Kaieteur News
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KAIETEUR NEWS Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: ADAM HARRIS Tel: 225-8491, 225-8458, 225-8465 Fax: 225-8473 or 226-8210
Editorial
NO PROPER DUE DILIGENCE There are serious misgivings by the government and state agencies in terms of hiring professionals and awarding contracts to companies. The same is true for City Hall, especially in the awarding of the controversial parking meter contract to Smart City Solutions (SCS), which it knew very little about. Many believe that it is the worst contract ever awarded to a company in modern times. Since taking office, the government has hired several people and has awarded hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts to companies. The awarding of the parking meter contract to SCS is just one example. It should have raised several red-flags after it was discovered that the City would receive only 20 percent of the total revenue collected while SCS would receive 80 percent. The contract was reviewed by the Cabinet and by the Ministries of Legal Affairs, Finance and Communities all of which found problems with the contract. Their disapproval forced a modification of the original contract. If the City had done due diligence on National Parking Systems (NPS), which secured the contract but later joined with SCS to install solar-powered parking meters in Georgetown, it would have known that something was awry. NPS did not have an address or a website. It was alleged that it copied information from the website of another company, Parking Advisors of Chicago. City officials would have also found out that the owner of NPS, Ifa Cush, who was the Director of SCS and who signed the contract is a felon. Information contained in online documents, revealed that on March 15, 2002, Ifa Cush, whose evil remarks led to his forced resignation from SCS had pleaded guilty to grand larceny in the third degree in a Nassau County Court. He was sentenced to four months in jail and five years of probation. It was only a few months ago that the Mayor had assured the nation that proper due diligence was done on NPS, and that NPS is known to the City Council as a sound company. As it turned out, the Mayor lied. Since its installation, the parking meters have attracted hundreds of protestors from all walks of life. Many have claimed that the contract is oppressive, reeks of corruption and is viewed as the most disgraceful in modern times. It seems that the protestors will not be placated by a 50 percent reduction in parking rates. They want the contract to be rescinded. Many believe that either government officials, past and present, do not do due diligence as often as required. Had the last administration done due diligence on Colin Welch before he was hired as the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of GPL on November 2011, it would not have discovered six months later that he had forged his qualifications. Although it was known that Welch had faked his qualifications, the present government Ministry promoted him to the position of CEO of GPL after then CEO Bharat Dindyal was fired following a series of bouts with Welch over his management style. FOLLOW In particular, had the government done due diligence on one of its Ambassadors, it would have discovered that he was convicted of fraud by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in March 2003. Not only did the Ambassador not list Acrodyne Communications in his resume where the fraud occurred, but he did not disclose it to the government either. As the highest ranking diplomats for their countries, Ambassadors should be honest and trustworthy. Not doing proper due diligence could be costly and embarrassing.
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur M@ilbox Send your letters to Kaieteur News 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown or email us kaieteurnews@yahoo.com
The time for a new party has arrived Dear Editor, I will admit that from my chair far away in the US, I will not see things as correctly as those who are part of daily life in Guyana. This distance however, should not deter me from adding my inexpensive two cents to my country’s debate. I never for a moment thought of Guyana as a country I have left behind. I am not young, not so old, but Guyana is my home. To tell the truth, there is only one family I have met that has told me they are finished with Guyana and would not ever think of returning. I can say with utmost truthfulness, Guyana would comfortably reach over a million people if its politics and leadership were right.
People would return. I know I would. I know my wife would. I know some of my children would. This list i n c l u d e s m a n y, m a n y friends. It would seem that there was a take-off ready to happen after the May 2015 change of government but with certain definiteness, I can say the APNU+AFC has gone astray. I am sitting in my living room wondering why this happened and what Guyanese can do to get that figure up to a million. My thoughts are determined recently by what I see on different Facebook postings on the protest against parking meters. I am asking myself; is a third party in the making? From my distance, I cannot answer that question
with definiteness but whether in the making or not, Guyana needs one. I am no political analyst but I would say two things have made a third party possible. The failure of the AFC to be the safeguard of the nation. The other is Mr. Granger’s lack of a high profile as a President. Let me explain what I mean. The AFC became very successful as a third party because Guyanese saw it as the wedge between the two bad guys. They became the good guys. Now they appear be part of the bad boys set up. Mr. Granger is someone I don’t know at all except he was a famous military man. It was natural for any stranger to politics to accept that he would be a good
president and lead Guyana in the right direction. I am not certain Mr. Granger is leading at all. From where I sit the people heading the government are Mr. Harmon, Minister Jordan and the A t t o r n e y - G e n e r a l . M r. Granger is not visible and Mr. Nagamootoo has taken leave of absence. The recent protest against the parking meters should transform itself into a third party. Again I say I am no political analyst but there are strong prospects for a third party. But things have to be neatly put in place. The first question is; does the third party have people that all types of Guyanese respect and admire. I would say yes. Two names come to my mind (Continued on page 5)
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Kaieteur M@ilbox
Kaieteur M@ilbox
Donald Ramotar replies to Minister Bulkan on The time for a new His pique with the PPP/C Mr. Bulkan is attempt- as could be seen in the 2015 Guysuco hand administration was because ing to obfuscate. While in production. party has arrived
DEAR EDITOR, I wish to respond to a letter by Mr. Ronald Bulkan, Minister of Communities, in which he accused me of making baseless statements in relation to the government’s payment to BK International of more than $1B on a mere letter threatening litigation. Let me say that my statement was based on an article in the “Kaieteur News” of August 23, 2016. The front page headline read “Government pays BK US$5.7M on a simple threat.” The article quotes Mr. Bulkan as the source for the headline. It was an interview done with Mr. Bulkan by the reporter. The article also carried Mr. Bulkan’s photograph. Mr. Bulkan never denied the story nor ever asked Kaieteur News to retract it. Naturally, one must presume that the article was accurate. After Mr. Bulkan’s letter, I raised the matter with the editor of the Kaieteur News and he assured me that the newspaper will hold steadfast to their story. It is, therefore, clear that it is the Minister who is uttering untruths in foolishly denying what he said, when the same can be so easily confirmed or proven. I hope that the new Code of Conduct, which was promised for Ministers, will address the issue of Ministers, publically, peddling halftruths and even downright lies. Mr. Bulkan went on to point out what was the basis for the huge payment to BK International. That is not the issue at
government, I was aware of those figures. The issue is that BK International breached the agreement several times. The PPP/C terminated the contract and requested BK International to vacate the site. The PPP/C Government felt that it was BK International that was liable and should pay the Government instead. We were ready to sue BK for compensation. It was this APNU regime that quickly rolled over and gave BK International a huge payment. This settlement and many others which this Government has concluded are believed by many to be tainted with rampant corruption. Mr. Bulkan took the opportunity to castigate me about Guysuco’s difficulties. Here again, he is displaying a huge gap in his knowledge of what is happening at Guysuco, or if he knows, he has chosen to be dishonest on the issue. I mentioned before that Guysuco’s problems began when the price of sugar received from the EU fell by 36% in 2010. The PPP/C government was investing in the industry to deal with the new reality. Our plan was working
Had the PPP/C not been cheated out of office, Wales would not have been closed and Rose Hall would not be threatened with closure. The industry has huge potentials in value added products. This regime refuses to go in that direction and is closing the industry instead. This is a decision that will haunt this country for generations to come. Mr. Bulkan should be one of the last persons to speak or refer to anyone’s ability to manage. After all, he ran his own business into bankruptcy.
the government did not accede to their request for a bailout of some three hundred million dollars. The PPP/C government felt it could not use taxpayers’ money in that fashion He is with the APNU now maybe because they don’t care how taxpayers’ dollars are squandered and used to give the elite huge salaries and allowances. As a gentleman, I expect Mr Bulkan to own up to his words and not seek to hide from them. Donald Ramotar Former President
From page 4 Freddie Kissoon and Nigel Hughes. I have never met or spoken to any of these two men, though my son, five years ago, said he asked Mr. Kissoon to take a photo with him at a downtown store in Georgetown. I wonder if Mr. Kissoon has any memory of that. Although Freddie
Kissoon and Mr. Hughes fit the bill, there are others. I like what I see of Sherod Duncan. I advise these people to start getting their act together. The Coalition is fading and Guyana needs saving. I would gladly return if I see Guyana in the hands of a Freddie Kissoon or a Nigel Hughes. I rest my case. Sunil Seebarrran California
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
Kaieteur M@ilbox
Kaieteur M@ilbox
More adumbrations on the legal reach of the Attorney-General
Juan Edghill rejects Minister David Patterson’s explanation
Dear Editor, I refer to a letter of mine published in the Kaieteur News of Thursday, February 16, 2017 under the caption “The role of the Attorney General in the legal matrix of Guyana” which completes my two previous letters of Wednesday February 8, 2017 under the caption “In support of the Attorney-General in the Jagdeo case”’ and Saturday, February 11, 2017 under the caption “Solicitor-General and deputy cannot absolve themselves from blame”. Without questioning your editorial right as to what gets published, certain crucial aspects were edited out resulting in the letter missing some points I am interested in getting over, beginning with the words “General as an officer of the Crown, representing the public….” so I crave your tolerance in publishing this letter as an addendum to the letter of Thursday, February 16. Editor, the litigant jurisdiction of the AG in the legal matrix of Guyana in the context of the AG’s constitutional duty to enforce the criminal law with the aid of the civil court, in a fit case, is one that was poignantly invokable, and invoked, (even if unwittingly) in the Jagdeo matter. This litigant jurisdiction of an Attorney General in Common Law legal system such as ours, has since ancient times been the Common Law position in England; and was imported as part of our jurisprudence. It was an “existing
law” when the 1980 Constitution came into force on 6th October, 1980. As an existing law it became by virtue of section 9 of the Constitution Act, Cap. 2:01 converted to constitutional law on 6thOctober 1980 for the purpose of the 1980 Constitution. (As to this principle of convertibility of settled common law into constitutional law see Thornhill V. AG of T&T (1981) PC. The common law of England as regards the AG’s litigant jurisdiction was finally settled in the seminal important case Gouriet V union of Post Office Workers and Others (1977) 3All ER 70 (HL)). And statutory importation of English Common Law into Guyana was as recently as 2003 affirmed by our CoA in Chandra Narine Doobay V. The AG (2003) 67WIR107. In the Gouriet case, even though England has no written Constitution, Lord Wilberforce in England’s House of Lords with reference to an AG’s litigant sole jurisdiction, said that - “it is constitutional”. A fortiori, must be the position with us with our written Constitution. That law is this: “it was a fundamental principle of English law that public right could only be asserted by a civil action by the Attorney General as an officer of the Crown, representing the public”. Put in a nutshell, only the AG could represent the public interest in our civil court. In the Jagdeo case Singh. J was presiding in a civil court. And to be very clear, this right/duty is altogether different from the DPP’s (and private prosecutor as Mr. Ram) prosecutorial power in the
criminal courts (as for example the PI conducted by Magistrate Artiga). Translated into the Jagdeo matter, that public interest was to secure the enforcement of the criminal law vis-a-vis the private Information (i.e. the indictable charge) laid by Mr. Ram charging Mr. Jagdeo with an offence under section 139D of the Representation of the People Act, Cap. 1:03, by seeking to ensure by the AG’s appearance and arguments (by Counsel) that the Preliminary Inquiry was not wrongly prohibited by Justice Singh in the civil court in Mr. Jagdeo’s motion for a prerogative order of prohibition against Magistrate Artiga, conducting that PI. Whatever label (be it “settled practice”, or “common law”, or “convention”) one sticks or affixes to the role of the AG, it does not change one bit the ancient jurisdictional status and standing of an Attorney General as the guardian and enforcer of the public’s right in the civil Courts. And it is this recognition in public law of the AG as a proper party that makes it routine that costs are awarded to, or against, the AG as the case maybe (never the offender). You can only award costs against a party; and that is why in private law litigation costs are NEVER awarded to, or against, the Lawyer (who is never a party). These basic jurisdictional tenets were not considered in the Jardim case. The contradistinction between public law (as obtains in this Jagdeo matter) and private law, and its incidents, cannot be stressed enough. Maxwell E. Edwards Attorney-at-Law
DEAR EDITOR, We refer to the articles, “Edghill’s figures on Wartsilla are grossly inaccurate” in Stabroek News, “Minister David Patterson responds to Juan Edghill” in Kaieteur News and “Patterson slams Edghill’s statements on Wartsilla’s operation in Guyana” in Guyana Chronicle, all of 2017-02-17. Regrettably, this response penned under the name of Minister Patterson is nothing but a Public Relations exercise, a sleight of hand, an attempt at deception. We, the PPP/C were astonished when the Minister proclaimed that Wartsilla received its contract payment for just “checking off” from time to time what the skilled Guyanese workers had done. The question was not the contract figure but what were the goods and services being provided by the Wartsilla contract. A question the Minister studiously avoided. To conform with the public, a figure for a sense of what was at stake, we the PPP/C, put the Wartsilla contract figure at approximately US$7.5million per year. The Minister’s response lists figures of US$6.2million from 2008 to US$9.6million for 2015, averaging US$7.9million per year over the period, close enough for purpose – neither of the charges against MP Edghill of
gross inaccuracy or that of “slamming Edghill” is justified. Recall that the Honourable Minister Patterson had claimed in Parliament that Wartsilla received US$25,000/day for just “checking off” the work done by the 194 skilled Guyanese. We, the PPP/C, have maintained that the Wartsilla Contract paid the wages and all benefits including the training of the 194 skilled Guyanese as well as all additional expert services and paid for the running spares. The Minister has totally bypassed this issue and we are now even more fearful of a scam being perpetrated on the people of Guyana. To claim, maintain and justify the savings of switching from Wartsilla to PPDI the Minister must tell us forthrightly: I. Who are PPDI and whom might they have retained (we need to know the names), and whether they can and would provide a similar level of skilled, experienced oversight and continually interactive management, and that they are all being paid from the contract? So far we have only been told that there are two Directors, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Mr. Balram Balraj and Attorney-at-law Mr. Ronald Burch-
Smith. This, thus, appears to be a Government owned company. Are we to see it being transitioned to a public-private partnership or a totally private company? One would need to keep an eye on any transition to see the movement of risks, obligations and responsibilities. II. Whether the 194 skilled Guyanese and all additional expert services, as required from time to time, are to be paid by PPDI from the contract as was with Wartsilla? III. Whether the “running spares” and expert services are being provided (paid for) by PPDI from the contract as was with Wartsilla? IV. Whether the attainment of similar efficiencies (conversion of fuel to kWh), lube oil consumption and availability are included and whether the penalties for shortfall are the same as in the Wartsilla contract? If the answers to questions II, III and IV are not all affirmative we have a scam: and if any is affirmative, the Honourable Minister must retract what he said in Parliament. I look forward to the Honourable Minister responding subsequently on AFHP, (the NORAD/ NORCONSULT report), the Wind Farm project. Bishop Juan Edghill, MP/PPP
My critique of Nigel Hinds’ criticism of the PNC are the rig- not set out to give the PPP a Clive Thomas because gers. The PPP cannot be cor- pass, but his twisting of the DEAR EDITOR, The PPP has gotten away with a lot in Guyana, because of our collective instincts to think in binary terms - us versus them. There is an unwillingness to engage complexity. The PPP cannot be riggers
rupt because the PNC is corrupt. The PPP is democratic because the PNC is authoritarian. This is part of the problem I have with Nigel Hinds’ recent critique of SARU’s announcement that Guyana lost over 300 billion dollars annually through corruption under the PPP. Hinds, generally a very astute commentator, unfortunately reduced the issue to numbers and to the political record of Clive Thomas and the WPA. It is that kind of obliviousness to the political sociology of the country that has allowed the PPP to get away with the narrative of self-virtue. Nigel Hinds does
discourse away from its central objective of confronting the PPP’s corruption will end up achieving that objective. Yes, we don’t want an unaccountable SARA that is above the law and we certainly don’t want any individual to have extreme power. Yes, you can challenge the methodology used by Clive Thomas in arriving at his estimation of how much we have lost. Yes, you can castigate the WPA for abandoning the working class and Walter Rodney. But at the end of the day the central issue is confronting corruption under the PPP which I think Hinds would agree reached unprecedented heights under the PPP. It is not about making Jagdeo or any PPP leader homeless; it’s about dismantling the out of control mansion of corruption which afflicts Guyana. There must be a way to critique the WPA and Thomas and to argue over the accuracy of numbers without discrediting the genuine effort to combat the cancer of corruption. David Hinds
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Kaieteur M@ilbox
Kaieteur M@ilbox
The recent GPL shutdown was just waiting to happen
Let’s try some innovations in Guyana
DEAREDITOR, I wrote late last year about the need to break up the current structure of both the GPL and Guysuco, but you did not apparently have space to publish that letter. Today I shall concentrate on the GPL. I find that the latest shutdown was just waiting to happen and there will be more recurrences. GPL needs to be re-engineered and set up in such fashion that its management is made easier. There is not much being done in respect of maintenance and herein lies the problem. When the network was much smaller and less complex in that
fewer and smaller voltages were being dealt with, the maintenance was above par. Today with a wider network and dealing in higher voltages there is greater need for full maintenance of lineplant. This idea of building another 69KV line through the heart of a built-up area of the city is fraught with many difficulties which I am quite sure the management has not factored into the equation. I believe the management has other options that can be looked at and pursued. First of all we need to investigate if the current 69KV structures can be made to take an appreciable extra load. If
the need to modify the spans of the said structures and what additional line hardware is required to make all this possible. A completely new line will cost to my mind much more that a properly planned modification. Our engineers need to step up to the plate and deliver. A new line with new contractors especially of the Chinese kind will bring with it all sorts of financial complications and make the Parking Meters program look like an alter boys’ affair. Instead of listening to the politicians the technical staff needs to just get out and do their jobs. Cyril Walker
COVENANT WITH THE GREEN MONSTER DEAR EDITOR, It must be considered that both previous and current administrations have not played a significant role in implementing relevant solutions for young people graduating from the university of Guyana, CSEC graduates, qualified and experienced persons, who have sacrificed time, money, blood, sweat & tears to better themselves in turn hoping to do something meaningful with their life. We have seen the chaotic destruction of many industries in Guyana whether, rice, sugar, bauxite etc since they haven’t been competitive on the global market. It is absurd for the current administration to blame previous governments for mismanagement of the economy since this would be pointless, but they should collectively harness the potential of the country so investors can view our country as more appealing. I am narrowing the scope of this letter to our new investor, Smart City Solutions Aka Green Monster according to the “word in the street”. With local government elections not being held for the past 23 years until 2016, and the City Council now attempting to function as an independent body, making relevant and necessary decisions to make
Georgetown the garden city again they entered, into a contract with the acclaimed Green Monster. Was the tendering process perfect? Was a feasibility study made available to the general public; to my knowledge I’m not sure. However, one must consider that a feasibility study demands a lot of resources and as a country we are quite aware that the City Council didn’t and don’t have the resources to have such a task carried out. Now from a business perspective SMART CITY SOULTION would have naturally had to provide the resources to have this done which gave rise to a more flexible contract. As Guyanese, it is our democratic and civil right to question the alleged misuse of power by the City Council and if it exists that irregularities are found we should be open to have rational dialogue and consultation considering that a large amount of finances and capital have been invested into the project which our government and the City Council simply cannot afford to repay. Lamenting negative rhetoric of revocation of the project which in my opinion provides jobs and generates revenue for this economy would be more irresponsible and simply not a good and feasible option. I must say that the culture of lawlessness which has been prevalent is being ad-
dressed by all sections of society by peaceful protest which is commendable; sadly if this movement was done for the Marriott deal, the GPL & GTT mismanagement, and all other questionable deals in the past, we would have a much greater Guyana. Nevertheless, we have seen a gradual change in the Guyanese culture, where investors & the government are being pressured for more accountability and greater transparency. But, back to the parking meter project. I applaud both parties in making the decision in amending the contract to be more flexible for Guyanese as we seek to pave a way forward with fewer repercussions for the Government and City Council. I recall several months, the company held a job fair at the national library, with hundreds of young professionals unemployed and the employed who were willing to leave there current under-paid jobs, eager to hear about the launching of a new company promising to provide Better Jobs. With this been said bring THE GREEN MONSTER, BRINGS PROGRESS, BRINGS MODERNIZATION, BRINGS ADVANCEMENT, BRINGS THE JOBS, BRINGS THE GARDEN CITYAGAIN! Concerned Citizen
Answers demanded for cheques written to ghost suppliers DEAREDITOR, It was appalling to read of financial irregularities at the Region 6 RDC (‘$72M in cheques written to ghost suppliers ‘ KN Feb15 2017).The person with the relevant responsibility for financial matters was hard pressed to provide plausible, acceptable answers when he appeared before the PAC recently. How could cheques be cut for the full amount based solely upon the Tender Board award? What madness is this? This is an in-
dictment on the entire administration of the Region and gives the impression this nonsense was being done a very long time. Further it begs the question, is due diligence being carried out on persons before they are appointed to these key positions in the regions? In this particular case were the technical competencies of that person checked against the requirements of the position? Does that person have an accounting background? If he did then the financial breaches
and irregularities found against him are highly suspect. If he did not have an accounting background then he is unsuitable for the position. Preparing cheques for suppliers that did not exist constitutes a criminal act and warrants disciplinary action. The explanation offered for doing this boggles the mind. To think the Regional officials would go to a serious meeting like the PAC with such a flimsy excuse is really pathetic. Shamshun Mohamed
DEAR EDITOR, In recent years, China has been dominant in every sector on the international stage, contesting the US economy as the second largest. But this did not happen because China has no challenges or problems. Although China has traditionally been somewhat of a closed society, it has been challenged like Guyana by territorial controversies, social, economic and migration issues. Experts will posit that the political and cultural dynamics vary tremendously and are pivotal factors in the revolution of China’s development. While this is so, there is an overarching element that can be attributed to the rapid change in China’s trajectory. That element is innovation. Innovation is the creation of new methods, ideas, products, etc. to counter challenges. One of the innovative initiatives currently being pursued by China is that of the “Belt and Road”. One can study that innovation and the unfolding to date, particularly as it relates to commerce. Like China, Guyana can be positively transformed through innovations. This was sounded by the President last year when he addressed youths and small business entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, our society seems unwelcoming to innovation. Innovation is not exempt from vices. In Guyana, some of those vices are mental constraints, prohibition by anachronistic laws, practices and socio-cultural nuances, which often fixates this country into quiescence or remonstration. The Parking Meter issue is a good example. For years parking has been a headache in the City of Georgetown. Its twin has been horrendous congestion. Those of us who drive and
are honest will attest to that fact. The authorities, mainly past, seemed incapable of solving that problem. While that was taking place, the City Fathers and their surrogates struggled to raise revenue to keep the City clean and enhance its infrastructure, given the gross negligence by some property owners, businesses and entities to pay up their rates and taxes. Even after repeated amnesties by the Mayor and City Council, some of these people continued to dodge their obligations. It is ironic that many of the same errant tax-payers led the howl against the “revenue collecting” parking project. I do not like the way the Parking Meter project was introduced nor contracted, so that must be made clear. I do not believe SCS should have been in Guyana in the first place, so that must be made even clearer. But, when you aren’t innovative you often end up taking what other people dispense to you. That is a very unfortunate reality. There are some exceptions of course, and kudos should be given to those few businesses in the City that provided micro-parking facilities to their customers or paying the public – I trust that those businesses paid their relevant taxes to the Council. The next example has to do with crime solving. The police in their efforts to solve some larcenies often hit a huge stumbling block when finger prints are obtained from some crime scenes but no matches are found in their database. The police database is lim-
ited. I was reliably informed that prints on that database are captured from only profiled persons or those with prior criminal records. So how do we capture new criminals? Do we continue mass profiling? What collaboration is there between the GECOM, with its vast national database and finger print records, with the Guyana Police Force? I know some “Rights Groups” will create a riot over what I’m insinuating here, but they also need to consider the magnitude of larcenies and violations of the rights of hard-working, honest citizens who fall victim to crimes left unsolved because of the CID’s limitations. Perhaps, the Honorable Minister of Public Security and Crime Chief may wish to explore the option of synergies or limited access by the CID to the GECOM finger print database in their efforts to accelerate crime solving. Launching a completion for innovators to come up with brilliant initiatives is another option. Guyanese need to get their minds working properly and progressively again. Anyone can grumble; anyone can complain, make excuses or criticize, but few are actually constructive. In January, 2016, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged his senior officials “to make innovation the priority of development”. It was recognized that the lack of innovation ability is the Achilles’ heel to national development. Guyana can learn many lessons there. Let’s try some innovations! Orette Cutting
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Sunday February 19, 2017
CARICOM to employ lobbyist for corresponding banking issues Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders have agreed to employ the services of a lobbyist to help the region deal with the issue of derisking in the banking sector, Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne has said. Correspondent banks, which are mainly large, international banks domiciled in the United States of America, Europe and Canada, provide Caribbean states with vital
access to the international financial system, by offering services to smaller, domestic banks and financial institutions to complete international payments and settlements. However, many banks, which provide correspondent banking services, have been seeking to manage their risks by severing ties with institutions in the region. The issue of corresponding banking was a major item
at the annual summit of CARICOM leaders in Guyana in July and made it on the agenda of the two-day 28th Inter-sessional Meeting of the Heads of Government Conference which concluded on Friday in Georgetown. “We agreed that we will employ the services of a lobbyist to help us lobby this issue and to make sure that we continue to manage this existential threat that is facing the region,” said Browne, who is
also the Chairman of the Committee on Correspondent Banking. He told reporters that “informally” there has been a stay in banks de-risking. “There is no formal agreement to that effect, but in terms of the action…we have not seen or heard any such notice for further de-risking,” Browne noted. Most of the banks that have been de-risked are primarily local banks and Browne warned “if this process continues, then we may end up with a cartel of foreign banks literally operating within the region; and you know the consequences of that: they will continue to gouge us”. “Corresponding banking is a public good. It is just providing water, internet services, electricity – If you do not have corresponding banks then clearly we will end in a situation where we cannot buy basic goods such as medicine, food, etc.,” He added that this phenomenon will also affect persons studying overseas who
Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne have financiers located in other states. The Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minster noted that 80 per cent of most CARICOM states consume imports, particularly from the United States. Additionally, 16 percent of receipts and payments are done in United States dollars. Active advocacy CARICOM, through the Committee on Correspondent Banking, had mounted active
advocacy on the issue. Browne said that there has been success in raising the issue with international institutions. “Even within the US, the Office of the Controller would have issued certain guidelines for correspondent banks to deal with the issue of correspondent banking, and to avert the type of willy-nilly de-risking that we have seen in the past,” Browne said. Meanwhile, Browne has been commended by his colleagues for his handling of the De-risking issue. “We congratulate you on your stewardship and advocacy of the Caribbean cause regarding the importance of correspondence banking,” Chairman of Conference, President David Granger of Guyana said. The CARICOM website stated that Granger’s statement was echoed by several other colleague heads of government. “Sources close to the meeting said PM Browne described the corresponding (Continued on page 12)
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Dem boys seh... Parking Meter Project adversely affecting economy - Goolsarran Jagdeo fail Soulja Bai Chartered Accountant and former Auditor General, Anand Goolsarran, is of the firm conviction that the controversial parking meter project is adversely affecting the economy. He is also insisting that the project be scrapped forthwith. He made this, among other comments, during a recent interview. Referring to statements made in a column he did on the project, Goolsarran stressed that there was simply no meaningful consultation with the key stakeholders, mainly the owners of the various business houses and other commercial entities, in order to secure the necessary buyin so vitally needed to make the venture a success. Goolsarran said that compounding the lack of consultations is also mounting concerns about the level of fees charged, resulting in the paid-parking areas being substantially devoid of vehicles during business hours. Goolsarran reminded that the project essentially resulted in a significant decline in business activity which does not augur well for the overall performance of the economy. Further, the Chartered Accountant said that there was clearly a lack of transparency in the award of
Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran the contract to Smart City Solutions (SCS) since no competitive bidding procedures were followed, as required by Section 231 of the Municipal and District Councils’ Act. Goolsarran said, “No one denies that the City Council is in dire need of financial resources to undertake its various activities, especially keeping the streets of Georgetown clean and restoring the city to its former glory of the Garden City of the Caribbean.” However, instead of imposing new taxes, which is what the parking meters are about, Goolsarran suggested that the Council should have first reflected on the existing tax regime and assess the extent to which citizens are
fulfilling their responsibilities in terms of their financial obligations to the Council. The former Auditor General said that only after this is satisfactorily addressed— and there still remains a significant shortfall in revenues vis-à-vis expenditure—should there be any consideration of new taxes. Given the City Council’s lack of accountability for 11 years, Goolsarran commented that citizens have no assurance that the funds garnered from the operations of the parking meters as well as from other sources of revenue, will be properly accounted for and used in an economical, efficient and effective manner in the furtherance of the activities of the Council. Furthermore, Goolsarran said that it would be difficult to say at this point if the nation stands to lose more given the contractual arrangements between SCS and the Mayor and City Council. Goolsarran said, “However, business activity has slowed up considerably, and several small and medium businesses may very well consider closing down. The owners may also consider migrating and take with them financial resources to help them to settle overseas, resulting in capital flight. On
a bigger scale, if there is a loss of confidence in the economy, capital flight will assume greater proportions. This will put pressure on the exchange rate.” On the question of whether the Government can intervene, Goolsarran said that this is certainly a possible. The former Auditor General said, “There are two ways in which the Government can intervene: through its elected representatives on the City Council; and through the powers vested in the Minister of Communities by the Municipal and District Council Act.” Goolsarran continued, “It must also be borne in mind that, like all local government bodies, the Georgetown City Council receives substantial funding from the Central Government, especially as regards infrastructure works.” “Therefore, it is possible for the government to intervene, especially in a situation where the economy is adversely affected by the actions of the City Council. The evidence suggests that the Parking Meter Project is adversely affecting the economy.” Regarding the way forward, Goolsarran said that all efforts should be geared towards ensuring that the controversial project is Continued on page 13
Soulja Bai people claiming nuff benefits. Every time dem open dem mouth dem claiming how dem improve de benefits to de people. Dem boys hear when dem seh that dem improve old age pension by 45 per cent. De pension move from $13,000 a month to $19,000 a month in less than two years. But dem old people ain’t deh better off because when Jordan tek he VAT from dem people light bill and water bill is nearly every cent he tek back. Whatever money dem get is to pay passage to collect de pension. Dem tell de world that de government restore a credible image fuh de country pun de world stage. Dem boys want to know who dem fooling after de audits show how much money people thief and not one of dem gone to jail. Dem same thief man walking de streets. De biggest thing dem does talk about is how dem clean up Georgetown and bring back dignity to de garbage collectors. Dem boys want to know how dem can claim that when Jagdeo walking pun de same streets. Wheh de dignity deh? Rum Jattan seh how he restore law and order. He stop all dem night club from going later than 2:00 in de morning but people does see him drunk at 4:00. Dem seh all these things because Jagdeo seh how dem fail. He give dem an ‘F’ grade. But as old people seh, cuss don’t have back door. From de time Jagdeo give dem de ‘F’ news start fuh spread how Donald Dumb dead. People call from all over de world and at one stage even Donald heself believe. Dem boys call him and he mek dem bring tent fuh de wake. Is he wife had to slap him and mek him come to the senses. But come to think of it, dem boys believe that Soulja Bai people deserve de ‘F’ grade. Dem asking Jagdeo to do de impossible. Dem asking him to be honest, decent and straight. Talk half and wonder wha next gun happen.
