Kaieteur News

Toshaos concerned K NEWS over Govt. takeover ...National executive says of conference was shut out of planning

Monday Edition

AIETEUR

July 11, 2022 - Vol. 15 No. 27 Online: www.kaieteurnews.com Online Price $100 readership yesterday, 66,386 p. 3

Guyana’s largest selling daily & New York’s most popular weekly

Exxon, Govt. now putting together emergency

response plan for

See story on page 18

gas-to-shore project Another $906M for CJIA ...as Govt. opens tender for construction of new administrative building p. 11

Hess hails 'We want to “tremendous move quickly; progress” we want to extracting deliver fast' Guyana's oil ...Pres. Ali tells Saudi Arabia investors Foreign aircraft with cocaine lands at Mahdia p.

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p.

12

p.

11

Corruption allegations dog Chinese investors in Guyana p.

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...Embassy, Association, others issue statements defending businesses

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Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

Hess hails “tremendous progress” extracting Guyana's oil

H

ess Exploration G u y a n a Limited's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), John Hess is seeking to assure that not only is Guyana's oil significant since it would still be in demand for decades to come, but its development was important to his company and was elated at the tremendous progress made in extracting the country's crude thus far.

Hess made the statements on Friday last during an event at State House, where he was at the time reiterating the importance of the need for the country to develop its natural resources for itself, and his company, in the presence of Head of State, President Irfaan Ali, and other government representatives.

“Development of this country's natural resources,” he stressed, “is important to our company, important to Guyana and important to

meet the world's growing energy needs for many decades to come.”

The CEO in his brief remarks used the occasion to remind that his company was honoured to be investing in Guyana and helping to build the country's oil and gas industry, pointing to the tremendous progress made since the company first discovered oil in 2015.

“It is a remarkable achievement that the company is already producing more than 300,000 barrels of oil for a day of some of the highest value, lowest carbon crude oil in the world with a line of sight to be producing over 1 million barrels per day by 2027,” he related.

The Hess boss said that by that time around, Guyana would become one of the largest crude oil producers in the world.

CEO of Hess Corporation, John Hess In highlighting the country's progress, the CEO said that it is the testament to the leadership and support of the Government of Guyana and its joint venture with its partners, Exxon Mobil and CNOOC Petroleum.

“Exxon Mobil as operator has done an outstanding job with project management and project execution especially during the challenging times of COVID. Guyana has positioned to be a global leader in the strategic and transformative development of its natural resources to (Continued on page 6

Kaieteur News

Monday June 11, 2022

PAGE 03

Toshaos concerned over Govt. takeover of conference ...National executive says was shut out of planning

By Zena Henry

Wi t h t h e N a t i o n a l Toshaos' Council (NTC) conference opening today, Heads of various Indigenous communities will be seeking to have key issues including rights violations, victimisation, and access to services earnestly addressed even as they lament an apparent government takeover of the event.

The NTC meeting, under the theme 'Good governance and Fast-tracking Amerindian Development', is being held at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre after a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The event is an annual one where village leaders have one on one interaction with government ministers and key officials on matters affecting their communities.

This year's event is being coordinated and managed by the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs with agency officials also chairing proposed meetings. The first day of the July 11-15 NTC agenda will see the arrival of Prime Minister, Mark Phillips, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, and then President Irfaan Ali who will deliver the feature address. Moraikobai Toshao, Derrick John will give the welcome while Amerindian Affairs Minister, Pauline Sukai will deliver remarks

ahead of the NTC executive elections, the adoption of the NTC agenda and presentation of report as well as the low carbon strategy and Amerindian land titling matters; each of which will occur with an hour to an hour and a half.

The remaining four days will see Amerindian leaders meeting with various ministries and state agencies such as the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC); the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security and the Ministry of Natural Resources, but all the sessions will be chaired by the Amerindian Affairs Ministry Permanent Secretary Sarah Browne.

This is a change from what occurred under the last administration, one Toshao stated.

He told the newspaper that the last government allowed the NTC executives to chair the sessions “giving more control to the Council in getting its business done.

What we have now is a removal of control from the NTC, and moderating what comes out of the meetings. A copy of the 2019 NTC agenda showed that the NTC meetings were chaired by either the NTC chairman or an executive, or specifically Toshao.

Another Toshao, who has recently highlighted grave human rights issues taking place in his village, feels like the NTC meeting will not allow issues to be earnestly addressed given the “controlled” environment under which the meeting will be held. “And this is the forum where our village issues should be addressed. I don't see any provision on the agenda for our issues,” the Toshao lamented.

NTC secretary Russian Dorrick told the Kaieteur News that the executives received no invitation from the government, and was not a part of the conference's preparations. He said there was no correspondence or information to state that the conference was being held.

Dorrick became NTC secretary in 2018 when elections for the executives were last held. The last NTC conference was held in 2019.

Since NTC elections are held every three years, the next voting round was supposed to be last year, but the pandemic prevented large gatherings. Dorrick said the Council awaited a formal l e t t e r o r s o m e correspondence from the government on the way forward, especially regarding the life of the executive, but none was received. “And so we were left hanging not knowing

Toshao Nicholas Fredericks of Shulinab, Region 9 was voted Chairman; along with Toshao Paul Pierre, of Kwebanna being blessed by an elder after the 2018 elections. what is happening,” the secretary exclaimed. Now with the government chairing the five-day event, he believes interactions will be done in a “dominated and instructed” way with Toshaos taking back “little to nothing”.

The fact that the last executive is not slated to speak at the opening of today's event speaks volumes, Dorrick indicated.

He said through word of mouth, he understands that the last executive was dissolved.

Former Ministerial Advisor on Indigenous People's Affairs matters, M e r v y n Wi l l i a m s h a s lambasted the government over their treatment of this year's NTC meeting. He said that there was no budgetary allocation for this year's NTC

meeting and that pressure brought the government to host the event which they now dominate.

“From the onset, the PPP, through its agents at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, is dominating and controlling this NTC conference.

Many are uncomfortable, but must do as instructed.”

He said, “The immediate past executive members of the NTC (Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Secretary and other committee members) are not on the invitation list.

This according to Toshaos, is disrespectful and inexcusable.”

“There is no opportunity on the programme for the immediate past executive of the NTC to present its report which is usually discussed prior to being approved.

There is no room on the programme for an official handing over by the past executive to the incoming executive body...” The former advisor said that his information is that elected Toshaos “were not consulted with regard to the agenda and none of them is scheduled to chair any session of the fiveday programme.” He said there is no place in the programme for Indigenous bodies to make any presentation on behalf of Indigenous citizens or to discuss matter behind closed doors.

Among important issues to be discussed are rights violations, Chinese Landing matter, the Marudi Mountain issue, rising cost of living, access to essential services, LCDs and consultations and victimisation.

Stained by oil: A

history of spills and impunity in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Bolivia

By Alexa Eunoé Vélez Zuazo, Vanessa Romo

N.B: This article was taken from, Mongabay.

Mongabay publishes news on environmental science, energy, and green design, and features extensive information on tropical r a i n f o re s t s , i n c l u d i n g pictures and deforestation statistics for countries of the world.

On some days, a strong smell of oil wafts through the Indigenous Kichwa community of October 12, located in Peru's Amazonian region of Loreto. Residents going outside to see what it is often find an oily stain spreading through the ravine that more than 100 families rely on for fishing, cooking and bathing.

On March 17, the community reported a new spill that, like so many others

over the past five years, originated from oil Lot 192.

Residents said they're fed up.

“The situation never gets better,” said Natanael Sandi, an Indigenous environmental monitor who tracks the damage caused by oil spills.

“All the companies have had oil spills, from OXY to Pluspetrol and Petroperú.

The pipes are in disrepair.

They were installed years ago, which is why they're constantly contaminating the area.”

Mongabay Latam has reported on these problems at least a dozen times over the past six years. We also published stories about similar problems in other countries in the region. The questions raised by these stories were almost always the same: How bad is the situation? Which companies

were involved? How much were they fined?

To a n s w e r t h e s e questions, Mongabay Latam partnered with Colombia's Rutas del Conflicto and Cuestión Pública, Ecuador's La Barra Espaciadora, and El Deber in Bolivia to request official information from environmental agencies in the four countries. In Peru and Colombia, more than 200 cases were opened against 72 oil companies over the past decade. In Ecuador and Bolivia, a lack of government transparency and access to information prevented similar figures from being obtained.

Information from Peru and Colombia also showed that 169 fines and 14 cases are still active. Each of the cases can be reviewed in the visualization below.

But the environmental

damage isn't the only problem created by oil spills.

The investigation also found that oil activity has been expanding into Indigenous territories and protected areas in the Amazon.

Geospatial analysis allowed the reporting team to pick up on more than 1,200 cases in which oil concessions overlap with Indigenous territories or protected areas.

You can read below about each of the investigations carried out in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Bolivia.

A decade of fines Following responses to 10 information requests we sent to eight state offices in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Bolivia, we created a special database that was analyzed b y t h e ManchadosXelPetróleo (StainedByOil) reporting

alliance. In some cases, the information we obtained was incomplete, so additional requests had to be made. In other cases, officials never responded or didn't disclose the names of the sanctioned companies.

With the information obtained from the Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement (OEFA) in Peru, and Corporinoquia and Cormacarena, the agencies that oversees the Orinoquía region in Colombia, the reporting alliance was able to determine that, in the past 10 years, 282 cases against oil companies have been opened in response to environmental infractions in those two countries: 143 cases in Peru involving 16 companies, and 139 in Colombia involving 56 companies.

To date, officials in both countries have levied 169

fines against 36 oil companies — 16 in Peru and 20 in Colombia — for impacting the environment during operations. The sum total of the fines amounts to $55,327,451. Almost all of this total, 98.8%, was levied against companies in Peru.

According to information obtained from officials in both countries, the companies Pluspetrol Norte (Peru) and Perenco (Colombia), had the highest number of cases in the respective countries and were the most-fined companies between 2011 and 2021. In the Peruvian Amazon, Pluspetrol Norte has received 73 sanctions and is facing legal repercussions for trying to avoid paying fines by liquidating the company. Perenco's fines, levied by Corporinoquia, (Continued on page 19)

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Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

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

Publisher: GLENN LALL-TEL: 624-6456 Editor: SHARMAIN GRAINGER Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210

EDITORIAL

Money laundering – not new news

A

mid all the many huge developments, in the crush of the rush of mouthwatering projects, that descend upon Guyana, the PPP/C Government and its leaders have made a joyful living of pointing to their initiatives now in full swing. Somehow, they conveniently forgot the dark underside of all this action, and the attractions that they hold for some seeing opportunities to be seized for crooked gain. It was what they suppressed, or did not want to hear, but which has now come back to strike both government and leaders in the heel. Money laundering is the name that used to make the rounds in Guyana as a problem and a plague, and then it dropped off the public radar.

Most inconveniently, money laundering has a new lease on life in Guyana. This PPP/C Government wishes it had stayed dead, even if really was not. Because what its reappearance does at this time is to point the spotlight right back at the leaders in this government, and they don’t come out looking well at all. Apparently, one money laundering monstrosity after another has been allowed to take root here, with quiet leadership sanction, if not official looking the other way being the order of the day.

The problem is that nobody knows with any kind of assurance the amount of money laundered in this country.

The first thing that could be said is that this is looking at only big projects being announced daily, and bigger thrills being generated at the significance of all these exciting developments. The second is that there is no seeming interest in looking too closely at the downside, the dark side, the bottom end of what and who comes here under various clever disguises. The third is that a veritable money laundering industry has been erected and flourishes right here, and in plain sight.

There is no better way to launder dirty money that under the cover of legitimate projects. Not too long ago, the practice that took hold was through a variety of fronts that fooled no one, but which washed plenty of dirty cash, and so much so that our financial system was choked with it.

Cambios were a favoured conduit, and given the history of some of those functioning in the capacity of money exchanges, they made for good candidates for the FBI Most Wanted list. It was, probably is, the same situation with used car businesses, real estate dealings, and a range of commercial enterprises, all under proper cover.

In fact, there were those in Guyana who attracted the deserving name of secret investors, compliments of a prior partnering PPP/C Government and its leaders, which came about from their passive involvement in the construction and hospitality sectors. It is hoped that all this helps Guyanese to get an appreciation of the scope of money laundering in this society, and the devastations that it has wreaked upon our legitimate businesspeople, and Guyana’s reputation.

Thus, the latest disclosure and reappearance of money being laundered here are not really ‘new’ news, so to speak.

Land deals, hotel expansion, mining, and many other sectors, all offer timely openings for money launderers to operate quietly, and be swallowed up in the bigger picture.

Nobody who knows how money laundering occurs should require any schooling from so-called Chinese businesspeople on the way that the system operates here, and who makes any kind of underhanded undertaking possible. It was just what was present all along, except that there was so much more going on, so ordinary citizens got distracted. The problem is that our watchdogs in crucial government agencies ought to have been alert to those working the system, and gaming it for illegitimate ends.

The only way for this to have been achieved is with transparency and the complete separation of politicians from any of these secret dealings with sleazy locals and outsiders, and for political parties not to accept financing from them. It’s too late now, and we gain more insights on how business, governance, leaders, and crime intersect in Guyana. The price is bitter, and no amount of laundering can alter this state. We need clean leaders and clean officials and clean partners to get clean governance.

Tweaked proposal for PARTITION DEAR EDITOR, Since the day of my birth, I have had the sense that my country was one of endless strife and confusion, but I had never been able to put my finger on just who was fighting whom, or how peace might be brought to our society.

A letter in your newspaper, dated 05 July, entitled “Is PARTITION a viable option” has made clear to me both the peoples responsible for our conflicts, and laid out what I think is the most viable solution to them.

It is plain to everyone that Guyanese society can be cleanly divided into two utterly irreconcilable sections.

