Page 04
Kaieteur News
KAIETEUR NEWS Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: ADAM HARRIS Tel: 225-8491, 225-8458, 225-8465 Fax: 225-8473 or 226-8210
Editorial
Crime in all its manifestations affect the poor The Home Affairs Ministry’s reported data-driven refutation of A Partnership for National Unity’s (APNU) assertion that the poor are disproportionately affected by serious crime merits some examination. It should be made clear at the outset that no amount of paraded statistics can erase the fear of crime that most persons without the necessary security wherewithal experience on a daily basis. How people are affected by crime should be the focus of serious national consideration and not left to the expression of individual political parties, nor should it be relegated to the field of political grandstanding and brinksmanship. To point to the worth of stolen items like cell phones and arrive at the conclusion that the owner-victims are not poor is at best a specious piece of reasoning. A not so close look at what obtains with respect to material possessions would enlighten the most obtuse among us that some of the poorest are prepared to engage in what the economist identify as the exercise of choice, even if the opportunity cost means foregoing more basic and important needs. What the reported statement is asking us to believe is that a male victim between 18 and 35 walking late should not concern one unduly since the crimes did not occur in homes but in the street. The issue here should be one of those nightly street victims classified as poor and if so what were the victimology factors which caused that number (94) to suffer at the hands of criminals? Apart from a tepid blanket statement, APNU should have pointed out to this nation the ways in which crime in all its manifestations affect the poor. Citizens might have been more able to identify if references were made to the fact that the efficient provision of social services is affected by government having to reallocate resources to law enforcement interventions, thus leaving already depressed communities which are predominated by the poor. The Guyanese people would have been better served by an APNU statement which showed how the level of white collar crime deprives them of benefits through tax evasion and money laundering. One does not have to be a rocket scientist to understand how crime affects a country. However, those who feel that they are getting the short end of the social contract and with no end in sight might be more susceptible to well-reasoned arguments replete with suggestions on how to move from the morass of a crime-ridden existence. In this regard, APNU comes across as lacking a clear strategy of how to capitalize of the much-touted lack of vision by an entrenched administration. Yes almost everyone will agree that crime must be confronted by a bipartisan approach, but it appears as though the allure of scoring cheap political points has stronger sway across the political spectrum than nationalism. The net result is a jaded and pessimistic population which is becoming more mired in misery as the days unfold. People need to be told when the country’s infrastructure will reach the standard where road engineering will not feature as a contributory factor in traffic accidents; where minibus fatalities do not disproportionately impact on the poor who are forced to use that mode of public transport; where the well to do develop a sense of social justice and urge their comrades to stop stealing electricity which the poor must pay for if they want a degree of comfort. The crime of smuggling gold and precious stones, opaque rapacious dealings involving the national patrimony all take a toll on the quality of national life. In fact there are so many ways that crime impact on the poor that it requires broad unequivocal acceptance and diligent efforts to reign it in. The psychological trauma of being a crime victim probably cannot be measured in comparative terms between the wealthy and the poor. But obviously the replacement costs for material possessions are likely to be more within the comfortable reach of those above the poverty line than those on or below that said line. Further those with the wherewithal are more than likely to remove themselves from the perils of living in a crime-ridden environment than their less endowed brethren. Therein lies the sad reality of Guyana today.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur M@ilbox Send your letters to Kaieteur News 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown or email us kaieteurnews@yahoo.com
GUYANA HAD SOVEREIGNTY UNDER PRESIDENT BURNHAM DEAR EDITOR, While flicking channels during the tiresome incessancy of commercials, I caught Dr. Henry Jeffrey being interviewed on NCN. I don’t look at NCN; only when flicking through channels. What I heard Dr Jeffrey said was not only surprising, but alarming. I hope Dr. Jeffrey, for the sake of his academic credibility, clarifies what he meant because three times during the interview he said it When asked if it is not a contradiction that Dr. Roger Luncheon is invoking the sovereignty of Guyana in rejecting the continuation of the
democracy project by the US, but the PPP went and solicited the help of the US during the government of the PNC, Dr. Jeffrey said the two things are different He said back then, Guyana was an authoritarian system and did not have free elections. Let me repeat, three times he said that the sovereignty issue back then is not the same now in 2014. He was unambiguous in his interpretation that under rigged elections, it was politically correct for the PPP to ask for US help. He went on to add that he is uneasy with the US insistence of continuing the democracy arrangement in a sovereign
state where the government has rejected the programme. In other words, if you have to analyze what Jeffrey meant it goes like this – under Burnham, Guyana didn’t have sovereignty, so the PPP asking for American help was not an interference with Guyana’s Independence, but the situation is different now because Guyana has fair elections, thus is a sovereign nation Another analytical dimension in his pronouncement is that he ties sovereignty with free elections. In other words, the two are dialectically (Continued on page 6)
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Kaieteur M@ilbox
Page 5
Kaieteur M@ilbox
An appeal to Mr. Armogan The exclusive PPP/C club of affiliates must go DEAR EDITOR, Many are the letters and articles bemoaning the practices of government in the administration of the public procurement process. Even chief spokesman for government Dr Luncheon is bemoaning the activities and performances put on by those who are selected to produce work or supply goods for the nation. More than ten years ago, I was asked to deliver the feature address at an IDB seminar/workshop that dealt with procurement in the public domain. I remember well the reception my remarks were given by those assembled. I felt then, and still do, that the selection of a few favourites to perform would eventually impact negatively on the nation’s economic structure. I asked then that we divvy up the works in tiers
so that at least three distinct groups of contractors could be utilized on public projects. Also that strict licensing, insuring and bonding of all levels of contractors be undertaken. As time progressed, this would have allowed for the more ambitious contractors to climb the ladder so to speak and grow into larger and more viable entities. Instead, what we have is a select band of players in the industry. Many of them are stretched beyond their natural capabilities and financial viability. The result is that severe cash flow, materials flow and other problems have choked them to a grinding halt. Why should the Hope project be still ongoing with two year plus extensions with no end in sight? Why have all the major roadways not yet been
completed? The answers to these questions lie in the fact that what I highlighted so many years ago has now been taking place for the last three years with great regularity. The solution lies in a pragmatic reinvention of public procurement where the emphasis is on the upbuilding of more players in the procurement community. The exclusive PPP/C club of affiliates must go. With this club will go the shenanigans and crooked dealings as we now evidence. You and your publisher highlight almost daily the crooked dealings. I hope you publish this one since it appears that the boat is now at the edge of the falls. Cyril Walker
DEAR EDITOR, I live and conduct my business in Number 75 Village, Corriverton, Berbice. As the country will know, we have been suffering from water damage to especially our farmlands. I have been writing to the authorities and cannot bear it anymore. I would now like to publish one that I last year to Region Six Chairman, David Armogan. I would appreciate your publication as it shows our frustration. Dear Mr David Armogan, I, the undersigned, respectfully request your presence to have a firsthand look of the drainage system in Section B # 75 Village . Sir, I had written to the IMC of Corriverton, a letter dated 12.11. 2012 and copied to you on the situation regards the drainage facilities in this area but to date the IMC did not visit or ask me to
explain the condition in this section. There are also other problems in this area, which you will see on your visit. Chairman, I have two acres well-stocked farm which I really would like you to see because this farm is now threatened by poor drainage although Guysuco’s drainage canal is just nearby. I have been calling on your cell phone without success this is why I choose to write because I know you are always a very busy person, but I hope you can
make it to visit me and see one of the best farms in Berbice just along the public road which is in sure danger due to negligence or vindictiveness by those who are mandated to manage and maintain this town . Sir, I will be very grateful if you can indicate when you are coming so that I can be available and not waste your trip. I can be contacted on tel. # 335-3347 or cell 626-6245. Thanking you in anticipation, kindly oblige. Harri Persaud Beharry
Page 6
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur M@ilbox GUYANA HAD SOVEREIGNTY UNDER PRESIDENT BURNHAM From page 4 connected. This is completely false. Sovereignty inheres in the territory and the State, not the government. The State is coterminous with the nation, the government is not. Governments come and go; the State is permanent. Under Presidents Burnham and Hoyte, Guyana had sovereignty. There was a nation named Guyana with national institutions and a military whose duty was to preserve the physical integrity of the territory By Jeffrey’s logic, it means that China, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states among others do not have sovereignty because they do not have one person, one vote in general elections that are competitive. What the US did under the PNC Government, and what is seeks to do at the moment with the democracy project cannot be separated using the concept of free elections. The US, as a neighbour of Guyana in the late eighties and early nineties, sought to bring democracy to Guyana. This is what the democracy project in 2014 intends to do in a country where democracy has been extensively undermined by a minority government What Dr. Jeffery needs to answer is if the Guyana Parliament is a custodian of Guyana’s sovereignty. If he answers in the affirmative, then would he agree that Parliament can then request the US to proceed with the democracy project? Dr. Jeffrey should be careful when he looks at the role of competitive election and its relation to democracy. In his seminal work illiberal democracy, scholar and CNN presenter, Dr. Farred Zakaria, in his elegant book, “The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad,” describes in detail with
case studies, how competitive elections can in fact undermine constitutionalism in a country depending on the nature of the society. Here is a quote from Zakaria that is so relevant to Guyana; “In societies without strong traditions of multi-ethnic groups or assimilation, it is easiest to organize support along racial, ethnic, or religious lines, once an ethnic group is in power, it tends to exclude other ethnic groups.” What Zakaria describes here is the methodology scholars should use in looking at American support in Guyana for democracy. Under President Burnham (but certainly not President Desmond Hoyte), it was felt that there was ethnic domination so organizations like the PPP rushed to the US to ask for American help. Nothing has changed since then, except that the PNC and African Guyanese are out and the PPP and Indo-Guyanese are in. It means that appeals to the US in 2014 by opposition entities for good governance, democracy, constitutionalism and ethnic fairness remain grounded in Zakaria’s methodology and the question of infringement of sovereignty does not come into the debate. To conclude, it was perfect political strategy in the eighties for the PPP to appeal to the US for help. In today’s Guyana, it should be perfect strategy for the PNC and AFC and human rights groups to do the same. I end on a personal note. I hope the US does not back down on the democracy project. I hope Parliament passes a resolution welcoming the arrangement and I hope the opposition intervenes urgently with the US Embassy to let the undertaking continue Frederick Kissoon
IMMIGRATION INFO: Immigration News For Our Community Attorney Gail S. Seeram, Gail@GailLaw.com DIGITAL FORM I-94 (NOT PAPER) ISSUED UPON ENTRY INTO U.S. U.S. Customs and Border Protection have made the issuance of arrival records (Form I-94) a digital process in order to streamline passenger processing. Form I-94 provides international visitors evidence they have been lawfully admitted to the U.S, which is necessary to verify alien registration, immigration status, and employment authorization. The automation means that visitors to the U.S. will no longer need to fill out a paper form when arriving to the U.S. by air or sea, improving procedures and reducing costs. Thereby, visitors will no longer receive a “white card” with a stamp of their entry date and the date they must leave the U.S. The current processing time for entering foreign visitors’ travel information into the I-94 database is 30
days or more. This new automation process will provide immediate upload and access to arrival and departure information for all travelers to the U.S. So, when you enter the U.S. you will no longer be given a white paper (Form I94) to fill out with your name, and it will no longer be stamped with your entry date and required departure date from the U.S. Instead, your passport will be stamped with your entry date and required departure date. If you wish to print a paper copy of your entry and departure for your records or for filing adjustment of status, then the information will be immediately available on-line at www.cbp.gov/I94. In order to access the information, the following security questions will have to be answered: name, passport #, date of admission, departure date, and class of admission. Initially, the I-94 automation process will be rolled out to the following airports: Miami, Chicago, and Orlando – with all U.S. airports to follow. The arrival and departure information for
Gail S. Seeram all passengers will be available immediately upon arrival into the U.S. but upon departure from the U.S. it will not be accessible. Our office recommends all travelers to review and print the information that will be placed on-line at www.cbp.gov/I94 for accuracy upon their arrival into the U.S. As with any process that is electronic, there may be errors and you want to ensure that your arrival and departure records are correct so you have no problems or issues with your next entry into the U.S. and with future adjustment of status. This new process only applies to passengers entering the U.S. with a nonimmigrant visa – it does not apply to U.S. citizens or permanent residents (Green card holders).
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 7
GUYANESE SURVIVAL BUDGET, PANTY LINERS, AND A CONFUSED OVERSEAS GUYANESE By Ralph Seeram Before opening my column I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the relatives of the late Terry Holder who died this week. Terry was my boss at the old Guyana Broadcasting Service when I was its Berbice Correspondent. Terry was a genuine human being loved by his staff because of the person he was in life. I am sure Terry’s place is assured in heaven. “Your income is not enough to buy the house,” the mortgage broker said to me. I pointed out that our combined income can more than pay the monthly payments and still have cash left over to buy necessities. Besides, we are going to rent part of the building. The broker explained it doesn’t work that way, that they only calculate 32% of your salary to pay your mortgage, and you need the rest to survive. I was getting my first lesson in the American way of life. She explained that the more you earn the more you spend, that’s the American way. Having recently come from Guyana I was still in the Guyanese mode or mentality -“cut and contrive” not earn and spend. Today, after so many years, I can relate to what the broker said; that’s one of the reasons I visit Guyana often, to get a reality check, and to be honest it’s not what I expect. In fact sometimes it’s not a reality check. When I am in Georgetown, I feel as if I have not left Florida; familiar fast food restaurants, everyone talking on cell phones, stores with the latest fashions and electronic items, not to mention the traffic jams with cars- too many cars. I thought of this after reading the debate on how much money a mother and one child need to survive in Guyana. I am not sure if that budget in Demerara Waves was made up by the PPP or Demerara Waves, but I can tell you this it had to be made up by a woman. No Guyanese man is going to make up a household budget and leave out his liquor. Yes that budget did not cater for the rum shop, where maybe a third of the income goes. And of note, no man is going to make up a budget and include panty liners, but I will come back to the panty liners issue later. Poor is a relative word. What is poor for some is rich for the next man. You can earn a million a month or a year and still be poor because your
lifestyle makes you spend a million and one dollars. This was evident during the housing melt down in the U S where millionaires were reduced to bankruptcy and lost their fancy homes, not because they lost investments or jobs, but because they did not save. They spent all their disposable incomes on improving their lifestyles. Which brings me to the Guyanese lifestyle and how poor are they. There are people in Guyana who struggle to literally put “food on the table”. I get that. But it happens in the richest of society. The extent will differ but there are always “poor” people in any society, for different reasons, and that’s the reality. To be honest I am very confused on how Guyanese live the lifestyle on their income. I am confused on the World Bank Report listing Guyana as the second poorest country in the region. Something isn’t right. Either the Government or the World Bank is “cooking the books” (statistics). Guyanese enjoy a better lifestyle than some of those countries that are supposed to be richer. A prominent Guyanese businessman told me once, “if you want to see poor go to Haiti. Guyanese don’t
know what poor is”. My daughter went to Haiti and said that Guyanese are rich compared to Haiti. You want to see poor, go to Jamaica. You see the proliferation, now, of malls. Stores are well stocked with consumer items (foreign) electronics etc. Who supports those stores; I am sure the merchants will not stock goods if they are not selling. Where is the money coming from in this “poor” country? People are buying more fast food than cooking home ( seems to be a lost art for the young people) buying $200.000 cars in less than two years, filling up stadiums for foreign singers. Where is this money coming from? I am telling you something is not adding up. That proposed budget which exceeds the average salary, does not include rum shop bill, transportation, internet, oh yes cable and cell phone bill (smart phone thank
you). How did they do it? Weeks before last Christmas, like thousands in the Diaspora I went to Laparkan to ship some boxes to Guyana. Lined up in the bond were a line of flat screens TV’S, washing machines, refrigerators and other electrical appliances, and don’t let me tell you how many barrels. This however is a year round exercise and not only at Xmas. Like the thousands of Guyanese in the Diaspora also I went to Money Gram to send a “small piece” to relatives and friends, this happens also to be a year round routine. Remittances no doubt play a significant part of maintaining the Guyanese lifestyle. We may never know the true figure, as not all is reported through official channels. I rather suspect it’s driving half the economy. Then some believe that
the white powder that is not cassava powder (thanks for the term Wesley) plays a significant role in the economy. We now come to the other source of income— bribery. I am sure most are familiar with the system of bribery in Guyana to get things done, and almost everyone looks out for some “lunch money” to do their job. A well known businessman in Georgetown told me recently that he went to renew his gun permit. He had to pass three points and had to give the police at each point a “small piece”. He did not even reach to the area where he had to get it renewed. The Government is
deceiving itself if it thinks Guyanese are doing well because of their handling of the economy. It’s really the UNDERGROUND economy THAT IS DRIVING GUYANA, but I guess the World Bank does not recognize that. Oh as for that panty liner as a necessity in the Guyanese budget, I was taken aback by that item, so I called a female friend of mine in Guyana to find out if it a necessary item. She said, “Only when I get turned on.” Reminds me of a line in an old calypso that goes “ rain wasn’t falling sun was shining how the panty got wet.” Ralph Seeram can be reached at email: ralph365@hotmail.com
Page 8
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
Parika Backdam road to be fixed this year -MOA official
Frustrated residents want a permanent fixture to the Parika Backdam road.
It is unclear as to whether the Parika Backdam road will get a permanent fixture. However, according to a Ministry of Education official, the process of finding contractors to repair the deplorable road can be expected to begin shortly. “The Ministry already has that planned, but the process to go to tender and so has not yet started, but the residents should know that it will be fixed...as of now, I’m not certain if this will be a permanent fix per say, but it will be better, and I’m sure that the residents would be comfortable,” the official who asked not to be named said. Just recently, residents once again became furious over the deplorable condition
of the Parika Backdam Access Road, which has been a major hindrance for farmers trying to make ends meet. They have been losing thousands of dollars worth in produce, which would constantly fall from the vehicles struggling to maneuver the potholes on the road. Many are also peeved that transportation operators are refusing to take them to their homes because of the road’s poor condition, especially in the case where schoolchildren are stranded for hours waiting to go home. Residents complained about their vehicles being destroyed, causing them to be constantly buying new vehicle parts. One resident, Mr.
Doodnauth, had told Kaieteur News that the Region Three administration has been neglecting the road which serves as the main access to three communities - Naamryck, Parika and Ruby backdams. These communities are home to more than 1000 persons. According to the region’s Alliance for Change (AFC) Councilor, Harry Deokinanan, he has raised the issue at a previous statutory meeting, but was told by the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/ C)’s representative that residents were comfortable with the condition of the road. “That is a lie! Who can be comfortable with the condition of such a road? I even went back there to show the people the minutes of the meeting, and they said that it was a lie,” Deokinanan said. He told Kaieteur News that prior to the statutory meeting, he sought the assistance of Regional Chairman Julius Faeber, but was told that the administration does not have the money to purchase a grader with the needed crusher-run. The Ministry of Agriculture has always been fully aware of the farmers’ plight, but shabby works continue to further annoy residents. In 2011, residents were forced to voice their grievances via a demonstration. Some works were carried out, but just one year after its construction, the Parika Backdam Access Road, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) was once again in an appalling state. Some works were carried out in July 2013, and the residents’ struggles with the road continue. The multimillion dollar two-mile road was built around FebruaryMarch in 2010. However, then, the finished product did not meet the satisfaction of residents since the contractor was said to have utilized substandard materials. “Even tar dem na bin put,” one resident had stressed. It was explained then that only crusher run, sand and loam were administered in the process, causing the road to continuously deteriorate. Since mainly heavy laden vehicles carrying loads of produce in and out of the Backdam mainly traverse the road, it is essential that the road gets a permanent fixture. “It’s thousands of pounds of vegetables and fruits in there that have to be accessed to be taken to markets such as the Leonora, Parika and Bourda ones,” Deokinanan said. Residents are hoping that the planned works would be unlike the shabby kind which has been done in the past.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 9
APNU says its actions in 2013 prevented a governmental disaster A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) has expressed concern over the remarks made by government that it was the Opposition with its one seat majority, that stymied growth in the economy in 2013 by being unsupportive, uncooperative and opposing projects intended to benefit Guyana. Leader of APNU David Granger expressed that the actions that his party took are consistent with the role that they have in the National Assembly, a role which Granger posits is to “bring executive action under scrutiny, to insist on Ministerial accountability and to assert the authority of the National Assembly… so the action we took actually prevented a governmental disaster. I think if we had gone ahead with the Amaila Project without the careful scrutiny that we exercised,
we would’ve had the same problems GuySuco has now of having a dead factory on our hands.” Elaborating further on GuySuco was Member of Parliament and Shadow Minister of Agriculture Dr. Rupert Roopnarine who stressed that APNU has been calling time and time again for a strategic inquiry into the GuySuco debacle. “The fact of the matter is I think we have also called from time to time and we intend to call more forcefully this time for some kind of Commission of Inquiry (COI) or Special Parliamentary Committee because there must be an inquiry into the condition of GuySuco, how has it reached to its present position and how are we going to get beyond it?” According to Dr. Roopnarine, one can no longer be talking about another five year strategic or
a turnaround plan “what we need is to see where GuySuco is going to be in 20 years time, we need a serious strategic consideration of the development of GuySuco, but this we are not seeing.” APNU’s leader said that with respect to the Amaila Falls project, questions were asked and he feels that the position that his party took was vindicated. “Similarly with the position we took on other projects, we asked where the money is coming from, we asked for due diligence, we asked for more information. So I don’t think we have blocked development, we have given Guyanese people the assurance that whatever development takes place will be done in a transparent manner.., that is our Parliamentary role and I think we have done very well, we have held the Ministers accountable and they are
Special rape, domestic violence unit in the pipeline - Minister Webster The Human Services and Social Security Ministry is planning to establish a special unit to handle reports of rape and domestic violence in Guyana. These types of criminal offences, according to Minister Jennifer Webster will have specially trained investigators to deal with the victims. It was noted that the unit will work in close collaboration with the Guyana Police Force and upon reporting an incident; the victim will be placed in a special room, with all the key participants, including a medical examiner. “What we’re planning really to do here is to have the child who is abused, the stakeholders, the police, the
Human Services and Social Security Minister Jennifer Webster social worker all at one place, work with the child, do the reports up and forward it to the relevant authorities so that the child does not need to go through the process
over and over,” Minister Webster said. Webster further explained that the idea was being considered for some time now. “We feel it’s important that we have a special unit to deal with sexual and child abuse investigations and to have a special trained and dedicated cadre of investigators to address intensely the personal and emotionally charged situations.” The entire idea would be to create an encouraging atmosphere where victims can come forward and report incidents of sexual offences and abuse. The unit will also have a support system for victims of rape. Over the past years, there has been an alarming rise in the number of crimes of this nature.
