Kaieteur News

Govt. must say if Liza One expenses paid off - Patterson

Intheabsenceofakey provision in the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) Guyana h a s w i t h o i l g i a n t ExxonMobil, the company is allowed to deduct expenses from oil projects that are yet tocommenceoperation.

That clause – 'ring fencing provision' - serves as a shield and prevents burdensome expenses from being lumped onto one project, thereby shortening profitsreceived.

Guyana has been warned by International Energy Institutes in the past that the country may never see the promised annual revenues from its oil sector, as the “one-sided” oil contract gives ExxonMobil and its partners the benefit, leaving Guyana and its people out of theirfairshareofthewealth.

The contract allows Exxontodeduct75percentof the resources each month to coverexpensestodevelopoil and gas projects. The 25 percent is then shared evenly (50/50) between the government of Guyana and theoilcompany Shadow Minister of Natural Resources, David Patterson during his contribution to the Budget Debates on Thursday said government's profits should now increase as the cost to develop the first oil field should be have already been paidoff.

Patterson said, “Of concern to us in the O p p o s i t i o n i s t h e announcementthatGuyanais expected to receive 17 lifts in 2023. Sir, in 2018, Exxon presented to the government of Guyana, the cash flow analysis which stated that the cost for the production of the (Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel) FPSO and other associated costs for Liza One was pegged at US$1.2 billion and after this cost would have been recovered, Guyana's share of the profit oil would be 50/50, based on producing 120,000 perday,atUS$70perbarrel.”

Notably, the former M i n i s t e r o f P u b l i c

Infrastructure under the Coalition government pointed out that the oil companyhasnowboostedoil productionto140,000barrels per day at the Liza One development, all while the average price per barrel has increasedby16percent.

He said that ExxonMobil projected that the expenses at

Liza One would have been paid off in four years after start-upin2019.

“Theyareproducingat16 percent more, which obviouslyatahigherbaseline that they were projecting, (so) we are supposed to now, I expected by now we would have been in the cost recovery 50/50 stage,” Pattersonsaid.

The Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) pointed out that the subject Minister failed to update the nation on whether Guyana managed to pay off those debts to start production in that field Similarly, he argued there was no word on the cost recovery audit being conducted.

Paterson believes that the Liza One expense should be paid off, however “If this is not the case as it is now sir, the government should inform the House on the

status of oil recovery and cost oil for Liza One and when sir are we expected to commence full equitable shareonthisproject.”

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) in a report titled 'Lack of Ring-Fencing Provision Means Guyana Won't Realize Oil Gains Before 2030s, if at All -

L o o p h o l e A l l o w s

E x x o n M o b i l - L e d Development Team To Use Profits To Pay for More Oil Exploration in Guyana' details that Guyana's failure to implement a “ring fence” provision has provided Exxon an opportunity to reduce the country's share of profits.

According to the document, “Among the contract's weak provisions Guyana never imposed a 'ringfence',whichmeansthat the oil companies can charge

Article 11 of the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement defines the terms of cost recovery during production activities

the government for costs i n c u r r e d f o r n e w development and pay for it outoftherevenuesfromLiza Phase One, an oil field that commenced production in December 2019. A strong ring fence provision would have allowed ExxonMobil to charge only costs related to Liza Phase One against revenues received from oil fromthatfield.”

To date, ExxonMobil has received approval for four projects in the Stabroek Block, including Liza One and Two, Payara and the

Yellowtail development

Two other projects are pending government approval. In addition, the company also made several

other discoveries, along with dry holes, of which the costs are being charged against the oil produced at the Liza One well.

MP David Patterson during his contribution to Budget 2023 Debates (Parliament of Guyana image)

Publisher:GLENNLALL-TEL:624-6456

Editor-In-Chief:NIGELWILLIAMS

Tel:225-8465,225-8491. Fax:225-8473,226-8210

Economic blanket, less street racket

Itisafactoflifeandharshrealitythatthosewhodonot, haveusuallyfindsomewaytogetsomething.Thenormisthat citizens having to do without, resort to crime to feed themselvesandtheirfamilies. Ithasbeennotedasasurvival mechanism,thiskindofhumancriminalpredation,andthat anywhere there are those eking out a painful living that always leaves them short, they are the ones that take matter intotheirhands. Theirfellowcitizensfeelthebruntoftheir callous,oftenvicious,activities.

Weatthispaperdonotexcuse,donotcondone,crimein any shape or form, and reserve a particular anger for lawbreakerswhoinjure,orharminanymanner,thosesharing space, those coming into contact, with them. There is that truth that must be said, and this reality that also must be shared. Whencitizensofacountryareseverelylacking,then therearesomeinthosetormentedrankswhotaketheplunge, and commit crimes, be they crimes of opportunity, of premediatedcalculation,oroutofsheernecessity Itisofthe lattercategorythatwewishtofocus.

Tofindoneselfemptyhandedinanimpoverishedcountry withlittleprospectsisaterriblestatetoconsider,oneinwhich to live. On the other hand, to still be without, short and lackinginthebasicsofdailylifeinafabulouslyrichcountry, onewithafuturethattheworlddreamsaboutandenvies,isa crimespeakingforitself.

Thisjustshouldnotbe,notinaplacelikeGuyana,about whichexpertstheworldovercanonlyspeakinawe,sorichis ourpresent,somuchricheristhepromiseofourfuture.Itisa brilliant, almost guaranteed, promise and future, but only whenthoseinchargedotheirbesttogetthemost.Thishasnot happened, and even though that reality exists, there is still enoughthathascomeintoGuyana’scoffersthatnoGuyanese shouldbeinthesoupkitchenline,orthebreadline,withhand outstretched.

We have more money than we have ever had before, thankstooilreturnsanddeposits.Yet,thereisthepunishing reality of this great disparity in what is done with the oil money coming into Guyana, through the decisions made. There is this overwhelming emphasis by the PPPC Government on infrastructure building or enhancing, which isagoodthingbyitself.

But,ourpositionisclearandunmoving:itcannotbeatthe expense of so many of our citizens at different rungs on the economic ladder, who are left to fend for themselves, and manageanyhowthattheycan.Toomanytensofbillionsare identifiedforinfrastructure,whiletoofewbillionsisthestory regardingthedegreeofreliefthatisextendedtopoorer,more vulnerable Guyanese, the ones that need a hand most desperately

When a kind and caring hand, a timely one, from government is not coming, and struggling citizens observe the few that are being enriched from many generous programs and budgetary provisionsmade possible by the same government, then all manner of ill-will is harbored. Those ignored, those shortchanged and by a huge margin, havelittleleftbutemptyhandsthattheyputtouseintheworst possibleway

Theyattacktheirfellowcitizens,theyrobthem,mayeven brutalisethem.Thehavenotstargetthehaves,whichmeans that still more billions must be found to boost the security, judicial, and prison sectors, all congested and struggling to cope. In the addition to the present, the seeds of seething discontentaresown,andthelessonsofhistoryarethatsuch flareupsareallbutinevitable.

Considering the above, it is why we urge and plead that there be better balance between physical infrastructure and thearchitectureofhumanneedandsuffering.

There must be a smaller gap between the massive sums earmarkedforinfrastructureversusthatidentifiedtoimprove the life of Guyanese forced to crawl in a time of grand developments,greatprosperities.

We can do better for our left behind, or we risk an environmentofinsecurity,theunhealthy,andtheunhappy

Russia/Ukraine War, CARICOM has a duty, it must be fulfilled

DEAREDITOR,

On June 22, 1941 when Hitler Nazi hordes attacked the Soviet Union it did so withallthepowerofEurope at its disposal. Hitler had alreadyconqueredthewhole of Western Europe, Italy excluded, but it was an ally of Hitler) and was using its industries and men to attack Russia.That was a brutal war However, Russia managed to push Hitler’s hordesoutofitsterritoryand proceeded to liberate Europe, including Germany and France. It cost them between twenty to thirty million Soviets, mainly Russianlives.

Today, history seems to be repeating itself. Russia is once again in the grips of war, this time it is not confrontingonlyEurope,but the United States, the UK a n d C a n a d a T h e consequencesofthiswarcan be more devastating than what took place 82 years ago Indeed, this war is putting the whole world in gravedanger

This is because the forces that are arraigned against Russia include three nuclearpowers,theUS,UK, and France. And Russia too has a sizable stockpile of these weapons of mass liquidation.

The West’s military alliance, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) deliberately provoked this war by

threateningtoexpandNATO on Russia’s border with Ukraine. This means that they would station their military bases with nuclear weapons right on Russia’s doorstep.This they did after the last Soviet/Russian leaderGorbachev,wasgiven the assurance that if Russia withdrewitstroopsthatwere stationed in Eastern Europe, NATO would not move troops one inch further towardsRussia.

Thishasturnedouttobe a massive fraud. We also knownow,firsthand,thatall the negotiations which the US and its allies were conductingwithRussiawere merely to give themselves time to prepare for a full scalewarwithRussia.

That revelation came most recently, from Angela Merkel, former Chancellor of Germany, and the former PresidentofFranceHolland, who revealed that they signed an agreement with Russia, but had no intention ofhonoringany

Their real intention was toprepareUkrainetowagea war against Russia. That agreement, known as the Minsk’s Agreement, was to givetheareaswhereRussian people were predominant in Ukraine some degree of autonomy Those parts wouldhaveremainedaspart of Ukraine The main purpose of the West was to gaintimetoarmandprepare Ukraine to wage war with

Russia. In the meantime, they remained quiet as Ukrainian military kept bombingtheRussianpeople in Donetsk and Luhansk killing thousands of civilians.

Having fooled Russia with signing accords they never intended to uphold, having refused to say that they would not grant U k r a i n e N AT O ’ s membership, thereby making her a neutral company, they practically forced Russia to launch a military mission to improve its own security and to defend the Russian people l i v i n g i n E a s t e r n Ukraine.NowthatRussiahas managedtoalmostdefeatthe fascistforcesinUkraine,the United States, Canada, and Europe are pouring more weapons into Ukraine.They also have sizable mercenary forces in Ukraine, as they now openly say that the defeatofRussiaistheirmain goal.

The only voice calling forpeaceisthatofthePope. The NATO leaders are ignoring him What is of greatconcernisnotonlythe needless loss of lives, RussianandUkrainianlives, but the danger of a nuclear war Suchawarwouldmean the extinction of life on our earth.Therefore, we should allbeconcerned,becausewe would all perish in such a situation.

Moreover, we are not

h e l p l e s s i n t h e s e circumstances.Itistherefore imperativethatwemakeour voicesheard. Weareunited within our region in CARICOM We are a fourteen-country alliance

This is very significant. Our collective influence on the international arena is great. Yet CARICOM leaders choosetosupporttheUSand NATO by their voting at the UNandtoremainsheepishly silent outside the UN Whenever they are forced to say anything, we hear the murmuring that “Russia invaded Ukraine.” This, of course, is ignoring everythingthatledRussia,a countrythatknowswarsand abhor wars, to take the measuresitdid.

ItistimethatCARICOM as a whole and the countries that comprise it individually make their presence for peacefelt.

They should denounce the escalation that is presently happening by the sending of more weapons, new tanks etc. to Ukraine. After all, the alliance has a responsibilityforthewelfare and security of its peoples! Our leaders must discharge their duty to the Caribbean people.

Let’s call for immediate negotiations and guarantee all countries security and peace.

Sincerely,

Former President

DonaldRamotar

Has PresidentAli awarded the Berbice oil refinery contract to India?

DEAREDITOR, Reference is made to the letterentitled‘Indiahasdone much for Guyana, it has not beentreatedwell’pennedby Vishnu Bisram (Kaieteur News, January 23, 2023).

Theauthorreviewsthemany economic links between India and Guyana, since the nation’s independence in 1966.

HeemphasizesthatIndia hadbeenprovidingfinancial support to Guyana over the last decades, when the country was in need. What struckmehowevermostwas thefollowingstatement: “On oil development, it was welcome news when PresidentAliannouncedthat India has agreed to build an oil refinery in Guyana and alsopartakeininvestmentin ot

by Mr

Bisram stood out and immediately raises many q u e s t i o n s To m y knowledge, the Government of Guyana has made no public announcement about whohadwonthecontractto construct Guyana’s first oil refinery How come Mr B i s r a m , w h o h a d accompanied the President on his recent visit to India, knowsmorethanthegeneral publicandthepress?

Letmereviewbrieflythe recenthistoryoftheBerbice oilrefineryproject,whichis tobelocatedatthemouthof the Berbice River in the vicinity of Crab Island. The Government through the Ministry of Natural Resources issued on Friday, October14,2022,aRequest for Proposals (RFP) from interested companies to design, finance, construct andownthenation’sfirstoil

refinery The proposed facility should have a capacityof30,000barrelsof oilperday

Asincentivestopotential investors, the Government would provide 30 acres of land, grant a ten-year tax holiday, provide a supply of feedstockoilfromGuyana’s share of profit oil at market prices, and insure access to the domestic market for sale

of refined products

I m p o r t a n t l y, t h e Government of Guyana would not provide any financing for the proposed refinery Hence,thefinancial risksoftheenterprisewould solely rest on the shoulders oftheinvestors.

Overall,thiswasasound and reasonable proposal despite the fact that several oil industry experts have raised concerns about the viability of a small-scale

refineryinGuyana.

The complete lack of a laborforcewithknowhowin theoilrefinerybusinesswas cited as one of many factors making the establishment of an oil refinery in Guyana costlyanduneconomic.