On one hand, we have those who (perhaps foolishly) wish fervently to pursue their idea of a united Guyanese nation.

On the other, we have Sean Ori. For too long, these have been forced against their will to coexist.

This has caused great trauma to both, and as it is clear that this relationship is no longer working, perhaps it

is time for PARTITION. That is not to say that I am calling for anyone to be exiled, least of all so admirable a citizen as Sean Ori. It is merely the case that while it is possible for the two sections of Guyanese society mentioned above to work together for mutual benefit, the will to do so is simply not there. We should end the decades of fighting.

We should pursue PARTITION. I suggest that a small section on the northwest border be carved out for Ori – this new nation could perhaps be called Oriland. One member of the public has suggested Orinoco, but I would not like to provoke needless border disputes over a silly pun.

In Oriland, there would be no question about “who pon top” – Sean Ori pon top. The new president would be free of all the troubles facing this country surrounding governance, taxation and law enforcement. There would, of course, need to be strict im-

migration controls and agreements to prevent Guyanese crossing the border and settling (as we are wont to do).

We would not want Sean Ori, now free, to have to contend once more with the disagreements and disunity that inevitably arise when at least two people live in the same place for any length of time.

Matters of defence would inevitably need to be divided.

I have no doubt that Sean Ori would admirably uphold Oriland’s territorial integrity, but I worry that the loss of so great a defender of liberty would permanently hamstring the ability of Guyana to protect itself.

I must confess I am not entirely optimistic about this PARTITION. Though it would doubtless have many shortterm benefits, it would be only a matter of time before structural issues in the two societies reassert themselves.

Oriland would be the ideal democracy – one person, one vote. Sean Ori is the person, Sean Ori has the vote. How-

ever, Oriland would initially lack a credible opposition.

This could, in time, be checked by the development in the mind of Sean Ori of a series of checks and balances (what we in Guyana would call a conscience) that stands to counterbalance absolute executive power.

There would be little hope of any such development in Guyana – much as it pains me to say it, Sean Ori’s departure would make very little difference to the exercise of power within or public conscience of Guyana.

I know that many readers may disagree with my proposal, though I hope that Sean Ori (whose proposal for PARTITION I have tweaked only slightly) would support it. If it should fail, I regret to say that I can bear no longer to be forced to live in a society with Sean Ori – I shall have to follow the example of other non-Ori Guyanese and migrate.

Concerned Citizen

Systemic Mentality has failed Guyana DEAR EDITOR, In white ruled countries, minority groups protest what is known a systemic discrimination, this is a practice done to non-white people and the gay and lesbian community, going on so long, it has become the accepted normal, even the perpetrators and victims at times don’t know it is discrimination as it has become a normalised systemic mentality.

The current carnage being tolerated in Guyana’s oil, mining, forestry, agriculture, and daily social life, was caused, by the handing over of Guyana’s wealth to foreign interest by both the PNC and PPP, yet citizens continue to defend and support the two political parties as being more important than the well-being of themselves, their families and Guyana as a whole, they won’t protest for their rightful share from the vast wealth of Guyana, as party allegiance is more important, these citizens would rather stay poor and turn to begging and crime, risking death or imprisonment, such is the systemic mentality.

The business community in Guyana, gets less concessions than the foreign businessmen, pays taxes and duties unlike the exempted foreigners and yet they stay silent, no other country’s business community would accept this but Guyana’s, such is the systemic mentality.

The recent cruise ship job fair drew thousands of enthusiastic hopeful Guyanese, whom instead of

fighting for their fair share of Guyana’s wealth and become pampered guests on the cruise ships, they instead have chosen to become bellhops, kitchen staff, servers, janitors, and maids living below deck away from the fun and risk seasickness and other diseases, such is the systemic mentality.

The diaspora instead of uniting and protest for Guyana’s cause, waste time in online chat forums, hiding behind their keyboards and smartphones posting comments as if the 1964 riots is still going on, such is the systemic mentality.

The parliamentarians who sold out Guyana’s wealth, how much did they sell it out for? Past leaders of other countries who sold out their country’s wealth valued less than Guyana’s, owns mansions on the French Rivera and other nice places in Europe, owing luxury yachts and luxury cars, our corrupt leaders are still in Guyana pushing white elephant projects for kickbacks, as once in government, just be corrupt and give away the wealth, whether it makes sense or not, such is the systemic mentality.

This systemic mentality in Guyana have now contributed to, wrong triumphing right, hate triumphing love, divisiveness triumphing inclusiveness, corruption triumphing accountability, secrecy triumphing transparency, lies triumphing truth, stupidity triumphing sensibility,

arrogance triumphing respect, crime triumphing justice, evil triumphing good, selfishness triumphing compassion, and this list can go on and on.

The poor and vulnerable of Guyanese whom are victims of daily injustice in Guyana, seem to have resigned themselves to acceptance of this injustice, instead of protesting for what is rightfully theirs, they go about struggling to make a living, waiting on elections to vote and watch the election scoreboard, hoping their party wins, meanwhile Guyana gets drilled, carved, sliced, and diced and the leaders preach nonsense

whenever questioned on Guyana’s wealth and environment as, the leaders are allowed to destroy Guyana with no consequences whatsoever, which is exactly what they do regularly, such is the systemic mentality.

Glenn Lall on his one of his recent show said he wants to go to the jungle and live with the animals, as he can’t stand the insanity anymore, sorry Glenn, at the current rate of destruction even the jungle and the animals will be destroyed too, you will have to find another place for your sanctity.

R. David

The EPA’s Board needs an additional environmentalist DEAR EDITOR, Exxon had to unwillingly add an environmentalist perspective to its Board in order for the public’s best interest to be clearly voiced and considered in the company’s decision-making.

The board of the EPA would also benefit from such a presence. Someone who brings a pragmatic consideration of the environment and helps decisions be made with the safety of our biosphere in mind. Two strong candidates come to mind, Mrs. Janki and Mrs. Mangal Joly.

They have both shown an interest in being part of a holistic solution within the Oil Sector, and they have been proposing a thorough review of the impact on the environ-

ment before green lighting a project.

CRG supports having these two names considered for such a role on the EPA’s Board if these two highly educated ladies are willing.

Exxon has proven to the world that although they speak of good intentions, the risk reward curve can lead to disastrous outcomes.

Helping Exxon and Our Government maintain an objective perspective when making decisions in the Oil Sector is in everyone’s best interest.

Best regards, Mr. Jamil Changlee Chairman The Cooperative Republicans of Guyana

Monday July 11, 2022

Will the fishermen of Demerara be happy with so much glorious mud?

DEAR EDITOR, Thank you for your news item ‘Fishermen fear more harm to industry’, Kaieteur News, 10 July. Available at: h t t p s : / / www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/ 2022/07/10/fishermen-fearmore-harm-to-industry/. I wonder if the sheer amount of mud to be dredged and dumped onto their traditional fishing grounds was explained by the company during the focus group meetings and public consultations with the fishermen?

I used the dimensions provided by the chartlet shown in MARAD Notice to Mariners number 113 dated 28 June 2022, derived from UK Hydrographic Office chart number 527. I assumed that the desire of EEPGL is to enlarge the Demerara Main Ship Channel to a dredged depth of 15 metres, from sea surface to sea bottom. I estimated 10 nautical miles with 10 metres of mud removed, 5 nautical miles with 7 metres of dredged mud, and 2.6 nautical miles with 5 metres of dredged mud.

I estimated enlarged channel width as an average of 2.05 nautical miles.

We cannot tell from the reported interview by Stabroek News how much of the mud from the cutter suction dredge ‘Zheng He’ will be sprayed ‘w e s t o f t h e channel t o w a r d s t h e Demerara River’ and how much mud will by sucked up into the hoppers of the two trailer suction dredges ‘De Bougainville’ and ‘Galileo Galilei’ and then dumped onto the fishing grounds.

But the total amount of glorious mud estimated as above comes to almost 1000 million cubic metres (= one cubic kilometre). Perhaps the GEITI Secretariat can let your readers know who is financing this tremendous work?

Wikipedia gives the area of Georgetown as 70 square kilometres.

So if the mud to be dredged and sprayed and dumped were to be overlain on the City of Georgetown, it would be a layer 14 metres deep. Yet our Environmental Protection Agency does not think that this enormous

movement of material and the obliteration of the natural seabed of traditional fishing grounds needs to be explained and justified in an Environmental Impact Assessment?

Editor, I have a scanned section of UK Hydrographic Office chart number G519B, the estuary of the Demerara River.

These are the maps which are used by M A R A D a n d G u y a n a ’s Ministry of Finance, among other agencies. The words – ‘Demerara River/ fishing stakes entry prohibited’ are clearly visible.

Those words are also written on chart number G2784 which covers the estuary of the Berbice River.

Fishers have legal and customary rights; their rights pre-date those issued to the oil and gas operators and sub-contractors and service providers.

Ignored though fishers’ rights are, fishers are our sentinels, witnesses to the wholesale unconsulted transformation of their fishing grounds.

Yours truly, Janette Bulkan

A boy name Sue DEAR EDITOR, I am mildly amused at your commentaries of July 8th and 9th respectively. To understand the entire drama, we have to go back to the elections period of 2020 when the media went off the hook to demonise the then incumbent Administration.

I feel that then the media was not charitable in its commentary and could have toned down the rhetoric. But the lynching squads led by our US friends was out on the streets baying for the heads of leaders of that Administration. The mantra was regime change.

We all who know the Law knew that Order N0.

60 was not in order and that it could not be considered seriously for the alleviation of the impasse.

Now that a firm Chinese Connection has been established, we o u g h t not to be unduly worried.

The losers here are the American business circle and the Guyanese population.

The Americans get no contracts and we here are heavily shafted.

The costs of all the projects undertaken by the Chinese are overinflated.

Now Editor, let’s look at a few projects.

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Kaieteur News

The Airport project is nearly 15 years in the making and cannot be completed.

The GPL PUUP has shared a similar fate. It started in 2017 and only two parts have been completed.

Both parts going well beyond the designed date for completion.

It is a known economic fact that when national projects go well beyond completion dates, there are added costs to the nation’s budget.

Then there is the matter of the financing type used for the project roll out.

The favoured BOOT is unsuitable for our country.

Herein lies the foundation for corruption since the contractor uses his finance which of course will always engage a Mr. Su. The interest rate of such financing is susceptible to gerrymandering

and herein lies the opportunity for the inclusion of s e c r e t c o s t s . We h a v e been hearing a lot about the Amaila Falls project and I wonder if persons have made a study of it and comp a r a b l e p r o j e c t s worldwide.

Amaila comes in at about G$2.7M per unit whereas comparable plant worldwide come in at G$1.3M per unit.

Recently, Barbados has indicated a solar energy project for about 20% of Amaila’s cost. One wonders what our planners have been thinking about i n r e a l i t y. T h i s j u s t s h o w s that this hydro project will be a drain on the national finances.

Lastly, we have to thank the BOT model on the Berbice Harbour Bridge for the near collapse of the NIS. Regards.

Cyril Walker

The AFHP is vital to Guyana’s development DEAR EDITOR, This is good news indeed.

It is that “Head of State, President Irfaan, Ali last week, declared that despite the hiccups, government was not going to abandon the project (that is the Amaila Falls Hydro Project-AFHP).” The timely pronouncement came as he was speaking during a critical briefing held at State House.

According to the president, the project is currently undergoing a process (and rightly so) but he was most firm, detailing that, “… we are not going to abandon this project, if we have to go out again and again, we will.” And why not?

First, I care little for the logistics and minutiae of the Amaila Falls Hydro Project (AFHP) since for me, what is vital is that Guyana simple move ahead and realise this long overdue ambition. It is most necessary from a financial aspect, and of course, in terms of being climate and environmentally wise, it is the way to go. I back up to December 2016, as many of us seem to forget too conveniently. Back then, the independent assessment of the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project (AFHP) did reveal that the only realistic path for Guyana moving towards an emission-free electricity sector is by developing its hydropower potential and the fastest way forward is to maintain the AFHP. The report, compiled by Norconsult, an engineering and design consultancy firm out of Norway, and which was

contracted by the Government of Norway, detailed an “objective and facts-based” assessment of the Project on the agreement of the two Governments, and made some telling statements.

Essentially, the go-ahead is unambiguous, and that was way back in 2016. Part of the statement says that, “It is our opinion that BOOT (Build, Own, Operate, Transfer) type public-private partnership model should be maintained for the project implementation.

An internationally well-merited investor and operator in the hydropower industry should be invited to take the majority position and the driving seat (main sponsor) in the project company. So, irrespective of the means of accomplishing the AFHP, the bottom line is that Guyana must not stall for too long.

Secondly, when it is all said and done, Guyana will be supplied with electricity “at a cost not exceeding US$0.07737 per KWH, as against what currently obtains, which is also largely fossil fuel-based, at $0.32 per KWH. This must not go on.

We also know that power is not stable in many areas, and the current high cost of electricity continues to affect operating performance for businesses and is a major challenge to the productive sector, as profitability is severely compromised. My hope is that the opposition and skeptics will be unbiased and quit playing politics. The well-being of all Guyanese is far too important and our leaders must be candid when

it comes to overall betterment of the country. Yes, Guyana has oil, and even this emerging Oil and Gas sector is being lambasted. I remind all that renewable energy is growing rapidly around the world, but fossil fuels still make up a majority of the world’s energy use. So, Guyana has to be very prudent.

In 2017, 81 percent of the energy the world consumed was oil, coal and natural gas. According to the Global Material Flow Database developed by the UN Environment Programme, three countries use more fossil fuels than the rest of the world combined: China, the United States and India. Together, these countries consume 54 percent of the world’s fossil fuels by weight.

So, the capacity for renewable energy is enormous, and I repeat, that Guyana must think ahead.

