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AIETEUR Three Guyanese Wednesday Edition missing after NEWS using Suriname backtrack crossing

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February 10, 2021 -Vol. 16 No. 06

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Jagdeo believes Exxon, CNOOC and Hess would pick up insurance bill ...but Guyana has no guarantee in writing Three brothers charged with “Eye-pass” to murder of Belle West man the highest ...victim was stabbed 17 times - PM

Govt. looking to implement fines on gas flaring - VP Jagdeo Labourer remanded for taxi driver’s execution at party Man critical after being stabbed by wife Ganja, firearm, motorcycles, other items seized during police exercise

Exxon “eyes pass we”!

They have little respect or regard for our people.

Yet, the company has the temerity to claim that it is working in the best interest of us. They want us to accept that they are only continuing production because of their concern for us in light of the financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This fake concern for us is part of Exxon’s justification for the ongoing and uncontrolled damage to our environment as a result of the company’s flaring. It is a lame excuse.

Exxon is not doing us any favours. The company is acting on its own greed and in its own interest. It needs Guyana to restore

its profitability. This concern for our well-being is contrived. Exxon is treating us as fools and dunderheads.

Exxon has NOT suddenly developed a conscience. It can hardly claim to care about the welfare of Guyanese while it continues to poison the air, which we breathe with its flaring of natural gas.

But Exxon can dare attempt such an insult on our collective intelligence because our leaders have allowed this. Our leaders are conniving with the oil companies to plunder our resources. And all the while, they are joining with them to make us feel that the oil companies care for us.

Govt. to conduct four studies - VP defends on gas-to-shore project location

“When Exxon done with Guyana woman will be making babies in two months rather than nine”. Listen to the Glenn Lall Show @11:00AM on Kaieteur Radio 99.1/99.5FM

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Kaieteur News

Wednesday February 10, 2021

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

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

EDITORIAL

The Bertram Collins College and the Public Service This week, it was broken in the media that the PPP/C government would be closing down the Bertram Collins College of the Public Service, a flagship project of the David Granger administration. There is little known today about the man after whom the entity was named, with the website offering really the only substantial source of bio-data on who was no doubt an accomplished gentleman: “In 1968, at the behest of Sir David James Gardner Rose, Commander in Chief of Guyana, Dr. Bertram Collins was appointed to be the Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry into the Public Service of Guyana. Dr. Collins was both a consummate student and a prolific writer. He penned among other articles: ‘The Civil Service and the Ministerial System,’ in British Guiana Civil Service Magazine, December 1983. ‘The Civil Service of British Guiana in the General Strike of 1963,’ in Caribbean Quarterly, University of the West Indies, Vol. 10 No. 2, June 1984, and ‘Racial Imbalance in Public Services and Security Forces in British Guiana,’ in Race, London, Vol. 7, No. 3, January, 1986.” In response to the publication of the news of the impending closure, former APNU+AFC Minister of the Public Service, Tabitha Sarabo-Halley wrote, or was instructed to write, that the closure of the ‘College’ was essentially an attack on the Public Service as a whole. In response, her successor, PPP/C Minister of Public Service, Sonia Parag, countered that not only was the college a financial drain on the Treasury, but that it was, in fact, used as a site of political operations for the APNU+AFC political machinery.

It did not help the institution’s reputation in any way in defending that charge when it was that – in April of 2020, in the middle of the Granger administration’s attempt to steal the elections – Dr. Mark Kirton was appointed by SaraboHalley as “Senior Executive Director” of the Bertram Collins College. Kirton who is otherwise a sound academic, but whose appointment was tainted by the fact that his immediate previous engagement was as effective Coordinator of the APNU+AFC campaign for over a year, beginning in February of 2019, a position that he had not officially left at the time of his accepting the posting to the College, a posting it should be noted that no one in the Granger Administration had the legitimate authority to make.

His appointment therefore was as antithetical as you could get in fulfilling the spirit of imparting non-partisan, ethical, professional public service values.

As a general idea, the Bertram Collins College of the Public Service made sense. As implemented, it was tainted by the theatre, the pomp and ceremony, and the consequent insubstantiality that was typical of not just of the Granger administration but of the man at the helm of the administration itself. It should be noted that, in the wake of ‘dismantling’ of one of his flagship ‘institutions,’ the man himself remains in hiding and silent, with not so much as a ‘principled’ press release in protest.

The larger picture here, of course, is that the public service does in fact need both urgent capacity building and systemic overhaul. It has needed it for years past and any meaningful transformation of the public service is going to take several years going forward, and would need to start with precisely the sort of institution that Dr. Bertram Collins, who passed away in 1997, would have in fact been proud of.

Certainly, for example, he would have seen the need to have an inquiry into the dysfunctional relationship between the institutional public service and the political system that has led to abuses of power under multiple administrations; and he would have definitely been keen to solve the touchy challenge of racial imbalance in the public service, something he observed in the 1960s, published on in the 1980s, and which remains a topic of discussion in 2021.

And of course, there are several other critical new challenges that are facing the public service that would require a transformative approach, one which the current capacity of the public service’s internal training mechanism is grossly inadequate to meet. In short, shutting down the ironic farce that was the Granger administration’s Bertram Collins College of the Public Service was a sensible idea. However, completely shutting down the idea of a College of the Public Service is one that warrants revisiting.

I am grateful to Freddie Kissoon for enlightening me DEAR EDITOR, I am grateful to your columnist, Freddie Kissoon, for enlightening me and your readers about James Watson’s deplorable and unscientific views on race expressed in his career after

the early research which won him the Nobel Prize with Francis Crick.

I should have checked before recording my early memory of meeting Watson at Cambridge and would then have been able to give a truer

picture. The awful nonsense which Watson has expressed on race should of course be dismissed. The scientific community at large has declared its outrage. As Dr. Francis Collins, celebrated geneticist and Director of the National Institutes of Health in Maryland, in rejecting Watson’s scientifically

untrue and “profoundly unfortunate” statements, has said “It is disappointing that someone who made such groundbreaking contributions perpetuates such unsupported and hurtful beliefs.”

Yours Sincerely, Ian McDonald

Setting the record straight on the work being done by the Agriculture Minister DEAR EDITOR, Permit me a few lines to respond to a letter to the editor titled ‘Ad hoc activities in Agriculture can’t quite cut it’ that was published in the Monday, February 8, 2021 edition of your newspaper.

I’ve noticed that this was the second letter written by the writer, Mr. Haresh Singh Kumar, criticizing the Honourable Zulfikar Mustapha and the sector’s performance within the last 10 days. After reading both letters, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some of the progress made thus far in the sector.

Since the Honourable Minister took office in August 2020, the renewed interest seen in the sector has been quite evident. This is due to the Minister ’s timely response to dealing with the issues our farmers have been facing for several years. Even these acts have been criticized, but were these interventions not warranted?

Was the Minister expected to jump in and impose policies without first dealing with the needs of the farmers? You cannot build a sector without a solid foundation. The fact of the matter remains that our

farmers needed urgent help.

If you speak with farmers from any of the communities that the Minister visited since taking office, you will see the impact that these interventions have had on their daily operations.

The writer’s first letter stated that “there are a lot of Public Relations stunts but no real private investment in agriculture or any sector of the economy.” Editor, before any deals are signed for investments to be made in the agriculture sector, due diligence has to be done. As Minister of Agriculture, Minister Mustapha’s main objective when it comes to investments in the sector is to ensure Guyanese benefit.