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Jagdeo’s presidency is synonymous with corruption, extra-judicial killings and drug lords - AFC
- Has no moral authority to judge any sitting govt. Since Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo has a remarkable legacy of failure to his name then he has no place awarding any grade to the performance of the APNU+AFC Government. This comment was made by the Alliance For Change (AFC) last night. Its statement was in wake of the “F” Grade recently handed out to the administration by Jagdeo. The AFC stated that it finds the “F” grade to be devoid of objectivity or fairness. It said that this move however fits with the far-right extremist approach and utter desperation that Jagdeo has adopted in dealing with matters as Opposition Leader. The Party sought to remind Jagdeo that it was his regime that left Guyana in a literal and figurative mess. Since the elections, AFC said that the Government has been diligently working to restore law and order to Guyana, to provide better education, health and social services to the people, to modernize public infrastructure and to clean up and beautify Guyana. The Party also boasted that its achievements in the
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mere 20 months can compare favourably with the PPP’s minimal achievements for 23 years. In this regard, the AFC said that it was the APNU+AFC Coalition government which held Local Government Elections in Guyana after an absence of 22 years. The Party also pointed to the Government’s other accomplishments. These include increased public servants salaries by 37%, reduced the PPP imposed VAT from 16% to 14%, passed Telecommunications Bill, restoration of decency and cleanliness to Georgetown, restoration of law and order, establishment of the Public Procurement Commission, reduced Berbice Bridge tolls, increased Old Age Pension by over 45% from $13,125 to $19,000, increased minimum wage from $39,540 to $55,000 and the establishment of three new towns. The AFC said, “Mr. Jagdeo has no moral authority whatsoever to speak on the performance of a government when as president his performance was mired in failure. Mr. Jagdeo’s presidency is synonymous
Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo with obscene corruption, hundreds of extra-judicial killings, drug lords overrunning the nation and a narco-state, fear embedded in the hearts and minds of citizens and failed foreign relations. It was in reference to Mr. Jagdeo’s presidency that a then sitting CARICOM Prime Minister said that he (Jagdeo) had reduced Guyana to the state of an ‘international panhandler.’ In light of the aforementioned, the party said that it is Jagdeo who is out of touch with reality and seems to be living in a state of extreme denial in his controversially acquired extravagant mansion in Pradoville. It is the view of the AFC that the Opposition Leader needs to reflect on his resounding failure as a president in flattening growth and development in Guyana before he begins to contemplate casting judgment on this or any other government.
Did Ifa Cush vote to fire himself?
Questions loom over makeup of Smart City Solutions Board of Directors The Board of Directors of Smart City Solutions (SCS), the company responsible for implementing the controversial parking meter project, only comprises two members. One of them is Ifagbamila Kamau Cush. That is according to the records in the Deeds Registry. Interestingly, Cush was fired a few days ago by the very Board of Directors, raising questions of whether he voted to fire himself. During a media conference on Friday, the company’s Managing Director, Amir Oren, was quizzed on the matter. His initial response was, “As you’ve seen in the press recently, we have required that Mr. Cush resign from the Board of Directors, and we are in the process of filing the paper work in the public registry…It takes time to file those papers.” Pressed further for information on who are “we”, since Cush was indeed one of the two Directors of the Company, Oren declared, “The Board of Directors does not comprise two people.” He went on to explain, “We have a board of directors and it comprises the members who are the ones that have operated in different countries, and we are in the process of filing those papers for your public registry...” The persistence of this newspaper to find out who the other board members are,
Smart City Solutions’ Managing Director, Amir Oren
“Former Director” of Smart City Solutions, Ifagbamila Kamau Cush
led to Oren saying, “When we file it, you’ll see.” Asked again, why Guyanese aren’t allowed to know who the other people tasked with implementing the parking meter project are, moderator of the press conference, and Public Relations Officer of SCS, Kit Nacimento interjected, “You can’t…first time the question is being asked.” It was on Wednesday that Smart City Solutions announced that after demanding it, the company’s Board of Directors accepted Cush’s resignation. In a statement, SCS said that even though Cush was at the forefront of introducing the metered parking project, he has not been involved in any of the company’s operations for several months. The company was sure to remind of Cush’s offensive social media posts, in which
he referred to Guyanese opposing metered parking as “freeloaders”. “You lack the intestinal fortitude to control your own destiny. You all possess the mentality of slaves, indentured servants incapable of generating wealth and building capacity,” Cush continued. In another post, Cush said that, “That is my personal opinion. I did not utter those statements on behalf of Smart City Solutions. The protestors represent a cabal of misfits who add no value to the productive capacity of our country. They bring no gravitas, no moral authority to the conversation.” SCS subsequently distanced itself from the comments made by Cush, describing these as unacceptable and disgraceful. (Rehana Ahamad)
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Decision on future of Health Ministry PS this week Government could announce a decision as early as this week on the future of Permanent Secretary, Trevor Thomas, at the Ministry of Public Health. Based on the three weeks of investigation in drug purchases and leaking of sensitive procurement information, a Board of Inquiry report last year recommended Thomas be removed for failing to effectively carry out his duty. He was also accused of being willfully evasive and deceptive during his testimony to the Board of Inquiry. The report had been considered by Cabinet, with President David Granger later set to make a decision on Thomas’s future. On Friday, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, after the post-Cabinet press briefing, was asked about the Permanent Secretary. He said that a decision will more than likely come this week. The report of the Board of Inquiry, conducted by Assistant Commissioner of Police (Retd.), Winston
- Harmon
PS, Trevor Thomas Cosbert, made its way into the public domain last month without the administration having a chance to pronounce on the recommendations. Thomas has been very much on the job, and has been seen making official visits. The report, probing the leaking of information and the procurement of drugs at the Ministry of Public Health, found worrying instances of collusion with suppliers last year.
Thomas was accused of being willfully evasive and deceptive during his testimony to the Board of Inquiry. It is not the first time that the Health Ministry has been under scrutiny for contracts. With billions of dollars annually allocated to the ministry to buy pharmaceuticals for its health centres and hospitals countrywide, State audits under the administrations of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had found serious procurement flaws. The Coalition administration, which came to power in May 2015, had vowed to level the playing field for pharmaceutical suppliers and implement systems to ensure transparency. But it appeared that wrongdoing at the Health Ministry was continuing. Procurement and
management processes by which the ministry awards contracts for the procurement of pharmaceuticals, services and supplies were not adhered to in many cases, the report indicated. In some cases, companies were awarded contracts for products which they were not authorized to distribute in the first place. It appeared that the ministry paid little attention to this. There were incidents of unauthorized disclosure of information in a specific case. According to the report, leaking of internal information to suppliers appeared to be normal practice in the Ministry. This had led to the dismissal of former Permanent Secretary, Leslie Cadogan and Prakash Sookdeo, former Head of the Procurement Department. The report by Cosbert noted that while procurement laws have mechanisms, the ministry has nothing in place to identify authorized disclosure of price-sensitive
information (leaking info to suppliers). It was found that staffers of the Materials Management Unit (MMU) were untrained and unqualified to fill the job requirements. The PS and his deputy were not effectively supervising the Procurement Department. While under regulations, Collette Adams, the Deputy PS was in charge of procurement for the ministry, this duty was usurped by Thomas. Thomas testified that on October 4, he signed a contract with New GPC, for the supply of pharmaceutical and medical items totaling $554M. New GPC was supposed to be paid an advance of 30 percent. However, the ministry instead of paying $166M, paid 50 percent of the amount ($277M). The report stated that to cover up the matter, Thomas signed adjustment documents without informing other officials, like the then Minister, Dr. George Norton.
Among other things, it was recommended that the Deputy PS should also be censored for authorizing the 50 percent advance to New GPC without properly checking the contract. Her excuse was unsatisfactory, the report said, and disciplinary action should be taken. The report recommended that the contract for Finance Manager Sandra Singh not be renewed, and that the present staffers of the Materials Management Unit (MMU) be transferred or alternatively be trained in the area of procurement. During the three weeks of hearings at the Department of Public Service, Waterloo Street, some 34 witnesses including the former Minister of Public Health, Dr. Norton; staffers of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board, the Director of Food and Drugs Department, Marlan Cole; Auditor General, Deodat Sharma and other suppliers were called to testify.
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Akeem Peters and Kerron Boston win ‘Race to the Altar’ Akeem Peters and Kerron Boston were on Friday evening announced the winners of Roraima’s Wedding Expo ‘Race to the Altar’ at the end of a ceremony held at Roraima Duke Lodge, Kingston, Georgetown. The couple was among six finalists vying for an all expense paid wedding package. Roderick Grant and Kacy Dutson; Colwyn Boyle and
Kittindie Pearson; Rajesh Chanderpaul and Romana Puran; Dale Thomas and Luriel Inniss; and Gregory Loo and Keisha Fraser, were the other contestants. Peters and Boston will be married on March 25, in the Victoria Hall of the Roraima Duke Lodge. After several rounds of competition, on Friday evening, each couple displayed their affection through dramatic pieces, dance, and songs and poetry.
The couples displayed great chemistry and reminded their partners why they fell in love with them. They all confessed that the competition challenged them mentally and physically. Captain Gerry Gouveia said that some of the couples met each other via BlackBerry messenger (BBM); Pulse Mash Band; algebra class at the University of Guyana (UG) and even at a hang out (Continued on page 71) The other couples: From left: Gregory Loo and Keisha Fraser; Rajesh Chanderpaul and Romana Puran; Colwyn Boyle and Kittindie Pearson; Roderick Grant and Kacy Dutson and Dale Thomas and Luriel Innis (Stanford Howard photo)
CARICOM to employ lobbyist... From page 8 bank relations or de-risking issue as ‘one of the most significant threats facing the region at this time’,” the website stated. Browne told the leaders that the CARICOM countries had adopted a unified approach to tackling the issue and they implemented a number of initiatives to confront the threat. Among the strategies, he recalled, was a meeting in Antigua last October that brought together a number of stakeholders in a forum to
map out a plan of action for the region. According to the prime minister the meeting was attended by the governors of regional central banks as well as others associated with the issue. But he noted that whilst invitations were sent to regulators from the United States, they stayed away from the meeting. Browne opined that their absence may have been out of concern that the forum would have been a ‘shame and blame’ exercise. He also expressed confidence that through its efforts
the Caribbean countries have been able to obtain a halt in further de-risking, although he concedes that it is still a threat going forward. President Granger on Friday at a news conference, told media operatives that CARICOM Heads of Government have considered the Strategy and Action Plan submitted by the Committee of Central Bank Governors. The Committee of Ministers of Finance with responsibility for Correspondent Financing will now assume the oversight of its roll-out.
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Elections Commission not functioning properly By Brushell Blackman The operations of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) have been criticized by the three People’s Progressive Party (PPP/C) Commissioners at a recent press conference hosted by the party at Freedom House on Friday. Sase Gunraj, Bibi Shaddick and Robeson Benn said that they remain extremely concerned with the current state of affairs at that entity. Benn stated that his party holds the view that the ‘caretaker’ Chairman Steve Surujbally has run his course and it is time for him to go. According to Benn, no proper meeting has been held since last year and Surujbally is usually absent; he is mostly distracted and is seemingly recalcitrant in the
performance of his duties. “He is not committed to those things which should be properly done in accordance with the constitution of the commission.” Benn said the failure of the commission to meet in a timely and regular manner cannot be borne by the commissioners themselves. “The constitution dictates what a quorum is for meetings of the commission.” He added that it is the responsibility of the chairman to call meetings and his failure to do so is affecting the operations and a number of constitutional tasks cannot be undertaken. Bibi Shaddick for her part said that the failure to have meetings is affecting the ninth cycle of House to House registration which is an
Parking Meter Project... From page 9 scrapped. He said that when it comes to the Project, there should be consultations with key stakeholders first. The Chartered Accountant said, “One suggestion is to work out an arrangement with the Guyana Revenue Authority to charge motorists an annual fee for use of the City roads and parking at the time of renewal of road licences.” Assuming that there are 75,000 vehicles that are owned by residents in the perimeter area from Mahaicony to Parika (east to west), and Georgetown to Soesdyke (north to south), and a fee of $10,000 per year is charged, Goolsarran said that the City Council will earn revenue in the sum of $750 million. Goolsarran said that a lesser amount of, say $5,000, could be charged for motorists outside the perimeter. In this way, he said that the City Council could earn at least $1 billion per annum, and no expenses are involved. “I do not believe that the City Council will be able to garner that amount from the Parking Meter Project,” concluded the Chartered Accountant.
- PPP/C Commissioners important component to having free and fair elections. Additionally, Shaddick said that the commission had agreed in principle to capturing registrants details using biometrics but this is now in doubt because nothing has been discussed in this regard in the absence of these regulatory meetings. She said that the registration was meant to begin in the second quarter of this year but this remains unlikely since compounding the issue of the lack of meetings, Central
Government has now slashed the entity’s budget from $4B to $2B. Of greater concern to the commissioners is the fact that GECOM’s financial status under the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act (FMA) has been changed from being a budgetary agency to a scheduled three agency. Under this status the agency draws its finances from the consolidated fund and its oversight on spending is removed from the Ministry of Finance to GECOM itself.
Shaddick asked, “Who is approving the expenditures and who is ensuring that monies are spent in accordance with the commission’s constitution?” The commissioner said that she is very concerned about the lack of oversight that currently prevails at GECOM since this lends itself to financial irregularities. According to Shaddick, when the situation is looked at in its totality one could be minded to think it’s an orchestration to stymie or shutdown the work of GECOM. She said at the moment there is a blackout of information at the
commission. “We have to fight to get information relating to the conduct of GECOM”. The government is currently looking for a fit and proper candidate to replace Dr. Steve Surujbally who has proceeded on leave before he retires. The opposition leader Bharrat Jagdeo had presented a list of potential candidates to replace Surujbally and that list was rejected by President Granger. The search is ongoing for a suitable replacement with the government and the opposition having disagreements on the suitability of the candidates.
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Night courts fulfilled their purpose - CHANCELLOR With sittings of the night courts scheduled to come to an end on February 28, Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag) Justice Carl Singh has asserted that they have served their purpose. After almost one decade of talks, the first sitting of the night courts commenced on October 10, 2016 at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts. The idea of the night courts materialized after the March 3, 2016 unrest at the Georgetown Prisons, where 17 inmates perished during an inferno at the penitentiary. Prisoners at the time vented frustration at the length of time they were kept on remand pending trial. Magistrate Beverly Bishop-Cheddie, Magistrate Brendon Glasford, Magistrate Madan Kissoon, Magistrate Leslie Benjamin and Magistrate Liza Hanoman were assigned temporarily, to preside over matters slated for the night courts. All these temporary magistrates are qualified attorneys-at-law. Several matters being dealt with during the day courts were transferred to the night courts for hearing between 15:00hrs and 20:00hrs. While Kaieteur News is still to compile information on
Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag) Justice Carl Singh the effectiveness of the night court, Justice Singh disclosed that the possibility of extending the night court has not been on the agenda. According to Justice Singh, funding approved for the operation of the night court has nearly been exhausted, and there is no additional fund. A total of $25M was secured by government to finance the payment of salaries of the temporary magistrates and ancillary staff. For many years, the issue of backlogged cases was found to be responsible for Continued on page 69
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Caribbean Institute to assist coconut processor groups in Guyana The Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) is collaborating with the International Trade Centre (ITC) to host a twoday training workshop on group strengthening for processors working in Guyana’s coconut industry. The training will specifically target small scale processors involved in the development of coconutbased value added products. Participants will be exposed to group strengthening activities such as trust and governance and will learn about marketing opportunities and financial management. The overarching goal of the workshop is to strengthen small scale processor groups so as to increase their competitiveness ultimately leading to the development of an export oriented agriprocessing sector. Executive Director of CARDI, Barton Clarke, said that a similar workshop will be held in Suriname during March. There have been others in Belize, Jamaica, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago. Mr. Clarke said that CARDI is happy to be implementing these training workshops to better organise processor groups as this will
lead to development of better quality value added coconut products as well as increase incomes and employment opportunities. This workshop is part of the ongoing project “Coconut Industry Development for the Caribbean” financed by the European and jointly implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI). The workshop will start on Monday in Region Two, at the NAREI Agricultural Service Centre, Charity, Essequibo Coast. The sessions will be facilitated by experts in group dynamics, value chain and agribusiness development. Additionally, CARDI is collaborating with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries
to host a two-day workshop to explore the feasibility of using GIS tools to monitor and manage the Black Sigatoka Disease of banana and plantain in Guyana. GIS is growing in importance as a decisionmaking tool for the agricultural sector. Specifically, it provides valuable information that can be used to cost effectively and efficiently monitor, predict and manage the spread of agricultural pest and diseases. Black Sigatoka has been identified as one of the major constraints to banana and plantain production in the Caribbean. The use of GIS tools is being considered as part of the suite of options in the development of an integrated disease management (IDM) plan for BSD. As such participants at the workshop will be given an overview of GIS and its
applicability to agriculture, specifically BSD, and learn about the importance of data and data collection techniques. An assessment of the requirements for the establishment and maintenance of such a system in country will also be discussed with particular emphasis on the technical training, equipment, software and personnel needs for BSD surveillance and management. The workshop will take place from February 27, 2017 at the Grand Coastal Hotel.