In closing, even if Guyana has to shift from the BOOT contract to an EPC (Engineering, procurement, and constructionEPC) one, and it devolves to the government’s lead in having to secure the finances for the project, then so be it. It is the end result that matters, both locally and globally. Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo summed it up succinctly, stating the preference and that “… if we can’t get it done under the BOOT, we will have to retender…” as “it was not a case of the Chinese not being in favour of a BOOT arrangement…” but rather it is that “they simply can’t raise the financing, because of that.”

Yours truly, H. Singh

PAGE 6

Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

I welcome police promotions Personally embarrassed but they must be with merit at leadership disgrace

DEAR EDITOR, I recently commented on the illegal police promotions.

However, misleading statements by Calvin Brutus in the media have caused me to put my fingers on the keyboard and to submit this missive.

Editor, please permit me to trace some events leading up to the promotions.

On July 1, 2022, Bishop, Patrick Findlay who is/was the Prime Minister’s representative in Region 4 and the illegally inst a l l e d Chairman of the political influence Police Service Commission during a media interview said that he had done very little work apart from reading files left in the office by the previous Commission.

He explained that he was awaiting the list of recommendations for promotions from the Commissioner.

On J u l y 3 , 2 0 2 2 , Clifton Hicken announced the list of promotion for members of the Force ranging from Inspectors to Assistant Commissioners.

Circulating was a stamped document signed by the Secretary of the Commission dated July 2, 2022 approving the promotions.

It is clear that the promotions were approved one day after the list was received.

The Commission did not have enough time for due diligence which would include: conducting interviews if necessary; scrutinising personal files and other documents to ascertain if person/s had disciplinary and or criminal matters under investigation, persons who passed the Appropriate Qualifying examinations, seniority, qualification, experience, merit and other pertinent issues and concerns.

In addition, there appeared to be flagrant breaches o f t h e P o l i c e Standing Orders number 22 that deals with promotions and rule 29 (1 - 3) of

the Public Service Commission Rules which are enshrined in the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.

I challenge C a l v i n Brutus, the person who sits in the chair, the installed chairman and members of the Commission to de n y publicly the following: ( a ) Tw o o f f i c e r s w h o were promoted to assistant commissioners had disciplinary matters pending against them. (b) The Minister of Home Affairs wrote D e p u t y C o m m i s s i o n e r, Nigel Hoppie who was performing the duties of Commissioner to proceed with criminal charge against one of the officers who was promoted to Assistant Commissioner. (c) Numerous ranks with disciplinary matters were promoted. (d) There were numerous unjustified super-sessions. (e) The installed Chairman of the Police Association, Prem Narine was promoted without justification from Inspector to Superintendent. He superseded over 180 others. (f) One sergeant who did not pass the Appropriate Qualifying Examination was promoted to Assistant Superintendent. (g) One senior officer who the Hon. Chief Justice deemed self-serving was promoted to Assistant Commissioner (h) Many outstanding m e m b e r s of t h e F o r c e were unjustly denied promotions (i) There were flagrant violations of the Police Standing Orders 22 that deals with promotions and rule 29 (1 - 3) of the Public Service Rules, which are enshrined in the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. (j) One civilian was promoted. (k) Several ranks who did not pass the Appropriate Qualifying Examinations were promoted.

I urge the police to pro-

duce direct, circumstantial, documentary and real evidence to deny the above. Please do not give me hearsay evidence unless they are exemptions to the rule.

Calvin Brutus in a letter to the press signed as Chairman of the Police Officers’ Association.

This is ridiculous.

Assistant Commissioners are exuded from being members of the Police Officers Association.

Calvin Brutus cannot speak for that body.

When Senior Superintendent Paul Slowe, Chairman of that Association became an Assistant Commissioner of Police he had to demit that office.

That was the position with former Chairmen of the Association, Senior Superintendents Clinton Conway and Balram Persaud when they were promoted to Assistant Commissioners.

I wonder why Brutus is holding on to power?

Calvin Brutus mentioned that the denial of promotion will shatter the morale of the ranks.

I wonder what happened when Brutus blocked the last promotion.

What analysis did Calvin Brutus do or caused to be done to conclude that the morale of the ranks is at an all-time high because of the promotions.

On the other side of the coin, several members of the Force reached out to me expressing their dissatisfaction with the promotions.

Let me be clear.

I welcome promotions but they must be with merit.

I cannot enjoy the Fruit of the Poisonous Tree. Etu Brutus.

I again pray that God will help the Guyana Police Force.

Yours respectfully, Clinton Conway Assistant Commissioner of Police (Retired) Former Chairman of the Police Officers’ Association

Hess hails “tremendous progress” extracting...

From page 2 build long-term share prosperity for the people of Guyana,” he disclosed.

There are currently two Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessels in operation in the Stabroek Block at the Liza I and II oil field, namely the Liza Destiny, with a nameplate capacity of 120,000 barrels of oil daily (BOD), and the Liza Unity with a capacity of 220,000.

At a previous engagement, Hess had explained the third ship Payara was supposed to come on-stream at 220,000 BOD, in 2024 but that has since been moved up to the fourth quarter of 2023.

With regards increased production from those vessels beyond nameplate capacity, Hess said, “I would say both Liza Phase II, the second ship, and Payara, the

third ship, both have the opportunity to debottleneck to go up maybe another 10 percent just like Liza Phase I.” On the fourth project— Yellowtail—Hess told the confab that development which recently approved is currently having its Hull built to accommodate some 250,000 BOD nameplate capacity representing the largest of the vessels to be put in operations thus far.

DEAR EDITOR, I am embarrassed at what our leaders have done to themselves. It is how they disgraced themselves in their behaviours, their relationships, their managements of the trusts and responsibilities placed in their hands. I am sickened that foreigners from the Far East could travel this distance West to poke fun at our leaders, to make people like me cringe and wishing that I was in some other place.

I started listening to a taped conversation of foreigners conversing, and I had to stop about a third of the way. They were laughing at our leaders, my leaders. I couldn’t take anymore, and I speak not about money laundering or such. For it was appalling, and so much so that it sent me scurrying for cover to hide my shame at the humiliations that our leaders have brought upon themselves.

I heard one knowing foreigner uttering a laugh that was so loud that it had to start from his toes, work its way upwards, with a long stop in his belly to gather energy before it erupted in a blast of disrespectful sound.

It was at the mention of the office and title of ‘president.’

Whether I respect him or don’t is beside the point, but he is President, my Guyanese President. And though his warts and sores are full-bodied, he is my President, and I am furious that others could insult him in this worst of disparaging, this most cackling,

cynical, cruel manner.

What has the President done to himself? Why did he allow himself to be thought of this way, be derogated in this contemptuous, unmentionable, unforgivable display of dismissal of my head of state? Whether he deserves it or not is not the issue, this man is my leader, my president, and even I don’t resort to that sort of braying brutality in my worst thought of him. I am serious. My last question, another pained one, is how does he live with himself, when these thick shadows encircle him?

The Hon. Vice President and his people may think that the awe and admiration with which he is discussed is to his credit. Yes, but in what way? When his name is bandied about so casually by knowing and scheming foreigners as the man to know, the leader to approach, and the only proven power to do business with, a certain kind of helpful business transaction, what does this say?

What does this say again and again, when my Vice President, a former multi-term President himself, could be spoken of so joyfully and expansively as the man to make things happen? Any kind of underhanded thing, what does this say about him, innocence claims and all? The problem is that what the Chinese were having such a good time over, discussing in such a matter-of-fact way, registers sharply because it is what all Guyanese have

wrung their hands over. If this was a Hollywood production, it was a darn good representation of the facts of leadership life in Guyana.

The very fact that the Vice President’s name could come up in that type of circle for that kind of conversation says all that has to be said. I would have preferred to hear how hard it is to do tricky, shady, dirty business in Guyana because the leaders are so straight, so unbending, so protective of the great honours bestowed on them by the people that there must be approaching, messing with him. That to do so would be the equal of visa and commercial suicide. But that was not what I heard, not one syllable in that direction, not a single phrase or mindset possessing any such exemplary quality. As incredible as this sounds, I want to rush to the defense of the President and Vice President and set the record right with these lying, distorting, exaggerating outsiders, but I have nothing to go on, absolutely anything that is favourable to speak on their behalf. I am weaponless.

So, I lick my wounds and retreat in shame. I wish it weren’t so, for these exposed, embattled, and embarrassed leaders are my President and my Vice President. And this is regardless of whatever regard I have for them both.

Guyanese may shrug, not care. I do care, am ashamed.

I take these things seriously.

Sincerely, GHK Lall

Japan’s Abe was a great

Leader

DEAR EDITOR, It was a great shock to read that former Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated by a disgruntled man.

That he was murdered by a gun in a country known for tranquil peace is unbelievable.

In 2021, there was only one gun death in the country of 125M people as compared with the US with 47K gun related deaths.

Ab e w o r k e d v e r y hard to boost bilateral relations with other countries including Russia, which fell out after the Ukraine war.

Abe supported peaceful efforts to resolve conflicts.

And he was supportive of democratic principles although I can’t re-

member whether Japan made statements on Guyana’s attempted electoral fraud of March 2020. Abe walked away from political power at the height of his political popularity.

Few leaders did or do that, certainly not in the Caribbean or Latin America or Africa.

No doubt, Abe was an outstanding leader, a great statesman, the likes of whom not seen in recent decades around the globe.

He was liked in Asia and was seen as a giant of a leader who won hearts and minds of people in Asia, including the 1.35 billion people of India where he visited multiple times.

He was a very humble man who engaged in local customs and practices of host countries, including performing aartee on the banks of the hoy Ganges River in Varanasi.

He also put on the na-

tional male wear of host countries he visited in Southeast Asia.

Abe positioned Japan as a responsible developed nation.

He did not venture into war although he supported peace making missions in Africa.

Abe’s economic reforms are a significant feature of his unparalleled legacy.

Abe’s policies turned around Japan’s economy from recession into the robust position it now occupies among developed countries.

He was generous in foreign grants – assisting African and Latin-Caribbean countries including Guyana. It is hoped that his legacy will live on and that Japan will continue to be generous in its grants to poor countries like Guyana.

Yours truly, Vishnu Bisram

T N U L B . . .

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BL TLUNT.. UNT...B BL Monday June 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

The colloquial expression here, “pressure does buss pipe' rings true with the dramatic resignation of the President and Prime Minister of Sri Lanka over the weekend. Despite daily protests over their mismanagement of the country, the two leaders had managed to cling on to power, but by the sheer will of the people they were forced to resign.

What we witnessed in Sri Lanka is of citizens standing up in anger over the poor state of their country, brought on by visionless and corrupt leaders.

All the pieces were there in Sri Lanka, and to such an extent that rank-and-file citizens couldn't take it anymore.

They had absorbed enough, endured enough, and constructive channeling and expression of their pent-up wrath and energies meant that stubborn leaders had no option but to give ground, to leave office. The developments in unsettled Sri Lanka should serve as both mirror and case study of all that has gone wrong in Guyana, and who and what are responsible for the way that this country is in today. Look at Sri Lanka first, then cast eyes at what is happening here in Guyana. If it is not a family relation doing well in Guyana, it is some nephew-in-law or cousin-in-law, benefiting handsomely from the richness of doing business for the State.

Guyanese must now stand up like the Sri Lankans and demand greater accountability from out leaders.

We must step up and keep up the pressure.

PAGE 07

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Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

Corruption allegations dog Chinese investors in Guyana ...Embassy, Association, others issues statements defending businesses

T

he recent Vice N e w s ' documentary that flagged alleged corrupt deals between Chinese businessmen and Guyanese politicians was not well received by China and its Embassy here in Guyana, was forced to urge its citizens to steer clear of corruption.

Chinese businesses and nationals were reminded of China's zero tolerance for corruption via a public statement made on the Embassy's Facebook Page.

The Embassy related that the timely reminder was made by a “spokesperson” on its behalf. It did not reveal the identity of the official but the spokesperson started off by labeling the Vice News report as one that seeks to smear China and undermine the country's relationship with Guyana. The official then added in the final paragraph, “I also want to emphasize that China is a country under the rule of law, and the Government and Communist Party of China apply a zero tolerance policy towards corruption. Overseas Chinese companies and Chinese nationals are requested to comply with laws and regulations, and actively fulfill local social responsibilities”.

Kaieteur News had reached out to one of the officials of the Embassy to find out if the country will conduct an investigation into the allegations made in the

A screen grab from the Vice News Documentary of the conversation between the undercover Journalist Isobel Yeung and the suspected Chinese money launderer operating in Guyana.

Chinese Ambassador to Guyana, GUO Haiyan Vice News report but up to press time, there was no response.

One of the alleged wrong doings flagged in the report was money laundering by Chinese nationals operating in the country. The journalist who filed the report, Isobel Yeung had entered Guyana with her colleague posing as a Chinese businessman called “Chan” under the disguise that they are potential investors looking for deals in Guyana and had reportedly met some of the money launderers.

They were introduced to a Su Zhirong, a Chinese businessman with close ties to Guyana's Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo. He was willing to assist them but on one condition and that was to pay a bribe to him and Jagdeo

but there was a problem, they needed to get large cash into Guyana.

Ye u n g a n d C h a n reportedly met with a Chinese national who could help them get cash into the country. Their meeting was recorded on a hidden camera and the man was heard saying, “We deal with all Chinese businessmen here in Guyana. If there are some fees that need to be transferred to the president and local government officials, that money is transferred through us.”

When asked how he is able to do this he said, “It's very easy. What we do is get around China's regulations…

You give me Chinese RMB (Chinese yang) and I can give you cash tomorrow”. The individual also related that he

works with a team to transfer huge sums of cash for both private and state-run Chinese businesses into Guyana. He also made it clear that because of the Covid-19 Pandemic, his team is only able to transfer $300,000 to $400,000 per day, and said too that “dirty money” can be transferred for corrupt Chinese officials but at a higher cost.