So forgive the Honourable Minister if deals are not being signed fast enough for the writer, but all investment deals presented to any Minister of Government have to be in accordance with the Government’s ‘Promise for Prosperity.’ It is not the Government’s intention for Guyana to be known in the near and distant future as ‘a country so desperate for investment that it entered into several bad investment deals.’

The Guyana Office for

Investment and the American Chamber of Commerce were also engaged to assist with the investment process for the sector.

Furthermore, many international investors have signalled their interests in the sector. During a recent visit by an investment team from Dubai, one of the wealthiest cities in the world, a wide range of opportunities, particularly those in the agricultural sector, were discussed.

Minister Mustapha made several presentations on rice, sugar, dairy, and livestock and the two nations are now in talks to move forward with a number of projects in this regard.

The writer seems to be oblivious to many things happening in the sector.

Minister Mustapha has been speaking about government’s plans for the rice, sugar, cash and non-traditional crops, and livestock sector.

Since taking office, Minister Mustapha has signalled his intention to double rice production by 2025. Last October, the Guyana Rice Development Board released the GRDB16.

This new variety, with good

management practices, can produce 55 to 60 bags of paddy per hectare, which is 20 bags more than other popular varieties. Only last week, Minister Mustapha conducted a field visit to the Burma Rice Research Station, where the GRDB in collaboration with the Inter American Institute for Corporation on Agriculture (IICA), has a demonstration plot under cultivation for biofortified rice, rich in Zinc and other essential vitamins and minerals. The Minister is also working aggressively on a comprehensive plan to develop the second phase of the Mahaica-MahaiconyAbary Agriculture Development Authority (MMA-ADA) Scheme. Plans are also being crafted to develop the Aurora Land Development Project and other prime agricultural lands in Regions Three and Six. Once these lands come under cultivation, rice production and agriculture production, in general, will increase tremendously. Livestock farmers will also benefit from the development of these lands through the establishment of pastures (Continued on page 6)

The former Finance Minister should not take credit for his counter productive work DEAR EDITOR, I refer to a letter that appeared in the Stabroek News on February 8, 2021, in which the former Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, responded to Mike Persaud on the US$4M Bakery to be set up in Guyana by the Fernandes Group – a Surinamese bakery.

In his response, the former Finance Minister sought to take credit for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Invest arm that is now lending to the private sector. The Minister stated that during his tenure as Finance Minister he worked tirelessly to get the IDB Invest and the IDB Lab to invest in bankable projects within the private sector.

The manner in which the former Minister expressed

himself in the letter gives one the impression that the IDB could not find any bankable projects to lend during his five-year tenure and is only now finding bankable projects. Clearly, the former Minister does not seem to understand the workings of the economy.

It his contractionary fiscal agenda during the last five years, egregious economic policies which in turn stymied the private sector and resulting in the underperformance of the productive sectors, coupled with the lack of any major development projects – that explains why the IDB Invest could not find any bankable projects. The simple answer is that there were none because of how the economy was managed under his

tenure.

This out-turn also partly explains the high levels of non-performing loans in the banking sector of more than 11 percent which is higher than universally set benchmarks.

Editor, please permit me to include the links of three articles I wrote responding to the former Finance Minister directly on several issues on the economy – with the view to engage him in a public debate on these matters.

See links below to articles inviting the former Minister’s response: h t t p s : / / guyanatimesgy.com/formerfinance-ministers-argumenton-the-increase-of-the-debtceiling-comical-anddisingenuous-part-1/ h t t p s : / /

guyanatimesgy.com/formerfinance-ministers-argumenton-increase-of-debt-ceilingcomical-and-disingenuouspart-2/ h t t p s : / / www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/ 2020/04/23/we-need-not-getexcited-about-oil-and-gasas-it-is-merely-a-premium/ Editor, the former Minister of Finance should not take credit for counter productive work.

I eagerly await a response to the above articles written by the undersigned in direct response to former Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, on several occasions.

Yours Faithfully, JC Bhagwandin Chief Financial Advisor/ Analyst JB Consultancy & Associates

Wednesday February 10, 2021

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Kaieteur News

As Commissioners, we want to disassociate ourselves from the Cathy Hughes’ letter sent out by Ethnic Relations Commission Dear Editor, We the undersigned Commissioners wish to disassociate ourselves from a letter dated January 28, 2021, (see attached) emanating from the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) as signed by the Chairman and addressed to the Honourable Catherine Hughes, Member of Parliament.

The letter followed the completion of an internal investigation into a Facebook post in which the comment, “this country needs a civil war”, was noted. The Commission in a press release (see attached) on December 16, 2020, captioned, “ERC I N V E S T I G AT I N G DANGEROUS SOCIAL MEDIA POST ALLEGEDLY ATTRIBUTED TO CATHY HUGHES”, captured Ms. Hughes’ response and further stated that, “the

Commission will continue its investigation to first ascertain the authenticity of the post and then decide on any action that may be deemed necessary”.

In our respectful opinions, we have always argued in the Commission that any action and/or utterances by anyone, especially public officials, which can lead to disharmony, is of concern to the body. A civil war is a war between citizens of the same country and can have dire consequences as history teaches. Therefore, in our view, calls for such, whether allegedly

by Mrs. Hughes or anyone else, have the potential to bring direct harm and disharmony to and among our people.

The letter to Mrs. Hughes alluded to, which did not address the authenticity of the post, did not benefit from our input as Commissioners.

Indeed, we were only made aware after it was prepared and dispatched. Therefore, the missive does not reflect our views on the issue it speaks to.

The “raison d’etre” of the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) is to investigate comments that can lead to or likely to or shall excite racial and ethnic hostility between and among Guyanese.

Our view is that the position adapted by the Commission in the said letter, constitutes an abysmal abdication of its very mandate. Further, while space may not permit, a number of statements of similar genus, which were the subject of investigation, commentary and condemnation by this Commission in the past, can be cited.

Therefore, it remains befuddling that the

The EPA should not be politicized DEAR EDITOR, I can concur with views recently expressed by Mr. GHK Lall concerning the EPA here in Guyana. This organization does not need to be politicized. We need a fully professional entity to look after our environmental issues. The senior staff should be accountable to the populace and they should ensure that both local and foreign companies adhere to the letter of the law

concerning their various operations.

The basic issue is the health and wellbeing of our citizens. This is an inviolable precept and should be respected by all and sundry.

Many persons coming here to do business cannot behave in unbecoming ways even in their own countries. Thus they should never be allowed to flout our laws and systems.

I have a case in point concerning my own residence

where neighbours have been burning gold without permission. A stop order was issued but they have continued nevertheless with impunity. The EPA need to put this matter to rest by taking the necessary punitive actions against the offenders.

I am looking forward to seeing the EPA being staffed by professionals and not by political brethren.

Regards, Cyril Walker

The wicked tendencies of certain ambitious politicians DEAR EDITOR, I have been following closely the news you have highlighted in your newspaper concerning the sale of a certain Water Street property to BK Marine Inc. From the reports in the media, especially state media, the readers are led to believe that the transfer was attended by fraud and that it was one by the APNU administration.

The mention of senior members of the APNU administration lends credence to the notion that

this was somehow a deal done by APNU. All of this is false. It so happens that in 2006 when the deal was done, I was consultant to the BK Group and I, together with Mr Tiwarie, met with Mr. Winston Brassington to finalize the deal.

All of this was done 14 years ago during the PPP/C administration.

This is disappointing and truly disgusting to now see how facts can be twisted to satisfy the wicked tendencies

of certain ambitious politicians.

It is sad indeed. The sole purpose of this letter is to correct the false record. I was a participant 14 years ago.

The matter is heading to court and all the pertinent facts will be presented and all those who participated in the 2006 deal will have an opportunity to explain to the judge under oath what exactly happened 14 years ago.

