Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Kaieteur News
WALES CLOSURE IS SHEROD DUNCAN SAYS HE HAS AN ANTI-WORKING NOT SEEN THIS PARTICULAR STUDY CLASS POLITICS DEAR EDITOR; Can the Government of Guyana and the Ministry of Social Cohesion please explain how the present, imminent and future closure of sugar estates which are and will be severely affecting the livelihoods and financial survival of working families of all ethnicities and their dependents, but predominately those of East Indian descent are helping to forge social cohesion. I have been told that as a result of the closure of Wales Estate, school attendance at nearby schools was affected as some families were in deep financial distress. To any sensible, honest and non-racial citizen, such actions must be known to be unduly affecting one particular ethnic group disproportionally. To add salt to wounds the seemingly uncaring way in which the closure of working sugar estates has been taking place is unacceptable and seriously discredits the APNU + AFC’s rhetoric about social cohesion. That such actions have been taken without an independent survey and social and financial audit to assess the impact of the closure of sugar estates not only on sugar workers (field, factory, administrative etc.) and their families directly but the many other small and micro businesses which
depend on the wages of sugar workers and estate business for their own survival, is not the reflection of a caring Government who is genuine about social cohesion, social justice and the well-being of its citizens. There was enough time for the APNU +AFC to have conducted an audit and impact survey as millions of Guyanese dollars were found and made available to conduct forensic audits on State agencies. Let us be clear, the failure of Guysuco is not the fault of sugar workers, so why are they being forced to bear the brunt of the mismanagement of the sugar industry while present and past Guysuco Board members and senior managers continue to enjoy comfortable and financially secure lifestyles. The APNU + AFC government actions, strategy and policy on the fate of sugar workers in Guyana can only be perceived to be antiworking class and bodes no will for improving ethnic relations, forging social cohesion and improving workers’ rights and fundamental freedoms. Where are the voices of ministers of government and parliamentarians who have spent decades professing solidarity and defense of the working class. You can’t talk out of both sides of your mouth at the same time and be credible. Danuta Radzik
Time for draconian punishment for lawless drivers DEAR EDITOR; Kindly publish this article in your papers so that the traffic chief and the law makers can see it and review it. Over the past years in particular, I have been observing the many road fatalities caused by indiscretion displayed by drivers and nothing was done to curb this beastly behaviour. It is time drivers act like civilized people. I am proposing that drivers who drive above the speed limit and cause a fatality should be sentenced to 5 years in prison and his driver’s license be suspended for 5 years. Those who drive under the influence of alcohol and caused death to innocent people whether other drivers or civilians should be sentenced to 10 years in prison and be banned for life from driving. A special traffic court should be established to administer justice as regards these offences. These penalties may sound stringent but a clear message must be sent to these heartless, careless, and inconsiderate drivers. Life is precious and must be preserved at all cost. Guyana is too small and we cannot afford to waste valuable lives because of lawless drivers. I trust that this year drivers would be more careful and use basic common sense. Drivers when you are behind that wheel your life is at stake, pedestrians’ lives are at stake. Be wise, be careful; remember you are a pedestrian too, you have to get out of that car and walk from point A to point B. Mr Traffic Chief and Mr. law maker consider my proposal on enforcing the law and deliver severe penalties to offenders. Clyde Walcott
DEAR EDITOR; The concept of planning is important for any city; it becomes that much more critical for a national capital city like Georgetown. All should be involved; and the process thorough. A recent article, ‘Five ways to plan the cities of the future’ by the UK’s Guardian newspaper makes the point. It states that in 2009, “UN Habitat estimated that 3m people were moving to cities every week.” The publication goes on to state, “we continue to see certain groups and individuals living in our cities that are not able to participate in negotiations. Slum dwellers are one such group. We need to speak to the most marginalised in ways that articulate their everyday realities. Whenever we have taken the time to do this, we find they are the experts of their own condition – they do not make unreasonable demands and they are prepared to make the tradeoffs needed to make the city work.”An entity such as the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) then has an important function. Even where the Constitution gives the local authority the jurisdiction
under the Municipal and District Council Act, Chapter 28:01, Section 274, power to construct council roads and control traffic; and, under Section 176, (a) “establish, maintain and control parking lots, (b) erect and maintain parking meters”, the legislation states it is all subject to the Town and Country Planning Act, the Roads Act and Motor Vehicle and Road Traffic Act. Planning therefore has a rationalization. This takes me back to the issues of parking meters. The more I think about the issue, the more I am convinced that we who oppose the methodology of implementation are on the right side of history. What was the planning involved before such a fundamental change in the mobility of citizens is realized? When our President, David Granger, made his historic visit to City Hall, June 27, 2016, he underscored the “need to plan”. He put it cogently when he said to City Hall, “Any urban plan that you produce of course, will not exist in a vacuum. The plan must not only be based on knowledge of what is required in the city, but it must also aim at collaboration…with the
Central Government, [CH&PA] and certainly with the Ministry of Communities, so that we work together because this is a national capital”. I keep hearing of a study that was done by the contractors, but like the substantive contract it remains a municipal secret. To be fair a proposal for “on street parking” submitted to City Hall in the ‘90s makes reference to an “IDB funded study” and outlines briefly “the main causes of traffic congestion”. This study seems to have been used as the basis for Georgetown’s parking meters. The current parking meter contractor keeps alluding to a study that was done but I have never seen it nor have I heard a single sentence quoted from it in defence of the need for the implementation of parking meters. I am going to hazard a guess that no study was done. Further, as a typology of putting the cart before the horse, the Ministry of Public Infrastructure (MPI) is currently in the process of consultations as part of its Sustainable Urban Transport Study (SUTS) for Georgetown. To my pleasant surprise
one of the four major actions of that study is the ‘Development of a comprehensive Parking Management plan for Central Georgetown’. “This project component will require the development of a Parking Policy and Management Plan for Central Georgetown – The Plan will include zoning, charges, regulations etc.” On November 24, 2016 when I met with the MPI’s team at City Hall which included its consultants and M&CC senior staff, several requests were made of our organization for details as to the current metered parking system for Georgetown, and again I was surprised by the shortage of critical information. Even the Guyana Police Force’s Traffic Department seemed out of the loop recently. Additionally, I note the Ministry of Finance’s review of the parking meter contract suggested, “A history of the contractor should be provided to City Hall in order to assess the experience and qualification of the contractor”, and it noted also, “The contract cedes to [parking meter company] a portion of urban planning, permitting it to shape the Continued on page 6
LET’S RISE ABOVE RACE AND PARTISAN POLITICS FROM 2017 DEAR EDITOR; As we enter the New Year, I am excited and am very hopeful about the prospects for Guyana. No doubt we have many challenges but we also have many opportunities. If China and India ranking at number one and two respectively with the largest populations in the world; over 1.3 Billion people in each country, and they are finding solutions to their problems, then surely, we can solve our problems with our 746,955 population. I am excited because never before have we had so many persons with graduate and post-graduate qualifications (Degrees, Masters Degrees and PHD’s) and technical and vocational skills available to this country from within and outside of Guyana. We must use this body of knowledge for the development of the country. Further, as one reflects on our approach to solving problems over the years, one realizes that we have not truly tapped into the knowledge available to us; that is, outside of politics and race.
In 2017, it is unacceptable for us to continue to invest in our people and our children; in some cases they attend some of the best universities and educational institutions in the world, only to return to Guyana and reduce their intellectual ability to the service of a political party instead of service to the country. With the body of knowledge available to us, we should have been in a much better position. I am excited because if there is a generation that I am depending on to change the mindset, shift the paradigms and develop a new frame of reference through which we must process our successes, problems, issues, solutions and development as a whole, it is this generation. For the past 50 years we have been doing the same things that caused the problems in the first place and we use those very things to try to solve our dilemmas – politics and race. I am excited because we now have an ideal opportunity to transcend as a country beyond Blacks and Indians, beyond PNC and
PPP and use our knowledge and experience to build a Guyana that will become the Singapore of South America, which will lead strong nationally, regionally and internationally Albert Einstein once said that ‘it is not that I am smart but I just stick with the problem longer.’ For those of us who have stuck with this problem- Guyana- long enough; let us be bold enough, wise enough, smart
enough, to move this country beyond the partisan politics and the fear of each other and build a Guyana that’s united and free. May 2017 be the year when we will truly change the course of this country. A blessed 2017 to my Guyanese brothers and sisters! I know that we are a people with tremendous resolve, love for country and love for each other. Audreyanna Thomas
Who needs to be a doctor to be Health Minister? DEAR EDITOR, Ever since the announcement was publicized that Minister Volda Lawrence would be taking up the mantle as Minister of Public Health, there has been a series of condemnations about her suitability for the position. The major claim is that she is not qualified for the portfolio since she has no medical background. For the education of the naysayers: Gail Texeira had no medical background but she served as Minister of Health. She was not even a nurse; Dr. Henry Jeffrey had no medical background, yet he served as Minister of Health; Winifred Gaskin also served for a period as Minister of Health; Leslie Ramsammy was a Laboratory Technician, yet he served as Minister of Health. Mrs Janet Jagan was a nurse. So, can someone tell me what is all the noise about? We are so quick to condemn just as quickly as we ‘refuse to remember’ some glaring precedents. An Attorney-at-law
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Wednesday January 04, 2017
They must address the issue of bypassing the National Trust Act DEAR EDITOR, I note the interventions by Messieurs Ralph Ramkarran, Anil Nandlall and Donald Ramotar in response to the Red House issue. These interventions – coming from a highly decorated attorney and former Speaker of the National Assembly; a former AttorneyGeneral and current Member of Parliament; and a former President of Guyana, respectively – are embarrassingly low on legal and derivative, ethical specificity, and in the case of the former two, far too high on circuitous pseudojurisprudence. And every single one, as I have noted, completely
ignores the role of the National Trust Act in this fiasco. I will explain this as simply as I can. The National Trust is the designated statutory body for the identification and preservation of built heritage sites, and certain artifacts, in Guyana, established under the National Trust Act of 1972. There are different levels of intervention in which the Trust, by law, can engage in a designated heritage site, ranging from a temporary preservation order to the gazetting of a site as a National Monument. Red House is one of only nine gazetted National Monuments in Guyana and
would have been so, as far as my knowledge is concerned, prior to the 2012 ‘lease’ between the Guyana Lands and Survey Commission and Cheddi Jagan Research Centre, Inc. What would automatically invalidate any such lease would be the provisions of the National Trust Act which read: “(1) Where it appears to the National Trust that it is in the public interest that any monument should be preserved on account of the historic, architectural or archaeological interest attaching to it or its national importance the Trust may, by notice published simultaneously in
THE CITY COUNCIL IS ON A PATH OF DESTRUCTION
DEAR EDITOR; The person(s) from the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown who is/are responsible for conceptualizing, creating and maintaining the ‘Hair Stylists/ Costmetologists Row’ on the Merriman’s Mall should be utterly ashamed of his or herself. This area has not only become an absolute eyesore, but indeed a national disgrace from an aesthetic and public health perspective. First, removing these unlicensed, unregistered and itinerant vendors from around the downtown area and dumping them on the mall, was a most irresponsible, hasty and thoughtless act by a municipal official whose responsibility it is to ensure the integrity of the city. Secondly, providing them with those cheap, flimsy, impermanent tents could not have been a serious solution for vending for a period exceeding three months. They have now been all but completely destroyed by the vagaries of our weather
systems, with the collapsible aluminum poles replaced by wooden and galvanized steel pipes. Wooden pallets are being used for the flooring, but worse the polyester that formed the cover has been replaced by hideous pieces of vinolay, plastic, plywood, and every other conceivable material the vendors can lay their hands on. Quite recently we had the President unveiling a bust on this very mall to commemorate the life of Claude Alphonso Merriman to whom this mall is named, but still the City Council chooses to take a divergent position by desecrating the mall. This is quite simply an insult to the memory of Mr. Merriman, his family and the Guyanese public. But then again it is quite clear that the bigwigs at City Hall have been given carte blanche to do as they feel, as they proceed down a road of the destruction of our capital, privation on the citizens and dishonor to the government of the day. Sean Levius
RALPH RAMKARRAN REPLIES TO RUEL JOHNSON DEAR EDITOR; I am sure that Ruel Johnson’s argument that under the National Trust Act, Red House is the property of the National Trust, will receive due attention in the court case which is going on in connection with the revocation of the lease of the Red House property. (“The NTA was bypassed when Ralph Ramkarran applied for the lease” 3/1/17, KN). I am also sure that the Attorney General’s Chambers are grateful to him for bringing it to their attention. It did not feature in their statement. Among the issues that will no doubt be drawn to the attention of the court would be the law which provides that the title of a transport holder, the Government in this case, is indefeasible and whether that title can be automatically extinguished by any law, including the National Trust Act. It may well be that an Order transferring ownership of the property to the National Trust
is required to perfect the National Trust’s title, and that until such time, the property remains in the transported owner. I can see other legal arguments surrounding the issue that makes Mr. Johnson claim that the National Trust is the owner of Red House, not as straightforward as it might appear to be on the surface. I merely see the questions but I don’t know the answer to them because I have not studied them. I am not involved in the legal case as counsel or witness. In my article I dealt with the possession of the property by the CHRC up to about 4 pm on December 29, which I know to be a fact, and my objection to the unlawful invasion of the property thereafter by persons with insignias of ‘MOFT’ and the unlawful destruction of CJRC’s property. I outlined the essential background to the issue. Whatever the merits of Mr. Johnson’s arguments,
there can no longer be any role in Guyana for the unlawful, physical and threatening seizure or property by the State or any other person. Guyana has cowered for too long a period where the rule of law was merely a phrase without any meaning. The lease is valid until the court says otherwise, whatever may be the circumstances of, or omissions in its granting or its terms and conditions, not when the President, the Attorney General’s Chambers or Mr. Johnson says otherwise. That is what the rule of law means. It does not mean that one person’s alleged wrong entitles the person affected to commit an equally egregious wrong on the excuse that he or she is correcting the alleged wrong. I know Mr. Johnson well enough to know that, however fierce his arguments and sharp his opinions, he supports the rule of law. Ralph Ramkarran
the Gazette and one newspaper circulating in Guyana, declare the monument to be a national monument. (2) Upon publication of a notice under subsection (1) relating to a monument such monument, without further assurance, becomes the property of, and vests in, the National Trust, and where immovable property has, by virtue of this section, vested in the National Trust the Registrar of Deeds shall take due notice thereof and shall make such annotations on the records as may be necessary.” National Trust Act, Section 15 – National Monuments What this means is that no lease of any gazetted national monument can be valid without the explicit involvement of the National Trust as lessor. And, as I previously noted in my first intervention, Section 3 of the Act requires prior permission from “the Minister” in such a case where the Trust is a party – the Minister referred to herein is the President, or a Minister delegated by him, since the Trust deals with issues of national patrimony. Section 3 also provides for the appointment by the
Minister of a Chairman and Members of the National Trust, including the Commissioner of Lands. I get a sense that some desperate flawed logic might have been at play in having the Commissioner of Lands and Surveys, Mr. Doorga Persaud, sign perhaps ambiguously and implicitly as representative of both the Lands and Surveys Commission and the National Trust, but this would be a terribly weak legal arrangement at best. While we may take it that for practical reasons Presidential assent minus an actual signature might have been accepted practice for regular issuance of leases under the Lands and Survey Commission, no sane lawyer would argue in court, or in public, that such practice would extend to the National Trust Act and the National Trust as a public corporate body to facilitate transferal of a national monument under its ownership to a private corporation. And even in that scenario, in no reasonable interpretation of the law could Mr. Persaud, merely by virtue of his signature or otherwise, be taken to be ‘the Minister’
under the National Trust Act, Section 3 (1). The only scenario that would validate the current ‘lease’ by Cheddi Jagan Research Inc. would be if the gazetted national monument that was Red House were deliberately taken off the lists as a national monument and out of the protection of the NTA prior to the lease, but I don’t believe even the PPP is capable of such an insidious manouevre. Ramkarran, Nandlall and Ramotar have waxed eloquently about the rule of law and due process, and while I agree with them in spirit, it would help if any one of them were to specifically address the National Trust Act and why it was bypassed in seeking to award a lease over a gazetted national monument to a company owned and controlled by their political party, and the legal implications (or lack thereof) for the validity of the lease. Otherwise, all we might be said to have had from them are eloquent but disingenuous arguments in support of what is essentially misappropriation of a state asset. Ruel Johnson Cultural Policy Advisor Government of Guyana
Enumerating the wrongs and... From page 4 party. The PPP draws its support mainly from Indo Guyanese, therefore the major beneficiaries of its largesse came from that segment of the population. It is therefore a pellucid conclusion that the Guyanese who were marginalized and economically depressed under the PPP were largely African. The government should be encouraged to advance the development of those who were marginalized by the former regime. It shocks any sense of human decency, when Jagdeo and his cohorts accuse this government of discrimination and corruption. Recently Anil Nandlall accused the government of a politically biased list of newly appointed Senior Counsels. Does he forget that Jagdeo initially refused to appoint James Bovell-Drakes as a judge even though he was recommended by the Judicial Services Commission? When the Hatian Government requested that Nigel Hughes be appointed their Honorary Consul to Guyana, Jagdeo’s government objected all because Nigel Hughes was a fierce critic of his government. It is the responsibility of any government to provide opportunities for all its citizens’ empowerment and development. The present government has to be
applauded for instituting programs and policies that will help those who were marginalized under the former regime. For example, the initiative that will see funding for villages with agricultural potential that were neglected by the PPP is an excellent direction for development. I would like the critics of this program who call it discriminatory to point to the initiatives and programs for development these villages received under the PPP. The answer is none. They are deserving citizens who deserve a share of the national pie. The PPP unfairly attacks the Minister of Social Cohesion. Their fear is that the programs embarked upon may truly bring Guyanese together in a state of genuine
cohesiveness. The provision of bicycles, boats and buses to transport school children will go a far way in their educational opportunities. Critics of the government condemn two persons who hold ministerial portfolios receiving government scholarships. This is another example of empowering those who suffered the brunt of discrimination. These ministers applied through the normal channels like any other taxpaying citizens. The PPP makes this a storm in a teacup, while they paid millions for the private law journals of Anil Nandlall. Where did the PPP get the moral authority to comment on corruption and discrimination? Jerrick Rutherford Jr. New Jersey
Sherod Duncan says... From page 5 direction of transportation management within Georgetown since it says nothing about [City Hall’s] ability to plan.” In the concluding comments it states, “subject to legal implications, there are grounds for (1) the contract to be withdrawn, and (2) the related pecuniary damages assessed and paid subject to [City Hall] producing a feasibility study that gives the national government a clear picture of, inter alia, demand analysis, financial analysis, socio-economic cost benefit analysis, risk analysis, technology alternatives, and production plan, human resources, location plan, implementation.” Notwithstanding the lack of proper planning, the metered parking project moves apace. Sherod Avery Duncan Deputy Mayor Municipality of Georgetown
Wednesday January 04, 2017
NICIL performs oversight role of Govt. shares - Officer in Charge - Privatization Unit now has its own board The National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) is no longer operating in “parallel treasury” manner. In fact, it is only performing an oversight role for Government’s shares in various entities. This is according to Officer in Charge of NICIL, Horace James. James said, recently, that the new board was guided for the most part, by the forensic audit that was launched into the entity last year. He reminded that the audit report which was prepared by Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran, called for NICIL to be liquidated. “After much consideration, we disagreed with it. And we decided that it should not be disbanded at this time.” His opinion is also in sync with that of Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, who had stressed on several occasions that the entity is necessary and he does not see it being dissolved at any time. James disclosed that the decision was taken for NICIL to carry out the role as a custodian and overseer of Government’s shares and interests. He said that in this regard, NICIL serves as a holding company for various subsidiaries and affiliates.