Asareminder,Trinidad’s oil refinery went bankrupt a couple of years ago. On December 17, 2022, the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) announced that seven firms had submitted bids to construct theoilrefinery

Now just six week later, it appears that the bidding processhasbeenabortedand Indiawonthetenderprocess fortheoilrefineryaccording toMr Bisram.

It is presently unclear, if hisinformationiscorrect,as therehastodatebeenno

(Continuedonpage5)

NIS and the ‘Bleeding’of Guyanese Citizens

DEAREDITOR,

I write on behalf of Mrs. Umawattie Singh, a senior citizen and pensioner, and her matter with the National Insurance Scheme of Guyana (NIS). I wish to firstly state that Mrs Umawattie Singh is not a personofmuchlearningand isself-employedasavendor Understanding the importance of complying with the laws as a selfemployed individual, she ensuredshegotregisteredas aself-employedpersonwith theNIS.

Payingforalifetimeand reaching the age of 60, Mrs. UmawattieSinghdecidedto get a NIS contribution print out and apply for her deserved pension. She was surprised when she was told bytheNISofficethatshehad overpaid by thirty (30) contributions but short one by the age of 60. This was heart rendering, painful, extremely depressing, and hadaprofoundeffectonher

health.Thequestiontoaskis “how many people of high education know this?” I myselfwithallmyeducation and exposure never knew, it is by chance that I paid the amountsrequiredbythelaw This is very painful to a citizen of this country who means to comply with the lawsofthecountry

As one without much learning and being a poor vendor, Mrs Umawattie Singhsufferedtopay,onlyto be told that because of one contribution by error maybe onherpartorthatoftheNIS, shedoesnotqualify Itismy belief, that NIS should establishapolicyofauditing e m p l o y e e s t o t a l contributions so as they are approaching close to the stipulated age of retirement theyaregivennoticelongin advance of the number of outstanding contributions they need to completely coversothatattheageof60 they are completely funded under the scheme and can

Proposed Berbice

Cricket honorees

DEAREDITOR,

With respect for the abovesubjectpleasebringto the attention of the Board to research and confirm the following:Baijnauth–alefthanded opening batsman who represented British Guiana.Leslie Amsterdam –

left-handed opening

batsman represented British Guiana John Trim – an opening bowler for this country and member of the successful West Indies team

thatincludedWorrell,Weeks andWalcottagainstEngland.

Roy Ferdericks – lefthanded batsman, who Sir Don Bradman described his 169 innings against Lillee and Thompson as the greatestleft-handedopening Testinningshehadeverseen in Australia. Note also that Fredericks represented this country at Table Tennis and Squash.

Sincerely,

E.B.John

Has PresidentAli awarded...

Frompage4 public announcement made by the Government supportinghisnotion.Itwas howeverreportedinthepress today that India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to visit Guyana later this year Could Prime Minister Modi be traveling to Guyana to sign the oil refinerydeal?

As it stands, there are many unanswered questions regarding the oil refinery project.Hastheprojectbeen indeed awarded to India? If true, what made India or an Indian Contractor win over theothersevenbidders?

Did independent experts assess the different bids for feasibility and economic soundness? Was the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) involved in the assessment process? What aretheprojectedcostsofthe oil refinery? Will the winning project require now

accessalltheirbenefits.

I know that the NIS was conceptualized with the philosophy and policy to serve the citizens of this country The aim was to makelifeeasyforthosewho wish to be a part of the scheme.Inthiscaseaperson compelled by the law, as a self-employedpersonwitha small vending spot fulfilled her legal obligations. I find thismostlaudable.

Mrs. Umawattie Singh displayed maximum respect for the laws of the country and also cared for her future by sacrificing to pay for these decades, to the point where she overpaid by 30 contributions. Many in this country refuse to comply withthelaws.Herdiscipline displaysgreatrespectforthe National Insurance Scheme,

the laws, and for her future benefits. Mrs. Singh despite beinganordinaryvendorand having fallen ill on many occasions never applied for sick benefits, prescriptions drug benefits or sick leave, except for one occasion that involvedapairofspectacles. She is entitled to a pair of spectacleseverytwoyears. Further, she was never informed that if she did not established a pattern of claimingforHealthBenefits with the National Insurance Schemeuponretirementshe cannot claim Health Care Benefits under the scheme. Thisisthecasewithmanyof our service men (the police, the army, security services etc), who very rarely reported sick on the job, nor usetheNISmedical (Continuedonpage6)

What about our school children

DEAREDITOR,

The present Government isbuildinghousesfortheless fortunate which is commendable,butwhat’sthe point of building houses while the children are going to school hungry bellied and can’tmentallytake-inwhatis being taught to them. Food prices have sky-rocketed to unprecedented proportions, some even doubled within thelastsixmonthsorso.

DEAREDITOR,

It was interesting to read PeeingTom’s perspective of what ails education in Guyana today and his disapprovaloftheactionsof the current Government to makeimprovements.

I, for one, am pleased to see money being allocated towards the building of new schools and investing in those that can be repaired and modernized to meet the

educational needs of the childrenofGuyana.

Tom neglected to tell your readers when and how the quality of education in thiscountrystarteddeclining and what were the reasons foritsabysmalstate.

I most certainly would havelikedtohearthereason for the problem because not knowing how it came about orunderstandingthe

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The Government Ministers’ obsession with social media

DEAREDITOR,

Government funding, which has been ruled out in the past? The Government’s RFPofOctober14,2022asks for construction to start by first quarter 2023 with completionoftheoilrefinery no later than two years after start date. This is a very ambitious time line and leaves realistically not time f o r a n i n - d e p t h s

Environmental Impact

Assessment (EIA) as required by the law Is the Government,particularlythe EPA, aware of these constraints?

Shouldn’tthetimelinebe revised? At this point, it is essential that the Ali administration informs the general public in a transparentmanneraboutthe status of the oil refinery project.

Sincerely,

AndreBrandli,PhD Professor LMUMunich

I am pleading with this Government, as all Guyanese parents should, to think of our school-aged childrenandtostartbuilding eating places adjacent to or near the school where our children can have breakfast (the most important meal of the day) and lunch. These meals do not have to be

elaborate Cereal/cornmeal porridge with milk and a banana/any fruit for breakfastandlunchcouldbe a locally grown vegetable e.g. balanjay, bora, ochroes, cabbage, (all without meat) withrice,splitpeascook-up, black-eye cook-up, vegetable cook-up, dhal+fry fish, etc). An alternating two-week menu would encourage for kitchen gardens/ers to sell their produce to the school’s cafeteria Everyone could and will benefit Mr President,Iplea‘withyou’to implement the above ASAP so that our children may be saved from malnutrition and/oranyothermalfunction ofthebody

Sincerely,

GloriaHolder

It is a trend I have been observingsincetheelections were held in March 2020. While it was necessary to broadcast every step of the coalitionriggingattemptand rightly so, the Government Ministers are now nauseating. Please don’t get me wrong, there is tremendous value to share and broadcast government work and initiatives. My grouseisthateverytimeyou log on to social media there are hundreds of pics with Ministers from cradle to adulthood.

For every occasion they mustshowyoueverystepof theattireandtheirenjoyment at events. Everywhere they go is an entourage and hundreds of pictures

plastered on social media with the minister pointing his/herfingeroraddressinga group.

These Ministers were electedtoserve.Theyarenot doingthisascharity,theyare heartily rewarded with taxpayers’ money They seem to be competing for approval on what they are doing, or for likes in their activities.Peoplewanttosee them, but more importantly people need policies and improvement in the lives of whichtheyelectedtodeliver, not posing and dining at events.

Ihopetheycanreflecton what they post on social media because it may come backtohauntthem.

Yourstruly,

T.Ramsie

Dictatorshavenousefor aneducatedpopulation

This is a sad and sorry situation

DEAREDITOR,

The Editorial in Friday, January 27, 2023 Stabroek News titled ‘the Princes Street Sluice door ’ is instructiveandIrecommend it as compulsory reading for every concerned citizen. It dealswiththetragedyofthe NDIA Board and the PPP Governmentimproperlyand unlawfully assuming the responsibilityforinstallinga faulty steel door at Princes Street .But Editor, the curse whichislikeacancereating away at the fabric and loins ofourbodypolitic,isthatwe haveaGovernmentthattruly believes it knows everything, can do everything, ignoring all others. In other words, we have a ruling oligarchy whose ideology is identical to some of the earlier monarchswhosubscribeand

truly believe in (the divine rights of Kings). On the question of installing a steel door at the Princes Street Koker, if the Minister and the NDIA had taken the trouble to consult or discuss with persons with experience and a sense of patriotism, Minister Mustapha would not have been placed in an uncomfortable position he finds himself in and the p e o p l e o f Charlestown/Albouystown would not have suffered the inconvenienceoffloodingat hightide.

First, I am not an Engineer, but I’ve read and studiedwidelyonallmatters related to the City and Guyana.Whenmytenureas Mayor was coming to an end, the idea of replacing a metalalloy,notplainsteelto

replace the heavier wood was suggested The appropriate alloy should be lighter and coated to withstandthesaltairandsalt water along all of several sluices/outfalls/ from Kingston, Cowan Street, Lamaha Street, Muneshwer (Church Street) John Fernandes (Commerce Street), Riverview, Ruimveldt, Banks (Meadow Bank), Princes Street and SussexStreet.

The failure to seek advice and to monitor the works resides in a certain callous attitude which suggeststhatallthatmatters isournewfoundwealthwith friends so that nothing else reallymatters.

If this Government is really serious about good governance, they will seek wise counseling from those with experience, supported by qualified young EngineersandTechnicians.

This is a sad and sorry situation. The trouble is at theendofthedaythevictims are the citizens of Guyana. His plethora of Advisors

Dictators have no use for...

must persuade PresidentAli thathistalkof‘OneGuyana’ ismeaninglessunlesshehas thestrengthtositaroundthe proverbial round table and talk.

If the Government cannot understand that within the Cabinet and the Party elite that there exists others who can help secure peace and prosperity for Guyana, we are in trouble. As a citizen, I publicly encourage those who write and speak through the Independent media, not to give up, whatever you may think, listening to programmes such as Glenn Lall, Sherod Duncan, Mark Benchop, Dr David Hinds, GHK Lall, Jennifer Bulkan Dr Vincent Admas and Members of Parliament during the Budget debate andChannels6and9,areall usefulsinceviewsoutsideof the Government’s massive propaganda machine are necessaryifwearetoensure freedom of expression and integrityofthenationstate.

Regards, HamiltonGreen

Frompage5 metamorphosis, makes the problem even more difficult to solve. I went to primary school (Sacred Heart) and Secondary School (SSC) in the1960’sandthequalityof educationduringthosetimes were second to none even though free education was not universal. I later spent several years teaching secondary school before leaving Guyana in the mid 70’s,soyoucansaythatIhad an inside view of education inGuyanabeforeitsdemise.

Itismyopinionthatafter schoolswereconfiscatedand taken away from the Churches (like SSC, St Joseph’s, St Roses, and many others) and education became ‘free’ from kindergarten to university, the decline in education began.

The nationalization of education suffered the same fateasthenationalizedsugar andbauxitecompanies.They all went downhill and have notrecovered.

Theexodusofthemiddle class included the learned Teachers, Lecturers and

other highly qualified persons that made up the backbone of the Education system, left a vacuum that was filled with the unqualified and the incompetent, coupled with neglect, resulting in decay and dilapidation Education was the casualty of a dictator’s infatuation with socialism and paramountcy oftheParty,NationalService and Militias.Dictators have no interest in an educated population.Anindoctrinated one is easier to manipulate andcontrol.Youcancriticize this current administration all you want but it must be applaudedfortryingtomake a difference. It recognizes that modern institutions of learning must first be built and equipped and with the right people in place, they just might be able to return the education system to the levelitoncewas.

I am praying for them to succeed because it is only then that Guyana will succeed and be ensured of a brighterfuture.

Bestregards,

DennisBalgobin

NIS and the ‘Bleeding’of Guyanese...

Frompage5 coverage available to themasemployees.

Upon retirement they discover that they are not entitled to medical coverage

under the scheme since a pattern of illness claim has not been established for them.

Iwishtoputontherecord thefactthatthisabovereport

outlining Mrs. Umawattie Singh’s case involving her NIS contributions was brought to the attension of the General Manager of the National Insurance Scheme,

located at Brickdam and WinterPlaceinGeorgetown, along with a request from yours truly, that Mrs UmawattieSinghbeallowed to pay this one contribution thatwasmissednotbyintent but by chance and by a person who simply does not understand the process of compilationofcontributions and that some leniency and considerationbegiventoher basedonthespecificsofher caseandherage.

However, from the GeneralManager’sOfficeof the National Insurance Scheme came, and what I consideredtobeamostterse anduncaringresponse,tothe effect of: “It is unfortunate that Ms. Singh did not reach the required amount of contributionstoqualifyfora NationalInsurancePension” (Letter by National InsuranceScheme).

Therefore, I now make this public appeal in the media,totheGovernmentof Guyana, the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security,allrelevantpersons and authorities, and once againtotheNISHeadOffice that some humanity, and some kindness with concern for our senior citizens be extended to Mrs. Singh, and other elderly persons with similarcasesashers.

Yourssincerely,

HajjiDr.RoshanKhan

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Now CNOOC advertising for the supply of Chinese cuisine (food) at its offshore location.

That means a lot of Chinese heading 120 miles out to sea.

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That means quality Chinese food could be harder to find.

And that means Chinese food would also cost more.