Yours respectfully, Ramon Gaskin

Commission takes the position that the comment made in the alleged post, is beyond its scope to pronounce upon, yet and in the very next sentence, it seemingly pronounces on the matter and then later on proceeds to issue an apology to Mrs. Hughes.

For ease of reference, paragraph three (3) from the letter states, “As you are aware, the mandate of the Commission is to receive and investigate complaints of racial, ethnic, religious or cultural discrimination brought to its attention.

Hence, the complaint falls outside the scope of the Commission. The team has concluded that the comment, ‘this country needs a civil

war’, was intended to create nothing more than mischief in the Guyanese populace”.

By concluding in that paragraph, that the comment was intended to create nothing more than mischief, the mater, in our view, has been pronounced upon by the Commission – a matter, by its own position, that has the potential for disharmony.

The situation is further compounded by the decision to recommend the said matter for investigation elsewhere thereby recognizing that the matter is far from being completed. In doing so, the Commission is claiming that it has no jurisdiction over the said matter.

We are also befuddled that, from the conclusion,

such dastardly call as that for a civil war, whether through an alleged doctored post or one facilitated supposedly through a fake profile, seems not of concern to the Commission.

We believe that with all due respect to Mrs. Hughes for whom we have nothing personally against, there wasn’t a need for the Commission to apologize especially since the Commission did not accuse of an offence.

Given that the apology emanated from the Commission, we believe it was necessary for our views to be made public so as to avoid any misconception that the decision was holistic.

Inexplicably, the Commission, having issued a statement (Continued on page 6)

A new group of people is needed to bring in a new day DEAR EDITOR, I have seen and read the distress railed by the Kaieteur Newspaper on the quandary of the Oil and Gas activities on the continental shelf ostensible belonging to the Sovereign State of Guyana.

Apart from the ravages of the foregoing saga, a recent report stated a certain amount of Oil is sold.

No mention as to how many barrels made up this value.

The Press must be supplied with ships BILLS OF LADING which will show details of cargo on board and where it is heading. If not International action should be taken.

I queried a long time ago if the foreshore has been ceded, no answer.

However the reality is that our foreshore is

effectively cut off from the nation. We need a visa to go out there.

There can be no argument as to the solution to this dilemma and that is absolute.

Nationalization of all oil & gas operations. Drastic diseases need drastic cures.

I am no communist and I am more of a capitalist than John D. Rockefeller with no apologies.

We have out there modern day Conquistadors not dissimilar to the latter day Conquistador on our western Border who seems to be learning some more English

but he needs to go to England. As far as I know Bolivar had no descendants.

Learn the meaning of ReConquer before using it.

A new group of people are needed to bring in a new day. If we are not “intoxicated with oil” what are we intoxicated with?

Yours truly John De Barros

PAGE 6

...Setting the record straight on From page 4 and regulated zoning for the cultivation of rice and cattle rearing.

There has also been a push for the development of high-earning non-traditional crops. Budget 2020 had several incentives for the cultivation of corn and soya bean. NAREI has also intensified its efforts to promote the cultivation of a number of high income earning non-traditional crops, like broccoli and cauliflower.

The agency has conducted several sensitization programmes to help farmers prepare or transition their land for the cultivation of these super foods.

With the challenges faced in the aquaculture sector, His Excellency, President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, recently announced that government will soon launch an aquaculture master plan.

Heads of Missions from countries with thriving aquaculture industries have been engaged and specialists from these countries have been invited to work with Government to develop a plan best suited for Guyana.

As it relates to the sugar industry, since taking office, government has been working to ensure positive changes are made within the sector. After taking office, government immediately put systems in place to get things up and running at GuySuCo. An initial investment of $3B was made by government to reopen the Rose Hall, Skeldon, and Enmore estates.

An additional $4B was later injected into the sector to recapitalize the estates at Blairmont, Albion, and Uitvlugt.

Operational assessments were carried out at each of the estates and it was determined that the estates that were still allowed to operate, were operating at 60 percent capacity.

Government made it clear that the first step for GuySuCo was to get it to a place where it can break even in terms of its production.

A

Wednesday February 10, 2021

Kaieteur News

comprehensive plan for GuySuCo has since been developed and is currently at the level of Cabinet for review.

It would be remiss of me to omit the fact that GuySuCo has also rehired hundreds of workers, most of whom were callously placed on the breadline when the estates were closed by the previous administration.

Shortly after taking office, Minister Mustapha immediately sought Cabinet’s approval for $29M to commence rehabilitation works to several access dams in Regions Two, Three, Five, and Six. These works were considered urgent as some 91,580 acres of rice fields were under threat due to inaccessible dams. Farmers would’ve suffered millions in losses if the Minister did not put systems in place to carry out these works immediately.

He then made recommendations and Cabinet again approved the release of an additional $98 million to conduct urgent repairs on critical infrastructure in the MahaicaMahaicony-Abary Agriculture Development Authority, which is the largest agriculture scheme in the country. This injection saw the clearing of over 252 drains and benefited approximately 96,000 acres of rice land in the area and over 2,300 farmers, families within the Abary-Berbice and the Mahaica-Mahaicony block.

Editor, 12 of the 32 manifesto promises for the agriculture sector has already been achieved. The rates for land rentals and drainage and irrigation charges have been reversed to what they were in 2014 and agriculture machinery and inputs no longer attract value added tax. The Minister has also resumed the seed and acoushi ants bait distribution project. In his first letter, the writer said “other than clearing some drains and quickly tending to flooding in several areas, nothing much has been happening in agriculture.” What the writer should be made aware of is

the fact that the government had made it clear that the 2020 budget was an emergency budget. In the agriculture sector, budget 2020 was designed to provide funds to carry out emergency works and prepare the sector for the transformative projects that will materialize once Budget 2021 is passed and over the next five years.

Below is a list of 10 other meaningful interventions: 1. An initial sum of GY$2.6M was spent to assist Essequibo Rice farmers with paddy bug infestation, 2. Paddy Bug Action Units were established in five Regions, 3. Panama was finally engaged with regards to the outstanding $1.9B owed to Guyana for shipments of rice, 4. Noting the effects climate change is having on cultivation, a ‘Smart Agriculture Initiative’ was launched so that farmers can procure shade-house materials at a cost price from NAREI, 5. A Vaisala Automatic Weather Station was installed at Saxacalli, 6. Assistance was given to several farmers’ groups like the Woodley Park Women’s Cash Crop Farmers’ Group, to help them with expanding their cultivation, 7. A $63M Fertilizer testing Lab commissioned, 8. Two new coconut nurseries were established to decentralize access to quality planting materials.

9. Assistance in the form of fertilisers, chemicals, and other planting materials were given to flood affected farmers in the Pomeroon, and; 10. Three contracts totalling $174M were signed for the construction of a water conservancy in West Watooka, Region 10.

I encourage the writer to exercise patience and await the passage of Budget 2021.

The proposed budget for the Ministry of Agriculture was developed to kick start the sector. Several transformative projects and developmental investments have been included and Guyanese can rest assured that Guyana’s agriculture sector will thrive.

In conclusion, I wish to extend an invitation to the writer to meet with the Honourable Minister if this letter lacks clarity in any way. He can also use the opportunity to present some facts on the claims made about ‘demanding “taxes” on contractors’ as I am unaware of this and cannot make a pronouncement at this time because no names or concrete information was given.

Yours sincerely, Janell Cameron Public Relations Officer Ministry of Agriculture

Parliamentary pension DEAR EDITOR, I have seen recent correspondence in the media pointing out that former Minister, Balram Singh Rai, was denied his Parliamentary Pension as a serving Minister.