Shadow Minister of Agriculture and Environment Dr. Rupert Roopnarine learning to accept that when they go to the National Assembly they must speak the truth.” Granger expressed that they (government Ministers) know the consequences of not speaking the truth adding that competence must be expected as well. Reference was made to Home Affairs Minister Clement
A mini health check is the first step to donating blood
Leader of APNU David Granger Rohee and the security situation.Look at what the government is reporting about the rise in crimes Mr. Rohee has been there for over seven years and right now we have three murders a week
and this is the same level of murder as 2004 during the so called troubles when fineman was alive and killing.” “So when we take action in the National Assembly it is considered action because we have considered the consequences, we’ve studied, we’ve received advice, we met as a shadow Cabinet and considered the certain course and it’s an informed decision we take. We are not malicious, we are not spiteful or vengeful; we make sure that the Guyanese people get value for money and this has not been happening on many of the projects the government has been embarking on, that’s why we brought those projects… particularly infrastructural projects under scrutiny” Said Granger.
Page 10
Kaieteur News
Persons who knowingly harbour runaway teens should be prosecuted By Dale Andrews Almost every week there is a story of a runaway teen in the daily newspapers. But what we do not know is the risk these teenagers, who are predominantly girls, face while on the run. Despite the risks, it would appear that most of them are willing to endure the harshness of the streets in order to maintain their ‘freedom’. In this day and age when much focus is being placed on issues such as Human Trafficking and Child Labour, it is worrying that so many teenage girls are eager to risk their health and in some cases their lives just for the sake of being on their own. And while you might want to think that they are running away for the better, in most cases they end up on the streets, mingling with the wrong crowd which invariably lands them into the hands of the law. It might be interesting to note that many of the runaway teenage girls are in no way abused at home, although many of them make that claim whenever they are apprehended. In fact, they suffer more abuse at the hands of the persons who lured them away from their homes in the first place. I came to this conclusion after listening to the stories of three teenage girls who up to recently were engaging the attention of the law. One is a 13 year old East Bank Demerara resident, who was ordered back into the custody of her father on no less than two occasions by a
- social worker city Magistrate after running away several times. She is now an inmate at the juvenile centre after being apprehended recently for wandering, and according to another inmate at the same institution, she might have recently done an illegal abortion, since she has been bleeding profusely over the last few days. Her story sounds like a recurring tale of running away and then being recaptured only to run away again. She would always claim that she was at a relative or close friend, but these explanations always turn out to be false since she was always recaptured outside the Stabroek Market near Demico House at some odd hours of the day. “She was living with her mother who died late last year. She did not even attend her mother’s funeral,” a social worker who has been dealing with her case told this newspaper. According to the social workers, on the day of her mother’s funeral, she was dressed and prepared to attend but she vanished just before she was taken to the church service. “Her father eventually found her by the market and took her to the cemetery just as they were sealing her mother’s tomb. Imagine her mother is dead and she didn’t even want to go to her funeral,” the Social Worker explained. It’s not that she is improperly supervised at home, but from all indications
she just wants to be on the road. In stark contrast to the tight supervision she is experiencing at home, there is the case of another female who recently graduated from the juvenile stage, after years of delinquent behavior. She has seen the courts on many occasions, having been charged for assault and simple larceny. This teen is obviously obsessed with criminals, since she reportedly boasts of having a man in jail. “She even takes food for her man in jail,” the Social Worker said. Hers is a case of improper supervision as revealed by her social worker and she might be a victim of criminal minds using her for their own benefit. As a matter of fact, her grandmother would usually post her bail whenever she finds herself before the courts. She was enlisted in the Skills and Knowledge for Youth Employment (SKYE) programme but never participated. Then there is the case of a 16 year old girl who is also an inmate of the drop in centre who was recently recaptured after getting away from the institution. “These girls have big women attitude. Some of the parents are willing to take them home but after three weeks they are back on the streets. When you listen to some of them, they just want to be on the road. They want to go to every show at the stadium and when their parents talk to them, they run away to a life on the streets,” the Social Worker stated. But not all run away teenage girls are willing parties to the nefarious activities of those who lure (Continued on page 11)
Sunday January 12, 2014
Current Leadership of Go-Invest crippling its growth - Agency needs strengthening immediately - Urling President of the Guyana Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Mr. Clinton Urling has disclosed that the body will be paying more attention to proposals geared towards attracting foreign investment. More importantly, Urling stressed that the government owned agency, Go-Invest needs strengthening immediately. GO-Invest is an organization which provides advice and concessions when necessary, to investors who are looking for the best way to start a business in Guyana. It also enables entrepreneurs from around the globe to tap into the wealth of trade and investment opportunities available in the country. Keith Burrowes is the current Chairman of this key investment agency. However, Urling explained that this call comes in light of the fact that the company has been staggering in its ability to perform effectively and efficiently. While Burrowes is the current Chairman, Urling stressed that the investment company needs an immediate change in leadership. He also piloted the call for an immediate review of the company’s objectives and method of approach to its projects. He added, “Even certain mega projects should be removed from the company and placed under one body, preferably the National Competitiveness Council. I would also suggest the setting up of an Implementation Unit to further assist the body in fulfilling its mandate.” Due to the amount of political rivalry that has been so evident last year, Urling said that a lot of projects fell
Ramon Gaskin on the sideline and as such, they were not given the attention and priority status that they required. He added, “We also need a consultation body to deal with these projects so that more input can be had.” In addition, the National Competitiveness Strategy report even recommended that the mandate of Go-Invest be revised in order to maximize the efficiency of the company’s role in incentive administration, among other key functions. The report explained that the agency has an important role to play since it is serves as a bridge between government and businesses on the interest of investment and export related issues. It said as well that, “As the international economic environment evolves, and Guyana increasingly needs to compete globally instead of regionally, GO-Invest will have to change further.” However, in an interview with this publication last year, Mr. Burrowes had explained that the agency was unable to carry out its current mandate due to a lack of resources. He had also mentioned that the company has the ability of accomplishing more than it had since its establishment. But this he said can only be changed if it were furnished with the necessary assets. Also supporting the call for the strengthening of the company and the change of its leadership was financial analyst, Mr. Ramon Gaskin. Gaskin posits that the company is failing due to its lack of human resources and that it’s Chairman, in
Clinton Urling
Keith Burrowes particular, is in charge of too many companies. “Mr. Burrowes cannot handle the load and the pressure that comes with reforming such a company. He has too many jobs to deal with. This in itself prevents him from having the time to adequately deal with Go-Invest. He holds over four major positions in major companies across Guyana and that is apart from his position at Go-Invest. The company has been stunted for some time.” Moreover, “There needs to be the implementation of an Investment Review Agency that is set up by Parliament. This Agency would be able to manage investment proposals both local and foreign. Guyana needs such an agency with clear roles on how investment proposals are to be approved. Such a change is necessary for Guyana and for the government owned agency or else the organization will just continue to slide down the slope of failure until it turns into a derelict that serves no purpose at all.”
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 11
Reference Lab delivers quality service but still maturing – CMO The National Reference Laboratory
Designated a centre of excellence when its doors were first opened a few years back, the National Public Health Reference Laboratory, situated at the junction of New Market and Thomas Streets, Georgetown, has a pivotal role to play in ensuring that the standards and quality of laboratory services are maintained. But according to Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, although the ideal
thing is for the facility to be a reference lab, as its name suggests, the situation that obtains is in fact far more extensive. Ideally, he explained that the Reference Lab should have been tasked only with validating and further investigating tests at a higher level than were done at, and referred by various clinical laboratories. “Hopefully we will get there, but at this point in time they (Reference Lab)
Persons who knowingly... (From page 10) them from their home. Some of them are used as sex slaves and would only return when their usefulness has been exhausted. I recall another teenager whose mother had visited this newspaper with a story that gripped me for weeks. The mother related that the teenager, who according to the mother was mentally unstable, would usually leave her home and return days later after she was used and sexually abused by men. On one occasion the teen related a tale of being locked in a house in the city and repeatedly raped by men who would pay to have sex with her. She recently contacted me to tell me that she had given birth to a child a few
weeks ago. When I asked her who the father of the baby was, she calmly told me that she did not want to have anything to do with him. And the cycle goes on. Although she has given police the names of persons who were involved in her being held under duress, no one has been prosecuted. “We need to start prosecuting those persons who knowingly harbour runaway teenage girls,” the social worker said. But while there is provision in the law for the prosecution of persons who harbour these children, not many cases are taken before the courts. “A lot of the police don’t want to deal with these social problems,” a senior police officer said.
Advertise in Kaieteur News Classified Ads and get fast results.
do provide actual day to day services for the National Care and Treatment Centre, the Tuberculosis Programme and the Microbiology Programme as well,” the CMO said. The facility, according to him, is currently also in the forefront of doing assessments for environmental sanitations, and officials there are even involved in investigations when there are reports of waterborne diseases. Added to this, the Reference Lab personnel do lend support to the Food and Drugs Department as well as the Health Ministry’s Epidemiology Unit, said the CMO, who insisted that “I think the Reference Lab is certainly maturing to say the least.” Although the confidence intervals of tests done at the Reference Lab are not 100 per cent, Dr. Persaud assured that there is only a plus or minus five per cent chance that it may not be accurate. He noted that while the performance of the facility has been serving the needs of the health sector well, there are some gaps that do exist in terms of the skills that might be necessary to operate all the equipment the facility contains while at the same time ensuring that they are very productive. According to Dr. Persaud, “at this point we don’t have a Microbiologist, we need to have one of those...we do have Medical Technologists who are skilled but we don’t
have someone with a PhD in Microbiology who can really do the kinds of work and training and so on that is necessary.”As such he noted that there is undoubtedly a need for the upgrading of staff at the facility. Nevertheless, he observed that the staffers at the Reference Lab have been working beyond their usual call of duty to provide all the needed tests. Despite the staffing shortcoming, the CMO said that moves have been made to establish, with the Reference Lab, external quality assurance programmes which will see it collaborating with the Caribbean Public Health Agency Laboratory in Trinidad and the Centres for Disease Control. Collaborations have also
been realised with several other facilities in the United States, Canada and even Brazil, Dr. Persaud disclosed. “We are looking to improve our collaboration, especially in terms of chagas disease, leishmaniasis and those things that the Tropical Diseases Lab in Brazil has some competencies on”. This is being realised even as the Health Ministry is working on getting all laboratories in the country certified, a process that is being done in collaboration with the Guyana National Bureau of Standards to establish and maintain workable standards, according to Dr. Persaud. In ensuring this goal is realised, the Ministry had issued a mandate for the Reference Lab to coordinate the development of
laboratory services throughout the country to improve on diagnosis, according to Dr. Persaud. “With more doctors out there we need to take diagnosis more to the point of care,” said the CMO, even as he disclosed that “there have been lots of kits and rapid methods that have now been validated so that you can have some of these tests done...you don’t have to wait days and days at a lab for results, you can get a lot of results now at the point of care.” And it is the hope of the CMO that the local ability to expand testing capabilities will be greatly improved through collaborations with the Police Forensic Laboratory which he anticipates will soon become operational.
Page 12
Kaieteur News
Throwing good money after bad…
No investments in research, rising costs contributed to sugar decline Economist, Dr. Clive Thomas, who wrote last week that sugar industry is at ‘the point of no return,’ has defended his statements yesterday saying that it can be recognized that the supporters, the European Union and Government of Guyana, does not have the capability of sustaining the operations indefinitely. A professor at the University of Guyana, Thomas has been writing about the state-owned Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) for some time now, pointing to critical flaws in management and operations. On Sunday last, in his weekly column in the Stabroek News, he argued that the industry was at the point of no return. Speaking with Kaieteur News yesterday, he said that through the European Union and Government, financial assistance and bailouts are offered. The dilemma facing both supporters now, Thomas explained, is whether they should continue to throw good money after bad. The economist noted that it is a fact that the industry is producing progressively less sugar at higher costs. Proposed plans to turnaround the industry have proven it just can’t work because of various factors. Dr. Thomas believed that GuySuCo is at the last stage of the life cycle of an industry. The stages include the introduction phase, growth and maturity, with the last being decline and collapse. A number of important features are revealed at this point of no return. “These include the fact that total output and exports of cane and cane sugar continues to trend downwards over the long term and shows no sign whatsoever of a reversal in the industry’s fortunes.” It was also pointed out that another factor is that
- Dr. Thomas
Dr. Clive Thomas GuySuCo’s financial performance has gone down alarmingly. Thomas was critical of the stance by GuySuCo to use annual profitability as an obsessive “operational monitor” to achieve loss reduction, to secure external assistance, including bailout from Government. Another problem facing GuySuCo is that long-term efficiency investments are regularly postponed by management in order to meet immediate needs. The postponement or deferment includes spending on research and development (R&D), as well as maintenance. “Cutting
corners in maintaining the agricultural infrastructure, its production processes and systems, as well as its equipment and machinery have become routine. The same applies to factory operations; buildings, roads; drainage and irrigation; as well as other needed physical works.” In all departments unit costs continue to rise…in the field, factories, marketing and administration. “While EU assistance and Government of Guyana bailout funding offer partial relief, as indicated above this is not a sustainable solution to the commercial dynamic of Guysuco, which is structured to perform as a parastatal public corporation and not a government welfare agency.” Thomas also pointed out that a growing indebtedness to private businesses as well as arrears in revenue collection by state and local bodies is not helping much. “Domestic and foreign private suppliers are reluctant to extend commercial credit. Similarly, financial institutions become anxious over the repayment of outstanding debts to them. And, at the
very least, their response to this is to raise the cost of any additional credit.” Significant also to note is the fact that global competition in sugar is far ahead of the Guyana sugar industry. “In other parts of the Caribbean where Government faced a similar reality of collapse, the Governments have more or less already abandoned the production of cane sugar for export.” Last year, the worst of 23years, GuySuCo recorded just less than 187,000 tonnes, below the 190,000 revised target. There has been no word yet from Government on its plans for the 16,000 worker industry for this year. In December, GuySuCo was approved for a $4B bailout. The US$200M Skeldon factory and modernization project in Berbice has been facing an uphill task with one technical issue after another. Repairs have not helped much with the factory producing a mere 25,000 tonnes, below the targeted 43,000 tonnes. Experts have been blaming poor agriculture and inefficiencies as the cause for the recent run of poor performances.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Administrative catastrophe without “social contract”
- Granger
General Secretary of the PPP/C Clement Rohee Leader of A Party For National Unity (APNU) David Granger has expressed regret over the rejection by the PPP/ C of his party’s ‘social contract’ proposal, stating that such action will lead to an administrative catastrophe. Granger had recently proposed a “social contract” that in essence would see different sectors of society colluding to address the concerns that he had highlighted as affecting Guyana. These include the “security crisis” and the increase in crimes, protest by the trade unions over the state of the economy, and the increase in youth unemployment. He explained that the ‘social contract’ could be the main means of combining the talents of a wider constituency and of creating the conditions for social cooperation and economic progress. The three-fold purpose of such a contract would be to reach a broad consensus on the goals of national development; to establish a sustainable institutional architecture and to create effective policy instruments for the achievement of the objectives of the ‘contract.’ However PPP/C General Secretary Clement Rohee had responded to APNU’s proposal by saying this “new notion” coming out from APNU is a contradiction, because the party seems against every major economic project in Guyana. Rohee said that the question that contradicts the proposal “is how you can be proposing a social contract in respect of the body politics of our country when you have basically shot down a number of investment projects in this country?”
Leader of APNU David Granger “So right away I see an apparent contradiction when on the one hand these antiprogressive, anti -national, anti-business, anti-foreign investor positions have been taken within recent times…that should be explained by the callers of this social contract,” said Rohee. In the wake of Rohee’s statement, Granger articulated that APNU from the beginning has proclaimed its adhesion to the constitutional injunction under article 13, which he posits states that the aim of Guyana’s political system is to create an inclusionary democracy. According to Ganger, after two years of experience with the PPP/C in the 10th Parliament, the coalition is of the view that in order to give life to article 13 of the constitution “we should bring the various participants to the table particularly the Government itself, the Opposition, the labour Unions and the Private Sector, so that we can prevent grid lock, provide for inclusionary democracy and salvage I would say the repetition of the PPP Civic in this 10th Parliament because its going nowhere.” Granger said that he is surprised that government would want to reject the social contract since he posits that “it’s a way to give them an opportunity to improve the quality of governance because the way they are going, we are heading for administrative catastrophe, we have put this on the table but there is nothing new, as I said its part of our manifesto, we are a partnership because we are committed to inclusionary democracy and committed to shared governance.”
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 19
Who will pay this judgment? T
he Hon. Justice William Ramlal recently awarded judgment against the State for unlawful detention of a man by the police. The man’s vehicle was stopped and searched by the police. He was accosted, arrested and later taken down to the station after which he was charged with various traffic offences which were subsequently dismissed. The man then filed an action in the High Court seeking damages. He won his case and was granted judgment in excess of two million Guyana dollars. The unprofessional conduct of one particular police rank led to this award which will now see the police having to fork out this huge sum to compensate the plaintiff. This decision of the Court was not controversial nor was it a landmark ruling. It merely reaffirmed the long held position that before the police can undertake a search of a person or a vehicle there must be probable cause or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.
Unfortunately in Guyana, the police for too long have been operating as if they had an untrammeled right to stop, search and detain any person or vehicle. Through this ruling they have now been properly advised as to the grounds upon which they can stop, search and detain a vehicle. The judge is reported to have ruled that under certain specified sections of the Police Act, the police have no powers to stop, search, arrest and detain any citizen unless the police have reasonable grounds to suspect that prohibited or stolen goods are being carried; unless a person whom the police reasonably suspects to have committed an indictable offence will be found; unless the police have credible and reliable information that someone has committed an summary or indictable offence will be found or unless an indictable offence has been committed in the view and presence of the police. This is a very sound ruling and should help make citizens better aware of their rights. It was the highly
unprofessional actions of a member of the police force that led the plaintiff to file the civil action against the State. A police rank was said to have pointed his gun at the p l a i n t i ff a n d t o h a v e indicated that the weapon was all the authority he, the rank, needed to stop and arrest the plaintiff. As a result of this action, the taxpayers of this country now have to find over two million dollars to settle the judgment. In the old days, civil servants guilty of such unprofessional conduct would have been surcharged. It is not clear whether this will be done in this instance or whether the rank implicated in the violation of the rights of the plaintiff will get off scot-free. Regardless of who pays the award, disciplinary action needs to be taken against the offending rank. In fact, there should be in place an automatic system where so long as it is ruled by a Court that a rank has been engaged in unprofessional conduct, that rank should be subject to a disciplinary hearing. The findings of this
hearing should then be forwarded to the Police Service Commission for a decision as to what form of disciplinary action should be taken. The Guyana Police Force should not have to await public demands for the o ff e n d i n g r a n k t o b e disciplined; there should be an automatic process that kicks in. A few months ago, a person charged with shooting another man walked free from a charge of murder because of the absence of police witnesses. Now if any of these witnesses were investigating ranks or persons from the Guyana Police Force, they need to be subjected to a disciplinary hearing as to why they did not turn up to give evidence in the case. If the ranks concerned are found guilty, the findings of the disciplinary hearings should be sent to the Police Service Commission for
action to be taken. Unless members of the Guyana Police Force are held to account for their actions, there will continue to be a serious erosion of professional standards to the point where the police will begin to feel and citizens will be forced to accept, that the lawmen can act with impunity and can stop,
search and detain a person or vehicles without suspicion premised on articulable and specific facts.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 21
Housing and You…
No nails on the roof, please! By Leonard Gildarie Two weeks ago, we spoke of the need to build properly. A Guyanese working in the islands expressed alarm at the way we are laying blocks and attaching them to the columns or posts. Totally wrong, he says, as there is no way that freshly-mixed concrete can be bonded with old concrete. Well, more contractors are coming out and it seems that indeed, we have been doing things wrong. Maurice Barnes and Orwain Collier are two Guyanese who have been working in Antigua for years. They have built several homes. They returned last year after Government visited that Caribbean island, inviting Guyanese to return home. They were highly interested in the way we build and after seeing the column decided to visit us. According to Barnes, several things are being done that are wrong. “Like for example…I see contractor using nails. Nails are corrosive and will leak. I would urge that we use screws on the galvanized sheets. It has a washer and rubber and will not leak.” But that is small potatoes compared to other things that the two have found. Antigua has strict building codes and the authorities in place to monitor it. When someone takes a mortgage, the bank will demand an independent engineer oversee the
construction, from foundation to wiring to everything else. The two main reasons are ensure the bank is not exposed and that quality work is done, with safety in mind. According to Barnes, homes are built to not only withstand hurricane winds of over 100 miles per hour, but should there be a fire, it will only be contained to a section of the building. That is because the walls are built to withstand heat and not crumble. “What we found in Guyana is that there seems to be cases where both the homeowners and the contractor are cutting corners starting from the actual foundation. Let me say, you don’t ever cut corners on the foundation.” The two contractors are referring to actual blocklaying and how it is tied to the columns. “Yes, it is true that you never pour your columns first and then lay your blocks. Like we said before, it will never be strong, as there will be no way to attach those columns to the blocks. It just can’t happen.” Like we mentioned in that previous column two weeks ago, the blocks have to be laid first and then attached via steel to the columns. The columns, only after the blocks would have been laid and attached, are then poured with concrete. “What we have also found is that most contractors
Drake (L) and Ewain
don’t pay attention to the drawings. In Antigua, drawings are done for everything. Floors, wiring, roof…it is all detailed. Here you have three drawings showing different elevations.” In Antigua, one is automatically granted water connection and electricity too, once the plans have been approved. “In other words, if you have your own monies, you can start building right away. In Guyana, you to run to Public Works, GP, and GWI,” Collier pointed out. Perhaps one of the biggest problems is the fact
that apart from the foundation, there seems to be wrong construction going on. “To strengthen the walls, in Antigua you are told to put steel bars from the foundation through the blocks to the
roof’s perimeter beam. The blocks are then filled with concrete. This allows the steel to be tied to the ceiling and the blocks to be tied in too. No passing trucks or shift in the foundation can cause
those cracks that we see on almost all the buildings we see.” The steel bars are placed either 24 inches or 32 inches apart through the blocks. Now, I know that most folks would be wondering what those extra work would cost. I asked about this. “Let us put it this way. The climate is changing. We see higher winds. Things will happen that never did before. In addition to that, you don’t want to see cracks in your new home a few weeks after moving in. We have to do it correctly. You just can’t cut corners on the foundation.” As regards the roof, there may be a few things wrong. “Most contractors would stitch nail the rafters to the plates which are attached by bolts to the perimeter beam. In Antigua, we have hurricane clips which are much, much stronger. No wind can take the roof off that easily.” Enjoy the weekend and don’t forget as usual to drop your comments to gildarie@yahoo.com or call 2258491.
Page 22
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
The hunt for Steven King… FORTY-DOLLAR US KILLER
By Michael Jordan It was pitch-black, cold and raining heavily when the men entered the track off the Soesdyke/Linden highway. The rain-soaked group included armed police ranks, led by homicide boss, Michael Marks, and an informant who had promised to lead them to a d a n g e r o u s fugitive who always seemed to be one step ahead of the lawmen. They hoped that the
rainfall would muffle the sound of their approach, and that this time around, they would get the man some US reporters had dubbed the ‘claw-hammer killer’. They could just as well have called him the Halloween murderer. The story began on October 30, 1990, in Saginaw County, in the state of Michigan. Bertha Aldridge, 18, and George Bowles, 23, were in the Perry Drug Store, where they worked, when a man with a claw-hammer
attacked them. The hammerwielding assailant struck Aldridge and Bowles repeatedly on their heads. Harold Epting, a 61-yearold employee, reportedly heard a woman’s screams and on investigating, saw his two mortally wounded colleagues on the floor. The man with the hammer then attacked Epting, but although injured, Epting managed to escape. The intruder allegedly then removed US$40 from the cash register and fled the scene.