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Guyanese will have to limit themselves to rice and curry and cook-up rice.

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Watch out Guyanese! Chinese food going up

Local Content Law trapped US$700M in Guyana last year – Minister Bharrat

Following its first yearofenactment, Guyana's Local Content Law has been able to trap approximately US$700M in the nation's economy This is according to Natural Resources Minister,VickramBharrat.

Speaking with Kaieteur News, Bharrat said, “This is what is possible when the right mechanisms are in place to protect the interest ofourpeople.”

Bharrat reminded that the law passed in 2021 prioritises the use of Guyanese nationals and Guyanese companies in the procurement of goods and servicesfortheenhancement

of the value chain of the sector.

The parliamentarian said the Local Content Act also serves to enable local capacity development and p r o v i d e s f o r t h e investigation, supervision, and participation in, local contentinGuyana Bharrat said his ministry and its officers have aggressively worked over t h e l a s t y e a r t o operationalize the Local Content Secretariat which is governed and guided by the LocalContentAct.

As a result of the Local Content Act and the work conducted by the secretariat, Bharrat said, “It is estimated

that over US$700M was spent in-country as part of local content efforts. This multi-million figure represents monies spent on the 40 related sectors listed under the Act, the employment of Guyanese as well as monies invested to upskill Guyanese for the expansion of the country's petroleumsector.”

The Natural Resources MinistersaidtheActhasalso facilitated the registration of over 500 Guyanese companies and the approval of over 29 five-year local content plans He said further in-country benefits are expected with future amendmentstothelaw

The Local Content Law, as previously noted, serves t o p r o v i d e f o r t h e i m p l e m e n t a t i o n o f obligations on persons engaged in petroleum operations or related activities in the petroleum sector; prioritizes Guyanese nationals and Guyanese c o m p a n i e s i n t h e procurement of goods and services and enables local capacitydevelopment.

The First Schedule of the Act ring-fences 40 categories of work for Guyanese participation via the supply of goods and the provision of services which include: food supply, rental o f o f f i c e s p a c e , accommodation, insurance, accounting and legal services.

The foregoing categories carryminimumlocalcontent levels for which local participation had to be achieved by Contractors, Sub-Contractors, and Licenseesinthesectorbythe end of the calendar year 2022.

Ensuring these targets are met is the Local Content Secretariat. The law allows officials attached to that body to have unrestricted access to a contractor, subcontractor or licensee's facilities, records, reports, documents, data, and information. Such access is allowed for the purposes of monitoring, assessing, evaluating, investigating, auditing, and verifying compliancewiththeAct.

The law also empowers

the Secretariat to develop and maintain measures for the effective implementation of local content by Contractors, SubContractorsandlicensees.

The Secretariat can also develop and implement strategies that give preference to, or ensure equal treatment of Guyanese nationals and Guyanese companies as well as conduct market analysis and make recommendations to theMinister

The Secretariat has several other functions which include conducting

market analysis, making recommendations to the Minister, developing formats for local content plans and reporting, and developing guidelines for local content reporting, procurement and bid evaluation.

The Act obligates C o n t r a c t o r s , S u bContractors, or licensees to submit a local content report to the Secretariat, within 30 days after the end of each half calendar year, which is referred to as the Local ContentHalf-YearlyReport.

Natural Resources Minister, Vickram Bharrat

‘Sweet Kendingo’ to launch love album on Sunday

VeteranMusician, R u d o l p h Kendall, better known as ‘Sweet Kendingo’ will on Sunday launch his firstlovealbum.

‘SweetKendingo’whois known for his performances infolk,calypsoandSocawill be releasing an original 16track album that he has written. He told Kaieteur

News that the soon to be released music dates as far backtohisschooldays.

He explained that that love is a universal language and he has always enjoyed writingmusicinthatgenre.

‘Sweet Kendingo’ becamepopularafterhewas asked to sing original folk songs and got became actively involved in

Calypso.By1984,thesinger said he was singing calypso andwonthecrownthatyear, in1992and1994.

He also won the local Soca Monarch and Road March competitions once before.

TheGuyaneseartistetold KaieteurNewsthathewould be releasing an album every year

Essequibomangranted bailongun,ammocharges

De v e n a n d

Dwarka of

H e n r i e t t a , Essequibo Coast, Region

Two was on Thursday granted bail for the possession of a firearm and ammunitionaftermakinghis firstcourtappearance.

Twenty-nine-year-old Dwarka,alabourer,ofLot24 Henrietta appeared at the Suddie Magistrates’ Court before Magistrate Esther Samwherethechargeswere readtohim.

Dwarka pleaded not guilty to the charges which allege that on January 22, at HenriettaPublicRoadhehad in his possession one 9mm Pistol with three 9mm live ammunition.

Bail was objected to by the prosecutor but was subsequently granted by the courtinthesumof$100,000 on each charge He is expectedtomakehissecond court appearance on February8,2023.

The police had reported that on January 22, at about 02:30hrs, ranks were on mobile patrol duties, and whileproceedingeastonthe northernsideoftheHenrietta

Public Road Dwarka was seen in the vicinity of JaigobinHotelwithanobject projecting out from his waist.

The ranks shouted out to Dwarka and urged him to stop,buthepaidnoheedand insteadranintoaparkinglot. The ranks give chase and Dwarkareportedlyfellintoa muddyarea.

While in the mud, he retrieved the firearm from hiswaistandwhiletryingto get up the firearm fell from hishandintothemuddyarea.

Asarankwastryingtograb him, Dwarka jumped into a trench and made good his

escape.

However, the firearm was retrieved by the ranks anditwasfoundtobea9mm SIG SAUER P226 made in Germany with three matching live ammunitions and one magazine with the serialnumberfiledoff.

Police had stated that efforts were made to have Dwarka arrested since he is known to the police and is currentlybeforethecourton a narcotic charge of 2.277 gramsofcannabis.

D w a r k a w a s subsequentlyarrestedonthe day in question while at a relative’shomeinHenrietta.

The unveiling of ‘Sweet Kendingo’s’new album will beheldattheUmanaYanaat 17:00h on Sunday, January 29, 2023. Copies of the new albumwillbeonthesale.

Rudolph Kendall, better known as ‘Sweet Kendingo’

Charged, Devenand Dwarka

Bill Gates on China, me on India and Brazil

American billionaire, BillGatesofMicrosoftfame recently gave his take on China’s presence in the world.SpeakinginAustralia recently, he said China’rise is good for the world and China must play a greater role in the global governance. It is not good for the world and the world will always be unpredictable when one or two or three countries dominate the globe. No other example drives home this point than whatPresidentObamadidin Kenya. I will continue to write on this unbelievable insensitivityininternational relations because it highlights the need for the globalsystemtohavemajor powers that dialogue with each other to ensure the stability of the international system.Whenworldorderis left to one nation, then that nation becomes the globe’s policeman and when that policeman becomes rogue then the world becomes a boiling cauldron and a play ground of immense,

Kafkaesqueinequalities. I will return to what Obama said but just one example of the global policeman needs to be mentioned.

The US moved its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, territory that doesnotbelongtoIsraeland that the consensus of countries around the world in a UN resolution is that Israel is illegally occupying it Israel has done to Lebanon what Russia is doingtoUkrainebuttheUS wants Russia to face war crimes for its invasion of Ukraine but opposes war crime investigations of Israel.

In fact, under President Trump, the head of the international war tribunal was visited with visa sanction for investigating Israelforwarcrimes.

It is against this background, the statement by Bill Gates becomes an important lesson for students of international relations Now for the Kenya contretemps of

PresidentObama.Onavisit to Kenya, he told the president about the need to recognizegayrights.

An indignant Kenyan president retaliated by telling Obama that there are many exigencies in Kenya that need attention like modern facilities and when those are achieved Kenya can look at gay rights. Here wasacaseofthepoliceman offeringwhathewantsother countries to do rather than respecting the priorities of othernations.

Countries like India, China and Brazil have to make their presence more obvious on global governance It is an incredible situation that is beyondimaginationthatthe major power in Latin America is the US when Brazil is the largest countries in South America that has borders with every South American nation and Brazil is the biggest economyinLatinAmerica.

The story of India in the world is an enigma. A top global power whose

population, military hardware, industries, medical achievements, technological resources are on par with any other country is hardly noticeable in the area of global governance.

Theuni-polarworldthat emerged after the disintegration of European communist governments and the USSR in 1989 is defunct China and the expansion of the European Union has allowed for serious competition in the international system. Adding to the consolidation of the multi-polar configuration is the increasing global activism ofstrongmiddlepowerslike Türkiye (new name for Turkey).

Here in Guyana, the presence of the missions of theUS,UK,EUandCanada far outstrips those of India, China, Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina.Guyanesedonot know that Mexico and Argentina have embassies here.

There needs to be a far

greater presence in Guyana of China, Brazil and India. For God’s sake, Brazil is our giant neighbor What China, India and Brazil must do Guyana is to expand their visibility through formidable aid programmes and related activities.

India has a cultural centre in New Haven but how many Guyanese know aboutit? Indiashouldhave a centre in Berbice and one in Essequibo. Brazil should fund a department of Portuguese at UG and offer scholarships to Guyanese.

After 56 years of

Independence, most

Guyanese should have been able to speak Portuguese. ButwhenUGwasstarted,it offered degrees in French.

Canyouimaginethat?

We never had a French embassy here. France chose to put one in Surinam and one in Trinidad. Yet for decades, UG offered a degree in French. How do

FrederickKissoon

y ou say in French, ‘that is asininity”?

Finally, the role in Guyana of the other superpower in the world. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo came to Guyana and then the President last yearvisitedtheUSforhighleveldiscussions.Chinawas the main topic in both encounters. Guyana needs the US and the EU. But Guyana also needs China. Chinahasahugeroletoplay i n t h e e c o n o m i c developmentofGuyana.Let ithappenASAP

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of this n e w s p a p e r a n d i t s affiliates.)

Foreign company deducting NIS from Guyanese workers but not remitting payments

Century Tamara Logistic Services Inc (CTLS),isbeingaccusedby its workers of not remitting National Insurance Scheme (NIS) payments deducted fromtheirsalaries.

ThreeCTLSdrivers-one of them recently firedbrought this to Kaieteur News’ attention on Friday aftertheywenttoquerytheir NIScontributions.

The men said that when they visited NIS, they were shocked to learn that no contributions were made since they started working with the company Elvis Jones, an Executive Driver has been working with CTLS for a year now and claimed that the company neverrequestedanNIScard fromhimbutwasdeducting over $6,000 monthly from hissalaryforNIS.

When he visited NIS office to check up his contributions he was reportedlytoldbyoneofthe staff there that CTLS might be defrauding him because the company cannot make payments on his behalf unlesstheyareinpossession of his account number (A number found on his NIS

card).

“These people never took an NIS card and yet they taking out money from me”,Jonesiterated.

Jones said that he is an interdicted cop and the Guyana Police Force (GPF) stillspaysNISforhimsohe decided to intervene by stopping the company from deductingmoremoneyfrom him and reimburse the amounttheyneverpaid.

“I ask them not to take outmyNIS.Ihadtobringin three police statements to prove that they are paying NIS on my behalf”, Jones said. The company stopped deducting the money but have refused to reimburse some$38,921theyfailedto remittoNIS.

“This is something that has been going on since I startworkwiththecompany

andIamnottheonlyone… there are many more who have the issue with CTLS,” Jonesalleged.

Jones’ story was corroborated by two other drivers. The second driver, Ryan Anderson was employedwiththecompany for over two years and was firedinDecemberlastyear Anderson said after he was dismissed he went to check on his NIS payments only to learn that his last contribution was made two yearsago.

“When I go in to the peoplethemdemtellmethat the last contribution by the companythatIwasworking with before CTLs and duh was two years ago”, Andersonalleged.

The man said he was taken aback because every month his pay slip showed

thatNISwasbeingdeducted fromhissalary He has since informed the company that it owes him over $100,000 in payments.

Anderson said too that thousands of dollars were takenoutfromhissalaryfor two certificates -First Aid and Defensive Diving - but heneverreceivedthem.

A third driver Shelvin

on behalf of its employees, therepresentativesaidthatit is confidential information andshecannotcomment.

CTLS had in 2020, setup shop in Guyana and has tiestoaNigerian,KenEtete, who has been linked to a US$1.3Boilbriberyscheme in Nigeria, funded by Super Majors, Royal Dutch Shell andENI.

According to reports

rights to a Nigerian oil block: OPL 245 to his own company, Malabu Oil & Gas, in a corrupt and illegal transaction.

A lot happened in the decade which followed, including Dan Etete being convicted for money laundering and was investigated by Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. All of

Hercules repeated a similar storytoKaieteurNews.

This newspaper contacted CTLS and a representative within its H u m a n R e s o u r c e Department said that the company is unaware of any suchissues.

Thewomansaidthatitis newstoherandhasadvised affectedworkers“tocomein and rectify any problems they may have” When asked if the company has made any payments to NIS

CTLS is part of a Nigerian group of companies called Century group, for which Ken Etete is the Chief ExecutiveOfficer(CEO).