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A new lease on life for victims of kidney failure By Sharmain Grainger For many of us, putting our lives on hold even for a single day is not an option. However, it is pretty much this state of affairs that many of our family members, friends and other individuals inflicted with kidney failure are forced to deal with every day. This is usually due to the very debilitating nature of this medical condition. Each of us is born with two kidneys. However, kidney failure occurs when the function of these organs to filter toxins from the blood become impaired. This condition, according to medical officials, can come in two forms - acute kidney injury which can be reversible with adequate treatment and chronic kidney disease which, even with treatment, can have fatal outcomes. Kidney failure in either form does not discriminate against race, gender, age, religion or even status, just ask Tomol Mingo, Ellisya Persaud or even Abdool Shakeer, who have all fought valiant battles against chronic kidney disease. Some of the very noticeable effects of this condition include issues with the production of urine and in some cases persons start to retain fluids often causing them to become visibly swollen. Without as much as three sessions of dialysis per week, a person suffering from chronic kidney failure could develop complications and die. Essentially, dialysis is the clinical filtering of the blood using a machine. Mingo, Persaud and Shakeer all come from various backgrounds and sections of the country, but have all suffered from this condition that has over the decades deprived many families of ablebodied members or even caused them to prematurely take the journey to the great beyond. But they can hopefully be regarded as overcomers, given the fact that they were all recently given a new lease on life. Each was blessed to have a relative who was willing to donate a kidney to them and turned out to be a suit-
Nurse Deborah Patterson attends to Tomol Mingo. able match for transplant surgery. Their surgeries, which have been deemed successful, were all done earlier this month at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). The surgeries were led by a team of experts from the Calgary Medical Center of Canada, which was ably supported by GPHC’s Kidney Surgeon, Dr. Kishore Persaud, and a team of nurses. There are many people suffering from kidney failure who question why the universe had dealt them such a “bad hand”. According to Ellisya Persaud, for instance, she asked “why me?” on many occasions before she gradually started to accept her fate. The 20-year-old, who hails from Henrietta Village on the Essequibo Coast, remembers all too well the day she was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. She recalled that it was after the manifestations of several symptoms in her body and many tests later, she was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. It was October 14, 2014 that the diagnosis was made. Her symptoms were mild, but gradually developed to unbearable proportions. At
the time she was a secondyear teacher in training at the Turkeyen campus of the Cyril Potter College of Education. “I started to feel feverish one day and then I remember I started to gain weight, but it was more like swelling...I couldn’t lie on my back and breathe sometimes and that was when I knew that something was really wrong,” she said during an interview. Persaud recalled being shuttled back to the Essequibo Coast by her mother Elsa, who was convinced that she could nurse her daughter back to health there. But the symptoms only became worse and there was an undeniable need for Persaud to seek medical attention. At the Suddie Hospital on the Essequibo Coast she was examined extensively before the source of her symptoms were identified. “My feet were swollen and I had backache. At first they thought I had Chikungunya (a mosquitoborne virus). They checked my blood count and it was six and so they admitted me then they tested my blood pressure and it was sky high, so they decided to do the kidney function tests and realised my kidneys were not working as
The Baccoo Speaks A man who was wanted for a series of offences and who was jailed in his absence is no longer on the streets. An observant police rank spotted him in the eastern part of the country and took him into custody. That is only the start of the story because the man is going to cough up some of his accomplices since he is of the view that they ratted on him. **
The country is still reeling from the explicit videos posted by some school children. However, that is not the
end because more will surface. Of course some adults would seek to justify the spate of videos by contending that a pastor was among the people leading this latest charge. ** A patrol would make a stunning discovery when it responds to a call for help. Two of the robbery suspects would actually be serving policemen.
they should,” Persaud recounted. The following day she was transferred to the GPHC where she received her first
A recovering Ellisya Persaud session of dialysis. But given the number of persons that the GPHC has been catering to over the years, Persaud soon found
herself accessing dialysis at the Doobay Medical Centre at Annandale on the East Coast of Demerara. (Continued on page 28)
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The gunman under the clock By Michael Jordan Phillip Bess’ youngest daughter was walking near the Stabroek Market last January when she spotted one of the men that she believes killed her father twelve years ago. Though he had worn a cap back then, she says she recognized him at once; a tall, slim, man with dark, narrow features. And he was still flashing a gold tooth. Her heart was racing, but she wanted to be certain, so she passed him thrice more. After the third time, she headed to the nearest police outpost… It was just beginning to rain that evening of Saturday, October 30, 2004, when the five men entered Phillip Bess’s yard in Stevedore Housing Scheme squatting area. Bess, a 41-year-old driver at City Hall, was inside with his wife, Cheryl, called ‘Vi’, and three of their children. The three little ones were asleep, but the couple’s 20year-old daughter was outside, so she saw when the men entered her parents’ yard. She assumed that they were just seeking shelter from the rain, but then she saw two of the men separate themselves from the group, and walk over to the section of the house
Murdered: Phillip Bess
Waiting for justice: Cheryl Bess
that the family had converted into a small shop. Philip Bess’ daughter realised that sheltering was not what had brought the men here. She saw that one of the strangers, a tall, thin man, was packing a handgun, while his companion had an ice-pick. The young woman darted out of the yard and fled to a neighbour’s residence. Meanwhile, inside the house, Phillip Bess had just finished his dinner of fish and chips which his wife had prepared shortly after returning from church. It was around six thirty
p.m. and Cheryl was in the bedroom shutting the windows when she heard Philip yell out from in the shop: “Vi, bring the blade (cutlass.)” Cheryl went to the hallway to see what was amiss in time to see her husband, with his vest badly torn, retreat from the shop into the house. The woman peered into the shop and saw a slim, brown-skinned man, with his cap pulled down low. He was carrying a handgun. The stranger was accompanied by a man of similar build and complexion, who was wearing a durag that partly covered his corn-row plaits.
The gunman pointed his weapon at her husband, while his companion with the durag advanced menacingly to Cheryl Bess. “Where de money deh?” he shouted at her. “We ain’ got money, we just hustling,” Cheryl pleaded. “Shut yuh mouth,” the bandit snapped. “Where de money deh?” With that, he grabbed Cheryl’s chain and she shifted away from her husband and the gunman who was guarding him. Despite her plight, she knew that Philip was in greater danger. “Doan shoot he,” she begged. The gunman slapped her, and Cheryl received further slaps as she continued to beg the men to spare her husband. And she soon realised that the gunmen had no intention of leaving eyewitnesses. ”You got to shoot that man, buddy, you got to shoot, yuh can’t just lef hay,” the man guarding Cheryl said. A loud explosion filled the house. Cheryl looked behind her and saw Philip lying on the floor with a bullet-hole in his chest. “Shoot she too,” the gunman’s companion said. Cheryl began to plead for her life. This appeared to appease the intruders, and the gunman’s companion dragged Cheryl to the dining room. He then stripped the distraught woman of her gold chains, earrings and fingerrings. The man then demanded that she hand over the family’s cash. Cheryl knew that the couple had $60,000 stashed in their wardrobe. That money was to pay their monthly installment on a car that they had recently purchased. But fearing that the men would kill her, the woman handed over the money to the gunmen, who also picked up a CD player before fleeing. By this time, the other Bess children had awakened. They became distraught on seeing their mortally wounded father on the floor. Cheryl ran outside to summon help, and a neighbour eventually took Philip Bess to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he succumbed. The initial suspicion that detectives had was that the Bess family were the victims of two vicious robbers. But Cheryl Bess suspected that there was more to it than that. The couple had gone through some recent domestic problems after Cheryl found out that Philip was having an affair. Phillip had admitted to the relationship
but reassured his wife that it had ended. Sometime in 2004, Cheryl was riding her scooter in the vicinity of the South Ruimveldt Shopping Plaza, when the woman had accosted and taunted her. According to Mrs. Bess, the woman had even spat on her from a minibus. Cheryl Bess said she reported the incident at the East La Penitence Police Station. She had then informed Phillip, who allegedly then had an ugly confrontation with the woman. The woman allegedly informed one of her brothers, who was a policeman, and the brother and an acquaintance allegedly confronted Philip at his workplace. Cheryl Bess believes that Phillip’s murder is linked to this confrontation. She alleged that one of the men who entered her home is related to the woman with whom her husband had the affair. She said that acting on this information, police arrested some of the woman’s male relatives. She said that some of them were placed on an identification parade. According to Mrs. Bess, it turned out that one of the men was the same bandit who had slapped her and ordered his companion to shoot her husband. “But I was confused and nervous, so I failed to pick him out,” Mrs. Bess said. “I was looking for the shooter.” According to Cheryl Bess, she also learned that the gunman is related to her husband’s ex-girlfriend. She alleged that the police picked the man up, but never placed him on an identification parade. He was allegedly released before Cheryl Bess was even aware that he had been picked up. According to Mrs. Bess, she was informed by a man who was incarcerated at the same time that one of the suspects had admitted to being involved in her husband’s murder. The alleged killer had reportedly boasted that he had a ‘guard’ from Suriname and would never be caught. She says that the family suffered financially and emotionally from her husband’s murder. She was forced to close the shop and sell their recently-bought car. Mrs. Bess says that she occasionally saw her
husband’s killer in Georgetown. However, she has never been able to have him arrested, since he always makes himself scare when she is around. She says he’s about five feet nine inches tall, brown in complexion, sports shoulder-length dreadlocks, and has an ‘open-face’ gold tooth. Then, last January, Mrs. Bess’ youngest daughter allegedly spotted the same slim, gold-toothed suspect standing “under the clock” near the Stabroek Market. “From the time I see him I recognized him,” she told me. “He hadn’t changed much. He just get old. I didn’t know what to do. I passed him three or four times, then I want to the Stabroek Market Police Outpost.” A police rank accompanied her to the area and took the suspect into custody. He was then taken to the Brickdam Police Station, where a senior CID officer listened to the allegations. The officer allegedly took the woman’s name and phone number and promised to get contact them. But after receiving no word from the official, Mr. Bess’s daughter said that the family filed a report with the Police Complaints Authority. They were allegedly told that the police were unable to locate statements that the family had provided in 2014. A file was reportedly submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions, who allegedly ruled that there was insufficient evidence to charge the suspect. The alleged gunman is once again walking free, but the Bess family is still determined to have justice. “We are asking for him to be re-arrested and placed before the courts,” the daughter said last week, adding that they are also asking Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan to intervene. If you have any further information on these cases or any other, please contact us at our Lot 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown office or by telephone. We can be reached on telephone numbers 22-58458, 2258465, or 22-58491. You need not disclose your identity. You can also contact Michael Jordan at his email a d d r e s s : mjdragon@hotmail.com.
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Kaieteur News
The anti-parking meter protestors and my sad life This country needs to have a powerful, energetic, passionate, purposeful human rights entity. This is one, tragic, blighted, cursed nation where ordinary people are lost and lonely, because they have no one to turn to with the daily violations they face and endure. My life in this country is a sad one. I persist because I have my friends who believe in me and I go home to two humans and two pets that make me happy. I cannot act on the myriad of complaints about the violation and brutalization of ordinary people that I get every day. There is hardly a day that I do not receive a complaint. If you take it by the month, I would say I get twenty requests to seek justice for people who have been wronged. The list includes teachers, UG lecturers, civil servants, public sector workers, small business people, not to mention the ordinary folks. What is my balance sheet? It is not an impressive one. What can one person do? This is a cruel country where
people with authority, power, money and status are barefaced enough to tell you; “go to hell, do what you like.” I have written in these columns many times the phenomenon I experienced as a student at the University of Toronto. It is one of the world’s largest universities in terms of programmes, staff and students. When compared to my time at UG, Toronto has been a paradise. Little UG with four thousand students and 250 employees was a hell hole during the 26 years I worked there. The violations of the rights of employees and students were unspeakable. The cruel administrators at UG may have few counterparts elsewhere. One of the persistent cries I have seen in my long human rights career came from sugar workers. It was clear to me back then that the sugar industry treated its workers worse than when Bookers owned it. This country has been and is a volcanic crater of burning human rights violations, of which 99 percent of
the depravities do not result in justice for the aggrieved persons. It is against this backdrop that the anti-parking meter protest becomes crucial. This protest has been one of the phenomenal positives to have taken place in social life in Guyana the past forty years. It is as if this country has finally found its voice. I participated in the three demonstrations outside City Hall and the representation of national life was graphic. Every class component of the Guyanese society was there. Two dimensions stood out for me. Never in my long history of protest since Independence have I seen so many Portuguese Guyanese. And secondly, such a wide cross section of the female population. Even the GUARD rallies during the Hoyte presidency did not bring out such a wide cross-section of the Guyanese nation. Being in that protest is like the country speaking to itself, demanding social change and human rights. Can this beautiful thing last? If the parking meters die
forcefully or through a natural death, will that moment that was born outside the City Hall disappear forever? It is not the protest that one wants to see continue. Obviously, if there are no parking meters, there will be no pickets. What one wants to see is the conversion of the impulse and passion that generated the protest into a defining human rights organism. It would not be fair, right and acceptable for those who participated in the weekly picketing exercises to return to their comfortable niche and forget the victims of bestial violations that are taking place in this land. These people need the passion and the purpose that were on display outside City Hall. The anti-parking meter protest could be the catalyst for us to reclaim our humility and concern for the welfare of the Guyanese people.
I leave you with the lyrics of a song that swept my mind when I was very young. Sung by The Hollies, it is titled, “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s my Brother.” The road is long With many a winding turn That leads us to who knows where Who knows where But I’m strong Strong enough to carry him He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother So on we go His welfare is of my concern No burden is he to bear We’ll get there For I know He would not encumber me He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother If I’m laden at all I’m laden with sadness That everyone’s heart Isn’t filled with the gladness
Frederick Kissoon Of love for one another It’s a long, long road From which there is no return While we’re on the way to there Why not share And the load Doesn’t weigh me down at all He ain’t heavy he’s my brother
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Sunday February 19, 2017
A new lease on life for victims of kidney failure From page 25 In fact she joined a plethora of patients who were referred there by the GPHC. Although eligible for some financial support from the Ministry of Health for the cost of dialysis at the East Coast Medical Centre, Persaud found that travelling alone was very costly. In order to address this challenge she decided to relocate to Cummings Lodge, Greater Georgetown, which effectively shortened the distance between accessing dialysis and attending clinic at the GPHC. “I had my good days and I had my bad days too,” said Persaud as she remembered dialysis sessions and reflected on her parents being her biggest supporters. Although she had accepted dialysis as a routine part of her life, Persaud couldn’t help but research about the medical possibilities that exist for chronic kidney failure patients like herself. Even before Dr. Kishore who conducted the clinic she
attended at the GPHC suggested that she considered a kidney transplant, Persaud said that she was already contemplating this possibility. Although her father Deodat initially volunteered to be her donor, medical complications did not allow this to be possible. Instead, moves were made to have her 22year-old brother, Romaul Persaud, be her cross-matching candidate instead. Crossmatching is done to determine that the recipient and the donor are compatible to improve the chance of a successful transplant surgery. Persaud along with two other patients - Mingo and Shakeer - received their new kidneys during the week of February 5-11, 2017. All of the donors were discharged days after the surgery and are healing well. In the case of 16-year-old Mingo, his mother, 39-yearold Shaundel was the donor. From his hospital bed where he lay recovering Friday, Mingo of Charles Street, Charlestown Georgetown, remembered being full of life
Abdool Shakeer resting in his hospital bed at the GPHC. and a promising football player who competed well for his school, Charlestown Secondary. But like Persaud, the discomforting symptoms associated with chronic kidney failure that he developed forced him to not only quit the game,
but school as well. He too remembers when he was diagnosed. “It was January 29, 2016,” disclosed Mingo, as he in reflective mode said that he thought that the symptoms he developed almost overnight were because of a cold. ”My eyes were swollen and every day I started to gain weight...I had so much fluid in my body I was feeling like I was overloading, so mommy took me to the hospital and they run some tests and they told me my Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) to creatinine was sky high,” recalled Mingo. Blood urea nitrogen level is an indicator of kidney function. Creatinine is produced from creatine, a molecule of major importance for energy production in muscles. The ratio of BUN to creatinine is usually between 10:1 and 20:1, but an increased ratio may be due to a condition
that causes a decrease in the flow of blood to the kidneys. Moreover, the BUN-tocreatinine ratio generally provides more precise medical personnel with information about kidney function and its possible underlying cause compared with creatinine level alone. Although he was undergoing weekly dialysis at the Woodlands Hospital and attending Dr. Kishore’s clinic at the GPHC, Mingo developed some daunting complications which included severely high blood pressure. In fact his blood pressure surged so sharply months before his transplant that it caused a blood vessel in his right eye to rupture. That eye has since become impaired. Transplant was the most viable option for Mingo. While Persaud and Shakeer were admitted days before surgery, Mingo was admitted long before to safeguard him from any possible infection and further complication. Shakeer, a resident of Diamond New Scheme, East Bank Demerara, who also shared a bit about his experience ahead his transplant surgery, said that nine months ago he was diagnosed with chronic kidney failure. But unlike the others, the symptoms of the 52-year-old father of four were just constant weakness and shortness of breath. Symptoms of renal failure can include: fatigue – being tired all of the time; feeling cold – when others are warm; shortness of breath – after very little effort; feeling faint, dizzy, or weak; trouble thinking clearly; feeling very itchy; swelling in hands or feet; swollen or puffy face, among
others. Shakeer’s donor was the second of his four children, 28-year-old Imran Shakeer. “He was the first one to volunteer to give me one of his kidneys,” said Shakeer of his son. And he is especially grateful to have a second chance at a good quality of life since according to him, “I just couldn’t imagine doing dialysis for the rest of my life...some days were just too painful.” Once recovered, each of the kidney recipients has high expectations for their future. While Persaud intends to complete her training and become a dedicated educator, Mingo hopes that he can complete his secondary studies and pursue studies in medicine so that he too can help to make a difference in the lives of ailing people. Shakeer on the other hand hopes that he will be able to regain his position at the reputable firm where he held a position as a supervisor before falling ill. Ensuring that people are reintegrated into society and are able to become productive citizens is the very aim of offering a service such as kidney transplant at the GPHC, according to Nurse Deborah Patterson. Patterson is the Nurse in Charge of the Female High Dependency Unit which was designated the recovery room for the transplant patients. “Each of them can go on with their lives. This process not only gives new life to these patients but it saves Government a lot of money. Dialysis is expensive, transportation is expensive and they have to get public assistance because they cannot work. Every time they are admitted they need medication and their stay here is covered by government, so this is a ‘win win’ situation for the patients and government,” Patterson underscored. According to Nurse Patterson too, with a kidney transplant as much as 15 years can be added to a patient’s life, and that in itself is a laudable feat.
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Kaieteur News
My column
Oh for my superstitious people The past two weeks actually served to remind me of heaven and hell. They also served to remind me just how tenuous life is. The part of hell was prompted by the spate of fires. There were fires at every turn to such an extent that I can only assume that many people were afraid to sleep. Some were deliberately set and claimed lives. The Guyana Fire Service was kept busy. Scarcely had the ranks returned to base that they were called on to respond to another fire. To their credit, they managed to save nearby buildings. It was not long before people began to talk about these fires. Many believed that obeah was at work, because no one could remember so many fires in the different parts of the country about the same time. It had to be obeah and somebody was very powerful, because he or she wanted the politicians to take notice. When a lady came to me with the news about obeah, I asked her how is it that this obeah man can’t deal with Trump in the United States. The lady had a ready answer. She said that obeah does not cross salt water. I thought I was smart when I pointed out that the rivers — Demerara and Berbice — have salt water. But the lady reminded me that bridges span these rivers. She proceeded to lecture me on the various types of obeah. There is ‘fire bun’ which destroys selected articles without damaging the other parts of the house. All this sounded interesting, but I still had questions. How is it that all the obeah people are poor? Why can’t they use the obeah to make their lives better? But this talk about obeah continued. I remember the case of a man who was working, I think with the Department of Forestry. He went to Bartica and raped a young woman. He got off in court, but it wasn’t long before he fell on hard times. He died soon after and people said
that the parents of the girl had sworn to get him. There was another man who worked with the Guyana Telecommunications Corporation. He lived with his wife who later moved to Plaisance. Both were friends of mine. This man would beat his wife and even kick her. I later saw him not only living at the Palms, but also in a wheelchair. He had lost his right leg. People said that his wife resorted to the obeah man. In my book there is something called retribution, but the believers say that retribution is different from obeah; that obeah is a case of getting payback at the instigation of someone. So if these fires are the work of obeah, then I am forced to wonder what it was that the victims did. When I was the editor of New Nation way back in the 1980s and working out of an office that was located at Albert and Crown Streets, the manager was one Abdul Salim. The cleaner was a woman who believed in obeah and was therefore the butt end of many pranks. One day a staff member who now resides overseas collected a hibiscus flower, some rice grains and some other paraphernalia. She placed these things at Abdul Salim’s door, because the cleaner had to clean that office early in the morning. Believe it or not the office was not cleaned until I removed the so-called obeah things. The story did not end there. The woman went to the General Secretary, Dr Ptolemy Reid and complained that there were people in the office who wanted to harm her. She then explained what had happened. To his credit, Dr Reid summoned the entire staff to a meeting at Congress Place and lectured us on the power of the mind. He said that if someone believes that something can hurt him or her then it would. I can’t swear to understand but then again, I know the power of the mind. Guyanese do not settle for the obeah man, they also re-
sort to a pandit who will give them a read. My ex-wife was a believer of sorts. I remember cutting my last son’s hair and the fellow just could not sleep that night. I concluded that his head felt funny but my ex took him to a pandit. She returned an even firmer believer, because the fellow slept peacefully the next night. Then there are those of us who believe that Suriname has even greater power. Many a convict has gone there to get a ‘buoy’ or ‘knack’. Some members of the
then Buxton gang got these things and were supposedly immune from bullets. I can only assume that the ‘knack’ either wore out or simply did not work. There was this man who went to court, got a sentence, and attempted to walk away on Charlotte Street. He was shot dead. Having said that, I wonder if the obeah people can do something about the ills in society. The vendors may wish to thwart the efforts of City Hall. Perhaps somebody can do something about the
Jagdeo third term. We are a superstitious lot in this country, yet superstition goes through the window when we are in trouble. Take Cobra. In normal times he might have been scared of the cemetery, but when the police were hunting him he hid in tombs in the dead of night. People took his meals to him there. And what about the grave robbers? Someone broke into the tomb that held the body of the Bacchus brothers and removed the head from one of them. That head has never
Adam Harris been recovered, so perhaps it is being put to good use, hence the fires.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
The Spirit of Chaguaramas (Address by His Excellency David Granger to the Twenty-eighth Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community on February 16, 2017) The four founding fathers – Barbados’s Errol Barrow, Guyana’s Forbes Burnham, Jamaica’s Michael Manley and Trinidad and Tobago’s Eric Williams – who brought forth the Caribbean Community forty-four years ago, were men of discernment and determination. They were the courageous pioneers of the future. They were not craven prisoners of the past. The ‘Founding Fathers’ were keen to protect the emergent new states from the perils of economic marginalization. This was a time when regional integration communities – such as the European Economic Community, the Latin American Free Trade Association, the Central American Common Market and the emerging East-African Economic Community – had taken root. The world-wide trends were clear – integrate or dis-
integrate; combine or collapse; merge or be submerged in a sea of strife. The ‘Founding Fathers’ recognized that, given the deformed character of our colonial economies and the small size of our markets, integration would allow for a larger and safer market and for a louder, stronger voice in negotiating with other countries and regions. The ‘Founding Fathers’ were convinced that, if the Caribbean was to “fulfil the hopes and aspirations of their peoples for full employment and improved standards of work and living,” regional integration was an obligation, not an option, for governments. Forbes Burnham, one of the ‘Founding Fathers’, speaking at the Conference of Officials of the Commonwealth Caribbean Territories in Georgetown, 50 years ago in August 1967, warned: Either we weld ourselves into a regional grouping serving primarily Caribbean needs or, lacking a common, positive policy, have our various territories and nations
drawn hither and thither into, and by, other large groupings where the peculiar problems of’ the Caribbean are lost and where we become the objects of neo-colonialist exploitation and achieve the pitiable status of international mendicants. That ‘common, positive policy’ was conceived and the concrete foundation of our Community was laid at Chaguaramas on the three pillars of economic integration, foreign policy coordination and functional cooperation. We have erected a fourth pillar – security collaboration. The Treaty of Chaguaramas was a response to the challenges of the postcolonial era. The Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas was the response to the post-Cold War era, a time of increasing trade liberalization and the growth of regional organizations. Economic cooperation is a fundamental pillar of our Community. The Caribbean, if it is to escape the hazard of economic emasculation in today’s global environment, must expedite the full implementation of the Caricom
Single Market and Economy (CSME). We face threats that include dampened demand for our goods and services and distortions in our financial sectors caused by de-risking by international banks. The CSME has the potential to enhance private sector growth and competitiveness by providing access to a larger pool of resources, facilitating the movement of human capital, catalysing the establishment of regional businesses and encouraging the free movement of goods. The CSME must not be allowed to become a victim of equivocation and procrastination. Functional cooperation is an elemental pillar of our Community. The Caribbean Community has the capability to meet its food needs. Food security will ensure health and nutritional benefits for our people, earn foreign exchange and eliminate the bloated bill for importing food. Ensuring regional food security is a cross-sectoral task involving cooperation in agriculture, finance, health
and nutrition and infrastructure, among other sectors. Belize, Guyana and Suriname – the Community’s three mainland states – are, together, bigger than Germany or Japan. Food security can be advanced by the fuller utilisation of our lands for large-scale investment in agriculture and agro-processing and by dismantling barriers to regional trade in agricultural products. CARICOM must also intensify its efforts at regional energy security. We have the means to do so since we are blessed with abundant sources of renewable energy. The Community has done considerable, commendable work towards ensuring energy security which can ease the Community’s energy sector off of its addiction to fossil fuel and encourage the adoption of renewable sources of energy. Regional security is an essential pillar of our Community. The Caribbean – a maritime corridor between two continents – is vulnerable to narcotics-trafficking and human-trafficking, gun-running,
terrorism and penetration by international criminal cartels. Transnational criminal threats demand multinational functional cooperation. We live in uncertain times. We must continuously strengthen our security architecture in order to assure citizens and investors of greater security and stability. We must be vigilant, also, in the face of continuing threats to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our member states. The ‘Spirit of Chaguaramas’ is not the ghost or ‘jumbie’ of a dead project. It is the vital breath of life that inspires us to intensify regional integration. The ‘Founding Fathers’ had the inspiration to see the need for integration and the motivation to establish this great movement. They have entrusted the happiness of our citizens and the prosperity of our Community to our hands. We are, today, the trustees of this legacy. We must bequeath to our progeny a more prosperous region than we inherited from our progenitors.