A post mortem would show that Bertha Aldridge had sustained 19 ‘bashing-in blows’ which punctured her skull. Her colleague, George Bowles, was struck six times. He also suffered a broken jaw and died of cardiac arrest caused by brain damage. Epting and another eyewitness identified the killer as 30-year-old Steven King. King, a Guyanese by birth, was also a former US paratrooper, who was employed as a cashier and
stock worker at the same drug store where the killings had occurred. But King was nowhere to be found. Police in the US received information which suggested that the suspect had fled to his homeland. They contacted their counterparts in Guyana. The local cops got word that Steven King was hiding out at relatives in Grove, East Bank Demerara. The detectives staked out two houses in the community. They learnt that the fugitive had indeed been around, but, apparently tipped off, had fled. But just as the trail appeared to be getting cold, they found out via an informant that King was hiding out in the vast backlands off the Soesdyke/ Linden Highway. According to the informant, some of the suspect’s relatives were supplying him with meals. Police had another stroke of luck when they arrested a male cousin of King’s. The man confessed that King had a hideout in a denselyforested area off the highway. He finally agreed to take the hunting party there. However, he warned that the ex-soldier they were tracking had an uncanny ability to detect the slightest of sounds in the jungle. At nightfall, in almost total darkness, the informant led detective Marks and his team down a meandering trail, in which an occasional snake was picked out by flashlight. Finally, they came upon a small clearing in which a cot had been set up. A man was lying on the cot. He appeared to be fast asleep. While one man guarded the reluctant informant, four other ranks pounced upon the sleeping man, who awoke with a scream. The captive was Steven King. A search of the camp revealed several months’ supply of canned food. During the ensuing months, King waged a battle in the High Court to avoid extradition. But in April 1992, handcuffed and flanked by armed policemen, Steven
King was taken aboard a USbound flight to face trial for murder and robbery. During the trial, 61-yearold survivor Harold Epting testified that King was the individual who had attacked him. Denying this, King said that he saw Epting between two men in ski-masks. He alleged that one of the men struck Epting with a tyre iron, while the other, who had a claw-hammer, kicked the elderly man as he lay on the floor. The accused also claimed that the hammer was knocked from the man’s hand as he fled with his accomplice. King claimed that Epting’s spectacles had fallen off, and that he handed the man his glasses and Epting then left the store. According to the accused, he then went to the storeroom and saw the bodies of Aldridge and Bowles. King claimed that he didn’t go to the police because he knew that no one would believe him. The accused also denied telling investigators ‘I killed two people in 20 seconds and I can kick your (expletive) too.’ According to King, what he had in fact said was: ‘How can you say that I killed two people in 20 seconds?’ King’s attorney also suggested that the investigators had framed his client. Testifying at his trial, King’s girlfriend described him as a hard worker who squirreled away his money. She denied trying to assist in his escape. On January 3, 1993, Steven King was found guilty of murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. If you have further information on this case or any other matter, please contact us at our Lot 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown office or by telephone. We can be reached on telephone numbers 225-8465, 2258491, or 225-8458. You need not disclose your identity. You can also contact Michael Jordan at his email address: mjdragon@ hotmail.com.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 23
== THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN ==
“What I saw made me embarrassed to be a human being.”
If you read these words anywhere in the world coming from a journalist, UN official, visiting politician, medical doctor, nurse or a scholar on a research project, you would definitely think that he/she is referring to a country that is at war and what they see are just horrible manifestations of the tragedy of life. Guess which country that quote refers to? Bet you would not believe it. Yes, your own land of birth, Guyana. “What I saw made me embarrassed to be a human being.” These words were written by a visiting Catholic priest and given wide coverage in different newspapers in the United States. Father Dennis LeBlanc who runs a counseling service in the US traveled to Guyana in October last year on a voluntary stint with the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital and St. John Bosco’s Covent run by Guyanese heroine, Sister Mary Noel Menezes The priest has traveled all over the world but thinks that Guyana is the worst, miasmicstained country he has ever seen. Let us quote him; “there is no relief here from the poverty, pain, unemployment,
corruption, garbage…these are not temporary problems that come and go like our seasons … they are their (sic) perpetual state of affairs…” Here is the part that made him feel that Guyana was not a civilized land; “I will say that the filth, squalor, poverty, and disregard for humans (sic) life made me embarrassed to be a human being. “ LeBlanc ended his description of Guyana with the following expression; “It was a sad and depressing experience.” He said he is not coming back If any journalist from China, the US, Europe and elsewhere read LeBlanc, they must believe that Guyana is a country at war and war’s ravishes have left the land a dead piece of earth with just filth and garbage and death. Not one soul on Planet Earth reading LeBlanc would believe he is describing a country in the Englishspeaking Caribbean that houses the headquarters of the Caricom integration movement and is in the
process of completing a Marriott Hotel I have argued on this page the past five years, but especially last year, that once a visitor comes to Guyana, sees those mud-filed gutters, the forests inside the alleyways and the ubiquitous mountains of garbage around Guyana (not Georgetown alone – my visiting in-laws couldn’t believe the farm of pigs roaming in a ocean of garbage right at the western entrance of Rosignol a few years ago - still have the pictures) they would declare Guyana as a failed state This is exactly what Dennis Le Blanc did, only that he did not use the concept of a failed state so popular in the literature of political theory. Can any of us as Guyanese use our imagination to understand what the priest was looking at when he saw Guyana? Imagine someone from Japan, South Korea or Scandinavia where the surroundings are impeccably clean coming to Guyana and witnessing what the priest
saw? I am saying most unambiguously that such a person would demand a flight out of Guyana immediately. Human beings do not live in such a country where there are no violent upheavals. They will bear the environmental atrocities during the war, knowing that after the war, things will get better. But as the priest said in that article, what he saw seems to be a permanent state of affairs in this country Every nation has its fools, but when a country is thinly populated like Guyana and you have so many fools, then maybe the country has become a national circus. There are idiots in this
land who are so shameless that they announce that the investment climate in Guyana is being unduly affected by crime, crime reporting and political disunity. Who would want to invest in Guyana when they see what the Catholic priest saw? Ask yourself as a human being, if you take a few million American dollars and you travel to another territory to invest that money and you see inside that country what obtains in Guyana, whether you would put your capital in such a country. I did not meet the Catholic priest when he was here, but I am positive that if I had a discussion with him, I may have endangered his health when I revealed to him that the UN Environment Committee
Frederick Kissoon made the then President of Guyana, Mr. Jagdeo, a Champion of the Earth. The priest would have had a heart attack. Of course the conferring of such an honour on Mr. Jagdeo when he was President, given the ubiquitous filth that overran Guyana under his presidency, only goes to show that the UN is not without its quota of fools too.
Page 24
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
BOOK REVIEW: Poet shines as social commentator BOOK: Ad-liberation by Sai Murray CRITIC: Dr Glenville Ashby Bajan-born, Sai Murray, has produced a sociopolitical oeuvre that is as savvy and chic as his first name. His target is advertising, a profession he deems a villain that has shredded the artistry of poetry and driven a nail into independent thinking. The industrialists of the perverted art form are predatory and vampiric, holding the vial to entice, mesmerise and dupe an unsuspecting and gullible public. Murray is wry, witty and biting - a master at addressing if not pummeling a practice that has skewed reason, logic and good taste. Advertising today is a drug, engineered to hook all comers in a never ending array of colourful blinders. He indicts the industry using the very words of an ad kingpin: “The truth is that marketing raises enormous ethical questions every day - at least it does if you are doing it right. I would rather be thought of as evil than useless.” He literally journeys through the world of advertising, the places, the
districts and boiler rooms where the propaganda is readied for delivery. Murray’s strength is rooted in his sardonic and sharp interplay of words, parallelisms, and selfdeprecating delivery. In “AA,” he likens our relationship with the world of advertisement with that of a junkie and injects the right terms and spirit to define his thesis. He writes, “…I am an Adman. I have been clean for several years. ..I am an addict…Brain damaged… a legacy for loquacious ad-libs. With the help of my family, friends and sponsor I hope to control my ad-diction. I shall try to resist the compulsion to relapse.” Murray is a populist and revolutionary, naming names and righting wrongs. His candour and authenticity challenge his spurious nemesis. This art of duplicity has lived many years without an inkling of slowing up. But Murray is poised to answer back. He reflects on his past as an Ad Man, an addict and prostitute of his values. But he is clean now, has not relapsed and determined not to fall off the wagon. His prosaic protest is a brilliant
metaphorical display that cements his credentials as a veritable wordsmith. In one offering his play on words and analogous musings on today’s theme of terrorism features a poet who evades security to deliver his art on stage, only to “bomb.” This is signature Murray. Sharp and fluid. His view of advertisement goes beyond the boundary of aesthetics. It is a tool of politicians and the wielders of social power, bent on distorting reality and labeling those who dare challenge the status quo. Murray is in their cross hairs. His, “My Son is A Terrorist,” speaks volumes. Legitimate questions or protests against questionable governance and you are marked a terrorist. Fear, distrust and suspicion are deceptively used to solidify political power. “He looks like an Al Qaeda: beard needs a trim. I read a terrorist profile. Sounded just like him. He criticizes government, Shouts at politician on TV. Brainwashed by fanatics: No longer listens to me. Dangerous, a mind of his own, he could inspire others to think. We live near a mosque – That must surely be a link. Please arrest my son, Tap his
phone, spy upon e-mail. He’s embarrassing his mother, He needs to be jailed,” Murray lashes out. Murray’s work is stamped with the spirit of liberation. But there is no liberation without a struggle as he etches in “No IFS NO BUTS,” arguably, the soul of this perceptive undertaking: “It lives in us all. One cut too deep…it rises. Blood. Revolution.” And amid the drumbeat of confrontation looms a revelation of a luminous tomorrow based on social justice, equanimity and enlightenment: “In the end there will be the word. The word of the inner God beyond flesh. Perfect combinations: Inner God + inner Goddess…For Ours is the Kingdom/Queendom. Shared power, all glory. Forever and ever. Murray’s genre isn’t easily identifiable. It is literal, cryptic and metaphysical; damning and hopeful. But he will have it no other way. It traverses standard poetry and prose . He uses his literary canvas well, quite well, but this is conscious art best delivered as a monologue. This is predictably Murray’s element. From the page to the
stage, one can only imagine words that breathe - enliven words that dance before transfixed audiences. Oh, memories of Tracey Chapman’s “Talking about a Revolution.” Feedback: glenvilleashby
@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter@glenvilleashby Ad-liberation by Sai Murray, 2013 Publisher: Peepal Tree, UK ISBN 13: 9781845232061 Available: amazon.com Rating: Recommended
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 25
Page 26
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
Degeneration of governance and leadership has led to gross disrespect By Sheba Thomas “The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis” - Dante Alighieri. If this is true then we all as Guyanese know our destination based on our decisions, past and present. The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has been in governance since October 5, 1992, when it won the General Elections. This victory was once described as a, “psychological revolution for all Guyanese” by long-serving Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon who then further stated, “it was a change from the expectation of fear as a policy position from the government (PNC/R), to a position of trust and freedom with this new administration.” I am not a fan of making comparisons between governments, as I was only raised under one, the PPP/C,
and the tales of the elderly tell a different story from what is written in history. It is from this statement and through the analysis of the PPP/C governance that I will outline the party’s failure and that of Guyanese to put an end to childish games. It was once believed that this defining moment (October 5, 1992) marked the starting point of a period that would positively impact the quality of life of all Guyanese. It was expected that the PPP/ C administration would have worked to make the future better. The question is better for whom, those that are seeking power, for some Guyanese or for the entire Guyana? It was once said by Thomas Sowell that, “If you have always believed that everyone should play by the same rules and be judged by the same standards, that would have gotten you labeled a radical 60 years ago, a liberal 30 years ago and a
racist today”. This statement becomes true when it pertains to PPP/C governance. The PPP/C constantly reminds us of the governance of the PNC/R and uses this as a measure to justify or gain fragmental trust from some Guyanese on certain issues. It is through reflecting on the past and failing to move forward that the PPP/C administration has kept Guyanese in mental slavery, thus, the psychological revolution continues. The foolish attempts of the PPP/C administration to rewrite history are ridiculous, but what is even more ridiculous is their inability to create a legacy that is worth remembering, and for the right reasons. Seeking to out-do the previous government by destroying the legacy created by these very persons - that benefitted all Guyanese - such as the destruction of the Critchlow Labour College and Linden, has left the PPP/C entrapped in a racial war that
seems to have no ending. The PPP/C under leadership of former President Bharrat Jagdeo further eroded, when the final dregs of any morals that remained were dashed through the window, as the said president went on a “cuss-out” rampage. Such is the degeneration of leadership in Guyana. This practice now seems to be even more rampant as our current president Mr. Donald Ramotar continues to entertain such acts by his administration. Has the PPP/C government forgotten it is there to serve the people and not itself? How dare this Government spit in the faces of person who elected it to that position. Is there no remnant of proper decorum left? The PPP/C administration has failed Guyanese and youths especially. In education, our CXC results and number of school dropouts reflect this; our university standard is deplorable. In the area of culture, it has failed to continue to unite all Guyanese under our nation’s culture. It is little wonder that Guyanese are so swift to adopt any culture as their personal style
or identity. The PPP/C continues to fail Guyanese when it comes to a better standard of living for all by imposing its constant authoritarian leadership style on public servants and by dictating every category of governance . It seems that the ideology of the past has blocked the vision of the future for the PPP/C. Finally, the citizens of Guyana have become docile because of mental slavery and fear of victimization by the ruling government. History shows that we were once a people of valour who defended our rights even in the face of death. Have we as Guyanese adopted a mindset of laziness? Are we afraid to stand up for our rights and look for a hero to save us; so instead of taking the bold step and saying enough is enough, we stand back and watch as we are being trampled upon by the persons we elected to govern us? How long will we continue to look at our neighbours and friends and justify our action of doing nothing because the other person is doing nothing so why should I.
Very often when someone steps forward and says ‘enough’, we ask what is wrong with them and refuse to give support because of fear. Some of us actually make bold reasons in support of the oppressor out of fear of victimization. I once read an article written by a student who said the generation before us failed to defend their rights; hence my generation is careless about our country politics and governance. There is no justification for me not standing up for my rights and my country. Why is it that we constantly allow the government to step on our toes and we say nothing? Why is it that we accept whatever second-hand excuse it gives and go on as if our life is not affected? To end this, Guyanese must awaken from their slumber and hold the government accountable for the heinous crimes and disrespect it has heaped on Guyanese. Arise and let your voice be heard, the disrespect must go no further by this government. Hold your ground and others will follow. Be a leader of character and not corruption. Be the change we so desire Guyana.
Sunday January 12, 2014
SUNDAY SPECIAL MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR DRUG CONTRACTS…PREQUALIFICATION SYSTEM FLAWED, MUST BE SCRAPPED – AFC SAYS GOVERNMENT’S MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR DRUGS PURCHASES ARE AGAIN COMING UNDER INTENSE SCRUTINY. This time the Alliance For Change (AFC) is demanding that the administration scrap plans to shortlist or prequalify suppliers. The last pre-qualification period expired on December 31 and the Ministry of Health had been looking to select the suppliers for the next three years. A pre-qualified contractor is automatically considered when it is time to order critical or emergency supplies. Over the past year, there have been scathing criticisms, even from the country’s leader, over drug supplies and wastage to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. Reportedly, a number of hospitals are currently short on critical pharmaceuticals. ANOTHER SECTION OF MAHAICASEAWALL COLLAPSES “Is only when is Election time that politicians does come and promise we all kinda things…then they left we to de mercy of de sea.” These were the sentiments echoed by several residents of the Unity, Mahaica, East Coast Demerara community as they continued to brace themselves for a possible disaster, if the authority that is responsible for the maintenance of the sea defence does not act quickly. Three days after a contractor sealed a sea defence breach at Mosquito Hall, Mahaica, a huge section of the seawall collapsed a few hundred yards away. Residents said that the sea defence protecting their community has been neglected and the collapse of the section at Unity squatting area is a result of constant undermining. MONDAY EDITION MAHAICONY FARMER MURDERED, WIFE CRITICAL - 10-YR-OLD ESCAPES BY HIDING IN CABINET The brutal murder of a 72year old cash crop farmer and the battering of his wife on Saturday night has plunged the peaceful community of Zeelandia, Mahaicony on the East Coast of Demerara into a state of shock. The body of Dearoop Siewchand, with what appeared to be about 20 stab wounds was discovered
Kaieteur News
early Sunday morning in the upper flat of his house around 06:45 hours while his wife Davi was found lying on the floor in the bottom flat and was said to be in a critical condition after being admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. The gruesome discovery was made by Siewchand’s brother, Amar, whose 10-year-old son had spent the night with the couple and survived the attack by hiding in a cabinet. The act is believed to be the handiwork of thieves who managed to gain entry into the Siewchand’s house through an open window. NEW RIVER TRIANGLE DEBACLE…EXPOSURE, NOT HOSTILITY, UNRAVELED MURI DEAL– HARMON Muri Brasil Ventures Incorporated has blamed its pullout of the Permission for Geographical and Geophysical Surveys (PGGS) on prejudice and hostility but A Partnership for National Unity’s (APNU) Executive Member, Joseph Harmon, believes that it was in fact the scrutiny and exposure that resulted in the decision. Commenting on the matter Sunday, Harmon said, “there was no hostility on our part or on the part of the media.” He said that it was the exposure of the information that should have been in the public domain even before the permission was granted. Harmon warned too that this level of scrutiny will be applied to all future transactions. TUESDAY EDITION PRISONER DISARMS COP, SHOOTS DETECTIVE DEAD A police corporal was shot dead late Monday after he went into a yard in Fourth Street, Alberttown to recapture an escaped prisoner and recover his colleague’s gun. The prisoner managed to snatch a .38 revolver belonging to the dead cop’s colleague who had escorted him to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) to seek medical assistance. Dead is 45-year-old Detective Corporal 14998 Silburn Elias, a father of four, of Buxton, East Coast Demerara. Elias, who spent the last 25 years of his life in the Guyana Police Force, was shot twice at close range by the prisoner – to the left side chest and abdomen. He died while receiving treatment at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. BODYAT LILIENDAAL IDENTIFIEDAS TAXI DRIVER…FIVE TEENS NABBED ON HIGHWAY
Former President Bharrat Jagdeo
WITH VICTIM’S CAR Police appear to have smashed a carjacking ring comprising several teenage boys, aged between 15 and 17, after nabbing them with a car that was stolen from a taxi driver who was shot dead and dumped at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara last week. The breakthrough came Monday after the dreadlocked man with a gunshot to the head was positively identified as 30year-old Raphael Campbell, of Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara, who had been missing since the previousThursday. Police subsequently linked the youths to his murder. The teens were nabbed on the Soesdyke/Linden Highway on Friday with Campbell’s rented car, but police only made the connection after relatives came forward to identify Campbell. A sixth suspect remained at large. WEDNESDAY EDITION ESCAPED PRISONER SAYS DETECTIVE WAS ACCIDENTALLY SHOT — EXPRESSES REMORSE The 24-year-old prisoner, who stole a policeman’s gun which he used to shoot and kill a Detective Corporal on
Page 27
New GPC’s boss, Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop
Monday night, has expressed remorse, claiming that it was an accident. This he told investigators Tuesday. A source close to the investigations told this newspaper that the suspect ,Delon Abrams, said that he panicked and accidentally pulled the trigger of the .38 revolver while he was handing it over to the now dead Corporal Silburn Elias, 45, while other ranks were aiming their rifles at him and threatening to kill him. Minutes before the shooting, Abrams had stolen the weapon from a young Constable, who was guarding him at the Georgetown Hospital where he had been taken for medical attention after he was apprehended on a break and enter allegation in Sophia. $$M IN MUNICIPAL FINES NOT BENEFITTING CITY HALL– MAYOR GREEN While the increased violation of the municipal system by taxpayers has been a common occurrence, City Hall has been unable to benefit from the millions of dollars paid by defaulters to the court, as the money is automatically diverted to the consolidated fund. This issue is being highlighted as the
AFC’s Leader, Khemraj Ramjattan
lack of a standardised Municipal Court takes centre stage. Georgetown Mayor Hamilton Green had told reporters that the establishment a Municipal Court would go a long way in aiding the Council to rake in outstanding monies owed by private persons and entities. Green further believes that with the prosecution of those offenders, tax collection may become an easier task for the Council with this implementation. In a recent interview with Kaieteur News, Mayor Green briefly explained how the cashstrapped Municipal authority is unable to benefit from the present court system even after frequent calls were made to the administration for the implementation of a Municipal Court. THURSDAY EDITION GUYSUCO HAS PASSED ‘POINT OF NO RETURN’ – ECONOMIST WARNS OF CONTINUED BAILOUTS Days after closing off with its worst performance in over two decades, there are now beliefs that the sugar industry has passed the point of no return. Writing in his Sunday column in the Stabroek News,
Health Minister, Dr. Bheri Ramsaran
economist Dr. Clive Thomas, was more than convinced that the crisis in the sugar industry has passed its tipping-point or point of no return. “This means that all hopes for a rational, considered and ordered reform and recon-struction of the industry are lost.” His column was entitled, “The Guyana Sugar Industry: The Point of No Return”. In 2013, the industry recorded a 23-year-low of 186,807, below its reduced 190,000 tonnes target. At the end of the year, the Guyana Sugar Corporation owed suppliers and banks in excess of $10B. With over $5B in bailout monies to the industry last year, Dr. Thomas, who has been analyzing GuySuCo situation in several of the columns, expressed alarm. “…the present configuration of the industry is leading it to produce less and less sugar at a higher and higher cost! Given the inevitably resultant losses, this is clearly an unsustainable commercial dynamic for GuySuCo’s operations. In light of this, both the EU’s continuing sugar assistance and government’s bailouts of GuySuCo can be viewed as (Continued on page 37)
Page 28
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
Another month, another flood Every month, there is a major flood somewhere in Guyana. The year 2013 opened with flooding on the East Coast Demerara in January. Floods followed in sections of Kingston, Georgetown, in February; in parts of Uitvlugt on the West Coast Demerara, in March; on the East and West Coast Demerara and the Essequibo Coast in April; at Den Amstel on the West Coast Demerara, in June; in Albouystown, Georgetown, in July; on the East Bank Demerara, in August; at Tuschen, once again on the West Coast Demerara, in September; again in Albouystown, Georgetown, in October and in many parts of Georgetown and elsewhere, in November. The hinterland was not spared. Floods affected Bartica in the Cuyuni-
Mazaruni Region and St Ignatius in the Rupununi Region, in May and in the Pomeroon-Supenaam Region in December. Monthly flooding incurs incalculable losses in terms of the destruction of farms, death of livestock and damage to homes, household goods and domestic and agricultural equipment. Farmlands are affected by massive flooding which destroys cultivated areas. The endless, inevitable, monthly cycle of floods still continues nine years after the notorious “Great Flood” of January 2005. Floods, from 1988 to 2006, affected 965,000 persons and resulted in more than US$663M in economic damage, according to an Inter-American Development Bank study. The ‘Great Flood’ reportedly affected 25 per cent of the national population and
caused economic losses equivalent to 60 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for that year. The People’s Progressive Party Civic administration never conducted an inquiry into that catastrophe and its salutary lessons seem not to have been learnt. Since the ‘Great Flood,’ the administration has been on a spending spree, squandering billions on World Cup cricket, hosting the Caribbean Festival of the Arts (Carifesta) and building a five-star hotel and other prestige projects while neglecting the infrastructure needed to protect the coast from flooding. It is a well-known fact that Guyana’s coastal zone lies near or below sea level. The rate of sea-level rise in the Caribbean is predicted to be five times greater than the