In order for one to understand Ken Etete’s involvement in Nigeria’s US$1 3B corruption scandal, there must first be the understanding of the centralroleofhisuncle,Dan Etete, former Nigerian Oil Minister

In 1998, while in the office,DanEtetegrantedthe

this, Shell and ENI knew when they made a payment of over US$1 3B in exchange for the transfer of rights for OPL 245

Mostofthemoneydidnotto gotheNigeriangovernment. The African nation’s government alleges that the funds went to paying Dan Eteteandhisassociates,and providing bribes and kickbacks to Nigerian governmentofficialsaswell asseniorexecutivesofShell

(Continuedonpage23)

A copy of Ryan Anderson’s pay slip showing that the company has been deducting payments for NIS from his Salary

Partnerships key in fostering growth and development for Guyana, Caribbean

President Ali at Jamaica Stock Exchange Conference

PresidentIrfaanAli

on Thursday said that partnerships are key to fostering growth and development, not only in Guyana but across the Caribbean Region The President was at the time delivering a virtual keynote addressattheJamaicaStock Exchange (JSE) Regional Capital Market Conference, 2023.

The Head of State encouraged financial players in the Caribbean region to be part of t r a n s f o r m a t i o n a l development as capital is needed for continued growth. He said that though opportunities exist for t r a n s f o r m a t i o n ,

transformation can only come to fruition if access to financeiseasilymobilized.

“ T h e C a r i b b e a n financial sector needs to play a more instrumental role in mobilising capital to fill the region's financial gap,”heposited.

Pointing out that the Caribbean's financial need as far back as 2020 was more than US $10 billion, the president underscored thekeyroleofpartnershipin fostering growth and development for Guyana and other Caribbean countries.

“We know that this cannot be done from the savings within the region, and therefore the challenge

will have to involve partnership with others,” he explained.

To strike a balance, however, the Head of State said the mobilisation of financemustbemetbywhat he described as “strong regulation and oversight”

President Irfaan Ali

for it to be a successful venture.

“Financial markets are not without risk. The deeper the region becomes integrated into the global financialmarkets,thehigher t h e r i s k o f g l o b a l (Continued on page 23)

The unlicensed .32 pistol

Man claiming to be security guard arrested after found with illegal gun af

A 2 6 - y e a r - o l d Albouystown man, claiming to be a security guard, was on Thursday arrested by police after he was found with an unlicensedgun.

Police reported that the man was found with a gun at an apartment building located at Lamaha Avenue, Bel Air Park.

Ranks had gone there around 21:00hrs to conduct a search for arms and ammunition. They conducted

a search on the 26-year-old man who was at the premises at the time and found that he hada.32pistolloadedwithsix live rounds hidden in his pants crotch.

Themanidentifiedhimself to the policemen as a security guardbutwhenaskedifhehad a license to carry the weapon, herespondedinthenegative.

The ranks took possession of the weapon and arrested him Investigations are ongoing.

Guyana-Suriname Private Sectors meet in Suriname

The Guyana-Suriname Private

Sector Business Council on Friday hosted its first meeting for the year 2023 in Paramaribo, Suriname. Private Sector Commission's (PSC) Chairman, Mr Paul Cheong chaired the meeting in his capacity of Chairman of the Council, having taken over the rotating leadershiproleinSeptember2022. Matters affecting the business

communityinbothGuyanaandSurinameare beingdiscussed.

Those in attendance representing the Suriname side are Mr Bryan Renten, Mr Farsi Khudabux, Mr Derrick Klaverweide, Mr Patrick Healy and Mr Kamlesh Ganesh while the Guyana team is represented by Mr Paul Cheong, Major General (Ret'd) Norman McLean,Mr RyanAlexander,Mr IanChung andPRO,Ms.OnickaJones.

(Photo courtesy of the Private Sector Commission)

Spending of oil companies must be under constant scrutiny

-Norton

Poised as one of the l a r g e s t o i l producers per capita in the World, Guyana must up its game and cease managing the oil sector like mere novices This is according to Leader of the Opposition, Aubrey Norton, who argued that steps must be taken to constantly scrutinizethespendingofoil companies operating in the country among other key measures.

Norton made these and other points during his hourlongcontributiontothe2023 Budget Debate yesterday in theNationalAssembly

As the Leader of the Opposition seamlessly transitioned during his presentation on the agriculture sector to shift focus on the largest industry in the country, he told the House “If at the end of this year Guyana never puts another(FloatingProduction

Storage and Offloading vessel) FPSO into use, we would still be one of the highest oil producers per capita in the entire World. We would be producing easily four times as much oil per day as Ghana- 10 times as much as Trinidad and Tobago and far more than Equatorial Guinea to which we have often been compared.”

To this end, Norton argued that, “We cannot

continue to operate like novices who have no idea of howanoilindustryshouldbe properlymanaged.”

The Opposition Leader pointed out that the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Natural R e s o u r c e s m u s t b e constantly engaged, brainstorming to review legislation and regulations that govern the industry More importantly, he urged that the Public Accounts Committee must keep the industryunderclosewatch.

To further beef up oversight on the expenditure aspect of the oil sector, he said that the nation's agencies responsible for conducting audits- such as the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the Auditor General Officesshould be expanded until theybecomethe“envyofthe oilproducingWorld”.

In addition, Norton argued that Guyana should position itself and make the necessary steps to elevate our National University into a renowned Oil and Gas Institution.

According to him, “That is the kind of ambition we need to have. Critical issues in the oil and gas sector need tobeunderconstantscrutiny We cannot continue to have it mismanaged in the head of the incompetent Vice President(BharratJagdeo).”

H e w a s b r i e f l y interruptedbytheSpeakerof the House, Manzoor Nadir f o r u s i n g a n 'Unparliamentary' word in theHousewhenhedescribed theVPas“incompetent.”

‘STOPHOPING'

As he continued along his presentation, Norton told the House that Guyana shouldbeconductingitsown analysis on estimates for oil prices,thenumberofliftsthe country estimates to receiveon account of fluctuating daily numbers, the number of possible oil finds in the year, accounting for the number of exploration activities, as well as our internal estimates of the probabilityofsuccess.

“While we welcome

ExxonMobil's investment in Guyana, we cannot throw our hands up in the air and hope against hope that ExxonMobil will run its operation effectively and transparently,” Norton reasoned.

He said that government stillseemstobeinaweofthe oil major and any oil company that comes to Guyana, completely unaware that world class expertise can be imported to help Guyana effectively governthissector

In fact, Norton argued that the Department of Energy that was established by the Coalition made steps in the right direction that Guyana must build on Instead, the Opposition Leader said, “We are asked to place our faith in a man whohasfailedperpetually.”

C o r r u p t i o n a n d Transparency

In winding down his a r g u m e n t s o n t h e management of the petroleum sector, Norton e x p l a i n e d t h a t “incompetence” does not prevent the government from releasing the long overdue audit of US$7.3 billion in cost recovery expenses, neither does it prevent the nondisclosure of the full new model

Production Sharing Agreement(PSA).

He said, “This is the work of a malicious intent to hide from public scrutiny and accountability.” Norton

added, “It has gotten to the point that when it comes to oil(sector)thegovernmentis viewed with extreme suspicion by even the most moderatenames.”

To this end, Norton told theHousethathedidnotidly compare Guyana to Equatorial Guinea earlier in his presentation. According to him, thatAfrican nation is notjustcorruptbutpoor “That country is famous for having a GDP (Gross Domestic Product) per capita that rivals many European countries, while 70 percent of its people live in desperate poverty,” the OppositionLeadersaid.

Every day, Norton argued that Guyana resembles that nation more with half of its population living in poverty while the People's Progressive Party elites, friends, family and favouritesgorgethemselves.

Meanwhile, in response to the Opposition Leader, Minister with responsibility for Finance, Dr.Ashni Singh said Norton's contributions to the Debates were “bloviating”.

He said if he were to respond to the Opposition he would need more time than thatgrantedtohimtopresent the Budget so he instead focussed on the Opposition's remarks.

Dr Singh said, “He struck me as a bloviator...the art of speaking for as long as the occasion warrants while sayingnothingatall.”

...country must not allow sector to be mismanaged in Jagdeo's head

Opposition Leader, Aubrey Norton, making his contribution to the 2023 Budget Debates (Source: PNC/R Facebook page)

Kevlon Anderson to play club cricket for Preysal in Trinidad

CWI Academy Head

Coach Andre Coley has secured a Club Cricket stint in Trinidad and Tobago for promising player Kevlon Anderson. Within the last twelve (12) months Anderson has been undergoing training sessions under the West Indies Emerging Player Programme.

The assignment gives Anderson a chance to get in the much-needed match practice with constraints capable of supporting his growth. The pitch conditions are likely to be similar to those that the

Guyana Harpy Eagles will confront during their last three round of matches in the West Indies Championship, 2023. Additionally, it is expected that the responsibility of an overseas professional will assist Kevlon Anderson to continue to develop the requisite attributes of an international player. Anderson will depart Guyana as soon as February 4, 2023, to take up this engagement in Trinidad.

CWI High-Performance Manager Graeme West praised the initiative and encouraged the GCB to collabo-

rate with CWI and Preysal Cricket Club on this player development plan. Graeme West

Saturday January 28, 2023

ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19)

You will experience an intense amount of energy today, Aries. Your dream state will be more active than usual, and you will find that people are drawn to you like moths to light.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20)

You should enjoy the intense energy of today, Taurus. The mud is finally beginning to clear away. Expose the truth in every issue and get ready.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20)

Today marks the beginning of a new cycle for you, Gemini. Collect and consolidate your recent ideas and focus them outwardly. The time is right for you to act. Improve your surroundings.

CANCER (June 21–July 22)

Take a cold shower to jumpstart yourself today, Cancer. It's fine if you laze around a bit in the morning, but by evening, you should be working at full capacity.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22)

Today may start out sluggish for you, Leo, but by the end of the day the energy will move fast and furious. Your thoughts will be buzzing around your head like bees around a hive.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Se pt. 22)

Enjoy the calm morning, Virgo, because things are going to get crazier and more energetic as the day goes on. Emotions will run high, and people will be more opinionated than usual.

CWI pays tribute to former West Indies batsman Irving Shillingford

posited, “I think it’s a great opportunity for Kevlon to get some competitive cricket and prepare himself for the final three rounds of the WI Championship.”

President Bissoondyal commended CWI for its proactive approach to the management of youth players. He remarked, that great effort is being made to nurture and develop youth players and this initiative is an indication of the meaningfulness of GCB’s and CWI’s Youth Development Programmes.

Further, President Singh indicated that the practice exercises undertaken in the youth development programme are good, and must be complemented by the player’s involvement in matches, which provides realgame context situations.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua –Cricket West Indies paid tribute to Irving Shillingford, the former Dominica, Combined Islands and West Indies batsman who passed away on Thursday. He was 78.

Shillingford was a stylish and determined middle-order batsman who made his international debut at age 32 against Pakistan in March, 1977, where he played alongside Sir Clive Lloyd, Sir Viv Richards, Sir Gordon Greenidge and Sir Andy Roberts. In his second Test he made a huge impact with a memorable topscore of 120 at the Bourda Ground in Guyana. Overall, he played four Test matches and two One-Day Internationals.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22)

Things are moving your way, Libra. As the day progresses, you will find that the energy intensifies. Conflicts may arise near sundown, but don't worry about it too much.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21)

It's time to get up and get moving, Scorpio. You have tremendous ideas and vision for the future. You have all the information you need. Now all you have to do is act.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21)

The early part of the day might find you sluggish and indecisive, Sagittarius, but later you should be psyched up and ready to go. Today marks the beginning.

CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19)

Today's energies will get progressively more intense as the day goes on. In the morning, you may be in an easygoing, dreamy state, Capricorn, but you will be itching to take action by nightfall.

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18)

For the past several weeks you've felt like you've been dragging your heels, Aquarius. Decisions may have been hard to make and people may have seemed wishy-washy.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20)

The morning might find you sitting like a stick in the mud, Pisces. People might be getting down on you for not contributing, but tell them to be patient. You will be raring to go by nightfall.

After his career ended, Shillingford held several roles in regional cricket including manager and coach of the West Indies Under-19 team, selector and coach of the

Windward Islands team, and made a major contribution to the development of the game at all levels in his native Dominica. A stand at the Windsor Park Stadium is named in his honor.

Ricky Skerritt, President of CWI paid tribute to Shillingford.

“On behalf of CWI I offer my sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Irving Shillingford. He was someone who played in the true spirt of the game and pioneered the way for others to follow. He was also one of cricket’s finest gentlemen, and an astute thinker with a wealth of knowledge. Irving was dedicated to the game over six decades as a player and administrator. He worked patiently and tirelessly to make sure Dominica and the Windward Islands featured prominently in the cricket map of the Caribbean.”

Kevlon Anderson

Guyana 'effed' on Harbour Bridge' selectronic message board - Govt.apologizes

Drivers crossing

the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB) onThursday evening werenotifiedbytheBridge's digital message board that Guyanais'effed'.

A driver recorded the “F*** Guyana” message which reportedly ran across the Harbour Bridge's LED messageboardanditwasnot long after, the recording

CDB Chairman Encourages Greater Youth Focus by Regional Institutions

went viral across all social mediaplatforms.

The management of the DHB has since publicly apologized for the “profane message”thatwasbroadcast not only to Guyanese but visitors in the country and has since labeled it as a miscalculated attack on the g o v e r n m e n t o w n e d corporation.DHBstated,

(Continued on page 23)

“We need all regional institutions to cater to the needs of young people” says Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, Philip J Pierre Speaking at a youth focused panel discussion on January 23 at CDB Headquarters, in Barbados, the Bank's Chairman pointed out that

more can be done for the region's young people While highlighting the unrecognized contributions of the various regional organisations he indicated that “… they (the regional institutions) must focus more on people to measure theirsuccess.

The impact must be how they have changed the lives ofthepeopleoftheregion.”