Officer in Charge of NICIL, Horace James He said, too, that NICIL will play a development role involving capitalization, financial restructuring and management with respect to certain projects approved by Cabinet. “So with that decision, the board continued to let NICIL carry out the functions with some modifications,” the Officer in Charge added. He also revealed that one of the major modifications approved was in relation to a contentious Management Cooperation Agreement (MCA) between NICIL and the Privatization Unit. James noted that with the former CEO, Winston Brassington, NICIL and the Privatization Unit operated as one entity. Brassington was also in charge of both NICIL
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and the Unit. The Officer in Charge of NICIL informed the media that Government has decided for the Unit and NICIL to operate independently and to have their own Board of Directors. Heading the Privatization Unit is Dr. Grantley Walrond. Other members of the Board are Minister of Business Dominic Gaskin, Patricia Bacchus, Jerome Khan, Capt.Gerry Gouveia who is a Private Sector Representative, and Grantley Culbard. The Chairman for NICIL’s Board is Dr Maurice Odle. Other NICIL Board members are Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, and Head of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), Berkley Wickham. With this move, he stated that the MCA was terminated as recommended by the forensic audit report. It was on December 28, 2001, that members of the PPP Cabinet approved the Privatization Unit of the Ministry of Finance. That Unit was intended to assume the additional responsibility of providing management and administrative services to NICIL in keeping with the Management Cooperation Agreement between the Ministry of Finance, NICIL (Continued on page 25)
New Year’s Day Execution...
Cops seek third suspect as two remain in custody
At the scene Sunday night
Police were late yesterday trying to track down a third individual in connection with the New Year’s Day execution of poultry vendor Desmond Singh, and his friend Azrudeen Hussain. Divisional Commander Clifton Hicken also said that investigators are still questioning two others who were detained on Monday. The detained individuals, aged 24 and 22, are from Greater Georgetown. While Hicken declined to speculate about a motive, he was adamant that robbery was not one. Singh, 34, called “David,” and “Fix Up,” of Lot A- 1 Orange Walk, Bourda, and 24year-old Azrudeen Hussain,
of Little Biaboo, Mahaica, East Coast Demerara were ambushed at Humphrey’s Street, Friendship, East Bank Demerara, after leaving a gamecock gambling spot. Singh was shot some 15 times in the upper body, while Husain, who succumbed at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, was shot once in the neck. Bullet casings recovered at the scene indicated that the masked killers used assault rifles. This newspaper understands that Singh, who is a frequent visitor at the gamecock gambling spot, won a few bets on roosters earlier in the day at another location and later went to the Friendship spot to continue the game.
It was at that spot that he lost the money he won earlier in the day. A source said that Singh then borrowed $100,000 from someone there, but also lost that money in bets. Singh and Hussain then left for home and it was then they were attacked by the gunmen, who were hiding in the bushes nearby. Police believed that Singh was the gunmen’s intended target. A woman, who resides nearby said that she was sitting in her front yard when she heard what sounded like squibs but then noticed people running and throwing themselves on the road. She said that after some time she went to the area and saw a man’s bullet-riddled body on the ground.
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Kaieteur News
2008 BARTICA MASSACRE...
Prison officer details transporting injured man from scene of the crime
ACCUSED: Roger Simon Prison Officer Godfrey Lynch yesterday testified to the court that he was in the vicinity of the Bartica Police Station when the shooting which claimed 12 lives occurred in February 2008. The witness recalled seeing the bodies of motionless police officers at the station and some dead civilians at the Bartica Stelling. He also spoke of helping to transport an injured man whose brain was partially exposed. The Prison Officer testified before Justice Roxanne George-Wiltshire and a mixed 12member jury hearing the case against Mark Royden Williams called Durant and Smallie; Dennis Williams called Anaconda; and Roger Anthony Simon, called Goat Man who are currently on trial at the High Court for the twelve murders. The trio was said to be among gunmen that attacked Bartica, slaughtering 12 people, including three policemen, during an hourlong strafing. It was reported that the gunmen attacked the police station first, killing three policemen and freeing prisoners. They then took the vehicle assigned to the police station and went on a rampage, terrorising the community and murdering nine others. Leach was called to the stand yesterday by State Prosecutors Diana Kaulesar and
ACCUSED: Dennis Williams
ACCUSED: Mark Royden Williams Stacy Goodings. He told the court he was an officer attached to the Guyana Prison Service at Mazaruni but he was visiting his in- laws in Bartica when the incident took place. On the night that the community was attacked, he said that he left the residence of his in laws at Fifth Avenue Bartica and went on the road to purchase some stuff when he Continued on page 11
Logos Hope attracts its historic six-millionth visitor
In the picture sixth from left, Managing Director of Logos Hope, Seelan Govender, the six millionth visitors, Sharmila De’Abreu and her family (center), The captain of Logos Hope, James Dyer (fourth from right), Logos Hope mascot “El Capitano” (fourth from left). Since docking at the Guyana National Shipping Wharf, La Penitence, the Logos Hope has since had the historic goal of attracting its six-millionth visitor onboard. Logos Hope officially opened its doors to the people of Guyana on December 22, 2016 to access its wide variety of reading material for all age groups. Georgetown is the 129th port that the Logos Hope has docked since its first journey back in February 2009. The Captain of Logos Hope, James Dyer, and other crew members warmly welcomed a surprised Sharmila De’Abreu, the sixmillionth visitor when she stepped onboard. “We would like to welcome you on board. You represent the six-millionth visitor aboard the ship.” Sharmila D’Abreu and her family were absolutely
shocked that they made history for the Logos Hope by being their six millionth visitor on their very first visit to the world’s largest floating book fair. D’Abreu who couldn’t hide her surprise and amusement told Kaieteur News,” We were very surprised at it all. It is really good to be here and we are very happy to be here.” “It is really amazing. We came and thought this is the reception everybody gets for Logos and we are getting to tour the entire ship. This is awesome”. D’Abreu and her family were presented with a gift bag and a chance to purchase a large quantity of books. Also, they got the opportunity to tour the entire ship. Managing Director of Logos Hope, South African, Seelan Govender, said to the six millionth visitor, “It is so
wonderful to have you here with us at this historic time.” According to Lisa Carter, a visitor onboard also for first time since the vessel docked, said she came because of her son who was really excited about the world’s largest floating book fair. Carter said that her son was so excited that he wanted to go home and start reading his books that he purchased. The crew members onboard said that they are really enjoying Guyana and would love to visit again. One crew member said that he had tried the Guyanese fruit cake over the Christmas season and he loves it. The vessel is docked at the Guyana National Shipping Wharf, La Penitence, and an entrance fee of $100 is required. The book fair will be closing on January 8, 2017.
>>> TOO MANY LINES <<<
This was the scene on Monday at the Departure Tax booth. Passengers using the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Timehri, are calling on authorities to make some changes to speed up the process. The line was curling. Passengers said they have to join at least four lines Check-in; Departure Tax booth; Immigration; and then one to board the plane.
Wednesday January 04, 2017
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ONE MONTH LATER… One month ago, the President was reported to be ruling out any Cabinet changes. He was said to have felt confident going into 2017 with the same team. The Chronicle even headlined their version of the President’s comments as meaning there will be no Cabinet reshuffle. What a difference a month makes. There has been a minor reshuffle, involving three Ministers. The most significant was the switching in portfolio of the Health Minister to the inconsequential Ministry of Social Cohesion. But instead of elevating the junior Minister of Health as the substantive Minister, the health portfolio has been given to the Minister of Social Protection. The Minister of
Social Cohesion will now head over to the Ministry of Social Protection. This three-way switch was not predictable one month ago. So what could have changed things since then? First, there was the calamitous Budget, the implications of which finally began to register on citizens. There is a real fear that the Budget measures which were announced will erode the living standards of Guyanese. Second, the industrial relations scenario deteriorated. Wales Estate was expected to have been closed at the end of 2016. Sugar production, having received adverse signals all year, fell to its lowest in 25 years. It is not likely to
recover. GPL workers had to withdraw their labour in order to force the corporation’s hands. Blackouts began to increase. Third, the Homestretch Development Inc. scandal exploded in the government’s face. The Auditor General announced that an audit will commence into the expenditure at Durban Park. A number of questions still remain unanswered, however, about that project and why a private company was established. The company owes a number of persons and the government has made it clear that it will only honour part of those debts. Fourth, the crime situation did not improve. It continues to reach frightening proportions.
Dem boys seh...
Donald Dumb rent Red House to ee sweet woman Everybody talking bout Red House. Even de dog dem barking when dem pass Red House. Dem realize that de Pee Pee Pee boys try fuh thief de property and seh how is fuh Papa Cheddi Research Centre. Dem boys don’t have a problem wid de research centre but it should be a research centre fuh all dem expresidents except that scamp Jagdeo. He nah only tek centre; he tek lef and right, front and back and even complex. One idiot write try to defend de Pee Pee Pee action. He seh tenants should not feel de heat because de landlord mek a mistake. Dem boys agree wid this if is a private property and if de landlord owns it. But in de Red House case
de Pee Pee Pee govt was de govt of de day and was de caretaker or protector of state assets. Everybody know you got to get de best possible price or rent fuh de property. Dem was not a landlord because dem didn’t own it. How on earth any govt can tek three prime real estate property in Kingston, in de capital city, and give dem to anybody much less de party in power fuh US$5 a month fuh de next 100 years. Dem boys seh you can’t even rent a dog house in Albouystown fuh that money a day. Dem boys don’t want to tell no idiot who believe that de Red House deal was a good deal that he more stupid than people think. Is like Peeping Tom who tek one of he prime property, put he sweet woman inside
and tell he wife he collecting rent. Dem boys seh when he move off de scene and de wife tek over, and see wha he call rent, tell dem boys if de sweet woman gun deh in de same property fuh another day or if she nah gun run to save she life. Talk half and watch to see when dem gun run and lef de property.
Fifth, it was announced that two government Ministers were awarded scholarships to pursue studies while on the job as Ministers. There were criticisms of this development, mainly on the grounds that the government was becoming too selfserving. Sixth, apart from the increases announced in the Budget, consumers now have to pay more to cross the Demerara Harbour Bridge and there has also been an increase in the security taxes at the country’s airports. The government and the President in particular took a pummeling as a result of these and other developments. A Stabroek News editorial wondered why there could not even be a modicum of a reshuffled Cabinet. The letter pages frequently had letters reminding the President that the buck stopped with him and, at other times, being critical of his leadership. The
President’s popularity rating, from the anecdotal evidence, was slipping badly. The government’s public relations is a disaster primarily because there are too many units dealing with providing information and political propaganda. The whole arrangement is a confusing one that is not allowing the government to respond effectively. The Department of Public Information is trying its best but the lines of authority are being crossed because there are other units which are doing the same work and there is no coordination in trouble-shooting. The President most likely decided that he had to do something. It is clear that there is an attempt to deflect attention from the problems that are facing the government. After lathering the society with talk about goodwill, the government chose the Season of Goodwill to cancel the lease to Red House. Then
there followed the announced minor “adjustments” to Cabinet. These developments have brought any goodwill to the government. The people of Guyana are difficult to please. They are not satisfied with what is taking place. What has been done is not enough for them. They are complaining that the government took too long to reclaim Red House and they are complaining that the Cabinet changes are cosmetic. The government has to find a more effective way of getting its message across. It has to improve its public relations. If it cannot do this, no amount of Cabinet reshuffling or reclaiming of property will enhance its popularity rating.
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Kaieteur News
Wednesday January 04, 2017
THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN...
Will we acquire a heart and a soul in 2017? I think most people tend to read the year in review in most countries. One needs to be reminded about what went on the past year. Then we may have missed out on a few events so the year in review makes up for that. After completing the Kaieteur News version, I went to see what the Stabroek News was
like. An item caught my eye. It listed a Guyanese family business that recently bought a 20-acre property from Caribbean Resource Limited for US$20 million to take advantage of the coming oil boom. The company said it has already spent US$10 million developing the property. That means, the
company has spent US$30 million so far. The very Stabroek News that reported this investment published a letter signed by some employees stating that the company required the employees in its downtown supermarket and hardware business to buy their own toilet paper and hand soap.