world’s average, according to the IDB study. This means that sea-level rise resulting from global warming could “significantly increase disaster risk in Guyana to levels that threaten the physical and economic viability of the coastal zone.” The study points out, further, that “a result of the dynamic interplay between high tides, high rainfall levels and a network of drainage and irrigation canals, conservancy dams and sluices designed to support agriculture, the coastland, as well as riverine areas and some low-lying parts of the hinterland, are at high risk to flooding.” The coastland is dissected by the estuaries of numerous rivers, creeks and canals where the outfall channels are periodically blocked by ‘sling mud’ which
constantly moves along the coastline. Coastal towns and villages were built on old cotton and sugar plantations which used to possess thousands of kilometres of drainage canals discharging water through these outfall channels into the rivers or the ocean. This network included dams and kokers which had to be regularly repaired and which required the periodic dredging of the outfalls and estuaries of several rivers, including the Berbice, Demerara, Mahaica and Pomeroon. Siltation accumulates without this dredging, causing flooding in farms and settlements. Sea defences also require continuous vigilance and maintenance as breaches or overtopping have frequently contributed to flooding. Drainage canals must be
maintained. They rarely have concrete walls and as a result, there is continuous erosion of the banks and growth of vegetation such as the formidable moko-moko, water hyacinth wild eddo and other water weeds. Canals are often clogged with garbage, silt, sand or builders’ waste. The ubiquitous canal system has become a victim of the extensive use of concrete surfaces in yards and public places, the deliberate obliteration of canals to facilitate construction, sprawling new housing schemes and squatter settlements and of careless solid waste management. The damaging effects and frequent occurrence of flooding in this country demand more serious attention from the government than the usual, annual ad hocery and phony expressions of concern for the victims. The PPPC administration needs to promulgate a National Flood Control Master Plan that must comprehend the consequences of climate change that are so evident to everyone else everywhere around the world today. The proposed Plan must be capable of anticipating the monthly cycle of flooding and of notifying citizens early of the onset of extreme weather and the threat of flooding. The Plan must strengthen disaster risk management agencies and maintain sea defence and flood protection infrastructure. The Plan, most of all, must embody a strategy to protect lives and property from the consequences of the devastating floods of the sort that have affected our country over the past decade.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 19
Why no Commonwealth response
to Caribbean islands disaster
I
n the face of the disaster that hit Dominica, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines over the Christmas holidays, a respected and popular British news commentator, Jon Snow, has taken up cudgels on their behalf in his blog on Britain’s Channel 4 television. Snow was holidaying on a nearby island – where, coincidentally, one of the Ministers in Britain’s Department for International Development, Alan Duncan, was also on vacation. The two agreed to travel to St Vincent to see the damage that, judging from the underlying distress in his writing, affected Snow deeply. Apart from graphically describing the wretched conditions he saw on St Vincent, Snow made two statements of particular interest. Speaking primarily to a UK audience, he said: “Not many of us any longer know or care much about the Commonwealth, until a conference or scandal hits the news. But the latest devastating storm in the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent poses a question – what is this ‘family’ of former British colonies doing to help?” Recognising terrible conditions and the urgency to give relief to suffering people and to resume the Island’s commercial life, Snow also said: “What is really needed here are immediate technicians – forestry experts, bridge builders, people who understand water courses, so that a fast evaluation can be made as to what is needed and how far St Vincent can be protected against another such deluge. Norway, Germany, Canada, all have
such experts as do we. The Prime Minister (Dr Ralph Gonsalves) tells me 50 of them would make a massive immediate difference to sorting out this crisis”. What is remarkable about Snow’s two observations is that two years before the disaster in St Vincent, St Lucia and Dominica, an Eminent Persons Group (EPG) of which I was a member, fearing the sort of disaster that has damaged these islands, recommended to the Heads of Government at their Meeting in Australia that the Commonwealth should set up a “rapid response team” to give assistance including “logistics, public health, food security, transportation, emergency medical care, engineering and design immediately after a national disaster”. This particular idea of a “rapid response team” came from the Canadian member of the EPG, Senator Hugh Segal, as part of the Group’s study of the effects of Climate Change particularly on Commonwealth Small Island States. In our report to Commonwealth leaders entitled, A commonwealth of the People: Time for Urgent Reform, we devoted a large section to “Climate Change and Existential Threats” calling them “immediate Commonwealth concerns”. Regrettably, this is one of the recommendations that received scant attention at the 2011 Commonwealth Summit and by subsequent meetings of Foreign Ministers and officials. Had the recommendation been implemented, St Vincent, St Lucia and Dominica would have had experts on the ground within a week helping to restore the
country to a semblance of normalcy. In their defence, none of the Prime Ministers of the three affected islands attended the Commonwealth Summit in Australia in 2011 (although St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines did have official representation) and they carry no personal responsibility for the nonimplementation of the recommendation. Heads of Government and Ministers of other Caribbean countries, with the exception of Jamaica, were at the Australia meeting but did not raise their voices in support of the recommendation. The relevant sub-section of the EPG report that we headlined, “Build a Commonwealth disaster management capacity”, reads as follows: “Natural disasters now plague the world and no country is immune from them. In recent years the member states of the Commonwealth – both large and small – have had a share of natural disasters resulting in great loss of life and damage to their economies. Whereas developed Commonwealth countries normally have the means to recover and rebuild relatively quickly after such disasters, smaller and poorer Commonwealth countries have far less resilience than richer countries. Consequently, disasters set back their sustainable development, hitting the poorest communities hardest. We recognise that there are now many mechanisms in place for assisting countries that suffer natural d i s a s t e r s . T h e Commonwealth should not attempt to replicate these in
any way. However, we feel that there is now such a large body of skills and experience in Commonwealth countries for dealing with natural disasters that modest machinery could be established beneficially for a rapid Commonwealth response to requests for assistance from member states. Such assistance could include logistics, public h e a l t h , f o o d s e c u r i t y, transportation, emergency medical care, engineering and design immediately after a national disaster. Commonwealth Finance Ministers in the past have given their encouragement to natural disaster insurance. There may also be a role for the Commonwealth in disaster preparation and mitigation. For example, Australia has developed a National Partnership Agreement on Natural Disaster Resilience. It may be possible, drawing upon this initiative, to provide guidance to other countries on best practices, particularly in areas of animal husbandry, water and forest management, so as to mitigate the effects of possible disasters. The Commonwealth Secretariat should establish a working relationship with organisations concerned with disasters throughout the Commonwealth in order to develop clarity on the specific areas where the Commonwealth can add coherence as well as value. This should include maintaining a roster of professionals upon whom it could call to provide: (i) a rapid response to a member state that requests the help of experienced personnel after a disaster; and (ii) training and guidance in disaster preparation and mitigation”.
The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Caribbean Development Bank have programmes in place to give loans to countries where disasters occur. The problem is that except for small sums, approval and disbursement of any substantial funds take longer than six months during which time suffering continues and disruption reigns worsening an already bad situation. Rapid response does come from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency but its resources are not large enough to cope with issues in three countries simultaneously. The hope in the midst of all this bad news is that the
Sir Ronald Sanders EPG recommendation, which is still before the Commonwealth, will now be taken up with vigour by small countries for swift implementation. Disasters will surely occur again. (The writer is a Consultant, Senior Fellow at London University and former Caribbean Diplomat) Response and previous c o m m e n t a r i e s : www.sirronaldsanders.com
Sunday January 12, 2014
From page 27 seeking to rescue the industry from total collapse.” Such a situation, however, represents, in essence, a classic case of throwing good money after bad, Thomas said. FRIDAY EDITION APNU NEVER RECEIVED ANY CASH FROM USAID PROJECT – GRANGER “GOVT. LAMENTATIONS NOTHING BUT COLD WAR RHETORIC” A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) has not received any cash from the USAID/Guyana – Elections and Political Processes (EPP) Fund, Leadership And Democracy (Lead) Project that Government has been lamenting over, given the US Government’s insistence on its implementation. This was confirmed Thursday by Leader of the opposition coalition, Brigadier (rtd) David Granger who, in an invited comment, said the only assistance it has received thus far is the facilitation of a public meeting meant to provide voter education on the holding of local government elections. Granger told this publication that in October last year, he met with Glen Bradbury, who is the Chief of Parties for the International Republican Institute, the body USAID procured to implement the project. At that meeting, Bradbury sought to elicit from the coalition’s Leader, the scope of assistance they would require. According to Granger, the only assistance required was with voter education, given that APNU did not have the resources to roll out any wide-scale programme. The Opposition Leader stressed that the education programme is targeting only the Local Government Elections. According to Granger, Local Government Elections is a complex arrangement involving 71 organs, namely the 65 Neighbourhood Democratic Councils and six Municipalities. CHINESE, INDIAN COMPANIES VYING TO BUILD NEW DEMERARA BRIDGE A number of Chinese and Indian Companies are vying to build the New Demerara Bridge river crossing being handled by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) headed by Winston Brassington. This was confirmed by a source close to the project who told this publication that 22 Expressions of Interest were
Kaieteur News
submitted to build the new bridge across the Demerara River meant to replace the aging Demerara Harbour Bridge. All 22 proposals were opened privately at NICIL and not at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board publicly, given that it is the Government’s holding company that is handling the project. According to information reaching this newspaper, the proposals will be evaluated and ranked, at which point in time those shortlisted will be invited to submit their financial and technical proposals. This latest mega project to be undertaken by the Guyana Government will see the use of the same debt and equity financial structure utilizing a public-private partnership, as was the case with the Berbice Bridge, the Georgetown Marriott and the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric Project. In the call for partners, Government said that the project will be implemented using a Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) model, “in a manner similar to the Berbice Bridge.” According to the Guyana Government, the responses received from the call for expressions of interest will be used to guide the selection of a partner or partners who will work with government to design and implement the project. LATE-NIGHTEMERGENCY WORKS ON HARBOUR BRIDGE SUCCESSFUL GM Works to repair sections of the Demerara Harbour Bridge which were damaged last Sunday morning, after a vessel collided with it, have been completed. According to Rawlston Adams, General Manager of the bridge, the retractor span which opens up to allow vessels to transit was tested and it is working. A fuel tanker, Lucy PG, whose local agent is the Guyana National Shipping Corporation (GNSC), was set to pass through heading south to a gas terminal at Providence. However, according to reports, the pilot of the tanker failed to heed warnings and the vessel collided with the bridge. On Monday, Adams announced that the bridge, a critical link between West Demerara and Essequibo and Georgetown, would be closed Wednesday night starting at 22:00 hrs for six hours to facilitate repairs. The accident left the bridge’s retractor and acceptor spans out of
Economist, Dr. Clive Thomas alignment. An emergency crew was assembled and equipment mobilized for emergency repairs to be carried out. SATURDAY EDITION PRISONER CHARGED WITH MURDERING COP Four days after a Corporal from the Criminal Investigation Department was shot dead while on duty, the Chief Magistrate indicted an inmate of the Georgetown Prisons on a murder charge. The indictment out of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court yesterday saw Delon Abrams, 23, of South Ruimveldt, Georgetown, being charged with the murder of Detective Corporal 14998 Silburn Elias on Monday last at Alberttown, Georgetown. The charge detailed that Corporal Elias was a member of the Guyana Police Force and was at that time acting in the execution of his duties. Abrams, who was unrepresented by legal counsel, was not required to plead to the capital offence since the matter was deemed indictable. Abrams is expected to return to court on March 3. BODY DUMPED AT LILIENDAAL…EX-COP HELD FOR TAXI DRIVER’S MURDER Just one day after charging two teens for the murder of taxi driver Raphael Campbell, police detained a 21-year-old ex-cop in connection with the same crime. The suspect, a former constable who joined the Force in 2012, was reportedly arrested Friday afternoon in Water Street. He was taken to CID Headquarters, Eve Leary, before being transferred to the Sparendaam Police Station. Kaieteur News understands that the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has already advised that the
Page 37
‘A’ Division Police Commander, George Vyphuis (second left) andother Senior law enforcement officials at the hospital former cop be charged with murder. Police allege that the suspect, who was dismissed from the Force, is the individual who was driving Campbell’s dark-coloured Toyota Premio on Friday, January 3, when ranks stopped the occupants at a
roadblock on the Soesdyke/ Linden highway. It is alleged that the excop was the individual who escaped when the five passengers were captured. Two of the suspects were charged last Thursday. Sean Collins, 17, of Ketley and Drysdale Streets,
Charlestown, and Michael Bishop, 17, of Lot 21 Hill Street, Albouystown, were remanded when they appeared in the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court. Three other teens who were arrested with Bishop and Campbell have been released.
Page 38
At all ages, wisdom and a sense of gratitude appear to go hand in hand, especially for women, according to a recent study. Among the participants, people who were considered wise by others also spontaneously expressed feelings of gratitude more frequently than others, Austrian researchers report. “Wisdom is quite strongly related to gratitude,” study author Judith Glück, of Alpen-Adria Universität Klagenfurt, wrote in an email to Reuters Health. “Wiser individuals are more grateful than others, and they are grateful for different things than others,” she said. Although considerable research has explored the nature of wisdom and of gratitude, there is little examining the connection between the two, Glück and her co-investigator Susanne König write in the Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences. To investigate the relationship, the
Kaieteur News
psychologists devised two small studies. For the first study, they used newspaper and radio ads to solicit names of people considered to be wise. Of those nominated, 47 men and women, aged 60 years on average, agreed to participate. For comparison the study also included a random sample of 47 more adults who were similar in age and education. All the participants were subsequently interviewed about their most difficult and best life events, as well as their most important life lessons. Overall, 29 participants (31 percent) expressed gratitude to God, to other people or for the experience itself when they were interviewed about their most difficult life events, such as the death of a loved one, illness, divorce or war experiences. Twenty participants (21 percent) expressed feelings of gratitude when asked about their best life events. Such sentiments of
gratitude were more frequently expressed by the people who had been nominated as wise, the researchers note. Forty-seven percent of wise nominees versus 15 percent of the comparison group expressed gratitude, particularly relating to their current feelings about difficult times in their lives. Similarly, 38 percent of the wise adults mentioned gratitude when describing their best life events, versus 4 percent of the comparison group. A 76-year-old man nominated as wise, for example, was grateful for “a new life” after surviving a heart attack. “Because of this new life, I have new lessons to learn, and I have started to see life in a different way,” he said. Another wise nominee, an 81-year-old woman, expressed gratitude as she reflected on her best life events, saying, “I can only thank God, that my life went as it did.” Likewise, a 38-year-old
Sunday January 12, 2014
man, also considered wise, was grateful for the experience of being dumped by his girlfriend. “I am very grateful that she ditched me back then, because otherwise my private life would have gone in a completely different direction.” This gratitude among wise individuals, even for negative experiences “suggests that they integrate difficult experiences into their life story as something through which they had grown,” Glueck said. “In terms of quality of life, the findings probably imply that living a good life involves an awareness of the good things in one’s life, the resources and strengths that one has developed,” she added. In general, all the participants in the first study were most grateful for their family of origin, including their parents and siblings, their own children, their health, occupation, wealth and for other people, such as friends and colleagues. Mark Baker, executive
director of La Vie Counseling Centers in Pasadena, California, said his experience in psychotherapy has taught him “that those people who are able to be grateful during difficult circumstances learn more in their lives.” “We learn much more from our failures than our successes,” he told Reuters Health in an email. “This produces greater wisdom,” said Baker, a clinical psychologist and author of “Jesus, the greatest therapist who ever lived.” In the second study, the researchers investigated whether the first study’s findings would hold among university students whose wisdom and gratitude were assessed via standardized psychological tests, rather than by nominations or interviews. Despite the different methods and study group, wisdom was again linked to higher levels of gratitude, Glück and König report. Among the 443 students in the study, those who scored highest in wisdom also scored
higher on measurements of their sense and frequency of gratitude. These young adults, aged 28 years on average, were also most grateful for their family of origin as well as for other people and for health. In both studies, women scored higher in gratitude than men and also expressed gratitude spontaneously during interviews more often than men - findings that Baker thinks may indicate a gender bias in the research. When asked what they were thankful for, however, women and men had similar responses, the study authors note. This suggests “men and women might differ less in their experienced gratitude than in their readiness to spontaneously talk about gratitude,” they write. Glück and König conclude in their report, “Cultivating the experience and expression of gratitude may be conducive to dealing with the demands of life in a wise way, and in this sense, to living a good life.”
discovered that mothers who believed their children had recurrent pain tended to give them acetaminophen at least every other month. And, in general, mothers who took pain relievers themselves every month also reported giving acetaminophen to their children more often during the previous three months. “Our main finding is that mothers who use more OTC analgesics themselves have a tendency to also give it more often to their children,” Jensen said. Jensen added that many
mild symptoms such as cough, colds, sore throat or headaches are self limiting and do not need treatment with an OTC drug to go away. “I would like parents to think twice when they treat their child with an analgesic,” she said. It can be difficult for parents to know when they are giving their children too much medication, experts acknowledged. “Too much is when analgesics are given by the parent as a solution for any time the child complains of not feeling well or has some small pain,” Dr. Lonnie Zeltzer told Reuters Health by email.Zeltzer directs the Children’s Pain and Comfort Care Program at the Mattel Children’s Hospital at University of California, Los Angeles. She was not involved in the new study. “Parents need to assess when their child is in significant pain that the child is having trouble coping with or is interfering with daily activities, said Z e l t z e r, w h o i s a l s o a professor of pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. “There are many behavioral ways of helping a child cope with pain besides just giving medications.” “Parents need to learn
to use judgment in the provision of over the counter analgesics to their child. If parents are giving analgesics to their child on a regular basis several times a week then their child needs to see a pediatrician,” Zeltzer said. Both Jensen and Zeltzer worry that overuse of medications can train children to believe that’s the only way to deal with symptoms. “Parents need to be aware that if they give medication every time their child complains about a symptom, their child will learn that the ONLY way to get relief is through medications,” Zeltzer said. If children feel there are no other alternatives whenever they don’t feel well they won’t learn good selfmanagement/self-coping skills, she added. “In many cases bed rest, a glass of water, staying indoors or just ignoring the symptom would be just as effective,” Jensen said. “What is important is that the child is seen by a physician if symptoms persist, or if the child seems generally ill in any way,” Jensen said, “and all parents should make sure that they are giving their children the right dosage of a medication before administrating it.”
Self-medicating moms more likely to give kids pain meds
Mothers who frequently use over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers are more likely to give them to their children too, according to a new Danish study. More parents are giving OTC medications, such as acetaminophen, to their young children, often without the advice of health care professionals, the study team says. “Half of all the medications used worldwide are nonprescription - it is a huge and growing industry under limited control from the health care system,” Dr. Janne Fangel Jensen, who led the research, told Reuters Health by email.Jensen is a researcher with the Department of Public Health at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, in Denmark. Acetaminophen - sold as paracetamol outside of the U.S. - is the most widely used drug in many developed countries. It’s a safe treatment for many forms of mild pain and has few known side effects, Jensen said. But overdosing with acetaminophen can be dangerous, she cautioned. “In my opinion it is important to limit the use of paracetamol to when it is indicated and to prevent an increasing ‘overmedication’ especially in
children.” To gauge whether a mother’s use of painkillers influences how often children take the drugs, the researchers surveyed mothers of 131 Danish children ages 6 to 11. Jensen and his colleagues asked how often the children were given non-prescription pain relievers during the previous three months and during the past year. They also asked how often the children had felt pain. In addition, there were questions about the mothers’ use of medication and general
health. The researchers found that 45 percent of the children had been given OTC pain relievers, mostly acetaminophen, during the previous three months. And 22 percent were given acetaminophen at least every other month for the previous year. One-third of the mothers said they had chronic pain and 39 percent reported taking OTC pain relievers at least once per month, Jensen’s team reports in Pediatrics. The researchers
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 39
‘Girls’ go wayward in HBO’s tale of a gender and a generation The four female 20somethings from Brooklyn in the HBO series “Girls” are in such a funk in the show’s third season that the weirdly whimsical Adam, of all people, comes across as a pillar of stability and good sense. When the season kicks off on Sunday, Hannah, played by “Girls” creator Lena Dunham, has her OCD under control and a semblance of domestic bliss with Adam (Adam Driver), but her selfabsorbed ways are maddening. When someone dies suddenly, all her thoughts are about her unfinished e-book. Her three pals are in worse shape. Divorced Jessa (Jemima Kirke) is in rehab and refuses to quit the bad behavior. Glamorous Marnie (Allison Williams) is obsessing over her exboyfriend Charlie and is back living with her mom in New Jersey. Naive Shoshanna (Zosia Mamet) bounces between her studies and sexual freedom after breaking up with Ray, a slacker who is now thriving professionally.If this show is about a
Creator, executive producer and actor Lena Dunham (L) and actor Jemima Kirke talk about HBO’s ‘’Girls’’ during the Winter 2014 TCA presentations in Pasadena, California, January 9, 2014 generation of young women searching for love and purpose, they look to be failing on almost all fronts, with maybe an exception on the friendship front.It’s enough for one critic to ask Dunham as she presented season three to the Television Critics Association this week: “Do you like these characters?” “I love them,”
responded Dunham. “I think they accurately reflect people I know, people we have all been. I feel sad that they struggle and happy when they triumph.” And the nudity, oh the nudity, continues to rankle some even though Dunham has shown her audience just about every unclothed angle of herself since the first
episode. When one critic told Dunham he “didn’t get the purpose of all the nudity on the show, by you particularly,” she shot back that being naked “is a realistic expression of what it is like to be alive.” Dunham, 27, is making no apologies for “Girls” and says she relishes the freedom her women have to act in ugly ways much like
men have done for years in film and television. “I feel so lucky that we are not called to any standard of sort of sweet female decency,” Dunham said. “We get to depict these girls in all their kind of flawed glory.” THE DIVERSITY CHALLENGE “Girls” does not command the kind of audiences that medieval “Game of Thrones” scores at Time Warner Inc’s premium cable outlet, but HBO announced on Thursday it had renewed the series for a fourth season to air in 2015. On Sunday, it is looking to pick up its second straight Golden Globe award for best comedy series. And while the girls’ oblivion to the wider world, the nudity and the often whiny dialogue may not be to everyone’s liking, the critics seem to be mostly on the show’s side. New York Times critic Alessandra Stanley wrote on Friday, “These four women are amusing, at times poignant, but not easily likeable. The show is caustic and hard to watch, but harder to turn off.”