I should point out that he was not alone.

There are, in fact, a number of Ministers, including myself, who served continuously beyond four (4) years, in my case eight (8) years, on or before October 1992, some today in their seventies, in my case, my eighties, who have been denied their right to this

pension.

In fact, in 2018, I wrote the then Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, pointing this out, and I am aware that other Ministers in similar positions had written former President David Granger on the matter.

It is public knowledge that a Bill was introduced into the National Assembly to redress exactly the same situation for former Prime Minister, Hamilton Green, to enable him to receive a monthly pension of just over $1M on the basis of the salary of the then current Prime Minister. As far as I am concerned, this was

well deserved but I continue to ask the question, what about the rest of us who are similarly entitled?

It was my understanding that the Bill should have, but did not, provide the same measure of relief for all those Parliamentarians who are still alive, who retired on or before October 1992.

I wonder if our new government will consider redressing this matter and whether it would receive the full support of the Opposition now sitting in Parliament.

Yours sincerely, Kit Nascimento

Deep shore harbour port a great opportunity DEAR EDITOR, In the lead up to the budget discussion, the Surinamese have expressed an interest in a Joint Venture to develop the shore base aspects of the Oil & Gas Sector to the benefit of both nations.

The proposed new deep shore harbour port project in budget 2021 provides an excellent opportunity to directly link a major project to revenue streams while also reducing the investment risk via the addition of a strong partner.

Although a major undertaking that will pull

significant resources and man power, by bringing the Surinamese onboard, we will be able to add expertise and share the cost of the investment. The deal may be structured in a way that allocates a percentage of capacity to the Surinamese at cost for utilization. The positive impact on the local labour market, the development of local skills and the margin capture due to increased vertical integration in the sector should easily produce a positive return on investment for Guyana.

Best regards, Mr. Jamil Changlee Chairman The Co-operative Republicans of Guyana

A reminder that we are all West Indians DEAR EDITOR, The victory by the West Indies team in the first test match of the Bangladesh tour represents one of the greatest moments in West Indies cricket history. For me it ranks alongside the historic victory over England in 1950, the World Cup triumph in 1975, the 1976 humiliation of England, the “blackwash” of England in 1984; Brian Lara’s 1994 breaking of the legendary Garry Sobers’ record and the two T20 World Cup wins in 2012 and 2016 under the leadership of the muchunderappreciated Darren Sammy.

I characterize those moments as great, because they galvanized the Caribbean society beyond the boundary. My inclusion in this category of Lara’s accomplishment and the two T20 wins may puzzle some people. But in Lara’s case, he broke the record at a time when the fortunes of the great teams of the 1970s and 1980s had begun to show signs of decline.

His achievement gave hope to the region that all was not lost. And the World Cup victories were achieved while West Indies cricket was on its knees.

When the first-choice players declined to tour Bangladesh, one was torn between frustration and understanding—frustration that not for the first time our players appear to be taking lightly their roles as shapers of our collective struggle for selfhood and understanding because of the deadly consequences of the pandemic.

So, many of us did not give the so-called second-string teams a chance.

The performance during the ODI leg of the tour seemed to confirm our assessment. Then out of the blues came the incredible victory led by the little-known Kyle Mayers.

The manner in which the batsmen went about their business on the last day was reminiscent of the best in the Caribbean character.

It had all the necessary ingredients—the traditional West Indian flair; the mental toughness of the great teams of the Worrell era of the early 1960s and the Lloyd-Richards era of the 1970s-80s; the arrogance of West Indian self-confidence; and the trademark resistance of the oppressed.

It was something West Indian to the bone—a special that touches the soul of the people and brings us to life. We should be excused if we allow ourselves the luxury of believing that this moment is the catalyst for that resurgence of glory that we have hoped and prayed for since 1995—yes, 26 long years. But for now, our spirits are lifted above the violence of the pandemic, the continued visionless drift of our politics and the economic depression that faces the poor in our midst. Our young men in maroon with bat and ball in hand in a far-off land have rekindled hope that our civilization will not fade away—just like that. We live to fight on for another day. And, for us Guyanese, we are jolted from our rancorous, foolish self-destructive political nothingness to the realization that we are also West Indians.

Yours truly, David Hinds

...As Commissioners, From page 5 on January 19, 2021, captioned, “ERC TO INVESTIGATE INTERNAL BREACH OF PRIVATE MEETING”, and which was in response to racial attacks against us and two other Commissioners simply because we voted for eternal advertisement for vacancies at the level of the Heads of Department, to date, we are yet to be officially informed, verbally or written, on the said investigation.

That could be subjected to inferences.

Yours truly, Neaz Subhan Haji Roshan Khan Commissioners Ethnic Relations Commission

Wednesday February 10, 2021

Kaieteur News

GUYANA IS DISORDERED I hate to sound like V. S. Naipaul, but it is problem enough when you are a small country. Imagine, therefore, the problems that arise when you are a small, disordered society.

Guyana is a country with a small population. The small size of the society is further compounded by the everincreasing disordered nature of the society.

No matter what wealth is discovered within this small economic space, it is not going to benefit the population much, unless the disorders are ordered.

With each government, this task is becoming more difficult and two examples will suffice in explaining the dilemma which the government, and any future government, will face.

The British have been exploiters of our national patrimony, there may have been extreme levels of poverty and inequality, but at least they left us with some idea of how to create an ordered society. This is best seen within the capital city.

The British left us with a fine laid-out city, carved out from the coast and designed in rectangular grids with most streets at right angles to each other.

Alongside some of the streets were main canals into which small drains flowed allowing the city, constructed on slightly sloping lands, to drain easily. The streets were wide, creating space which allowed the small city to breathe easily.

A few days ago, I was walking along the avenue on Main Street and it struck me as to how beautiful a city the colonisers left us.

Here in the heart of the city, were avenues which divided Main Street, Carmichael Street, Waterloo Street, Camp Street, Thomas Street and East Street. This is an example of the sort of attention that

was paid to order by the British in their design of Georgetown.

Can you imagine what Georgetown would be like if we had to design our own city? Guess what, I am sure there would have been none of those avenues.

In their place would have been houses or businesses.

We would have tried to crowd every single available piece of land in the city. Driving through the city would have been like driving through a tunnel.

Right now, there is mass disorder taking place within the city. All over the wards of the city, small businesses are popping up.

Many of these are in residential areas. Zoning is out of the window. All around as you drive in the city, you see bottom houses being converted to all manner of businesses.

It is difficult to comprehend how permission is being given for small businesses to be opened in residential areas.

Certainly all of those businesses would have needed the permission of some central authority to convert all these buildings into business places.

If this permission was indeed granted, then there is a serious problem in this country, because it has created a quite disordered city with a business springing up here, there and everywhere.

It would be interesting to know whether all of these businesses that are springing up are licensed and whether those issuing the licence are checking to see whether permission has been granted to establish these businesses in the areas in which they are located.

One wonders also how come there is a policy of no businesses in new housing areas, yet many businesses

are now popping up in these areas. Are these businesses registered? How can they be registered when they are in breach of the very policies laid down by the government?

The government should seriously consider a site audit of all the small businesses, including cake shops and snackettes, which are mushrooming around the country, to determine whether the requisite permits, including tax registrations, are in place. Not to mention the disorderliness created by pavement and roadside vending.

Guyana needs development; but Guyana needs ordered development.

No amount of economic growth is going to translate to a better standard of living for our people unless something is done about this chaotic development that is taking place, especially when it comes to land and property use in the country.