Meanwhile, China Railway First Group, one of the Chinese companies that have profited from mega contracts here over the years also sought to distance itself from the corruption allegations. In a statement, the company said, “recently, a footage named “Guyana for Sale” aired by the media VICE NEWS indicated that China Railway First Group

Thieves break businessman's car, steal Hennessey, laptop Thieves in Guyana on Thursday broke into the car of a Suriname-based businessman and stole his laptop computer, personal documents and a bottle of Hennessy.The victim was identified as Rakeesh Kalloe of Paramaribo, Suriname and his car was parked in the vicinity of the Umana Yana located at Kingston, Georgetown.

It is suspected that the theft took place between 21:00 and 23:00hrs while Kalloe and a friend were having dinner at the Pegasus Hotel located a short distance.

When they returned to the car, the back window was broken and when he checked for his belongings, they were gone.

Kalloe lost a US$800 leather bag containing his wallet, entrance visa and a silvergrey Lenovo laptop. The perpetrators did not leave without grabbing a bottle Hennessy.

Investigations are ongoing.

In the vicinity of the Umana Yana where the businessman had parked his car before heading to dinner.

Co. Ltd (CRFG) had connections with a Guyanese citizen Su Zhirong in its tracking for Amaila Falls Hydropower Project and the road project, misleading the public through online media based on the groundless fabrication of so-called factors in an attempt to defame Chinese enterprises here in Guyana.” “CRFG hereby solemnly states that CRFG has never signed any agreement with Su Zhirong, nor has it conduct any actions that were shown in the footage,” the company stated.

Regarding to Amaila Falls Hydropower Project, the Chinese construction company explained that Sithe Global, a U.S. based company, as the investor of the project and beneficiary of th e co n ces s io n r ig h ts , publicised the invitation for bid for the project across the globe in May, 2008, and CRFG participated in the bidding process. In November 2008, CRFG was announced the successful bidder for EPC Contract of Amaila Falls Hydropower Project, which was officially signed between CRFG and Sithe Global in September, 2012. In August 2013, Sithe Global, due to the expiration of the concession rights for the project, exited the development of Guyana Amaila Falls Hydropower Project. Ever since then, the project was long-term laid aside.

China Railway said, in July 2021, the Government of Guyana publicized the RFP (Request for Proposal) for Amaila Hydropower Project. Among all the

Proposals submitted by the companies in September 2021, CRFG's Proposal presented the lowest price.

“Therefore, in November 2021, the Government of Guyana expressed that it would proceed to next round of negotiations for the project preferably with CRFG. Similar procedures were followed for the fulfillment of the “East Coast Demerara Public Road Widening and Improvement Project-Better Hope to Belfield Village” (ECD Public Road Project)

by CRFG. In November 2013, the Government of Guyana publicized the notice for pre-qualification for this project, and eight companies including CRFG participated in the pre-qualification process. Later on, CRFG and other five companies were shortlisted to enter the official bidding as the second stage. The Bids were opened in May 2014, and CRFG, with its lowest price (lower than the Engineers' estimates), was announced the successful bidder among all four companies who have submitted the Bids. In December 2014, CRFG signed the Contract of this project with the Ministry of Public Works. And CRFG delivered to Guyanese people so far, the best roadway in Guyana with the highest quality at the lowest price, which is highly commended by local residents.”

Since its presence in Guyana from 2008, CRFG said it has strictly abides by the laws and regulations of Guyana in conducting its (Continued on page 9 )

Monday July 11, 2022

PAGE 9

Kaieteur News

Guyanese invented flying money During the late 1970s and the entirety of the 1980s, when foreign currency was scarce and there were strict restrictions on the foreign exchange transactions, Guyanese overseas developed found simple, ingenious and lawful means to remit monies to their families and to help to finance imports.

Prior to the acute foreign exchange shortage, Guyanese living overseas would send home monies to support their relatives.

Often, they would conceal it in the mail or when someone was travelling to Guyana, they would ask that person to bring the money.

People assisted willingly because they knew the hardships which Guyanese at home faced.

But the mail was often not reliable or safe.

Many families did receive monies through the post but there was always the fear that someone, including the postal authorities, would open the mail and pilfer the cash concealed within But, as is said: “smarter the government, wiser the population”.

One of the techniques used was to send a greeting

card with a photograph pasted on one of the faces of the card. Between the photograph and the face of card would be a little space in which the money would be concealed.

But as times got tougher, more money needed to be sent home to support families and relatives.

At the same time, many businesses were unable to obtain foreign exchange to procure goods.

The two – personal remittances and businesses – came together.

If someone overseas wanted to send some money for their relatives back home, they would contact a local Guyanese businessperson who needed foreign exchange and that businessperson would give the relatives the equivalent amount in Guyana dollars.

The overseas Guyanese would then keep the US or Canadian dollars for the businessman to make purchases including of food and clothes.

Without such an arrangement, Guyanese would have starved and gone naked. It was Guyanese ingenuity, which provided the means to allow private businesses to

source scarce foreign exchange.

After 1991, the foreign exchange system was liberalised. There was no longer that great for businessmen to source their ‘forex’ need from private remittances.

But sending money with persons travelling to Guyana, or having some local person give money to relatives in Guyana, continued. It was a convenient arrangement.

A Guyanese in New York, for example, would call up a friend in Guyana and tell that friend to give his relatives in Guyana, some money. A family may need money for a funeral or for hospital expenses or even school fees or for Christmas.

Somebody in Guyana would give the money and the recipient’s overseas relatives would find a way to get the foreign exchange to the person who advanced the local dollars.

It still works this way. It is a simple, convenient and legal arrangement. You do not have to go to the bank or money transfer agency. The money gets to you. It has nothing to do with cleaning dirty money.

If the hearsay reports from

Corruption allegations blanket Chinese...

From page 8 business operations in the country. “We express strong indignation on the behaviors that VICE NEWS and Su Zhirong deliberately fabricated stories and spread such untruthful information on the internet to mislead the public and damage the reputation of our company. We strongly condemn such behaviors of defaming Chinese enterprises. Given such, CRFG hereby declares that it reserves the rights to seek le-

gal actions against VICE NEWS and Su Zhirong for their reputation damaging behaviours and the rights to claim compensations for loss so incurred to our company's business,” the company stated.

For its part, the Chinese Association of notwithstanding the allegations levied upon particular individuals in the Vice documentary, it is hoped that the public will take a moment to recognise that these individuals do not rep-

resent the wider Chinese community. “By and large, members of the Chinese community are devoted to an earnest and hardworking means of livelihood for the well-being of their loved ones — just like all other persons in society.

All in all, The Chinese Association of Guyana is equitably devoted to the wellbeing of all peoples of Guyana and work cooperatively towards advancing our harmony, and mutual understanding, and mutual appreciation.”

Dem boys seh...

Sugar price gat women looking fuh sweetman

De price of sugar gone up. Nat because GUYSUCO charging more, but because dem gat a shortage and dem shops and supermarkets decide fuh increase dem price.

Shortage does become excuse fuh raise price. Nah ask dem business people fuh gat a conscience. Dem looking at every opportunity to mek a extra dollar.

De cost of living biting.

But Guyanese done survive worse dan dat. Dem had a time when all yuh coulda get in de supermarket was rice and sugar. Another time, de old guvament did export

most of de local sugar and import sugar from Guatemala.

Since de Prezzie talking bout Belize being a bridge to Central America, he better ask Belize to get some Guatemala sugar fuh come to Guyana fuh help ease dis situation.

Sugar is a must in de kitchen. Guyanese does use nuff sugar in dem tea and fuh mek all kinda cake.

Some Guyanese men use suh much sugar when dem small dat when dem get big, dem turn sweetman.

Dem tongue also get sweet. One man calling he wife, “honey”, “sweetie” and “sugar”. When dem boys

ask he why he does call he wife dem names, he talk how he fuhget she name two years ago and he frighten fuh ask.

De money dem charging fuh a pound a sugar mekkin’ some women think about a second profession.

One lady went pon Tik Tok and seh how she gan gat to get three man – one fuh weekend, one fuh month-end and one every two weeks since ration costing about $40,000. She lucky! Dah is wah dem boys spending every week in de supermarket.

Talk half. Leff half.

Vice News are to be believed, it would appear that the Chinese have developed a similar system. China is a closed society and has strict restrictions on the movement of foreign exchange.

Usually, monies have to first be converted to Yuan before they can be used to make purchases but some suppliers usually do the conversion at the banks for the buyer.

In such a situation, it is to be expected that ways will be found to remit monies back to China and to transfer monies out of China.

It does now appear as if what the Stabroek News calls “flying money” is also used

by Chinese in the same way as Guyanese did during the 1970s and 1980s.

This does not mean that

unclean money is being washed.

Most of the Chinese construction firms in Guyana are Chinese state-owned firms.

Not fully private entities.

So they would have no need, as the Stabroek News editorial is suggesting, of circumventing border or local regulations. But it is to be expected that rather than exporting monies from China, the local needs of Chinese companies may be funded by dollars generated locally by Chinese businesses.

During the privatisation process in 1990s, a local bank was sold to foreign shareholders. There was a report that alleged that instead of paying for the transaction in US dollars, the new owners used the very deposits in the bank to pay for its purchase.

Stabroek News itself was established with foreign funding from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) – a notorious organisation used to undermine left-wing governments. Can the Stabroek News state whether the funding by the NED came directly to Guyana or was it used to pay, in part, for the printing of the newspaper in Trinidad?

Was this a case also of “flying money”?

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

Kaieteur News

PAGE 10

Monday July May 02, 11, 2022

THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN

Sherod Parkinson, the roundabout engineer could have been hurt

A

few emails over the past three years have informed me that the roundabout at the Cenotaph, outside the Bank of Guyana, is really not a roundabout. So it is not Guyana's first roundabout. I examined it, and I agree.

Guyana's first roundabout is at the Kitty pump station where the Eve Leary seawall going east ends, and from thereon you enter Clive Lloyd Drive. The engineer in charge of the project was Sherod Parkinson. Since I am on the seawall with my dog in the mornings, I would stop and speak to Mr. Parkinson while he supervised the construction.

Please see the following two columns on my take on the seawall roundabout; Friday, April 27, 2018, “Was the seawall roundabout necessary?” and Saturday, May 12, 2018, “The seawall roundabout and the

Emperor's new clothes.” I also did a couple of articles on the recent roundabout at Sheriff Street and the Railway Embankment.

Since all my publications on the roundabouts, I received several emails from foreign based Guyanese who informed me that roundabouts are a positive road system that works smoothly.

Those persons meant well in their correspondence with me but they do not live in Guyana, do not get a taste of the absolutely ancient bureaucracy that is the norm in Guyana (women cannot wear a sleeveless dress to enter a public building), and do not experience the nature of human existence in Guyana.

Roundabouts work in countries where the nationalities do not embody the flaws of a nationality named Guyanese. We have the worst drivers in the world, and I would like to

repeat that – in the world.

Thus, I anticipated that such uncivilised drivers are going to make a mess of the roundabout thus we should retain the traffic signals.

And they are doing that because they are incapable of having the capacity to understand the concept of a roundabout.

Last Saturday, I drove on Sheriff Street to pick up my daughter at the Cultural Centre.

I don't go out in the nights so I don't know what the traffic situation is like. Well, I did Saturday night last. No driver observed lane driving on Sheriff Street that night and there wasn't one traffic rank in sight. After picking up my daughter, I decided, I wasn't going home using that street.

I took Homestretch Avenue going west to turn north into Vlissengen Road.

The traffic signals were blinking and no one slowed.

A car almost hit us. At the

junction of Irving Street and Lamaha Street, it was the same breakdown.

Imagine on a Saturday night when the entire world goes out, traffic signals at two very busy junctions were not working. As they say in common parlance, I ran from the coffin (Sheriff Street) and met up with the jumbie (non-functioning traffic signals).

Since 2018 when Mr. Parkinson and I would talk, I have not seen him but I kept his mobile number in my phone. I called him last week after I nearly got hit, travelling west in the roundabout to enter the seawall road.

Here is what takes place at that sight. First, it is important to note that once you are in the roundabout, you have absolute priority; all traffic must give way to you.

As you enter the seawall circle from the Kitty Public Road to make a slight left to

enter the seawall road, east bound drivers on Carifesta Avenue are not stopping for you because they think you are going east and the Frederick Kissoon circle is wide enough for them to enter it while you are in it. It is the s top for him. I had that same thing at Sheriff Street experience countless times. a n d t h e R a i l w a y Mr. Parkinson and I were lucky; we were not Embankment. broadsided.

While you are in the I am relieved that Mr. circle heading west to make slight left into David Street, Parkinson was not hurt. But north bound drivers on think of how ironic it would Sheriff Street are not have been that the door of the stopping because they vehicle of the man who built believe you are leaving the Guyana's first roundabout circle to go north up Sheriff was hit while he was in the circle.

Street.

I guess life goes on in this These are the inherent defects of the roundabouts strange country named Guyana where surrealism and people are going to die. has taken on new meaning.

Mr. Parkinson told me he (The views expressed in was travelling west in the pump station roundabout to this article are those of the make a left into the seawall a u t h o r a n d d o n o t road and east bound traffic necessarily reflect the on Carifesta Avenue did not opinions of this newspaper.)

29 police ranks graduate from prosecutors' course at Nations University

T

wenty-nine members of the Guyana Police Force, on Friday graduated from the inaugural Police Prosecutors' Training Course conducted by the Nations University – School of Law. The programme which is the first of its kind is said to have been specially designed to meet the needs of police prosecutors in Guyana. The programme commenced on October 16, 2021, and lasted for six months, which ended on Friday when the ranks graduated at the Nations University's New Market Street Georgetown, headquarters. Among the 29 ranks who graduated were a Superintendent, a Deputy Superintendent, four Sergeants, six Corporals, three Lance Corporals, and twelve Constables.