There is the nagging question of diversity, or rather lack thereof. The show has come under fire for its allwhite cast in seasons one and two, a monochrome that some critics say does not fit with the racial kaleidoscope that is New York City. When asked why the show has not introduced a main black character, coexecutive producer Judd Apatow said, “I don’t think there is any reason that any show should feel an obligation to do that.” Dunham was more conciliatory, acknowledging that although the negative attention was uncomfortable, it is “such an important conversation,” adding that “we are finally finding room to expand the world” in season three. Apatow, the producer and director behind raunchy male-centric comedies like “The 40-Yearold Virgin” and “Knocked Up,” did hint that the lack of diversity may soon be a moot point. “You haven’t seen the new season, so we can have this discussion next year,” he told the critics. (Reuters)
Kellan Lutz leaves ‘Twilight’ to explore ‘Legend of Hercules’ Actor Kellan Lutz is shedding the vampire teeth to don the breastplate of Greek demigod Hercules in his newest film, as he leaves the “Twilight” franchise behind to embrace the action genre. “The Legend of Hercules,” in theaters on Friday, will see Lutz exploring the hero’s origins. A second film, “Hercules,” starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, will focus on the hero later in life, after he completes the legendary 12 labors. Born to a mortal woman and Zeus, king of the Gods, Lutz’s Hercules faces challenges early on in his life from his human father King Amphitryon, who never accepts him as a true son, and his half brother Iphicles, who is jealous of his super strength. Hercules finds himself torn away from his love, Hebe, and sent to war, only to be sold into slavery. “It’s the hero’s journey you have the wizard, you have the antagonist, that’s the king, and you have the different missions he has to go through and the love interest in Princess Hebe. Story-wise, it’s all there, that’s what drew me to it,” Lutz told Reuters. Not that playing a superhero is unfamiliar territory for 28-year-old Lutz,
Cast member Kellan Lutz poses at the premiere of ‘’The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2'’ in Los Angeles, California, November 12, 2012. who played Greek god Poseidon in 2011’s mythological action film “Immortals” and has been drawn to the larger-than-life heroes from childhood. “I knew when I saw the superheroes that I wanted to fight against injustice. So from a young age, I always wanted to make the world a better place like Captain Planet would do, or
He-Man, or Tarzan or Hercules,” the actor said. “The Legend of Hercules,” showing in both 3D and 2D and distributed by Lions Gate’s Summit Entertainment, was made for an estimated budget of $70 million, according to film website IMDB.com. It is expected to earn $7 million at the box office this weekend, according to film tracking site
Boxoffice.com. BREAKING OUT OF THE BEEFCAKE MOLD Lutz rose to prominence as the hunky vampire Emmett Cullen in the “Twilight” film franchise, based on the young adult novels by Stephenie Meyer about a teen romance between a human girl and vampire boy, which has grossed more than $3 billion at the worldwide box office. As well as playing “Hercules,” Lutz will be starring in this year’s action extravaganza “The Expendables 3” alongside Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Harrison Ford. The actor also has a long list of varied roles he’d like to play, from villain Venom in Spider-Man to secret agent MacGyver, animated hero Jonny Quest and of course, the sword-wielding HeMan. “If everyone saw me as an action guy and gave me action movie after action movie, I’d be fine with it, it’s one of those great genres that you always have fun doing,” Lutz said. “I don’t care to win an Oscar or anything like that. ... I love doing action movies . I love doing comedies and dramas,” the actor added, saying he aspired to a
career like Matt Damon’s, who has flitted between drama, action and comedy on both independent and bigbudget productions. But while Lutz is building a portfolio of roles that capitalize on his model good looks and muscular physique - he was part of a 2010 Calvin Klein underwear campaign the actor said he wants to be taken seriously as a filmmaker as well, writing and producing scripts for upcoming projects.
“I’m a very intelligent man. I went to college for chemical e n g i n e e r i n g , ” the actor said. “A lot of roles have shown off one of my other strengths, my physique, but now that I’m a producer, I can create my own material, so a lot of the books I’m going after, you probably won’t even see me topless. ... I don’t get offended if people call me a beefcake, they just don’t know me.”
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 53
Regional Solid Waste Management...
Contractors, Govt. moving to have sites operational shortly The Regional Solid Waste Management initiative, which started last year, is now picking up momentum much to the delight of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development. The Solid Waste Management initiative geared at effectively managing waste in the Regions saw the Ministry leasing various sites to contractors for a period of 10 to 15 years. According to the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Colin Croal, the programme aims to have society move away from a culture of dumpsites to have waste in a controlled
environment. The sites will be managed by the contractors who were awarded contracts through a competitive process. Croal assured that the sites will be managed according to the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulations since contractors have to apply for licences. In addition, the Solid Waste Management Bill which will be presented to Parliament this year will also cater for how these sites should be managed. In Region Two, Puran Brothers’ Disposal Services is responsible for waste collection and disposal. The
company is operating at two sites: Lima and Charity. Lima is being used in the initial stage whilst the site at Charity is now being developed. Puran Brothers’ Disposal Services is also responsible for collecting and disposing waste in Region Three. Even though the contracting service was uplifting waste from residents since last year under this programme, a site was not identified. Up to December 2012, Croal was unaware as to where the contractor was disposing the waste. However, Local Government Minister, Ganga Persaud acknowledged the possibility
Woman continues appeal for public... (From page 13) Ministry of Health, to facilitate the trip. However, in order to have follow-up care, the woman was required to return to India six months after the operation. But the lack of finances saw her being unable to do so. She had, however, been receiving medical attention at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) over the years. And since the renal care service at the GPHC is limited, the woman was also seeking help at the privately operated Woodlands Hospital. And although medical personnel there wanted to admit her,
Reena said that she declined since the cost to be attended to there would have greatly diminished the finances she already has to help facilitate her return to India. Added to this, Reena disclosed that even the doctors at the private hospital had urged that she return to India as soon as possible for follow-up care. As part of their efforts to raise additional finances, a telethon is to be organised and aired on the National Television Network (NTN – Channel 18/Cable 69) during the course of this week. Reena is hopeful that as soon as the requisite sum is raised, she, in the company of
her husband, will head straight to India. The couple is also hoping that they would be able to get some support from the Ministry of Health as well in this venture. Those who are desirous of rendering assistance to Reena can do so by contacting her, or her husband, on telephone numbers: 227-4167 and 609-0616. Funds can also be deposited to Republic Bank Account #298-935-8.
A mini health check is the first step to donating blood
of the contractor using the Haags Bosch Landfill Site as a depository. During an interview yesterday, Croal confirmed that a landfill site for Region Three has been identified at Windsor Forest, West Coast Demerara. The Ministry is moving to get the access road prepared to accommodate the trucks. According to Croal, the land first identified to construct the landfill site in Region Five was objected to by residents. The Ministry has identified new lands and has applied for approval. Meanwhile, in Region Six, contractors are responsible for managing three sites. Advance Environmental Solution is managing the Belle Vue site, which is nearing completion. Croal said the Ministry was faced with some resistance from the New Amsterdam Municipality. The current site is expected to be closed shortly since it is not an approved area by
the Environmental Protection Agency. The mid-way site of Region Six can no longer be utilized since a number of persons have taken up occupancy around the area. And, in Number Nought Village on the Corentyne Coast, Advance Environmental Solution is also managing a site. The Region Seven project was faced with a little hiccup in the initial stages. The first contractor’s agreement was terminated. General Sanitation Enterprise is already uplifting garbage. The access road to the site is now being developed. There is a swamp area to be cleared and the matter is being addressed with the Regional Democratic Council. The Ministry wants usage of the dump site to stop. Meanwhile, a new landfill site has been identified for Region Eight. A team comprising officials from the Ministry and the
Environmental Protection Agency will soon visit the mined out site to see if it is appropriate. An area was previously identified for the landfill site but precocious minerals were found beneath the surface. Waste collection in Region Nine is moving ahead smoothly with General Contractor service responsible for the landfill site. Cevon’s Waste Management has leased the landfill site in Region 10. The contractor experienced some hiccups and is hoping to commence works in January. And, the Ministry has placed advertisements for companies to place tenders for the Region One project. Region Four, which caters for the Mayor and City Council and 15 Neighbourhood Democratic Councils, is not part of the Regional Solid Waste Management Programme. The waste is disposed at the Haags Bosch Landfill Site.
Page 54
Kaieteur News
FOR SALE
FOR SALE
LARGE QUANTITIES O F H IGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICKSILVER) 99.99995% PURITY $19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754. L- Touring Wagon in excellent condition – 15’ Rims, DVD, Tv, Remote Start Alarm & HID lights $1,300,000 Negotiable – Tel: 667-9013
3 Female (8 weeks old) German Shepherd pups - Tel: 638-5778
New Red RX8, Lambo doors & Rotary 7sp engine Contact: 680-2095 Salon. Turnkey Business @ 6 Goed Fortuin Public Road. Phone:600-3927 ATTENTION LOGGERS! ¾ METAL STRAPS, NAIL PLATES, ANCHORSEAL WAX – TEL:265-3541; 695-4785 Two plot of land ¼ Acre or 3X25 Rod each @ Lot 15 & 16 Doctor Dam, La-Grange WBD - Tel:697-5009; 665-7022
Bicycle Frames, wheels, accessories, parts, etc - Tel: 642-1141 1Circular Sofa, good condition, going cheap & windows curtains to fit 68" width, window drop 60" (double window) – Tel:6130836; 613-0836 Diving Suites - Tel: 265-3449; 613-5158 TCL A/C 12BTU, small LG Freezer with glass top and two door wardrobe - Tel: 6639305 1 - 40Ft Boat Cabin Cruiser Tel: 628-9209 Large plucked chickens, wholesale only $300 per lb Contact: 266-2711, 609-4594 Dell computers complete with 20" LCD $69,000, 6 months warranty @ Futuretech- Call:231-2206
One Kindle Fire HD Tablet 16GB - $80,000, two Nintendo DSI - $35,000 each, PSP games, PSP Games - Call Reyaz:652-3652
New arrival: 1 Toyota Tacoma, aluminum boats (12ft & 14ft)- Call:2201981,685-8282,690-1945
Ridgid Pressure Washer, Honda Engine, Honda Pressure Washer - Tel: 627-7835
Spare for washing machine, microwaves,fridges, stoves, timers, gearbox, pumps, etc call: 225-9032, 647-2943
House and Land in Pigeon Island East Coast Demerara contact within –Telephone # 220-4776 3 White water tanks that can be used for water business Call: 622-5986 2 Female German Shepherd mix with Pit-bull – Tel:6941900; 687-6072 Gold and Diamond land @ Potaro Mining District # 2 Tel: 689-4119; 217-0049 Concrete Bourda Green Stall Tel: 692-7888; 610-0227 1- Rome plough 20 dish, 11630 Bedford truck articulated with 2 trailerCall: 693-4596 2- M132 Lavarda Combine, 1- 22RB Dragline, 3- Pressure pump 4x3 for gold field, 12640MF tractor 4WD- Call: 627-0447 1 CAT standby 3306, 194 KVA 3 phase 60 cycleCall:641-8472 Games PS2 $900, PSP $900, X-Box 360 $2600 & PS3 $2600- Call:672-2566 One Nissan 2005 Bus unregistered & one Toyota Prado – Tel:642-1141
1- 320 C.L Caterpillar Excavator. Excellent Condition with 2 complete 6" & 8" Dredge - Tel: 648-5371 Greenheart Piles - Tel: 6393450 1 Toyota Chaser, 2000 CC GX100, PHH series - $2.5M, 1- Toyota Celica 3 SGTE, PGG Series - $1M – Tel:616-2902 1 smoothie machine,2 ice machine- Contact: 231-0655 ,683-8734 1 Stall @ Stabroek Market Tel: 658-0115; 718-757-8031
WANTED 1 Cook with atleast 2 years experience. Must have a valid food handlers certificate – Tel:604-0392; 616-2902 between 10am-4pm SPRAYMEN, JOINERS & WOMEN to work in furniture factory preferably from East Bank Demerara – Tel:6642604; 233-6743 Live-in waitress, bartender and going and coming cooks - Tel:643-9007; 664-1804 1 Female Cleaner for office, twice weekly @ Eccles Industrial Site – Tel:614-4358 1 Domestic for East Bank Area- Tel:614-4358 ONE SHOP KEEPER FOR THE INTERIOR (MALE) – CONTACT:223-5273/4 One male & one female live in domestic – Tel:613-6613 One dragline operator - Tel: 613-6613 Experienced female bartender & waitresses. Apply in person @ Sheriff Night Club on Sheriff St Between 2-4Pm Attractive live in waitressCall:327-0252/674-4665 Experienced general domestic, must know to prepare Indian dishes - Tel: 656-6388 Female worker needed, 3 CXC subject or sound secondary school education - Call: 612-1607 Experienced pastry maker. Apply @ Shanta’s, 225 Camp & New Market Sts. Experienced driver to work one 42 route RZ minibus – Contract Alvin on # 674-2060 One experienced excavator operator to work in interiorContact:681-6044
Original Games- Call:6722566
One experienced female shop attendant to work in interior - Contact: 681-6044
Tibitean Terrier- Pups for sale: (Fluffy) - Tel:655-0054; 226-4166
One experienced male shop attendant to work in interior, contact:6816044
1 Fishing vessel fully loaded, 15 Yamaha, ice-box (650Lbs) Nylon 5" Seine (2.8M) – Tel: 660-1825; 695-2679. Price Negotiable!
One cook for family in interior – Contact:681-6044
One fishing boat 350lb Catguts seine (5 Inch) 40 Yamaha Engine – Tel:2207655; 220-0410; 667-8921 Pluck chicken - Call:676-0931
Dell Laptops, touch screen $230,000 – Tel:695-2679
1 5Pc Chair Set, good condition - $60,000 & 1 overedge sewing machine, 4 threader – Tel:619-8788
Dachshund mixed with Pekingese pups for sale BBM #:2AC192FD, Tel:6772476
One RX-8 Mazda fully air conditioned, stick gear, wheel lights, fog lamps, power windows - Tel:653-2477
Experienced Taxi and bus driver and dispatcher at Princess Hotel – Tel:2657076; 616-8419 Hairdresser must be able to work with nails & handyman. Apply @ West Shore Plaza, 15 Public Road Ruimzeigt W.C.D - Tel: 269-1524
WANTED Cashiers, waitresses & Handyman – Tel:223-4778; 601-5802 General Domestic. Good Salary, must be able to cook and clean house - Tel:6247436
VACANCY
One live in Domestic age 1835yrs, must know to cook & live in waitress age18-25yrs Tel: 610-5043
Writer needed. Web and article copywriting. US$1,000/month. www.capitaltyping.com/ gypro for details.
[1] General worker for shift system - Tel:225-6337 Live in waitress to work in a bar - Tel: 650-4309
24 Hour East Coast Guyoil needs night pump attendants, salesgirl & office assistant - Call: 6910894/684-2838
1 Labourer / handyman ½ day in Georgetown - Tel: 2263736
1 Lorry driver apply @ Alabama Trading, Georgetown Ferry Stelling.
Experienced Drivers. Apply in person with written application @ Hacks Halaal, 5 Commerce Street.
1 Live in maid must be from the country & Know to cook, age 35-50 - Tel:6110200; 662-1124
Contract Cars to work in recognized base. Base fee @ $6,000 per week – Tel:6279424; 227-0638
Sales person to work in store. Police Clearance and 2 references – Tel:226-5473
One evening worker to work as a housekeeper/ nanny from 3:30pm between the ages of 40-55 years – Call:676-2812 Need one live in maid, must know to cook – Tel:689-0330 Scrap Metal – Tel:658-9045; 687-6072; 615-5315 Porters & Salesgirls. Apply with written application at Best Buy Food Supplies, Lot 1 Middleton & Dennis St, Campbellville. Attractive live in waitress Call: 604-8277; 228-5129 Cashiers/ salesperson/ Delivery Clerks to work in supermarket/general store on East Coast Demerara Call: 220-2128,642-1141 ONE COOK FOR XENON HOTEL [CHARITY] CONTACT: 771-4989/ 6706559 Handyman to do store runnings and to and basic cleaning apply @ Guyana Variety Store Tel: 227-3939 Body work man to spray motor cycles apply in person @ Guyana Variety Store Tel 227-3939 Land to buy in Parafaite Harmonie – Tel:675-7292 One maid to cook & assist in cleaning. Between age 30-45 years – Tel:688-3686 One maid – Tel:614-6675
Waiter & waitresses for 704 Sport Bar – Tel:223-5273/4
Mason skilled in laying blocks and plastering, carpenter skilled in home interior finishing – Tel:2271830
1 Plaine operator, 1 portable miller operator, labourers – Tel: 619-9143
Persons for full time night security. Georgetown area – Tel:227-1830
One live-in maid between age 30-45 - Contact:681-6044
Sunday January 12, 2014
CAR RENTAL Wings Car Rental- Call: 643-1131 Dolly’s Car Rental- Call: 2257126/226-3693- dollysauto rental@yahoo.com/ www. dolly sautorental.com Premio, Vitz call:347-9339790, 639-4452. Aidan’s Car Rental & Pickup - Call: 645-7981/ 698-7807 Latest model vehicles @ unbeatable Prices – Tel:6855011; 692-1051 Joshua’s Car Rental Call:6656485; 679-8400
Two joiners to work in workshop - Tel:610-7005; 219-1342 One Trainee Refrigeration & AC technician - Tel:231-0655; 683-8734 Experienced Cleaners Call:225-8572 (Between 7am9am) Primary Teacher needed from 3:30pm – Call:654-8650
LEARN TO DRIVE Soman & Sons Driving School , First Federation Building Call 225-4858, 6445166,622-2872,615-0964
Driver and Salesman for Gas Trucks on E.C.D, W.C.D and E.B.D, Security Guards, Part Time Gardener. 266 4427 Ice Loaders & General Workers @ B.M. Enterprise Inc. GFL Wharf Houston Tel:592-227-8176/7
VACANCY
Welders & fabricators (Must Have (3) Years’ Experience) - Apply Technical Services @ Eccles Industrial Site.
Pharmacist and Pharmacy Assistant/ Technician to work full time @ Pharmacy in Durban Street Werk-enrust – Tel:661-3124
General Machinists (Must know about Line &Engine Block Boring).- Apply Technical Services @ Eccles Industrial Site.