When that letter was published and it failed to attract the revulsion of this nation, I was deeply disgusted with what this country had become. Even if the family business saw nothing wrong with this sick policy, surely this is not the kind of behaviour modern society tolerates. To think
that this enterprise could invest US$30 million but demand their store employees purchase their own toilet paper for use in the washrooms at their work place is beyond belief. My deeply felt belief is that only in Guyana would you find such employers; only in Guyana would there be total silence over this abomination. When I read that letter I made a pledge to myself, a pledge I will keep to the day I die; I will never buy anything from that store. I haven’t named the store although it was named in the letter that Stabroek News published. To shut me up from ever writing on this repulsion again, I could well receive a libel writ. That is the way it goes in Guyana. We are a country where even thieves and rapists sue for libel. Do you know that a citizen of this country was jailed in the US for visa fraud committed in Guyana and charged with attempted murder after the victim survived seven bullet wounds, and that man sued the publisher of this newspaper in connection with an unrelated matter. A man with a criminal past sues. I guess he thinks he has a character to protect. If the insanities like the toilet paper controversy should come up in a different form in 2017, will we Guyanese as human beings have the moral decency, the basic decency as humans to just voice a disagreement? Are there not things happening in this country that are vexations to the essence of one’s soul that we should speak out against them? Aren’t we as Guyanese made of flesh, bones and mental stuff?
Frederick Kissoon If we are, how could we not just utter one single word of rejection of behaviour that is philistine, uncivilized and bestial in the land we live in? Are we so heartless that we could see lovely dogs being seized at Eugene Correia Airport and there and then put to death, and we cannot muster a little bravery to give off a tiny voice of condemnation? Has this county lost its collective soul or is it that it never had one? We did. I lived in a time in my country when we had a collective conscience. I heard a dog screaming on the UG campus when I was a student during one of my classes. Students and lecturer ran out and saw a guard hitting the dog. Everyone was mad at that man. He got a severe tongue-lashing. When I was young, I saw on Cummings Street, a small boy running wildly. He pushed down an old Amerindian woman and didn’t stop. Angry citizens just grabbed him and roughed him up. I lived in an era when doctors were like angels. The way they spoke to you made you feel better immediately. Today, many doctors have an unacceptable attitude. That was the time I lived in. That was what my fellow citizens were like. But let me finish with one sad observation. For three consecutive years, I stood and watched what type of motorists would stop and patronize the masquerade bands as they gyrate in front of the vehicles. Really, the heart and soul of this nation have died. Will we reclaim humanity in 2017? Ask me for my answer.
Wednesday January 04, 2017
Kaieteur News
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AMIDST THE RAINY SEASON...
Bids in for operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA excavators During the opening of tenders at the National Tender and Procurement Administration Board (NPTAB), at the Ministry of Finance yesterday in Georgetown, the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) was listed as the procuring entity for several contracts for the operation, servicing and monitoring of hydraulic excavators. Bids for the operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA Hydraulic Excavators in Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam) are stated below:
For the contract to operate and provide security at NDIA mobile and fixed pumps within Regions: Two, Three and Four, tenders were also opened.
Bids were also submitted for the operating and the provision of security of NDIA Mobile Pumps at Huntley and Enmore, Region 4. Tenders were open for the operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA hydraulic excavators in Region Three (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara).
Meanwhile, bids were submitted for the contract for the monthly maintenance and Cleaning of Canal Numbers One and Two, Main Drain, West Bank Demerara, Region Three.
Bids were submitted for the operation, servicing and monitoring of hydraulic excavators on the East Coast of Demerara, Region Four (Demerara/Mahaica).
Finally, tenders were also opened for the supply of inventory commodities for the National Communications Network (NCN) for 2017.
Tenders were also opened for the operation, servicing and monitoring of hydraulic excavators with in the East Bank Demerara area, Region Four.
For the operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA hydraulic excavators in Region Five (Mahaica/Berbice), tenders were also opened.
Prison officer details transporting...
Meanwhile, bids were also submitted for the operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA track-type Dozer in Regions: Two, Three, Four, Five and Six (East Berbice/Corentyne).
Tenders were open for the operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA hydraulic excavators and pontoon to dredge outfalls within Regions: Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Ten (Upper Demerara/Upper Berbice).
From page 8 met “a squatty Indian man.” The witness said that squatty fellow whom he later identified as “Matheram, stick me up and tell me lie down pun the ground.” At that point, he said he heard what sounded like gunshots being fired. The sounds, he said, were coming from the direction of the Bartica Police Station. He said that he later went to the Police Station where he saw the motionless bodies of police officers at the Bartica Stelling. He recalled, too, that there were six motionless bodies at the Stelling. But there was one injured person whom he said he helped transport to get medical attention. “He was breathing and part of his brain was exposed …it appeared to be pumping,” the witness said. However, under cross examination by the Defense Attorney Roger Yearwood, the witness admitted to inconsistencies between what is recorded in the deposition and the statements he made to the court. He admitted that he had initially told the court that he had transported at least four bodies. The police officers are among some 37 witnesses set to testify in the trial. Earlier in the trial, Assistant Superintendent Luis Golden told the court that he stood a mere 62
feet away from the Bartica Police Station, the night it came under attack by gunmen. Golden was the Officer in Charge of the station at the time of the incident. He recalled that as he stood 62 feet away, he heard what sounded like gunshots, coming from the direction of the station. He later recalled peeping out from a hiding place and getting a glimpse of a police vehicle speeding off towards the direction of the Bartica Stelling. On Sunday night, February 17, 2008, a number of gunmen attacked the mining community of Bartica, Essequibo, killing twelve residents – Lance Corporal Zaheer Zakir, Constable Shane Fredericks and Constable Ron Osborne; Edwin Gilkes, Abdool Yassin Jr, Deonarine Singh, Errol Thomas, Ronald Gomes, Baldeo Singh, Ashraf Khan, Irving Ferreira and Dexter Adrian. After murdering the police officers, the gang stole cash, arms, ammunition and a vehicle from the police station. Using the stolen police vehicle, they drove through the streets of Bartica shooting at civilians. They proceeded to CBR Mining, where they stole arms and ammunition, and removed two safes containing cash and gold. And after their one-hour rampage, the gunmen departed from Bartica by boat.
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Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Cost to finance Foreign missions expected to increase The cost to finance Guyanese Foreign missions is expected to increase over time according to Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge. During his Ministry’s end of year press conference, last week, Greenidge was asked whether the funding for the Foreign missions of Guyana would decrease. The Foreign Minister said that he doesn’t think there is any prospect of the overall cost of the missions going down. “I can’t make you that promise; in fact they are going to go up.” Greenidge said that he is aware that having a foreign mission is costly business. He said therefore it is his government’s responsibility to try to ensure that the services which are provided as economical and at a minimal cost as is desirable. However, Greenidge said that government has received assistance from host nations in varying degrees to support the missions. “We have opened a new mission in Geneva, and I want you to know that in that case for example we have approached the government of Switzerland. In fact, they have been very responsive and they have indicated that they would be willing to discuss this matter with us.” He said that from the initial stages of talks with the Swiss
government, the government had given its assurance to help fund the cost of opening the mission. According to the minister, during this discourse, Guyana was represented by Ambassador Deep Ford. “After ambassador Ford spoke to them, I was amazed to find that he had been able to persuade them to provide even more than I had anticipated.” The Minister said that ultimately the cost of funding the mission and its office would be minimal for Guyana whereby facilities will be shared and provided by the government of Switzerland. Greenidge said that assistance and funding will
also be given in relation to the Ambassador ’s residence. He said that this sort of support is similar in Kuwait as it relates to the funding of the embassy. Additionally, Greenidge said that on other fronts, support has been sought from the private sector to enable the ministry to carry out an important undertaking in relation to the work of the ministry. He said that he cannot promise that funding for the missions will go down but he assured that the cost will be kept within reasonable bounds and moreover that
financial support will be solicited to defray the cost of the services. As it relates to the revision of station allowances, Greenidge said that he cannot give a definite answer when this revision will take place. He said that the decision to increase that allowance cannot be made in isolation but will have to be informed by a Cabinet decision. “Cabinet is aware of the challenges that our embassies and officers face in trying to live in capitals that are costly and to carry out their work properly and so that is
something I can’t give a definitive answer on but we will keep revising it. I’m sure that within the next two years those will be revised.” Greenidge went on to say that he believes there are problems with allowances in general within the public service. “That is my view, I hold it strongly that many of them should have been revised a long time ago. To fix something which has been for 25 years out of kilter and to fix it properly in one year is going to be a problem. It is going to have to be something phased.”
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge
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Kaieteur News
Wednesday January 04, 2017
“Management problem”, criticisms at Health Ministry spurred decision to ‘shift’ Norton - Pres. Granger The administration has downplayed its decision to remove Dr. George Norton as Minister of Public Health and place him at Social Cohesion. Yesterday, President David Granger, in a released statement, was quick to stress that it is not a “reshuffle” of his Cabinet but a “shift” to ensure that the Government continues to deliver the
quality of public service to the people of Guyana. Norton, who has been under pressure since last year, will now head the Ministry of Social Cohesion which falls under the Ministry of the Presidency. Volda Lawrence is the new Minister of Public Health, after being moved from the Ministry of Social Protection.
- Volda Lawrence new minister; Amna Ally to head Social Protection Taking up that position now will be Minister Amna Ally who was the Minister of Social Cohesion. Norton faced flak last year for the rental of a drug bond in Albouystown for $12.5M monthly. There were calls for
him to be sanctioned. There have also been criticisms of drug shortages in some regions and even at the Guyana Public Hospital Corporation. He was asked to and later apologized to the House for
New Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr. George Norton making misleading statements regards to the National Assembly about the drug bond transaction. According to President Granger yesterday, at the start of 2016, he had made some adjustments. “I appointed Catherine Hughes as the Minister of Public Telecommunications. This was later followed by Raphael Trotman named as Minister of Natural Resources. “My responsibilities as head of Government are to continuously assess the ability of the Cabinet to fulfill its functions and this is a normal activity,” the Head of State explained. With regards to this recent ‘shift’, he said that he found it necessary to look at the way the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Social Protection and the Ministry of Social Cohesion were performing and as a result, some adjustments were made. The President disclosed that he had worked with Norton for the last five years in the 10th Parliament. “He was the shadow Minister of Health. When we went into Government in the 11th Parliament, he was the Minister of Public Health.” While being initially happy, Granger admitted that “some criticisms” last year were detracting from the performances of the Cabinet as a whole and “I thought it prudent and timely to make the changes at the beginning of 2017”. He did not explain what the criticisms were. With regards to Norton’s suitability to his new post, the President said that there were some criticisms of the quality of social cohesion. Norton had joined the A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) as the lead of the Guyana Organisation of Indigenous People and therefore possesses “broad knowledge…deep knowledge” of the hinterlands. “So when we are looking at social cohesion we are not speaking of Africans and Indians; we are not speaking of the ethnic problems or the
New Health Minister, Volda Lawrence
New Minister of Social Protection, Amna Ally religious problems. We also have to look at the spatial dimension and I felt that he had an advantage in his knowledge of the hinterlands because our administration has always spoken about closing the gap between coastal and hinterland.” Granger hinted that the decision to shift Norton would have come since early last year when Local Government Elections were held. “I believe that he is ideally suited to that. In the run-up to the Local Government Elections and future developments, I felt that his contributions will be critical to helping to bring about social cohesion. I was very happy to retain him as a member of the Cabinet.” Regarding his choice of Minister Lawrence to lead the Health Ministry, Granger said she has brought “certain managerial skills”. “Largely, it is a management problem in terms of materials and human resources and the delivery of services to the various regions of Guyana and I believe she will be ideally suited to the ministry, so I feel grateful to the minister for taking up the challenge.” The Head of State made it clear that the three ministers were all experienced Parliamentarians. “…Miss Amna Ally is a very steady person. She is the Chief Whip…very reliable in the 10th Parliament…She has worked with me and I believe that in terms of her knowledge…Region Five, coming out from rural areas, (Continued on page 25)
Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Jilted man torches girlfriend NICIL performs oversight role... on Old Year’s night A goldminer who became annoyed after his girlfriend tried to end their relationship is accused of throwing gasoline on the woman and setting her on fire. Roy English, 42, of Tiger Creek, is alleged to have unlawfully and maliciously inflicted grievous bodily harm to Yvonne Richmond on December 31, 2016 at Three Mile Junction, Tumatumari, Potaro River. English, who was unrepresented, appeared in court with his head wrapped in bandage. He was not required to plead to the indictable charge read to him yesterday in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts. The court was told that
“Management problem”... (From page 16) she had a good knowledge of the needs of the people in the urban; in the rural areas. So I believe that in terms of Social Protection – knowledge of poor peopleshe will add to work done before by Minister Lawrence.” Granger expressed happiness with the changes… “just as happy last year with the appointment of Minister Cathy Hughes and Minister Raphael Trotman. So I think that the people of Guyana can understand that it is not a negative move. It is a very positive move and I believe that the quality of delivering of public service will improve as a result.”
REMANDED: Roy English English and the woman shared a relationship and lived together. According to Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones, the
man became annoyed when the woman tried to end their relationship. In a fit of rage, English drenched Richmond in gasoline and set her on fire. She was picked up and rushed to the hospital. She sustained second degree burns to her right eye and foot. When asked if he had any objections to bail for the accused, Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones replied in the affirmative and pointed to the injuries Richmond sustained. Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan upheld the objections and remanded English to prison until January 13, when he will appear in the Mahdia Magistrate’s Court.
(From page 7) and the former regime as dated December 31, 2001. The former Cabinet subsequently ratified the agreement at its meeting held on April 23, 2002. According to the agreement, the Privatization Unit was the authorized agent for the purpose of privatizing any of NICIL’s holdings as set out in the Privatization Policy Framework Paper (the “White
Paper”) laid in the National Assembly in 1993. It was also made the exclusive manager of NICIL for purposes of managing and administering all of the affairs of NICIL. By virtue of the appointment of the Privatization Unit as the manager of NICIL, the Executive Secretary and Head of the Privatization Unit were supposed to assume the position of Executive Director
of NICIL. NICIL, for its part, became responsible for collecting and accounting for all privatization proceeds, rents, dividends, and other income of NICIL, in the name of NICIL; utilizing and disbursing of the income of NICIL in accordance with the approval of NICIL’s Board; and the payment of a management fee to the Privatization Unit.
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Wednesday January 04, 2017
Kaieteur News
Armed robbery accused granted bail VEHICLE FOR SALE 1 Toyota Allion PVV series: TV Camera, HID, lights, alarm & remote start $2.2M negotiable Call: 649-0956 Leyland DAF 65 (sand truck). Call: 623-3895 SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620
SALON - Make-up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, etc. - Cosmetology Courses: $120,000 - Technician Course: $45,000. Call: 6471773/660-5257
Visa Application: U.S.A, C a n a da & UK; Guyana passport 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. Repairs & spare, fridge, freezer, A/C, washers, stoves – Contact Nick: 6831312, 627-3206 Repairs to refrigerator, gas stove, A/C units, washing machines. Call Lindon: 6411086/ 694-2202 We repair fridge, freezer, AC, washer, dryer-Call: 231-0655; 683-8734. Omar Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezerCall: 610-5846 or 661-8158
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Popular East Coast Gas Station (Non-Pareil) Day/ Night: pump attendants, sales clerk & office assistant. Contact: 610-9182/ 695-9880 Articulated hauler/dump truck operator for interior location, applicants must be experienced with verifiable references. Call: 618-2020 Cook/Baker and Kitchen Assistant for interior location. Applicants must be experienced, for details call: 618-2020 Office Assistant/Customer Representative. Contact Pacific Development Inc, Lot 3 Church Street, G/Town. 1 Male janitor to clean and take care of dogs. Apply in person at Alabama Trading, Georgetown, Ferry Stelling.