During the six-month course, the ranks were exposed to a magnitude of learning, comprising of 624 hours, of which 294 were guided learning and 330 hours of independent study covering 196 lessons across 261 topics, ranging from understanding the duties of prosecutors to trial advocacy.

The course content, assessments and grading were vetted by ABMA Education based in the United Kingdom, which is an Ofqual recognized Awarding Organization, through a process of reviews and approval of rigorous

Twenty-nine members of the Guyana Police Force who graduated from inaugural Police Prosecutors' Training Course on Friday are pictured top members of the Nations University, the GPF, and the Judiciary. moderation of assessments.

With the programme's completion, the ranks are now versed in the understanding of the processes of prosecuting criminal action before the Magistrate Courts within Guyana and will play a pivotal role in transforming and boosting the Force's Prosecutorial arm throughout the 12 Regional Police Divisions.

The 29 participants who are the first batch of members of the Force to benefit from the course now hold certificates that are internationally recognised and accepted by the

University of London as an entry requirement into their prestigious LLB programme.

Attorney General Nandlall in congratulating new graduates urged them to use the freshly acquired skills to help to uphold the rule of law.

“The rule of law is the foundation on which modern society rests.

You are aware of the economic, social, modern and other changes taking in our society but none of it will be possible unless we have law and order prevailing in our society, unless the rule of law is respected and unless there is public order and a

legal system that delivers justice to our people in accordance with law. As we are making advances in the other sectors similarly in the legal system, we must develop in keeping with the pace at which the society is moving,” Nandlall said.

Meanwhile, Assistant Police Commissioner Calvin Brutus, in giving the 'charge' to the ranks advised them to pay keen attention to Article 144, which relates to fairness to the victim and more importantly fairness to the suspect, and Article 144 (2 A) which speaks to being presumed innocent unless proven guilty or they

[accused] pleading guilty.

“That must be the general position of our prosecutors and doing that now…they will ensure that they present evidence [that] is untainted, that is not fabricated, and they will be fair in the discharge of their duties as prosecutors to ensure that justice is served and justice is done,” Brutus posited.

He also highlighted that since the programme is accredited and it has been accepted as part of the criteria for the London University's LLB programme, anyone desirous of attending the programme could do so as long as they are accepted.

“The Force has taken the decision in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs and our Permanent Secretary and of course further up in the hierarchy to support them in terms of their tuition to go through and pursue that degree... so that they will be developed, they will contribute back to the Force and to the society,” he added.

Later, Brutus, in an invited comment, expressed his satisfaction on the ranks' successful completion of the programme. Mr. Brutus noted that this course, along with the numerous others that are currently being offered to all members of the Force, forms part of the Force's Strategic Plan which focuses heavily on human resource development. “It is for us, a sense of relief and pride because their achievement here today is also an achievement for us in the administration of the Force.

We have embarked on developing our people and this course is one of many courses in different disciplines that we are pursuing to develop our staff," he said.

Owing to the intense nature of the training, the ranks were released on fulltime duty to do their various research and study. Speaking on the absence of trained police prosecutors in the Guyana Police Force, Mr. Brutus shared that with this (Cotninued on page 16)

Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

PAGE 11

Kaieteur News

PAGE 12

Foreign aircraft with cocaine lands at Mahdia ...Colombian, Brazilian held A team of investigators from the Guyana Police Force's headquarters at Eve Leary, Georgetown on Sunday travelled to Mahdia, Region Eight after a Cessna aircraft loaded with cocaine illegally landed at the airstrip.

The tail number (registration number) of the plane is N5470Z and according to investigators it landed around 14:20hrs.

Kaieteur News was told that the pilot and co-pilot of the airplane were detained for questioning.

Police identified the pilot as a Colombian national, Rodriguez Estiven while the other, Mateus Vinicius Alberto, is believed to be a law-enforcement officer of

Brazilian National, Mateus Vicinius Alberto

Columbian National, Rodrigues Estiven

neighbouring Brazil, however police are yet to confirm if the claim is true.

Inside the aircraft, investigators found 10 parcels of suspected cocaine and eight were labeled “king

Cocoa 30”. A parcel of cannabis was also part of the plane's cargo along with one satellite phone, two GPS devices, and one radio set.

Investigators have since flown back to Georgetown

The Cessna that landed illegally at Mahdia on Sunday

with the narcotics and the suspects.

Some background checks suggest that it could be possible that the aircraft might be carrying an incorrect tail number.

H o w e v e r, t h e r e i s a registered 1972 model Cessna plane N5470 that might be linked to Brazil.

In recent years, such planes have been using Guyana's airspace to traffic cocaine. At least five airplanes have landed illegally in the hinterland locations from 2020 to present.

Two planes, a Cessna with three foreign nationals onboard and a beechcraft laden with kilos of cocaine and a body were found at Issano, Region Seven, in 2020. Another craft, a burnt out Cessna was found abandoned along a trail in Kwakwani in June 2021. A fourth plane, a beechcraft with more drugs and two Brazilian nationals onboard was forced to land at Orealla, Region Six in May 2021, because of mechanical issues. Some of the foreign nationals have already been prosecuted and jailed while others are still on trial.

Monday July 11, 2022

MoU with Belize opens up “tremendous doors” - Pres. Ali President Irfaan Ali said the new cooperation agreement between Guyana and Belize will open up tremendous doors for the country in advancing interests in several areas, including agriculture.

“Belize, for example, opens up tremendous doors for us in support in Guatemala for our sugar sector, Mexico, Honduras.

So in expanding our diplomatic work and reach in our network to those countries, Belize is a natural ally in helping us to mobilise understanding of our policies that we're driving because as you know, Guyana is transitioning in terms of its international image, and Belize is not only part of the CARICOM community, but it is part of that integrated whole through which Guyana can advance its cause.”

The Head of State made this assertion last Thursday evening following the signing of a Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU) between the two countries, to advance cooperation, the Office of the President reported. The document was signed by Belize's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration, Eamon Courtenay and Guyana's Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Honourable Hugh Todd.

The President emphasised that both countries and the wider region stand to benefit from this enhanced cooperation.

“Belize, on the other hand, could advance their cause with Brazil for example, to support the aspirations of the Brazils of the world, the Guatemala, the Mexico, the Honduras of the world, and that is the two important extremities that we can bring to bear in CARICOM. Because as we have said in the last CARICOM meeting, we have to rethink how we deal, for example, with (Continued on page 16)

President Irfaan Ali and his counterpart from Belize, Prime Minister John Antonio Briceño

Kaieteur News

Monday July 11, 2022

Six-week anti-bullying campaign for schools

T

he Ministry of Human Services and Social Protection has teamed up with the United Bridge Builders Mission Inc. ( N G O ) , a N o n Governmental Organization to conduct a six-week antibullying campaign, targeting violence among children, especially in schools.

This is according to a press release sent out by UBBM on Friday. UBBM stated, “The United Bridge Builders Mission in collaboration with the Ministry of Human Services and Social Protection under the auspices of the Child Care and Protection Agency has embarked on a six-week antibullying campaign” The campaign started on June 30 last and will continue with a planned programme on Tuesday July 12, 2022 at the Sophia Children's Centre.

The Chief Executive Officer of UBBM, Bonita Montaque related to Kaieteur News that her organization decided to get onboard with the campaign because of recent violence that has been taking place in schools.

UBBM believes that one of the main causes for violence among children is bullying.

UNDCO Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean visits Guyana

R

CEO of UBBM, Bonita Montaque The NGO opined too that bullying aggravates depression and increases suicide risk for both the victim and the perpetrator.

“The main objective of the Anti-bullying training programme is to contribute to the strengthening of child protection and prevention services with the focus of minimizing and eradicating bullying among our children”, the NGO stated.

T h e s i x - w e e k programme, added UBBM, will target youths from three care centres in the country, the Sophia Family Care Centre, Plum Park Children's (Continued on page 16)

Jaheem Strator being attacked by a classmate.

PAGE 13

oberto Valent, Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean for the United Nations Development Coordination Office (UNDCO), will visit Guyana from July 11 to 15, 2022.

During his visit, Mr. Valent will meet with His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana; the Hon. Brigadier (Ret'd) Mark Phillips, the Prime Minister; and other senior representatives of the Government of Guyana.

In addition, Mr. Valent will be received by Her Excellency Dr. Carla

Barnett, Secretary-General of CARICOM. Discussions will focus on climate change and Guyana's low carbon development pathway; food systems and the “25 by 25” strategy to reduce the regional food import bill; UN-CARICOM cooperation; and the reform of the United Nations development system.

As part of his programme of meetings, Mr. Valent will meet with representatives of the political opposition, and with Guyana's civil society.

Mr. Valent brings 27 years of service to the United Nations, with the

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Africa, Central America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East.

He has also served as Resident Coordinator in Argentina, Special Representative of the UNDP Administrator for the Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People, United Nations Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in El Salvador and Belize (2010-2015) and held leadership positions with UNDP in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2005-2007) as well as in Sudan (2002-2005).

PAGE 14

Kaieteur News

Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

Monday July 11, 2022

PAGE 15

Another $906M for CJIA ...as Govt. opens tender for construction of new administrative building While works on the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) expansion project by China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) is nearing completion, the government on its end is now looking to spend some $906 million to construct a new building at the facility.

According to a recent invitation for bids by the Ministry of Public Works, they are looking to construct a new administrative office building at the airport.

It was reported in the media in August last year that the ministry had signed a contract with Kalitech Incorporated to the tune of $25.9 million to design a new office building for the airport staff. CJIA's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ramesh Ghir, was quoted in a Department of Public Information article in December stating that the design for the office was completed and that the new step is to go to tender.

Bidding for the project which will be conducted through the National Competitive Bidding procedure specified in the Procurement Act 2003, will be opened on August 2, 2022 at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Procurement office.

Notably, the CJIA project with Chinese contractor, CHEC, remains at US$150M: $138M from the China Exim Bank and $12M from the consolidated fund – taxpayers' money. Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill had explained that the additional works being undertaken by CHEC are at no cost to Guyana, but through negotiations with the government, which the contractor agreed to do at their own expense.

Also while the contract cost with the Chinese contractor remains at US$150M, the government is undertaking several multimillion upgrades to the

airport which were separated into three parts. The government signed a $513M contract last year with construction company CALCO for the construction of a new building attached to CJIA's terminal building, the new building will house a conference room, offices for the airlines and the other support agencies as well as storage bonds for the dutyf r e e s h o p s a n d concessionaires.

In September 2021, Edghill's Ministry awarded a contract for US$2M to a local c o m p a n y n a m e d To t a l Solutions for the supply of two additional air-bridges for CJIA, some US$350,000 more than what was paid for the other air bridges.

Edghill had stated that government funded the additional air bridges.

Kaieteur News had reported that according to the minister, “The air bridges are being funded by the Government of Guyana and that is as a result

The Cheddi Jagan International Airport. [Mike Charles photo] of the agreement made with the APNU/AFC, when they ended up with two air bridges and then we had to get a supplementary from the Parliament, Government of Guyana, to buy the other two.”

Some other projects at the airport that the government is funding are $38 million for an international apron and the taxiway Charlie; $23M for the rehabilitation of the existing roof at the airport; construction and

rehabilitation works of the VIP Lounge and new and existing commercial buildings of the airport at an estimated cost of $612M; $518M runway which comes with an Instrument Landing System (ILS) and $420 million which was approved by the National Assembly for a baggage handling system for the renovated airport.

On June 30, Minister Edghill stated that the major civil works that is completed on the airport, now give CJIA

the capacity to take in Code E and D aircraft. Minister Edghill highlighted that the retrofitting of the superstructure is on schedule for completion and the air bridges are slated to arrive in Guyana on July 16.

Meanwhile, the additional spending by the government has increased the amount of money spent on the airport which falls way below expectations and international airport standards.

Mayor accuses Local Govt. Commission Prison Service ramps of interfering with work of City Council up training for staff Clerk.

However, he said the Local Government Commission continues to selectively interfere in the matters of the Council against the interest of the citizens of Georgetown.

“The citizens of Georgetown are now faced with another disruption as the Commission meddles in the d a y t o d a y administration of the Municipality far beyond its scope which places all contractual services in jeopardy. The disruptions will affect services such as garbage collection, City Mayor, maintenance Ubraj Narine (cleaning and clearing of parapets and canals) and c public information and ontinues to act beyond its awareness,” Narine revealed ambit and disrupt the work of in his statement. the municipality. According He accused the LGC of t o t h e M a y o r , t h e also reaching outside of its municipality exercises its powers and supervising the statutory responsibility to the work of the Town Clerk (ag) citizens of Georgetown and C a n d a c e N e l s o n . H e has in its full legal authority explained that, “The Town vested in the law Ch 28:01 Clerk has seemingly come empowering the Council to under the direct supervision make decisions, which are to and instruction of the be executed by the Town Commission executing the Georgetown Mayor, Ubraj Narine is once again accusing the Local Government Commission (LGC) of hampering the work of the Georgetown municipality.

In a statement issued to the press last Thursday, the Mayor outlined a number of issues in which the LGC

dictates of the Commission.

This will no doubt result in an impasse and will be vehemently rejected with strong opposition exercising all legal and legitimate methods.”

Added to this, the Mayor said the Commission is notably silent on the city's loss of confidence in the City Engineer, a matter which was recently raised by residents of South Ruimveldt during the Government's outreach on the heels of the visit by President Irfaan Ali. Unfortunately, the Mayor said the matter appears to have fallen on deaf ears.

The City Mayor had previously expressed frustration with what he said is a lack of interest by the LGC on matters of importance to the Council.

Mayor Narine noted that he raised the recent recommendation of the Council to terminate the services of the City Engineer Colvern Venture as one which the LGC has failed to act on.