Existing Vacancies For: Western Union CSR, Office Assistants & Cleaners. Apply @ Survival Shopping Complex 173 Sheriff St Georgetown - Telephone # 227-5286-9
Skilled Machinists(Knowledge to re-grind Crankshaft, Engine Head & Block ) Apply Technical Services @ Eccles Industrial Site. Cleaners, (1) Industrial Electrician- (Must have Experience) Apply Technical Services @ Eccles Industrial Site. Sales Attendant @ Phatz Style Boutique, 16 E½ Durban St. – Tel:227-0501 Teachers: Fulltime & Part time for secondary Department – Grove/ Diamond area. Call For Interview – Tel:216-4557; 216-1409
One Female Clerk – Tel:2315171 Female Accountant and Accounts Clerk. Apply at Alabama Trading, Georgetown Ferry Stelling, Stabroek Mechanical Engineer- 3 Years experience & hold a diploma/degree in this field Apply Technical Services @ Eccles Industrial Site Security & I.T Technician. 5 CXC & Cabling Experience Tel: 627-8786 (Continued on page 55)
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 55
FOR SALE
PROPERTY FOR SALE
VEHICLE FOR SALE
VEHICLE FOR SALE
Chicken Hatchery (Robbins), 28,000 eggs capacity fully ready, $ 5.5 million or credit available Tel: 227-3939 621-4000
VERSAILLES: Furnished 5 bedrooms, self-contained rooms, modern facilities, generator, beautiful landscape, gated community - Call: 592-6248704/ 592-684-9203
7Pcs Trike Can-Am style Motorcycle, 200cc new, unregistered $350,000 neg or credit, Wholesale Tel 2273939, 621-4000
Buy vehicles direct from Japan authentically - Call: 660-5257( Before 9am & after 5:pm)
Diesel Generator, 3 cylinder Lister pitter (England) key start, 15,000 watts $595,000 cash - Tel:227-3939, 621-4000 Generac Generator 15,000 watts portable, $475,000 cash Tel 227-3939, 621-4000 Clarke forklifts 3pcs 2000, 3000, 4000 Lb, lifting capacity $350,000 and up Tel: 2273939, 621-4000 Diesel Generator silent 28,000 watts SDMO John Deere engine, missing Fuel Pump, Panel, Avr $850,000 Tel: 227-3939, 621-4000 TV Sale 27" To 73" some working and others need checking, all sold as is Tel 621-4000, 227-3939
Transported property : House + property for sale by owner @ Lot 153 Sparendaam Scheme - Call: 592-220-8573; 592-672-2348 Transported property for sale @ Eccles - $44M. For More Information call:6963214 / 668-1691
5Pcs Harley Davidson Motorcycles gas model 50cc key / pull start all = $295,000 or 1pc $70,000 621-4000, 2273939 Cheapest: Manaul VVTI Buses, Spacio, CRV – Tel:6167635
3 Storey 17 rooms hotel @ Broad St - Tel: 654-4939; 6984700
Toyota 4X4 solid Def EFI & new model 212 PPP Services– Contact: 609-4028/ 2163007 Mini-bus BMM – Tel:2202472, 653-2868
Upper 3 bedrooms & 2 Apartments lower flats @ Eccles - Price:$38M- Tel: 6441144
1 Noah BRR Series – $2.2M negotiable & 1 Allion PPP Series -$2.2M negotiable – Tel:692-2291; 602-6333
2 Flat houses on the Essequibo Coast D-Town. Transported Property – Tel:618-2517
Driven Auto Blowout Sale! – Unregistered Toyota IST $2,195,000- Bodykit, TV, Camera, Spoiler, Fogs, HID, Alarm – Tel:643-6565; 2269931
One 800 Ford Tractor and one 450 Ford Towing Truck – Contact Floyd:694-5599 or Gurro: 689-1864 1- 5L Dielsel Toyota Hilux Extra Cab, ready for the interior - Price: $3.5M negotiable - Tel:667-2703 or 662-5570
1 Toyota NZE corolla, AT192, AT212, AT170, IST, Funcargo, Rav-4, Hilux pickup 4x4 – Tel:644-5096; 697-1453
One RZ Mini-bus BHH series –Tel:615-5784 1 Black Titan 4 wheel drive, fully loaded - $3.5M – Tel:699-2322 or 678-284
Charlestown Corner with all convenience and business potential $35M – Tel:6735882
Pool table imported complete with Ques, balls racks $80,000, also kids pools table $75,000 Tel: 621-4000, 2273939
2 Business Property on Whim Public Road Berbice – Tel:619-7134; 225-6481
Mazda RX-8 Blue, 6 speed manual, Type S, Mint condition, PNN Series – Tel:681-4208; 220-6262
One three storey business property @ Middle Street Georgetown – Tel:619-7134; 225-6481
Unregistered Toyota Raum (2004) - $2.150M – Tel:6917475; 657-1796
Panel Doors & Arch Frame as low as $19,995 – Tel:6641109;626-8141 Fluffy Puppies – Tel:6450240 Lovely Terrier pups and dogs for adoption – Call:6967467 iPhones - $30,000 – Tel:6262771 1- 500 Ton Cargo ship Tel:676-6933
DRESSMAKING Designing and sewing classes in your district. Sharmela (Canadian- trained) - Contact: 626-2629, 676-6312
Prime commercial property @ Albertown, 3 lots with business, (Nut Centre) best offer. Tel 621-4000, 2273939 House & Land from $10M $25M – Tel:675-7292 Are you selling your house or land? Call: 6757292 House @ Tain Corentyne opposite Tain Campus – Tel:220-2472; 653-2868 Supply: 1 House, 1 gas station (3 tanks: 1000 & 1500 gallon capacity) wharfing facility. Land size: 87’X250’ $70M negotiable – Tel:2315876 Friendship: 1 house, 2 sheds with saw milling equipment, 2 overhead gantries & river access. Land Size:37’X55’ – US$800,000 negotiableTel:231-5876 Nandy Park: Three Storey house with automatic backup generator, semi-furnished. $85M negotiable – Tel:2315876
SERVICES For professional Visa & Passport Applications: K&P Project Management Co. – Tel:231-5876
One Tacoma Pick up 4 wheel drive, fully loaded. Asking price: - $3,750,000 – Contact Sady:628-9524 Cactus Auto Sales: Instock - Spacio, Fielder, Raum, Premio, Allion, Etc – Tel:6814208; 220-6262
One Allion Selling Cheap $1.7M, fully loaded PNN Series – Tel: 672-0470 Minibus BGG Series $750,000. In working condition - Call: 646-7979
PEN PAL
1 RZ Bus EFI series BMM – Price:$1.5M negotiable – Contact:685-6415 Toyota Noah newly registered - $2.4M, AE100 Corolla Wagon - $1M – Tel:611-6632; 664-3488
Male Indo Guyanese from USA looking for a female for friendship – Please email to: sramesh68@yahoo.com
1 Grey Toyota Premio in excellent condition, fully powered, 80,000 miles – Tel:643-9772; 223-6279
USA, Canada & U.K. application forms filled & printed electronically- call Mrs. Mohamed @ Mohamed’s internet café, Enmore –256-4001, 256-3464
Leroy Trident Car 250 CC, 4 doors, power window, keyless entry $495,000 cash or credit Tel 227-3939, 6214000
MASSAGE The Gent’s Spa: Let beautiful sophisticated masseuse pamper you: New masseuse available- Call:657-5979 American Style massage services- Call:678-7499 Massage Therapy Service – Tel:674-8147
New 2014 Isuzu: D-Max single & double cabs - Call: 691-0234
1 2L Diesel Toyota Hilux Extra Cabs 4X4. Looks and runs good, never driven off road $2M – Tel:686-4020
Exercise equipment, complete gym, heaters, Abs machine, and more - Tel: 6214000, 227-3939
1 Property for sale @ Covent Garden Island, includes all furniture and electrical appliances - $15M - Contact: 265-3586; 617-8369
New ATVs: Introductory price $1,199,000 (Duty Free)Call:691-0234
2005 Nissan Skyline with TV, DVD alloy rims, navigation – Tel:679-9672
House on Double Lot @ Norton St Lodge - $17M - Tel: 687-3017
Glass Cases 6FTX3FT and 7FTX2FTX2FT, 30 pieces available with lights from $80,000 -Tel: 621-4000, 2273939 Massey, Yanmar Ford 5000 Logging/ Agriculture Tractors, parts, Loader & Ford Truck- Call:615-1578/ 694-3595: Tools & Chainsaw668-2831
VEHICLE FOR SALE
AT212, 1998 model, music system -$1.3M Negotiable Tel: 696-0333; 665-6050
60FT Antenna (Mass) for Radio, TV, Cellular, with cables, brackets, sky light $400,000 Tel:227-3939, 6214000
Driven Auto Sale! – Unregistered Mazda Axela $2,295,000 – Pioneer CD, crystal lights, remote, start alarm – Tel:643-6565; 2269931
(From page 54)
Hilux Surf 4 Doors, minor parts needed, sold as is $695,000 cash Tel: 227-3939, 621-4000 Nissan Maxima, fully powered need repairs sold as is $295,000 cash 227-3939, 621-4000 Stretch limousine, Lincoln Town car, fully powered $6.5 million or credit available Tel 227-3939, 621-4000
Smart Choice Auto: Unregistered Premio, IST, Runx & Spacio - Tel:6523820; 665-4529 One Toyota 2RZ minibus, GPP 7051, Excellent Condition – Tel:614-5168 Must See!!! – Unregistered 2002 Premio $2.5M & 2001 AT 212 - $2M – Tel:226-5473 Nissan Laurel Car – Price: $350, 000 - Tel: 223-9677 One used RZ mini-bus – Tel: 694-7906 Saturn Jeep American made Tel: 223-9677 2 - 2007 Toyota Avensis - Tel: 698-0674 One enclosed canter in immaculate condition, GPP series Call: 628-8777 Mercedes Benz CLK 200 Kompressor 2005; PRR Series. Flawless Condition! Price Negotiable! - Tel:6235492 2008 Toyota Premio for sale (unregistered) – Tel:665-4480 One Honda CRV fully equipped with running bars & other accessories, PNN Series. Excellent Condition! Price Negotiable – Tel:6606763 AT192, 212, Allion, Premio, Hilux Surf, BNN & RZ & Pitbull buses, 7 seater super custom. Cash / termsCall:680-3154 We buy & sell vehicles for cash, also parts available & 30 seater buses; Extra Cab pickups; 2006 TacomaCall:680-3154 1-55 Leyland Daf Excellent working condition. Price $2.8M Negotiable – Tel:6568346 1 New Model 212; Excellent Condition, Price negotiable. Tel: 609-4680 Hilux Surf, PKK Series. Tel: 617-3001
SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. – CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 Permanent & Visitors Visa Applications, Professional Immigration Consultant Room D5 Maraj Building Call:225-6496,6626045,223-8115 Repairs, sales & spares air conditioning, microwaves, washer, fridges & stoves. U l t r a C o o l , call:225-9032,647-2943 Repairs to Fridge, Freezer, AC, Washers, Stoves: Call 683-1312,627-3206 (Nick) We repair fridge, freezer, AC, washer, dryer call:2310655,683-8734 Omar Instant Blackberry unlocking - Call: 675-2239; BBM 25C58FEO HOUSE PLAN DRAFTING FOR ONLY $10,000CALL:694-9843/227-2766 House plan, estimates & construction. Contact T. Boodhoo:625-9883 Appliances Technician: Specialized in repairing and servicing of refrigerators, dryers, washers, stove ovens, etc – Tel:661-5099 Technicians available for appliance repairs - washers, dryers, microwaves, stoves, deep fryers, etc - Tel:6190793; 218-0050 Brains Construction & Rental Services: Excavator, Bobcat, Truck, Tools Tel:601-5024/ 227-4536 (Bobcat & Excavator Operator needed) Masons seeking daily or job work – Tel:678-9043 GT Tools Rental: Call this month, specials on ransom & steel rod cutter, etc - Tel: 675-0767; 627-5098 Repairs: TV, DVD, Microwave, amplifier, stereo, washing machine etc – Tel:693-2683 Computer repairs in homes – Tel:675-7292 Brian Moe @642-3543: Computer Technician: FB/ Brian.Moe.165: Home and Office visits at your comfort!! (Continued on page 56)
Page 56
Kaieteur News
(From page 55)
EDUCATIONAL FOR RENT PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. – CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 One steel building 5000 square ft, 3000 PSI floor. Just outside of Georgetown, East Bank Demerara - Contact: 619-2475 Fully furnished 2 bedroom apartments – Tel:222-7891; 609-9202 2 Bedrooms house in New Hope EBD – Call:618-2517 1/2/3 Bedrooms @ Lot 2 Anna Catherina, WCD - Tel: 276-0818 1- Two bedrooms apartment at Better Hope, ECD - Call: 617-3001 between 8:00am4:00pm Ground Floor for business @ Lot 10 Grove Public Road EBD - Contact Sharon: 6909836 1- 2 Bedroom apartment, Diamond Deal – Tel:621-8471 Three Bedrooms apartment with spacious yard @ BB Eccles – Tel:645-0656; 6754403 School – Class Rooms available for lessons in Diamond/ Grove Area. Affordable rental contact: 216-4557/ 216-2723 Space to rent as Sports Bar and restaurant – Call:6573274 Two bedroom concrete apartments, self contained toilet & baths; security steel bars & grills @ Unity ECD – Tel:680-4447; 2282497 FOR SALE / FOR RENT American pool table - Tel: 277-0578
IAE @ 194 Camp St – CXC 2014. Full-time, morning, lessons & adults classes: Mathematics, English A, Business & Science Subjects Tel: 683-5742; 223-0604 Balloon Décor Training. Classes on 28th January 2014. Call 225-3133; 613-7513 to register and more info. Courses in dressmaking, curtains, floral & cake decoration – Tel:670-2653; 618-1706 Princeton College: From 1-5, CXC adults classes, lesson for school children: Business & Science subjects - Tel: 2315678, 690-5008, Albertown Private School, Grove/ Diamond: Nursery, Primary, Secondary full time and lessons @ Acres Academy – Tel: 216-4557; 216-2723; 2161409. Adult Education: Diamond/ Grove. Learn how to communicate both Verbal / Writer. To Register call:2161409;216-4557 Private homeschooling teacher for all levels: Reading, English ‘A’ and ‘B’ – Call:6494247 Invest In yourself in 2014 become a professional cosmetologist or nail artist. Enroll Now! Contact Cheryl :225-2076; 658-5091
LAND FOR SALE 10 Acres of Land @ Long Creek - Tel: 699-3723 10 Acres Farm land next to Creek @ Splashmins, Linden Highway – Tel:687-1392 1 Farm @ Yarrowkabra – Tel:265-3586 Parafaite Harmonie - $1M, $1.2M & $2M – Tel:675-7292
CAKES & PASTRIES Courses for cakes & Pastry: Cake decoration, floral arrangement bridal accessories. - Call Sharon: 672-8768 (anytime); 2233303(anytime after 4pm)
Herstelling – $4M & $2.5M Tel:675-7292 2- Acres cultivated, 2-1 Acres cultivated, 7 Acres cultivated, citrus, house, fish pond, storage at Parika- Call:2267968 Durban Squatting Land $600,000 & C. Sophia - $2.7M – Tel:231-2199; 618-7483
Sunday January 12, 2014
TO LET Fully furnished short term apartments, Eccles call: 347933-9790, 639-4452.
SALON Make Up Courses, Artist Trained & Certified in Trinidad. Call: 660-5257, 647-1773
Newly built apartment - Tel: 698-6496
Earn a Certificate in Cosmetology, wig designs or nails alone, beginning February 3rd Limited Spaces Tel: 666-5241/ 6197603 One experienced hair dresser contact Magic Touch Beauty Salon. Now accepting Students for cosmetologist classes – Tel:225-6492
Aracari Hotel. West Bank Demerara Rates from $30 – Tel:264-2946-8 Fully furnished apartments $5,000 per night @ Harmony Inn – Tel:694-7817; 602-8769 Furnished apartments, long term & short term - Tel: 687-3017 Semi-furnished three bedroom apartment @ Pere Street Kitty - Tel: 642-0325 Lodge Apartments (Vlissengen / Durban): Unfurnished - $40,000$60,000 P/M, furnished studio ( for Visitors) - $500US P/M – Tel: 698-9086 Fully furnished top flat apartment with all amenities, long term only - Tel:651-5382
For the best rates, call us on 225-8458, 225-8465, 225-8491
Sunday January 12, 2014 ARIES (March 21 - April 19): Today you'll likely awake, look around your home environment, and realize that there is much room for improvement. Fortunately, you are just the person for the job, Aries! You are creative and have tremendous decorating talent (even if you don't realize it). ******************* TAURUS (April 20 - May 20): You are a hard and conscientious worker, Taurus, and certainly have been applying your skills and doing your best for some time now. efforts. ****************** GEMINI (May 21 - June 20): You may find yourself thinking of looking for a new job in order to increase your income, Gemini. But there is probably no need to take such a drastic step. ******************** CANCER (June 21 - July 22): You have a lot of charm and tremendous social skills, Cancer. This is an unbeatable combination, and is especially strengthened with the current astral energy. Be sure to go the extra mile today, even if you aren't in the mood to do so. ********************* LEO (July 23 - Aug. 22): This is a day when you could greatly benefit from spending some time outdoors in quiet reflection, Leo. Even a halfhour's walk through a city park will help you feel more rested and grounded. ******************* VIRGO (Aug. 23 - Sept. 22): You're a hard and conscientious worker, Virgo, and sometimes you work so hard that you neglect to take any time for yourself.
LIBRA (Sept. 23 - Oct. 22): Today may find you longing for some spots of color in your life, Libra. Do what you can to brighten up your home environment. moustache! ********************* SCORPIO (Oct. 23 Nov. 21): Today you may discover that you have more in common with your neighbors than you thought, Scorpio. ******************** SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21): You may receive some kind of windfall today, Sagittarius. It may be that a rich old relative dies and leaves you some unexpected cash. .********************* CAPRICORN (Dec. 22 - Jan. 19): Romance is very much highlighted today, Capricorn. All the planetary energies indicate that you and your partner are operating on precisely the same wavelength. It's no wonder that the two of you have been getting along so well lately. ******************** AQUARIUS (Jan. 20 Feb. 18):Anything you attempt to do today is likely to turn out really well, Aquarius. You have an ambitious nature, so by all means take advantage of these auspicious conditions to pursue your career-related goals. ********************* PISCE S ( F e b . 1 9 March 20): Today you'll likely find that you begin to make real progress on a project that may have been stagnating for a while, Pisces.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 57
Page 58
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
Ariel Sharon, former Israeli Prime Minister, dead at 85 (CNN) — Ariel Sharon, whose half century as a military and political leader in Israel was marked with victories and controversies, died yesterday after eight years in a coma, Israeli Army Radio reported. Sharon was 85. Sharon died at Sheba Medical Center in the Tel Aviv suburb of Tel Hashomer. The Israeli statesman was a national war hero to many Israelis for his leadership, both in uniform or as a civilian, during every Israeli war. Israelis mourn loss of former leader Many in the Arab world called Sharon “the Butcher of Beirut” after he oversaw Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon while serving as defense minister. Ariel Sharon: Israeli soldier, statesman Ariel Sharon: Israeli soldier, statesman Ariel Sharon legacy linked to military Sharon and Arafat: Enemies to the end He was a major figure in many defining events in the Middle East for decades, including his decision to turn over Gaza and parts of the West Bank to Palestinian control. Throughout, he was called a “The Bulldozer,” a
Ariel Sharon
fearless leader who got things done. Ariel Sharon: Five things to know The reaction in his own right-wing Likud Party to his order to the military to drag some Israeli settlers from their homes in Gaza led Sharon in November 2005 to form the political party Kadima, Hebrew for “Forward.” He was in his fifth year as prime minister when he suffered a massive stroke in January 2006, which left him comatose. Ehud Olmert, who became
interim prime minister after Sharon’s stroke, assumed the role of prime minister after leading the Kadima Party to an election victory in March 2006. Sharon’s career was closely tied to Israel’s relationship with Lebanon. A life on front lines of war and politics During the Lebanon war in 1982, Sharon, a former army general then serving as Israeli defense minister, was held indirectly responsible by an Israeli inquiry in 1983 for the massacre of hundreds of Palestinians at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps. He was forced to resign. Sharon, who lived on a ranch in the Negev Desert, became prime minister on March 7, 2001. He was the man who encouraged Israelis to establish settlements on occupied Palestinian land, but he also was the leader who pushed for Israel’s historic 2005 withdrawal from 25 settlements in the West Bank and Gaza, which was turned over to Palestinian rule for the first time in 38 years. Ariel Sharon: Fast Facts Sharon formed the centrist Kadima in an effort to build political support for his controversial plan to turn over Gaza and parts of the West Bank to Palestinian control. In grappling with the decades-long conflict between Israelis and Palestinians, Sharon said in 2001, “I can talk and look in the eyes of the citizens of Israel and convince them to make painful compromises.” As waves of suicide bombings by militants rocked Israel, Sharon sent tanks and troops into Palestinian towns, ordering assassinations of Palestinian militant leaders.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 59
Iran nuclear bill would have consequences, nuclear chief says BEIRUT (Reuters) - Iran will have no choice but to step up its uranium enrichment if a bill now moving through parliament is approved, even though it has no current need for such highly-enriched uranium, its nuclear chief said yesterday.
The bill has received expressions of support from at least 218 of parliament’s 290 members and, if passed, could threaten progress toward a resolution of Iran’s long-running row with the international community over its nuclear program, on which
a landmark interim agreement was struck last November. The parliament is much more hawkish than Iran’s new president Hassan Rouhani on the nuclear issue, although some see the proposal, put forward last month, as a response to a bill introduced
Egypt army chief hinges presidential bid on ‘popular demand’ Cairo (AFP) - Egypt’s army chief Abdel Fattah alSisi stepped closer yesterday to confirming a widely anticipated presidential bid, saying he would stand in elections if there was a popular demand, state media reported. Sisi is easily the most popular leader in Egypt after toppling Islamist president Mohamed Mursi in July, and military officers have told AFP he had support within the army to stand in the election due to take place later this year. His comments come just days ahead of a referendum on a new constitution, the first in a series of polls the militaryinstalled government says will restore elected rule following Mursi’s ouster. “If I nominate myself, there must be a popular demand, and a mandate from my army,” the state newspaper Al-Ahram quoted him as saying at a conference with Egyptian officials. Although he enjoys wide support for toppling the unpopular Islamist, Sisi is reviled by Mursi’s supporters for what they call a “coup” against Egypt’s first freely elected president. Mursi’s Muslim Brotherhood has called for a boycott of the referendum on Tuesday and Wednesday, which its opponents view as a plebiscite on the legitimacy of Mursi’s overthrow. The Islamist movement is reeling from a crackdown that has killed more than 1,000 people in street clashes since Mursi’s ouster, and left thousands in jail. An official close to Sisi told AFP a large turnout to approve the constitution would be an “indicator” of whether voters wanted Sisi as president. The official said the general had not made up his mind but feels he “would not have the luxury or choice” to stand aside in the election if there is a palpable demand for him to run in the poll Al-Ahram reported the audience broke into applause at Sisi’s comments and chanted “we are all with you”. A member of the audience confirmed the comments to
AFP. At the conference, Sisi also urged Egyptians to participate “in force” in the referendum. A pro-Mursi coalition said it would hold protests against the “illegitimate constitution”. The official close to Sisi told AFP the general would be “obliged” to stand in the election if he felt the people demanded him as president. “He will never let the people down,” he added, speaking on condition of anonymity. Sisi is wildly popular among a majority of Egyptians who had rallied in the millions demanding Mursi’s resignation before
the military overthrew and detained the Islamist leader. Most of the leading former candidates who lost to Mursi in the 2012 election have said they would stand aside if Sisi chose to run. Beleaguered by three years of instability following the overthrow of president Hosni Mubarak in the 2011 uprising, many Egyptians yearn for a strong leader who would fix the economy and restore security.
by conservatives in the U.S. Senate that would impose new sanctions on Iran. Iran has stockpiles of uranium enriched to 5 percent fissile purity, sufficient for nuclear power stations, and 20 percent, of great concern to major powers because it is a relatively short technical step from weapons-grade. The bill would call for enrichment to 60 percent, sufficient for use in the reactors that power nuclear submarines. Iran says it plans to build one of these, but the think-tank GlobalSecurity.org says this would require a vast leap in Iran’s manufacturing capacity. Salehi told the Iranian Jaam-e-Jam network in an interview that Iran did not currently need such highlyenriched uranium, according to the state news agency IRNA. But he added: “If the members of parliament see
that it’s in the interests of the country that 60 percent enrichment could be useful, and they turn this desire into a law, then we will have no choice but to obey.” The semi-official Fars News agency said lawmakers were scheduled to discuss the bill next week. Under the terms of the interim deal struck with the United States, Russia, China, Germany, France and Britain, Iran must limit its high-level enrichment for a period of six months in exchange for relief from some international sanctions. The deal is meant to buy time for a full pact to be agreed to end more than a decade of tension over Western concerns that Iran
may be trying to develop an atomic weapons capacity under cover of a program that it says is wholly peaceful. Salehi, appointed by Rouhani, made clear that he favored a negotiated deal: “Overall, there’s no option other than coming to an agreement. The next choice would be disagreeing, which would not benefit us, them, the region or anyone else.” Separately, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has invited European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, the chief negotiator for the six powers, to visit Iran, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told the Mehr News agency.
Page 60
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
Curaçao requests drone Dad beaten to death over cell phone A 50-YEAR-old brother was a drug-addict, but altercation with a man and a Mahase was beaten, someone to prevent the crime rate Chaguanas man died at he did not interfere with woman whom he had called an ambulance and previously worked for. when it arrived Mahase hospital Friday night, four anyone. from spiking again Trevor Mahabir said that “I heard they accused him refused to be taken to days after allegedly being beaten by persons who he last saw him on Monday of stealing a cellphone, but he hospital. The relatives said
WILLEMSTAD, Curacao – In response to a rising crime wave, the Curacao Public Prosecutor (OM) and Curacao Police Corps (KPC) will have access to a Dutch unmanned aircraft during the first quarter of this year. The Dutch Department of Defence has sent the “Raven,” at the request of the island’s justice department, to detect and track criminals. The unmanned aircraft weighs a little over 4.4 pounds and is equipped with a camera that transmits detailed images to a ground station, enabling informed and appropriate action. According to the Public Prosecution Service of Curaçao, the number of robberies has increased. The crime rate reportedly peaks every year between December and March when the island is busier due to the annual holidays and carnival season. Curaçao requested the drone to prevent the crime rate from spiking again. The Dutch Ministry of Defence also sent experts to operate the drone, which will be used until late March, after which an evaluation will be conducted to determine whether the mission will need to be extended, reports NL Times.
accused him of stealing a cell phone. Floyd Mahase, a father of four, of Derrick Road, Chase Village, succumbed to his injuries after undergoing emergency surgery at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mount Hope. Mahabir’s father, Randolph Mahabir, who was at his bedside when he died, said his son was not a violent person, and he wanted justice for his death. “If whoever did this had come to me I would have compensated them. But to beat a man almost to death for a cell phone? I cannot handle that”, said Randolph Mahabir. The deceased’s brother, Trevor Mahabir, said his
when he came to the family’s home at Derrick Road Extension to have a meal. The brother said he Mahase would come to eat every evening, and when the family did not see him for the next three days, on Thursday Mahase’s he and his father went in search of him. The relatives said they found Mahase in a ditch next to his one-room house. He unconscious, naked, and bleeding from a wounds to the head and bruises about the body. Mahase was not conscious, Randolph Mahabir said, and there were fragments of a broken bottle on the ground. The father said residents in the area told the family that on Tuesda,y Mahase had an
did not have it. We know he was an addict, but it didn’t warrant him having to suffer like that”, said Randolph Mahabir. Trevor Mahabir said residents said that on Tuesday evening after
they did not know how or why Mahase ended up in a ditch without clothing outside his house.An autopsy is expected to be performed on the body at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, on Monday.