The British left us an authentic and well-designed town, Georgetown. We have not created any other town since then.

We may have named other places as towns, but these are not genuine towns, since even today, many lack the infrastructure and the zoning rules to be classified as towns.

Georgetown is a dying city and sadly, it is still our only city.

If we are to reclaim it as a genuine town and if we are to move forward and create other towns, whether primary or secondary, we must halt the continuing disorder that is taking place right now.

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

Dem boys seh...

No joking matter!

Uncle Moses bin talk ole time story about Burnham.

He tell a true story about Burnham and Boysie Ramkarran. Boysie was long considered de man next in line after Cheddi in de PPP. Boysie also was known to be very witty and wan expert at ‘shotting’ back at people wah tantalize he.

Burnham used to like heckle de PPP side. One day he tun to Boysie and seh, “Boysie, I know more jokes than you!”

Boysie tun to him and seh, “Yes, I agree.” And pointing in de direction of

Burnham Ministers in de front benches, he added, “Because it is you who appointed all of them!”

Sometimes jokes however does tun real. Dem used to have a running joke about Burnham.

De joke stemmed from a gift of three horses which people seh Burnham get when he went on a trip to de United Kingdom after he tun Prime Minister.

When he later travel to de United States, people seh dat de den President, Lyndon Johnson, presented him with a saddle, and de joke was dat

Burnham was told to go and ride de Guyanese people.

Both countries of course de know Burnham had a weakness for de horseback riding.

De joke about Burnham and horseback riding tun a painful reality when Forbes Burnham devastated de economy of he own country, and left people, who use to enjoy a comfortable living, in dire deprivation while he went off on overseas trips with plane loads of officials.

Talk half and nah mek joke about certain things.

PAGE 9

Wednesday February 10, 2021

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Wednesday February 10, 2021

Wednesday February 10, 2021

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Wednesday February 10, 2021

Wednesday February 10, 2021

...GFF and UEFA kick off journey to Guyana’s first From page 31 “Bounceback” return-to-play planning.

“Creating the first professional league in Guyana will be a truly historic moment for our nation and a real statement of intent for the future,” said GFF President Wayne Forde. “We are excited to begin this journey with UEFA as we put the foundations in place to develop a strong league model that can thrive in our specific conditions.”

“The realisation of this long-held dream will require a national team effort, including the support of our members as well as partners from corporate Guyana and the Government of Guyana.

However, once in place, the league will propel our football forward like never before and offer genuine opportu-

nity for young Guyanese talent to flourish, both at home and overseas.”

In order to prepare the ground for fully professional football, a range of capacity building is required, from marketing development and infrastructure to club licensing, coach education and governance. The UEFA Assist team will draw on decades of knowhow from European leagues to help the GFF equip itself and its members for the task ahead.

“For those unfamiliar with the concept of a professional league, this is a competition where all players are paid ‘living wage’ salaries, which enable them to engage as full-time athletes, most commonly either contracted to independent, financially-sustain-

able clubs under the European model or within a commercially-viable franchise under the US model,” Forde said.

“While recent but unsustainable attempts at semi-professional or subsidised models for leagues and teams, as well as the progress by some clubs under the Concacaf Club License system, have tested the waters in Guyana, those achievements have sadly fallen well short of creating a much needed professional league.

We l o o k f o r w a r d t o working with all our stakeholders to explain the crucial difference and why it matters for the future of Guyanese football and our young talent, so that we can make this long-held dream a credible reality to-

Wednesday February 10, 2021 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Friends or a group with which you're affiliated could want you to help them formulate a workable plan for advancement. You're in just the right frame of mind for this, Aries.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20) Career interests are advanced through clear, logical thinking and the sound application of good business sense.

Financial interests look especially promising now.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Social events, perhaps business related, could put you in touch with people in fascinating fields or from foreign countries, Gemini.

CANCER (June 21–July 22) Ideas and insights coming from deep within your psyche are likely to increase your effectiveness in whatever work you do today.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Today you could attend more than one social event, Leo. Some of your professional colleagues will probably be there. Conversations are going to focus primarily on business development and the economy in general.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) You tend to prefer intellectual and philosophical rather than practical pursuits, Virgo, but today you may feel especially practical and more inclined to want to get as many routine tasks out of the way as you can.

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Kaieteur News

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) An older person you're very fond of could visit or call and ask for your advice on practical matters.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Logical and focused thinking could lead to social, career, or financial advancement. Your organizational ability and industry are keener than usual, Scorpio.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) You might be feeling very communicative today, Sagittarius. Concentration, logical thinking, and a heightened ability to put ideas into words enhance your own communicative abilities.

CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) To those around you, you might appear to be your usual logical, rational self, Capricorn. Actually, you may be drawing a lot of your ideas and insights from deep within your psyche.

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) To friends and colleagues, you may seem to have suddenly acquired acute business sense. Your experience has joined with knowledge acquired from others to enable you to formulate practical ideas for advancement.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) Today you're likely to experience a heightened level of intuition and how to use it, Pisces. This could mean advancing a career, furthering a personal goal, or helping a friend

gether.”

The pioneering league development project is taking place with the full support of Concacaf, the governing body of North and Central America and the Caribbean. Currently, in the CFU, only Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominican Republic and Haiti have professional leagues, as classified

by Concacaf.

“There are only four CFU members with professional football leagues. For Guyana to become one of the approved professional leagues would be a fitting legacy for the Forde-led administration and position the country for faster development in football and more success at international level,” said Howard McIntosh, ONE Concacaf and Caribbean Project Senior Manager at Concacaf.

“A professional league in Guyana will provide the pathway for players, match officials and coaches to reach their full potential and to have access to full-time careers in the game, whether at home or overseas.

In its focus on football development and good governance, the GFF has led by example in the Caribbean region and we are all excited to see the fruits of this groundbreaking project unfold in the coming years.”

The establishment of a fully professional league in Guyana, following the Concacaf league professionalisation roadmap, would also enable the title winner and runner-up of each season to enter the Caribbean’s top-tier club tournament - the Concacaf Caribbean Club Championship, which offers a pathway to compete in the Concacaf Champions League.

Because the current Elite League model is classified as a non-professional competition, Guyana’s league champions are currently eligible to take part in the second-tier Concacaf Caribbean Club Shield, which features clubs from CFU member associations with up-and coming leagues that are working their way towards full professional standards.

Since the beginning of the year, GFF officials have also participated in UEFA Assist’s risk and project management virtual programmes, a Concacaf Return to Football Conference for 2021 Competitions, and online coaching courses organised by the Guyana Olympic Committee and the Pan American Sports Organisation.

Haniff and Chan cop Panko Steel Fabrication golf title Richard Haniff and Wayne Chan emerged champions of the Panko Steel Fabrication pairs’ golf tournament which was contested on Sunday last at Lusignan Golf Course.

Haniff and Chan turned in a score of 25 to edge Vijay Deo and Hardeo Ganpat with 26.

Following are the full results; 1st place – Richard Haniff + Wayne Chan -25; 2nd place - Vijay Deo +Hardeo Ganpat -26; 3rd place - Mike Guyadin +Dino

Bissessar -26; 4th place – Ayube Subhan +Bholaram Deo -27; 5th place - Mahen Harry + Rakesh Harry – 27.

Azurdeen Shaw and Avinash Persaud grabbed the lowest gross with 31, while Haniff took the Nearest to the Pin title. The tournament saw a turnout of 54 players. Lusignan Golf Club graciously thanked Panko Steel Fabrication for their contribution to the development of golf in Guyana.

