who suffered a shock 2-1 loss at Bournemouth on Saturday. Tottenham midfielder Eric Dier met Christian Eriksen’s corner with a 39th minute glancing header, which was just reward for their early superiority, but Newcastle, fresh from beating Liverpool last week, were inspired by a double substitution. First, Spurs failed to deal with a free kick enabling Aleksandar Mitrovic to bundle home a scruffy 74th minute goal, practically the Serb’s first touch of the match. Then the other substitute Perez’s 93rd minute volley, that goalkeeper Hugo Lloris let squirm through his grasp, earned Newcastle their first back-to-back wins in the league for a year, taking them out of the relegation zone into 15th place, one above champions Chelsea. Klopp let his players take a bow hand-in-hand in front of the Kop after snatching a very late draw at home to Albion. “It was the perfect finish to this game,” he enthused, after a speculative, deflected shot from Belgian Origi in the 96th minute sent the Kop into raptures. “This could prove to be a very special moment for us in the season to strike back against such a team.” Jordan Henderson had put Liverpool ahead, only for a Simon Mignolet mistake to gift an equaliser to Albion’s Craig Dawson on the halfhour before Jonas Olsson, who earlier had a goal disallowed, put Albion in front after 73 minutes.
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Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ Futsal Competition
Massive crowd brave heavy downpour to watch Sparta beat Warriors Watched by what was indisputably the largest crowd to ever witness the phenomenal Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ Futsal Competition, giant slayers Channel 9 Warriors finally found out that they had travelled a bridge too far after losing to national champions Sparta Boss 1-0 in the final of the Georgetown Zone early Sunday morning, at the National Park. Played in wet conditions after heavy rain had saturated the tarmac, the highly anticipated battle begun in front of a huge crowd that included owner of Channel 9 Dr. Noel Blackman, who seems to have fallen in love with the format, officials of title sponsor Banks DIH under its Guinness brand and members of the organizing committee of the Petra Organisation. The two teams traded early salvoes in difficult conditions as Sparta’s Gregory Richardson and the Warriors Joshua Fiffie’s shots landed just outside the uprights. Urged on the partisan support, the up-started Warriors appeared to be employing a similar strategy they used in their semi-final victory over Back Circle which was to lay back and wear down their opponents, but Sparta came prepared to not fall for the trap and did not forge forward in numbers, rather seemed content on conserving energy and not risking injury to their marquee players. Sparta Boss who are no strangers to the big occasion seemed more at home, while the Warriors appeared to be overawed, especially in the face of huge expectations due largely to their earlier performances. However, they gradually built in confidence and created a few opportunities, but solid defending by a host of defenders nullified those offensive forays. The mercurial Sheldon Shepherd, who has been the architect of Sparta’s success in a plethora of competitions showed why he has to be considered amongst the best player in the format when he gave them the lead in the 20th minute, skipping past his marker, before firing into an empty goal to silence the Warriors band of supporters. The teams once again traded shots, but the scoreline remained unchanged when the half time whistle sounded. In the final period, the Warriors continued to attack, but the Bosses seemed intent
- North Ruimveldt finish third
Jamaica’s dancehall artiste Konshens engages a section of the massive crowd during his performance at the Guinness finals. on protecting their slim lead with a few occasional attempts to push forward. However, they defended in a pack and never relinquished their advantage until the final whistle sounded to hand them another important victory and title. In the third place playoff, North Ruimveldt repelled a late rally by former national champions Back Circle to grab third place. On target for the winners were Travis Grant, who opened their account after thirteen minutes and Orin Massiah added another nine minutes later which gave them a comfortable 2-0 lead. In the second period, Andy Duke pulled one back in the 25th minute, but North Ruimveldt kept their cool and
defended solidly until the final whistle sounded. The presentation of prizes will be done tomorrow. Meanwhile, prior to the commencement of the final, Jamaica’s dancehall artiste Konshens thrilled the fans with lyrical renditions of many of his hit songs that had the ladies yearning for more. In the night’s full results: Final Game-1 Channel-9-Warriors-0 vs Sparta Boss-1 Sheldon Shepherd-20th 3rd Place Game-2 North Ruimveldt-2 vs Back Circle-1 North Scorers Travis Grant-13th Orin Massiah-22nd Back Circle Scorer Andy Duke-25th
Skeldon win UCCA/ Hotel... From page 35 trophy. Permashwar Chatterpaul received the man of the match trophy & $5,000 for his century and 1 wicket. The MVP of the competition was Davanand Chatterpaul for taking 16 wickets and scoring 164 run, the batsman with the most runs was Ritesh Bhagratti he scored 210 runs whilst the leading wicket taker was Davanand Chatterpaul for his 16 wickets, they all received a trophy and $5,000 each. Umpires, board officials and friends of Hotel Riverton Suites all received memorabilia. At the presentation Dr. Seepersaud thanked the large crowed for coming out and he encouraged the young cricketers to continue to work on their game and it is his hopes that one day a cricketer from Upper Corentyne will play for the West Indies. Also at the presentation UCCA Secretary Mr. Winston Roberts thanked Dr. Seepersaud for sponsoring this competition for a second year.