The Prime Minister added, “We are in a very strange situation in the Caribbean in that our population is aging, but we still have a very young population and we have to find a measure between taking care of our aging population and dealing with the needs of our younger people.

This calls for innovation

and for us to think outside thebox.”

Relaying Saint Lucia's experience, he shared with the Bank's personnel local pursuits which seek to engage and empower the younger members of their society

The country has focused on the youth economy and is seeking to monetize the skills and interests of young SaintLucians.

T h r o u g h v a r i o u s programmes, the State is directing them towards entrepreneurship by providing technical support and mentorship in an unconventionalway.

This approach, he revealed, ensures flexibility and agility in response to the needs of fledgling businesspersons creating a space in

the economic structure for youth to follow their passion and utilize their talents to contributetotheeconomy

He encouraged the region's young persons, some of whom were present at the panel and shared their views, to continuously challenge and critique the systemandoffersolutionsto accelerate changes and improvements for their benefit and that of their families and societies Participating in the panel discussion were Ms. Rachel Skeete and Ms. Sariah Boyce of Parkinson Memorial Secondary School, Ms. Elizabeth Taylor and Ms. Jazeera Kothdiwala of Samuel JackmanPrescodInstituteof Technology as well as Andwele Boyce, Senator (Barbados), Ms Megan T h e o b a l d s , F o r m e r

C A R I C O M Y o u t h Ambassador (Barbados), Ms Edith Emmanuel, Project Officer, Education Quality Improvement Project(Equip),SaintLucia, and Mr Kendell Vincent, Chair, Caribbean Regional YouthCouncil.

CDB's staff attended the event which examined education,mentalhealthand opportunitiesformeaningful youthengagement.

The engagement was facilitated as part of the Chairman's visit to C D B ' s B a r b a d o s offices where he met w i t h t h e B a n k ' s President, Dr Hyginus “Gene” Leon and other members of the executive managementteam.

Chairman of CDB's Board of Governors, Hon. Philip J. Pierre (6th from right), along with panel members and CDB Management including CDB President, Dr Hyginus "Gene" Leon (2nd from right) after the Youth Panel discussion.

Guyana secures cryotherapy machines to help fight cervical cancer

DPI - The Health Ministry has acquired 20 cryotherapy machines that will be distributed across the countrytohelpinthetreatmentand prevention of cervical cancer in women.

The machines were handed over to the Chronic Diseases Unit and will help clear the backlog of patientsneedingsuchtreatment.

Dr Latchmie Lall, Director of the Ministry's Non-Communicable DiseasesProgrammeexpressedher gratitudefortheequipment.

“We are indeed very thankful for this donation of cryotherapy machines that were brought through the IDB project; a total of 20 machines that are going to be used to improve our screening services for cervical cancer, this willcomeasagreatmeasurefornot

only screening, but to provide immediate medical treatment in that if we do find a pathological cervix, cryotherapy can be applied immediately and we have one healthy patient going back home to herfamily,”Dr Lallsaid.

Dr ErtensiaHamilton,Director of Primary Healthcare Services said the equipment comes at an opportune time, when the ministry is extending its services for women of reproductive age across the country

“WerecognisethatGuyanastill has a high incidence of cervical cancer in our women and so we want to be able to have services available to them as we work towards ensuring that each individual across their life course has services to meet their medical

needs,”shesaid.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony noted that there is a holistic approach to dealing with cervicalcancer,whichisthesecond most prevalent cancer among womeninthecountry

Minister Anthony is urging persons to get vaccinated with the HPV vaccine and get screened for thedisease.

“We are able to procure these units through the primary health careprogrammefundedbytheIDB and it costs approximately $26 million.

We have 20 units which will be distributed to all regions of Guyana”, the health minister underscored.

Dr Anthony noted also that, “One of the things that we are

trying to do is to have a comprehensive cervical cancer programme. The first level will be topreventcervicalcancer Wewant to do that by encouraging people to

get the HPV vaccination. We have these vaccines available. We have beenrollingthemouttoensurethat every person eligible for these vaccinesgetsthem.”

A Cryotherapy machine (DPI photo)

Exxon to kick off public meetings for 6th project month-end

E x x o n M o b i l Corporation's subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) is set to kick off public meetings for its sixth project from January 30, 2023 to February 7, 2023.

EEPGL appears to be moving at breakneck speed with efforts to produce Guyana's sweet crude despitethefactthatitisyetto receive regulatory approvals foritsfifthproject.

This sixth project, the company is now racing ahead with, will seek to develop massive amounts of oil from the Whiptail discovery field in the StabroekBlock.

Oil production from the project is expected to last approximately 20 to 30 years EEPGL will drill approximately 40 – 65 wells offshore to support extraction of the oil from below the sea floor A m a s s i v e F l o a t i n g

Production, Storage, and Offloading vessel (FPSO) will also be moored on location in approximately 1,700 m of water depth and

will remain there throughout theproductionstage.

The FPSO will have a peak capacity to produce up to approximately 220,000 barrels to 275,000 barrels of oilperday EEPGLwaskeen to note that these estimates are preliminary and are subject to change. Processed oil will be stored in cargo tanks inside the FPSO hull which have the capacity to hold approximately 2 millionbarrelsofoil.During p e a k p r o d u c t i o n , approximatelyeverythreeto six days, the oil will be pumped from the FPSO to a conventional oil tanker, which is owned/operated by third parties. The tanker will thenexporttheoiltobuyers. EEPGL was also keen to note that it will utilize onshore support facilities to support drilling the wells, installing the offshore production facilities, and operating the offshore production facilities. This willincludebutisnotlimited to shorebases, warehouses, storage and pipe yards, fabrication facilities, fuel supply facilities, and waste

- despite 5th project still awaiting approval

management facilities in Guyana.

Helicopters and supply boats will also be needed to support the Project.At peak, EEPGL said it will be supported by approximately 1,200 offshore personnel during the well drilling and oil production installation stages. This number will decrease to less than 200 personnel during the production phase. A smaller number of personnel will be utilized at the onshore supportfacilities.

The sixth project is e x p e c t e d t o c o s t approximately US$12B, given its similarities to EEPGL's fifth project at the Uaru project. EEPGL had said the Uaru development would cost Guyanese US$12.6B.

K a i e t e u r N e w s understands that in-person scoping meetings for the sixth project will be held across several parts of the country (See chart for furtherdetails).

The Environmental ProtectionAgencysaidithas determined that an

WANTED

Driver, Salesman & Porters required to work in warehouse. Must have experience, attractive salary offered. Call: 696-4444.

Driver/ Salesman, Bakers, Pastry Makers, Puri /Roti Makers & Receptionist. Back to Eden Bakery, 85 David St, Subryanville. Call: 613-0475/ 613-0385.

Driver and Expediter/ Security required. Call: 2235273/ 223-5274.

Welders and Security required. Call: 687-5814/ 688-0417.

Dump Truck Driver required. Call: 223-5273/ 223-5274.

Handyman and Porters needed. Call: 223-5273/ 223-5274.

Waitress and Bartenders required. Attractive salary offered, Call: 223-5273/2235274.

Male & Female needed to work in factory. Apply to RP'S Enterprise Area, "K" Le Ressouvenir E.C.D. Call: 220-2818.

One male able-bodied Clerk required. Call: 231-2029, 6938462.

One Female able-bodied Worker required. Call: 2252313/ 658-8559 or 226-1497.

Wanted: Experienced Cashier, Cooks, Counter Person, Supervisor, and Labourer. Apply @ Shanta's, 225 Camp and New Market Sts.

Male Porters & females to work in supermarket in the Interior. Females must know to cook. Call: 687-7638/ 6609093.

One hauler truck Driver and licence Excavator Operator needed, must have at least 3 years experience. Call: 6447088/ 624-7248.

Reputable transportation service is seeking experienced mini bus and hire car Drivers. Call: 645-0025.

Seamstress, Tailor, Block maker & Carpenter wanted. Call/ Whatsapp: 691-1918

One Puri/ Roti Maker and two Kitchen Assistant needed at Rabbies. Call: 648-8279/ 231-6591.

Skilled Carpenters, Masons and Labourers. Call:6029469 or 615-7526.

WANTED

One Domestic needed for residence. Call: 223-5273/ 223-5274.

Persons to install outdoor carpet. Call: 615-9132.

Urgently need one female Bartender and Kitchen Assistant to work in the Interior. Ages 25-35 yrs. Call 698-5526.

697-8160.

VACANCY

Maid required to cook and clean in East Bank area. Call: 615-9132.

Delivery Clerk, Office Assistant, Sales Clerk & Labourer needed at Lens Hardware. Call: 227-1511/ 645-1613.

Vacancy exists for Salesgirl and Porters at Best Buy Food Supplies, Lot 1 ‘E’ Dennis and Middleton Streets C/ville. Apply in person with written application.

Lathe Operator, Welder & Handyman required. Call: 645-9333/ 220-6078.

VACANCY

Experienced Kitchen Assistant, Cashiers & Roti/ Puri Cook. Apply @ Hack's Restaurant 5 Commerce St.

One female Cleaner needed. Apply at Lens, 136 Sheriff Street C/Ville, Georgetown. Contact: 227-1511/645-1613.

Truck Driver, Excavator Operator, Loader Operator, Motor Grader Operator, Roller Operator & Bulldozer Operator required. Call: 700-8131/ 600-6073.

SERVICES

Visa Application: Canada and UK & U.S.A. Graphics design & advertisements. Wedding decorations & elderly grooming: hair, nail etc. Call: 626-7040.

Elevate your brand with our professional Graphic design services. Call: 6190007, 629-5526.

Repairs at affordable price: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezer. Call: 610-5846 or 661-8158.

Order made on the 18th day of January, 2023 the Petitioner was directed to effect service of her Petition on you by publication of this Notice in two (2) consecutive Saturday issues of the Kaietuer News, a daily newspaper printed, published and circulated in and around Guyana and on the worldwide web.

AND FURTHER TAKE

NOTICE that if you desire you may appear or attend in person or by your duly authorized agent or Attorney-at-Law at the Registry of Family Division of the High Court at Georgetown, Demerara where you will be issued with a certified copy of the Petition together with related documents.

AND FURTHER TAKE

Houses for sale. Location: Tuschen, Providence, Diamond/ Little Diamond and Haslington. Call Pacific Development Inc: 6736210 /227-8274/ 917-7715202.

CAT 320 excavator buckets, CAT 320 idler, road painting machine.Call: 275-0367/ 6837225.

Ton and a half - Dragline hammer, steel Traylor 16ft, 2ft, 8ft. CAT 215 excavator parts. Call: 275-0367/ 6837225.

Prime property located in Prashad Nagar. Call: 6540200/ 685-3342/ 691-1153.

Mud for sale on the East Coast. Call: 619-0007, 6193153.

Driver required, ages 23-50 yrs. Must be able to assist in Workshop at Eccles and must have car and van licence. Call: 645-8443/ 6429823.

Payless Variety Store is now hiring Sales Representatives and Porters. Location: 42 Wellington St, Georgetown. Call: 658-4494.

Administrative Assistant required. Must have CXC Maths & English along with experience using Quickbooks. Send resume to info@rstruckinggy.com

Hotel Attendant required at Hick's Ville Hotel. Call: 6400673, 231-0951, 227-7714, 223-3448. Email: info@ vegeworld.net

Inventory/ Data Entry Clerks required at Survival Shopping Complex, 173 Sheriff Street. Call: 6092995. Email applications: survival.humanresources@ gmail.com

Welder, Carpenter, Mason, Labourer, Heavy Duty Mechanic, Engineer, Engineer Assistant, Secretary& Paver Operator needed. Call: 7008131/ 600-6073.

Car wash Attendants, ages 18-28, (preferably from E.B.D) to work at Vintage Car Wash in Eccles. Call: 617-2027.

Cashiers, male and female Supermarket Attendants and Drivers needed. Apply with written application/ CV and passport photo to Survival 16 Vlissengen Road, Newtown Kitty.

EDUCATION

CSEC online maths classes are provided by qualified Teacher for January 2024 exams $10,000 monthly. Call: 603-9085

PEN PAL

Indian overseas male seeks female, age 35-40 and must be educated. Call: 602-9975.

Afro-Guyanese male seeking single female for business and exciting adventures, ages 47-50 yrs. Text/ Call: 676-5516.

LEGAL NOTICE

Applicant in person: Hubert Stanislaus Cyrus

Address: Lot 41 Castello Housing Scheme, West La Penitence, Georgetown Tel# : 592-665-2072/ 592617-5365

2022-HC-DEM-CIV-FD1678

One CRV Honda, fully loaded immaculate condition, low mileage $3.3M negotiable. Contact: 649-0956.

2014

FOR RENT

2 and 3-bedroom fully furnished luxury apartments for rent, short term and long term. Tel:# 682-2585, 6911432.

Two-bedroom apartment for rent in Nandy Park, E.B.D. Preferable couple, $50,000 per month. Contact: 668-3413.

Western Union CSRs required @ Survival Shopping Complex, 173 Sheriff Street. Call: 609-2995. Email: survival.humanresources@ gmail.com

Supermarket AM & PM Sales Representative required @ Survival Shopping Complex, 173 Sheriff Street. Call: 609-2995, Email: survival.humanresources @gmail.com

Experienced Accounts Clerk required @ Survival Shopping Complex, 173 Sheriff Street. Call: 609-2995, Email: survival.humanresources @gmail.com

Vacancy exist for two experienced Dispatcher at Confidential Cabs. Call: 6951961 /231-5784.