...Sherif becomes first From page 26 billionaire Naguib Sawiris, has lent his financial support to Sherif through his property firm Zed. She hopes to continue her stellar run and represent Egypt in the delayed Tokyo Olympics this year — another first for the country.

For now she is savouring the historic win and setting

her sights on the next round in Melbourne.

“It means a lot to me. This was a mental barrier I had to pass... it was very, very tough to adapt my game to it. Courts are faster and the heat... but (I am) very, very happy with my accomplishment,” said Sherif.

“And I’m going for more,” she added.

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Wednesday February 10, 2021

Sherif becomes first Egyptian woman to advance in Grand Slam AFP - Mayar Sherif became the first Egyptian woman yesterday to advance past the first round of a

Grand Slam tennis tournament, with a little help from superstar footballing compatriot Mohamed Salah.

The Cairo-born, California-educated Sherif, 24, beat French player Chloe Paquet 7-5, 7-5 in what

Australian Open organisers called a “slice of history”.

The win guarantees Sherif will continue her meteoric rise in the world rankings (she is currently at 131) and comes only a few months after she secured a berth at Roland Garros last year — also a historic first at the time.

She will face Kaja Juvan in the next round, after the S l o v e n i a n ’s B r i t i s h opponent Johanna Konta was forced to abandon her match due to injury.

The successive achievements of the young Egyptian tennis player since 2019, when she turned professional, have caught the eye of Liverpool striker Salah.

In a video call organised by their shared sponsor, he imparts wisdom on dealing with the pressures of highlevel sport.

“I can tell you that when I started working on my mental strength more, I saw huge improvements in my play,” Salah told her in a post

shared last week.

Guided by Spanish coach Justo Gonzalez, Sherif went on a 26-match win streak and cracked the top 200 in women’s rankings just months into her budding career last year.

In Egypt, where football is normally the dominant sport, her gritty demeanour and determination to excel have scored her muchneeded sponsorship.

One of Africa’s richest tycoons, Egyptian (Continued on page 25)

Kaieteur News

Wednesday February 10, 2021

PAGE 29

Anderson’s ‘big moment’ over wrecks Indian hopes AFP - England’s veteran fast bowler James Anderson produced one of the most dramatic overs in Test cricket yesterday, wrecking India’s hopes of pulling off a record-breaking run chase.

Captain Joe Root said he could not remember a better over in his career, but there is still no guarantee that Anderson will be in the team for the second Test.

“In the context of this game it was huge,” he said in a tribute to the 38-year-old, whose three wickets in the innings took him to 611 in all Tests.

Anderson was meant for “big moments” in Tests, said Root.

“Big game players stand up and do special things. It’s a great example for the young guys around to see that and want to be a part of that.”

Root called on Anderson to bowl the 14th over of the final day of the first Test and even by the paceman’s standards, it was special.

His second ball claimed Shubman Gill with an incoming delivery to send the off stump flying.

Tw o b a l l s l a t e r,

Raj Ace Auto backs ECC Speaker’s Softball Cup

CEO of Raj Ace Auto Rajesh Singh (left) presents the cheque to ECC President Manzoor Nadir.

Raj Ace Auto of 12 First and Light Street, Alberttown has supported the Everest Cricket Club Speaker ’s International Softball Cup which is set for April 2-4.

CEO of Raj Ace Auto Rajesh Singh presented a cheque to President of the ECC Manzoor Nadir following the launch of the tournament on Friday last.

The tournament, which will be contested in the over 45 and over 50 segments, has attracted 16 teams including six from overseas.

Attractive cash prizes

and trophies will be awarded to the winners and runnersup of both categories, while the man-of-the-match in each game as well as the player-of-the tournament will be rewarded.

The final will be played at Everest CC and will conclude with a bar-be-cue and lime as part of the club’s fund-raising efforts and all of the established COVID-19 protocols will apply.

Umpires for the tournament will be provided by the Georgetown Cricket Umpires and Scorers Association.

Anderson’s appeal for lbw against Ajinkya Rahane was narrowly turned down. But with the next, he sent back Rahane for zero with the off stump uprooted again.

With two key batsmen gone so early, shell-shocked India never looked likely to recover and were all out for 192 and lost the test by more than 200 runs.

“To be honest I was more expecting maybe an lbw or something, or maybe a caught mid-wicket with the

one that stuck in the pitch,” said Anderson.

“But it’s always nice to see the stumps cartwheeling out of the ground.”

“It doesn’t happen very often at my age, so I’m very happy it did today.”

Root said he held back on using Anderson so he could take advantage of his infamous reverse swing.

“And when reverse swing came into it, the skill level and accuracy of Jimmy was always going to be very

potent,” said the captain.

“It worked out nicely for us. And to deliver a spell of bowling like that really did change the whole dynamic of the game.”

Former India batsman VVS Laxman praised Anderson on Twitter saying “Take a bow” and calling him a “GOAT” — greatest of all time — for having “led by example”.

England have a policy of rotating their veteran bowlers which leaves Root

and the team managers in a dilemma. They could still decide to bring in Stuart Broad for the next game which starts Saturday.

Anderson said he understands the policy but would still rest and recover to be ready for the next Test.

Scores: England 578 (Root 218, Sibley 87, Stokes 82) and 178 (Ashwin 6-61) beat India 337 (Pant 91, Sundar 85*, Pujara 73, Bess 4-76) and 192 (Kohli 72, Leach 4-76) by 227 runs.

Kaieteur News

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Wednesday February 10, 2021

Mahaica Softball Cup slated for March

T

he Strathavon All Stars Sports Club of Mahaica has teamed up with WeCare Community Services to hold the first “Mahaica Softball Cricket Cup� for teams in the Mahaica area and the wider regions.

The knockout competition is set for Sunday 7th March 2020 at the Strathavon Sports Club Ground from 09:00hrs.

The aim of the competition is to get local cricketers and young people returning to sports after

almost a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the organisers the event will see more development being done at the club and youths will get more involved in positive things and be a part of a healthy lifestyle.

According to the organisers, over $200,000 in cash and trophies will be up for grabs and interested teams can contact the competition coordinators Mr. Gobindram Hemraj (Randy) on 643-3319 or Mr. Jermaine Persaud on 644-

8172 for registration.

According to the organisers a limited number of teams will be accepted to take part in this the first Mahaica Softball Cup. Already on board with sponsorship for the event is Viscom and Shiwnauth

General Store, while several other local businesses within the area have indicated their willingness to support the competition.

The competition will be played under strict COVID19 guidelines.

Wednesday February 10, 2021

My batting is important to the team says Shepherd ‘We would have loved the batters to bat through the innings’- Shiv

By Sean Devers Guyana Jaguars began their Regional Super50 campaign by beating runners-up Barbados Pride by 56 runs on the D/L/S method on Monday night in Antigua in the second round of the 2021.

At the small Coolidge ground, only three Guyanese batsmen reached 15 but that was enough to earn them victory when rain stopped play for a second and final time with the Bajans on 91-5 off 29.3 overs.

After an attacking 35 with five fours and a six from Chanderpaul Hemraj, who dominated a 48-run opening stand with Assad Fudadin (5 from 24 balls), the Jaguars slipped to 88-5 before Shimron Hetmyer who clobbered eight fours and four sixes in an explosive 53ball 80 and Romario Shepherd’s unbeaten 58 which was decorated with six fours and two sixes, rallied the Jaguars to 235 all out in 41.1 overs.

Off-Spinner Kevin Sinclair took 2-17 from 7.3 overs, while Shepherd captured 1-17 from five overs to take the Man-of-theMatch Award.

Shepherd, one of seven Berbicans in the Jaguars’ starting X1, was ruled out the We s t I n d i e s t o u r o f Bangladesh after he was tested positive for the Covid19 virus.