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Kaieteur News
Monday December 14, 2015
CGI Local Franchise League
Guyana Cup rematch 10M horse race
Hemraj ton hands ECD huge win, E’bo, Upper Corentyne, NA Canje triumph
Entries to close on Wednesday
By Zaheer Mohamed Chanderpaul Hemraj stroked a fluent century as East Coast Demerara secured a huge 231-run victory over East Bank Demerara when the Cricket Guyana Inc Local Franchise League 50-over tournament continued yesterday. Hemraj added 64 for the second wicket with Brian Sattaur (28) after East Coast lost Vishwanauth Rampersaud (04) with the score on nine. After Sattaur was dismissed for 28, Hemraj shared in a third wicket stand of 109 with Steve Ramdass to further frustrate their opponents on a two paced track at Farm. The left-handed Hemraj struck twelve fours and six sixes off 79 balls before he was caught off Jermaine Ramroop for 115. Ramdass hit seven fours in his 59 while Kamesh Yadram made 47 (5x4,1x6). Amir Khan clobbered seven maximums and four fours in a brisk 74 while Paul Wintz got 33 not out as East Coast amassed 379-6 in 50 overs, batting first. Shivram Persaud claimed 2-45. East Bank hardly threatened as they were sent packing for 148 in 42.4 overs in reply. Dexter Solomon made 39 and Danny Narayan 24; Khan captured 3-27, Rajindra Naikbaran 2-12 and Ramdass 2-17. At Enmore, Kevon Boodie hit a run-a-ball 90 as Essequibo recovered from their last two defeats to thump West Demerara by 121 runs. Boodie hit two fours and one six off 110 balls and was the main stay of Essequibo innings as they posted 203 all out in 46.1 overs after they were inserted. Ricardo Adams made 26 and Royan Fredericks 25 as Jevon Searles bagged 5-34 and Malcolm Hubbard 3-41. West Demerara were bundled out for 82 in 22.5 overs in reply. Chandrika Persaud and Joshua Paton got 19 each; Trevon Garraway claimed 3-40, Fredericks 2-2 and Adams 2-15. At Cumberland, Lower Corentyne/New Amsterdam Canje beat West Berbice by six wickets. Batting first, West Berbice were bowled out for 127 in 30.4 overs. Kevin Jawahir
Kevon Boodie
struck 44, Keon Fraser 18 and Brentnol Woolford 16; Romario Shepherd snared 4-28 and Nial Smith 2-39. NA Canje replied with 130-4 in 28.2 overs. Kevin Ramdeen scored 36, Devon Clements 30 and Gajanand Singh 26 not out. Krishundat Ramoo took 2-32. At Port Mourant, Upper Corentyne overcame Georgetown by six wickets. Georgetown took first strike and made 124 all out in 45.4 overs. Kemol Savory hit 28, Jeetendra Sookdeo 24 and Kwame Crosse 21; Eon Hooper captured 4-17 and Rajiv Ivan 225. Upper Corentyne responded with 126-4 in 25 overs. Jonathan Foo led with 43 and Jason Sinclair 30; Devon Lord had 2-52. The competition continues tomorrow.
From Left Chanderpaul Hemraj, Steve Ramdass and Amir Khan.