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Illness anxiety disorder: You aren’t sick; it’s just your mind By Dr Zulfikar Bux Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine Illness anxiety disorder is a persistent fear of having a grave medical illness. A person with this disorder pays excessive attention to health. He or she can become easily alarmed by anything that might be interpreted as a sign of illness, including normal sensations, bodily functions and mild symptoms. For them, such experiences may signal an illness with a grim outcome. For example, a person may fear that the normal sounds of digestion, sweating or a mark on the skin may be indicators of life-threatening disease. Today we will discuss this condition because it is increasing in numbers and its sufferers cannot be convinced otherwise. WHAT IS IT? It is a mental condition where the affected person usually does not have physical symptoms, or if symptoms are present, they are mild. A person with illness anxiety disorder may be especially concerned about a particular organ system, such as the cardiac or digestive system. A doctor’s reassurance and even a complete medical evaluation often will not calm the person’s fears. Or, if it does calm them, other worries may emerge later. Patients may admit the possibility that their fears are exaggerated. However, they may not accept being told that there is “nothing wrong.” In severe forms of this disorder, a person may go from doctor to doctor, looking for one that will confirm a feared illness. The patient and the doctors may become frustrated or angry. The pattern sometimes interferes with the person getting proper care if he or she develops a medical illness for which there is a known and effective treatment. Some people with this disorder have had a significant illness in the past, for example, during childhood. Often illness anxiety disorder starts in young adulthood and can last many years. But it can occur at any age. Symptoms may become more intense after a stressful event,
such as the death of a loved one. Although medical illnesses are uncomfortable, they can bring benefits, such as relief from responsibilities along with the attention and care of family members, friends and doctors. Illness anxiety disorder may be motivated by these advantages, although the individual is often not aware of that motivation. Less often, a person may fake illness to seek some obvious gain, such as getting a drug or a financial benefit, or avoiding some work or legal responsibility. In cases where someone is consciously seeking such advantages, the condition is called malingering. But illness anxiety disorder is not malingering. In illness anxiety disorder, the patient is not pretending. He or she believes there is a real danger of becoming ill and truly feels anxious. WHATARE SYMPTOMS OF ILLNESS ANXIETY DISORDER? Symptoms of illness anxiety disorder include: · Preoccupation with having or developing a serious illness · Absence of physical symptoms or, if present, symptoms are mild · Behaviour indicating health anxiety, such as checking for signs of illness · Easy alarm about medical problems; persistent fear despite medical reassurance · Overuse or underuse medical care. · Absence of delusions or psychosis · Very distressed HOW IS IT DIAGNOSED? The diagnosis is based on a person’s medical complaints and history, plus a doctor’s physical examination and laboratory tests. The disorder may be accompanied by severe anxiety symptoms or obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Patients often refuse to see a psychiatrist because they feel they are being deemed as “mad”. It is not the case, but psychiatrists are the experts who can best help their worrying mind. ARE THERE TREAT-
MENT OPTIONS? Some people with illness anxiety may have their concerns because they are suffering from depression, anxiety or a psychotic disorder. Doctors would usually explore those possibilities, and target them for treatment as needed. The symptoms of illness anxiety disorder may be relieved by an antidepressant even when no other psychiatric illness is present. There is evidence that a number of therapies can help people with illness anxiety disorder: cognitive therapy, behaviour therapy, cognitive behaviour therapy and stress management. Therapists teach distraction and relax-
ation techniques and help patients focus less on their symptoms and talk instead about how stress, anxiety and depression increase their psychological discomfort. Therapists explain that many of the actions patients take to try to relieve anxiety usually backfire. Feeling for lumps, reading about illness or otherwise scanning for illness makes symptoms worse not better. Since the medical complaints may never go away, a doctor may set up a regular schedule of short appointments, during which symptoms can be reviewed. This can help contain anxiety. On the other hand, anxiety may get worse if a doctor attempts
to limit contact and treats the patient dismissively. HOW DOES IT PROGRESS? Some patients respond well to medication, psychotherapy or both. If the person has anxiety or depression that responds to treatment with medication, the prognosis can be quite good. In mild cases, symptoms can be short-lived. If the symptoms are severe and the person has other mental health disorders, the person may be susceptible to chronic distress and have problems functioning. If you have been doctor shopping and are not sure what’s going on with you or a relative, ask your doctor
Dr Zulfikar Bux about illness anxiety disorder to ensure that it’s not the cause of your worry.
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to the company. According to the contract, “The City Hall shall support and facilitate any application or process the concessionaire (SCS) may pursue to secure exemption from income, corporation, VAT (value added tax), capital gains and all other levies, taxes, duties, cesses or other imposition of similar nature in respect of the importation, use and operation of any equipment and materials, including but not limited to, any unit or part of the Metered Parking System imported by the concessionaire for purposes of initialisation and on-going operation of the project.” SUNDAY SPECIAL SHOCKING CLAUSES EXPOSED IN SECRET PARKING METER CONTRACT The parking meter contract has been kept from the public eye since it was announced that the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown signed the agreement with Smart City Solutions (SCS). However, as they say, what is in the dark must come to light. Kaieteur News got hold of the original contract and after perusal, it was realised that the company can extend the duration of the 49-year agreement for an additional 49 years under the same terms of the current agreement subject to the approval of the City. This means that the company was given the option to operate in Guyana for almost one century. Another glaring provision in the contract relates to its termination. In the event that both parties wish to terminate the contract, this can be done via a written consent. However, if City Hall wishes to unilaterally terminate the contract without the written consent of the company, the City shall pay SCS a lump sum payment equivalent to the total direct and indirect, hard and soft cost cumulative gross investment of the company in the project. However, it does not end there. This lump sum is to be added to an amount equal to 25 per cent of the total direct and indirect, hard and soft cost cumulative gross investment of the company in the project. When the value of the 25 per cent is calculated, it is to be further multiplied by the number of years remaining under the agreement. Further, the Council would have to pay the reasonable out-of-pocket and documented costs and expenses incurred by the company as a direct result of such termination, cancellation, rescinding or voiding. Moreover, the M&CC has been barred by the agreement to terminate the contract for its own convenience. Equally worrying is the fact that the onus is on the M&CC to facilitate tax exemptions to be awarded
The company has been afforded a number of sole and absolute discretions also. These include SCS having the power to establish distinct and multiple geographic Parking Zones within the territory of the City which shall be subject to distinct Metered Parking Fees and Parking Fines. This process however, must be accompanied by the company demonstrating the basis and justification for the distinctions within any relevant study to be provided to the City Council. Further, the company can begin charging for parking beyond 19:00hrs. This can be done in places classified as “nocturnal areas” which are typically frequented during evening hours. JAMAICAN ‘HIT MAN’, LOCAL TATTOO ARTIST EXECUTED BERBICE DOMESTIC WORKER – ‘BUSINESSMAN’S WIFE HIRED US,’ DETAINED MAN TELLS POLICE Domestic worker Leelawattie Mohamed was executed by a Jamaican national and his Guyanese associate, who were hired by a woman who was furious that Mohamed and her husband were allegedly having an affair. This is the statement that detectives have received while questioning a local tattoo artist who allegedly participated in the killing, which occurred on February 7 at Mohamed’s Tain Settlement, Corentyne home. Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum confirmed that police at Berbice detained a Jamaican national, who was said to be the ‘hit man’, while continuing to question a local tattoo artist, who was arrested on February 10. The Jamaican was arrested at Rose Hall, Berbice. There are reports that he was also questioned some time ago about another execution-style killing. Blanhum said that police are also attempting to locate a husband and wife, who allegedly paid the Jamaican national and the tattoo artist, who is from Rose Hall, Berbice, to kill Mohamed. Reports indicate that the wife
lives overseas, but is presently in Guyana. ”The lady is friendly with the man (the tattoo artist) we have in custody,” an official said. Police had previously questioned the husband, who owns a sawmill. ”We still have to confirm this story,” B Division Commander Ian Amsterdam said last night. “We may have to hold a confrontation between him (the businessman) and his wife, to ascertain if he was involved.” Investigators have been told that the sawmiller’s wife was angry that Mohamed and her spouse were in a relationship. It is alleged that at around at around 23.45hrs on Tuesday February 7, the two men travelled by car to Lot 149, Sixth Street, Tain Settlement, Corentyne, where Mohamed and her two teenage children reside. The killers reportedly forced their way in and the Jamaican allegedly put a gun under Mohamed’s chin and shot her. The two men reportedly then returned to the couple who had hired them and collected a sum of money. One of them is said to have immediately gone to a store to make a downpayment on an item. Initial reports had suggested that Mohamed, 45, was the victim of two ‘kick-down-the door’ bandits, who shot her dead after she said she had no money. MONDAY EDITION ANOTHER SHOCKING CLAUSE IN PARKING METER CONTRACT…CITY HALL TO ABSORB ALL LOSSES AND LIABILITIES INCURRED The Georgetown Mayor and City Council will have to reimburse Smart City Solutions for any loss the company may suffer as a result of third party action. Also, the company has the power to penalise emergency, government and diplomatic vehicles, and staff of the M&CC can be absorbed into the company’s operations to perform enforcement activities. These are just some of the alarming details noted by this newspaper, while perusing the original con-
tract signed between the two entities for paid parking in the capital city. The reimbursement for any loss suffered as a result of third party action is provided for in Article 17 of the contract titled “Indemnification.” The section reads, “The city shall indemnify (reimburse) the concessionaire (SCS) against all liabilities, costs, expenses, damages and losses including but not limited to any direct, indirect or consequential losses, loss of profit, loss of reputation and all interest, penalties and legal costs and all other professional costs and expenses suffered or incurred by the Concessionaire.” This charge on the City will be effective when certain conditions exist e.g. “Any claim, action or other proceeding whatsoever made against the Concessionaire by any third party arising out of, or in connection with any public parking arrangements, concessions or agreements whatsoever between any third party and the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown.” Another ground for reimbursement includes, “Any claim, action, motion, petition, summons, writ or other proceeding whatsoever made against the Town Clerk, the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown…which results in the delay in the performance or frustration of this agreement.” Lastly, the City would be liable to repay the company such money if there is “Any delay by the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown in the performance of this agreement on account of any claim, action, motion, petition, summons, writ or other proceeding whatsoever by the City or any third party whomsoever against the City.” As it relates to taxes being charged on this indemnity, the agreement states that if such payment due from the City is subject to tax (whether by way of direct assessment or withholding at its source), the company shall be entitled to receive from the City such amounts to ensure that the net amount received, after tax, is the same as it would have been were the payment not subject to tax.
BODIES OF COUPLE AND TODDLER FOUND IN BURNT HOUSE – MURDER-SUICIDE SUSPECTED In what is being described as a murder-suicide, a man reportedly lured his 26-year-old estranged partner to his Lot 1 Beterverwagting Railway Embankment, East Coast Demerara home and hacked her to death before setting the house on life. The charred bodies of Latoya Telford, Leonard Pollard, 34, and his one-year-old daughter, Nakasia Pollard, were found in the burnt-out building that was set alight at around 02:30hrs last Sunday. Pollard and Latoya Telford, who had three children, separated last November after his mother instructed Pollard to vacate her home to accommodate a relative. Kaieteur News was informed that the woman and her children moved to her mother’s La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara home and would sometimes take the children to visit their father. Last week Saturday afternoon, Telford allegedly left her mother’s home with little Nakasia to visit Pollard at his Beterverwagting home. It is unclear what transpired between the couple at the property but firefighters alleged that when they picked up the burnt remains, the body of one adult was in parts, suggesting that the woman might have been hacked before the fire started. There are no immediate neighbours, so no one heard any screams. According to information, the murder-suicide may have stemmed from a text message Pollard found in his estranged partner’s phone. The message was reportedly from a man. His brother, Leon said that his sibling had showed him a text message sometime last week in which a man texted his estranged partner asking, “Morning baby, how are you. What time are you finishing work?” Leon Pollard revealed that his sibling called him Saturday midday and informed him that Telford was coming over, but claimed that he (Continued on page 33)
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(From page 32) warned his brother against having her there because his mother does not want her at the house. The sibling said that he expected something like this would have occurred because of the way the couple was living. Telford had reportedly moved to her mother’s place on four previous occasions. Residents at a wash bay opposite the burnt house said that Pollard, who allegedly “loved” his marijuana, went over to borrow a bicycle to go to the shop. He claimed that he couldn’t find his cycle. This newspaper was told upon his return, he had a bottle, suspected to be gasoline, wrapped in a plastic bag and a pumpkin. Residents suspected that he might have cooked and allowed her to eat before he went on his killing spree. The woman’s mother, Rakhael Meredith, said that she was shocked when she received a call last Sunday morning that her daughter was burnt in a fire at Beterverwagting, since she left Latoya at home the night before. TUESDAY EDITION COURT HALTS $4.6B GPL CONTRACT TO CHINESE FIRM The High Court has ordered the Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL) and Government to explain how a Chinese company ended up with a multi-billion-dollar contract to install more than 25,000 smart meters and install miles of news transmission lines. On Monday, Chief Justice (ag), Yonette Cummings-Edwards, based on an application from Fix-It Depot, a bidder that was rejected, granted an order directing the Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL); Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson; the Ministry and its Permanent Secretary, and the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) and their representatives, to show cause why
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a writ of Certiorari should not be issued quashing the award. In the order by the Judge, it was explained that the respondents rejected Fix-It Depot tender for the rehabilitation of the medium and low voltage distribution network for GPL. Instead, it was awarded more than $1B over the engineer’s estimate to China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation and China Sinogy Electric Engineering Co. Limited Consortium. Fix-It and its principal, Paul James, are arguing that the rejection and award and the process of making the decision of the said rejection and award, for $4.6B, were made in violation of the provisions of the Procurement Act 2003 and in violation of the terms of the invitation for bid. Fix-It had teamed up with Colombian-owned Enrique Lourido for the project. Fix-It also insisted that the decisions were issued arbitrarily, “unreasonably, irrationally, unlawfully, il-
legally, erroneously, in bad faith and in breach of the rules of natural justice” and were procedurally improper, unfair, and unreasonable without the requisite transparency by failing sufficiently to disclose contract award criteria and weightings in advance and by failing to properly apply those criteria which were disclosed. The company said the decision and award were null and void and of no legal effect. The matter comes up for hearing on March 6. WEDNESDAY EDITION $72M IN CHEQUES WRITTEN TO GHOST SUPPLIERS In a clear breach of financial regulations, Region Six, East Berbice/ Corentyne Democratic Council, has been preparing millions of dollars in cheques for supplies no one even knew existed. During the statutory Public Accounts Committee (PAC) meeting at Parliament chambers on Monday, the
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issue was extensively discussed and PAC Chairman Irfaan Ali sought answers to the worrying development. The irregularity was found in 2015 when the Auditor General’s Office conducted a financial audit of that Region’s affairs. The Region is still in receipt of a number of those cheques and was advised to send them to the Accountant General’s department to be deposited into the consolidated fund. Additionally, the Region has been preparing these cheques based on the local tender board approval of projects rather than invoices provided by suppliers for supplies that should have been provided. The Deputy Regional Executive Officer who is responsible for finance was asked to explain why such breaches occurred. Ali asked the DREO after the Tender Board awarded the contract, what were the criteria used to prepare the cheques. The DREO explained that it was upon the Tender Board’s award that the cheques were prepared. “You can’t cut a cheque based on a Tender Board award,” Ali lamented. Strangely these cheques were prepared in advance of the expected delivery of the supplies and were made out for the full amount. Ali was baffled about the reasoning behind such a move. ”So if you cut a cheque for $8M and the man does $2M dollar work what happens there?” The officer was advised that this should not be done; probing further Ali sought more clarity on the issue from the DREO whose answer did not find favour with the PAC Chairman. At this point he suggested that the Region take some time to get the facts straight. When the regional officials returned much did not change with regard to the explanation they gave and it was at this point the Chairman began to get impatient with the group. The DREO told the committee that no invoices were prepared by any supplier, but that it was his
decision to prepare the cheques based on the Tender Board award. ”Mr. Chairman, I admit that the supplies should have been provided before cheques were prepared”. After further questioning it was realized that the Region had in fact prepared a number of cheques to suppliers that didn’t exist. When the Auditor General Office did an audit of that Regional Council in 2015 he found that 240 cheques totaling $72.39M were still with the Regional Accounting Unit and the Sub-Treasury. Two hundred and twenty-seven of those cheques were returned to the Accountant General’s Department while the remainder are still sitting at the Region Six office. THURSDAY EDITION GUYANA WAS LOSING OVER $300B ANNUALLY THROUGH CORRUPTION UNDER PPP – SARU SAYS BILL NECESSARY TO TAKE LASER LIKE FOCUS AGAINST THIS SCOURGE Under the former regime, Guyana lost between $28B and $35B every year through procurement fraud, $90B through illicit capital flight, and $188B through the underground economy. This adds up. And the analysts say this is actually a “conservative” numerical image of the state of corruption under the former administration. According to the State Asset Recovery Unit (SARU), the aforementioned underscores why Guyana needs the passage of the SARA Bill. This, among other comments, was made by SARU Wednesday night as it responded to concerns members of the Private Sector Commission might have with the passage of the State Asset Recovery Agency Bill. SARU officials said that in accordance with Article 54 (1) (c) of (Continued on page 34)
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(From page 33) the United Nations’ Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), each State Party must “consider taking such measures as may be necessary to allow confiscation of property without criminal conviction”. The anti-corruption body said that it is in this context, the SARA Bill is designed to facilitate the recovery of illicitly obtained property through civil processes, with the primary objective of reducing the consequential damaging effects of corruption on sustainable development. SARU said, “The opinions of any Private Sector Commission or equivalent should be principled, balanced and near impartial. Honest business prefers a fair and principled environment. The passage of this Bill will allow the new Agency to direct a laser-like focus on such assets obtained through corruption; the loss of which has frustrated the development of this country.” In some areas of corruption, SARU officials said that the size of loss speaks for itself. Given the purposes of the Bill and the damaging losses to the economy SARU said that it is imperative that the Bill be passed immediately. The anti-corruption body said that the scale of corruption discovered by SARU, to date, is astounding. It said that the Guyanese population is eager to see the country’s assets recovered and appropriate action taken against the perpetrators of corruption. The SARA body stressed that the Bill is geared toward these purposes. TWO WOMEN, TATTOO ARTISTAMONG FIVE CHARGED WITH MURDERING TAIN WOMAN Five persons including two women on Thursday appeared at the Number 51 Village Magistrate’s Court before Magistrate Charlyn Artiga to answer to the charge of murder committed on Leelawattie Mohamed of Lot 149 Sixth Street Tain, Corentyne, Berbice. Oliver Permaul, 36, a barber and his wife Nazeema Permaul, both of Lot 100 Tain Settlement; Andre James alias “Andy” and “Tattoo Man”, 27, of 46 A George St Rose Hall Town, Rohan Johnson alias “Jamaicee”, 38, formerly of Clarendon, Jamaica and 107 Second Street, Rose Hall Town, and his girlfriend Shabiki Alert aka Shabiki Alert-Thompson, 19, of the said address, were all charged for the capital offence of murder. They were not required to plead to the indictable charge. They were all remanded to prison until May 4, 2017. As they exited the lockups to be transported to prison, the five accused had much to say, especially Permaul the barber. His co-accused, the Jamaican, kept his head bowed as he was escorted to the police vehicle. Permaul shouted that they were
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all innocent. “Sawmill man sweet woman dead deh; ah woman pay people fuh kill (she) and dem accuse me because me ah wuk ah front deh.” James, the Tattoo Artist, another accused shouted: “Dem one-sided; is dem pay we.” He was referring to the business woman and her husband, owners of a sawmill located at Edinburgh Village. Leelawattie Mohamed, 45, of Tain Settlement was on February 7 shot at close range after two men, one armed with a gun, kicked down the door to her home. The woman who was at home with her two teenage children was said to have been placed to kneel down while the men demanded cash in an effort to make appear like a robbery. Permaul, the barber, was subsequently arrested after information was provided that he would normally hurl insults at Mohamed when he passed her home. Andre James the tattoo artist was then arrested after ranks received a lead. The Jamaican, Rohan Johnson, and his girlfriend were taken into custody shortly after. During their interrogation, James in a signed statement reportedly gave information which led investigators to re-arrest Permaul along with his wife Nazeema Permaul. The tattoo artist reportedly told investigators that they were hired and paid by the businesswoman and her husband. Permaul and his wife were said to have been the recruiters in the crime. The two women were placed in custody after it was discovered by investigators that the barber’s wife (Nazeema Permaul) was the person who uplifted a sum of $400,000 from the businesswoman and her husband.
She reportedly paid the hefty sum to the tattoo artist (Andre James) who then paid the Jamaican national. It was also revealed by a police source that a whopping $4 Million was promised to the men after the job was completed. However only $400,000 was paid after the investigation tightened on the men and women. APPEAL COURT DEFERS RULING ON JAGDEO’S THIRD TERM …DECISION NOW LIKELY HOURS BEFORE CHANCELLOR DEMITS OFFICE The ruling into the third term Presidential appeal case has been deferred to Wednesday, February 22. The ruling was originally set to be handed down on February 15 at the Court of Appeal. However, the matter was postponed, as attorneys involved in the case submitted further written arguments on the issue. The appeal is based on a petition involving Cedric Richardson, a resident of Georgetown. Richardson won a court case, after he challenged the legal limitation of a Guyanese President in 2014. Richardson’s constitutional challenge was filed in February 2014. The applicant argued that Act 17 of 2001, which was passed by a twothirds majority of the National Assembly, unconstitutionally curtails and restricts his sovereign and democratic rights and freedom as a qualified elector to elect former President Bharrat Jagdeo as the Executive President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. Richardson had contended that the limit was unconstitutional and illegal. He also wanted the court to determine whether the amendment
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with a referendum should not have been held, instead of the two-thirds majority in the National Assembly having the powers to decide to limit the number of terms. After several months in the court, the former CJ ruled in favour of Richardson’s argument, setting the stage for Jagdeo to have a third term as President. However, the decision did not sit well with Attorney General Basil Williams and the APNU/ AFC administration. Ahead of the ruling, Attorneys representing the State submitted the written arguments in which they identified the questions to be answered. According to the legal documents, before the court, the lawyers representing the State are seeking clarification for the meaning of the clause “Democratic Sovereign State” in Article 1 of the Constitution of Guyana. The document prepared by Attorney-at-Law Roysdale Forde, and filed at the Court of Appeal, outlined the respondent, (Richardson) contended that Act No. 17 of 2001 though it purported to amend Article 90 of the Constitution of Guyana by adding two Clauses to the said Article 90, had the effect and consequence of curtailing and diminishing the electorate’s choice of Presidential Candidate, by rendering ineligible the candidature of any person who had been re-elected once as President. SMART CITY SOLUTIONS DEMANDS, ACCEPTS CUSH’S RESIGNATION Smart City Solutions Inc, the company involved in the controversial parking meter project, has accepted the resignation of one of its directors, Ifagbamila Kamau Cush. It appears, however, that Cush’s resignation was not done off of his own volition.