Gangster murdered in Mt Hope A WELL-KNOWN gangleader, who had a string of pending matters as well as addresses, was found shot dead Friday morning 50 feet off a Mt Hope precipice. Alvin “Taliban” Maharaj, 35, was described as “well known to the police”. Police said shortly after 11 a.m. they received a telephone call from residents of National Avenue in Mt Hope. When officers arrived on the scene, residents directed them to a Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) reservoir in the area and, with the help of the Search and Rescue
Division of the Fire Service, the body was found down the precipice. Police said Maharaj had on a pair of black track pants and he was bareback. He also had a bandage on one of his hands after he had been shot in December. On that occasion, police said they received a call about a shooting incident at the corner of Queen and Henry streets in downtown Port of Spain. When officers arrived, they found Maharaj and 13year-old Hamid Rasheed nursing gunshot wounds.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 61
“West Indies have started 2014 too! Now bring ICC WT-20 2014 to the Caribbean!” It has taken West Indies a week into 2014, but in ODI # 5, v NZ, they really came good! With the fillip of winning that game, I expected them to launch themselves fully into their most favorite format – T20’s – with great fervor, especially with IPL 2014 auction in vogue. WI losing T-20 # 1 yesterday, by 81 runs, was a surprise, even without the established stars. Expect them to bounce back next Wednesday, to start the focus on, and sequence of, defending ICC World T-20 Championship next MarchApril at ICC World T-20 2014, still, for now, scheduled to be in Bangladesh. Massive credit is due to WICB’s Cricket Operations and Security departments for immediately seeing the dangers and pulling the Ateam out of Bangladesh recently as the factional and political violence erupted. Sri Lanka is supposed to be sending an observer safety delegation to Bangladesh later this week to ascertain safety facts on the ground, to decide if the Lankans would continue their planned tour there. Given what has occurred in Bangladesh for recent elections, International Cricket Council should not wait until it is too late, but, right now, effect changes of plans for ICC WT-20 2014 to Sri Lanka, South Africa or especially West Indies, as that violence will not stop dead in its tracts, as seen in Pakistan and elsewhere. Indeed, some of the factions in Bangladesh have openly suggested that “they would fight on for justice!” Also, do not forget that deadly attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Pakistan in 2009. As the
only international cricket team to have ever been openly attacked, they have known first-hand what that kind of trouble is. Sadly, that is the way of the world now, when even sports-persons are not safe. Like USA Olympics Committee, fully monitoring situations for its athletes, have already warned about the occurrences relative to the bombings and violence that could affect Winter Olympics 2014 in Sochi, “no player of any sport should be exposed to the threat of life to enjoy being involved in that sport!.” Quite! Yes, Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana especially have had many murders already for 2014, but individual murders, as gruesome and as totally humanly negative as they are, especially to the bereaved families, are not the same as overall uncontrollable sectarian violence, where anything can really happen. But, seriously daydreaming, just think how really exciting it would be for West Indies to actually defend its WT-20 2012 crown, won in Sri Lanka to give West Indies cricket its fourth international trophy after ICC World Cups 1975 and 1979 and Champions Trophy 2004, here at home in 2014! Last year’s excellent staging of the initial Caribbean Premier League and West Indies having successfully also produced ICC WT-20 Championships 2010 here in the Caribbean, which England won, have at least put our region on the same page as India, with its massive financial resources. All logistics are already in place to host another international T-20 competition, or can be quickly honed to be so. Given the present circumstances in Bangladesh, that change
Colin E. H. Croft says:
Thilan Samaraweera was injured during the attack on the Sri Lanka cricket team on 3 May. Photograph: Buddhika Weerasinghe/Reuters
Sri Lanka were on their way to Gaddafi Stadium when militants opened fire on the team bus. -File photo by AFP should be done by ICC now! Anyway, winning ODI # 5 should help realize that the players, if settled, can produce, but there is much to be remedied. Hopefully, 2014 would bring a new visage of the team winning more often internationally. That victory in ODI # 5
also confirmed what I have said in a few of my recent articles; that West Indies should have been better than they have shown and t h a t N e w Z e a l a n d ’s bowling is not that great at all. Do not talk about injured stars, Chris Gayle, Kemar
Roach, Kieron Pollard etc. not being factors. The best part of great sports teams, as noted in NBA and NFL in USA, is the strength of the reserves, “the bench.” So, West Indies cricket must try to have reserves that could be good replacements when
regulars are absent. Starting with the regional 50-overs competition 2014, much higher standards of play and production must be demanded, so that that real excellence desired can be attempted. For far too long, our cricket’s levels have been allowed to drop, with fifties and two wicket hauls highlighted as the norm. These are average, hence our failures when playing internationally. So, WI was hit by NZ for 283-4 in 21 overs in ODI # 3, to reply with a poor 124-5, and hit for a more reasonable 2856 in 50 overs in ODI # 4, again to lose, by Duckworth-Lewis, having moved slowly to 1345 in 34 overs, then made 3634 in 50 overs, to win by a truly impressive 203 runs. What is obvious here? Consistency, or lack thereof. Inconsistency is mostly psychological, not physical. West Indies have, since 2000, been consistently inconsistent. History shows that our teams have had most of the right tools and players, but perhaps their preparations, on-field efforts, individual toughness or collaborative know-how do not always manifest themselves until late in most series; way too late! So, for 2014, higher cricketing standards are required and ICC WT-20 2014 should come back to us. Enjoy!
Today’s Endurance Meet to set tone for rest... From page 64 of the sport is becoming familiar with the competitors and fans alike. Meanwhile, Brian TenPow and Shawn Seejattan have been among t h e dominant pairs in the event, but according to Allie drivers such as Syed Hassan, Shiraz and Shahab Roshandin, the Ali brothers of Team Fullworks, Mark Vieira, Aaron Bethune, Anand Ramchand and Adrian Fernandes, are all practiced and ski l l e d d r i v e r s s o predicting who will reign at
the end of the day is proving to be very difficult. Among the drivers and t e a m s anticipated to participate are: Syed Hassan, Shiraz and Shahab Roshandin, Omar Dornellas and Christopher Young, Narindra and David Mangar, Sharima and Zafaar Khan, Amad Sammy and Team, Malcolm and Rohan Haripaul, Rameeze and Wazir Mohammed, Balram Ramdeo and Afo Harper, Motilall Deodass and Damon Singh, Arif and Reeaz Shaw, Mark Vieira and Roshan Ali,
Anand Ramchand and Adrian F e r nandes, Mohamed Ali and Anil Nala, Aaron Bethune and Anthony Boodhoo and Davin Panday. The various Classes are: ‘A’ Class- 0-1500 cc; ‘B’ Class: 1501-1600 cc; ‘C’ Class: 1601 - 2300 cc (Turbo Factor = 1.7) and ‘D’ Class: 2300 cc – Unlimited. Among the sponsors on board to dater are: Banks DIH, Ready Mix Cement, Medi Car, Secure Innovations & Concepts, B.M. Soat, Ray’s Auto Sales and A & R Giwanram Printery Inc.Starting time is 12:00 hrs.
This is the what the scene at the South Dakota Circuit will look like today as competitors battle each other in a test of skill, endurance and reliability.
Page 62
Kaieteur News
Veteran Footballers invited to practice today The Georgetown Veterans Football Association is inviting all Over-40 Footballers to a special session today from 10:00hrs at the GFC ground Bourda. This session is in preparation for the Veterans
Mash Football tournament scheduled for February 23 & 24. Cash prizes of $300,000 for the winners, $200, 000 for the runner-up and $100, 000 for the third placed team will be up for grabs.
Pakistan take fight into final day Sarfraz Ahmed kept Pakistan alive by making his highest Test score © AFP
ESPNcricinfo - Pakistan’s leader Misbah-ul-Haq batted with limitless patience and rookie Sarfraz Ahmed punched his way to a maiden half-century to give their side a glimmer of hope of saving a Test that once seemed lost. Pakistan painstakingly accumulated 198 runs on the fourth day but lost only four wickets, and with some rain forecast in Dubai on Sunday, Sri Lanka could get nervous if Sarfraz and the tail extend the lead much beyond 107. It requires tremendous confidence in one’s skills for a batsman to remain scoreless for a long period and then plod along unperturbed at his own, unattractive pace. Not many in the modern game have the mental strength to bat like Misbah does. He resumed on 53 off 119 balls, and then stayed scoreless during the first hour, making his first run
off his 37th delivery. When he was dismissed for 97 shortly before tea, Misbah had taken 129 deliveries to score 44 on the fourth day and ensured Sri Lanka would have to bat a second time. After Misbah’s vigil came to an end, Sarfraz upped Pakistan’s tempo in the company of two-Test old Bilawal Bhatti. They played shots on a pitch that had become unresponsive for the bowlers, and though Sri Lanka’s attack did not err, the runs came faster. Pakistan scored 65 runs in 21.3 overs after tea, after making 133 runs in 53 overs in the first two sessions. Scores: Pakistan 165 (Manzoor 73, Pradeep 3-62, Herath 3-26) and 330 for 7 (Misbah 97, Younis 77, Sarfraz 70*) lead Sri Lanka 388 (Mahela 129, Silva 95) by 107 runs.
Sunday January 12, 2014
Ronchi, McCullums set up emphatic win ESPNcricinfo – Luke Ronchi and Brendon MCCullum turned a flagging New Zealand innings around with an unbeaten 85-run partnership in the last 7.1 overs, which gave them a comfortable total to defend given West Indies’ weakened batting. On a slowish pitch and short straight boundaries where mis-hits sail for comfortable sixes, Tino Best pulled New Zealand back twice, but Ronchi and Brendon McCullum smashed seven sixes and five fours in the last six overs to take the game away from West Indies. Brendon McCullum scored 32 off the last 15 balls he played, and Ronchi, the man who provided New Zealand the first turn of momentum, took 48 off 25. It could have been much worse for West Indies had it not been for the intervention from Best when he stopped the rampaging Martin Guptill at the top of the innings and Colin Munro in the middle. Guptill just pushed and smacked down the ground everything pitched in his arc. The last three balls of the second over went for six, four and four. Best got another over at the top, and showed he had realised you couldn’t pitch up at Eden park. Guptill
still managed to hit a short delivery through mid-off for four, but Best finally got the better of him when he cramped him up. A slow period followed during which New Zealand lost Jesse Ryder and Ross Taylor. Brendon McCullum put his head down to make sure they didn’t lose too many wickets, in the process going at under a run a ball. At 70 for 3 after 10 overs, they needed a push, which Munro provided with an 18run over from Nikita Miller. Best, though, came back and removed him and Corey Anderson with aggressive short-of-a-length bowling. After 14 overs, Brendon McCullum was still only 28 off 30, and a low total loomed. Ronchi, though, began the turnaround with an onslaught on Andre Russell, whose first over was the 15th of the innings. To balls pitched up, all you needed was a decent swing of the bat, and they were flying into the stands. Sunil Narine got a quiet 16th over in, but he wasn’t accorded such respect in the 18th when Ronchi slog-swept him for a six, and then read a carrom ball to late-cut it for four. With the score at 175 after 19 overs, it was down to Best
again. Best began well, bowling quick and short of a length, conceding just one run off the first three balls. This is when Brendon McCullum took the calculated risk, charging him, making sure the short ball was now in his swinging arc, and sending it over long-on. With the next ball he guessed right, got under a low full toss, and ramped it way over fine leg for six. The two shots just pushed a gettable total into the realm of improbable for a weakened batting line-up. Lendl Simmons fell to the pace of Adam Milne, who would later go on to touch 153.1 kmph. Johnson Charles swung a few, but he is a lowpercentage batsman, and soon inside-edged James Neesham. With the openers gone, it was always going to be down to Dwayne Bravo and Andre Russell, but by the time they came together, the required rate had crossed 13, and there were 10 overs to go. Playing his 50th Twenty20 international, having led the side out, Nathan McCullum was enjoying the hole-outs from the frustrated middle order. It took Russell two balls to try to hit a six, but the tall Guptill pulled out a stunner at the long-on boundary. In Nathan
McCullum’s next over, Bravo found Ryder at long-off. If the game hadn’t been over already, the last rites were now performed. Summary Scores: New Zealand Innings: 189/5 (20 Overs). Brendon McCullum 60*, Luke Ronchi 48*, Martin Guptill 25, Colin Munro 22; Tino Best 4-040-3, Nikita Miller 3-0-262, Dwayne Bravo 4-0-24-0, Samuel Badree 4-0-25-0. West Indies Innings: 108/8 (20 Overs). Andre Fletcher 23, Johnson Charles 16, Nikita Miller 15, Samuels Badree 14; Nathan McCullum 4-0-24-4, James Neesham 4-0-16-3, Adam Milne 4-0-15-1, Corey Anderson 4-0-15-0. Toss: New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat Man of the Match: Brendon McCullum Twenty20 International Debuts: K Powell & C Walton Umpires: Chris Gaffaney & Derek Walker TV Umpire: Gary Baxter Match Referee: Chris Broad (England) Reserve Umpire: Wayne Knights Result: New Zealand win by 81 runs Series (New Zealand 1-0 West Indies)
Skipper feels batting is Guyana’s .. From page 61 playing in Trinidad where the pitches are expected to assist spin could work in Guyana’s favour. “It’s important that we start on a winning note and build on that as we aim to qualify for the semis. Ireland has a good record in ICC tournaments and have already qualified for next year’s world cup but I feel it is maybe in our favour that their opening game is against us,” the righthander with six t20 internationals for the West Indies under his belt, opined. “Playing them first could be an advantage for us in the sense that they are one of the stronger teams in the tournament and an early win against them will no doubt increase our level of confidence. Also they have not been able to asses to pitch and conditions and I am confident that our guys will capitalize on that especially our two Test spinners, (Devendra) Bishoo and (Veerasammy) Permaul,” the DCC all-rounder disclosed. Based on his recent form, the pugnacious Barnwell, who played in the last IPL in India, is expected to be among the runs in Trinidad. “This is one of the best teams in years with every-
body available and our batting in one of the strongest in the Region. (Assad) Fudadin, (Ramnaresh) Sarwan, (Shiv) Chanderpaul, (Leon) Johnson, (Narsingh) Deonarine and myself have all played for the West Indies, while Paul Wintz, Bishoo and Permaul are all capable of runs at this level,” Barnwell told Kaieteur Sport during a break in yesterday’s hectic training session at Everest. “Our bowling is also expected to restrict teams to small totals since Ronsford Beaton is genuinely quick and Royston (Crandon) and Deonarine should provide adequate spin support to Bishoo and Permaul,” added Barnwell who is also the third seamer in the squad. With Robin Bacchus, Trevon Griffith and Wi c k e t k e e p e r A n t h o n y Bramble in the side, the batting is powerful on paper, while according to Barnwell, the experience of both Chanderpaul and Sarwan in the team should inspire the younger batters to be more selective with their shots and build on good starts. “The presence of Shiv and ‘Sars’ should also take to pressure off Coach (Esaun)
Crandon…. being a bowler himself…. and allow him to spend more time with the bowlers, while Shiv and ‘Sars’ could work with the batsmen,” Barnwell reasoned. The last time Guyana won a Regional 50-over title in 2005, Sarwan scored three tons in Barbados and Chanderpaul was the Captain. This year Barnwell has the veteran left-hander, the only West Indian with over 150 Tests, as his deputy. Barnwell is hoping that the two senior batsmen again play key roles this year as the South Americans hunt their 10th title at this level since capturing their first in Antigua in 1980. Barnwell is also pleased with the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) for the level of preparation this year which includes their last two practice games being played under lights at Providence. Guyana will play all of their preliminary games under floodlights. According to Barnwell the Board has hired two Guyana Defence Force (GDF) trainers to work with the entire 26-man squad and this he feels has produced a far fitter side this year. The GCB will also have personnel from the WICB in Guyana from Janu-
ary 22 to conduct an antidoping counseling for the national team. The Coaching staff has also been ‘beefed up’ with Berbice Head Coach Julian Moore and Griffith lending support to Crandon, while Manager Alvin Johnson has been his usual efficient self. Moore and Griffith will not travel with the team to the Twin Island Republic for the actual tournament. Ye s t e r d a y t h e s q u a d was engaged in morning training before calisthenics, a game of Football, fielding drills and a net session rounded off the day. The players will have the day off today while the second of six practice matches is scheduled for Bourda tomorrow. The full Guyana squad read; Christopher Barnwell (Captain), Shivnarine Chanderpaul (Vice-Captain), Robin Bacchus, Trevon Griffith, Leon Johnson, Narsingh Deonarine, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Royston Crandon, Assad Fudadin, Anthony Bramble (w/k), Devendra Bishoo, Veerasammy Permaul, Ronsford Beaton and Paul Wintz. Esaun Crandon (coach), Alvin Johnson (manager).
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 63
GB Coach Ian Shaw satisfied with progress of training to date By Franklin Wilson Experienced Great Britain Rifle Shooting Coach, Ian Shaw, who is conducting two-weeks of training for local marksmen at the invitation of the Guyana National Rifle Association (GNRA), has said that he is pleased with the progress of the riflemen to date. The sessions, which will cover all areas including team building, is aimed at improving the overall game of the Caribbean’s most successful rifle shooting team.
Speaking with Kaieteur Sport at the Timehri Rifle Ranges yesterday prior to the commencement of another day of training in humid conditions, Shaw noted that the focus is on the shooters not him. On Friday evening the marksmen, some of the best in the region including National Captain Mahendra Persaud, Lennox Braithwaite, Ransford Goodluck and retired Assistant Commissioner of Police Paul Slowe among others, were going through their paces on the electronic Scatt Training
Captain Persaud expresses thanks to GOA for facilitating System. This system according to Shaw, analyses every element of what the shooters are doing and they’ve been looking at how they can make small improvements which overall would make vast improvements over time. “It will take time for this to work but even in the short space of time we’ve had so far we’ve seen certainly two or three of the less experienced shooters show dramatic improvement very quickly with a few small
Cricket gear presented to Berbice school compliments of SFCD and FFP
Berbice school presentation - From left: Mr. Alex Foster hands over the cricket gear to School teacher Mr Karl Vanier of Corentyne Comprehensive High School, while Regional Educational Officer Ms Volika Jaikissoon (centre) along with School Teacher Mr Rohan Itwaroo of Port Mourant Secondary school looks on with some students. A number of school in the East Berbice Region Education District will be in a better position to offer their students a rounded educational package and to take part in a more sporting activities especially cricket. This is through the benevolence of two of Guyana’s leading NonGovernment organizations, the St Francis Community Developers [SFCD] and the world renowned Food for the Poor [FFP] Guyana Inc. Two of the schools benefitting, Corentyne Comprehensive High School and the Port Mourant Secondary School, were on Wednesday presented with a number of cricket gear by President of the SFCD and Coordinator of FFP in Berbice, Alex Foster, at a simple ceremony held at the SFCD Multipurpose Hall at
Portuguese Quarters, Port Mourant. Foster stated that the gifts, which includes several balls, pads, bats, gloves and stumps amongst other items, are to be used to bring back the interest of the game in the school to where it was before. He said that the influx of gear is to create a revolution in the game in which will spin off to the clubs then the Berbice and Guyana Cricket Boards, and subsequently the West Indies Cricket Board. “It is hoped that what we are doing here will create a revolution that will impact not only in the school but across the Caribbean and even further afield.” Receiving the gear on behalf of the Corentyne Comprehensive Secondary Physical Education Teacher Karl Vanier in accepting the gifts, expressed his gratitude to Mr. Foster and the
principals of both the SFCD and FFP and gave the assurance that the gear will be used for the full benefit of the students. He also used the opportunity to appeal to the officials of the Guyana Cricket Board to reintroduce cricket into the school system and to get the game properly reorganized in the country. Rohan Etwaroo, who collected on behalf of the Port Mourant Secondary, was also high in praise to the donors and promised that the donations will be used for the full benefit of the students. Regional Educational Officer Ms Volika Jaikissoon, also in attendance, expressed gratitude to the two organizations for their timely gesture and stated that the Department of Education will make sure that the equipment donated will be put to its full use.
changes with the electronic training; now we’ve got to make sure that the improvement is transformed into the competition setting.” Yesterday’s sessions at the Timehri Ranges, the hub of shooting in Guyana, focused on setting the sights of the rifles and this was done with live firing at the 200 yards range. “What we are doing here is something that most people don’t do. In order to be able to change the sights correctly each gun has to be zeroed so that when the sights say zero and there’s no wind you know you can pull the trigger and it will always be centrally, not left to right.” This exercise, Shaw explained, was vital for all shooters, experienced and non-experienced to be aware of, so that when it comes to competition all would be hitting good shots on the target. “Unless those zeros are all correct when it comes to a competition the coach has to mess around trying to work things out which is unnecessary because if it was set right in the first place the coach just sits there and say go on bang and you start getting bulls straight away and he hasn’t got to start messing around. We want everyone’s zeros to be synchronized.” Shaw, described as a marksman of considerable pedigree and experience as a member of the Great Britain team, noted that they are not going back to basics but just looking at the critical basics to ensure that those are right. “These guys are experienced shooters and in particular Mahendra and Ransford, I mean I got silver
at the Commonwealth Games and these guys were fifth, right there the whole way, two points behind me. So you’ve got some very good shooters, and really it’s a question of refining the skills that already exists and then looking at the more inexperienced people and giving them the tools in order to bring themselves up to the next level.” Shaw, who has won the Ballinger Belt and Grand Aggregate in New Zealand, the British Open Target Rifle Championship at Bisley and a few other competitions over the years, expressed pleasure at the application of the shooters so far. “I’m pleased with the progress and the really good thing is that they are listening and they are taking it on board but I’m explaining things to them in such a way that they understand why they are making the changes. Change for the sake of change is pointless but change for the sake of improvement, that’s what we want and that’s what we are getting. They understand why they are doing things and they can see the benefit.” While he has an idea of what the shooters need to do to improve having seen them in competition mode in Guyana last year when the British team visited here and subsequently at the Caribbean Rifle Shooting Championships in Barbados and the Australia Match also in the Land of the Flying Fish, Shaw said he wants to get feedback from them as to what they want as well. “It’s going to be one step at a time, it’s the positions right, getting the actual shot release right, make sure
they’re getting the right aim so that we know they are hitting the centre and then we will move towards working on the team so that the team becomes a well oiled machine. When they turn up at the firing point in Jamaica, the rest of the West Indians see a unified team that are very, very disciplined and ready to win similar to the Great Britain team.” Shaw posited that such an attitude will give the team the edge, citing that he has seen it work all over the world. Captain Mahendra Persaud also commented and noted that the signs are very encouraging. He pointed out that the sessions on the electronic targets showed up some faults which Shaw has been working on including getting the shooters more comfortable and into their comfort zone. Some of what has been imparted to the riflemen was practiced at the 300 and 600 yards ranges also. “Tomorrow (today) we’ll be going right into team strategy and everything that comes with doing proper team shooting the way the English would do it. Our aim is to improve the shooting, technique, the scores and confidence of the shooters as we seek to continue lifting the standard of shooting for Guyana.” Persaud expressed profound gratitude to the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) and its President, K. A Juman Yassin who assisted in a major way in making Shaw’s visit a reality. “The GOA had pledged its assistance to this project of getting a Coach here ever since the Great Britain team was here last year so we at the GNRA are very appreciative of the GOA’s assistance.”