ACCOMMODATIONS

Aracari hotel located at WBD (Versailles, Vreed-enHoop)- A/C, all amenities and breakfast included, from $63USD. Call: 264-29469.

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE SUPREME COURT OF JUDICATURE

FAMILY, DIVORCE AND MATRIMONIAL JURISDICTION FAMILY DIVISION

PETITION NO. FD-1678

BETWEEN:HUBERT STANISLAUS CYRUS Petitioner

-and- MARY CHERRON

OSWELD CYRUS nee

HOLDER Respondent

TO: MARY CHERRON

OSWELD CYRUS nee

HOLDER

Formerly of Lot 18 Bent Street

Werk-en-Rust

Georgetown

TAKE NOTICE that on the 12TH day of December, 2022 a Petition for Divorce was filed against you by HUBERT STANISLAUS

NOTICE that if you desire to Defend this Divorce, then upon receipt of the certified copy of the Petition, you must file an Acknowledgement of Service, Notice of Intention to Defend (Forms are available at the Registry), Answer and/or Cross Petition in the Registry of the Family Division of the High Court at Georgetown, Demerara within 35 (thirty-five) days from the date of the final publication of this Notice. TAKE NOTICE that the divorce is fixed for Directions Hearing on Monday the 17th day of April,2023 at 9:30 am before the Honourable Madam Justice Sandra Kurtzious via Zoom Meeting ID: 648 772 9256 and Password: 5hRiHf. IN DEFAULT of your filing an Acknowledgement of Service/Notice of Intention to Defend, Answer and/or Cross Petition the Court may proceed in your absence and may make any Order it considers appropriate, including granting the Divorce.

The Registry of the Family Division of the High Court is located at the Law Courts [Georgetown, Demerara]. The office is open to the public between 8:00am and 3:30pm Mondays to Thursdays and 8:00am to 2:30pm on Fridays except on public holidays and on such other days as the Registry is closed. Dated the 24thday of January, 2023.

ENTERTAINMENT

Swimming pool, family fun, crystal clear pool, kids and adults sections at Aracari Resort, Call: 264-2946-9.

CYRUS the Petitioner in the Family Division of the High Court in Georgetown, Demerara.

AND FURTHER TAKE

NOTICE that as part of an

Kitchen Assistant and Counter Clerk needed. Call:

One 5 bedrooms house for rent (furnished) located on South Road, for business or residence. Call: 641-0959.

VEHICLES FOR SALE

5 bedrooms house for rent in Arapaima Ave, Guyhoc G/Town, $ 250,000 GYD. Call: 705-9608.

Volkswagen Jetta TSI automatic, $2.3 M negotiable. Call:615-3856.

Diesel driven food truck for sale. Excellent working conditions. Call: 227-1813/ 6721703.

$1,700M estimated to build Karasabai School

The Ministry of

Education has estimatedthatthe construction of a secondary school to house students from Karasabai, Region Nine and neighbouring communities would cost approximately $1.700M. Some 20 Contractors are competing to construct the project. This was revealed during the opening of tenders on Thursday at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board(NPTAB)office. The Ministry had said that the construction of a secondary schoolinKarasabaiisaimed at addressing the overcrowding of some secondaryschoolsinRegion Nine Kaieteur News

understands that currently KarasabaiSecondarySchool is housed in the same building as the Karasabai PrimarySchool.

Itisimportanttonotethat upon completion, the new secondary school will not only benefit the students of Karasabi but also other secondaryschoolstudents. Adormitory will also be built. MinisterofEducation, Priya Manickchand at an event last year had mentioned that there are planning to construct more schoolsacrossthecountryto achieve the universal secondaryeducation.

“Ourintentionisthatwe would achieve universal secondary education in this first term. What is universal

secondary education? It means universally all over thiscountryeverychildmust be able to access a seat in a secondary school to complete their secondary education.

Andevenasweworkon achieving universal secondary education, that is givingeveryGuyanesechild access,” the Education Minister said. Meanwhile, government has budgeted $94.4B this year for the educationsector

Of that sum of $12.4B has been allocated for the construction, rehabilitation, extension, and maintenance of educational facilities acrossthecountry

Belowarethecompanies andtheirbids:

Partnerships key in fostering...

Frompage12 problems securities and capital markets need strong regulation and oversight in order to protect investors,” thepresidentasserted.

President Ali encouraged investors to come on board w i t h G u y a n a ' s development, as several improvements are being made to the technological, agricultural, infrastructural, andeducationalindustries.

“Transformation is not

onlyduetothediscoveryof oilalone,butalsotheuseto which the oil revenues will beputandthetriggerwhich the industry is already playing in boosting the economy. Guyana will become an economic powerhouse,” the Head of State affirmed. On July 22, President Ali supported the launch of the Guyaneseowned 'New Haven Merchant Bank'. The bank, which provides several

Foreign company deducting...

Frompage10 and/or ENI and/or their agentsandintermediaries.

According to documents filedin2018bytheNigerian Government in a British High Court of Justice, a substantial amount of the moneywenttowardpayinga series of companies owned by oil magnate, Abubaker Aliyu–anallyofDanEtete. The Nigerian government noted that, according to Italian prosecuting

authorities, US$411M was transferred to Rocky Top Resources, in which Dan Etete and his nephew Edward Keniwenimo ‘Ken’ Etete were identified as directors The court documents state that ownership of the company w a s s u b s e q u e n t l y transferred from Abubaker Aliyu to Dan Etete, who spent much on lavish personal expenditure for himselfandhisfamily

services such as asset m a n a g e m e n t , a n d investment banking, among others, has begun to play a crucial role in bringing the much-needed finance and capital to develop small businesses and advance infrastructural development in keeping with the g o v e r n m e n t ' s developmental agenda (Modified from the Department of Public Information)

ofsecondaryschoolatKarasabai,RegionNine.

Guyana 'effed' on Harbour Bridge's...

Frompage18 “Wewishtoassureeveryone that the profane message broadcast via the digital messaging board at the bridge was perpetrated with ill intent by a yet unknown person or persons, to cast a

shadow of doubt over the corporation and its hardworkingstaff.”

The DHB management warned that act perpetrated will not be taken lightly and said that a full investigation will be launched to

determine who might uploaded the profanity message on the digital screen.DHBalsocommitted to ensuring that better systems and monitoring mechanismsareputinplace, topreventareoccurrence.

Construction

Volodímir Zelenski

Exxon to kick off public meetings for 6th oil project month end

E x x o n M o b i l Corporation's subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) is set to kick off public meetings for its sixth project from January 30, 2023 to February 7, 2023.

EEPGL appears to be moving at breakneck speed with efforts to produce Guyana's sweet crude despitethefactthatitisyetto receive regulatory approvals foritsfifthproject.

This sixth project, the company is now racing ahead with, will seek to develop massive amounts of oil from the Whiptail discovery field in the StabroekBlock.

Oil production from the project is expected to last approximately 20 to 30 years EEPGL will drill approximately 40 – 65 wells offshore to support extraction of the oil from below the sea floor A m a s s i v e F l o a t i n g

Production, Storage, and Offloading vessel (FPSO) will also be moored on location in approximately 1,700 m of water depth and

will remain there throughout theproductionstage.

The FPSO will have a peak capacity to produce up to approximately 220,000 barrels to 275,000 barrels of oilperday EEPGLwaskeen to note that these estimates are preliminary and are subject to change. Processed oil will be stored in cargo tanks inside the FPSO hull which have the capacity to hold approximately 2 millionbarrelsofoil.During p e a k p r o d u c t i o n , approximatelyeverythreeto six days, the oil will be pumped from the FPSO to a conventional oil tanker, which is owned/operated by third parties. The tanker will thenexporttheoiltobuyers. EEPGL was also keen to note that it will utilize onshore support facilities to support drilling the wells, installing the offshore production facilities, and operating the offshore production facilities. This willincludebutisnotlimited to shorebases, warehouses, storage and pipe yards, fabrication facilities, fuel supply facilities, and waste

management facilities in Guyana.

Helicopters and supply boats will also be needed to support the Project.At peak, EEPGL said it will be supported by approximately 1,200 offshore personnel during the well drilling and oil production installation stages. This number will decrease to less than 200 personnel during the production phase. A smaller number of personnel will be utilized at the onshore supportfacilities.

The sixth project is e x p e c t e d t o c o s t approximately US$12B, given its similarities to EEPGL's fifth project at the Uaru project. EEPGL had said the Uaru development would cost Guyanese US$12.6B.

K a i e t e u r N e w s understands that in-person scoping meetings for the sixth project will be held across several parts of the country (See chart for furtherdetails).

The Environmental ProtectionAgencysaidithas determined that an

Vinicius has final say as Madrid defeat Atletico to reach Copa semis

AFP - Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior’s extratime strikes earned Real Madrida3-1winoverrivals Atletico Madrid on Thursday to reach the Copa delReysemi-finals.

The Brazilian winger’s goalwasaparticularlysweet one for him after a crude effigy with his shirt on was hungfromabridgenearReal Madrid’s training ground beforethegame.

The spiky, gripping derby clash turned against Diego Simeone’s side in the additional period when defender Stefan Savic was sentoff.

Atletico took the lead throughAlvaro Morata after 19 minutes but Rodrygo’s sensational slalom run past three defenders and slick finish pulled Madrid level with11minutesremaining.

After Savic’s 99th minute red card, Benzema tucked home from Marco Asensio’s pass and Vinicius netted at the death to send Los Blancos through to the final four for the first time since2019.

“Today we had a very difficult game but with the characterandtheplayersthat we have, we were able to turn it around,” Benzema toldTeledeporte.

“Sufferingisnotgood— we have to score the goals earlier.”

Thebuild-uptothederby was tainted by the Vinicius effigy being strung up overnight, which the club described as “a disgusting act of racism, xenophobia andhatred.”

“(Vinicius)reallywanted to play and he had a very good game,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti told a news conference.

“I think the goal was his reward for his great work. What happened is very regrettable.”

Madridfanshadplanned to sing Vinicius’ name in support in the 20th minute, matching his shirt number, butwerestunnedintosilence by Morata’s goal moments before.

Atletico, hitting their best form of the season, conjured a brilliant move to

break the deadlock, with Morata tapping home after Koke’sdinkallowedNahuel Molina to stroke a first-time crosstothebackpost.

Madrid added another name to a long injury list when Ferland Mendy had to bereplacedbeforehalf-time, with Eduardo Camavinga slotting in at left back and DaniCeballoscomingon.

Madrid improved significantly after the break and Rodrygo levelled with 11 minutes to go with his jinkingsoloeffortandsubtle near-post finish, taking the clashtoextra-time.

‘Convenient for everybody’Atletico defender Savic foolishly handed Madrid the edge when he was sent off for two yellow cards in twominutes

Atleticoplayersclaimed that Ceballos should have been sent off earlier when he fouled Geoffrey Kondogbia while on a yellowcard

“I think it was a red (for Savic),buttheyshouldhave had one too when we were

1-0 up, ” complained AtleticogoalkeeperOblak “They could have had a second yellow but (the referee) decided it how he decided,weareusedtothat, andit’scomplicated,butthe team fought to the end, we dideverythingtoscore.”

With an extra man Madrid capitalised, Benzema striking lethally after 104 minutes when Vinicius miskicked Marco Asensio’scrossandtheball travelled through to the striker

Madrid,wholastwonthe Copa del Rey in 2014, kept Atleticoatbayinthefinal15

Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior’s extra-time strikes earned Real Madrid a 3-1 win over rivals Atletico Madrid.

minutes before Vinicius dribbled through and fired hometoclinchthevictory— celebrating with a now customarydanceroutine.

Despite their improving performances, the rest of Atletico’s season is looking barren, given they were eliminated from European football and are 13 points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona, having played a gamemore.

“We are out of Europe and now the cup, the team has the second half of the season ahead of them to try and qualify for the Champions League, that’s

the objective the club needs,” said Simeone, who cast some doubt on his future.

TheArgentinecoachhas been at the club since 2011 andhasacontractuntil2024.

“After that, calmly, we will look at what is convenientforeveryone,”he continued.

“Being at Atletico gives meenormousjoy,Iwillgive 1000 percent until the day thatIleave.”

Earlier Athletic Bilbao won 3-1 at Valencia to join record 31-time winners Barcelona and Osasuna in Monday’ssemi-finaldraw

“Meritocracy is a good thing. Whenever possible, people should be judged based on their works and results, not superficial qualities.” The aforesaid are wise words from Eric Ries, American Entrepreneur, and Author

Without fear of correction, and opting againsttip-toeingaroundthe tulips, meritocracy is the proposition of selecting based entirely, and solely on therespectivedistinction.

The National Sports Awards, the premier gala of the National Sports Commission (NSC), which is a customary annual feature, and recognizes the achievements of sporting associations, teams, and individual athletes, is a platform and forum where thetenetsofmeritocracyare oftentested.

In this particular instance, the selectionof the Sportsman of the Year, arguably,themostimportant singular accolade alongside its female component, is of intrigue given the collective lack of regional and

i n t e r n a t i o n a l accomplishments and standout performances by the majority of the potential candidates.

However, one name, though not of a mainstream affiliation,seemsobjectively positioned for possible athletic recognition That individualisnoneotherthan pugilist ‘Dynamite’ DesmondAmsterdam.

The tale of the tape is nothing short of outstanding for the Guyana Defence Force sergeant, whose exploits in 2022 can only be described as spectacular on both the international and localcircuit.