According to a release from the company Wednesday, the resignation was “required” from him and accepted forthwith. Smart City Solutions said that while Cush was involved in the introduction of the company to the metered parking project, as was previously announced. He has for several months not been involved in any operational capacity, neither in respect of the project nor in respect of the Company. The company also reminded of the disparaging remarks made by Cush on his Facebook page against those who expressed opposition to the Parking meter project. The statement immediately sparked a backlash of criticisms against Cush who again stood “firmly” behind his comments about the “slave mentality” among the protestors. This is what he had to say in another post, “That is my personal opinion. I did not utter those statements on behalf of Smart City Solutions. The protestors represent a cabal of misfits who add no value to the productive capacity of our country. They bring no gravitas, no moral authority to the conversation.” Cush said that a review off the profanity-laced comments on social media confirms that. “More significantly, many of these protestors are incredibly fatuous for they offer no solutions to the myriad problems afflicting young Guyanese; neither do they empathize with the victims of the PPP regime, a regime responsible for the murders of hundreds of Guyanese citizens. I remember a Guyana where, as Guyanese citizens, we put our collective shoulders to the wheel and charted our own course.” He argued that Guyana achieved much in those days because the people were independent thinkers, (Continued on page 35)
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(From page 34) masters of their own destiny. ”We did not go hat-in-hand begging for grants and handouts. We identified problems in our country, proposed solutions then solved them ourselves! That’s the thinking of independent men and women!” The Board of Directors of Smart City Solutions subsequently distanced itself from the comments made by Cush and emphasized Wednesday in its statement that the Company found the comments to be completely unacceptable and disgraceful. 120 TO LOSE JOBS IN GTT RESTRUCTURING AS LIBERALIZATION LOOMS As Government continues negotiations with the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) to end its monopoly and to allow new players in the market, that US-owned entity has announced plans to send home up to 120 staff members over the next 12 months. A year ago, GTT had over 600 staffers. Already, six persons, some of them working for years and from GTT’s mechanical shop, the secretarial pool, and other departments, have been affected. GTT has the monopoly on landline and international calls. Confirming that a number of job losses are expected, GTT Wednesday disclosed that it has started a restructuring process of the company’s operations aimed at aligning the company with the new environment in which it provides services. ”GTT expects that about 120 positions would be made redundant over the next 12 months.” GTT said that its announcement coincided with the separation of the first six employees under the restructuring programme. ”The six employees were drawn from multiple departments. All employees affected by the restructuring are receiving their full benefits and severance.” ”In addition, the company is providing opportunities for these employees to receive training to prepare them for their new endeavours.” According to the telephone company, the news would not be totally unexpected to the staffers. ”The announcement was anticipated by employees who were briefed by the CEO, in several staff meetings and interactions held over past months, about the need to rightsize the company to remain viable.” On Wednesday, Chief Executive Officer Justin Nedd, in an internal memorandum to all employees made it clear that GTT is on the verge of really creating a company that is built for the future and “we must position ourselves to ensure that everyone understands his or her role and is driven in the same direction.” GTT’s new shift in how it will conduct its business in the new telecoms market when other com-
peting companies are allowed was also mentioned. ”Talent Management is one of GTT’s top priorities for 2017 to ensure that the right employees are in the right roles. Through improving Talent Management GTT expects to provide more training for employees, better tools and the leadership that would lead to improved productivity. The goal of Talent Management is to enable GTT to delight its customers and to grow revenue,” the company said. Customer Care, the company said, is the other top priority for GTT in 2017. ”Through restructuring GTT expects to be able to meet and then exceed customers’ expectations. The last of the 2017 priorities for GTT is completing negotiations with the Government of Guyana on a mutually beneficial agreement in the context of the liberalization of the telecommunications s e c t o r . ”Liberalization will, for the first time in a long time, allow GTT the opportunity to operate on a playing field that is level. This means that for the first time it is likely that competitors in the same sector pay the same taxes and fees as GTT has over the last 26 years.
mercial banks,” the Crime Chief said. ”The group leader is fingered in the attempted robbery/murder at Fogarty’s, along with three other matters, where individuals leaving banks with large sums of cash were robbed.” According to Blanhum, the suspect “revealed to investigators that he acted as the facilitator for the group, by providing them with firearms and motorcycles. The GPF will be applying to the court for an extension of detention.” The attempted robbery/murder to which the alleged ringleader has been implicated, occurred in October 2016 in a branch of the Electronics City store, which is located in the Fogarty’s building. A customer, Abdel Odie, had entered the store with about $1.3M that he had withdrawn from Republic Bank. Odie was checking items in the store when another man held him at gunpoint and relieved him of a bag containing the cash. The robber also shot armed Electronics City store guard, Quacy Anthony Joseph, in the stomach before escaping on a CG motorcycle.
FRIDAY EDITION ‘RINGLEADER’ BEHIND ATTACKS ON BANK CUSTOMERS CAPTURED – PROVIDED GANGS WITH GUNS, MOTORCYCLES After months of investigation, police have finally arrested a ringleader of one of the gangs that has been behind a wave of attacks on individuals leaving commercial banks with large sums of cash. The suspect was arrested on Tuesday, and Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum said that investigators will be approaching the courts to detain him further. ”We have arrested one of the ringleaders who is deeply involved in robbing customers leaving com-
COURT ORDERS CITY HALL TO EXPLAIN WHY PARKING METER SHOULDN’T BE SCRAPPED Even as members of the public continue to cry outrage at the controversial parking meter project, Chief Justice (Ag), Yonette Cummings-Edwards has granted an ‘Order Nisi,’ to quash the decision of Mayor and City Council & Town Clerk to enter into a contract with Smart City Solutions (SCS) Incorporated, unless they can give just cause why it should be so. The decision was handed down at the Georgetown High Court on Thursday. According to the document seen by this newspaper, the court
ruled in favour of an application by Mahendra Arjune. Arjune‘s Attorney Kamal Ramcharan presented the application and submissions and the order was granted. The Chief Judge specifically granted an order to quash the agreement made on May 13, 2016. The court ruled that the amendments must be made to the establishment of parking meters in the city of Georgetown with Smart City Solution Inc., and all the things thereafter which flowed from that decision unless the defendant, Mayor and City Council of Georgetown (M&CC), shows cause against quashing the decision. The Court also granted an order nisi to quash the decision by the M&CC to empower the Town Clerk to sign and operationalise contracts with SCS Inc., for the establishment of parking meters and all acts of things done or caused to be done or flowing from the decisions of the M&CC and the Town Clerk, unless reason is given against rescinding that decision. The order was granted to cancel the agreement by the M&CC and anyone acting on their behalf to, except persons or categories of persons paying fees for parking in the city of Georgetown and being subject to penalties of such. The M&CC is therefore instructed to show cause why this decision should not be quashed. The application is now set for hearing on February 27 before Justice Brassington Reynolds at the Supreme Court. Parties involved in the matter were warned that failure to comply with the order will result in them being held in contempt. The M&CC had signed the contract with SCS on May 13, 2016. The contract gave the company exclusive rights to conduct paid public parking within Georgetown
and includes the installation of parking meters. FULLIMPLEMENTATION OF CSME KEYTO AVOIDING ECONOMIC EMASCULATION – PRESIDENT GRANGER Chairman of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), and President of Guyana, David Granger, said Thursday that if the region is to escape the “hazard” of economic emasculation in today’s global environment, efforts must be made to expedite the full implementation of the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME). The Head of State made this call at the 28th Inter-sessional Meeting of the Conference of Caricom, which convened Thursday in Guyana at the Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown. The CSME is an arrangement among the CARICOM States for the creation of a single enlarged economic space through the removal of restrictions resulting in the free movement of goods, services, people, capital and technology. However, there have been several challenges being faced by Member States, primarily in the area of free movement of people and services. President Granger told the Heads of State that the community faces threats that include dampened demand for goods and services and reported distortions in financial sectors caused by de-risking by international banks. He however, expressed confidence in the CSME, noting that it has the potential to enhance private sector growth and competitiveness by providing access to a larger pool of resources, facilitate the movement of human capital, catalyse the establishment of regional businesses and encourage the free movement (Continued on page 36)
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(From page 35) of goods. ”The CSME must not be allowed to become a victim of equivocation and procrastination,” he told his regional counterparts. The Chairman noted also, that the full implementation of the CSME will enhance functional cooperation, which will aid the region in reaching its full potential, primarily in the areas of food security and energy. ”The Caribbean Community has the capability to meet its food needs. Food security will ensure health and nutritional benefits for our people, earn foreign exchange and eliminate the bloated bill for importing food. Ensuring regional food security is a crosssectoral task involving cooperation in agriculture, finance, health and nutrition and infrastructure, among other sectors. Belize, Guyana and Suriname – the Community’s three mainland states – are together, bigger than Germany or Japan. Food security can be advanced by the fuller utilisation of our lands for large-scale investment in agriculture and agro-processing and by dismantling barriers to regional trade in agricultural products.”Granger said. SATURDAY EDITION PULLING OUT OF CORRESPONDING BANKS IN REGION… CARICOM FINANCE COMMITTEE TO OVERSEE STRATEGIC PLAN ROLL-OUT
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Following the consideration of the Strategy and Action Plan submitted by the Committee of Central Bank Governors to Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government, the Committee of Ministers of Finance with responsibility for Correspondent Financing, will now assume the oversight of its roll-out. This was disclosed by Chairman of CARICOM and President of Guyana, David Granger, at a media conference as the twoday 28th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM came to an end yesterday. The withdrawal of Corresponding Banking Relationships (CBR) was one of the focal points of the meeting. Caricom’s Secretary-General, Ambassador Irwin LaRocque, during a media conference hosted at the Caricom Secretariat last Monday, said that the issue was one that continues to exercise the minds of CARICOM top officials. Correspondent banking is a bilateral arrangement, often involving a mutual crossborder relationship in multiple currencies. A correspondent banking arrangement involves one bank (the correspondent) providing a deposit account or other liability accounts, and related services, to another bank (the respondent), often including its affiliates. The arrangement requires the exchange of messages to settle transactions by crediting and debiting those accounts. Correspondent banking enables the provision of domestic and cross-border payments.
These relationships facilitate a range of transactions and services, including the execution of third-party payments, trade finance, the banks’ own cash clearing, liquidity management and short-term borrowing or investment needs in a particular currency. In the Guyana context, Bank of America, the largest correspondent bank in the United States of America dealing with local banks, severed ties with several commercial banks last August. Based on previous reports, additional problems have surfaced, with commercial banks and citizens both coming out with allegations of a foreign currency shortage. The nation has also seen rapid fluctuations in the exchange rates, specifically as it relates to the United States Dollar. Granger said yesterday that the community recognized the need for a regional approach and continued concerted, urgent action: to address effectively the challenge posed by the de-risking strategies of the global banks which result in the withdrawal of correspondent banking services; to strengthen the integrity of the financial system in CARICOM Member States; and to attenuate the perception of the Caribbean as a high-risk Region. “We noted, particularly, the need to strengthen Member States’ compliance with the global regulatory standards with regard to Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Terrorism Financing (AML/CTF) and Tax Transparency Information Exchange,” President Granger said. TAIN DOMESTIC WORKER EXECUTION… ALLEGED FEMALE MASTERMIND TURNS SELF IN The woman who was wanted in connection with the murder of domestic worker and mother of four Leelawattie Mohamed of 149 Sixth Street, Tain Settlement, turned herself in to the authorities at the Criminal Investigations Unit, Whim Police Station, on Friday. According to Divisional Commander Ian Amsterdam, the woman, who owns a business, was accompanied by her attorney Chandra Sohan. She was immediately detained. Amsterdam also disclosed that investigators have in their possession surveillance footage of the woman at a hotel in New Amsterdam with one of the accused charged for the murder. She also reportedly admitted to being present at the hotel with the individual. The Commander further stated that ranks will be working around the clock to obtain more information from the female suspect within the 72-hour time frame. She is currently under arrest assisting investigators. SPARENDAAM COURT RE-COMMISSIONED - TO NOW HAVE TWO MAGISTRATES The build-up of cases in the East Demerara Magisterial District is expected to ease with the re-commissioning of the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court that will now have its quota
Sunday February 19, 2017
of two magistrates, with Magistrate Zamilla Ally-Seepaul presiding over court one. The other Magistrate is still to be identified. The court house was reopened Friday afternoon during a simple ribbon-cutting ceremony and plaque unveiling. Those in attendance were Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Carl Singh, Chief Justice (ag.) Yonette Cummings-Edwards, Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, Registrar of the Supreme Court, Sueanna Lovell, other members of the judiciary and court staff. The two-storey building houses two fully air conditioned courtrooms, washroom facilities, briefing rooms for witnesses and a prisoners’ holding area, which boosts tight security features such as sturdy grillwork on its lower flat. Reporters were allowed to tour the spanking new facility. Each courtroom is equipped with seats for members of the media and the public. Also, there is the regular partition for the Magistrate’s podium and the prosecution and bar tables. The two courtrooms are a bit smaller compared to those at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, which was also massively refurbished a few years ago. Justice Singh disclosed that the court will become operational from Monday. FORMER MAGISTRATE LESLIE SOBERS TO HEAD NEW GNBA BOARD Cabinet has approved the appointment of a new board of directors for the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority (GNBA). Chairing the board will be former Magistrate and practicing attorney-at-law, Leslie Sobers. This was announced Friday to the media by Minister of State, Joseph Harmon during a post-Cabinet briefing at the Ministry of the Presidency. Harmon also disclosed that the other GNBA board members are Scheherazade Khan, Dr. Rovin Deodat, Jocelyne Josiah, Aretha Campbell, Joel Persid Edmond, and a representative or nominee from the Opposition, People’s Progressive Party (PPP). The new board will serve for a period of two years, from February 1, 2017 to January 1, 2019.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
The US immigration crackdown... From page 44 illegals. It is a situation that Guyana should be paying close attention to. There are over 300,000 Guyanese living in the New York area alone. Liberty Avenue, in Queens, was virtually a ghost area this past week as businesses closed their doors in protest and in anticipation of relentless raids. Many of them are employing illegals. Many of the illegals are Guyanese who overstayed their visas and did not or were not able to regularize their legal status. While the US government is saying that the crackdown is to target criminals, there are reports of persons being picked up and readied to be sent home. The new President Donald Trump has rocked the estab-
lishment and seems hell-bent on carrying out his campaign promises of reducing the impact of illegals on the country's economy, as health care and other benefits are being affected. In Guyana, we have to be ready. Whether we like it or not, we will have to prepare to accept Guyanese being sent back. Many families have been caught in the crossfire. They will not be legalized, unless Trump has a change of heart. We are a small country with just 700,000 persons. Our police are struggling to deal with criminals who are getting wiser by the day. They are organized. Imagine quite a few criminals who have been uprooted and sent back home being placed in such a tinderbox. Many of these folks don't
know Guyana. Guyana is tough if compared to the living standards of the US. Many of those returning will need to be strong and willing to be good citizens. It is not hard to imagine how difficult it will be to monitor and keep track of hundreds of criminals and others being sent back. We will have to think of jobs, security, and the added pressure to our hospitals, and social programmes. On the plus side, we will, if the current reports are true, have to deal with persons who have been trained and become accustomed to the skills of the US. We can benefit from such a situation. Whichever way it is looked at, we have, as a country, quite a few things to think about, in addition to what we already have on the table.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Guyana/Venezuela border controversy...
Granger confident UN boss won’t overturn predecessor’s proposal
(From left) Venezuela’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon and President David Granger at the UN in September 2015.
President David Granger on Friday said that Guyana is committed to working with neighbouring Venezuela to see the peaceful resolution of a decades-old border controversy. The President was at the time delivering remarks at the conclusion of the 28th InterSessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM at the Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown. According to previous reports, Guyana in its quest to resolve the matter, had engaged the United Nations in 2015. The Secretary-General of that grouping, Ban Ki-moon, recommended that the UN would give the Good Offices Process a try for another year (throughout 2017) and then, if the two countries fail to agree on a solution, the matter will go to the
International Court of Justice (ICJ). President David Granger, a historian, has made it clear that Guyana will settle for nothing less a juridical settlement - in the international court - once and for all. He had insisted that the Good Offices Process has failed to make progress over the last 25 years. G o v e r n m e n t subsequently issued a statement on the UN decision saying it has accepted it. Ban Ki-moon made his recommendations months before stepping down as the UN Chief. “The incumbent SG understands that as well and it is our view that he is committed not to overturn any decision that had been made by his predecessor. I would say that situation is normal and there is no cause
for concern. We will continue to engage the UN SecretaryGeneral and we look forward to having the matter resolved and if not, the matter will be re-sent to the SG and he will implement the decision that has already been laid down (by Ban Ki-moon),” Granger said Friday. With regard to the Belize/ Guatemala border issue, Granger said that the CARICOM’s Heads are were satisfied that the engagement between the two countries was proceeding in a manner that was satisfactory to both sides. “They has been no violent incident in recent times and the tension has more or less eased and we were satisfied that both sides were moving towards a peaceful resolution in accordance to the agreement that exists between the two states.”
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Post-Menopausal? Give Exercise a Try After menopause, moderate exercise can help women manage hot flashes, become more fit and feel better, a new study suggests. Researchers found that a 20-week exercise program helped women boost their fitness levels, lose a little weight and give higher ratings to their physical and mental wellbeing. That included a reduction in hot flashes and night sweats — two of the most bothersome symptoms of menopause. Researchers led by Debora Godoy-Izquierdo, of the University of Grenada in Spain, reported the findings online Feb. 15 in the journal Menopause. The study offers good news to women who want alternatives to hormones for managing menopause symptoms, according to Dr. JoAnn Pinkerton, executive director of the North American Menopause Society. Hot flashes and night sweats are the most common reasons that women seek treatment for menopause symptoms, said Pinkerton, who was not involved in the study. For some, she said, the problems are severe enough to warrant hormone therapy. But most women can find relief in other ways. “Exercise, stress reduction and adequate sleep are very important for women who are becoming menopausal,” Pinkerton said. “For a majority of women, lifestyle changes may be enough to get the hot flashes to be less bothersome, as well as help prevent the weight gain and mood changes common during this time.” For the new study, the researchers recruited 234 women who were at least one year past menopause. Overall, 166 women were sedentary, and half of
them were assigned to stick with their usual lifestyle, while the other half started the 20week exercise program. The rest of the women were already physically active, and they served as a second comparison group. The exercise program consisted of three one-hour workouts per week. Each session was supervised and involved moderate aerobic exercise, like fast walking, along with strength training. The women in this program also received psychological counseling, aimed at helping them with “self-regulation” and behavior changes. After 20 weeks, the study found, women in the exercise program had lost a small amount of weight, on average. But the bigger changes were seen in their fitness levels, blood pressure and “healthrelated quality of life.” In general, the women gave higher ratings to their physical and mental health, and said they were less bothered by hot flashes and other menopause symptoms. Those benefits were still apparent at the one-year mark. At that point, the researchers said, the women looked more like the group that had been active all along, rather than those who’d remained sedentary. There was one exception: After initially losing a little weight, women in the program typically went back to their starting weight. But regardless of weight, improvements in fitness levels are critical, according to Dr. Chip Lavie, medical director of cardiac rehabilitation and prevention at the John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute in New Orleans. “Improving fitness is one of the most important things that any person, including a postmenopausal woman, can do to reduce their mortality
and mortality from cardiovascular disease,” said Lavie, who was not involved in the study. In this study, the women’s fitness levels were gauged by, among other things, their resting heart rate and how fast they could walk 1 kilometer. Those measures reflect how well the heart and blood vessels are working. But, Lavie said, studies have tied fitness to other health benefits, too — including improvements in stress and depression symptoms. “And only small improvements in fitness are needed to induce these benefits,” Lavie said. As for why exercise might help with hot flashes, Pinkerton pointed to a couple reasons. Exercise, she said, is thought to boost levels of certain brain chemicals, such as dopamine and serotonin — which are important for mood, sleep and other functions. And those chemicals are sometimes lower during the hormonal fluctuations that come with menopause. And one study, Pinkerton said, found that women who exercised were better able to “regulate their body heat.” The program in this study did involve psychological and behavioral counseling — which may also have helped the women manage their menopause symptoms, according to Pinkerton. But that does not necessarily mean women need such a comprehensive program. Other research, Pinkerton said, has found that simpler exercise routines can help women manage hot flashes. It took only 30 minutes of any aerobic exercise — like walking, jogging, bicycling or swimming — three or more times per week, she noted. https://medlineplus.gov/ news/fullstory_163625.html.
Pop! Goes That Balloon, and Maybe Your Hearing Blowing up your kid’s birthday balloons could end in a bang — and hearing loss, new research suggests. The Canadian study found that a bursting balloon can create sound that’s louder than a shotgun and might damage hearing. “Hearing loss is insidious — every loud noise that occurs has a potential lifelong impact,” said study lead author Bill Hodgetts, an associate professor of audiology at the University of Alberta. His team measured the noise made by busting balloons three different ways: popping them with a pin, in-
flating them until they ruptured, and crushing them until they burst. The loudest noise was made by the ruptured balloon. At 168 decibels, it was louder than a 12-gauge shotgun, according to the investigators. The maximum impulse level a person is exposed to should not exceed 140 decibels, according to the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety. While the study couldn’t prove that popping balloons causes hearing loss, the researchers said that just one exposure higher than that could damage an adult’s or child’s hear-
ing. “This research is a conversation starter,” Hodgetts said in a university news release. “We are not saying don’t play with balloons and don’t have fun, just try to guard against popping them. “We want people to be mindful of hearing damage over a lifetime,” he added, “because once you get to the back end of life, no hearing aid is as good as the once healthy built-in system in your inner ear.” The study was published recently in the journal Canadian Audiologist. https:// medlineplus.gov/news/ fullstory_163534.html.
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
Pregnant Beyoncé Enjoys Some Retail Therapy After Grammys If you were browsing through the racks at Barneys New York in Beverly Hills Thursday, you were in some special company. Fresh off her 2017 Grammys performance and wins, Beyoncé made a rare public appearance at the luxury department store during its regular open hours and spent about three hours shopping. The 35-year-old pop star, who is expecting twins with husband Jay Z, dressed casually in a black printed Tshirt and shorts and white sneakers and was accompanied by a group of bodyguards. She did not buy children’s items. She walked through several floors, looking at designer gowns, purses, jewelry and shoes. She purchased a $1,225 pair of red Isabel Marart Laith leather kneehigh boots, a pair of Ulla Johnson shoes and Nike sneakers, a source told E! News exclusively.
Beyoncé spent about 20 minutes in the store’s Barneys Bungalow, a specialty space where gowns from Prabal Gurung, J. Mendel, Lanvin, JC Obando, Monique Lhuillier, YSL and Manolo Blahnik and other designer brands, as well as luxury tuxedos and accessories, are displayed in honor of Hollywood’s award season. Several racks of dresses and other items were brought out for the singer, who sat on a light green couch. “Beyoncé tried on several dresses but began not to feel well and was tired,” the source said. “She seemed very nice and was very casual,” the source added about the singer’s visit. “She had several bodyguards around her and everyone in the store was chatting about her being there.” The source also said Beyoncé has bought children’s items at Barney’s in the past.
Blake Lively Opens Up About ‘’Learning to Love’’ Her Body After Two Kids Blake Lively is feeling good about herself and her body, just five month after giving birth to her second child with Ryan Reynolds. The mother-of-two chatted with E! News’ Zanna Roberts Rassi at the L’Oréal Paris “Galentine’s Day” event Monday night—entirely curated and party-planned by Lively—where she was joined by her sister, Robyn Lively. Blake, 29, got to chatting about how pregnancy has not only changed her body, but taught her to appreciate it so much. In fact, the actress got candid about getting back into shape after baby No. 2, saying, “It’s all a process. You know after the second kid it’s really different. So this is not my normal body, but I like it.” She continued, “I’m learning to love my body in every iteration and i think that’s hard for women, and so I learned a lot.” Blake took that confidence with her to the event, looking stunning in a flirty, navy SemSem dress adorned with hearts and polka dots. She accessorized the look with a pair of Christian Louboutin spike-studded stilettos and a maroon Chanel purse. That radiating confidence is something Blake was hoping to spread at the L’Oreal party with women celebrating women.
“L’Oréal told me this idea they had to have a Valentine’s event with your gals—your best girlfriends,” she told us. “I thought, ‘Right now, more than ever, it’s so great that women are coming together and supporting each other
and building each other up.’ I got a little too involved. I said, ‘I don’t really just want to show up. I sort of want to plan it.’ It’s a lot more fun to plan a party when it’s not on your dime. I changed the party a bit.”
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$1B over the engineer’s estimate…
Court rules in favour of Govt. in GPL US$23M contract case
Attorney General Basil Williams
Chief Justice (Ag), Yonette Cummings-Edwards
Attorney-at-law, Devindra Kissoon
Months of battle in the press and now in the court has ended with the High Court on Friday evening discharging a temporary order halting a multi-billiondollar state project to run new low and medium transmission lines and introduce over 25,000 smart meters. The discharging of the order means that Chinese contractor, China National Machinery Import (CMC) and its partner Export Corporation and China Sinogy Electric Engineering Co. Limited Consortium can now collect its advance and start work. However, the court case
will continue to raise lingering questions about the procurement laws after it became clear that the track record of the Chinese contractor was not taken into account during the evaluation of the bidders. That and the fact that it was decided after tenders were opened that the Chinese contractor will be paid more than $1B over the engineer’s estimate. At least two independent reports have criticized the work of CMC with regards to seven sub-stations and a submarine cable it has built, to the tune of US$40M. The bids for the contract
were opened since February last year. After months of questions, Government finally admitted late last year that Cabinet has granted its no-objections to the contract. The award was objected to by Fix-It Depot which teamed up with Colombianowned Enrique Lourido for the contract During the emergency session on Friday, Chief Justice Yonette CummingsEdwards in a late evening session discharged the Order Nisi issued in favour of Paul James of Fix It Depot who had asked the court to grant orders to quash a decision to award a contract for the
rehabilitation of 328 km of GPL’s electricity distribution network. The court had previously, on Monday, issued the Order Nisi halting the award decision with a return date of March 6, 2017. Less than 24 hours after the order was issued, the Court brought the matter forward to Thursday, February 16, 2017 ordering the parties to serve their respective affidavits by Friday, February 17 and putting the matter down at 4 pm.