Passport, permanent & visitor visa application, Professional Immigrant Consultant – Sabita Immigration Services. Call: 225-6496; 662-6045
1 Nanny to look after a one year old boy, must be able to feed, teach & care for a baby. Call: 641-8144 Female Accounts clerk, 4 years experience, apply in person with written application @ Alabama Trading Georgetown Ferry Stelling Able body workers for Ice Factory, age 18 & older. Call: 642-9191/ 231-1408
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After spending a few weeks in prison, Jason Adams was given his New Year ’s wish. After much begging he was granted $20,000 bail on a robbery under-arms charge by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan. But this came after another appearance in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts yesterday. Adams is accused of robbing Baksh Mohamed of two cell phones valued $40,000, while armed with a hammer on December 6, at Brickdam, Georgetown. He pleaded not guilty. “Thank you very much,” he told the Magistrate. James was also placed on a bond to be on good behaviour until the determination of the matter. Police Corporal Deniro Jones represented the prosecution and told the court
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ON BAIL: Jason Adams that a statement is still outstanding from the case file. The Chief Magistrate transferred the matter to Court 12 Night Court for January 10. She also made an ordered for the phones to be returned to Baksh. The 25-year-old man who claims he resides in France and staying in Guyana at his “side chick” was remanded to prison for the offence when he appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty earlier last month. Adams professed his innocence and claimed that he served in the French Military as a sergeant. “I is a sergeant. Three stripes I got. I don’t live here…I stopping at Pegasus but staying at my side chick in Durban Street,” Adams told the court. But no one bought his story, not even the Magistrate. Adams stood uneasily in the prisoner’s dock. He moved about to see persons reaction as he provided the Magistrate with hilarious replies. “You know who is me?” he asked Magistrate McGusty. “I’m from the Gaza…Kartel and me is family.” He had persons sniggering at responses he provided to questions asked by the Magistrate. Although Adams claimed he lives in the French-speaking country, he was unable to recite a French term. “Wee Wee”, he said in a loud tone. He had earlier shared out Dentyne mints to other prisoners. A d a m s ’s f a m i l y h a d brought him before another Magistrate last week, pleading for a psychiatric evaluation to be done on him. In 2014, he was charged with a series of robberies and assaults. However, Adams’s lawyer had claimed that he suffers from a nervous disorder and asked for him to be seen by a psychiatrist. Adams was also charged with stealing plucked chickens from a Chinese Restaurant at Bourda, Georgetown in 2010.
Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Minister gives new date for digitising of Old Age Pension In its quest to ensure efficiency, accountability and transparency in the distribution of Old Age Pension, the Ministry of Social Protection last year announced plans for the system to be digitised. The Ministry had spoken of plans to have that system become operational by this month. The system is still in the making. In fact it may not be up and fully running until June. This is according to former Minister of Social Protection, Ms. Volda Lawrence, who disclosed that as part of the journey to digitising the payment of Old Age Pension “we have been working with an agency that has a module that we are looking at.” But the Ministry cannot work in isolation to realise this digitisation goal. Minister Lawrence recently revealed that her Ministry is working with other agencies including the Accounting General’s Office and more importantly the Auditor General’s Office to ensure that the system is transparent and that there is accountability in whatever programmes are being used. Once implemented the use of books for the payment of Old Age Pension at the various post offices is expected to become a thing of the past. To achieve this, the system will be drawing support from the Egovernance project. “We also have E-governance on board which is working with us and as you know the Guyana Post office Corporation falls within the ambit of the Minister of Te l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s (Minister Cathy Hughes) and so they are working to ensure that the post offices are upgraded so that they can have the necessary IT (Information Technology) established within these entities across the length and breadth of Guyana so that we can begin to take the programme and test it there by the middle of June,” according to Minister
Commission, upgrade their National Identification Cards. In recent years, there have been accusations that the Government’s old age pension scheme was laced with fraud, with many persons collecting under false pretence. With thousands of Guyanese living abroad, there have been reported cases of so-called ‘double dipping’.
Former Minister of Social Protection, Ms. Volda Lawrence Lawrence. She disclosed that while the programme has been tested at the General Post Office situated in the Capital city, “we have not been able to do so at the other post offices. So we are waiting on Minister Cathy Hughes and we have every confidence that she will get the job done and we will be able to move that.” Minister Lawrence in speaking of the digitisation plans gloated over the possibility that the nation’s elders eligible for Old Age Pension will no longer have to use books. Instead they will “just turn up with their identification cards and be able to be serviced.” In so doing, she explained that “we can capture that data immediately when that transaction is made irrespective of where it is made.” But according to information disseminated by the Social Protection Ministry last year, all Old Age Pensioners will require the new National Identification Cards to collect their Old Age Pension when the system becomes fully automated. The Ministry has requested that all Old Age Pensioners who do not have the nine digit identification cards issued in the last Registration Cycle by the Guyana Elections
Woodley Park Farmer goes... (From page 3) a pair of blue jeans without any footwear or anything else. She stated that after a few days had passed she became worried and with another sister ventured to the nearest police station where they filed a missing person’s report. Brijmohan disclosed that after the report was made relatives and friends joined forces in search of the farmer. She stressed that no police accompanied them on the searches and revealed that the ranks have not made her brother’s case a priority. Another sister, Nazreen Shahid, said that during the eighteen days her brother has been missing, she reported her brother being missing twice at the Fort Wellington Police Station. “Me go report it two time and them police na come out and investigate. Me never hear back nothing from them”, the frustrated woman said. Anyone with information of Bassalat’s whereabouts is asked to contact the family on telephone numbers 651-8058, 652-5285, 328-7399 or the nearest police station.
- system to rely heavily on E-Governance project The automated system is expected to be designed in such a way to prevent such fraudulent activities. With the recent passage of the 2017 budget, Old Age pensioners are now eligible for a slightly augmented payment package. But according to Minister
Lawrence this is in keeping with a campaign promise. “Our mandate to the Guyanese populace, we said to them in our campaign that we will raise the old age pension to $20,000 we have five years to fulfil that promise and so I am very happy that as we speak that the old age
pension will be raised from the January 1, 2017 to $19,000. “So it is just $1,000 short of our promise and we have three years more to go,” the Social Protection Minister asserted. Old Age pensioners were just last year eligible for just over $18,000.
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Kaieteur News
Unless we move away from sugar …
Building a resilient economy North Korea cannot ‘tip’ missile not possible by 2020 with nuclear warhead: U.S. State By Kiana Wilburg Given Guyana’s continued reliance on primary production and the overall performance of its traditional sectors, it is not likely that the APNU+AFC administration would be able to build a resilient economy by the next General and Regional Elections. This is according to Finance Minister, Winston Jordan. The Finance Minister said that government would have to set the ground work first, in order for this to be done. He said that with the recent budgets, this process has already started. The economist said, “I don’t foresee the economy being resilient by 2020. We have to set the ground work. Sugar is still a major aspect of the Guyanese economy.” With regard to the ailing sugar industry, the Finance Minister said that “unless Guyana is prepared to move away from sugar as we know it, into value added and take opportunities available in Caricom markets —but more particularly Brazil once we can get a road going there—” then the nation cannot expect a sudden turnaround in the way the economy responds to external shocks. The Finance Minister said that Guyana would have to move away from primary production into the next stage of the value chain. He said it would also require that the Government put in place, climate resilient infrastructure and practices. “We just won’t move from 50 years of doing the same thing into resilience. It has to be diversified and it has to be green and withstand shocks that are ever present when you are involved in primary production.” He continued, “Even if you were able to produce all the sugar you desired, we would have trouble because we don’t have a captive mar-
-Finance Minister
Finance Minister, Winston Jordan ket anymore. We have to go out there and hustle like everyone else. At no time, certainly in the post- independence period, were we able to produce sugar at a price that could have competed on the international market.” Jordan added, “We always need some form of protection along the way. We had a long protection under the European Union artificial price which allowed us to stay in it for a very long time and perhaps it was a good or a bad thing. “It perhaps was a bad thing in the sense that, were we forced to adjust using international prices as our benchmark then who knows; we might have been a different sugar entity today.” It appears, however, that the new government is determined to change the way in which sugar production is done in Guyana. Thousands of workers within the sugar sector will soon know their fate, as a Cabinet subcommittee has fi-
nally finished drafting its recommendations on the way forward with the industry. This was confirmed recently by Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder. Holder is a member of that subcommittee, which was established last year. Other members include Finance Minister Winston Jordan; Natural Resources Minister, Raphael Trotman; and Minister of State, Joseph Harmon. Holder told this newspaper that the subcommittee has put together a paper with its recommendations which will go before Cabinet. He said that Cabinet will decide whether to keep or discard part or all of the options on the paper. While he was not able to divulge a few of the suggestions on the way forward, he stated that they far exceed the expectations of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which has been calling on the authorities to reduce its billion-dollar bailouts to the sector.
When we pause and experience silence, we discover answers that activity does not have time to reveal. During your day, take three-minute “vacations”. Relax and re-energise. Take time out to feel the peace of silence.
Department (Reuters) - North Korea continues to pursue nuclear and ballistic missile technologies but the United States does not believe it is in a position to “tip” one of them with a nuclear warhead, State Department spokesman John Kirby said yesterday. North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, said on Sunday his nuclear-capable country was close to test-launching an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), raising the prospect of putting parts of the United States within range. “We do not believe that at this point in time he has the capability to tip one of these with a nuclear warhead ... but we do know that he continues to want to have those capabilities and the programs continue to march in that direction,” Kirby told reporters. Asked whether he would agree with President-elect Donald Trump’s assessment that China was not helping to contain North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, Kirby said: “We would not agree with that assessment.” Trump, who will take of-
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un gives a New Year address for 2017 (KCNA/via Reuters) fice on Jan. 20, tweeted on Monday that North Korea would not be allowed to complete a nuclear weapon capable of reaching the United States, although he did not say how he would stop it. “It won’t happen!” he said on Twitter. Trump’s transition spokesman, Sean Spicer, said the tweet spoke for itself but added that it meant, “Under his watch he’s going to make sure that that doesn’t happen.” Pyongyang’s action will be discussed at a meeting in Washington on Thursday
between the United States, Japan and South Korea, led by Deputy Secretary of St a t e A n t o n y B l i n k e n , Kirby said. “No question that tensions on the Korean peninsula will be a topic of discussion (but) where that is going to take us, especially in light of Kim Jong Un’s speech, I don’t know,” Kirby said. Asked about the possibility of more sanctions against Pyongyang, he added: “We haven’t ruled out the possibility of additional sanctions.”
Israel PM slams Paris conference as ‘futile’
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu (AFP Photo) Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel’s premier yesterday denounced the international Middle East conference in Paris on January 15 as “futile”, saying he feared decisions taken there could spark a new UN resolution against Israel. The Paris-organised conference to be attended by
some 70 countries — but not by Israeli or Palestinian representatives — is being held to reiterate international support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “This is a futile conference, but there are signs that there will be attempts to use
decisions that are taken to vote a new UN resolution against Israel,” Benjamin Netanyahu said. The prime minister, who also holds the foreign affairs portfolio, was speaking to an annual meeting of Israeli ambassadors to European countries. “That’s why the main political effort we are currently working on is to avoid a vote for a new resolution at the UN Security Council,” he said in televised remarks. On December 23, the Security Council for the first time since 1979 condemned Israeli settlement of occupied Palestinian territory when the United States did not use its veto and abstained in the vote. Netanyahu rejected the resolution at the time as a “shameful blow against Israel”. He also claimed that outgoing US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were behind it. More than 400,000 Israelis live in the West Bank in settlements that the international community considers to be illegal and a major obstacle to peace.
Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Kaieteur News
Haiti certifies election victory ACP Secretary General has dire warning for member states of first-time candidate PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP): An electoral tribunal in Haiti has rejected claims that massive voter fraud marred the November presidential election victory of firsttime candidate Jovenel Moise, officials said yesterday. The judges found some irregularities but not enough to affect the outcome based on an analysis of 12 per cent of the ballots, the country’s Provisional Electoral Council said in a statement. Moise, a 48-year-old businessman from northern Haiti who was chosen by former President Michel Martelly to run as the candidate of his Tet Kale party, defeated 26 rivals in the first round on November 20 and avoided a runoff. He won more than 55 per cent of the vote, though turnout was low at 21 per cent. Several rivals challenged the results but the electoral
Jovenel Moise
judges said they found “there was no massive fraud,” according to the council. There were no immediate reports of significant protests following the announcement, though at least one of the defeated parties was expected to demonstrate in the capital later.
Authorities annulled an initial October 2015 election that Moise also won after a special commission found significant fraud. The country has been led by an interim president since February 2016. Moise is to be sworn in on February 7.
Grim vigil for families after Brazil prison massacre (Reuters) Brazil’s justice minister yesterday proposed an overhaul of the penal system a day after 56 inmates were massacred in the deadliest riot in two decades. Meanwhile, hundreds of anguished relatives, hugging each other and sobbing uncontrollably, gathered outside the morgue in Manaus, waiting to discover if their loved ones were alive. The minister, Alexandre de Moraes, said Brazil needed to improve conditions in its jails, which are home to an estimated 600,000 inmates, after visiting the prison in the jungle city of Manaus where violence erupted between rival drug gangs on Monday. A morgue employee emerged from time to time to read from a list of those confirmed dead. “Please help me bury my son,” cried Diana after learning that her son Ronei Pinheiro had been killed. “I never imagined something like this could happen.” Officials were forced to rent a refrigerated truck to store bodies because there were so many dead, while medical examiners tried to identify the remains. A war for control of the lucrative drug trade fueled the latest gang violence in Brazil’s understaffed prisons, raising concerns that Monday’s massacre could unleash a wave of reprisals. Some 223 inmates from other
prisons in Amazonas state were relocated to an abandoned jail in Manaus to protect them from rival gangs following the riot. Moraes said the solution to Brazil’s chronic prison violence was not just to keep opening new prisons. “We need to make sure those who deserve to be in jail stay there and those who committed minor crimes get out,” Moraes told reporters after visiting the Anisio Jobim penitentiary. “If not, we are only providing organized crime groups with new soldiers.” The minister said that 42 percent of inmates in Brazil’s prisons are awaiting trial, versus a global average of just 20 percent. The prison system is among the worst in the world, according to human rights groups. Overcrowding and violence are common, and rights groups describe medieval conditions with food scarce and cells so packed that prisoners have no space to lie down. Brazil’s federal government will provide 1.2 billion reais ($367.82 million) to states by June to beef up security and buy more X-ray machines to prevent weapons from entering prisons, Moraes said. The prison system in Amazonas state is run by two private companies that won a 27-year public contract. The massacre in Manaus occurred when members of a
local criminal gang known as North Family, which controls the Anisio Jobim prison complex, attacked inmates from the rival First Capital Command (PCC), security officials said. Machete-wielding gangs decapitated inmates and threw their bodies over a wall of the prison, which houses more than three times the prison’s capacity. A video seen by Reuters, whose authenticity could not be verified, showed prisoners tapping the decapitated heads of four men with knifes and yelling: “These are all PCC.” SELFIEAFTER THEY ESCAPE Amnesty International called on Brazil to launch an independent investigation to bring those responsible to justice. Police erected roadblocks and increased patrols around Manaus to hunt down more than 100 inmates who escaped from the prison during the riot, which lasted about 17 hours. According to state officials, 54 inmates had been recaptured by yesterday afternoon. One inmate had posted a selfie of him and other prisoners on his Facebook account shortly after they escaped by tearing down a wall. The riot was the deadliest since a 1992 prison massacre at the Carandiru prison in Sao Paulo state in which 111 inmates were killed.