Hishighlightreelmakes for interesting reading Amsterdam secured a historic bronze medal at the prestigious Americas

Boxing Confederation ( A M B C ) E l i t e

eventofinternationalrepute given its competitive history Amsterdam’s

nt

Desmond Amsterdam

prior calendar year, and furtherstrengthenedhiscase for recognition at the NSC strata.

at the South

American Games in Paraguay The International Boxing Association justly

Turning to the local circuit,Amsterdam punched hiswaytoagoldmedalatthe significant Terrence Ali Open Championship Certainly, his resume for 2022, the year in question thatwillbeupforscrutinyby theadjudicatingbody,places Amsterdam amongst the most favourable of contenders.

After all, Amsterdam wasrecentlyselectedforthe G u y a n a B o x i n g Association’s (GBA) most prestigious honor, the Boxer of the Year accolade, following an exhaustive process, which analyzed his local and international exploits, the same criteria that will also be scrutinized bytheNSC’sselectionpanel.

In all honesty, his selection to the GBA’s top prize seemed a mere formality given his spectacular exploits in the

Interestingly, the previous boxer to clinch an NSC award was Keevin Allicock, who clinched the JuniorSportsmanoftheYear accolade, after winning a historic silver medal at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth G a m e s B o x i n g Championship.

This award, however, was shared with sprinter Compton Caesar following anequallyimpressiveouting that resulted in a historic gold medal capture in Boy’s U20 100m at the CARIFTA Games.

“Intermsofmerit,sports has mathematical statistics. That’s how you know who the best player is,” another apt avowal in this case from Norm MacDonald, the famed Canadian comedian. In the case of Amsterdam, the aforesaid quote is appropriate Undoubtedly, he has the numbers and medals to stake a claim for the NSC Sportsman of the Yearprize.

Amsterdam has a strong chance

Four matches on today at NTC

Today the third round of matches in the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Tiger Rentals nationwide under-13 development football initiative is scheduled to unfold at the GFF National Training CentreinProvidence.

The tournament, which has two matches being simultaneously contested, willseeBarticagoupagainst West Demerara on Field 1, while East Berbice tackle West Berbice on the other Field.

At noon, the other two matches unravel as Georgetown and the u n d e f e a t e d U p p e r Demerara collide on Field 1,whileEastBankandEast Coast battle on the other Field After that, the teams willhaveanothertwo-week interval between rounds beforethegamesresume.

The fourth round is billed for Saturday, February 11, at the same

venue as West Berbice tackle East Coast, East Berbice battle Bartica, Upper Demerara clash with East Bank and West Demerara goes head-toheadwithGeorgetown

As it stands after two rounds, Upper Demerara leadthePointstandingswith six points from two consecutive victories, while EastCoastandGeorgetown, both on four points, occupy second and third, respectively

E a s t C o a s t a n d Georgetown each picked up a win and a draw, However, East Coast leads on a superior goal difference of +4 in comparison to Georgetown’s+2.

The same scenario applies to the next three teams; East Bank, West

Demerara and West Berbice, who are all on threepointsfromawinand a loss, with a goal differenceof0.

They occupy fourth to

sixth on the table Bartica and East Berbice, in seventh and eighth, respectively, without a point on the board, have had a tough start to the tournament after facing

consecutivedefeats.

Inthesecondround,East BankdefeatedBartica2–0, West Berbice sank West Demerara 2 – 0, Upper Demerara got past East Berbice 3 – 0 while

Georgetown and East Coast playeda1–1draw

Priortothat,Georgetown opened their campaign with a 3 – 1 win over West Berbice,EastCoasttrampled Bartica 4 – 0, Upper

DemerarasankWestBerbice 2 – 0 and West Demerara triumphed over East Bank 3 –1.Meanwhile,thefifthand sixth rounds are scheduled for Saturday, February 25, andSaturday,March11.

SpinnersleadNewZealandtoT20wininIndia

RANCHI, India (AP)

—

Mitchell Santner and MichaelBracewellstrangled India with spin as New Zealand won their first Twenty20 by 21 runs yesterday

Santner (2-11) and Bracewell(2-31)sharedfour wickets in eight overs to put thebrakesonIndia’schase.

New Zealand posted a lofty 176-6 thanks to halfcenturies from Daryl Mitchell (59) and Devon Conway (52) and India was tieddownto155-9.

It was the fourth time NewZealandhasdefendeda sub-200 total in T20s on Indian soil, the most by any visitingside.

“There was a lot of turn and it continued right throughthesecondinnings,” Bracewell said. “We were abletogetearlywicketsand capitalize on that start. It is massivetobouncebackfrom theODIseries.”Indiaswept theODIs3-0.

Put in to bat, Finn Allen gave New Zealand a quick startwith35off23balls.He struck four fours and two sixes, putting on 43 off 26

ballswithConway Washington Sundar (222) struck twice to remove Allen and Mark Chapman, the latter for a duck via a stunningreturncatch.

Conway, though, scored a half-century off 31 balls, including seven fours and a six to steer New Zealand to 100inthe13thover Conwayfellon52inthe

18thovertoArshdeepSingh, butMitchellpressedon.

His 26-ball half-century powered the total past 170. Mitchell hit three fours and five sixes as Singh gave

away 27 runs in the final over

Inreply,Indiagotofftoa poor start due to the Kiwi spinners squeezing the scoreboard.

Bracewell bowled Ishan Kishan (4) and Santner got rid of the in-form Shubman Gill (7). Rahul Tripathi was caughtbehindforaduckand Indiawasdownto15-3inthe fourthover Suryakumar Yadav scored 47 off 34 balls and added 68 runs for the fourth wicket with Hardik Pandya, 21.

Buttheduowereundone whenthespinnersreturned. Yadav holed out off Ish Sodi, and Pandya fell to Bracewell.

Santner had Deepak Hooda stumped on 10 and the India innings was in tatters at 111-6 in the 16th over Sundar’s 50 included fivefoursandthreesixesbut his maidenT20 half-century off 25 balls could only reduce New Zealand’s winningmargin.

ThesecondofthreeT20s isonSundayinLucknow New Zealand 176 for 6 (Mitchell 59*, Conway 52, Washington2-22)beatIndia 155 for 9 (Washington 50, Suryakumar 47, Santner 211)by21runs.

The first two matches today both commence at 10:30 hrs.

New Zealand’s Michael Bracewell, center, celebrate the wicket of India’s Ishan Kishan with his teammates during the first Twenty20 cricket match between between India and New Zealand in Ranchi, India, Friday, Jan. 27, 2023. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)

Djokovic shrugs off dad drama to reach 10th Australian Open final

MELBOURNE, (Reuters)N o v a k Djokovic shrugged off controversy involving his father to reach a recordextending 10th Australian Openfinalyesterdayandset up a blockbuster decider with Greek trailblazer Stefanos Tsitsipas and a battle for the world number oneranking.

Nine-times champion Djokovic maintained his

reachthetitlematchinacity boasting the biggest Greek population outside the southernEuropeannation.

Srdjan Djokovic created a distraction for his son ahead of the semi-final after a video emerged showing him with fans holding Russian flags, which were banned at Melbourne Park earlyinthetournament.

Amid calls from the Ukraine embassy and media punditsforDjokovicSrtobe

“As my father put in a statement,weareagainstthe war, we never will support anyviolenceoranywar We knowhowdevastatingthatis for the family, for people in any country that is going through the war,” Djokovic, who grew up in Serbia during the wars in former Yugoslavia,toldreporters.

Djokovic said he hoped his father could return to his players’ box for the final on Sunday, though Tennis Australia declined to comment when asked whether Srdjan would be welcome.

A year on from being deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament due to his lack of COVID-19 vaccination, drama has found Djokovic again at MelbournePark.

He bickered with the chair umpire over the time taken to get a towel between points, drawing loudjeersfromfans.

Sensing his chance, Paul raised the pressure with some outstanding tennis, breaking the Serb twiceandlevellingthematch at 5-5 after edging Djokovic ina30-shotrally

Desperate for a player to give Djokovic a proper match, the crowd was firmly in Paul’s corner, cheeringtheSerb’serrors.

However, that was as good as it got for Paul, as Djokovic knuckled down to win 14 of the last 17 gamesinastunningcounterattack 15 years to the day after his first Australian Opentitleasa20-year-old.

perfect semi-final record at MelbourneParkwitha7-561 6-2 win over outgunned American Tommy Paul at Rod LaverArena, where his father Srdjan was a conspicuousabsentee.

Earlier on centre court, Tsitsipas saw off Russian 18th seed Karen Khachanov

7-6(2) 6-4 6-7(6) 6-3 to become the first Greek to

bannedfromthetournament, he declined to attend the semi-final,sayinghewanted to avoid “disruption” for his son.

Djokovic defended his father, saying he had been “misused” by Russian fans and that media had misinterpretedthevideoasa showofsupportforRussia’s warinUkraine.

He was criticised for ducking off court for an unauthorised toilet break early in the tournament and later hit out at media for scepticism about his hamstringinjury.

On Friday, a man in the terraces held up a Ukraine flag when Djokovic served in his directionagainstPaul

Djokovic was in a foul mood even as he raced to a 5-1 lead in the first set, repeatedly yelling at his players’ box inSerbian

Despite the emphatic win, Djokovic said the fuss over his dad had affected him.

“Of course, it’s not pleasant for me to go through this with all the things that I had to deal with last year and this year inAustralia,”hesaid.

“It’s not something that I want or need I hope that people will let it be, and we can focus on tennis ”There was far less drama earlier as Tsitsipas won his first Australian Open semi-final on the fourthattempt Sunday’s decider will

be a re-match of the 2021 French Open final, which Djokovic won from two sets down to leave the Greekheartbroken.

The winner will take the number one ranking from Spain’s Carlos

Alcaraz

“I’d like that number,” saidTsitsipas

“It’s a cornerstone final I’ve been wanting for many years now to put Greektennisonthemap,and meandMaria(Sakkari)have doneanincrediblejob.”

Tsitsipas can rely on a huge contingent of Greek fans to rival Djokovic’s armyofSerbiansupporters.

They were in full voice as he traded breaks with

Khachanov in a seesawing opening set before taking control in the tiebreak.

Two sets and a break down in the third, Khachanov showed great courage to fightbackto5-5 and take the tiebreak after Tsitsipas blew two match points.

Tsitsipas quickly regrouped, though, and closed out the fourth set in dominantfashion.

“Serbia is also a very small country, just like Greece,”saidTsitsipas

“I hope we in Greece canachievethesamething they have in recent years win multiple Grand Slams.”

More quality football on the horizon for regional teams as CONMEBOL and CONCACAF sign strategic collaboration agreement

S p o r t s M a xCONMEBOLand Concacaf have announced the signing of a strategic collaboration agreement to strengthen and develop football in both regions The agreement includesmen’sandwomen’s national team competitions and a new men’s club tournament.

The CONMEBOL Copa America2024willbeplayed in the United States in the summer of 2024 and will include 10 CONMEBOL teams and the six best Concacaf teams, as guests.

T h i s t r a d i t i o n a l CONMEBOL tournament willbeco-organizedbyboth confederations.

The six Concacaf national teams will have the opportunity to qualify for this competition through the 2023/24 Concacaf Nations

League.

For CONMEBOL, this agreement will support its men’snationalteamsintheir preparation for the upcoming World Cup through an expanded Copa America featuring six elite Concacaf teams, organized in the region that will host the2026FIFAWorldCup.

Similarly,thisagreement will allow Concacaf to provide more high-quality competition for its men’s national teams over the next two years, including the conclusion of the 2022/23 Concacaf Nations League, the2023ConcacafGoldCup and the 2023/24 Concacaf NationsLeague.

For women’s national teams, Concacaf has invited the top four CONMEBOL national teams to participate in the 2024 Concacaf W

Gold Cup. The inaugural edition of this 12-team tournament, which is a key part of Concacaf’s new women’s national team ecosystem,willbeplayedin theUnitedStates.

ThetwoConcacafteams that will participate in the 2024 Summer Olympics (United States and Jamaica or Canada) will qualify directly for the 2024 ConcacafWGoldCup.

The remaining six Concacaf teams will be determinedthroughthe2023 Road to Concacaf W Gold Cup.

T h e f o u r g u e s t CONMEBOL teams that will participate have been determined based on the resultsofthe2022Women’s Copa America: Brazil (champion) Colombia (runner-up),Argentina(third

place) and Paraguay (fourth place).

CONMEBOL and Concacaf will also organize a centralized “final four” style club competition featuringthebestclubsfrom t h e r e s p e c t i v e confederations The four participating teams (two from each confederation) willqualifythroughexisting CONMEBOLand Concacaf club competitions and the two confederations are working towards the first edition of this tournament beingplayedin2024.

“CONMEBOL and Concacaf are united by historical and affective ties. But above all, we are united bythepassion,characteristic of all the Americas, for football and sports,” said CONMEBOL President AlejandroDomínguez.

Victor Montagliani, President of Concacaf

“We are determined to renew and expand our joint initiatives and projects. We wantthispassiontotranslate into more and better competitionsandforfootball and its values to grow and strengthen throughout the hemisphere.

Without a doubt, both confederations believe in big, and we will work with thisorientation.”

Meanwhile, Victor Montagliani, President of Concacaf, believes this new initiative will be a boon to bothconfederations.

“This is a partnership to support the ongoing growth of men’s and women’s football in Concacaf and CONMEBOL,andwilltruly be of mutual benefit to both Confederations,”hesaid.