Attorney General Basil Williams himself appeared for the state and urged the court to discharge the order, alleging that the application had no merit, that Fix It had failed to disclose that the Procurement Act does not apply, but rather IDB procurement rules apply; that Fix It should have challenged the bid rules before the submission of the tender and that Fix It failed to write the IDB in accordance with the established rules. He stated that the matter was extremely urgent as the
contract at challenge had already been signed and that the monies were about to be disbursed and if the contract was about to go forward Guyana would lose the money allotted and blackouts would continue. ILLEGAL CHANGES Attorney Devindra Kissoon, who appeared for Fix It, in rebutting the state’s argument, argued that there had been full disclosure that the IDB procurement rules applied, and that those rules applied because of the (Continued on page 72)
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Guyanese man stabbed to death in Trinidad
Joel Meshach Mentore, 29, was found stabbed to death in his home at Henderson Street, Chaguanas on Saturday, the Trinidad Express reported yesterday. Police suspect that Mentor was killed during a dispute with his male lover. A police report said that around 11.15 a.m., Mentore’s roommate found him in the living room of their apartment, unresponsive and bleeding from multiple stab wounds to his neck and
chest. Inspector Douglas and officers of the Chaguanas CID as well as Sgt. Ramjag and others of the Homicide Division Region III responded. The room-mate said he last saw Mentore alive around 4 a.m. when he was going to the bathroom. Men t o r, a r e s t a u r a n t host, was pronounced dead at the scene and his body removed for an autopsy on Monday at the Forensic Sciences Centre, St James.
Stabbed to death: Joel Mentore
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Temporary Fillings By Dr. Neromini Fagu A temporary filling is just that, a filling that is placed for a very short period of time to serve a particular purpose. Generally, temporary fillings tend to wear more quickly and may fracture or fall out if left in place for extended periods. They also don’t offer the same protection to your tooth as a permanent filling and need to be replaced to avoid risking the health of the tooth. Indications for temporary fillings Temporary fillings may be used under the following circumstances: · In between filling appointments–some fillings can’t be done in one appointment, such as indirect fillings, and you may need several appointments. Also, procedures such as internal bleaching require that the bleaching material be sealed in the tooth for the process to work, so temporary fillings may be used. · Toothache – if you are experiencing pain on a tooth that may be restorable, your dentist may place a temporary filling to relieve the pain and protect the pulp from bacteria and infection. These temporary fillings contain
medicaments with analgesic and antiseptic properties. If the tooth heals then a final filling may be placed or if not then root canal treatment or extraction must be considered. · Emergency appointment or insufficient time - if your
dentist squeezed you in for an emergency there may not be sufficient time to complete the necessary work so a temporary filling may be placed until your next visit. · Root canal procedure – a temporary filling can be done if your dentist needs to wait before doing a root canal. Also, in between treatment and prior to the final restoration temporary fillings may be placed to accommodate easy access to
the tooth. · Sensitive tooth– following a filling some nerves may become hyper sensitive to cold, hot and sweet and if those nerves don’t settle down naturally then instead of putting another filling your dentist may place a sedative temporary filling until the
nerves calm down. · Esthetic restoration- if you accidentally chip a front tooth you may be embarrassed when speaking and smiling before permanent treatment is completed and so a short term solution would be to rebuild the tooth with a temporary filling. · Exposed pulps– during a procedure the pulp may sometimes become exposed and so to prevent it from being further irritated, a filling
STANDARDS IN FOCUS
PRODUCT MONITORING PROTECTS CONSUMERS Monitoring for compliance to standards is essential to protect consumers from harmful, defective and unsafe products. The use of quality products gives users a great level of satisfaction when they can garner optimum benefits for money spent. It is in this connection that the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) under the Standards Act of 1984 and amendment of 1987 has been monitoring some twenty categories of imported and locally manufactured commodities/products under its Standards Compliance Programme to ensure compliance to the requirements of national standards. Products currently monitored by the GNBS are Domestic electrical appliances, tyres (new and used), textiles, garments, footwear, PVC pipes, Scales, masses & measures, Animal feed, Furniture, Garments, Gas stoves, Cigarettes, Safety matches, Safety helmets, Fertilizers, Electricity and water meters, Cellular phones, Christmas Tree and decorative lighting outfits. It is important to note that the Bureau does not monitor foods, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, plants and animals, meats and seafood as is the perception of many. It is only mandated to develop standards pertaining to these commodities, which are enforced by other regulatory bodies. The monitoring process is straight forward. All importers, manufacturers and dealers of products monitored by the Bureau are required to register annually with the Standards Body. Entries (Custom documents)
pertaining to commodities in commercial quantities which are monitored by Bureau are referred for inspection by an Inspector stationed at the Guyana Revenue Authority Office. Inspections are conducted at the ports of entry, points of sale, or at warehouses. In the case of products which require proper storage prior to and during sale, Inspectors conduct routine checks to ensure that storage requirements are adhered to thus avoiding the sale or damaged and deteriorated products to consumers. Once a product is found to be in compliance with its relevant national standard, it is released for sale to consumers. However, in instances where products fail to comply with their requirements, the appropriate actions are taken by the GNBS. These actions include seizure, relabeling or the submission of test certificates. There are also instances where defective and unsafe products are destroyed by the GNBS, or importers are asked to reship such products to the country of origin. In 2017, the GNBS will continue to monitor the quality of products that fall under its purview to ensure compliance to available standards and guidelines, which will ultimately provide consumer protection and satisfaction. Importers, manufacturers and dealers all have a significant role to play when selecting, manufacturing and selling products. For further information, please contact the GNBS on telephone numbers: 219-0065, 219-0066 or visit the GNBS website: www.gnbsgy.org
may be placed temporarily. How to care for your temporary filling Your dentist will let you know when to return for the placement of your permanent filling but in the mean time you need to take care to ensure that the temporary stays firmly in place. Maintain proper oral hygiene by brushing twice a day and flossing. But when flossing, avoid lifting the floss up and out of your tooth and instead pull it forward from between your teeth. This is especially important if the temporary filling is placed on surfaces between teeth. You should also avoid eating sticky and hard foods and chewing gum. Types of Temporary Filling Material There are various
temporary filling materials that are used in dentistry today. Temporary fillings must seal the tooth and be quick and easy to place and remove. They can be chemically cured, which means that the material will harden when mixed or come in contact with saliva. On the other hand, they can be light-cured and so harden when exposed to a special blue dental light. Most times the colour of the material is in contrast to tooth colour and may be very white, cream, whitish grey or even pink or blue. This difference in colour aids in the easy identification of the filling for removal. Temporary fillings are not meant to last for extensive periods so be sure to attend your follow up appointment
Dr. Neromini Fagu with your dentist to have it replaced. If you keep it longer than it was intended for then you risk infection, dental complication and possibly loss of the tooth. For more information contact OMNI DENTAL at 295 Quamina Street, Georgetown Tel: 227-0025, Parika Tel: 260-3133 or send emails to nerominifagu@hotmail.com.
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VEHICLE FOR SALE Allion, Premio, Blue Bird, IST, Honda CRV, Toyota Spacio, Fielder Wagon, 212 Carina, RZ & Pitbull bus – Call: 650-7501
SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620 Visa Application: U.S.A, C a n a da & UK; Guyana p assport application. Graphics design, advertisement. Tel: 6267040; 265-4535. INNOVATIVEMARKETING & PUBLISHING INC –TEL: 600-4212: We create A/ works, logos, busi ness cards, posters, etc, placements of ads included.
SALON - Make-up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, etc. - Cosmetology Courses: $120,000 - Technician Course: $45,000. Call: 647-1773/6605257 Register Now! Cosmetology, Nails & Wig designs courses, classes commence February 20th 2017. Call: 618-2417 EARN A CERTIFICATE IN CERTIFICATE IN COSMETOLOGY AT ARTEE’S BEAUTY SALON (W.C.D) - $75,000 & WATCH REPAIRING SERVICES. CALL: 2750267/ 680-0156
Passport, permanent & visitor visa application, Professional Immigrant Consultant – Sabita Immigration Services. Call: 225-6496; 662-6045 Landscaping: We design, supply and implement residential and commercial indoor & outdoor Landscaping. Call 648-1821 Repairs at low cost: Fridges, air- conditioners, washing machines, TVs, microwaves, freezers- Call:6294946 or 225-4822 Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezer-Call: 610-5846 or 661-8158 Trade in your old empty printer ink cartridges for a new full one and pay HP $1,500, Canon $2,000- Call: 690-3883 Brian Moe @ 642-3543: Computer Technician, FB: Brian.Moe.165; Home and office visits at your comfort!!
TO LET New Road- V/Hoop- 3 bedrooms, top flat suitable for residence/offices. Call:649-1434/ 602-2818 Room for working couple/ single person. Light, water, bed included $30,000 monthly, $30,000 security @ South Ruimveldt- Tel:6230076 Journey Inn Apartments & Car Rental @ Eccles East Bank . Low Mashramani deals US$15- Call: 658-0927, 2332300
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
VACANCY Customer Service Reps for Express International. Call 267-2992 or email jobs@expresstrucking corp.com. Manager for Farm, Kuru Kuru Highway, must have van & lorry license, 35years & older. Call: 680-9898 Cook & baker for Interior location. Call: 618-2020 Admin Staff; must be computer literate, Diploma in Business Management; 5 CXC Subjects. Call: 2181156/ email: info@cevons.com
MASH SPECIAL! 2010 TOYOTA AX10 - $2.6M, 2010 TOYOTA RAUM $2.3M – CALL: 642-7295 Ford Raptor-$8.5M, Audi A4$3.5M, BMW 318i-$2.5M, Toyota Ist-$1.9M, Honda S2000 Convertible-$3M. Contact#650-0402 1 RZ mini bus, late BNN series, VVTI -$1.3M negotiable. Call: 656-6852/ 231-6552 Nissan Cube Hatch-Back car PVV 4633 -$2,300,000, price negotiable, new, owner overseas, 2009 press start. Call: 627-7287 1-Leyland DAF GRR Series; excellent condition. Call: 6804101 Quick Sale: Twin steer Leyland DAF 1260 truck immaculate condition, new tyres, batteries, price -$5M, credit available. Call: 6893616/ 650-0858 One Toyota double cab Diesel pickup (black) in superb condition, VV series $2M. Credit available. Call: 689-3616/650-0858 AT192 for sale (white) PGG series, repairs neededTel:649-2620 One Toyota Verossa $2.450M Negotiable. Call: 6140694
LAND FOR SALE
1 Cashier, 1 sales assistant with pleasant personality & police clearance. Apply: written application @ 232 Camp & Middle St. Ice Palace Igloo. Call: 225-3672
Land @ Soesdyke, 6 lots measuring 135’X175’. Call: 627-3334/696-8935, email:fcranmore@guyana voice.com Eccles (100ftX50ft) New Scheme -$6M, Uitvlugt $2.5M, la Parfaite Harmonie $1.3M, Bartica -$6M. Call: 233- 3006/658-5897/651-1969
One experienced pastry maker; one driver with 3years experienced; one sales clerk. Call: 681-3983
Land at Faria’s Dream, East Bank Demerara -$3.8M. Call: 665-8995
Drivers, Carpenters, Security Guards. Call: 266 4427 Vacancy exists for one cashier to work at an ice-making facility. Must have Grade One to Grade Three in English in Mathematics. Serious applicants only. Excellent salary. Call 619 9180 TO LET Two- one bedroom selfcontained apartments, situated at Public Road Timehri, E.B.D – 3 minutes from the airport. Call: 664-6000
La Harmonie - $1.4M, $1.8M, $1.6M, $1.3M, Uitvlugt -$2M, $4.5M, Herstelling -$5M, Tuschen (front) $2.5M, price negotiable. Call: 614-6802 La Parfaite Harmonie -$1.4M, $1.8M, $3.5M, Farm -$6M, Uitvlugt -$4.5M, Tuschen School Street -$3M, Herstelling -$5M. Call: 6046724 60X200 Gibraltar Public Road, Corentyne. Call: 6296756/ 674-7832 East ½ 84 David Street, back lot for sale- Contact: 84davidstreet@gmail.com
FOR SALE LARGE QUANTITIES OF HIGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICK SILVER) 99.99995% PURITY$19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754. Honda CBR 929 for sale; also land at Bushy Park, E.B.E – Call: 694-4609 1 Big music set, owner migrating. Call: 690-5225 1 Professional music set (complete), 1 Jacuzzi whirlpool. Call: 253-3070/654-2732 1 Marina 40HP outboard engine with 14 Aluminum boat, 1 Yamaha 75HP outboard engine in excellent condition. Call: 643-1622 1 Hilux Manual- GSS 5822, 1 Noah, excellent condition, GVV 5554. Call: 641-2763 Like new Apple I-Phone 6 and I-phone 6 plus 64GB $79,000. Call: 675-3062 1 Slate pool table- $275,000, Toyota Wagon -$175,000. Call: 661-5099 2-90 Drums- metal fuel boat. Call: 669-7276 1 RZ Minibus, 1 3Y minibusCall:601-4929, 664-5444 7840 Ford Tractor, Rome plough chipper, NZE Corolla, complete music set- Call:2282551, 613-3175 One Mazda engine gear box, one slush machine, one Tormo King refrigeration unitContact Hanif 646-2293 Clean Garden Earth, builders waste, delivery to spots, also excavating, grading and levelling done. Call: 616-0617 or 663-3285
CAR RENTAL PROGRESSIVE CAR RENTAL: CARS& SUV FOR RENTAL- $4,000 & UP PER DAY- CALL: 677-7827, 6435122, EMAIL: PRO_ AUTO RENTAL@YAHOO. COM WING’S CAR & PICKUP RENTAL: LOW DOWN PAYMENT, CHEAP REATES,SPECIAL OFFER FOR THE SEASON. CALL: 690-6494 DOLLY’S CAR RENTALCALL: 225-7126/226-3693 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL@ YA H O O . C O M / W W W. DOLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM AIDAN’S CAR RENTAL:PICKUP,9-11 SEAT MIN BUS, GOOD FOR AIRPOTR & FAMILY OUTING, CHEAPESTRATE . Call: 698-7807
FOR RENT PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620
WANTED One driver/porter & porter. From Diamond, Grove area. Call: 216-1043, 677-6620 2 Labourers, 1 mason/carpenter. Monday- Friday, 8am-4pm- Tel:265-3586
Brains Construction & Rental Service: we rent all types of equipment, excavator, bobcat, trucks, tools. Call: 2190904/601-5024
One live in female supervisor for bar & grocery starting salary -$80,000 monthly, age 25-35yrs- Call: 610-3974
Lot 14 Croal & Longden Street: 4 Storey building (infront Demico). Call: 6631876
Experienced puri/roti cooks. Apply at Shanta’s The Puri Shop, 225 Camp & New Market Streets.
Prime business place on Sheriff Street to rent only for offices. Call: 627-6740 or 2278644
Experienced cook & cashier to work in Restaurant & internet café; preferably from the West Bank or West Coast. Call: 678-3400 Annabel Bistro.
Property for rent; 3 bedrooms top and bottom flat house on W.C.D, Canal No #2 Polder -$35,000 monthly. Call: 613-1860 One 2 bedrooms apartment in Covenden, East Bank Demerara. Call: 623-1615 Bottom flat house @ 25 North Road & Oronoque Street, fully furnished/ air condition/ residence /business. Preferably with no children. Call: 226-7012 Building for rent (75ftX24ft); convenient parking space (50ft), location- Parika. Contact Ramo: 660-1248 For short term rental, 1 selfcontained 2 bedrooms apartment @ Avenue B, Diamond, E.B.D. working couple preferred- Call: 6585452 Apartment in Great Diamond, EBD- Contact: Ronique 6439286, Thandeka 603-0067 Upper flat for rent 3 bedrooms in Atlantic Gardens- Call: 2274377/227-0613/624-6013 3 Bedrooms house, Soesdyke, East Bank Demerara -$35,000 monthly, will be available from March 01 2017. Call: 6132928/ 683-4667 Interested in office space or need to establish office in the Soesdyke area? 900sq.ft / 1800sq.ft. Call: 613-2928/ 6834667 One two bedroom flat concrete house. Call: 2653616/ 685-2690 Building for rent (75ftX24ft); convenient parking space (50ft), location- Parika. Contact Ramo: 660-1248
EDUCATIONAL I.A.E Classes for CSEC June 2017: Mathematics, English A, Business & Science Subject for Students, Adults & repeaters. Call: 683-5742
Live in or live out babysitter/ domestic. Call: 223-7500 Monday-Saturday 8:15-4:15 One male to work on chicken farm in the interior, must have knowledge about chicken rearing. Call: 680-2702 We pay immediate cash for land in Eccles, Herstelling & Farm, all legal fees and cleaning. Call: 233-3006/6585897/ 651-1969 Maid must know how to cook & clean well, need reference, preferably from E.C.D – Contact: 677-4637 Waitress to work in bar, experience female office clerk; age 18-25, security guards. Call: 638-5303/ 227-7380 Body work man- Call: 6603004 1 Experienced Diesel Mechanic to work in G/town, apply in person. Call: 2271717 Ladies from Zeelugt/Meten Meer Zorg area to do cleaning. Call: 662-9341/ 6848231 Drivers for water truck to work on W.C.D $50 per bottle/ $26,000 weekly. Call: 662-9341/ 684-8231 1 House to buy in La Parfaite Harmony/ West Coast Demerara $4-6M with legitimate papers. No agents! Tel: 628-4854, 628-4879 Jet and marack men to work in Interior- Tel:694-2310 Live in waitress to work in a bar- Call: 604-6606;692-4646
TAXI SERVICE GR TAXI SERVICE. CALL: 219-5000; 227-1982 & 225-7878 (24HRS) (Continued on page 69)
Sunday February 19, 2017
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Kaieteur News
CONSUMER CONCERNS
Prof. Griffith unfolds new dimension to UG renaissance By PAT DIAL In the third week of July, the University of Guyana would be hosting a “Diaspora Engagement Conference”. This is part of the Renaissance Movement of the University of Guyana which Prof. Griffith has been creatively spearheading. Prof. Griffith, as a man of great perspicacity, had already started building the infrastructure for the Conference. His initiatives would ensure that the Conference would not suffer the fate of so many other Conferences which happen in the Caribbean where participants enthusiastically gather, engage in fine intellectual discussion, disperse with promises to do so many things but in a few weeks oblivion overtakes it all. In building this infrastructure, this fairly novel idea has had to be
disseminated among the stakeholders including the intellectual classes, the business community and Government. This is absolutely necessary to win full local acceptability and support. The Diaspora has also had to be contacted and alerted so as to bring greater completeness to the whole idea. Had Prof. Griffith and his colleagues concentrated their efforts in Guyana without at the same time involving the Diaspora, it would have been like trying to clap with one hand. One of the University’s first formal engagements with the Diaspora was last September when Prof. Griffith and a team of University personnel visited New York for a few days. The raison d’etre was primarily to make and strengthen contacts and build bridges as well as to raise funds. The visit was a
success since it secured the success of the Conference and did raise about half of the cost of the visit. The total cost of the visit was just over $4 million. Just over $2 million were secured in contributions. Some members of the media and some uninformed persons, mistaking the visit as a fundraising effort, thought that since there was a shortfall of approximately $2 million, then the visit was not successful. When one understands the importance and raison d’etre of the visit, we should congratulate ourselves that so much was achieved for only $2 million. The engagement with the Diaspora would help to raise academic standards of the University with the infusion of high level academics who would be attracted to the University to meet the challenge of creating a worldclass institution. State of the art equipment and ideas
Guyana on right track financially – CDB director
Guyana’s future is bright, and it is on the right economic path, according to the Caribbean Development Bank’s (CDB) Director of Economics, Dr. Justin Ram. Speaking at the bank’s annual news conference in Barbados on Friday, Dr. Ram stated that “the future for Guyana is quite bright.” He referenced the recent oil and natural gas discoveries offshore Guyana, and noted that with the expectation that commercial production of the commodities is due to begin in a few years, there is great potential there. Sharing his views on the policies being put in place by the Guyana Government, Dr. Ram opined that “the government is correct in being fiscally prudent, and very careful in how it manages its debt to GDP (Gross Domestic Product) ratio.” He added that this ratio, which declined in 2016, was quite good and government continued to consolidate fiscally. The CDB Director noted
that Guyana is facing several challenges in the social and infrastructural areas, thus the “government will now have to consider, how it will go about those financing gaps that the economy now faces.” He said that there are possibly a number of ways to do that without increasing the debt burden significantly. He explained that public private partnerships are an option in this regard. Dr. Ram explained that whenever a Government borrows funds to execute projects, the returns on these projects must exceed the interest rates on the loans acquired. “So overall the Government must spend money wisely and get great value for that money, so that the rate of return on those projects, actually provide economic benefits to all of its citizens.” The CDB official declared that Guyana is “very well poised to take advantage of the recent resources it has discovered, and overall it is important that our Governments spend money
Caribbean Development Bank’s Director of Economics Dr. Justin Ram wisely. I think that if these are managed properly, then Guyana could be one of the most diversified economies of our board member countries, so I think it is actually on the right track.” The CDB Director gave an overview of the Caribbean’s economic performance including an action plan for stability and growth, and policy prescriptions, during the news conference on Friday.
Smart City, M&CC in contempt of court... From page 62 the Private Sector Commission, Eddie Boyer, who said that there was a Tripartite Commission set up between the government, private sector and the M&CC to advise on ways to generate revenue for the city. The PSC chairman said that since September there have been four meetings and a number of recommendations were made. “The Private Sector Commission agreed with the council to pay $5000 per shipping container. That $5000 will raise in excess of $300M. I don't think they realised that much was gonna be raised.” Boyer said that within the budget of the
municipality it was estimated that Georgetown will earn a little above $200M from the project. However, he said, if the option to charge each shipping container was taken up, the M&CC would make more money without lifting a finger. Missing from the Town Hall meeting were Mayor Patricia Chase-Green and Town Clerk Royston King. The Mayor had rejected the invitation from the Movement to attend the meeting. A statement from the Town Clerk's office had chided members of the group for their allegedly abusive comments towards the Mayor and other City Officials as one of the reasons for not attending the forum.
would begin to flow into Guyana and academics from Europe, North America, and Asia, in particular India and China would come to the University. In the early years of the University, it was fairly international in that there were teaching staff from Europe, North America and Asia. Prof. Griffith’s vision is to have, growing out of the Engagement Conference in July, a “Caribbean Diaspora Engagement Centre”. Such would give Guyana a leadership role in the West Indies analogous to the University College of the West Indies when it was established at Mona, Jamaica at the end of the 1940’s. Out of Mona came the Trinidad and Barbados campuses. A Caribbean Centre would make it more amenable for academics from the other Caribbean territories to serve in Guyana. Many Trinidadians, for example would like to serve here and we may even be lucky to have a few oil experts to help in our Petroleum industry. Prof. Griffith’s vision and positive effort to establish a Diaspora Engagement Centre would have many spinoffs at the national level. Almost all countries in the world with large Diasporas have been making serious efforts to engage them. India and China, two countries with Diasporas running into millions, are good examples of this. The Chinese and Indian Diasporas invest billions of dollars in their former homecountries and contribute many scarce technical and other skills. Their former homecountries bind them closer by offering them something in return: The Chinese have two categories of nationals Home Chinese and Overseas Chinese and they enjoy the same rights. The Indians have NRI’s - Non-resident
Indians - who have the same rights as citizens except they cannot vote at elections. PIO’s - people of Indian origin - is a fairly recent category and their facilities are less than NRI’s. PIO’s include descendants of Indentured immigrants. To be recognized as a PIO on has to register. There is also GOPIO which people of Indian origin from all over the world could join. They meet every few years in various capitals, and at the meeting this year, the Prime Minister of Portugal, who is of Goan origin attended as a member. In Guyana and the rest of the Caribbean, we need to take a leaf out of the book of these countries, and not only seek to ask the Diaspora to accord us help in various ways but to give back something in return. For example, since we recognize dual nationality, nationality could be extended to those former nationals who have become foreign citizens. The same could be done to the children of former nationals. Some educational programmes, for example, how to buy property or deal in the stock markets could be mounted by Caribbean governments for their Diasporas. And Caribbean citizens must be given help and protection by Caribbean governments wherever they might be. In this regard, Caribbean governments may learn from Israel, another small state. The Diaspora Engagement Centre would obviously primarily be concerned with academic matters and support for the University, but during the Conference in July, the wider issues of Guyana and other Caribbean states involvement with and support for and from the Diasporas are bound to arise and could very well provide a positive agenda for Caribbean Governments.