BRUSSELS (CMC) – The Secretary General of the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of countries, Dr. Patrick I. Gomes is urging member states to move towards ratifying the World Trade Organization (WTO) 2013 Trade Facilitation Agreement. The Guyanese-born diplomat said that there must be “more concerted actions by ACP member states” to ratify the accord for which the ACP Group as a critical global force had exerted its influence in the G90 (Group of Developing Countries) to secure a treaty that reduces cross-border customs regulations and transaction costs. “The ACP Group will continue to play the role of champion, advocate and reliable ally of the Global South in ensuring an enduring commitment to the development dimension of the world trade system,” he said, adding that linked to strides made in trade negotiation capacity building by the ACP Secretariat “efforts in 2017 are being centred on the design of an ACP-wide Investment regime to be developed in collaboration with the United Nations Conference on Trade & Development (UNCTAD). Gomes said that at the UNCTAD XIV Summit in Kenya last July, the ACP and UNCTAD agreed on broad principles for regulatory and incentive systems to address cross-border and downstream investments on natural resource and commodity enterprises such as cocoa, cotton, kava, cashew nuts as well as minerals, oil, gas and petroleum by-products. “Moreover, in collaboration with UNCTAD, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and FAO, the ACP has proposed a comprehensive approach to “harnessing the blue economy”. This will address marine resource development, research and innovation studies on fisheries, sea-bed mining, coastal area conservation and development, artisanal and aquaculture programmes.” Gomes said that 2017 “will be undoubtedly marked by meagre economic recovery, growing political uncertainty, complex realignments at the international level and continuing regional conflicts, we will redouble efforts to strengthen our initiatives to assist our member states to
ACP Secretary General, Dr. Patrick I. Gomes implement the UN’s Agenda 2030 and the SDGs and vigorously pursue alliances of the like-minded to safeguard multilateral institutions for the good of all humanity. “In this regard, 2017 will be a year for consolidation, standing firm on South-south solidarity and strengthening the core values and mutual interests between and among ACP societies as efforts are intensified for the structural transformation and diversification of ACP economies,” Gomes said, adding that the achievements of 2016 provide a strong platform on which to aim for reasonable success during this year and beyond. In his New Year message to the 79-member grouping, Gomes said that sound progress had been made last year with the contentious ACP-EU economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs). He said that while the accord enables implementation measures for these WTO-compatible, preferential trade and investment accords to start reaping some, if even limited, “those ACP countries with full or interim agreements, that have not been ratified should do so as soon as possible and ensure their tariff schedules are prepared to take effect in 2017”. Caribbean countries signed the EPA with Europe in 2008. In his statement, Gomes said that the gains made in the last year were particularly valuable in advancing commitments made by the ACP Group to the 2015 Paris Agreement and 2016 Marrakech Declaration on climate change. “The ACP is proud of the ratification and implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement by so many ACP member states. Their submissions of nationally determined targets for adaptation and mitigation of
climate impact on food security, protecting forests and oceans, ensuring sustainable management of extractive sectors and enabling our ACP agroprocessing enterprises to move up and into Global Value Chains (GVCs) and derive improved incomes, skills development and decent jobs, especially among women and youth.” Gomes said that the impact of these results across several sectors is tangible proof of growing attention to specific UN Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). “These have included reducing extreme poverty, fostering food and nutrition security, protecting land, forests, oceans and seas and upgrading living conditions in slums and urban settlements and thereby providing a strong platform for continuing progress of ACP States in achieving sustainable development in 2017 and the years ahead.” Gomes said that while the ACP welcomes the notable gains in the rule of law and good governance by many ACP States as witnessed by the smooth transition of power by electoral means in Ghana, “we are firmly resolved that the outgoing President of the Republic of the Gambia, Yaya Jammeh should handover the mantle of leadership to the democratically-elected President as expressed by the will of the people. “To this unequivocal call by fellow Leaders of the Economic Community of West African States ((ECOWAS) and by the African Union, United Nations and a host of civil society organisations in The Gambia, the ACP Group has aligned itself and urges President Jammeh to honour the electoral results and demit office by the constitutionallydue date of 18 January 2017,” he said.
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Wednesday January 04, 2017
17-YR-OLD TO STAND Gold trader TRIAL FOR MURDER remanded for ganja Seventeen-year-old Marlon Garrett, the son of a Bourda Market, Georgetown stall holder was yesterday committed to stand trial at the High Court for the capital offence of murder. At the conclusion of a Preliminary Inquiry (PI) in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan said that upon revision of the evidence a prima facie case was made out against Garrett for murder. The charge against the Campbell Street, Albouystown resident alleges that on September 11, at Robb and Bourda Streets, he murdered Omesh Chetram, 34, of Unity, East Coast Demerara. Police Inspector Neville Jeffers represented the prosecution. In closing the case of the prosecution, Jeffers called Detective Sergeant Paul Wills to the stand. Sergeant Wills is stationed at the Kitty Police Station and attached to the
Criminal Investigation Department (CID). Prosecutor Jeffers however requested another witness Shaquille O’Neil of ‘B’ Field Sophia, to be reserved for testimony when the matter comes up at the next practicable sitting of the Demerara Assizes. This request was granted by the Chief Magistrate. Garrett’s lawyer declined to make closing submission. When asked by the Magistrate if he had any witnesses to call, the accused replied in the negative. Police in a statement said that the alleged murder occurred sometime between 23:30hrs on September 10 and 01:30hrs on September 11. Investigations revealed that the deceased and a male were involved in an argument, during which the suspect stabbed him in the lower region of his abdomen with a knife and escaped. Chetram was pronounced dead on arrival at the
MURDER ACCUSED: Marlon Garrett Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). Kaieteur News understands that Chetram was a drug addict and did odd jobs around the Bourda Market to sustain his habit.
Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan, remanded a 52year-old man to prison after he was arraigned before her on charges of trafficking in narcotics. The man, Henry Conway, of Watooka, Linden, is alleged to have had 20 grams of cannabis sativa (marijuana) in his possession for the purpose of trafficking on December 31, at Water Front, Port Kaituma, North West District. It is further alleged that on the same day at Main Road, Port Kaituma, North West District, he had 3.82 kilograms of cannabis sativa (marijuana) in his possession also for the purpose of trafficking. Conway, a gold trader, who was represented by Attorney Adrian Thompson, pleaded not guilty to both allegations after they were read to him yesterday in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts. In relation to the first charge, Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones told the court that on the day in question,
police stopped and searched the defendant after they observed him acting in a suspicious manner. Jones said that during the search, a quantity of leaves, seeds and stems were found in a jacket the defendant was wearing. Also found in the jacket was a key to a hotel room, the prosecutor said. Prosecutor Jones revealed that Conway told police that he was staying at a hotel. Police requested to search the hotel and escorted the defendant there. According to Prosecutor Jones, a search was conducted on Room 22 and another set of marijuana was found. H o w e v e r, A t t o r n e y Thompson during a bail application argued that the illicit drug was not found in his client’s possession. He said that police searched the room at the guest house and alleged that the drug was found in a bag. Thompson contested that multiple persons have access
A mini health check is the first step to donating blood
REMANDED: Henry Conway to the guest house room and the drug could have belonged to anyone. The attorney said that his client has no pending matters or previous convictions. Prosecutor Jones opposed bail for the defendant citing the fact that no special reasons were raised by the attorney and also the gravity of the charge. Jones indicated that an analyst report is still outstanding from the case file. Nevertheless, the Chief Magistrate transferred this matter to the Matthews Ridge Magistrate’s Court for February 7.
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Kaieteur News
Britain’s EU envoy abruptly resigns just months before formal Brexit talks (Reuters) - Britain’s ambassador to the European Union, who sometimes clashed with London over its approach to Europe, abruptly resigned less than three months before Prime Minister Theresa May is due to trigger formal Brexit negotiations. Ivan Rogers, Britain’s envoy to the EU, told staff yesterday that he would step down from his post early but did not explain his reasons for resigning, said the Financial Times, which was first to report the resignation. Britain said in a statement that Rogers, who had been due to leave his post in October 2017, had stepped down to enable a successor to be appointed before May triggers formal Brexit talks by the end of March. Rogers will leave within weeks. “Ivan Rogers has resigned a few months early,” a B r i t i s h g o v e r n m e nt spokeswoman said. “We are grateful for his work and commitment over the last three
years.” May now faces formal Brexit talks - likely to be among the most complicated negotiations in post-World War Two European history without one of Britain’s most accomplished EU experts. “This weakens May’s ability to get a good EU deal,” said Charles Grant, Director of the Centre for European Reform thi n k t a n k . “ I v a n Rogers was one of the very few people at the top of the British government who understand the EU.” The resignation is the second by a senior British EU official in the wake of the referendum. Jonathan Hill quit as Britain’s European commissioner in June. Rogers was known in London for sometimes blunt assessments of how far Britain could push EU allies — often expressed in long emails — that jarred with the expectations of some senior advisers around May and before her, David Cameron. In October, Rogers warned British ministers that
the consensus was that a trade deal with the EU might not be done until the early to mid-2020s and that national parliaments could ultimately reject it, the BBC reported last month. BREXIT TALKS Opponents of British membership applauded the loss of Rogers, who they said was a Europhile, and said Britain needed a new set of officials to negotiate a clear break with the club Britain joined in 1973. “If Mrs May were serious about leaving the EU she would have removed him long before,” Gerard Batten, United Kingdom Independence Party’s Brexit spokesman, said. Rogers, appointed by Cameron as Britain’s permanent representative to the EU in November 2013, formerly worked in Downing Street, the British Treasury, the European Commission and at Citigroup and Barclays Capital. After Cameron lost the June 23 Brexit vote and resigned, Rogers drew criticism from some of Cameron’s ad-
Britain’s envoy to the EU, Ivan Rogers
visers in London for lacking ambition in the 2015 attempt to redefine Britain’s relationship with the bloc. Though Cameron eventually struck a deal with the EU in February 2016, campaigners on both sides of the referendum later admitted that it failed to enthuse voters and that it fell short of what Cameron had initially pitched. Hilary Benn, chairman of parliament’s Brexit committee, said a change in such a significant position was “not a good thing”. “This is a time for continuity and experience because this going to be a very complex, a very challenging, a very difficult negotiation,” Benn told BBC radio.
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Wednesday January 04, 2017
Trump’s immigration war ‘may focus on visas’
WASHINGTON (CMC) – With just 17 days before he is sworn in as the next United States president, Donald Trump’s big immigration war to deport Caribbean and other immigrants may focus on visas, according to media reports here. In announcing his priorities for the first 100 days in office, Trump, who will take the oath of Office on January 20, has vowed to direct the US Department of Labour to “investigate all abuses of visa programs that undercut the American worker”. The McClatchyDCnews network reported that Trump’s investigation of the alleged abuse of the visa programmes was the first promise he made on immigration after the US Presidential Elections in November. “While it doesn’t generate the same headlines as building a massive wall, the visa issue is almost as explosive,” said McClatchyDC, pointing to critics of offshoring as saying that a US visa programme that
lets in foreign workers is often the first step to moving American jobs overseas. The H-1B visa programme issues work permits to as many as 85,000 foreign workers a year with “highly specialized knowledge” to fill jobs when qualified Americans can’t be found, said the network. Sara Blackwell, a lawyer for some of the employees hired by the Miami-based Caribbean cruise line, Carnival Corp., said time will tell if Trump follows through with his promises. Media reports here said that Trump’s ascent to the US presidency has “set off a wave of fear among millions of immigrants in the United States illegally,” who are apprehensive that he will “follow through with promises to deport those here illegally. “And he will have at his fingertips the identities and legal status of hundreds of thousands of immigrants who submitted their personal information to President
Barack Obama following his executive orders to block their deportation,” said McClatchyDCnews, referring to some experts, who claim that “Trump is politically obligated to deport them.” The network noted that Trump never wavered from the hard line stance on immigration that he staked out when he first announced his candidacy for the US presidency. Alex Nowrasteh, an immigration policy analyst at the Washington-based libertarian Cato Institute, said that information about the beneficiaries of the children’s programme, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, will soon be in the hands of the Trump administration. “The DACA beneficiaries have been some of the most active and vocal advocates for immigration reform. So, politically, he’d have quite an incentive to use that information to target these people for deportation,” he added.
Wednesday January 04, 2017
Kaieteur News
Gambia’s electoral commissioner flees country after threats (Reuters) The head of Gambia’s electoral commission has fled to Senegal due to threats to his safety after declaring that President Yahya Jammeh lost last month’s election, a defeat the ruler has refused to accept. Alieu Momarr Njai left the country on Friday, family members said yesterday. He had declared opposition leader Adama Barrow the winner of the Dec. 1 election, stunning many Gambians who were used to Jammeh who took power in a coup in 1994 and whose government gained a reputation for torturing and killing perceived opponents. Jammeh initially accepted defeat but a week later reversed that decision and said he would not relinquish power. Njai maintained the validity of the election process but also said he was worried for his safety. Gambian security forces seized control of the Indepen-
dent Electoral Commission headquarters, which holds the original poll records, and told staff, including Njai, to leave. Jammeh’s decision to stay in power has been condemned internationally and started a countdown to potential crunch on Jan. 19, the day Barrow is due to be inaugurated. West African forces from the ECOWAS regional bloc say they will attend the swearing-in. They have also put their forces on alert, raising
the possibility of military intervention. Jammeh called that decision a “declaration of war”. Over the weekend, Gambian security agents closed three private radio stations, making it harder for the incoming government to communicate with its supporters. Barrow’s victory was initially seen as an unexpected triumph for democracy in Gambia, which gained independence from Britain in 1965 but has since had only two presidents.
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Arsenal show their mettle to snatch point, Swansea win LONDON (Reuters) Flimsy before halftime, fabulous by the end; Arsenal revealed the split personality that has undermined so many of their Premier League title attempts as they snatched an unforgettable 3-3 draw at Bournemouth yesterday. Out-battled for an hour by their modest south coast opponents, Arsenal belatedly sparked into life and Olivier Giroud’s glancing header two minutes into stoppage time completed their remarkable recovery from 3-0 down. It was the first time Arsene Wenger’s side had recovered from such a defi-
cit to draw in the Premier League and while they remained fourth, eight points adrift of leaders Chelsea who have played a game less, it could yet prove to be pivotal moment in their season as defeat would have been a hammer blow. Swansea City’s new manager Paul Clement was not officially in charge of his side’s match at Crystal Palace but his presence helped the Swans move off the bottom of the table with a 2-1 victory at fellow strugglers Crystal Palace. Stoke City also beat Watford 2-0 to leave Chelsea’s match at fifth-
placed Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday the final instalment of a hectic fixture list. The packed schedule over the Christmas-New Year period seemed to catch up with Arsenal who were back in action just 48 hours after beating Palace on Sunday. They were second-best throughout the first half as Bournemouth moved 2-0 ahead after 20 minutes with a neat Charlie Daniels goal and a Callum Wilson penalty. Ryan Fraser made it 3-0 in the 58th minute before goals from Alexis Sanchez and Lucas Perez set up a barnstorming finale.
Wednesday January 04, 2017 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Financial investments that deal with joint money can be extremely prosperous. Any attractions toward clients will be one sided and must be put right out of your head. Stay mellow. TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) Don't vacillate about asking for assistance if you need it. Look to a close friend for advice. Your temper could be short if someone criticizes your efforts. GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Make sure that you take time to remember those you love. You will reach the most people if you speak out at an organizational function. New romantic ties can be made; however, you must make sure that your motives are not selfish before you make your move. CANCER (June 21–July 22) Your emotions are soaring and if you don't get your way, look out world. Emotional deception is evident. You may have been trying to do too much, leaving yourself exhausted and open to colds and infections.
LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) (Sept. 24 -Oct. 23) Interaction with colleagues will only be upsetting. You have to know what your boss wants if you expect to do your job correctly. This will be a very hectic day if you've made promises to too many people. SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Advancement can be yours if you are assertive in your approach. Your temper may erupt if you have allowed others to cost you too much money. Take care of your own responsibilities before you help others. SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) Deceit with coworkers is apparent. You're intuitive today; however, this attribute could get you in trouble if you tactlessly say what you think. You may find that someone at work hasn't been trustworthy. CAPRI(Dec.22–Jan.19) Uncertain get rich quick schemes will not be as lucrative as you anticipate. Invite friends in for a visit. Travel could be in order.
LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Sudden good fortune will help you cover your debts. Try not to lend or borrow money or belongings today. Don't bend to the pressure.
AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) Social get-together will bring you in contact with intelligent new friends. Trying to deal with your mate will be unproductive and possibly hurtful. Romance could be exciting if you are spontaneous.
VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) Try to be precise in your communications. Be careful not to hurt the ones you love. You may be admired by colleagues and employers for your diplomatic way of handling your work and those you work with.
PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) This is a great day to beautify your living quarters or to entertain at home. Use your creative abilities to come up with new ideas and directions. Organize your day well if you wish to accomplish all you set out to do.
Bournemouth were hanging on grimly after skipper Simon Francis was sent off in the 82nd minute but were breached again by a rampaging Arsenal side in stoppage time as Giroud pounced to follow up on his “scorpion” volley against Palace on Sunday. “It was not a result we wanted before the game but at 3-0 down we’d have signed for 3-3,” Wenger, whose side will slip out of the top four if Tottenham beat Chelsea, said. “I believe we refused to lose. There’s a great resilience in the team and we saw that today. “Defensively we had some weaknesses tonight that were unusual and in some positions at the back we suffered.”
LATE VICTORY Clement was named as Swansea’s new manager shortly before they kicked off at Selhurst Park. The former Bayern Munich assistant would have taken heart from the way his new club dominated the first half in which Alfie Mawson gave them a 42nd-minute lead and by the way they snatched a late victory through Angel Rangel. Palace have now failed to win in their three matches under new manager Sam Allardyce and sit just above the bottom three in 17th place, one point above Swansea and Sunderland. Like Wenger, Allardyce said the quick turnaround from playing on Sunday had undermined his side.
“Whether you’re tired or not you have to play and I told them that at halftime,” he said. “I was baffled with our first-half display, we were lumping the ball to Christian Benteke and who told them to do that? They were confused.” Alan Curtis was officially in charge of Swansea but Clement came down to the dugout in the second half. “He came down for some moral support, he made his presence felt at halftime, but there was not too much to say,” Curtis said. “We would have surprised a lot of people with our performance today.” Ryan Shawcross and Peter Crouch scored either side of halftime for Stoke as they eased into mid-table.
Nadal beats Dolgopolov on return to action in Brisbane (Reuters) Rafael Nadal beat Alexandr Dolgopolov 63 6-3 in the Brisbane International first round yesterday to make a successful return to action following two-and-a-half months out due to injury. The Spanish former world number one, seeded fifth, made a sluggish start and fell 3-1 down in the first set against his Ukrainian opponent. But Nadal, 30, won four successive games to clinch the opening set and the 14times grand slam winner broke twice in the second to see off 2012 Brisbane finalist Dolgopolov in one hour 15 minutes. He will next play Germany’s Mischa Zverev. In the women’s draw, Spanish fourth seed Garbine Muguruza saved a match point before beating 19-yearold Russian Daria Kasatkina 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(7) to reach the
last eight where she will face Destanee Aiava or twice grand slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. Australian 16-year-old Aiava upset American Bethanie Mattek-Sands 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 to become the first player born after the year 2000
to win a WTA main draw match. World number six Karolina Pliskova crushed American qualifier Asia Muhammad 6-1, 6-4 to set up a quarter-final meeting with eighth seed Roberta Vinci or Japan’s Misaki Doi.
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Williamson, de Grandhomme guide New Zealand to win over Bangladesh (Reuters) New Zealand captain Kane Williamson stroked his sixth international Tw e n t y 2 0 half-century to guide his side to a nervy six-wicket victory over Bangladesh in the first match of their three-game series at McLean Park in Napier yesterday. Williamson (73 not out) combined with Colin de Grandhomme (41 not out) in an 81-run partnership after the hosts had been teetering at 62 for four in the 11th over, chasing a victory target of 142. Mahmudullah, who failed to fire in the one day series with scores of 0, 1 and 3, held together the visitors’ below-par innings of 141 for eight with his t h i r d Tw e n t y 2 0 international half-century. While Williamson and de
Grandhomme looked in control of achieving the target as the overs ticked down, they did not really seal it until they took 17 runs from the 16th over bowled by Soumya Sarkar. De Grandhomme then ended the game with a six over extra cover on the final ball of the 18th over to take New Zealand to 143 for four. Bangladesh, who have never beaten New Zealand in a Twenty20 match, would be ruing the fact they were probably 30 runs short on a good paced wicket with short square boundaries. Lockie Ferguson, making his international Twenty20 debut, had taken two wickets in his first two balls but was denied the hattrick when Mahmudullah clamped down on the 147 kph inswinging yorker.
He eventually fooled the right hander in the final over with a slower delivery to finish with figures of three for 32. The two sides now head to Mt. Maunganui for the remaining two games on Jan. 6 and Jan. 8. Scores: New Zealand 143 for 4 (Williamson 73*, de Grandhomme 41*) beat Bangladesh 141 for 8 (Mahmudullah 52, Ferguson 3-32).
Kane Williamson and Colin de Grandhomme knock gloves, New Zealand v Bangladesh, 1st T20I, Napier, ©AFP
West Indies mull playing T20s in Pakistan ESPNcricinfo - West Indies are considering to tour Pakistan for two T20Is in March this year, subject to security clearance and agreement from the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA), after receiving a proposal and security plan from the PCB. “There is an offer [from the PCB] to play two T20 matches in Pakistan, subject to Players’ Association agreement and security clearance,” Roland Holder, WICB manager of cricket operations, told ESPNcricinfo. “The WICB has received a security plan from the PCB, which we have forwarded to our internal security manager, WIPA and an independent international security firm whom we have also engaged to provide a security report. WIPA and WICB are carrying out its own due diligence prior to making a determination as to the security situation since the safety of the players and staff is paramount. Once those reports are received a final decision will be made after WICB conducts a recce (reconnaissance) of the
venues.” Over the recent ICC meetings, the PCB has managed to convince the WICB to consider visiting Pakistan. Lahore is likely to host West Indies for two T20s on March 18 and 19. The two teams will then move to Lauderhill in Florida for two more T20s. West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell had become the first high-profile overseas player in the inaugural Pakistan Super League (PSL) to express a willingness to play in Pakistan. Former West Indies captain Darren Sammy had also said he would travel to Pakistan subject to security clearance. The PCB has also been initiating steps to host the 2017 PSL final in Lahore on March 9. This again is subject to security clearance and the PSL management is likely to take a final decision by February 25, three days before the start of the playoffs. According to PSL chairman Najam Sethi, the Punjab government has given the board a go ahead, but, according to Urdu Jang,
a local daily, some players are reluctant to tour Pakistan. The PCB bought four bulletproof buses, following Zimbabwe’s visit, in July 2016, to improve security. The board hopes the additional security measures would help convince players. FICA, the international players’ association, however, said that the advice it has received concerning security in Pakistan is that travel to the country is still a risk for international players. FICA’s comments came a day after the PCB said it would host the 2017 PSL final in Lahore, after conducting the league stage and the semi-finals in the UAE. To n y I r i s h , F I C A executive chairman, was still uncertain about the possibility of the PSL final going ahead in Pakistan. “We are in the process of obtaining updated security advice on playing the PSL final in Lahore,” Irish had said. “We don’t expect much change in the advice previously obtained, but will await the updated situation and then communicate to
players. As previously pointed out players play in the PSL as individuals and therefore each make their own decisions on whether to play in Lahore or not. The security risks as communicated by FICA are a factor in their decision making.” Last year, Zimbabwe became the first Full Member nation to tour Pakistan since 2009, when an attack on the Sri Lankan team bus resulted in the s u s p e n s i o n o f international cricket from Pakistan. The ICC, however, refused to send its match officials for the series in May 2015. Pakistan then appointed their own match officials, and hoped the Zimbabwe series would serve as a stepping stone to revive international cricket in the country. That ambition, however, suffered a setback when a suicide attack took place near the Gaddafi Stadium during the second ODI. Zimbabwe, though, played the third and final ODI two days later and completed the tour.
Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Hughes’ mini-masterclass drives Sixers home ESPNcricinfo - With just two balls to spare, a topedged six over the wicketkeeper’s head by Sean Abbott off Ben Cutting saw Sydney Sixers home by three wickets over Brisbane Heat at the Gabba. It did not seem that it would be so close. Sixers needed three from the final over, but Daniel Hughes, who had batted beautifully, was bowled for 85 by its first ball. A scrambled bye was followed by Abbott’s big swing - by hook or by crook they had made it. The Heat always seemed a touch under par, with Brendon McCullum and Chris Lynn - who left their fielding effort with a shoulder injury, but will most likely fly to Perth as scheduled for his team’s next game - failing to kick on. After a fast start, Sixers, led by Abbott - who now has 12 wickets, twice as many as any other bowler in the BBL - pulled it back to limit Heat to 6 for 186. The three stages of Brisbane Heat’s innings Having been put in (only twice have captains opted to bat first this BBL), the Heat’s innings fell into three distinct sections. They flew out of the blocks, taking 70 for 0 from the Powerplay, with the leastheralded of their powerful top three, Jimmy Peirson, outstripping McCullum with a series of mighty
swipes to leg and down the ground. The next six overs were trickier; Abbott’s introduction did for McCullum and Lynn, while Peirson and Alex Ross fell in consecutive overs. As the ball began to hold up and Abbott and co varied their pace, overs seven to 12 read 30 for 4, with four of those overs bringing just three runs each. Fortunately for Heat, Joe Burns anchored the remaining eight overs, reaching a fine half-century in the last over of the innings. In the company of Cutting, who drove lustily and even reverse-swept, Burns struggled, but when Cutting and Jack Wildermuth fell quickly, he opened his shoulders. The last eight overs brought 86 for 2. The comeback kid Nick Buchanan is just 25 but his is an amazing story. This was the ponytailed paceman’s first Big Bash game since December 20, 2011. That’s 1,841 days. Or four Australian Prime Ministers. In October that year, Matthew Hayden had predicted the Queenslander, son of former national coach John, could become “an Australian Andrew Flintoff”. But since then, he has had an operation on just about every vital joint - hip, groin, ankle - as well as stress fractures in the back
and shoulder problems, too. He sought solace in alcohol, then got clean, but with the injuries lingering, he lost his Queensland contract. Here he returned to toplevel cricket. He smote the final ball of the innings for a huge six, and bowled well too, with six runs coming from each of his first two overs, the second of which also brought the vital wicket of Moises H e n r i q u e s . We l c o m e back, sir! Hughes carries Sixers home - almost Hughes started the Sixers’ chase by patting back five dot balls off Samuel Badree. He ended that over by driving beautifully through the covers, the first scoring shot of a minimasterpiece. He milked Badree, the big threat, for 21 off 14 balls, as the West Indian conceded his worst figures of the season (1 for 30) - he also seemed to be afflicted by hamstring issues in his final over - and got after the seamers as his more esteemed colleagues flattered to deceive. Jason Roy was pinned in front, Nic Maddinson was done by a slower ball, Moises Henriques skied slogging and Sam Billings who, like Roy, was playing his last game for the Sixers was deceived by Mitchell Swepson’s wrong’un. Brad Haddin was in fine form as he shared 59 with Hughes,
Alpha Utd striker hospitalized following knife attack While the nation were counting down the seconds to the new year, the family of popular footballer and Alpha United striker, Dellon Lanferman, were holding their breath and anxiously hoping that they were not counting down the seconds of his stay on this earth. The Alpha United striker was rushed to the Public Hospital Georgetown nursing an injury to his upper back following an altercation with another man at the South bus terminal, Longden Street, last New Year’s night. Kaieteur Sport was told that Lanferman was hanging out by the park when someone launched a firecracker that landed near his assailant. The man accused Lanferman of being the perpetrator, an accusation he vehemently
denied. Reports are that the man became angry, whipped out a ‘Rambo’ knife and stabbed the footballer in the region of his back. He was subsequently taken to the hospital where he was admitted. There are no reports of whether the incident has been reported to the police or if the assailant has been detained. Meanwhile, President of the Guyana Football Federation, Wayne Forde and coach of the Alpha United Football Club, Wayne Dover, visited the stricken footballer and were satisfied that he is receiving the best medical attention and is out of danger. Mr. Forde conveyed his regrets and wished Lanferman a speedy recovery. He also urged him to take stock of his life and
strive to achieve his true potential in the sport he loves. Mr. Dover echoed those sentiments and said that he hoped that the player count his luck and aspire to be of good behaviour when he would have been discharged. “Football teaches discipline and I wish to see our youngsters portraying the discipline on and off the field,” said Mr. Dover. He labeled the incident as one of good fortune, while reminiscing on just 4 months ago when Lanferman escaped death while involved in an accident in a mini bus in which he was travelling. Another passenger had lost his life. Meanwhile, Lanferman is out of danger and resting comfortably in the medical institution.
Daniel Hughes hit four sixes in his 55-ball 85 © Cricket Australia
which all but sealed the win. After the wickets of Haddin and Johan Botha, Hughes fell to the first ball of the final over, playing on to Cutting, but, with Heat now believing they could pull off an outrageous win, Abbott swung hard to ensure his efforts did not go to waste. The end is nigh The Sixers recognised
that when the bowler was coming from the Vulture Street End, the straight boundary was much shorter than from the Stanley Street End. So they cashed in on those 10 overs, hitting towards the short fence. They took 120 when the bowler was running in from the VSE, and just 71 from the
SSE. The last over was bowled from the VSE meaning Abbott’s six, over the keeper’s head, flew to the long boundary. Scores: Sydney Sixers 7 for 191 (Hughes 85) beat Brisbane Heat 6 for 186 (Burns 51*, Peirson 44, Abbott 3-38) by three wickets.
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Philander, Rabada rip Serena shakes out rust to advance in Auckland through Sri Lanka (Reuters) World number two Serena Williams shook out any cobwebs from four months away from tennis with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over France’s Pauline Parmentier in the first round of the Auckland Classic yesterday. The 35-year-old had not played a competitive match since she lost to Karolina Pliskova in the semi-finals of the U.S. Open last September, withdrawing from all tennis to deal with a persistent shoulder injury. The American, who had participated in a charity doubles match with sister Venus against All Blacks siblings Julian and Ardie Savea before the tournament started, was appearing for the first time in Auckland and persistent rain on Monday postponed her first round match until yesterday. She struggled with the wind and had some rusty moments in the second set
Kagiso Rabada had Dinesh Chandimal caught behind, South Africa v Sri Lanka, 2nd Test, Cape Town, 2nd day, ©AFP ( R e u t e r s ) Ve r n o n Philander and Kagiso Rabada claimed four wickets each as South Africa ripped out Sri Lanka for 110 on the second day of the second test at Newlands yesterday. South Africa did not enforce the follow-on and were 35 without loss at the close, 317 runs ahead and in a powerful position to claim the victory they need to clinch the series. Sri Lanka collapsed after going to tea on 56 for two with Rabada making a decisive breakthrough at the start of the final session when he had Dimuth Karunaratne brilliantly caught at point by Temba Bavuma for 24. A steady procession of wickets followed as Captain Angelo Mathews and his deputy Dinesh Chandimal
went cheaply after rash shots to Rabada’s persistent pace barrage. The tall seamer had snared Kaushal Silva before tea and finished with figures of 4-37. Spinner Keshav Maharaj added the valuable wicket of Dhananjaya de Silva lbw for 16 before Philander mopped up the tail. He had Rangana Herath trapped in front and Suranga Lakmal caught in the slips, seeing Dean Elgar parry the ball into the air and Hashim Amla take the catch. It was Philander ’s 150th test wicket. Lahiru Kumara was bowled and Philander dismissed Nuwan Prapeed with the next ball so the fast bowler will start on a hattrick when Sri Lanka bat again. Upul Tharanga finished unbeaten on 26.