In this regard, Narine indicated that the LGC's sloth in dealing with the issue has placed the entire City of Georgetown in jeopardy. He noted that as the (Continued on page 16)

Aimed at promoting greater efficiency within the Guyana Prison Service (GPF), an additional 114 Prison Officers graduated in various courses over the past three days.

The ranks were trained by internal and external facilitators, and among the completed courses were: Prison Management, Human Rights and Supervisory Management.

Additionally, 45 officers attained ABE-endorsed certificates.

At the graduation ceremony held at the National Racquet Centre, Director of Prisons, Nicklon Elliot disclosed that: “based on the current budgetary allocations for training,

same has been utilised to ensure that staff are exposed to not only institutional training but at the technical level so that they can offer more support and guidance to prisoners.”

The Prison Director also mentioned that training is important, so that prison staff can be equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitude to perform their duties well, and with respect for the rights and dignity of the inmates. “Prison work is complex and required a variety of skills, hence training is therefore part of developing and maintaining a skilled, motivated and committed prison staff workforce”, Elliot added.

In closing, he

encouraged the officers to share their knowledge and insight gained with their colleagues in order to enhance prison management and the internationally accepted norms for managing inmates in a correctional facility.

Head of the Prison Service Training Board, Tracy Shamshudeen said the board is working simultaneously with the Prison Directorate where management structures are devised to continuously encourage officers to capitalise on training opportunities available locally, regionally or internationally, in order to enhance officers' personal (Continued on page 16)

Officials and the graduates and the recent ceremony.

PAGE 16

Monday July 11, 2022

Kaieteur News

32 new COVID-19 cases, two persons in ICU Ministry of Health on Sunday recorded 32 new COVID-19 infections with five persons in the Intensive Care Unit.

MoU with Belize opens up...

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From page 12 northern Brazil integrating the South-South cooperation and what it means for us.”

COMMONALITIES In recognising the similarities between Guyana and Belize particularly in developing the agriculture sector, he pointed to the benefits of combining efforts along with Suriname, enabling them to have enough land assets to deploy to meet the food requirements of CARICOM. He announced that the Foreign Ministers from the two countries will advance discussions to examine collaboration in agriculture and several other areas including climate change, education and healthcare.

President Ali said similar bilateral agreements are to be signed with other CARICOM member states.

These agreements, he noted, move countries closer to removing trade barriers. “I'm

very pleased today that we have taken this official step in advancing the discussions we've been having at the foreign ministry level, at the prime ministerial level and setting out a clear path through which we're going to structure our dialogue and engagement to achieve particular results.”

He assured Prime Minister John Antonio Briceño that “the people of Belize have a friend in the people and Government of Guyana”.

“I wish you and the people of Belize continued success, good health and assure you that together, we will advance this cause for the benefit of the people of both countries.” Prime Minister Briceño said signing the cooperation agreement was “a sense of accomplishment, achievement and happiness” that both countries are moving in the right direction.

29 police ranks graduate from prosecutors'...

From page 10 programme, ranks will be better equipped with the knowledge to prosecute matters successfully in the courts.

"Now that they are going to augment the court system and assist the police to present matters before the courts on behalf of the State and it also fixes that problem of the ab-

sence of trained prosecutors to present matters at court we had when we took over the administration of the Force," Brutus commented.

Adding to that, the acting Deputy Commissioner noted that with this calibre of training, the Force has acquired the Lexis Nexis software to further assist with legal re-

search, and also alluded that every Court Superintendent office of the Force in Guyana were trained and now have access to the application, so that prosecutors within the Force can effectively and efficiently present their cases in court.

While all the participants

performed satisfactorily, Sergeant Quincy Lacon and Superintendent Kevin Das were the two most outstanding students.

Those p r e s e n t a t t h e event were Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson B e n n a n d C h a n c e l l o r, Yonnette CummingsEdwards.

Mayor accuses Local Govt. Commission of interfering...

From page 15 transformation of Georgetown continues, massive construction and renovation projects are being executed and can be impacted by the failure to address the problem with the engineer.

Mayor Narine alluded to one current project which has received funding from the

Government of Guyana – the construction of the administrative building for the Municipality— and is likely to fail to reach its deadline.

According to Narine, the Council has never received the contract or specifications from the City Engineer. Additionally, he said whatever information was provided in a

piecemeal fashion and was incorrect or filled with inaccuracies.

The Mayor has stated that the LGC continues to allow the officer to operate without concern for the safety of staff of the Municipality or the citizens of Georgetown who will be affected should there be a fire.

As such, Narine also called on the LGC to address the motion of the Council to terminate the services of the City Engineer with urgency.

The Council has expressed no confidence in the City Engineer and has written to the LGC recommending that he be terminated.

Six-week anti-bullying campaign...

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From page 13 Home and the Mahaica Children's home.

Care providers from the three centres have already been trained durin g t h e campaign to tackle problems arising from bullying.

I n M a r c h t h i s y e a r, Jaheem Strator, a 16-yearold student of the New Silver City Secondary School located in Linden, Region Ten had to undergo surgery for a fractured skull after his classmate had struck him to the head with a piece of wood.

That matter is still under in v e s t i g a t i o n b u t Kaieteur News had learnt that Strator and his attacker had accused each

other of bullying.

Not so long ago, another video had surfaced on the various social media platforms of a female student of the New Campbellville Secondary School in Georgetown stabbing a male classmate during an altercation they had outside of the school's compound.

In 2020, a 15-year-old female student of the Linden Foundation Seco n d a r y S c h o o l was

stabbed w i t h a R a m b o knife by her peers.

The violent attack left her with severe lung damage. These are just a few of violent incidents that had taken place in schools recently.

The Ministry of Education was even forced to increase secur i t y a t t h e Lodge Secondary School after it was reported that teachers were fearful of violent students.

Prison Service ramps up training...

From page 15 competencies. Notably, some 250 ranks have been trained for the year from 19 completed courses, both

external and internal – and 275 ranks have been identified for further training for the second half of the year.

Monday July 11, 2022

PAGE 17

Kaieteur News

'We want to move quickly; we want to deliver fast' ...Pres. Ali tells Saudi Arabia investors President Irfaan Ali, on Saturday, extended an open invitation to investors of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, to 'invest now', promising that Guyana is ready to remove bureaucratic hurdles.

“You are really pushing at open doors,” the President told the visiting team of Saudi Arabians while delivering the feature address at the opening of the Saudi Arabia – Guyana Investment Engagement at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Liliendaal on Saturday.

A 65-member strong Saudi delegation of private and public sector, led by Deputy Minister for Investors Outreach, Mr. Badr Al Badr was in attendance at the event. “We cannot wait to catch up with anyone. If you are ready to be our partner, let us take the conversation forward,” he said. President Ali added, “Let us not go in circular motion, let us establish what we want to partner on, and how we can secure that partnership.” The president said while Guyana is open for investment, partnerships between the two countries must be a 'win-win' situation for both states. “We want to partner with you, we want to partner with the world, but you must understand that we

also want to move quickly.

We have an obligation to the people of this country to deliver to them as fast as we can.”

He also challenged Saudi Arabia to make money available to Guyana, from the Saudi Investment and Development Fund that could be used to invest in any project. “Let us talk about how to establish the Fund here. With that money, we can start the process of pushing projects forward… I can assure you that we can get our technical people in a room with you, and we will not leave until we are finished with the project.”

The president however, made it clear that Guyana is not hooked on any ideological or superior partner, but on those that can give the country the best possible outcomes. “This government that I am a part of is not wedded to any preferential partner, whether they are from east, west, north or south. Our only objective is to get the best possible outcome for the people of this country because they deserve it,” the president said.

Deputy Minister for Investors Outreach, Badr Al

Badr assured of Saudi Arabia's commitment to building stronger investment trade and business links between the middle eastern country and Guyana. He noted that the country is interested in establishing a permanent presence in Guyana. To this end, President Ali noted that syste

The delegation from Saudi Arabia at the event

President Irfaan Ali

m s will be put in place to establish a permanent location in Guyana. This country is also prepared to make lands available for the establishment of an embassy here, and a Saudi desk will be set up at the Ministry of Finance to help facilitate trade. “We are prepared to make the land available for

y o u t o establish y o u r embassy in this Region in Guyana, and I expect in the next quarter that we must have positive movement on this…We are ready for you to have your permanent footprint here.” His Excellency, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Deputy Minister for Investors Outreach, Mr. Badr Al Badr shaking hands following the event Meanwhile, Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh highlighted areas of infrastructure, healthcare,

tourism, agriculture, housing, renewable energy and education as possible avenues for investments.

Minister Singh said since taking office, the PPP/C administration led by President, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali has sought to advance the relationship between the two countries which began on February 22, 2012. He said engagements like the Investment forum provides important opportunities for Guyana to deepen and strengthen its relationship with Saudi Arabia.

The delegates who are being led by Deputy Minister for Investors Outreach, Badr Al Badr were

informed that Guyana is projected to be the fastest growing economy in the world, largely due to its oil and gas sector. Guyana, Minister Singh said produces about 350,000 barrels of oil per day with a reserve that is the third largest in Latin America and the Caribbean, and the 17th l a rg e s t i n t h e w o r l d .

Nevertheless, the Finance Minister said that Guyana has a heavy focus on developing a strong diverse economic base by investing in its non-oil sectors.

“Our government, even in our earliest days of oil production, we have placed the highest level of (Continued on page 17)

PAGE 18

Kaieteur News

Monday July 11, 2022

Monday July 11, 2022

PAGE 19

Kaieteur News

A history of spills and impunity in Peru, Colombia...

From page 3 amounted to $169,000 from 27 cases. The fines were handed out because of damages to residents and vegetation and animals, especially in the Casanare region.

Puddles of oil, dirt and damaged vegetation reported by the community members of October 12. There were four oil spills in the area in 2022.

Image courtesy of David Díaz Ávalos/Puinamudt.

Also in Colombia, Petróleos Ecopetrol S.A., also known as Ecopetrol, had 20 cases and three fines that added up to $110,167. It was followed by Ingecoleos Ltda., with three cases and two fines of a combined $68,815.

It's important to note that the information included for Colombia only includes figures sent by Corporinoquia and Cormacarena.

Although the National Authority for Environmental Licenses of Colombia (ANLA) also responded to a January information request regarding fines and other punishments against oil companies, the information was incomplete. It didn't include the names of every company, so a second information request was sent. According to ANLA, Perenco and Ecopetrol top the list of companies with the most fines in the Amazon over the past 10 years.

In Peru, Pluspetrol Norte tops the list with 73 cases and resulted in 72 fines, amounting to $47,322,662.

It also faces legal repercussions for trying to avoid paying fines by liquidating the company.

In second place is Maple Gas Corporation del Perú with 14 cases, all of which resulted in fines totaling $685,685. It's followed by state-owned Petróleos del Perú (Petroperú), with eight cases and two fines adding up to $4,959,033. The company also has the highest single fine in the entire database: $4,956,772. It was for a leak in the Norperuano de Loreto pipeline that polluted the surrounding waters and ground.

That case against Petroperú, the only stateowned oil company in the top six most-fined in Peru and Colombia, involved a January 2019 oil leak in the Loreto region. According to details of the case, the problem occurred in the NorperuanoTramo II pipeline, which impacted the Numpatkain creek and some parts of the Rojo River. The OEFA said the company was sanctioned for violating environmental regulations and failing to adopt measures to avoid negative impacts on plants, animals and public health. The company, according to the case, has appealed the decision,

which will be reviewed in the Environmental Control Court.

For Marcos Orellana, the U.N. special rapporteur on toxics and human rights, the fines only work if they're significant. “If the fines are very low, they just become the cost of doing business. The amount should be related to the severity of the problem and size of the earnings of the companies,” he said. If they aren't respected and paid, he said, they won't work as a deterrent. “That's why the delays not only lead to passivity, but also worsen the impacts and lose legitimacy and trust in the legal system.

That's a big cost for the state.”

At least two oil companies facing fines are operating in more than one country in the region.

Colombia's Perenco, for example, also works in Peru through the company Peru Petroleum Limited, and has two fines adding up to $88,182 for polluting water, soil and impacting plants and animals on Lot 67.

These fines were handed out in 2017, the last of which came in June 2021.

It's a similar situation with Frontera Energy, which has offices in Colombia, Ecuador and Guyana. Until 2021, it oversaw Lot 192 in Peru. That operation was the subject of five fines worth $516,049.

Vanessa Cueto, vice president of the NGO Law, Environment and Natural Resources (DAR), said that, in Peru, granting concessions to companies is based more on economics than a record of responsible practices.

“It doesn't just happen with hydrocarbons, but also in mining and infrastructure.

There's still a way to go for establishing norms for reviewing a company's background.

Nobody wants to take responsibility for environmental liabilities,” she said. The information in this investigation, she added, “provides a comprehensive view of the problem in our energy sources, with a look toward using cleaner energy.”

Although the reporting team obtained information in Peru and Colombia, requests submitted in Bolivia and Ecuador are still pending. The Ministry of Environment and Water in Bolivia didn't respond to an information request, and the Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition in Ecuador sent a list of oil spills in the Amazon from the past 10 years, adding up to 1,202 spills, but didn't include a list of the companies involved.

The environment ministry in Ecuador said every oil operator is required to report incidents within 24 hours. In its response, it said “80% of the reported spills are related to

minor emergencies of less than five barrels and that occurred within facilities with waterproofing.”

The data provided by the ministry identifies each lot and date of the environmental infractions. Based on this information, we were able to determine that the lot with the most spills was Block 57 Libertador, operated by state-owned PetroEcuador.

The ministry's response also shows the principal causes of the reported spills in Block 57 were “operation failures caused by internal corrosion of the pipeline.” The ministry said “in order to ensure that similar events don't occur again, compliance with reports of mechanical integrity, changes in pipes, and preventative and corrective analysis of the pipes have been implemented.”