Jumbo Jet and Shariff Stables are expected to top the entry list with some 14 horses each as closing date for the Guyana Cup re-match horse race meet has been extended to Wednesday 16th due to a number of requests made by horse owners. The event is organized by the Jumbo Jet Auto Sales and Racing stable in collaboration with the PMTC is slated for Sunday 20th at the Port Mourant Turf Club (PMTC). In the meantime, with both the Jumbo Jet and Shariff Stables expected to top the entry list with some 14 horses each, entries are expected to top the 80 mark with other stables such as Elcock, Jagdeo, Rising Sun, Singh, Bacchus, and Crawford expected to enter multiple entries. With nine races listed on the days programme and over $10M up for grabs, horse owners are making sure that their horses are in the best of shapes and are taking no chances as they vie for the lucrative prizes on offer. The feature A and lower event is expected to be a scorcher will most of the top
horses in the country expected to feature. A whopping $1.2M and trophy available for the winner from a sumptuous $3M package over 1800M. Horses such as CP Got Even, Just Call Me boss, Princess She is not, Spit Fire, Diplomatic Cat, Jack in My Style, Bridal Stone Corner, Kazi Azari, Giant Time and Lady Budapest among others will be in the running. The other races on the day’s card are for; E1 and lower catering for two year old American bred maiden horses with the distance now 1000M. The first prize remains $800,000 and trophy. The three year old West Indies and Guyana bred event is a 1500M affair for a winning purse of $600,000 and trophy. The recently installed F3 and lower event will be a 1300M affair for $500,000 and trophy winner’s take. The two year old event for West Indies Bred horses has a first prize tagged at $400,000 and trophy now over 1200M. The H1 and lower 1200M race has a winning pocket of $400,000 and trophy. The newly added event for two year old horses will
see the top runner taking home $300,000 and trophy over 1000M. The J class event is now for J3 and lower horses over 1000M for the winning pocket of $250,000 and trophy. There is an event for K and lower horses running over a distance of 1000M for a winning purse of $150,000 and trophy. The top Jockey along with the runner-up, top stable and champion trainer will all be presented with trophies and other incentives compliments of the organizers. The organisers have also have put together some interesting incentives for lucky patrons and participants. The event will be held under the rules of the Guyana Horse Racing Authority. Contact can be made with Chandu Ramkissoon (624-9063, 2320633), Kris Jagdeo (624-6123, 322-0369), Rajendra (Jim –Jo) 618-7278, Ramnauth 3375311, Romel Jagroop (6241798) and Sancho 690-0569 for any details on the event. Race time is 12:30 hrs. The coordinator is Nasrudeen (Jumbo Jet) Mohamed.
2015 Ramnarine Appiah Memorial twenty-over cricket competition
Young Warriors and Canje Pathfinders to clash in final A magnificent hundred by the prolific Videsh Singh led Canje Pathfinders to a massive win against Kendall’s Union ‘A’ in their semi final match played at the Cumberland Ground in Canje. Batting first after being inserted, Canje Pathfinders lost S. Badal early for 3 with the score on 23. I. Harrinandan then joined Singh but did not last long either, bowled by R. Seecharran for 1. The former Young Warrior first division cricketer, Singh found a good partner in A. Arjune and together they blasted the bowling to all parts of the ground putting on 117 for the third wicket. Arjune went for a well played
Betsy Ground and Kendall’s Union ‘A’ to vie for third place 53 caught off Seecharran. Singh continued the onslaught ending on 126 not out consisting 8x4 and 10x6 with his team ending on 222 for 4 off their allotted 20 overs. Seecharran and D. Baker took two wickets a piece. Kendall’s Union made a spirited start but lost their way ending on 156 all out off 19 overs. D. Baker top scored with 29 and got support from E. Garnett with 27. The chief wreckers were K. Dipoo with 4 for 27 and W. Sobhai 3 for 15. In the second semi final
played on the same day at the same venue, Betsy Ground Triple Star won the toss and batted first under brilliant sunshine. They made a competitive 154 for 9 off their allotted 20 overs. Kishan Sobhai top scored with 35 and was supported by T. Ramdat with 23 and Allan Gopal 20. Former national youth player Balram Samaroo took 3 for 17 and former national senior all rounder Hubern Evans 2 for 12. The home team in reply cruised to a 7 wicket win ending on 155 for 3 off 18.3 overs. Opener Mortimer Fraser made 63, Rudolph Baker 24 and Samaroo 23 not out. The final will be contested between Young Warriors Cricket Club and Canje Pathfinders and will be preceded by the third playoff between Kendall’s Union ‘A’ and Betsy Ground at the Cumberland ground in East Canje, later in the month. A well stocked bar and musical entertainment will form part of the off field entertainment.