“Being tested positive when I had no symptoms and missing the Bangladesh tour was kind of hard for me but then I understood that the reason was out of my control,” said the 26-yearold all-rounder who plays for Tucber Park in Berbice club cricket.

Shepherd, who played the first of his five ODIs against Afghanistan at Lucknow on November 6, 2019, has scored one century and four fifties in 25 FirstClass games and spoke of the value placed on his ability with the bat by the Jaguars.

“My batting is really important in this team because everyone is expecting runs from me in the position I am batting and they know how well I can bat.

I have worked really hard on my batting over the past couple of seasons and now I am getting some runs,” explained Shepherd after getting his maiden half-

century in his 30th List ‘A’ game.

Shepherd, who has four ODI wickets and 37 at List ‘A’ levels, already had a wicket with the Bajans on 91-5 when rain washed out the game with the West Indies pacer well set for his first five-wicket haul.

“No I was not disappointed when rain washed out the game at that stage. Even though I was bowling well we were in f r o n t o n t h e Duckworth/Lewis so we had already won the game. It would have been nice to get a few more wickets but winning is more important than personal glory,” said Shepherd who is builtlike a heavyweight Boxer.

Shepherd informed that after the first rain break Guyana Jaguars Skipper Leon Johnson asked him for two good overs.

“And I did just that!” disclosed Shepherd, who has represented West Indies, Chennai Super Kings, Guyana, Guyana Amazon Warriors, Guyana Under19s, West Indies A, West Indies Cricket Board President’s XI and West Indies President’s XI. “Yeah, we believed that was a good score because we know the average score at the ground is just around 200 so we just had to bowl well,” continued Shepherd.

Asked how the players were dealing mentally with the pandemic bubble.

“Well everyone was excited about the tournament and looking forward to playing cricket so being in the bubble was not a big worry for us,” Shepherd concluded.

Meanwhile, former Guyana and West Indies batsman Shiv Chanderpaul, who is the Manager/ Assistant Coach of the Jaguars, felt Hetmyer and Shepherd both batted excellently.

“But we would have loved them to bat out all the overs but it didn’t happen. So there are a few things that we need to work on, especially batting longer and converting starts in big scores. But it is always good to start with a win, we felt we had enough to work with,” said Chanderpaul who was the Captain when Guyana beat Barbados at Bourda in 2005 when they won their last title.

Kaieteur News

PAGE 31

NBA roundup: Lakers pull out OT win over Thunder LeBron James had 28 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists as the Los Angeles Lakers earned their fifth straight victory by defeating the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder 119-112 in overtime on Monday.

Montrezl Harrell contributed 21 points and eight rebounds and Dennis Schroder added 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists for the Lakers, who played without Anthony Davis (Achilles) and Alex Caruso (hand).

Shai GilgeousAlexander had 29 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds, and Darius Bazley collected 21 points and 16 rebounds for the Thunder. Hamidou Diallo scored 20 points with 11 rebounds, while Justin Jackson and Al Horford each had 14. Oklahoma City’s Mike Muscala (concussion), Isaiah Roby (foot) and Theo Maledon (health and safety protocol) did not play.

Milwaukee Bucks 125 Denver Nuggets 112 Giannis Antetokounmpo had 30 points and nine rebounds, Khris Middleton scored 29 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and Milwaukee prevailed at Denver.

Bryn Forbes had 15 points while Brook Lopez and Donte DiVincenzo scored 13 each for the Bucks, who have won five straight.

Nikola Jokic followed up 50-point performance Saturday with 35 points and 12 rebounds, and Will Barton scored 20 of his 24 points in the first half for the

Nuggets, who have dropped three straight.

Charlotte Hornets 119 Houston Rockets 94 Rookie LaMelo Ball drilled a season-high seven 3-pointers as host Charlotte blitzed Houston from behind the arc to win its second straight.

Ball paired 24 points with 10 assists to pace the Hornets, who improved to 40 at home in the second half of back-to-back sets.

Charlotte finished 19-for-41 on 3-pointers, with Ball (7for-12), Gordon Hayward (3for-5) and Terry Rozier (3for-8) leading the charge.

Hayward scored 19 points while Rozier chipped in 15.

The Rockets, playing without starters Christian Wood (right ankle sprain) and John Wall (rest) plus Eric Gordon (rest), were led by Victor Oladipo (21 points, seven rebounds, six assists) and Ben McLemore (15 points).

Toronto Raptors 128 Memphis Grizzlies 113 Pascal Siakam scored 12 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter as Toronto won at Memphis.Toronto coach Nick Nurse was ejected when he picked up his second technical foul with 3:02 left in the third quarter.

The Raptors, who were down by 10 points after the t e c h n i c a l f r e e t h r o w, responded with a 28-5 surge to take the lead, and they went on to win for the fourth time in five games.

San Antonio Spurs 105 Golden State Warriors

100 Dejounte Murray scored 27 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and snagged a career-best eight steals to lift host San Antonio to a win over Golden State in the first game of a back-to-back between the teams.

Murray’s eight steals were the most in the NBA this season. Three Spurs players posted doubledoubles, with DeMar DeRozan adding 21 points and 10 assists and Jakob Poeltl scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

Stephen Curry paced the Warriors with 32 points while Kelly Oubre Jr. added 24, Andrew Wiggins hit for 11 points and Draymond Green had 10 rebounds and 10 assists for Golden State.

Dallas Mavericks 127 Minnesota Timberwolves 122 Kristaps Porzingis scored 27 points and grabbed 13 rebounds and Dallas held off a late rally to defeat visiting Minnesota.

Luka Doncic added 26 points, eight rebounds and five assists, Tim Hardaway Jr. came off the bench for 24 points for the Mavericks, who won consecutive games for the first time since Jan. 20-22. Doncic scored 25 or more points for the 11th consecutive game, two shy of the franchise record held

by Mark Aguirre and Dirk Nowitzki.

Malik Beasley had 30 points and nine rebounds and Anthony Edwards scored 22 points for the Timberwolves,

who lost for the fourth time in their past five games.

Jaylen Nowell added a career-high 18 points.

Washington Wizards 105 Chicago Bulls 101 In a matchup of two of the NBA’s best scorers, Bradley Beal scored 35 points to lead Washington to a road victory over Zach LaVine and Chicago.

LaVine also scored 35 points. With the Bulls trailing 103-101 with 9.8 seconds left, he spun around Beal at the top of the key and drove to the basket, but he missed a contested layup.

Rui Hachimura finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds for Washington.

Thaddeus Young added 14 points for the Bulls, who were without Lauri Markkanen (right shoulder sprain) for the second consecutive game.

Markkanen is expected to miss 2-4 weeks, per The Athletic.

Phoenix Suns 119 Cleveland Cavaliers 113 Devin Booker scored 36 points and Phoenix had just enough without Chris Paul to finish off a victory against visiting Cleveland.

Mikal Bridges had 22 points while Deandre Ayton added 15 points and 16 rebounds as the Suns won their third consecutive game and sixth in the past seven.

Paul did not play on the back end of games on consecutive days due to a sore hamstring.

The injury is not believed to be serious.

(Field Level Media)

PAGE 32

Kaieteur News

Wednesday February 10, 2021

Charles leads E’BO U-19 to victory over Bacchus Bulls

S

heldon Charles struck a fine half century as Essequibo U19 defeated Bacchus Bulls in a 30-over fixture played recently at Imam Bacchus ground.

Charles slammed eight fours in a top score of 52, while Lance Roberts made 21, Ameer Singh 18 and

Aryan Persaud 15.