Night courts fulfilled... From page 14 the high prison population which resulted in the overcrowding of the penal system. After the Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the unrest was completed, it was revealed that 60 percent of inmates were on remand. Of that amount, 50 percent had been awaiting trial for more than three years and a further 30 percent for more than four years. The report said that these figures and the lack of effective – or even ineffective action to remedy them pointed to serious dysfunction in the administration of justice. It was highlighted that delayed trials contributed significantly to the overcrowding. Also, failures on the part of agencies of the state had contributed to the state of the prison. These include the judiciary, Magistracy, Probation Service, the Parole Board, Prison Visiting Committees and the Ministry of Public Health. A high level meeting between representatives of Government and the judiciary was held and it was announced that night courts will be established.
(From page 68)
PROPERTY FOR SALE Transported property @ Grove and Diamond $16M negotiable. Call: 625-5461 Property at 14 th Avenue, Diamond, New Scheme, E.B.D -$23M negotiable – Call: 668-6940/601-1355 Goat Creek, Riverfront , 75 Acres land -$7M, Lanaballi River Front, 50 Acres -$9M. Call: 688-0087 Riviera Island: 145 Acres $30M, Tuschen property $5.8M, $6M, $15M. Call: 6880087 Tuschen 5,8,6,2 bedrooms; Hope- 2 bedrooms $7.8M, Enmore Land -$1.8M, Hogg Island 20 acres $8M Call: 6880087 Property @ 87E, Albert Street, Alberttown, front lot, size 80X20 prices $35Million. Call: 669-8701 Property @ lot 11 Middleton street, Campbellville, Georgetown- Please contact owner Tel:301-593-2429, 240605-8877 Property @ 3rd Street Montrose, East Coast Demerara: Two story property with business on the lower flat. Call: 677-1310 10 Minutes away from Georgetown, you can own your own home, now in construction, 3 bedrooms, 2 bath, concrete house. Call: 675-1510
LAND FOR SALE Transported corner lot with approved building plan @ 90 Garnett & Republic Streets, Newtown Kitty. Call: 6016000/227-3305
LEARN TO DRIVE C. Persaud & N. Outar Driving School formerly Soman & Sons Driving School @ Maraj Building- Call: 644-5166; 6222872; 615-0964; 689-5997 (affordable packages).
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Kaieteur News
Sunday February 19, 2017
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
University of Guyana student wins senior calypso crown By Brushell Blackman Twenty-five year old Diana Chapman reigned over a field of 11 and was crowned senior calypso monarch in a highly competitive competition at Thirst Park, Friday night. The Second Year University of Guyana Communications student said she did not see the win coming but her years of dedication and hard work has finally propelled her to the top. Performing before a very large crowd the Lindener knew she had to be almost perfect with her performance because the six competitors that went before her set the bar extremely high. The Bonny Alves produced rendition ‘Put your house in order’ had flare and style, The sweet tone of her voice complimented the lyrics beautifully, as she delved into topical issues in Guyana today. It was clear that Chapman had put a lot of effort into her presentation because she danced like a pro and the two back-up dancers that assisted her gave more creativity to the performance. The lively crowd was engrossed throughout the performance as the former Junior Calypso m o n a r c h danced as she sang much to their delight. Chapman was gracious in victory and lauded the other competitors for ensuring one of the best calypso finals in years. For those that stormed out in disbelief when she was crowned, Chapman said the judges’ decision was final. Apart from the monarchy Chapman also won $800,000. Pearl Lewis was second
and if there was any surprise of the night this was it. Performing under the stage name Precious Pearl, her song ‘Old age is like a criminal’ missed the mark at times and this caused the crowd to be distracted. But the veteran calypsonian was resolute and the actress that helped her deliver the message of the song may have saved the evening. The rendition dealt with the many issues associated with old age and how senior citizens had to find innovative ways to tackle them. In the end Lewis scored 387 points eclipsing, the Junior Calypso Monarch Tshanna Cort by one point. She won trophies and a monetary prize of $600,000. Tshanna Cort entered this competition on the back of her triumph at the Junior Calypso Finals and she came third with 386 points. Her song was titled ‘Where the innocence gone’ and as usual she gave a very good account of herself. But it was evident Cort was in the big league and it was tough because her fellow competitors were pulling out the stops to land the coveted crown. The Burchmore Simon production was well received by the massive crowd that waited patiently for the show that started one hour late. There can be no doubt about Cort’s ability to sing but she could have focused a bit more on the presentation of the song which was a bit bland. The two times Junior Calypso Monarch won $400,000. K e n r o y F r a s e r, t h e Mighty Believer was fourth
with 384 and his song was ‘Give David some time’. It must be said that this song was one of the best of the night, and the presentation was exquisite. No wonder it was only three points that separated the second, third and fourth competitors. It was this rendition that had the crowd really involved as they sang along in agreement that the populace should give the current President David Granger some more time to sort out the country’s affairs. Added to the popularity of the song Fraser had four bodyguards that stood at the four corners of the stage much to the amusement of the crowd and it was clear that he was feeding off the crowd and was having a good time. In the end it was no surprise that he placed fourth and won $200,000. At the end of the competition it was clear that the guards have changed since none of the popular performers placed. The 2016 Senior Calypso Monarch Lester Charles, the Professor, did not place and so did a number of other seasoned calypsonians. The other performers were Lassel Duke, the Mighty Duke with ‘Deh give him a bruk up country’, Manoel Ferriera, (Perai) with ‘Perai Justice, Roger Hinds, Young Bill Rogers, ‘Ah Campaigning for President’, Wendell Walcott, Might Hunter, ‘Them boy say’, John Marcus, (Ras Marcus) ‘Ow Mr. Pope’, Dawn Edwards, (Lady D), ‘King Liar and Lester Charles, (The professor) with ‘Wicked Philbert’.
Akeem Peters and Kerron Boston... From page 12 spot in Tucville. Gregory Loo and Keisha Fraser were last to hit the spotlight. She and her partner gyrated to Bashment in Town, a Soca song. Six years ago, they danced to this song on the Mash band. Colwyn Boyle and Kittindie Pearson were cuddly and loving throughout the night. They sang a karaoke version of ‘So lucky.’ They met on BBM. Roderick Grant and Kacy Dutson recalled meeting each other in Cuba and as such sang a Spanish song. Dale Thomas and Luriel Inniss met
at UG. In fact, he had always been late for the classes and frequently asked his now partner to assist him with revision. The winning couple performed a skit which reflected their love life from the time they first met. During the dramatic piece the audience lea r n t t h a t t h e couple overcame arguments, and that Kerron Boston turned down 49 marriage proposals from her partner. Kerron Boston burst into tears and had to be consoled by her partner, after they were announced the winners. She said that
winning the competition shows that God is real and she extended gratitude to everyone that played a part in their relationship. The Annual Wedding Expo, which started in 2007, sees a number of large and small local businesses marketing themselves to their intended wedding patrons. They not only plan the wedding, but also the engagement, honeymoon and even acquiring a home audience. It provides a platform for couples to plan their special day and to create a one of a kind celebration. Race to the Altar is in its fifth year.
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Kaieteur News
Sunday February 19, 2017
Former PM Blair urges Britons to New U.S. travel ban to spare “rise up” against May’s Brexit plan green card holders: Trump official Reuters - Former British prime minister Tony Blair issued a battle cry against a socalled ‘hard Brexit’ Friday, calling on voters, businesses and campaigners to “rise up” and back a coordinated effort to temper the terms of, or even halt, Britain’s EU exit. In his first major political intervention since Britons voted 52 to 48 percent to leave the European Union last June, Blair said Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May was pursuing “Brexit at any cost”, and must be challenged. “The people voted without knowledge of the terms of Brexit. As these terms become clear, it is their right to change their mind. Our mission is to persuade them to do so,” he said in a speech. “This is not the time for retreat, indifference or despair, but the time to rise up in defence of what we believe.” May has vowed to start the legal process of leaving the European Union next month, and it is not clear whether the process could then be reversed. Her vision
MUNICH (Reuters) - A new version of a Trump administration travel ban will not stop green card residency holders or travelers already on planes from entering the United States, U.S. Secretary for Homeland Security John Kelly said yesterday. U.S. President Donald
Trump’s initial attempt to clamp down for security reasons on immigration from seven Mus l i m majority countries and on refugees snarled to a h a l t a m id a judicial backlash and chaos at airports. “The president is contemplating releasing a
tighter, more streamlined version of the first (order). And I will have opportunity to work (on) a rollout plan, in particular to make sure that there’s no one in a sense caught in the system of moving from overseas to our airports,” Kelly said at the Munich Security Conference.
Court rules in favour of Govt. in... Tony Blair is for a clean break, including leaving the EU’s single market and customs union. Blair, who won three elections at the head of the Labour Party, has also spoken out in the last 18 months to warn Labour members against electing the hard leftist Jeremy Corbyn as their leader, and to urge voters to shun Brexit. Neither intervention was successful. His speech was aimed at
Theresa May rallying disparate and cowed pro-EU lobby groups into a coherent voice against Brexit, said the organisers of the event, the Open Britain campaign group. “The road we’re going down is not simply ‘hard Brexit’. It is ‘Brexit at any cost’,” Blair said. “Our challenge is to expose relentlessly what this cost is ... and to build support for finding a way out from the present rush over the cliff’s edge.”
(From page 65) Procurement Act. He insisted that the process of awarding the tender was flawed since not only did the tender document not contain specific and objective weighting criteria as was required by the IDB procurement rules, but that qualification criteria were changed after the tender had closed. He stated that by failing to specify weighting criteria as was required by the rules, the tender evaluation process was left open to impermissible subjectivityFix It being disqualified because it did not have sufficient projects of the “nature and complexity” of the project at hand. He argued that the terms, nature and complexity were not defined and since no objective criteria were specified the tender was awarded in breach of the IDB rules and without the required transparency and fairness necessary to make the decision legal. According to Kissoon, the criteria of annual revenue for the companies were changed post-tender without letting Fix It know, rendering the process unfair and illegal. He also cited numerous cases where contract awards were quashed in identical cases, and case law which said that Fix It could not challenge the tender and until reasons were given for its disqualification, any challenge would be premature. He also stated that Fix It did not know in advance that the evaluation criteria would be changed post-tender and therefore could not challenge the tender at the inception. He argued that the illegality of the process of evaluation was of national importance, and that taxpayers would be harmed by an unnecessary excess expenditure of more than $1B, for work by a company which was alleged to have done substandard work. Discretion by Court However, the Chief Justice in her swift judgment
said that after hearing arguments by both sides, she had observed that there were contested facts. She stated that the court was concerned with the evaluation process but in light of the interests of justice given the fact that the contract has already been signed and that the funds were about to be disbursed she would exercise her discretion to discharge the Order Nisi. She ordered both parties pay their own costs. The contract was funded by the European Union (EU) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) with the latter’s rules of procurement governing the choice of a contractor. Named as respondents in the case brought by Fix-It Depot were the Guyana Power and Light Incorporated (GPL); Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson; the Ministry and its Permanent Secretary, Balraj Balram, and the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB). The Attorney General (AG) explained that the matter was one of urgency since the Government was anxious to move forward with the project, especially with the recent blackouts the city has been experiencing. “So it’s very important that we got the loan to enable GPL to go about doing its work,” he said. The AG further explained that the basis, upon which the order was made, was that the procurement clause be applied, but in fact, in these international agreements the law of the international donor takes precedence, and this is recognised also by the local Act that speaks to conflict with the local law procurement and the international law. “So the Chief Justice decided that she deals with the matter urgently and she did and she asked us to come... she has given that decision and the Order Nisi is absolute taken into consideration that the contract had already been
awarded, the monies are to be paid, and of course recognising the nature of the agreement, that is the need to upgrade the electricity sector and something that would affect the Guyanese people, lack of electricity,” the AG reiterated. He said that if the decision had gone any other way, and the orders were made absolute, the applicant had nothing to gain because it meant that it would have required the contract to be retendered and that process would have taken six months to a year and Guyana could have certainly lost the loan. The project is part of a bigger one to improve the efficiency of GPL and has been generating attention locally, not only because of the billions of dollars involved, but with questions raised over the procedures to evaluate the bidders. The award to the Chinese company had raised eyebrows, since the company was involved in the construction of seven substations, running new high powered transmissions along the coastland and the laying of two submarine cables across the Demerara and Berbice Rivers. The cable which was laid across the Demerara River was damaged in July under unknown circumstances. This left the East Demerara and Berbice areas without additional power being supplied by the new Vreeden-Hoop power station for a number of months. The cable was only fixed, recently. A key report by CEMCO, the local engineering company that supervised that project, had criticized the quality of work of CMC, including the laying of the submarine cable in the Demerara River. CMC was described in the CEMCO report as a spare parts company. Another recent report of Siemens has also raised concerns over the operations of the sub-station. None of the reports were taken into considerations by the evaluation.
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
Barbados Central Bank Governor Willing To Go As Far As CCJ To Fight Efforts To Remove Him
A smiling Governorof the Central Bank Dr Delisle Worrell (centre, in hat), at the court with leader attorney Gregory Nicholls (left). (Photo Credit: Barbados Today) BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – It’s back to the law courts Friday for embattled Barbados Central Bank Governor Dr Delisle Worrell after receiving a 48-hour reprieve from the High Court on Wednesday to prevent his removal by Finance Minister Chris Sinckler. An upbeat Worrell and his legal team emerged from the near three-hour hearing at the High Court confident of the merit of their case, even as they served notice that they were ready to head to the Caribbean Court of Justice if necessary. Lead attorney Gregory Nicholls told journalists outside the courtroom that the case was not an “exercise in theatrics”, insisting that Minister Sinckler did not have the power to remove the Governor. Last week, Sinckler had reportedly ordered Worrell to resign by Monday, February 13, or be fired, at the insis-
tence of other senior Central Bank executives who have been critical of Governor’s management style. Relations between the Minister and the Governor also deteriorated on the heels of public warning by Worrell that the Government had to live within its mean and stop the practice of printing money. But Nicholls insisted that the Finance Minister misused his executive powers and this must not be allowed. “He [Sinckler] did not have the power to get around the provisions of the [Central Bank] Act. The Act sets out how a director, including the Governor of the Central 0Bank, can be removed,” the Governor’s legal spokesman said. “Until that process can be followed, then the Minister’s arrogation unto himself of the power to remove him by virtue of him signing a letter of engagement, deploying the
Governor, then we can’t go outside the confines of the Central Bank Act,” the lawyer stressed. To date, Sinckler has remained mum on the issue. Following Wednesday’s hearing, Solicitor General Jennifer Edward, Q.C, also declined to speak to the media. Meanwhile, a former Central Bank Governor is standing in support of his counterpart. Winston Cox, who was sacked from that post by the former Owen Arthur administration, stressed that the Finance Minister ought to shift his attention to the country’s depressing economic woes and leave Worrell alone. “We need to have all our best hands on board to manage the situation at present,” he told the Barbados Today online newspaper. “It is very unfortunate that we are distracted from managing t he economy.” (Caribbean360)
CCJ judge to retire The longest serving judge on the benches Daily Observer - The longest serving judge on the benches of the Caribbean Court of Justice, CCJ, will be retiring in May 2017. Justice Rolston Nelson will be leaving the bench after 12 years as an adjudicator of the apex court of four Caribbean countries, Barbados, Belize, Dominica and Guyana. Judges of the CCJ are expected to retire at age 72, but their tenure could be extended to 75 years.
President of the CCJ, Sir Denis Byron said Justice Nelson, who is a Trinidadian, has left an indelible mark during his time on the court. “It is difficult to put into words the outstanding contribution made by Justice Nelson during his tenure. Suffice it to say that he leaves an outstanding legacy, and we will miss his generous spirit, his erudition and wise counsel,” Sir Dennis said.
A CCJ Media release noted Justice Nelson holds degrees in Modern Languages and Jurisprudence (honours) and the Master of Laws from the Universities of Oxford and London respectively. He was called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn in 1970, admitted to practice at the Jamaican Bar in 1973 and at the Trinidad & Tobago Bar in 1975 and admitted to the Inner Bar as senior counsel in 1993.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Sunday February 19, 2017
‘Blind sheikh’ convicted in 1993 World Trade bombing dies in U.S. prison (Reuters) - Omar AbdelRahman, the Muslim cleric known as “the blind sheikh” who was convicted of conspiracy in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and of planning a broader “war of urban terrorism” in the United States, died yesterday in a North Carolina prison, authorities said. Abdel-Rahman, 78, died of natural causes at 9:40 a.m. (1440 GMT) at a medical center at a federal prison compound in Butner, North Carolina, according to Greg Norton, a spokesman. The cleric, who had diabetes and coronary artery
disease, had been incarcerated at the complex for nearly 10 years, Norton said. Earlier, the cleric’s son Ammar said his family had received a phone call in Eygpt from a U.S. representative saying his father had died. The Egyptian-born AbdelRahman remained a spiritual leader for radical Muslims even after more than 20 years in prison. With his long gray beard, sunglasses and red and white clerical cap, the charismatic Abdel-Rahman was the face of radical Islam in the 1980s and 1990s. He preached a fiery brand of Is-
lam that called for the death of people and governments he disapproved of and the installation of an Islamic government in Egypt. His following was tied to fundamentalist killings and bomb attacks around the world. “Abdel-Rahman was at the vortex of some of the bloodiest and most consequential terrorist incidents of the 1990s - incidents that would establish the patterns of global terrorism that continue to bedevil us today,” said Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism expert at Georgetown University in Washington.
Trump to interview four candidates for national security job today Reuters - President Donald Trump today will interview acting national security adviser Keith Kellogg and three other candidates to fill the vacancy left by the firing of Michael Flynn, the White House said yesterday. Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster and Lieutenant General Robert Caslen are also being interviewed for the top national security position, White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. Trump, who has been searching for a new national security adviser for about a week, could add a couple more candidates to the list, Spicer
said. Retired general and former CIA chief David Petraeus is no longer a candidate, Spicer said. The retired four-star general, who resigned as head of the CIA in 2012 after it was revealed he was having an affair with his biographer, had been on a short list for the job after Flynn was let go. Spicer said Trump’s finalists include Kellogg, Bolton, Caslen, who is the superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and McMaster, who holds a senior post with the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. Former U.S. National Security Agency head Keith Alexander, and former Army chief of staff Ray Odierno were also thought to be in
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contention for the job. Flynn, who was Trump’s first national security adviser, stepped down after revelations that he had discussed U.S. sanctions on Russia with the Russian ambassador to the United States before Trump took office and misled Vice President Mike Pence about the conversations. Finding a replacement has been a challenge for Trump. Retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward, the president’s first choice to take over for Flynn, turned down the offer, citing family and financial reasons. A source familiar with the matter said Petraeus, like Harward, wanted control over staffing decisions within the NSC, and Trump was reluctant to grant that authority.
US urges Venezuela to release political prisoners WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States yesterday repeated its call for Venezuela to release some hundred political prisoners, including a jailed opposition leader whose liberation Donald Trump urged earlier this week, inflaming tensions between the two countries. The State Department’s call came days after the Venezuelan Supreme Court upheld the punishment of Leopoldo Lopez, who is serving a nearly 14-year sentence on charges of inciting unrest at anti-government protests in 2014. “We call for the immediate release of all prisoners of conscience, respect for the rule of law, the freedom of the press, the separation of constitutional powers within the government, and the restoration of a democratic process that reflects the will of the Venezuelan people,” the department’s acting spokesman Mark Toner said in a statement. The State Department also urged Venezuela to re-
lease opposition leaders Antonio Ledezma and Daniel Ceballos, along with “many other students, activists, journalists, and peaceful protestors.” “The United States reiterates its dismay and concern about these arrests, and other actions taken by the Venezuelan government to criminalize dissent and deny its citizens the benefits of democracy,” the statement said. The ruling on Lopez’s appeal, which was filed in July, came a day after Trump received Lopez’s wife Lilian Tintori at the White House and posted a tweet calling for the prisoner’s release. “Venezuela should allow Leopoldo Lopez, a political prisoner & husband of @liliantintori (just met w/ @marcorubio) out of prison immediately,” Trump tweeted following the meeting. Lopez is the founder of Popular Will, one of the most hardline parties opposing President Nicolas Maduro. Some 200 Venezuelan opposition supporters marched
on Saturday, blocking one of the main highways in Caracas to protest Lopez’s imprisonment. Shortly before Trump sent his Twitter missive this week, Maduro had warned the US that Venezuela would “respond firmly” to any action deemed aggressive. “Those who tangle with us will get an appropriate response,” he said on state television. Ties had already been strained on Monday when the US Treasury imposed sanctions on Maduro’s powerful Vice President Tareck El Aissami and a businessman, whom the US authorities accuse of being involved in drug trafficking. Washington has had a shaky relationship with Caracas since the late Hugo Chavez rose to power in 1999. The former Venezuelan president was famous for his anti-American rhetoric, which has persisted under Maduro, who blames his country’s deep economic woes on a USbacked capitalist conspiracy.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
Mashramani Float Parade, Fun day and cycle race planned for Rose Hall Town Shav’eh Business Entity and Benjamin Sports Store are major players Following the successful staging of the inaugural Port Mourant Fun day and Gymkhana, the Sha’veh Business Entity of Lot 33 Portuguese Quarters Corentyne Berbice is at it again. The business entity will be entering into unchartered waters when it stages the Rose Hall Town Mashramani Float Parade, fun day and a Cycle Road race. The events are set for Sunday 12th March. The town of Rose Hall Town is not known to stage a Mashramani float parade during the Mashramani season. As such the business entity along with some associates has taken the lead in planning a Mashramani Float Parade,
fun day and cycle road race on the Corentyne highway, especially for persons in the Rose Hall Town / Port Mourant catchment area. According to the organiser the main aim of the activity is to bring back the Mashramani celebrations in the Rose Hall Town area. According to a release from the organisers, the event is also planned with the residents of the Central Corentyne area in mind, since the Rose Hall Town/Port Mourant area has not been having any Mashramani float parade and costume competition. “We feel it fitting to do something that would involve as much persons as possible.”
The day’s activity is expected to get on the way at 09:00hrs with a 60 miles cycle event from in front of the Sha’veh Business Enterprise. The race will be staged in collaboration with the Benjamin Sports Store and the Flying Aces Cycle club and will be open to cyclist throughout the country. There will be other cycling events and flat races which will all finish at the Shav’eh Business Place. The float parade is expected to get on the way at noon and culminate at the Port Mourant Community Center. Interested persons can make contact on telephone numbers 604-4195 or 671-3343 or Gregory Butcher on 6418424. (Samuel Whyte)
Sunday February 19, 2017 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Be cautious while traveling to foreign countries. Get involved in groups and organizations that are of a distinguished nature. TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) You will be entertained and intrigued by the logic foreigners possess. Get ready to do some fancy footwork when it comes to taking care of your financial situation. You must look into your options. GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Family outings that aren't expensive will be enjoyable and help strengthen ties. Restrictions may be difficult for you to live with. Focus on your own domestic problems. CANCER (June 21–July 22) Do not sign contracts or get involved in any uncertain financial deals. Do not ruffle feathers if possible. Don't think the worst if you hear something negative about your partner. LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Don't make any drastic changes or begin new projects today. Find a way to consolidate. Put your time and energy into travel, philosophy, and soul-searching. VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) You will be full of good ideas, and your choice of activities may bring you enrichment far beyond your expectations. Discuss your
objectives with partners or peers. Focus your efforts on details, and keep to yourself in order to finish your work. LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) Try to curb overindulgence today. Your romantic inclination should lead to a committed relationship. Get busy trying to make more money. SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Drastic financial losses may be likely if you lend money. Take some time to change your house around. If you can't get away, make plans to do something special with friends or relatives. SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) You are best not to discuss your personal life with others. Be careful signing important contracts today. Invite friends over. CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) You can make gains if you look at long-term investments. You will be encouraged to get involved in a moneymaking venture. Resist the temptation to gamble. Risks will not be profitable. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20–Feb. 18) Your ability to put a deal together will surprise others. It's time to get yourself back on track. PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) You are best to avoid joint ventures, and whatever you do, don't lend to friends or relatives. Abrupt changes in your home may send you for a loop.
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Limacol showdown at MSC... (From page 79) they will certainly need to improve all-round. Troy Lewis and Akeem Greene are the only marksmen for them to date so other will need to step up to give them a chance of advancing. The feature affair at 21:30hrs is a battle of experience in Winners Connection versus youth in Eagles in what is being touted as an explosive encounter. Winners Connection emerged on top Group-A with a record of one win and two draws. Garey Thompson, Sedrick Hunte and Rawle Gittens will lead their quest for goals, while Captain Marlon Maxi-
KMTC Phagwah Race Meet set... (From page 77) $220,000, three years Guyana bred for which the winner will take home $200,000 and K and lower with the winner pocketing $120,000. The races will be held under the rules of the KMTC and entries will be closed on March 12; no late entries will be accepted. Entries can be made through Ivan Dipnarine on 331 0316, Mr. Kennard on 623 7609 or 225 4818, Fazal Habibulla on 657 7010, Dennis DeRoop on 640 6396 or Compton Sancho on 602 1567.