But the data showed there were 30 spills in 2020 and two in the first half of 2021.

Despite only obtaining bits and pieces of information from the government, both La Barra Espaciadora in Ecuador and El Deber in Bolivia managed to report on important cases that show oil fields overlapping with Indigenous territories and vulnerable ecosystems.

In Bolivia's case, the reporting team found that out of 53 national, state and local protected areas, 21 overlap with oil fields. And in the Ecuadoran Amazon, reporters traveled to the Sinchiurco community where the Guanta 1 platform operates.

I n t h i s Indigenous Kichwa territory, they found a history of damage and negligence dating back to the 1980s, including by the companies Texaco (from the U.S.), Petroamazonas (Ecuador), PDVSA (Venezuela) and Petroecuador.

Oil-stained ecosystems Water, soil and vegetation were the natural resources more impacted by oil spills over the past 10 years. In Peru, there were 45 cases associated with environmental damage to soil, 24 to vegetation and 20 to water. In Colombia, 46 cases involved damage to water sources, and 26 involved damage to vegetation.

Oil activity in Colombia's Putumayo department is believed to have begun in the 1960s. Ecopetrol was the first oil company in the Puerto Vega Teteyé corridor. Image courtesy of the Minga-Sonia Cifuentes Association.

Documents obtained through information requests revealed more details about

the damages to the environment. In Peru, overflowing oil tanks, leaking pipelines and mismanaged hazardous and non-hazardous waste disposal were the main causes of environmental problems.

In Colombia, it was mostly oil spills that affected rivers, riverbeds, and surface and subsurface water concessions, in addition to irregularities in wastewater discharge areas.

Some of the sanctioned companies, like Maple Gas Corporation del Perú and Pluspetrol Norte, appear to be in the middle of liquidation, a possible way of avoiding having to pay fines.

“The problem is that if the private sector doesn't take on the cost, the state is stuck with it,” Miguel Lévano of Oxfam Peru said. He pointed to the case involving Pluspetrol in Lot 192, where the company has yet to take responsibility for 2,000 incidents of pollution documented by the OEFA. Lissette V á s q u e z , a deputy in Peru's Ombudsman's Office working on environmental, public services and Indigenous peoples issues, said that “as a country, we can't tolerate more cases like Lot 192.” She added, “We had a company that pulled out without resolving these issues and attempted to liquidate to avoid taking on the fees.”

Vásquez said precautionary measures could help hold companies responsible, “to the extent that the state complies with and enforces the law, people will gradually regain confidence in extractive activities like oil.”

Land taken by oil A geospatial analysis of

the Amazon Rainforest in the four countries, based on information from the Amazon Geo-Referenced Socio-Environmental Information Network (RAISG), found 1,647 Indigenous territories have been affected by oil activity.

In the case of protected areas, there are 52 national, state and locally designated areas in Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia that have been affected. In Colombia, although there aren't any protected areas that overlap with oil lots, there are 70 protected forest reserves that do in that part of the Amazon.

In the four countries, more than 76% of Indigenous communities that overlap with oil blocks are completely within the oil blocks.

And in the case of protected areas in Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia, that figure is 30.7% Seeing this information on a map reveals a clearer picture of how oil operations spread through the intense green of the jungle. The situation becomes even more complex when considering testimonies from the field: many communities and Indigenous groups complained about the companies not going through the prior consultation process b efore activities started on their land.

Although this overlap is legal in each of the four countries, experts said it's a bad start to establishing a relationship between the state, p r i v a t e c o m p a n i e s and communities.

Lissette Vásquez from Peru's Ombudsman's Office, said 20% of social conflicts

in the country are related to hydrocarbon activities. “If we only consider active conflicts, that figure rises to 24%, and the majority are in the Amazon,” she said.

For Pedro Tipula, a geographer at the Institute for the Common Good (IBC) in Peru, the rules are clear.

“The law [on prior consultation] is concrete and when you affect not just territorial rights but human rights, then you have to consult the people,” he said. Vásquez said the problem starts when prior consultation is treated as “just another bureaucratic hurdle to get over.”

Laura Montaño, a researcher at Colombia's Environment and Society Association, said that, although the entire oil block isn't being used — and therefore would not directly affect Indigenous peoples — the oil projects are developed in some cases as near as 200 meters (660 feet) from Indigenous territory. “So when they ask the Ministry of the Interior for a report on the presence of Indigenous communities, nothing shows up, and it's not necessary to carry out a prior consultation,” Montaño said.

But when operational failures happen near water sources, the communities are indeed impacted.

This cross-border investigation is the result of coordination bet w e e n Mongabay Latam, Rutas del Conflicto and Cuestión Pública in Colombia; La Barra Espaciadora in Ecuador; and the newspaper El Deber in Bolivia. Mongabay first published it here on our Latam site on April 19, 2022.

'We want to move quickly; we want to...

From page 17 importance on a strong nonoil economy. Our policies are focused on developing the traditional pillars of our economy and catalysing a rapidly growing, and highly competitive non-oil economy.

“This is evident with Guyana's non-oil growth projected at 7.7 per cent this year, building on the 4.6 per cent growth recorded last year, and over the medium-term, non-oil growth is expected to outperform regional and global averages,” the Finance Minister said.

Led by President Ali, Dr. Singh noted that government has laid out a master plan for the development of the country. In the area of energy, the delegates were enlightened about Government's ambitious plans for an energy mix that will not only reduce the cost of electricity by 50 percent, but also energy emissions as Guyana plays its role in protecting the environment.

Investments in the area of infrastructure include the construction of a high span bridge across the Demerara River, a bridge across the Corentyne River linking Suriname and Guyana, and the commencement of the first phase of the road that links Guyana and Brazil. Opportunities, Dr Singh said, are also available in the housing sector, as government intends to develop Silica City, a smart city, along with delivering 10,000 house lots to Guyanese per year.

There is also tremendous potential in the area of tourism as Guyan a h a s u n tapped potential with its eco-tourism product. The visiting delegation was given a glimpse of what Guyana has to offer by way of the mighty Kaieteur Falls, and were encouraged to visit and see its potential. Government's investment in agriculture is unprecedented as the aim is

to become the bread basket of the Caribbean. The Minister also said it falls in line with the vision of CARICOM to reduce its food import bill by 25 percent by 2025. He pointed out that while Guyana is ramping up its traditional agricultural sectors, investments are being made in areas such as aquaculture, corn and soya production.

Guyana and Saudi Arabia established formal diplomatic relation s o n February 22, 2012. Prime Minister, Hon. Brigadier (Ret'd) Mark Phillips, Senior Minister within the Office of the President with responsibility for F i n a n c e , D r. A s h n i Singh, other Ministers of Government and Chief Executive Officer of GO-Invest Peter Ramsaroop, and other officials were in attendance.

(Department of Public Information)

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Monday July 11, 2022

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Kaieteur News

Novak Djokovic in seventh heaven after beating Nick Kyrgios in Wimbledon final PA Media - Novak Djokovic maintained his stranglehold on Wimbledon by beating a frustrated Nick Kyrgios to win a fourth consecutive title and 21st grand slam crown.

The Serbian has now won seven of the last 11 titles at the All England Club, equalling Pete Sampras’ tally and closing to within one of both Roger Federer’s men’s singles record here and Rafael Nadal’s overall mark.

It has been a difficult season for Djokovic but he has once again been able to rely on the lawns of Centre Court

to bring the best out of him, and he raised his arms aloft after securing a 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 (3) victory.

Much of the excitement for the match centred on how Kyrgios would both perform and behave in his first major singles final. The 27-year-old was immaculate on both counts for a set but began increasingly to lose his cool as the scoreboard turned in Djokovic’s favour, earning a warning for swearing while also constantly berating his box. If Kyrgios has often given the impression throughout his career that he

does not really care about tennis, there can be no pretence in a Wimbledon final.

Having found a taste for grand slam silverware by winning the Australian Open doubles title, here he was trying to live up to his words that he has got the tennis to beat the world’s best on the biggest stage.

Since Roger Federer’s first Wimbledon title in 2003, only Andy Murray has managed to break the big three stranglehold, with Mark Philippoussis, Andy Roddick, Tomas Berdych, Marin Cilic, Kevin Anderson and Matteo

Monday July 11, 2022 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Sometimes, it's amazing to see how your relationships can spin so easily out of control, Aries. Today you may have to deal with a lot of tension within your group.

You'll almost feel as if no one understands the situation.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) As the dawn of another quiet and peaceful day appears, Libra, you will be in the best disposition to observe and appreciate the lightness of things. Life can seem so beautiful on some days.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20) You sometimes have difficulty making up your mind. You don't always know exactly what you want.

Today, Taurus, you'll be at peace with yourself.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) You will find a clean page on the agenda today, Scorpio.

You should try to think only about yourself. This will allow you to meditate about your life and be at peace with yourself. .

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) You will wake up today on cloud nine, Sagittarius. Your morale is at a peak. You will feel totally free and be able to clearly perceive the essentials of life.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) Sometimes we all feel a little lost, Gemini. We often want to move mountains and use all our energy and enthusiasm to try to do so.

CANCER (June 21–July 22) You have a natural ability to accomplish a great deal rather easily, Cancer. But today you may feel snowed under with projects. Things around you might be moving quickly.

LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Your day has finally come, Leo. You have your own vision of life and you like sharing it with others. You're far from thinking that you're any sort of new messiah.

VIRGO (Aug. 23–Se pt. 22) Today you'll have the strange feeling that something is floating in the air.

The time is right to try to understand the different needs of your family circle.

CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) The The astral energy will have you reminiscing all day long over childhood memories, Capricorn. These memories will take you to the houses and places where you were raised.

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) You love interacting with people others might consider eccentric. You can't help it. You're simply attracted to them. You will probably encounter one of these people today, Aquarius.

PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) You have always tried to build up your health using traditional methods, and you take great care of yourself.

Berrettini all coming up short in finals. None of those players had the sort of rollercoaster ride on and off the court that Kyrgios has had this fortnight, including finding out that he is facing a charge of assaulting his former girlfriend, and it was difficult to know which version of the combustible Australian would walk out on to Centre Court. He had been largely well behaved since his explosive third-round win over Stefanos Tsitsipas and maintained that in a sublime first set. His first service game featured a 125 miles per hour second serve ace and an underarm serve but mostly Kyrgios wowed with the quality of his play, breaking Djokovic in the fifth game and clinching the set with his seventh ace. Winning a set against Djokovic has not meant much at Wimbledon this year, though, and the top seed did what he does best, finding a metronomic rhythm both on return and from the baseline and gradually wearing his opponent down. He broke the Kyrgios serve for the first time in their three meetings to lead 3-1, and the Australian began to channel his stress into ranting at his support box. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge may have been shifting a little more uncomfortably in their plush Royal Box seats, with Prince George sat within earshot.

Kyrgios had the majority of the crowd support, and he whipped them up with a leaping pump of the fist when he chased down a drop shot at 3-5 that helped him create four break points, but he could not take any of them.

Djokovic was now reading the Kyrgios serve incredibly well and the pressure on the challenger was growing

Mahmudullah, Shoriful...

From page 22 their fourth consecutive series win after West Indies last won a series against them in 2014.

The second ODI is scheduled for Wednesday.

Scores: West Indies 149/ 9 (Shamarh Brooks, Anderson Phillip 21*, Shoriful Islam 434, Mehidy Hasan Miraz 336); Bangladesh 151/4 (Mahmudullah 41*, Najmul Hossain Shanto 37, Tamim Iqbal 33, Gudakesh Motie 118). Result: Bangladesh won by 6 wickets (with 55 balls remaining).

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic celebrates with the trophy after winning the men’s singles final against Australia’s Nick Kyrgios. (REUTERS/Matthew Childs) all the time.

An eventful fifth game of the third set saw Kyrgios win a point with a tweener, receive a code violation for swearing after a spectator called out before his second serve and then implore umpire Renaud Liechtenstein to have the woman “who looks like she’s had about 700 drinks bro” ejected.

He was doing remarkably well to hold on to his serve but the dam burst in the ninth

game when, from 40-0, Djokovic won five successive points to leave himself serving for the set.

Kyrgios screamed at his box and then slammed his water bottle down in frustration.

A lengthy bathroom break for Djokovic allowed Kyrgios to cool the fires, and he did well to hold serve throughout the fourth set, but a one-sided tie-break proved the end of his hopes.

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Mahmudullah, Shoriful Islam spur Bangladesh to 6-wkt win in ODI opener

By Sean Devers at Providence The smallest non-working day crowd to watch an ODI since Bangladesh beat south Africa in the opening World Cup game in 2007, saw Bangladesh beat West Indies by six wickets at Providence yesterday in a truncated first ODI to take a 1-nil lead in the three-match series.

In a match scheduled to commence at 09:30 hrs in the middle of Guyana’s rainy season, it finally began at 11:45hrs and was reduced to 41 overs due the early morning showers.

Chasing 150 to win, the tourists reached 151-4 in 31.5 overs with 36-year-old Mahmudullah hitting two fours and a six in his unbeaten 41. He shared in an unbroken 40-run fifth wicket stand with Nurul Hasan who struck two boundaries including a six in his unbeaten 20. Skipper Tamim Iqbal made 33 from 25 balls with four fours and a six.

West Indies reached 1499 as Shamarh Brooks (33) and

Anderson Phillip (21*) were the only batters to reach 20 although Bangladesh dropped four catches.

Shoriful Islam 4-34 and Mehidy Hasan 3-36, were the architects of destruction as Bangladesh won their first match on their tour to the West Indies after losing 2-nil in both the Test and T20 series.

Things could have been worse for the home team had not Phillip, who hit the lone six in the innings and Jaydon Seales (16*) added 39 in an unfinished last wicket stand which was the highest of the innings.