South Africa were all out before lunch with Quinton de Kock scoring 101 and teenager Kumara claiming six wickets for Sri Lanka in a career-best performance. De Kock, 68 not out overnight, drove the first ball of the day for four and brought up his century off 122 balls, an instinctive innings full of quality shots. Kumara, brought in to strengthen the Sri Lanka attack after their defeat in the first test, claimed a first fivewicket haul in tests and finished with figures of 6122. But it was a long spell in the field for Sri Lanka with South Africa’s tail-enders adding 95 runs after resuming on 297 for six and the toil seemed to have some effect on their lethargic batting performance. Stephen Cook (15 not out) and Dean Elgar (19 not out) will resume for South Africa today with the home team bidding to wrap up the three-match series after victory in the first test in Port Elizabeth. Scores: South Africa 392 and 35 for 0 (Elgar 19*, Cook 15*) lead Sri Lanka 110 (Philander 4-27, Rabada 4-37) by 317 runs.
when the Frenchwoman broke in the fourth game and held three break points in the sixth. The top seed was able to overcome them, however, and won the match with her eighth ace. “It was my first match back in several months and I played a really good player,” Williams said courtside after she wrapped up victory in 75 minutes to set up a second round clash against qualifier Jamie Loeb or Madison Brengle. “The wind was really getting to me. Every day I have practised here there was no wind but today it was so windy. So it was fun. Actually, it wasn’t fun, it was interesting.” She conceded she was feeling rusty and would be selective about her schedule in the new season. “I don’t see myself playing a full, full schedule. But who knows? I’m going
to take it tourney by tourney.” Injury kept her out of much of the second half in 2016 even though she still triumphed in Wimbledon to equal Steffi Graf’s open era record of 22 grand slam titles and her target this year was to surpass that. “Unfortunately I have the highest of goals usually, so obviously that involves winning grand slams,” she said. Another former world number one, Caroline Wozniacki, dropped just one game in a ruthless 6-1 6-0 dismantling of Nicole Gibbs in their first round match. “It’s the first match of the year for me so it’s always tough,” Wozniacki said. “(But) today everything was going in, even with the wind I managed to keep control of the ball and the points. “I was pleased, especially with how I was serving.”
Johnson says batting out of position cost him runs GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Left-hander Leon Johnson believes batting out of his natural position was partially to blame for his ordinary form for West Indies in the recent Test series against India and Pakistan. The 29-year-old, recalled after an 18-month spell on the sidelines, managed just 128 runs in five Tests at an average of 14, without a single half-century, while opening the batting for Windies. Johnson, who bats at number three for Guyana Jaguars, said batting out of position, coupled with a few technical flaws, were behind his disappointing run of form. “It is a bit of both. Opening batting is very new to me and playing against international bowlers and the quality of bowlers of Pakistan and India, playing in that position will be difficult if you are not accustomed to it,” Johnson told the Guyana Times here. “But to say that, it is not an excuse for not doing well. I should be able to adapt to it and they are few technical areas I need to work on.” In three innings in two of the four-Test home series against India, Johnson
Leon Johnson scored just 32 runs. Retained for the tour of the United Arab Emirates against Pakistan, he managed a topscored of 47 in the day/night opening Test in Dubai. He finished the threeTest series with 96 runs and was especially disappointing in the third Test with scores of one and 12, even though West Indies notched their first success of the tour with a five-wicket win in Sharjah. Johnson, who captains two-time reigning champions Guyana Jaguars in the Regional four-day championship, said he was hoping to retain his place in the West Indies side. “I got a couple of starts and I didn’t make full use so
I’m bit disappointed with my international performances,” he noted. “But coming home now, hopefully I can replicate the form I had last season and score the volume of runs in first class cricket and maybe more so I can maintain a place in the regional side so I can better the performances against India and Pakistan.” Johnson has not been his usual prolific self in the domestic first class season, and has garnered only 232 runs at an average of 29 from five games. However, he said he was not worried as he was in the process of working out some flaws in his batting. “I have identified a few technical problems with West Indies batting coach Toby Radford and I have been working on those things and it makes me feel better doing it, since it has worked to an extent,” he explained. “I have not scored the amount of runs I wanted to in the first half of the regional tournament but at no time I felt out of form.”
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Taylor misery as Thunder lose again SYDNEY, Australia, CMC – There was little joy for West Indies star Stafanie Taylor or her Sydney Thunder side as they slumped to their second loss in three outings in the Women’s Big Bash here yesterday. Playing at Blacktown International Sportspark, Thunder were restricted to a meagre 115 for eight off their 20 overs and Brisbane Heat – without Taylor’s injured Windies teammate Deandra Dottin – cruised to their target with seven balls
remaining, to pull off a comfortable nine-wicket victory. Despite the loss, the reigning champions remained second in the standings on nine points, just one point adrift of leaders and city rivals, Sydney Sixers. Heat, meanwhile, moved into fifth spot on eight points, in a tightly bunched top six separated by a mere two points. Opting to bat first, Thunder struggled from the outset and only captain Alex
Darts: Dutchman Van Gerwen claims second world crown
Blackwell with 43 from 49 balls displayed any real enterprise. Taylor, without a halfcentury in the tournament, struck two fours in nine before becoming the first wicket to fall in the third over. Blackwell helped put on 32 for the fourth wicket with Nicola Carey (16) to leave Thunder on 80 for three in the 15th over but five wickets tumbled for 31 runs at the end as their challenge fizzled. In reply, opener Beth Mooney struck an unbeaten 75 from 66 deliveries to energise the Heat run chase. She put on 63 for the first wicket with Kirby Short (13) and a further 54 in an unbroken second wicket partnership with Jess Jonassen (20 not out).
West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor … still without a halfcentury in the Women’s Big Bash.
CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship Bahamas 2017
GBFA President backing Guyana to advance to KO stage; Training re-starts this weekend
Michael van Gerwen reacts during the match. (Action Images / Peter CziborraLivepic) (Reuters) World number one Michael van Gerwen of the Netherlands won his second PDC World Darts Championship title with a 73 win over holder Gary Anderson at a sold-out Alexandra Palace on Monday. The 27-year-old Van Gerwen never looked in any real danger against Scotland’s Anderson during a contest that included 42 maximums of 180 - a world record for a single darts match. “I feel absolutely over the moon. I had to find my A game,” ‘Mighty Mike’ Van Gerwen told Sky Sports. “My average of 108 says it all - it was incredible for everyone.”
An intruder who climbed on to the stage in the ninth set seemed to briefly break Van Gerwen’s concentration but the Dutchman ended a threeyear wait for a second world title by hitting the bullseye to seal a comfortable victory. World number two Anderson, 46, was aiming to match Eric Bristow (198486) and Phil Taylor (19952002 & 2004-06) by becoming the third man to win three successive world titles. “It’s well deserved for Michael with the year he’s had, but I’ve had a good three years,” said Anderson. “At 2-2 I just started to drop and got punished.”
By Franklin Wilson History is set to be made come February 20th in the Bahamas when Guyana for the first time compete at the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship Bahamas 2017. Drawn in Group A, Guyana will match skills with the host nation, Bahamas, Jamaica and Belize. The lads from the Land of Many Waters will have the distinction of playing the feature match of six on the opening night, February 20th against Bahamas. The next match would be on February 21st against Jamaica and Belize on the 22nd to close out group play. Both the Jamaica and Belize encounters are the precursors to the feature matches. Not leaving anything to chance in order to make a big impression on debut at this level, the GABF and the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) have already named the final team of 12 players and Management staff that will represent. Speaking with Kaieteur Sport, GABF President Rollin Tappin said that preparations would have commenced since early September 2016 when they
had shortlisted a squad. The final team was named in mid December last. Tappin said that he is confident Guyana will make it out of the group stages. ”The Coaching staff will now focus on tactics and strategies looking ahead to competition in the Bahamas. I am elated as President that this is also a history making venture for Guyana as it is the first time that we are taking part at this level in this version of football, it is a proud moment for our nation.” While noting that the Guyanese have been drawn alongside some experienced teams, Tappin who said that the GABF has been in preparation mode over one year ago having run off their inaugural league. ”I think that while we have some difficult teams to compete against, I am of the view that we can make it out of the group stage and enter the knock-out phase. Making the knock-out stage would be a huge plus for us going forward generally to develop Beach Soccer in Guyana.” Tappin noted that the players who made the final cut constitute a mixture of e x p e r i e n c e a n d
inexperience. ”We have some players who have already played at the international club level before and we expect them to lead those players who will be going out there for the first time. Even the first timers I must add have exhibited the level of desire and talent throughout our inaugural league which was played from January 2016 and sponsored by Corona Beer.” Training will re-start this Saturday and Sunday at the Bayrock Beach Soccer facility with sessions twice daily. The other competing nations at the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship Bahamas 2017 are: Group B, defending CONCACAF Beach Soccer champion Mexico, Guatemala, Canada and Guadeloupe. Group C United States, Trinidad & To b a g o , A n t i g u a & Barbuda and US Virgin Islands. Group D - El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama and Turks & Caicos Islands. Team Guyana: Defenders – Jermaine Grandison, Tony Gilbert, Rodwyn Fraser, Trevorn Archobold. Midfielders – Deshawn Joseph, Michael
Wilson, Jahshaun Moore. Forwards – Keon Sears, Cordell Johnson, Jamol Haynes. Goalkeepers – Ethan Sparman, Kellon Major. Coach - Abdullah Hamid, Assistant Coach – Dillon Roberts. The champion and the runner-up of the competition will join host Bahamas as the three CONCACAF representatives in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017. In case Bahamas (host of the World Cup) and/or Guadeloupe (Non-FIFA Member) reach the final match, the World Cup spot(s) will be allocated to the next best placed team(s). The top two teams from each Group will advance to the knock-out phase. The quarter-final match ups will be decided by a draw. Group winners will be matched up randomly with the second place teams. In an effort to further develop Beach Soccer, each one of the sixteen participating Member Associations are guaranteed to play six games, with all competing for final tournament placement, until the last match date.
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Fisherman XI, Ariel triumph
Ryan Singh Fisherman XI and Ariel recorded victories when the Everest Cricket Club hosted two softball fixtures on Monday. Fisherman XI defeated Ariel by 19 runs in the morning fixture. Led by 43 from opener Yunnis Yusuf Fisherman XI posted a challenging 160-8 off their
Richard Latif allotted 15 overs, batting first. Yusuf added 56 for the third wicket with Stanley Mohabir after they were reduced to 23-2. Following the demise of Mohabir for 29, Yusuf shared in another useful stand of 45 with Robert Mohan who was dismissed for 26. Yusuf struck three fours and two
sixes as Ryan Singh claimed 2-21 and Dennis Mangru 227. In reply, Ariel lost two early wickets, but Richard Latif kept them in the hunt with level-headed batting. Latif added 53 for the fourthwicket with Oslyn Batson, but after hitting four fours and five sixes Latif went for
Clyde Hoyte 69. Batson made 27 as Ariel were restricted for 141-6. Yusuf took 2-12. Ariel overcame HS Masters by 21 runs in the second encounter. Ariel batted first and scored 151-8. Dennis Mangru stroked 45 while Ryan Singh made 25. The duo added 57 for the fourth-wicket to steady the
innings following an early setback. Peter Persaud and Yunnis Yusuf chipped in with 18 and 16 respectively as Clyde Hoyte and Ramo Malone picked up two wickets each. HS Masters were bowled out for 130 in 14.2 overs in reply. Hoyte anchored the
Yunnis Yusuf innings with an authoritative 72 while Troy Boodhoo made 30. The pair added 66 for the sixth-wicket with Hoyte hitting five fours and four sixes while Boodhoo hit two fours. Yusuf snared 3-7, Ryan Singh 3-18 and Mangru 2-20. (Zaheer Mohamed)
Sterling quarterback crop lead way into the playoffs
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) throws a pass during the first quarter of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. (Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports) (Reuters) An evergreen crop of elite quarterbacks featuring Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger, offer the promise of a dazzling Super Bowl tournament with the playoffs getting underway this weekend. Joining that trio is twice Super Bowl most valuable player Eli Manning of the New York Giants, former Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson of Seattle Seahawks and league MVP candidate Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons, underlining the importance of the quarterback in the gridiron
game. Oddsmakers installed AFC top seeds New England Patriots, who have won four Super Bowls with Brady at the helm, as 2-1 favorites to win the title, followed by the NFC top-seeded Dallas Cowboys at 4-1. “I thought the players and the coachin g s t a ff have both done a great job this year of being focused and looking just at what’s in front of us ... not getting caught u p i n o t h e r d i s t r a c t i o n s , ” said Patriots coach Bill Belichick, whose team
finished with seven straight wins. The Patriots made their way despite missing Brady, 39, for the first four games due to a suspension stemming back to the Deflategate controversy in the playoffs two years ago. Brady, a three-time Super Bowl MVP, and the Patriots (14-2) enjoy a firstround bye along with the Kansas City Chiefs (12-4), who are led by quarterback and former first overall draft pick Alex Smith. Rodgers, a Super Bowl MVP, led the Green Bay Packers (10-6) on a rousing
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) passes against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. (Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports) charge into the postseason finishing with six straight victories, while two-time Super Bowl winner Roethlisberger steered the Pittsburgh Steelers through an 11-5 campaign. The Green Bay quarterback predicted the Packers could sweep the rest of their games after struggling to a 4-6 start. “That’s what you have to do some t i m e s a s a leader,” Rodgers said after Sunday’s victory over the Detroit Lions to clinch the NFC North title. “Exude confidence even when it seems to the
outside world confidence shouldn’t exist.” Bucking the trend favoring experience at quarterb a c k w e r e t h e young Dallas Cowboys (13-3), who were led by rookie quarterback Dak Prescott and first-year running back Ezekiel Elliott, the NFL rushing leader. Atlanta (11-5) are the NFC second seeds, and will take the week off along with Dallas. The Wild Card round opens on Saturday with the Oakland Raiders (12-4), devastated by the loss of
starting quarterback Derek Carr to injury, taking on the Houston Texans (9-7), who are also playing a back-up signal caller. The defensive-minded Seahawks (10-5-1), who have been to two of the last three Super Bowls, host the Lions (9-7) and their strongarmed quarterback Matthew Stafford. O n S u n d a y , Roethlisberger and the Steelers host the Miami Dolphins (10-6), followed by a frigid meeting at Lambeau Field between the Giants (11-5) and the Packers (10-6).
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GTTA domestic programme plummets in 2016 -International participation took precedence
Godfrey Munroe GTTA President By Edison Jefford An analysis of table tennis in the past year reveals that Guyana Table Tennis A s s o c i a t i o n ’s ( G T TA ) domestic programme plummeted, while much emphasis was placed on the international participation of players and continued attempts to decentralise the sport. The GTTA hosted its National Senior Championships after a threeyear hiatus, and National Junior competition to form the major part of what it accomplished on the local circuit. However, those two events, though necessary, are not representative of the usually busy characteristic of the association, which is known for much more
Shemar Britton
activity than it had last year. Three of the most notable competitions that disappeared from the GTTA Calendar last year were the annual Mashramani, Independence and Schools’ tournaments. These, among some of the low-tiered competitions, provided lots of exposure for players; they also provided an opportunity for players to consistently test their resolve against the best competitors in Guyana. Notwithstanding the absence of its usually robust programme, Guyana participated in the Caribbean Junior and Cadet Championships in the Dominican Republic. Five players were selected and sent to represent Guyana, including Shemar Britton, Kyle Edghill, Elishaba
Johnson, Miguel Wong and Nicholas Romain. The team competed in the 15 years and under Singles and Doubles competitions where they secured a silver medal in the Junior 18 years and under team event. Shemar Britton secured a bronze medal in the Singles competition while Kyle Edghill and Elishaba Johnson won a silver medal in the boys’ Doubles contest and Nicholas Romain bronze in the Boys’ 15 years and under category. National table tennis players Chelsea Edghill and Trenace Lowe participated in Olympic qualifiers for the Latin America Region, April 1-3, Santiago Chile at the Centro De Entrenamiento, Olympico Stadium in their
Kaysan Ninvalle quest for qualification for the XXXI Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. Guyana also participated at the Caribbean Pre-Cadet Table Tennis Championships in Jamaica in August where Kaysan Ninvalle emerged as the lone gold medallist in the 11 years and under group. T h e G T TA s e n t a representative 20-member team, returning to Guyana with five silver medals and three bronze medals along with Ninvalle’s gold medal. Then the association was on tour again at the Senior Caribbean Championships in September in the Dominican Republic with Shemar Britton, Nigel Bryan, Kyle Edghill and Elishaba Johnson claiming bronze in the men’s teams’ competition.