The country’s top cyclists are expects to don their gear and head to Berbice today for an early start to the 2014 season when former national cyclist Wilbert Benjamin in collaboration with the Flying Ace Cycle Club (FACC) stages their third annual ‘Benjamin Sports’ open cycle race. The 40 miles event pedals off at 09:00hrs from Fyrish Village in front of the Benjamin Sports Store and proceed to the No 43 Bridge before returning to its place of origin. There will be prizes for the first six finishers, the top three juniors, the first three
veterans U45 and the first four beginners, while there will also be eight sprint point prizes up for grabs. The organizers are also pondering on presenting special incentives for females’ according to entries for that category. A grueling event is anticipated as the riders will be looking to take an early advantage into the new season. Defending champion Orville Hinds of Linden will not have it easy as the other riders will be looking for the early advantage as they compete for the hefty sums up for the taking. The visiting riders will
also have to be at their best as the Berbice cyclists will be determined to regain lost ground in their quest for glory. The race will be coordinated by cycling coach Randolph Roberts. Benjamin will also be hosting another event on Sunday 23rd in celebration of his father’s 80th birthday. Coach Roberts expressed confidence the coveted title will remain in Berbice since his riders are all rearing and ready to hit the road. Roberts stated that his riders have been in tremendous form and from their performances at practice will be hard to beat, especially on home turf.
Fireworks expects in season opening Benjamin Sports Cycle race
Page 64
Kaieteur News
Sunday January 12, 2014
HINDS IS NEW GABF PRESIDENT - Georgetown, Linden get VP posts
New GABF President, Nigel Hinds (fourth, left) shares the head table with the new Executive, from left, Leona Kyte (Assistant Secretary/Treasurer), Dr. Richard Blair (General Secretary), Haslyn Graham (Second Vice-President), Michael Singh (First Vice-President) and Cecil Chin (Technical Director). Treasurer-elect Clairmont DeNobrega and VP, Kenrick Thomas were both absent at yesterday’s AGM and Elections. By Edison Jefford Former National Basketball Player and Accountant of Hinds and Statia Financial, Nigel Hinds, was elected President of the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) yesterday after he defeated Georgetown sub-association President, Michael Singh. Hinds won with a 9-2 vote, which indicated support from only Georgetown for Singh while the Linden
Amateur Basketball Association (LABA), Berbice Association, Women’s Association, Masters’ Association and Guyana Basketball Officials’ Council (GBOC) all voted for Hinds in the landslide victory. However, Singh amassed the highest number of votes with 12 for one of three VicePresident positions that were contested. Singh, the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association
(GABA) President, is likely to become the First VicePresident with LABA President, Haslyn Graham as Second Vice-President with 10 votes. Kenrick Thomas, who was not present, received seven of the twelve votes for the third VicePresident position. Dr. Richard Blair was elected General Secretary, while Leona Kyte was elected Assistant Secretary/ Treasurer; Cecil Chin was
elected Technical Director while Clairmont DeNobrega, who was also absent yesterday, was elected Treasurer. In his address, Hinds acknowledged that there is a lot of work to be done to resuscitate the sport in Guyana. As such, he said that there will be specific programmes aimed at revitalising the sport ahead of Guyana’s Caribbean Basketball Confederation
(CBC) Championships participation that is scheduled for July 1-12 this year. “It has been a rough period for the last Executive for a number of reasons. We intend to engage stakeholders on some key areas,” Hinds said, before outlining the rehabilitation of the basketball courts in Georgetown, Linden and Berbice and an aggressive popularisation programme for the sport as high on the agenda for immediate implementation. In addition, Hinds believes that they can change the financial fortunes of the federation with an overall transparent budgeting and accounting four-year plan. He said that will be aimed at getting the right credibility established among the corporate community. The new GABF Head also proposed resuscitation of the clubs that are weak and those that have gone out of existence. He said the women component of all clubs must
return to full fruition as well so that basketball develops holistically. “We have to think bigger and envision. We can do this. We have a lot of work to do; we are in a ditch, and it is not that David (Patterson, past GABF President) left us in a ditch, but we have to get out,” Hinds said in his address, adding, “We want to see the Sports Hall full again”. Hinds said that the GABF Executive will be meeting later this month to detail their programmes for the year. Following his address, LABA Secretary, Joe Chapman indicated across the floor that the “Hinds/Singh combination is great for basketball”. His statement received loud applause from enthusiast and stakeholders present while Hinds said “I know Michael has done a lot of work in Georgetown”, before GABF Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Elections came to and end at the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) Headquarters in High Street, Kingston.
Today’s Endurance Meet to set tone for rest of the season When the green light goes off today to signal the start of the Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club-organised Endurance Meet, at the South Dakota Circuit, fans will have a firsthand opportunity to see some of the country top
racers exhibit their skills, fitness and machine reliability. The Meet will also point to the commencement of the entity’s season; one which it anticipates will be hectic and exciting for the followers of motor racing as Guyana aims
to assert its dominance within the Region after capturing the country title in the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship (CMRC) last year. Motor racing in Guyana has been steadily growing in popularity and Endurance racing, though it has not earned the reputation of track racing, has also enjoyed admirable recognition over the past two seasons where the various classes are usually heavily subscribed. Speaking with some of the competitors recently, they promised fans a day of excitement and keen rivalry and one that will certainly set the tone for the rest of the season since they intend to
push the sport to new levels and position it as a main attraction on the local sports calendar. One of the competitors said that even though the sport enjoyed some amount of success last year, it was plagued somewhat by internal strife which was ultimately settled by the recent Annual General Meeting so the time now should be used to maintain the momentum gained after the successful hosting of the CMRC. He claimed that more teams are eager to participate in Endurance racing and it simply indicates that this part (Continued on page 57)
GCA extends condolences to family of the late Terry Holder Public Relations Officer of the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) Colin Alfred yesterday issued a statement on behalf of the ruling body for cricket in the city in the wake of the death of veteran cricket Administrator Terry Holder. The full text of the release read: “The executives of the GCA would like to extend sincere condolences to the family of the late Terrence ‘Terry’ Ormonde Holder who passed away recently. Mr Holder’s contribution to cricket in Guyana has been immense and his passing has saddened the entire cricket fraternity. His calm and reassuring presence will certainly be missed within the Administration of the game in Guyana”
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
HPC stint was helpful –Beaton By Zaheer Mohamed Exciting Essequibo fast bowler Ronsford Beaton said that his stint at the Sagicor High Performance Centre (HPC) was helpful. Beaton, who is currently training with the Guyana team for the Regional Super 50 and 4-day tournaments and fellow Guyanese Chanderpaul Hemraj, had a six month spell at the Centre in 2013 which is based in Barbados; both players are expected to return for another period later this year. Speaking with Kaieteur Sport on Wednesday last at Everest Cricket Club, Beaton said that he learned a lot at the HPC and is looking forward to sharpen his skills in competitions. “It was a learning experience, my bowling technique has improved a lot, I am bowling faster and with better control, my batting has developed as well,” he added. Beaton created lots of excitement last year with his pace and aggression and earned a call up to the West Indies A team for their recent tour to India where he impressed many including batsman Yuvraj Singh. He stated that the tour was challenging. “It was a different level, but I gained a lot of experience from it. The senior players helped me a lot especially Andre Russell,” he informed. The former Guyana U19 captain said bowling to the Indian batsmen was challenging due to the slow nature of the wickets there.
Page 65
Guyana forward Carl Cort returns to Rowdies for 2014 NASL The North American Soccer League’s (NASL) Ta m p a B a y R o w d i e s announced last week the resigning of Guyana forward Carl Cort to a one-year contract through the 2014 NASL Season.
Carl Cort
Cort (6-4, 172lbs) will be entering his third season with the club, originally joining the Rowdies in August of 2012. Cort featured in 11 matches in 2013, starting in four. His goal in stoppage time against the Strikers on October 5 was one of the nominees for NASL Goal of the Year.
Fast Bowler Ronsford Beaton in action against the Combined Campuses and Colleges during the 2013 Regional 4- day season at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence. He believes that Guyana stand a good chance of winning the Regional Super 50 which commences on January 30 in Trinidad and Tobago and is looking forward to the tournament. “Our batting looks strong, they are capable of giving the bowlers a decent total to defend. We have a good all round team,” Beaton
explained. He feels that the availability of Shivnarine Chanderpaul is a major boost. “Shiv motivates us a lot, he is capable of batting through the innings and can take the game away from the opposition,” Beaton lamented. Beaton is expected to share the new ball with Paul Wintz during the Super 50.
In 2012, Cort played eight matches after joining the club in the later part of the season. His most important goal with the Rowdies was in the second leg of the 2012 NASL Championship Series against Minnesota on October 27. This goal helped the Rowdies come back from a 2-goal deficit and win the 2012 NASL Soccer Bowl. Cort is from London, England, and is most known for his five seasons with Newcastle United F.C. of the English Premier League. The forward saw action for the Wolverhampton Wanderers over the course of four seasons from 2004-07 and tallied 32 goals. In the 2004–05 season, he notched 16 goals in 40 appearances and the following season added nine goals in the first
11 m a t c h e s f o r Wolverhampton. He has also p l a y e d f o r G u y a n a ’s
National Team during the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in 2012.
Skipper feels batting is Guyana’s Strength Best National team selected in years
GDF soldiers (with armless shirts) take the players through a fitness drill at Everest yesterday. By Sean Devers Many pundits feel that with everyone available the National cricket selectors, headed by former First-
Class pacer Rayon Griffith, came up with one of the best teams in years to represent this country in a senior Regional competition.
This view is shared by newly appointed National Captain Christopher Barnwell who predicted that the batting should be his
team’s strength this year in Trinidad where Guyana begins their 2014 Super50 campaign against World Cup qualifiers Ireland on January
31. Guyana is grouped with Ireland, the Windwards Islands and defending champions Jamaica and the
27-year-old Barnwell says that while Ireland is the only International side in the eight-team tournament, (Continued on page 62)
Page 66
Kaieteur News
West side, GT collide in Mayor’s Inter Ward/Village Football tourney finals The football hype on the West side will hit fever pitch today when the finals of the Mayor’s b i r t h d a y I n t e r Ward/Village 7-a side Knockout Football competition is staged today at the Den Amstel Community Centre ground in West Demerara. A large crowd is expected to throng the venue to witness what should be a pulsating day of Football as four West Demerara teams and a similar amount from Georgetown collide in the quarters, semis and final of the tournament which commenced in November last year in celebration of Mayor Hamilton Green birthday. The champions will take home $100, 000 while the Runner-up receives $50,000. Sara Lodge face-off with North Sophia in the opening 20-minute game from 14:00hrs before Pouderoyen come up against North/East Lapenitence from 14:30hrs. Uitvlugt battle South Sophia from 15:00hrs, while Den Amstel take on Kitty from 15:30hrs. The two semi-finals will be played at 16:00hrs and 16:30hrs with the g r an d f in ale slated to commence at 17:00hrs. Several leading players will be on show representing their respective areas including Trayon Bobb (Uitvlugt), Delon Lanferman and Jeffrey Perreira (Den Amstel), Anthony Sancho and Shemroy Arthur (North Sophia) and Devon Millington (East
Shemroy Arthur
Wiltshire Birth Anniversary Dominoes to start Tuesday
Delon Lanferman
Dharshani Sookhoo (left) of Elegance Style presents the cheque to Mark Wiltshire
Trayon Bobb
Devon Millington
Jeffery Perreira
Anthony Sancho
La Penitence). Former National Coach Lennox Arthur is the Coordinator of the competition. Gratitude has been expressed to Macorp, GT&T, Guyana Lottery Commission, Chris Fernandes,
G i f t l a n d O ff i c e M a x , James Bovell of City College, Mark Bender Jermaine Langivine and Ramesh Sunish of the Trophy Stall, which will p r o v i d e t h e w i n n e r ’s trophy and Ricks and Sari among others.
Ravi Rampaul returning home WICB Media AUCKLAND, New Zealand – West Indies fast bowler Ravi Rampaul will miss the two Twenty20 Internationals against New Zealand on Saturday and Wednesday. Rampaul flies home to Trinidad from Auckland today due to a thumb injury he sustained during a training session prior to the fourth One-day International last Saturday at Saxton Oval in Nelson. “ R a v i h a s sustained a fracture and we
Sunday January 12, 2014
are looking to allow optimal healing rather than pushing an early return,” said West Indies physiotherapist C.J. Clark. “He will return home to allow the fracture time to heal and will commence fitness training in preparation for the Regional S u p e r 5 0 To u r n a m e n t , starting later this month in Trinidad.” There will be no replacement for Rampaul in the West Indies T20I squad, which has now been reduced to 14.
Ravi Rampaul (WICB)
Mark Wilshire 59th Birth Anniversary open Dominoes competition is set to start on Tuesday at La Belle Sports Bar and Hotel, Norton Street. The playoffs and finals will be held on January 25th and 26th at the said venue. The winning team will take home a trophy and $175,000, while each member will be given a medal. The runner up will receive a trophy and $80,000 and the third place $40,000. The player that share the first love in the final will collect $5,000, the best female
player will collect $5,000 and the best corporation team $6,000. Entrance fee is $9,000. T e a m s f r o m Georgetown, East Coast Demerara, East and West Berbice, East and West Bank Demerara, Essequibo Coast, Bartica and Linden are expected to vie for honours. There will also be a feature game before the competition gets underway at 15:00hrs which pits East Coast, Georgetown and West Coast Demerara against each other; Entrance fee is $15,000.
Trophies for this fixture will be donated by Goldyn and Sons. Meanwhile, Elegance Style Studio have supported Wiltshire Birth Anniversary t o u r n a m e n t . Ye s t e r d a y proprietor of the entity Dharshani Soohkoo handed over a cheque of an undisclosed sum to Wiltshire at their location in Duncan Street, Bel Air. In brief remarks, Sookhoo said she is pleased to be associated with the tournament, while Wiltshire thanked her for the support.
Will Chris Barnwell continue a proud DCC tradition K a i e t e u r S p o r t ’s contributing Statistician Charwayne Walker notes that Demerara Cricket Club’s (DCC) Christopher Barnwell will be the man calling plays when the Nagico Regional Super50 cricket competition commences this month end in Trinidad. The first time Guyana won the Regional 50 Overs Championship was April 1980 and the man wearing the Captaincy arm band was then DCC’s Roy Fredericks, who led from the front with a Pugnacious 119, the losing finalist were the Leeward Islands. Walker further states that, a DCC Legend was at the helm again when the land of the Majestic Kaieteur falls won championship number two. The year was 1983 and
DCC’s Clive Lloyd led Guyana to both the 50 Overs and four day titles. The last DCC Legend that brought home the Bacon was Queen’s College Golden boy Roger Harper. Harper was at the helm in 1993 when the land of many waters shared the championship with the Leeward Islands. Although Barnwell was not born when Federicks and Lloyd had their moments of glory and was just six years old when Harper’s men were triumphant in 1993, he is cognizant of the great legacy left by his predecessors and is eager for his name and picture to join the above mentioned in the halls of the corridors at DCC. Only time will determine if this will p l a y o u t t o r e a l i t y. (Charwayne Walker)
Christopher Barnwell
Sunday January 12, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 67
Carpenter secures landslide victory at GMR&SC elections Incumbent President John Carpenter was reelected to serve another term in office following a landslide victory when the Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMR&SC) held its Annual General Meeting recently, at the club’s Headquarters on Albert Street, Thomas Lands. Carpenter will have as his deputy Mahendra Boodhoo, while the rest of the executive are TreasurerHansraj Singh, Assistant Secretary/Treasurer - Chet Singh, Secretary - Carey Griffith and Club Captain Danny Persaud. The five Committee members are: Andrew King, Wayne Vieira, Bobby Rasul, Mohammed Roshandin and Roshan Ali, while Ray Rahaman will serve as Technical Advisor. The following services have also been retained: Club Supervisor - Desiree Lee, Office Assistant - Tina Morris and Caretaker of South Dakota Circuit - Deon Narine. The President in his speech welcomed the members to the Meeting, but that was after calling on them to observe a minute silence to mark the passing of motor racing stalwart Stewart Stevenson, who died recently in Miami, USA. Meanwhile, below are some excerpts from the President’s speech: “This meeting concludes the activities of our
- urges all to come onboard and help build the sport committee for the period 2 0 1 2 / 2 0 1 3 . We h a v e published the agenda for the meeting and also have available for your perusal the audited accounts for the 2012 financial year and also draft managements accounts from January 1st, 2013 to end October, 2013. I would first like to thank my committee and all our volunteers for their services beyond the call of duty in the interest of motor racing in Guyana. We continue to enjoy favorable relations with the Government and their agencies, and also have continued to strengthen our relations with our sponsors. These relationships are essential, as we all know how expensive motor racing can be and with the limited receipts we get, it would be impossible without their generous support. We must respect and cherish each and everyone of them. We have had a successful year of Racing we have claimed the Country’s Trophy in the CMRC and the motorcycles continue to Dominate with their numbers and skill set unmatched in the Region. We are also happy to see the strongest contingent of Karters at our International Event. To all our Riders and Drivers I congratulate you on your year’s performance. The audited accounts for
the year ending December, 2012 along with the management accounts to end October, 2013 have been presented. I must state that the members who made the compromise in the best interest of moving forward with our November plans faced the worse onslaught of personal attacks and character assassinations ever in the history of this club, maybe a first for this club ever on the social and other media. We must as a closely knit family commit to high ethical and moral standards. We continue to enjoy cordial relations with the Government and there is no doubt about their commitment to the GMR&SC. We have been exploring joint promotions of our major events with the Ministry of Tourism as well as defining Guyana as a Sports tourism destination. We have completed the major works at the facilities in Georgetown and can now concentrate on improving South Dakota. High on the agenda and in partnership with GT&T we plan to renovate the club house which will be re-named the Pat Holder Clubhouse and also improve the first landing on the stairs which was previously dedicated to Mr. Francis Gouveia another stalwart who never missed a
instrumental in his club’s victory in his first and only game so far at this level picking up 6-58 against the University of Guyana. He also represented his club in the Brain Street U-15 tournament in 2013, his best figures in that competition was 5-34 versus Georgetown Cricket Club, he ended as the tournament’s
leading wicket taker with 15 scalps. Spooner is indeed a special talent and certainly has the ability to fulfill his dream. Though his regular bowling style is right handed, he can also bowl left handed. He trains three times a week and his first goal in 2014 is getting selected for the Guyana U15 team for the regional tournament later this year. Spooner told Kaieteur Sport that he knows that it wouldn’t come easily. “I am looking forward to
John Carpenter
meeting and viewed all races from the first landing. 2012/2013 can be considered a breakthrough year for the club with regards to our relations with the FIA. This achievement is in no small measure due to the hard work and persistence of the committee led by Raj Boohdoo. The high point being the visit to Guyana by President of the FIA Mr. Jean Todt and Vice President Jose Abed in August 2013 who was suitably impressed with our plans for developing racing in Guyana. We were lucky to have Mr. Abed again
for our November International event which he skipped the Formula 1 Race in Brazil to attend.” Carpenter spoke of the personal e-mail he received from the FIA President following his visit informing that he was optimistic about t h e o rg a n i s a t i o n ’s development and assured his support in the future. The President stated that Guyana has applied for and will access assistance from the FIA in 2014 for the training of marshals and stewards; will receive flags used in international events;
w i l l c o n d u c t a comprehensive review of South Dakota and develop a new plan that can suit Guyana and its economic ability; will be sending up the Top Driver and Karter for the FIA awards Ceremony this month; take advantage of the access to the Young Driver Training Programme; will discuss the possibility of co-hosting an International Rally together with FIA and Gov’t and explore Sport opportunities that can promote Guyana as a sport tourism destination. He added that the club will use this track record to now align itself over the coming years with the FIM for motorcycles and CIK for Karting. “What has been highlighted and must be taken on head-on is to ensure we are aiming for the highest possible safety standard at South Dakota. GMR&SC has also been appointed a Mobility Partner of the FIA which is the opportunity to partner with all of Guyana as we promote the safe use of our roads. We as motor Racers must make a concentrated effort to promote safe road use and tell our friends and family leave the racing for the track.” Carpenter thanked all for their support during 2012/2013 and wished the new committee all success for 2014, before inviting all to be onboard as the club strives to continue to build motorsport in Guyana.
Spooner wants to don maroon colours Transport Sports Club cricketer Joel Daniel Spooner’s dream is to one day play for the West Indies at the highest level. Spooner, who attends Tutorial High School, is a right arm offspinner and right handed batsman. He is thirteen years old and only recently made his debut in second division cricket for his club. He was
the new season; I know getting selected for the national team is not an easy task. I like challenges and I am prepared to work hard,” he said. He believes that discipline is one of the keys to success. Spooner was inspired by his father, Norbert Spooner, who represented Chronicle Sports Club. He started to play the game on streets where he resides in Kitty and his talent was first spotted by Gandhi Youth Organisation first
division player Wazeer Mohamed who invited him to the club for practise. He then joined the Transports Sports Club. Spooner is a form two student and knows he has to strike a balance with his education and cricket. He informed that he is aware of the importance of Education, adding that his favourite subject is Science and apart from being a cricketer he also wants to b e c o m e a t e a c h e r. “Education is essential for any youth and I think it plays
Joel Daniel Spooner
t r o Sp
GB Coach Ian Shaw satisfied with progress of training to date P.63
Captain Persaud expresses thanks to GOA for facilitating
Coach Ian Shaw explains to Ryan Sampson how it is done.
Coach Ian Shaw observes Paul Slowe in action even as National Captain Mahendra Persaud assists.
Ronchi, McCullums set up emphatic win
P.62
Andre Fletcher cuts off the backfoot. (Getty Images)
Tino Best is thrilled after dismissing Corey Anderson. (Getty Images)
- Georgetown, Linden get VP posts
Brendon McCullum and Luke Ronchi walk back after their stand of 85. (Getty Images)
Hinds is new GABF President
P.64
Printed and published by National Media & Publishing Company Limited, 24 Saffon St.Charlestown, Georgetown.Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491 or Fax: 225-8473/ 226-8210