Raj Ramballi took 2-31 and Punraj Singh 1-12.

Bacchus Bulls responded with 116-9. Wayne Osborne scored 46 with five fours and one six, while Pamesh Parsotam made 38 which contained seven fours.

Jarred Allicock took 3-11 and Wazim Mohamed 2-26.

Sheldon Charles

CG Insurance Super50 Cup radio coverage ‘scores’ across ten stations

S

T JOHN’S, Antigua — The excitement of the CG Insurance Super50 Cup is being heard all across the West Indies, as a network of radio stations across the region have started to broadcast the LIVE ball-by-ball coverage, thanks to CWI’s new and expanded radio commentary partnership with Vibes Radio, Dominica.

The radio coverage commenced on Sunday as

ten (10) stations from Jamaica to Guyana — including for the first time in many years the British Virgin Islands and US Virgin Islands — carried the calls and analysis of the opening match and Windward Islands Volcanoes victory over the Leeward Islands Hurricanes at the Coolidge Cricket Ground.

Commentary continued on Monday with the second contest as Guyana Jaguars beat Barbados Pride. The broadcast will run for all matches throughout the tournament and climax with the grand final on Saturday, February 27.

As a result of the partnership, Vibes Radio will provide digital live radio commentary to fans in the Caribbean and around the world via the Windies Cricket YouTube channel a n d t h e http://www.windiescricket.c om website.

Dominic Warne, CWI’s Commercial Director said: “We are delighted to see ten leading radio stations across the region partnering with CWI and Vibes Radio for the 2020-21 CG Insurance Super50 Cup. This significantly increases the opportunity for fans to access live commentary and be closer to their favorite players and teams. The commentary worked very smoothly and we’re looking forward to each of the remaining 17 games, including the semifinals and final, being available.”

The expanded list of

partner radio stations are: Vibes Radio (Dominica), Caribbean Broadcast Network — The Caribbean Superstation 90.9FM (BVI and USVI), GBN (Grenada), Real FM (Grenada), CBC (Barbados), VOB (Barbados), KLAS FM (Jamaica), NCN (Guyana), ABS (Antigua) and The Wave (St Lucia) Match Schedule: WED, Feb 10 Leewards Hurricanes v Barbados Pride CCG THU, Feb 11 Jamaica Scorpions v Trinidad & Tobago Red Force SVRS FRI, Feb 12 Leewards Hurricanes v Guyana Jaguars CCG S AT , F e b 1 3 Windwards Volcanoes v Trinidad & Tobago Red Force CCG SUN, Feb 14 Jamaica Scorpions v Guyana Jaguars CCG MON, Feb 15 Trinidad & Tobago Red Force v Barbados Pride SVRS T U E , F e b 1 6 Windwards Volcanoes v Jamaica Scorpions CCG WED, Feb 17 Leewards Hurricanes v Trinidad & Tobago Red Force CCG T H U , F e b 1 8 Windwards Volcanoes v Barbados Pride SVRS FRI, Feb 19 Leewards Hurricanes v Jamaica Scorpions SVRS SAT, Feb 20 Guyana Jaguars v Trinidad & Tobago Red Force CCG SUN, Feb 21 Barbados Pride v Jamaica Scorpions CCG M O N , F e b 2 2 Windwards Volcanoes v Guyana Jaguars SVRS WED, Feb 24 SEMIFINAL 1 CCG THU, Feb 25 SEMIFINAL 2 CCG FRI, Feb 26 Fifth placed v Sixth placed SVRS SAT, Feb 27 FINAL CCG

Wednesday February 10, 2021

Kaieteur News

PAGE 33

Ansa Mcal renews long standing relationship with RHTYSC,MS

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ast Friday, Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club Long standing Secretary/CEO Hilbert Foster paid a courtesy call on Managing Director of Ansa Mcal [GUY] Ltd, Managing Director Troy Cadogan, at the company head office in Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara. Mr. Cadogan informed the club secretary that the company was very impressed with the work of the award winning organisation and as such would renew its long standing sponsorship in 2021. Ansa Mcal has been sponsoring activities of the club for over two decades.

Foster hailed the company as one of the main reason for the great success of the RHTYSC and expressed gratitude to Cadogan, Beverly Harper and Paul Chan A Sue for their cooperation over the years.

The company in 2021 would be cosponsoring the club annual award ceremony and youth review magazine, while they would also be fully sponsoring the eighth e d i t i o n o f t h e RHTYSC/Ansa Mcal Award of Excellence programme.

The 31st award ceremony of the club would be held in April on a smaller scale due to the ongoing covid 19 pandemic.

The club would be honouring several of its long standing members for their services over the last thirty one years, while the performances of several cricketers would also be recognized by management.

A total of 30 awards would be shared out at the ceremony which would be held under very strict Covid 19 guidelines at the St Francis Centre.

Under the Ansa Mcal Award of Excellence, a total of five outstanding

Berbicians would be honored for their contribution in the fields of sports, culture, education, community development and charity. Each of the awardees would receive a trophy, medal of excellence, framed certificate and a collection of special gifts.

The 22nd annual youth review magazine would be published at the F and H Printery and would highlight the work of the club in 2020 and early 2021.

Foster stated that the company over the years has also supported the club’s television programmes, cricket academies, summer camps, Christmas village and charity programmes among others. He assured Cadogan that the club would continue to uphold its high standards and would continue to represent the company brand with distinction. He described the relationship between the two

GFF and UEFA kick off journey to Guyana’s first Professional League The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and UEFA, European football’s governing body, have started a ground-breaking project to c r e a t e G u y a n a ’s f i r s t professional football league as part of the UEFA Assist development programme.

Officials from both organisations met virtually this month to introduce the project teams, establish working protocols and outline next steps for the capacity building programme over the coming months. Once complete, the collaboration will position and enable Guyana to become only the fifth member of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) to cater for professional football.

“This is the latest pillar in an increasingly strong partnership between the UEFA Assist programme and the Guyana Football Federation,” said Eva Pasquier, Head of International Relations at UEFA. “The Federation has impressed the UEFA team from the beginning with its unwavering commitment to delivering excellence in football.”

“We are excited about the impact this current initiative

could have for Guyana. We believe there is real scope for a sustainable, marketable professional league that will help to propel its football development forward,” she said. “This means building capacity within the Federation, so that it can develop longer-term relationships with sponsors, while preparing clubs, players, coaches, match officials and fans for the journey. Our aim through this programme is to support the Federation in putting these all-important building blocks in place.”

The professional league initiative is the latest in a growing number of projects between UEFA and the GFF, following financial support to acquire minibuses for youth football development programmes and various capacity building activities, including 100-day (Continued on page 25)

organisations as very strong and fruitful. Country Manager Beverly Harper had served as the 4th Honorary Patron of the Club from 2010 to 2016.

Hilbert Foster

Troy Cadogan

Spo

Hetmyer and Shepherd scored fifties to help Jaguars beat B’dos.

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Sherif becomes first Egyptian woman to advance in Grand Slam Mayar Sherif is blazing a trail for Egyptian women tennis players.

My batting is important to the team says Shepherd ‘We would have loved the batters to bat through the innings’- Shiv

James Anderson is thrilled after beating Shubman Gill with his reverse swing © BCCI

Jack Leach ended R Ashwin’s stay in the middle, India vs England, 1st Test, Chennai, 5th day, February 9, 2021 © BCCI

Anderson’s ‘big moment’ over wrecks Indian hopes Printed and published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd., 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown. Tel: 225-8458, 225-8465, 225-8491 or Fax: 225-8473/226-8210.