Because of his performance at the PreCadet competition, Ninvalle was selected for a Wold Hopes Training Selection Camp in October. The World Hopes is a new project of the ITTF Education and Training Programme for young talented players in the U-11 age group. T h e G T TA a l s o sanctioned a 37-member delegation, including players, parents and Coaches to the North American Te a m s Ta b l e Te n n i s Championships held at the Gaylord Resort, Maryland, United States of America. The team secured gold and bronze medals. Guyana also won the table tennis competition of the Inter-Guiana Games as hosts. Apart from those,
Chelsea Edghill GTTA work last year was mostly administrative with an endorsement of Steering Committees in the Mining To w n o f L i n d e n a n d Cinderella County of Essequibo. Those initiatives are aimed at decentralising the sport. The association also had a “GTTA Building Future Champions” project in Bartica and on the East Bank that targeted beginners and intermediate players. The GTTA in collaboration with the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) hosted an Umpires’, Referees and Tournament Coordinators’ course early in May last year at the National Research and Racquet Centre Woolford Av e n u e a n d N a t i o n a l Gymnasium.
Wiltshire birth anniversary dominoes to commence on Monday Senior organising secretary of the Georgetown Dominoes Association, Mark Wiltshire, will be hosting a one-week tournament in honour of his 62nd birth anniversary starting on January 9 at 19:30 hrs at Dynasty sports bar. Matches will also be played on the East Coast and West Demerara with the play offs commencing on January 14 at Transport Sports Club. Entrance fee is $12,000. The winning team will take home a trophy, medals and $175,000, runner up a trophy, medals and $75,000, third place a trophy and $35,000 and fourth place a trophy and $15,000. The best female player in the tournament will receive $10,000, the player sharing the first love with the best average and first double love will be given $5,000 each and the man-of-the-match in the finals will pocket $5,000. One re-entry will be allowed and all GDA rules will be in effect. For more information teams can contact Wiltshire on 665-5855. Meanwhile, N and H Car Rental is the latest entity to have come on board. They recently presented one of the trophies to Wiltshire.
Maria Hintzen (right) presents the trophy to Mark Wiltshire (center) in the presence of Mark Elliot and Hugh Gordon.
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Hero’s welcome as Oscar lands in China for 60-million euro move
Wednesday January 04, 2017
Super50 trails set for Friday and Saturday at Providence The national selectors have invited 28 players for two trail matches set for Friday and Saturday at Providence to select the Guyana side for this year’s Regional Super50 which commences on January 24 in Barbados and Antigua. The following players have been invited: Shimron
Hetymer, Leon Johnson, Assad Fudadin, Raymon Reifer, Devendra Bishoo, Ve e r a s a m m y P e r m a u l , Keon Joseph, Paul Wintz, Christopher Barnwell, Chanderpaul H e m r a j , Ta i g n a r i n e C h a n d e rpaul, Romario Shepherd, Tevin Imlach, Anthony Adams, Gudakesh
Motie, Robin Bacchus, Anthony Bramble, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ronsford Beaton, Rajendra Chandrika, Vishaul Singh, Jonathan Foo, Sherfane Rutherford, Royston Crandon, Clinton Pestano, Steven Jacobs, Eon Hooper and Kevon Boodie.
What went through the heads of those ballot bearers? By Rawle Welch
Brazilian football player Oscar (centre) is escorted as he arrives at Shanghai airport, China, Monday. (Photo: AFP) SHANGHAI, China (AFP) — Brazilian star Oscar was given a hero’s welcome when he landed in Shanghai Monday in a 60million euro deal (£51 million) from Chelsea that smashes the Asian transfer record. Dozens of chanting Shanghai SIPG supporters mobbed the international midfielder, 25, at the city’s Pudong airport. Oscar’s arrival in the Chinese Super League (CSL) comes ahead of that of A rg e n t i n a ’s f o r m e r Manchester United striker Carlos Tevez, who signed for Shanghai Shenhua in another big-money deal last week. Tevez’s transfer fee was 10.5 million euros, according t o t h e w e b s i t e transfermarkt.com, which tracks football transfers, and the 32-year-old is reportedly set to become the highestpaid player in the world with a two-year contract of 38 million euros per season.
O s c a r ’s d e a l w i t h Shanghai SIPG is thought to be 24 million euros a season — which would put him above Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi — but the fee they paid to Chelsea eclipses the estimated 55.8 million euros the ambitious Chinese side shelled out for Brazilian striker Hulk in July. SIPG General Manager Sui Guoyang admits that Chinese clubs need to offer eye-watering sums of money if they are to get in the big names. “If we don’t offer 60 million euros, do you think he will bother to come?” Sui asked last week of Oscar, according to Sky Sports. “There’s such a huge gap between CSL and Europe’s top leagues. It’s unrealistic to suggest that we would have done it in a different way. “The cost of signing the player was €60m indeed, not £60m. The club’s senior management personally flew to Paris to seal the
deal.” Chelsea Manager Antonio Conte, who dropped Oscar this season and deemed him surplus to requirements at the Premier League title-chasers, last month said the burgeoning financial muscle of Chinese clubs was “a danger” to football because few other teams in the world could compete with the vast sums they are splashing out. After escorting Oscar through a media scrum on arrival, Sui dismissed concerns raised by Chinese state media of a market bubble in the Chinese league, again arguing that prices have to be higher to attract players away from big European leagues. “The league is developing so of course it will go through many different stages,” Sui told AFP. “I believe that from now on the Chinese Super League will become healthier and more normal.” Some fans put it more bluntly. “In the end, if you do not pay the money then nobody would be willing to come over here,” said SIPG supporter Zou Jiahuo. Oscar and Hulk will work under former Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea Manager Andre Villas-Boas at the Shanghai club.
The general feeling of disappointment was what was felt following the reelection of President of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) K.A. Juman Yassin, who returned unopposed recently. The overwhelming sentiments expressed by current and former sports administrators, athletes and present and potential stakeholders including the business sector depict a gloomy picture for the development of sport here, while it potentially leaves the Ministry of Sport, National Sports Commission and the Government by extension with the onerous task of doing it all alone. Yassin’s extension in office is a clear manifestation of the paucity of administrative acumen that resides within the sports fraternity and on a more serious note; it radiates a worrisome lack of courage by those who seem too afraid to face up to him. Their apparent lack of will to challenge him could also be interpreted as being too terrified of reprisal that they prefer to return him to office despite irrefutable evidence of nonperformance over two decades. None of his few supporters, who have come out of the woodwork following his unopposed election win, could tell the nation what Yassin has done in his 20+years as GOA President, except for travelling the world. In their post-election celebratory rants, none of his supporters could tell us of his achievements. As we’ve said before, we know that a GOA Headquarters is being built during his tenure, but other than that, what other tangible
achievement that transformed the lives of Guyanese athletes and sports could Yassin claim? The perception of payback is not farfetched since many who were instrumental in returning him to office provided lame excuses such as “who else there is and we already know who we have.” Additionally, we learned from the financial report that was presented at the GOA Elections that Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) President, Godfrey Munroe, who is now a Vice-President, benefitted from a close to $4 million scholarship from the GOA to complete a Master’s Degree. Munroe’s ascension therefore is not accidental. Further, the plan to return Yassin became even clearer w h e n G T TA G e n e r a l Secretar, Linden Johnson seconded the nomination of Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) President, Aubrey Hutson at the elections. These actions suggest that athletes were not consulted in the first place by their managers. This is evident in one table tennis club official indicating to my colleague Edison Jefford that “the GTTA sell we out”. Notwithstanding, the errant stance of the administrators who colluded to return Yassin, ensures sports will have to endure another four, possibly twelve years, of his lack of understanding about the requirements to develop sports, while he jets around the world enjoying the International Olympic Committee luxuries at the expense of the respective associations’ poor choice. Save and except for one n e w m e m b e r ( Tr i c i a Fiedtkou), all the other office bearers will struggle to
present us a case of how they had helped their respective disciplines develop. From the canoeing official (Charles Corbin) to the former swimming administrator (Karen Pilgrim), who are also Vice Presidents, the GOA structure is not representative of real progressives in sport, thereby making them undeserving of such high offices. What could have possibly gone through the heads of those ballot bearers to nominate and subsequently endorse those members who were part and parcel of such prolonged ineptitude? How could an executive that has literally done nothing over such an extended period be rewarded with another four to twelve years of managing one of the most important sports institutions in a country? As my friend Frederick Kissoon stated in his New Year’s Day column, “there isn’t and cannot be another country like Guyana”. Just when the Government decided to substantially increase its support for Sport, perhaps with the hope of strengthening collaboration with other stakeholders, it is forced to deal with an important organisation such as the GOA whose new executive comprises individuals with dismal track records pertaining to sports development. Just for the record, table tennis and weightlifting will not enjoy inspiring appraisals for 2016, but look where their representatives are positioned in the GOA. Happy New Year and best of luck to our hard working athletes. (Additional reporting by Edison Jefford)
Wednesday January 04, 2017
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Australia run rampant after Warner’s record ton S Y D N EY (Reuters ) David Warner hit a record century inside one session and his fellow opener Matt Renshaw a maiden hundred over three as Australia reached 365 for three at close of play on the opening day of the third test against Pakistan yesterday. With the series already secure after last week’s victory in Melbourne, A u s t r a l i a ’s o p e n e r s gave the hosts the best possible start to their quest for a 3-0 series sweep. Warner, playing on his home ground just a few hundred m e t r e s f r o m where he was born, reached the hundred mark from 78 balls in 118 minutes to become the fifth batsman to notch up a century before lunch on the first day of a test. The left-hander was unable to add to his tally of 17 fours before being caught behind off Wahab Riaz for 113 soon after lunch but Renshaw, playing his fourth test, proved more than capable of taking up the mantle. The 20-year-old, initially circumspect where Warner was aggressive, was knocked to the floor by a sickening blow to his helmet grille from a Mohammad Amir bouncer on 91 but got up to complete his century
Matt Renshaw is all smiles after his maiden Test century, Australia v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Sydney, 1st day, ©Getty Images
David Warner leaps to celebrate his 18th Test century, Australia v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Sydney, 1st day, ©Cricket Australia/Getty Images from 201 balls with eight fours. When stumps were drawn, Renshaw was unbeaten on 167 with Peter Handscomb on 40 not out alongside him in a partnership of 121. Usman Khawaja (13), Wa r n e r a n d A u s t r a l i a skipper Steve Smith (24) all fell to catches behind the wickets, the last a spectacular take by Sarfraz Ahmed off spinner Yasir Shah. Otherwise, it was a day to forget for the tourists as
Warner and Renshaw ran rampant on a good wicket after Australia had won the toss and chosen to bat. As pugnacious as ever, Warner barely hit a false note in his 95-ball innings, hitting the second ball he faced for four and not letting up until he had run the three runs that secured his 18th test century. No batsman had ever hit a century in the opening session of a test match in Australia and only compatriots Victor Trumper, Charles Macartney and Don
Bradman as well as Pakistan’s Majid Khan had done it elsewhere. “It’s a honour and privilege to be amongst the greats of the game,” Warner said. “It wasn’t something in the back of my mind to go out and score a 100 in a session. It was about going out there with intent and batting positive.” Warner also bettered his own record for the fastest test century at the SCG, having taken 82 balls to reach the milestone against
West Indies here last year. Renshaw had scored only 25 runs at lunch and stuck with his cautious approach through the second session and into the third, spending seven overs in the 90s before a single gave him his century. The crowd gave him the standing ovation his application deserved and continued to roar their approval at the 10 boundaries that followed as the Queenslander finally threw off the shackles a little. He survived an lbw scare
off the bowling of legspinner Yasir on 137 - the technology showed a clear edge off the bat - and received another big ovation as he departed the field unbeaten at close of play. Pakistan paceman Wahab, who took 2-63, did not try to put a gloss on a disappointing day. “I think as a bowling unit, we have really let down our team,” he said. Scores: Australia 3 for 365 (Renshaw 167*, Warner 113, Handscomb 40*) v Pakistan.
Cyrus denies arriving at camp smelling like alcohol
Defender Daneil Cyrus … has rejected claims he turned up at camp smelling like alcohol.
P O RT O F S PA I N , Trinidad, CMC – Defender Daneil Cyrus has pushed back against claims from Trinidad and Tobago head coach Tom Saintfiet, that he turned up to national camp last Sunday smelling of alcohol. The 26-year-old was one of the three players axed from the initial 20-man squad, with Jomal Williams and Joevin Jones also sidelined. Saintfiet told media here last Sunday Cyrus and Williams had turned up oneand-a-half hours late with “a decent smell of alcohol around them.” “Both were immediately sent home, back to party,” the Belgian said. However, Cyrus argued that Saintfiet had been wrong in his assertion as he did not drink alcohol, and also explained he had been late in arriving at the camp because of a flat tyre. The W Connection player said he had attempted to explain this to Saintfiet but his
efforts had proved futile. “I went to him and he asked me to see the flat tyre and when I was going to show him at the same time he said ‘Jomal you smell like alcohol’ and then Jomal said ‘yes I had a drink with my family,’” Cyrus recounted to the Newsday here. “And after that I don’t know if that triggered him off and he told both of us to wait out in the lobby and then he came back and said ‘thanks for everything but you could go back and party.’” He added: “I was shocked because he asked me to see the flat tyre in which I was going to show him. He just went off because Jomal was kinda smelling like alcohol – it wasn’t me he was talking to. “When I saw the Newsday (newspaper) and everyone say that both of us showed up smelling stink of alcohol I was shocked because if anybody know me, any of my friends, they know I can’t drink and I
don’t drink so I don’t know where all this is coming from. “I just want my name to clear up from this because people thinking I showing up in camp drunk and I drink (alcohol). I don’t drink.” Saintfiet subsequently called up the trio of Trevin Caesar, Curtis Gonzales and Akeem Roach to replace Cyrus, Williams and Jones for the three-nation CONCACAF Gold Cup qualifiers against Suriname and Haiti starting here today. And though sidelined, Cyrus said he was still prepared to offer his services to the national side. “All the time the commitment is there. If they call [me] back tomorrow [I will go back],” he said. “I just don’t like the fact that the coach never spoke to me about alcohol, it wasn’t me he was talking to and for him to say both players showed up in camp smelling stink of alcohol, that is wrong.”
t r o Sp Alpha Utd striker hospitalized following knife attack
President of the GFF, Wayne Forde, offers his regrets to Lanferman even as he urges him to refrain from future confrontations.
CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship Bahamas 2017
GBFA President backing Guyana to advance to KO stage; Training re-starts this weekend
Flashback! Kuru Kururu Warriors’ Cordel Johnson (ball at feet) takes the attack to Attention Family in a GBFA League match at the Kuru Kururu Beach Soccer ground.
Philander, Rabada rip through Sri Lanka
Vernon Philander wrapped up the tail, South Africa v Sri Lanka, 2nd Test, Cape Town, 2nd day, ©AFP
Serena shakes out rust to advance in Auckland
United States’ Serena Williams serves during her first round match against Pauline Parmentier of France at the ASB Classic tennis tournament in Auckland, New Zealand. (New Zealand Herald via AP Jason Oxenham)
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