“Working hand in hand with CONMEBOL, we will deliver elite competitions that will provide more opportunities for our federations, and that we knowpassionatefanswantto see. We look forward to working together to ensure that football in both regions continuestothrive.”

Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic

West Indies Academy players secure selection in West Indies

Championship Squads

ST JOHN’S, Antigua – Five members of the West Indies Academy have earned places in franchise teams for the first and second rounds of the upcoming West Indies Championship fourday first-class tournament, starting on31January

The West Indies Academy players that have been selected are Kirk McKenzie, left-handed batter for Jamaica Scorpions; Kevin Wickham, right-handed batter for Barbados Pride; Ashmead Nedd, left-armspinnerforGuyanaHarpy Eagles; and Teddy Bishop, right-

Academy players to feature in new Headley Weekes Series in April and May

players is bearing fruit. The West Indies Academy played in the CG United Super50 last November, someplayersalsogotpickedinthe CPLearlierintheyear,andthiswas great exposure in the white ball formats. Now, with the first two rounds of the West Indies Championship in front of us, we have players being selected for the red ball format and we hope to see more graduate later in the tournamentaswell.”

West added: “In addition to playinginthefour-daytournament, we also have the chance to play in

start on 31 January and will continue on 1 to 3 February In Antigua, defending champions Barbados Pride will start their bid for at hattrick of titles when they face Guyana Harpy Eagles in the feature match at the Sir Vivian RichardsStadium(SVRS)on1to4 February.Thethirdcontestwillsee Leeward Islands Hurricanes hosting Jamaica Scorpions at the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) from 1 to 4 February. The second round will be played from 8 to 11 FebruarywhenBarbadosPridewill meet the Jamaica Scorpions at

batting greats George Headley and Sir Everton Weekes, whose names arealsohonouredontheTrophyfor the winners of the West Indies Championship. All three matches will be played from 18 April to 6 MayatCCGinAntigua.

E v e r y We s t I n d i e s Championship match will be streamed live on the Windies CricketYouTubechannel.Fanscan follow each and every game from their mobile devices, computers or connectedTVs,includingaccessto live ball-by-ball scoring on the windiescricket com live match

Cricket West Indies

Jamaica Scorpions: Paul Palmer jr (Captain), Jamie Merchant,Alwyn Williams, Aldaine Thomas, Leroy Lugg, Kirk McKenzie, Romaine Morris,AbhijauMansingh,Patrick Harty, Akim Fraser, Marquino Mindley, Gordon Bryan, Ojay Shields;AndrewRichardson(Head Coach)

Trinidad & Tobago Red Force: Darren Bravo (Captain), Amir Jangoo, Imran Khan, Jason Mohammed, Terrance Hinds, Jyd Goolie, Jeremy Solozano, Yannic Cariah, Bryan Charles, Vikash Mohan,UthmanMuhammad,Tion

handedbatterforWindwardIslands Volcanoes.KelvinPitmantherightarm fast bowler has been listed in the 13-member provisional squad named by the Leeward Islands Hurricanes.

Graeme West, CWI’s HighPerformance Manager who has overseentheWestIndiesAcademy programme since its inception in 2022, anticipates good performances from the players when the tournament bowls off nextweekinGrenadaandAntigua.

West said: “It is really good to see players being selected to participate in the West Indies Championship It shows the investment made by CWI in the development of these young

the Headley Weekes Tri-Series in April and May, another major investment in player development by CWI This is an amazing opportunityfortheseyoungplayers to match skills against some of the region’sbestandweviewthisasthe right kind of platform at this stage in their development They equipped themselves very well in the 50-over format last year in the CG United Super50 Cup and we anticipate more growth and eyecatching performances when they match up in the red ball format as well.” The tournament will open with Windward Islands Volcanoes hosting Trinidad & Tobago Red Force at the Grenada National Stadium (GNS). This match will

CCG; Trinidad & Tobago Red Force travel to face Leeward Islands Red Force at SVRS, and Guyana take on Windward Islands Volcanoes at GNS. Following the West Indies Championship, the new Headley Weekes Series will follow the West Indies Championship and will feature three matches and three teams. Team Headley and Team Weekes willselectfromthebestperformers in the 2023 West Indies Championship and players outside the starting West Indies Test XI. ThenewWestIndiesAcademywill provide the third team in the new Series. Team Headley and Team Weekes are named in honour of WestIndiespioneersandlegendary

centre. SQUADS (Rounds 1 and 2)BarbadosPride:ShaneDowrich (Captain) Camarie Boyce, ShamarhBrooks,JonathanDrakes, Keon Harding, Chaim Holder, Akeem Jordan, Nicholas Kirton, Jair McAllister, Shayne Moseley, Zachary McCaskie, Shamar Springer,KevinWickham;Vasbert Drakes(HeadCoach) Guyana Harpy Eagles: Leon Johnson (Captain), Veerasammy Permaul (Vice Captain), Chandrapaul Hemraj, Matthew Nandu, Kemol Savory, Tevin Imlach, Anthony Bramble, Kevin Sinclair, Nial Smith, Ronsford Beaton, Akshaya Persaud, Ashmead Nedd, Shamar Joseph; Ryan Hercules (Head Coach)

Webster, Khary Pierre; David Furlonge(HeadCoach) Windward Islands Volcanoes: Alick Athanaze (Captain), Jerlani Robinson, Kavem Hodge, Keron Cottoy, Sunil Ambris, Justin Greaves, Tevyn Walcott, Kenneth Dember, Preston McSween,Teddy Bishop, Daurius Martin, Kimani Melius, Ryan John; Shirley Clarke (Head Coach) Leeward Islands Hurricanes (provisional squad): Jahmar Hamilton (Captain), Mikyle Louis, Kieran Powell, Colin Archibald, Terance Warde, JeremiahLouis,KeacyCarty,Ross Powell, Kofi James, Damion Williams, Kelvin Pitman, Hayden Walsh jr, Rahkeem Cornwall; StuartWilliams(HeadCoach)

Tucber Park Cricket Club congratulates Smith and Joseph

TheTucber Park Cricket C l u b ( T P C C ) h a s congratulated Nial Smith and Shamar Joseph for their selection on Guyana Harpy Eagles senior team to participate in this year’s WestIndiesChampionship.

Smith, who hails from Islington, New Amsterdam, has been selected for a third season.

He has played 11 First Class matches taking 27 wickets and is expected to

lead the fast bowling unit which also includes

Ronsford Beaton and new selecteeShamarJoseph.

Joseph is enjoying his first call up for any national team.

The23yearoldwhohails from Baracara, Canje Creek (a riverine area in the Canje River), caught the attention of the selectors and cricket pundits when he struck and entertaining unbeaten 67 againstEssequibo,battingat

number8fortheGCBSelect XI in last year’s GCB Super50 Inter-county at Everest. Joseph further staked a claim for selection with 8 wickets from the two trial matches held at Providencerecently The Executive and membersofTPCCwishboth Smith and Joseph well for theupcomingtournament.

GuyanafaceBarbadosin the opening round on February1,2023inAntigua.

Shamar Joseph

Nial Smith

Team Mohamed’s to bankroll prize money, trophies for Rawle Toney 3x3 Classic

Behind its principal, Azruddin Mohamed, Team Mohamed’s will be one of the biggest sponsors of this year’s Rawle Toney 3x3 Classic, set for March 18 –19 at the Burnham BasketballCourt.

Mohamed met with organiser Rawle Toney and tournament coordinator Jermaine Slater, where he presented the first-place prize of $400,000 as well as the second-place purse of $200,000.

M o h a m e d a l s o sponsored all the accompanying trophies for the tournament, bringing his contributionto$675,000.

“This is huge,” Toney exclaimed “I’m beyond grateful for Team Mohamed’s contribution to the tournament this year Last year they were instrumentalinensuringthat a lot of areas were covered andthisyear,Ithinkit’ssafe to say that they’ve taken Lion’sshareoftheprizes.”

“Thisyearwe’regoingto see a wider pool of participation from teams in the Caribbean, and that has always been the goal since I started the tournament in 2019. I’m happy that Team Mohamed’s understands the visionforthe3x3Classicand is helping in a major way to ensure that it is realised,” Toneysaid.

Meanwhile, Azruddin Mohamedsaidhe’shappyto once again be part of the tournament, and pledged Team Mohamed’s continued support. HeaddedthatTeam

Sports executives and MCYS officials further craft direction of sports as National Sports Conference takes centre stage today

TheMinistryofCulture,Youthand Sports, will host their second NationalSportsConferencetoday attheNationalCultureCentrefrom9:00am, under the theme, ‘The Science for Sports Development’.

AbrainchildofMinisterCharlesRamson Jr, the event was first held in October 2021 andwasthefirst-of-its-kindinGuyana.

Kaieteur News’ Rawle Toney, Jemima Holmes of TVG, along with the Newsroom pairofAvenashRamzanandAkeemGreene, were tasked with leading today’s panel discussion.

Thescheduledare:shiftingoftrainingtoa sciencebase,inculcatingawinningmind-set, the business of sport - generating more revenue, and minimum standards for travelingnationalteams.

The National Sports Conference emanatedontheheelsoftheidentificationof the 12 core sports and is said to be a critical arm of the Sport Ministry’s attempt to formulatetheNationalSportsPolicy

At the inaugural edition of the National Sports Conference, participants were affordedtheopportunityforinformationtobe

disseminatedtorepresentativesofthe12core sports on how the Ministry’s Sports Academy, which comprises the three pillars of nursery, tournament, and elite training, would function following its eventual initiation.

The core sports selected are: athletics, badminton, basketball, cricket, football, hockey, lawn tennis, rugby, squash, swimming,tabletennis,andvolleyball.

Ronaldo’s Al Nassr knocked out of Saudi Super Cup

Mohamed’s is also ready to help create a Regional 3x3 tournament,pointingoutthat itwilldriveagreatinterestin the 3x3 format in Guyana andtheCaribbean. Looking ahead, Toney said they’re still other critical areas that corporate Guyana can contribute to help the tournamentbesuccessful.

“So far, the response from the corporate

community has been tremendous,buttheplanisto build a partnership because ofwhatweintendtodowith thetournamentinthecoming years.Thisyearwehavefour teams from the Caribbean, and we will see these numbers growing as the tournament continues to develop,” Toney said. The 16-teamtournamentwillbea clubcompetition,withteams coming from Linden, Bartica, Berbice and Georgetown. Toney added that several teams from the Caribbean signalled their interest in participating, which he said will help to boostthecompetitivenessof thetournament.

Last year, the team comprising Harold Adams, Stanton Rose and Shelroy Thomas took home the championship trophy, championshipringandother prizes.

Thomas was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player Additionally,Adams, R o s e a n d T h o m a s represented Guyana at the Islamic Games in Istanbul, Turkey and the FIBA 3x3

i, Florida.

(Reuters) - Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr were knocked of the Saudi Super Cup on Thursday after a 3-1 semi-final loss to Al Ittihad inRiyadh.

The37-year-oldPortugal international, five-times Ballon D’Or winner, had a

couple of chances to score butwaswellshackledbythe AlIttihaddefenceformostof thematch.

AndersonTalisca’sgoal for Al Nassr in the 67th minute was not enough to turn around the deficit from two first-half goals for Al

Ittihad from Romarinho and Abderrazak

M u h a n n a d A lShanqeeti added the third three minutes into stoppage time.

Al

Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, Charles Ramson Jr

Hamdallah.

Nassr next travel to Al Fateh in the Saudi Pro LeagueonFeb.3.

Al Nassr’s Cristiano Ronaldo reacts. (REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri)

Team Mohamed’s principal, Azruddin Mohamed, presenting his entity’s support to 3x3 Classic to organiser Rawle Toney

President Ali float idea of new stadium in Region 10

PresidentIrfaanAli, d u r i n g a n impromptuvisitto Lindenyesterday,floatedthe idea of building a new stadiuminoneoftheRegion 10communities.

TheHead-of-Statewasat the time addressing a crowd at the Christianburg CommunityCentreGround.

Region 10, particularly

Linden, is known for producingsomeofGuyana’s leadingathletes.

However, while most of their athletes would’ve achievedworldrankingsand international medals, the community, once referred to as the ‘Mecca’ of local sports, is faced with dilapidated structures and inadequatefacilities.

Nevertheless, President Ali told the large crowd that his Government “is right now examining a number of sports facilities in Region Ten, some of which we will upgrade, but more importantly, in the medium term,wehavetobuildanew stadiumforyou.”

While the President did n o t d i v u l g e m u c h information or details regarding the stadium, he hintedtotheenthusedcrowd that infrastructural development is taking place throughout Guyana, and Linden will not be left behind.

If materialised, the new facility will add to the synthetic track under construction at the Bayroc CommunityCentreGround.

President Irfaan Ali

Djokovic shrugs off dad drama to reach 10th Australian Open final

Spinners lead New Zealand to T20 win in India Sports

Team Mohamed’s to bankroll prize money, trophies for Rawle Toney 3x3 Classic

Azruddin Mohamed (centre) along with organiser Rawle Toney and tournament coordinator Jermaine Slater

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic talks with Tommy Paul of the U.S. after winning their semi final match. (REUTERS/Loren Elliott)

New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell plays a shot during the first Twenty20 cricket match between between India and New Zealand in Ranchi, India, Friday, Jan

India’s Ishan Kishan is bowled out by New Zealand’s Michael Bracewell during the first Twenty20 cricket match between between India and New Zealand in Ranchi, India, Friday, Jan.27, 2023. (APPhoto/Bikas Das)