Eagerly anticipated slugfests as local... (From page 78) Lanferman (ESSE). Akeel Mounter (ESSE) battles Duel Augustine (PRBG) while Kelon Isaacs (PRBG) squares off with Romano Clarke (G.D.F). Colin Lewis (G.D.F) goes up against Joel Williamson (RHJ), while Desmond Amsterdam (G.D.F) brings the curtains down when he opposes policeman, Dennis Thomas. Fans can enjoy this action packed card for just $1,000 for a ringside seat while general admission is $500. The first bell will be sounded at 20:00hrs.
mus and Fitzroy Chin.are the main construct of their defenceFor Eagles, whose only loss was a slim defeat to the Tigers, Kellon Primo has been the backbone of their victories netting three goals, while Kendolph Lewis and Kurt Johnson have added one apiece. Meanwhile, the Victoria Community Ground is expected to have the same level of activity when it hosts the other double header featuring Mahaica Determinators versus Santos and the Guyana Police Force (GPF) against Den Amstel. The Determinators will be led by the experienced Delroy Deen, who all know is a prolific goalscorer. Deen combined with Eion Abel and Neil Lynton are in goal scoring form, while Captain Shameer Nazir and Devon Harris are the marshals in defence. For Santos, Keith Caines, Job Caesar, O’Kenie Fraser and Robby McCleggon are the leaders of the strikeforce,
while Shem Arthur, Vassel Cantzelaar and Troy Lewis are the managers of the defensive line In the opening fixture, Den Amstel has clearly impressed thus far with a perfect record nd this was attained through the performances of Gideon Payne, Delon Lanferman and Andre Hector, while Kester Jacobs, Travis Hilliman, and Ryan Hunte have been the Rock of Gibraltar on the defensive end. GPF will no doubt depend on the services of Quincy Holder, Dwain Jacbs and Dwayne Charles for goals, while the defence is a total assignment. The winning team will take home $500,000 and a trophy, while the second, third and fourth placed teams will receive $300,000, $200,000 and $100,000 respectively. Banks DIH Limited under its GT Beer Brand, Trophy Stall and Star Party Rentals are the other entities on board.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Bounty Farm Ltd Handicap Tournament 2017 reaches later stage The Guyana Squash Association (GSA) in collaboration with its corporate sponsor Digicel is
staging its 2017 Bounty Farm Ltd Handicap Squash To u r n a m e n t a t t h e Georgetown Club Inc.
courts. Play continued on day three with several exciting and closely fought matches and the event is
scheduled to conclude today. The Open category has reached the semi final stage with the conclusion of the
four quarter final matches. Veteran player Dennis Dias (+10) spectacular run came to an end when he succumbed in straight games to Adam Alves (+7) 10 – 15, 9 – 15. However, the Dias family, had some reason to celebrate when Deje Dias (2), the only minus handicap player remaining in the draw outplayed Steven Persaud (+9) in two close games 15 – 13, 15 – 13. Javid Rahaman (+5) proved to be too strong for Taylor Fernandes (+4) winning 15 – 6, 15 – 8. The last quarter final match saw two junior players, Daniel Islam (+3) and Alex Cheeks(+3) renewing their rivalry and this time it was Daniel who would come out the victor with a hard fought 15 – 14, 15 – 8 win. In category A, defending champion Samuel InceCarvahal (-8) had another straight set win this time over Chad De Abreu (+10) 15 – 12, 15 – 14, while Madison Fernandes (+5) was an easy winner over Jason Gomes (+7) 15 – 11, 15 – 12. Kirsten Gomes (+5) was victorious over Osmond Mack (+11) winning 15 – 8, 15 – 6, while Abosaide Cadogan (+5) was a comfortable winner against Lucas Persaud (+13) 15 – 8, 15 – 8. Aliyah Persaud (+7) made light work of Haley Carpenter (+10) winning in straight games 15 – 3, 15 – 6. Results of the other
matches played on the evening were as follows: Category A Liam Carpenter (+10) defeated Noah Rahaman (+13) 15 – 6, 15 – 4 Gianni Carpenter (-6) defeated Dhiven Persaud (+13) 15 – 14, 15 - 13 Open category plate Regan Pollard (-14) defeated Tony Farnum (+11) 15 – 14, 4 – 15, 15 – 12 Jonathan Antczak (+7) beat Ryan Rahaman (+7) 15 – 12, 15 – 8 Douglas De Groot (+7) beat Robin Low (+11) 15 – 7, 15 – 10 Joe Mekdeci (+4) beat Sarah Lewis (+10) 15 – 13, 15 – 12 Category A plate Beau Fernandes (+11) beat Joshua Verney (+13) 15 – 8, 15 - 5 Nathan Rahaman (+10) defeated Jahcinta Adams (+12) 15 – 5, 15 – 8 Zachary Persaud (+7) beat Teija Edwards (+11) 15 – 9, 15 – 5 Isabella Ramjohn (+12) defeated Javed Saul (+13) 14 – 15, 15 – 13, 15 – 13 Nicholas Verwey (+10) beat Aishani Persaud (+13) 15 – 7, 15 – 13 Mikhail Persaud (+10) beat Grant Fernandes (+13) 15 – 5, 15 – 6 Louis Da Silva (+9) beat Beau Fernandes (+11) 15 – 3, 15 – 5 Matches continue today with the finals of all categories starting at 11.00 am.
Forde and Alves for FIFA Professional Football Conference A press release from the Guyana Football Federation Inc (GFF) has informed that the federation will participate in the FIFA Professional Football Conference 2017 from February 20—21, 2017 in San Jose, Costa Rica. This conference is being held in collaboration with CONCACAF and will see participation from President Wayne Forde and Director of Competitions, Ian Alves. According to a correspondence from FIFA, the conference’s objectives are to “to provide Member Associations with c o m p r e h e n s i v e i n f o r m a t i o n o n professional football matters such as Club Licensing‚ introduction into NDRC, to share best practice methods from around the globe and to
Wayne Forde feature subject matter experts on specific areas. It is open to participation from senior management teams from Member Associations including General Secretary, General Counsel, Competitions Director or Club Licensing Manager.
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
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Showstoppers performance extraordinaire destroy Hustlers -Team Money execute coup d’état over ESPN Defending champion Showstoppers produced a performance extraordinaire to elevate their status as serious contenders for the national title after dissecting, dismantling and subsequently destroying the highly touted Hustlers in the final of the West Demerara / East Bank Demerara Guinness ‘Greatest of the Streets’ Competition which concluded on Friday evening, at the Pouderoyen Tarmac. Played before a capacity crowd, that figures estimated to be over two thousand, the reigning champions first eroded the confidence of the Hustlers unit, before cruising to a comfortable victory that the final scoreline of 2-0 did no justice to reveal the true story. The highly anticipated matchup, which was witnessed mostly by Pouderoyen residents, saw the Showstoppers exhibit superior skills and structure to completely extinguish any attempt of opposition by Hustlers, who perhaps were reeling from a tough semifinal escape against ESPN. Dexroy Adams, who fired in a brace, was the chief engineer of their win and a reward of $450,000, championship trophy and a place in the national playoffs. Adams booted in his goals in the 7th and 35th
minutes to lead his team to victory. The result meant that Adams had continued his rich vein of form, being responsible for the team’s advance to the final after his 8th minute strike handed them a place in the final. In the final, Adams gave his team the lead when he unfurled a stinging rightfooter after collecting a pass from the right side which saw his effort elude the last stop and land in the goal to send the partisan support base into explosive celebration. With the experience Hubert Pedro pulling the strings from just in front of the last defender, Showstoppers continued to dominate the game with Adams and company dissecting and mesmerising the Hustlers side with their trickery and skill and everyone in the arena knew it was only a matter of time before they stretched their advantage. Both teams missed glaring opportunities to score goals and it was left to the in-form Adams to seal the deal when he raced on to a direct pass from Marvin Josiah following a long ball from the back by Pedro to ash into an empty goal five minutes from full time. They subsequently defended stoutly to come away with the win and the
top prize. Hustlers, however, did not walk away emptyhanded and received $150,000 and the runner-up trophy. Meanwhile, Money Team edged ESPN 1-0 to secure the third spot with Amoniki Buntin the lone man on target following his 17th minute strike. They waltzed away with $100,000 and a trophy, while ESPN collected $50,000 and a trophy. Earlier, in semifinals results, Showstoppers squeezed past the Money Team 1-0 with Adams netting in the 8th minute, while Hustlers outlasted ESPN 2-1 in sudden death penalty kicks after regulation and extra time failed to detach a 2-2 stalemate. J o h n Wa l d r o n a n d Kwame Holder scored in the 7th and 14th minutes respectively for Hustlers, while Leroy Lindie and an own goal in the 22nd and 24th minutes accounted for ESPN tally. In the night’s full results: Final Hustlers-0 vs Showstoppers-2 Dexroy Adams-7th and 35th 3rd Place M o n e y Te a m - 1 v s ESPN-0 Amoniki Buntin-17th Semi-finals Game-1 ESPN-2 vs Hustlers-2 Hustlers won 2-1 on sudden death penalty kicks Hustlers scorers
Part of the action in the final between eventual winners Showstoppers and Hustlers on Friday evening at the Pouderoyen Tarmac.
John Waldron-7th Kwame Holder-14th ESPN scorers
Leroy Lindie-22nd Own Goal-24th Game-2
Showstoppers-1 vs Money Team-0 Dexroy Adams-8th.
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Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
26th R&R Int. 11 Race National Park Cycle Meet
De Nobrega outsprints Eastman and Agard to take top spot; Crawford is juvenile winner
Feature race winner Paul De Nobrega (left) pose with other top performers and race organizers following yesterday’s presentation of trophies and cash incentives. Paul De Nobrega of Digicel Team Evolution comfortably outsprinted Hamza Eastman of Team Coco’s and Linden Bauxite F l y e r s C y c l e C l u b ’s Shaquelle Agard in a threeway battle to win the feature School Boys and Invitation 35-lap race when the 26th annual R&R International 11 Race National Park Meet w a s h e l d y e s t e r d a y.
In blistering sunshine, De Nobrega blazed to a memorable win as he stopped the clock at One Hour 15 Minutes 31.96 Seconds in the race that attracted 30 starters including Guyana Cycling Federation President, Horace Burrowes. Closing out the top six positions were Jamal John (Team Coco’s), Andrew Hicks (United) and 2016 winner, Michael Anthony (Unattached) in that order. T r o j a n C y c l e C l u b ’s Romello Crawford topped his juvenile counterparts to win the 10 lap contest in 21 Minutes 36.87 Seconds. Curtis Dey and Briton John followed Crawford to the
l i n e i n t h a t o r d e r. R&R International, which also sponsors a road race to go along with the National Park Meet each year, will be doing so Saturday next. It is usually held on the West Demerara but organizer Hassan Mohamed has informed that due to road rehabilitation works there, it would now be held on the East Coast peadlling off from Ocean View International Hotel to Mahaica and back from 07:30hrs. Cyclists will today turn their attention to the annual Forbes Burnham Memorial race, the first of three stages being contested today in the Ancient County of Berbice.
Korean International Martial Arts Guyana to stage Championship on March 25
Roland Eudoxie Chairman and Chief Instructor of the Korean International Martial A r t s G u y a n a organisation, Mr. Roland Eudoxie, via a Press Release has indicated that they will be hosting their Annual Martial Arts Championship called “ G U YA N A - S o u t h America Undiscovered M a r t i a l A r t s Championship” on Saturday 25thMarch, 2017 at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown from
10:00am. Invitations have been extended to teams from Suriname, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Grenada and USA to go up against teams from Guyana and battle for the champion Team Trophy. Competitors ranging from age 5 upwards will be competing in both Traditional and Free Style categories along with Empty Hand and Weapons Kata, Te a m a n d I n d i v i d u a l Sparring. Our Olympic Design Gold, Silver and Bronze
medals bearing the logo of the National Sports Commission on the front and our National Bird, the Canje Pheasant on the back will be awarded to those placing 1st3rd place respectively. We look forward to the support of other martial arts organizations and supporters, Mr. Eudoxie stated. Special Thanks is being extended to the National Sports Commission, Farfan and Mendes, Modern Grafix and the Guyana Red Cross Society for their continued support.
All set for Champion of champions Pools today Shooters Club is set to stage its grand champion of champions pools competition today at the Grand Central Sports Bar, popularly known as Jerries Bar, located at Grove Public Road. The action starts at 1:00pm and the competition promises to be keen with most of the leading players looking to cash in on the attractive cash prizes on
offer. At stake is a first prize of $100,000 with $40,000 and $20,000 set aside for the 2nd and 3rd place finishers, along with trophies. Sponsors for this event include Banks DIH Ltd, Truck Masters, Jagroops Auto Electrical Establishment, Supreme Petroleum, Jerries Bar and Rasta Auto Spares.
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
League matter is closed in FIFA’s opinion – FIFA Director
GFF Staff Members with Mosengo-Omba and GFF President Wayne Forde. F I FA’s D i r e c t o r o f Member Associations and Development for the Caribbean and Africa Véron Mosengo-Omba said the Elite League dispute was over as far as the global governing body of football was concerned, wrapping up a two-day visit to Guyana last week. This comment was made during a press conference in the Boardroom of the Guyana Football Federation Inc. (GFF) on Friday, 17th February, 2017. Four clubs boycotted the top league
after the GFF Executive Committee decided, within its statutory rights, to invite two extra teams into the competition. ”The problem of the league is not a FIFA problem, this problem is governed by the GFF Statutes,” MosengoOmba said at the end of his t r i p . “ We e x c h a n g e d correspondence with the GFF about this. For us, this case is over because the solution to this problem is in t h e S t a t u t e s . ” ”What do the Statutes of the GFF say? They give the
competence to the Executive (Committee).” FIFA, the world governing body of football, has written to the GFF to confirm the national body’s right to decide the composition of its c o m p e t i t i o n s . FIFA also stated that the expansion of the league did not automatically require a change in the GFF Congress membership. Citing the GFF Constitution, FIFA said only the Congress could authorize such a change in its membership. During his visit,
Mosengo-Omba met Minister of State Joseph Harmon and Minister Within The Ministry of Education – Department of Sports Nicolette Henry to explore areas of possible co-operation between FIFA, the GFF and the government to support the development of football. T h e s e n i o r F I FA representative also held discussions with the GFF Executive Committee and encouraged the staff to continue to work hard to reform and improve football in Guyana.
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Guyana to have Cricket Museum at National Racquet Centre Reds Perriera, Guyana’s iconic cricket commentator, shared his idea of starting a cricket Museum in Guyana with Director of Sports Christopher Jones last December and made the initial donation of the stump from the match when he broadcasted his 100th Test match. Jones was the shadow Sports Minister when the Collation Government was the opposition, but he was not appointed to that position when the David Granger Administration was voted into office in 2015
with Nicolette Henry, being appointed Junior Minister in the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports. Jones was provided with contact numbers of the Test players residing here and promised to contact them and follow that up with emails asking them to donate gear from their playing days to the Cricket Museum, which according to Jones, will be located at the National Racquet Centre on Woolford Avenue. The Museum is expected to be officially launched soon.
KMTC Phagwah Race Meet set for March 19 The Kennard Memorial Turf Club Phagwah race meet has been set for March 19 at Bush Lot Farm, Corentyne. Eight races are carded for the day with the feature event being the D1 and lower which carries a top prize of $700,000.
Other races listed are the L non winner for $100,000, I 3 and lower for $150,000, E 1 maiden and FG and lower for a winning purse of $400,000, L open for a first prize of $110,000, H 1 and lower for a winning purse of (Continued on page 73)
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Sunday February 19, 2017
BRIS/MAC PROMOTION INTERNATIONAL BOXING CARD
Eagerly anticipated slugfests as local punchers square off with Surinamese counterparts They are friendly neighbours but this certainly will not be reflected when five of Guyana’s top amateur pugilists square off with their Surinamese counterparts when the BrisMac Promotions, in collaboration with the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA), presents one night of fistic fury at the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue, this evening. Initially, the organizers had planned a Tri-Nation affair between the host nation and two other Caricom countries, Trinidad and Tobago and St Maarten. Unforeseen financial difficulties forced Trinidad and Tobago and St Maarten to withdraw, eventually reducing the tournament to a two nation affair. The Surinamese arrived in Guyana last Friday evening and immediately sounded a warning to their
Guyanese counterparts that they are here on serious business. They will be anxious to overcome their local counterparts to assume the enviable position of top Caribbean country. This is easier said than done as the local selectors have unleashed a power squad that is focused and determined to retain the pride of the nation. The organizers staged a press conference at Windjammer Restaurant yesterday morning and those in attendance included President of the Suriname Boxing Association, Remie Burke and his Secretary Ricardo Morris. They both thanked and congratulated the GBA for organizing the tournament and dubbed it a step towards further development of boxing in Caricom. President of the GBA, Steve Ninvalle, officially
welcomed the visitors and urged them to maintain a high level of discipline and camaraderie even amidst their anxiety to procure top accolades for their r e s p e c t i v e c o u n t r y. Promoters, Seon Bristol and Alford McDonald, also attended the function and while echoing Ninvalle’s s e n t i m e n t s , u rg e d t h e participants to give of their best. In total, there will be fifteen bouts as the organizers have also matched the skills of several local pugilists against each other in what is expected to be no hold barred affairs. In the international bouts Omar Pollard (Guy) will battle Steven Lin (Sur) in the 51kgs division, while Keevin Allicock (Guy) battles Surinamese, Oubrich Venloo in the 52kgs class. Local pugilist, Richard Subratte, will eventually get the
Seon Bristol (left), Alford McDonald (centre) and the Surinamese boxers in the back row at a briefing yesterday. opportunity to show off his wares when he battles Surinamese, Stefon Van Ommeren, in the 49kgs division. Caribbean best boxer, Christopher Moore, will be anxious to further endorse this tab when he squares off with Surinamese, Fitzgerald King, in the 60kgs division, while Jason Bakker
(Guy) will look to extend his winning streak against Marlon Leming (Sur) in the 91kgs category. The all local affairs will see Sean Graham (FYF) taking on Oxford Moses (HE), while Shaquille Codogan (HE) will match skills with Travis Inverary (FYF). Junior Hyman
(ESSE) will then match skills with Isaiah Moore (FYF) moments before Shaquille Wright (ESSE) takes on Kevin Mullings (HE). Julius Kesney (RHJ) matches gloves with Deshon Elcock (ESSE), while Joshua Corbin (Carryl) opposes Richard (Continued on page 73)
Sunday February 19, 2017
Kaieteur News
PAGE 83
Athletes deserve better By Edison Jefford Guyanese athletes, who continue to compete and represent this country against all odds, deserve much better than the shameless, shoddy treatment meted out to them at the façade that sadly was an Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) Awards Ceremony. The insipid ceremony was held last weekend at the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) Auditorium, Thomas Lands, without any pomp and fanfare, befitting a celebration of outstanding achievement in track and field. To begin with, the venue spoke volumes of the lack of thought that goes into the treatment of the athletes. It suggested that the athletes do not deserve better than an auditorium decorated with the image of ornamental cloth and folding chairs. Maybe the President of the AAG, Aubrey Hutson and his Executive do not pay attention to what obtains for award ceremonies in the region, which is usually a ‘red carpet’ event, held at upscale hotels or convention centres. After all, that is what athletes deserve after a year of immense, and most often
priceless, sacrifice for their country. Athletes are not just a group of itinerant individuals with nothing to do with their lives; they are Ambassadors and Diplomats, who ought to be treated as such. Because of this fact, the AAG’s Awards Ceremony should have been held at an appropriate venue. There are many such venues to choose from, beginning with the Marriot Hotel. The AAG may be inclined to cite a lack of sponsorship in being able to procure a more appropriate venue with the right décor, but this is why leadership is important. If that was the problem, then it suggests that there is no corporate confidence in the leadership of the AAG; a simple meeting with the management of any highend venue where a proposal could have been made to link the occasion to the venue’s marketing could have produced the venue for free or at a reduced rate. This issue also exposes the limitations within the leadership of the association, which should pay attention to what obtains in Jamaica, for instance, for an Award Ceremony. It is a gala event that attracts the crème de le crème in the
sport and of stakeholders. The association, however, has no excuse because it is a recipient of two International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) grants of US$15,000 and US$25,000 annually; that is $8,000,000 per annum. AAG also has access to Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) funds. The occasion last weekend had the auspicious presence of Director of Sports, Christopher Jones and GOA President, K.A Juman Yassin. Apart from what was clearly an improper venue, the award to athletes must elevate from a mere trophy. It is time athletes receive financial, or other valuable prizes, whenever they are so recognised. To escalate the disregard for the efforts of athletes, the association somehow forgot triple jumper, Troy Doris and sprint ace, Brenessa Thompson in the reckoning for Male and Female A t h l e t e s o f t h e Ye a r respectively. It was a disingenuous and egregious act that shows complete disrespect for the efforts of those two outstanding Guyanese athletes. Doris was Guyana’s highest achieving athlete in 2016 when he reached the
Limacol showdown at MSC and Victoria today The Mackenzie Sports Club (MSC) ground in Linden will come alive tonight when Western Tigers and defending champion Milerock square off in the opeing game of a double header as quarter-final action in the Limacol Round Robin / Knockout Football Competition resumes. In the feature clash,
E a g l e s a n d Wi n n e r s Connection collide in a highly antiipated all-Linden affair which is anticipated to provide fans with a scorching encounter. The Tigers and Milerock clash is another stage in the Georgetown versus Linden rivalry with the former approaching the encounter in ripping form.
Pride beat Scorpions by 59 runs in Super 50 final ST JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – Barbados Pride defeated Jamaica Scorpions by 59 runs in the final of the Regional Super50 at Coolidge Cricket Ground here yesterday. Scores: PRIDE 271 for nine off 50 overs (Shai Hope 101, Jason Holder 69, Kevin Stoute 41; Rovman Powell 227, Jason Campbell 2-35). SCORPIONS 212 all out off 44.3 overs (Rovman Powell 65, Andre McCarthy 30, Damion Jacobs 28; Sulieman Benn 3-33, Jason Holder 2-28, Carlos Brathwaite 2-43, Kemar Roach 2-54).
The West Ruimveldtbased unit closed Group-B with a perfect record following victoriess over New Amsterdam United, Eagles and Uitvlugt and their attacking prowess is well known, conciting of the likes of Andrew Murray Jr, Devon Millington, Randolph Wa g n e r, D w a y n e McLennon, Stellon David and Hubert Pedro. Cleon Forester, Ryan Adolph, Jumane Somerset and Linden Pickets will definitely lead their defence to stop the incursions of the Milerock forwards. Milerock, who have looked a shell of their last year’s combination, will no doubt have to show much improvement to get past the rampaging Tigers side. A solitary victory, a draw and defeat highlight their campaign to date and these performances signify a high level of unpredictably so (Continued on page 73)
Brenessa Thompson triple jump Final at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Doris placed seventh in the Final where he had Guyana being given prodigious prominence worldwide. Thompson broke Guyana’s national 100m and 200m records on her way to qualifying for the Rio Games as a 20-year-old. The AAG did not even give these two athletes due consideration though they are based in the United States of America. They are Guyanese athletes, who represent Guyana. The association cannot conveniently become
Troy Doris aware of this fact when it wants the athletes to don the Golden Arrowhead at international events, and then forget about them at its Award Ceremony. Hutson apologised for what he called a “serious oversight” in a News Room interview, which was posted on social media platform, Facebook. In the video, he denied having information on the performances of Thompson and Doris, though those were public knowledge that was published in the local media. The thread on Facebook has received widespread condemnation from athletes,
Aubrey Hutson stakeholders and aficionados locally and overseas, including double Commonwealth medallist, Aliann Pompey, who said that she kept Hutson informed with the performances of the athletes. It is this kind of treachery and use of ‘alternative facts’ that continue to undermine any real progress in the development of the sport from the perspective of the athletics association. The truth is not one of the characteristics of the association, which obviously questions its credibility.
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Showstoppers performance extraordinaire destroy Hustlers
PN S E r e v o t a ét ’ d p u o c e t cu e x e y e n o -Team M A representative of Colours Boutique presents Showstoppers Captain Hubert Pedro with the first prize and trophy in the presence of Guinness Brand Manager Lee Baptiste (right), teammates and officials following their win in the final against Hustlers.
Bounty Farm Ltd Handicap Tournament 2017 reaches later stage
Taylor Fernandes plays off the glass against Javid Rahaman at the GT Club on Friday night. (Photos by Sean Devers)
26th R&R Int. 11 Race National Park Cycle Meet
De Nobrega outsprints Eastman and Agard to take top spot; Crawford is juvenile winner
I am the champ! Paul De Nobrega about to cross the finish line to win yesterday’s feature 35-lap contest closely pursued by Hamza Eastman (partly hidden) and Shaquelle Agard. (Franklin Wilson photo)
Pride beat Scorpions by 59 runs in Super 50 final Printed and published by National Media & Publishing Company Limited, 24 Saffon St.Charlestown, Georgetown.Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491 or Fax: 225-8473/ 226-8210