When Bangladesh began their reply Litton Das (1) was LBW to left-arm spinner Akeal Hosien at 9-1.

The 23-year-old Najmul Shanto, already with two Test centuries to his name and Skipper Tamim Iqbal, who scored 130 when Bangladesh last visited Guyana in 2018, scored freely and took the score 49 before Iqbal was run out in the 8th over.

Nicholas Pooran is cleaned up by Mehidy Hasan Miraz. (AFP/Getty Images) Mahmudullah, who stroked Hosien exquisitely through the covers for four and Shanto, who was looking well set as the fifty came up in the eight over.

But once left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie, who conceded just a single in his first over in ODI cricket and the versatile Pooran, bowling offspin, operated together, the run rate dipped a bit.

Shanto freed the shackles by pulling a short one from Pooran for four before Shanto drilled a catch to Pooran as Motie got his first OD1 scalp.

Shanto made 37 with five boundaries and his departure left his team on 98-3.

Mahmudullah clobbered Pooran for four before he was dismissed by a no-ball from the Skipper, who got prodigious turn from the pitch. The 100 came up in the 20th.

Afif Hossain (9) was taken off Pooran looking to clear mid-on for Phillip to a welljudged catch running back. It was then 111-4 and Pooran celebrated as if had won the world cup.

Nurul Hasan joined Mahmudullah and together they saw their team to a comfortable win with Mahmudullah hitting a boundary off Seales to finish the contest with 55 balls to spare.

Earlier, Bangladesh asked West Indies to bat in hazy sunshine on a pitch which offered early turn.

The decision immediately bore fruit when Shai Hope was bowled for a duck at 1-1 in the second over with a

beautiful inswinging yorker from Mustafizur Rahman much to the dismay of a disappointing Sunday crowd.

Kyle Mayers (10) hit a couple of boundaries before he was bowled by Hasan at 32-2 in the 12th over to bring T20 Opener Brandon King to crease.

King and Brooks, who again looked sound and executed some delightful offside drives, brought up the 50 in the 19th over.

With the skies getting bluer as the weather improved, King struggled to get the ball off the square before he was dismissed by Islam for eight from 31 balls to leave the score on 55-3 in the 21st over.

Islam struck again in the same over when he removed Brooks without addition to the score.

Skipper Nicolas Pooran, the hero from the last T20, got going with an audacious reverse sweep off Nasum Ahmed which raced over the lush green and slightly sluggish outfield for a boundary past backward point.

It was soon 74-5 when Rovman Powell (9) was LBW to Mehidy.

Romario Shepherd, who stroked Mehidy to the longoff boundary to the delight of the small but raucous crowd who waved West Indies flags and blew horns in the stands.

Pooran swept Nasum Ahmed for four before the next ball missed the bat and crashed into the Skipper’s pad and he was given out as Ahmed celebrated his first ODI wicket.

But the celebrations were short lived as Umpire Gregory Braithwaith’s decision was overturned.

The left-hander added insult to injury by smashing the next ball for four and the crowd roared as it was a 15,000 capacity.

But Pooran, who hit three fours in his 18, was bowled

by Mehidy at 91-6 before Hosein (3) was run out five runs later.

Hosein’s demise made way debutant Gudakesh Motie to join his Countryman and a boundary to mid-wicket

by Shepherd brought up the 100 in the 30th over.

The left-handed Motie, who scored his maiden FirstClass hundred in the Regional Tournament in Trinidad, was dropped at long-on off Mustafizur.

The Berbice pair threw their bats at almost everything before Shepherd was taken in the deep off Islam for 16 with two boundaries at 110-8. West Indies soon slipped to 110-9 when Motie, with the sun back in all its glory, fell to Islam.

Phillip and Seales put together valuable runs in a frustrating last wicket stand.

In 42 ODIs between the two sides West Indies have won 21 losing 19, with two ending in no-results and with a 1-nil lead in the 3-match series, Bangladesh will be hunting (Continued on page 21)

Mehidy Hasan made crucial inroads into the West Indies line-up. (AFP/Getty Images)

Monday July 11, 2022

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Charles Leclerc edges out Max Verstappen as Carlos Sainz escapes burning Ferrari PA Media - Charles Leclerc reignited his world championship hopes by racing to victory at the Austrian Grand Prix as team-mate Carlos Sainz emerged unscathed from his Ferrari after it caught fire.

Leclerc passed championship leader Max Verstappen three times to claim his first triumph since he took the chequered flag in Australia on April 10. Verstappen finished second after Sainz’s engine expired with 14 laps remaining.

Sainz broke down at the uphill Turn 4 but moments later later his car dramatically caught alight.

With Sainz still in his cockpit and his car rolling downhill, the Spaniard had to battle gravity as he unstrapped his seatbelts and attempted to leap from his flaming machine.

The television cameras cut away from the flashpoint, but seconds later, Sainz was seen walking away from his wreckage, with the flames extinguished by marshals.

Sainz’s retirement allowed Lewis Hamilton to take third with Mercedes team-mate George Russell fourth despite an opening-lap collision with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez.

A travelling Dutch contingent of 60,000 fans have turned the 11th round of 22 here at Spielberg’s Red Bull Ring into a home fixture for world champion.

And after he raced away from pole in a plume of flaregenerated orange smoke, it looked as though their man

would celebrate a second win in as many days following his triumph in Saturday’s sprint.

However, Leclerc had other ideas.

By lap 10, Leclerc was crawling all over Verstappen’s Red Bull gearbox and after two failed attempts at Turns 3 and 4, the Ferrari driver made his move stick a couple of laps later with a cute move at the right-hand fourth corner.

Red Bull reacted immediately by bringing Verstappen in for a change of rubber with Sainz assuming second position.

Further back and Verstappen’s team-mate Perez was already out of contention after he banged tyres with Russell at the fourth bend.

Perez was punted into the gravel and , a l t h o u g h Russell protested his innocence, the Englishman was hit with a five-second penalty. Perez attempted to c o n t i n ue before he was forced to retire with damage to his car.

Hamilton struggled in the opening exchanges of Sunday’s race, falling behind Mick Schumacher and bemoaning the superior straight-line speed of the Ferrari-powered Haas.

But as the race developed, Hamilton drew pace from his Mercedes machine and on lap 14 moved back past Schumacher and then overtook Kevin Magnussen in the other Haas the next time around.

Up front, and Leclerc made his first stop on lap 26.

He left the pits 6.7 sec behind Verstappen, but moved back ahead of his title rival for a second time just six laps later.

“The car is so unpredictable, it is really crazy,” said Verstappen before he was hauled in the pits for another change of rubber.

On lap 40, Sebastian Vettel was in the gravel at Turn 4 after he tangled with Pierre Gasly.

“He has to give up the corner,” said Vettel. “I had my nose ahead. What is wrong with these people?” Gasly was punished with a five-second penalty.

With 21 laps to run, Leclerc was called in by Ferrari for his second and final stop before re-passing Verstappen on the exit of Turn 3.

The Scuderia appeared on course to claim a one-two finish only for Sainz’s late dramatic exit.

The virtual safety car was deployed with Leclerc and Verstappen changing tyres for a third time.

Leclerc complained about his throttle in the closing stages but crossed the line 1.5 sec ahead of Verstappen, with Hamilton another 40 sec back. Russell impressed to drive back from 19th, after he stopped for repairs, to finish fourth – 17 seconds adrift of Hamilton.

Leclerc has reduced the championship deficit from 44 points to 38.

The Ferrari driver said: “I definitely needed that one.

The last five races have been incredibly difficult for myself

Leclerc ended his wait for a win.

(Ronald Wittek, Pool via AP)

Charles Leclerc takes the flag to win the Austrian Grand Prix. (Getty Images)

but also for the team. To finally show we have the pace in the car and that we can do it is incredible.”

Hamilton, who made up

five places from his starting slot of eighth, said: “I wasn’t expecting that.

“Yesterday was a difficult day and it has been a rough

weekend. But we move forwards from here. We made some improvements this weekend and we just have to keep chipping away.”

Jungels wins Alpine prelude as Pogacar holds yellow jersey AFP - Luxembourg’s Bob Jungels powered to victory in stage nine of the Tour de France yesterday holding off Thibaut Pinot to cross the line alone after a 192km race through Switzerland to the French border.

Defending champion Tadej Pogacar made a late burst for the line to gain a few seconds on some rivals as the Slovenian further tightened his grip on the overall lead with a fifth-place finish.

Pogacar hailed his UAE Te a m E m i r a t e s a s t h e strongest at the Tour after they surrounded him all day, setting up his late burst.

“Every time there is a chance to take a few sec-

onds, why not, it was a three second gap in the end,” said Pogacar.

Jungels previously won Liege-Bastogne-Liege, but has been frustrated with poor form in recent years because of health issues. “ I t ’s s o n i c e t o b e back at the top of the r o l l e r- c o a s t e r, ” s a i d Jungels.

“This is one of the most beautiful days of m y c a r e e r, ” c o n t i n u e d the 29-year-old a day after one of his AG2R teammates pulled out with Covid-19.

“I went down that last hill at top speed, and that made the difference.”

Andy Schleck was the last man from Luxembourg to

Luxembourg’s Bob Jungels powered to victory in stage nine. win a Tour de France stage eleven years ago.

On a hot day with over 40km ascent as the peloton rolled into the Alps, past Charlie Chaplin’s long-time residence at Vevey on the north shore of Lake

Geneva, the stage was a prelude for three up-coming mountain slogs.

Junge l s r a c e d a f u l l 62km on his own after going solo from an early breakaway.

Some 20km from the fin-

ish line at the ski resort of La Port de Soleil on the French border, Frenchman Pinot chased after him, gradually eating into a two-minute lead, but ever got closer than 20sec adrift before giving up.

Ineos Grenadiers’ Jonathan Castroviejo eventually finished second 22sec adrift with Carlos Verona of Movistar third and Pinot fourth.

- ‘Hardest stage’ Jumbo’s Wout van Aert maintained his stranglehold on the sprint points green jersey, but his bid for a solo escape lost steam on Sunday.

Ineos Tour rookie Tom Pidcock will take the white jersey into next week albeit as second-placed under-26’s rider behind Pogacar.

But Dane Magnus

Cort Neilsen finally lost his grip on the polka dot jersey, taken by Simon Geschke.

Today’s rest day will be followed by three consecutive Alpine mountaintop finishes as the riders desperately jostle for position in the overall standings on climbs such as the gruelling Alpe d’Huez.

Stage 10 runs from Morzine to Megeve, stage 11 Albertville to Col du Granon and stage 12 from Briancon to Alpe d’huez.

Pogacar said the third of the three looked toughest but all of them were hard.

“Galibier is s o l o n g but Alpe d’huez is so s t e e p a n d s o l o n g , i t ’s the hardest stage,” he s a i d o f t h e Queen stage on the French national holiday on July 14.

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Port Mourant collects prizes National Under-14 Rapid Chess from Janet Jagan Memorial Tournament poised for Saturday Windball Cricket tourney The whole staff of the school celebrates with the students.

Port Mourant Secondary School received their prizes for the H.E. Janet Jagan Memorial NSC MCYS School Girls Windball competition organised by National Sports Commission (NSC) and Ministry of Culture Youth and Sports (MCYS Sports) and Sports Officer A. Munroe.

The ceremony was done at the school.

They defeated Central Corentyne Secondary in the Corentyne final played at the Albion Sports Complex.

Women’s Champion, Pooja Lam, (left) goes up against QC student, Maliha Rajkumar.

Lucille Ruby WPO Organiser hands over trophy and medals to the manager of the team.

Austrian GP top three handed suspended 10,000 euro fines (Reuters) - Austrian Grand Prix podium finishers Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were handed suspended 10,000 euro ($10,000) fines yesterday for a breach of post-race procedures.

Race stewards summoned Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes representatives after the podium celebrations following a report from the race director.

They said video evidence had confirmed the drivers’ physios and/or drivers’ assistants had entered parce ferme, the closed pit lane area, without permission and in violation of an established procedure.

The ban on them entering the area is to ensure no items are handed to drivers before they are weighed.

The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) is set to host the Under 14 Nationals on Saturday, July 16 at Queen’s College.

The National Under-14 Rapid Chess Tournament was last held in February 2020 at Mae’s School where Marian Academy’s, Ronan Lee, was victorious among a total of 75 students from 12 schools, but has since aged out of the division.

Players expected to be competing for the National Title include Kyle Couchman, Mayas Khan, Julian Mohabir, Nicholas and Alexander Zhang, Omar Shariff, Pooja Lam, Anaya Lall, Maliha and Mahir Rajkumar.

The young players will face off in seven rounds of matches from 9:00hrs to 16:30hrs.

The time control of the matches is 15 minutes with added 5-second increments.

All Guyanese chess players

who were under the age of 14 on January 1, 2022, are encouraged to take part.

Some of these youngsters have been competing against far more seasoned players for the earlier part of the year and while they sometimes excelled, this tournament provides them with an opportunity to compete against others in their age group.

Anand Raghunauth, Vice President of the GCF said “Many of the young boys and girls look forward to the shorter version of chess. It’s a faster game. The younger players like to play quickly.

It’s an exciting game, the entire tournament finishes in one day.

It’s a fun tournament even though it’s a serious competition. We have some young players who have just completed Grade Six exams, I’m sure they will be looking forward to returning to chess.

We have many of the sea-

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc celebrates on the podium after winning the Austrian Grand Prix.(REUTERS/ Leonhard Foeger) The stewards said the fine was suspended for the remainder of the season and warned drivers that the individuals concerned could have their passes revoked if there was a “systemic violation”.

Ferrari’s Leclerc won the race at the Red Bull Ring with championship leader Verstappen second for Red Bull and Hamilton, the sport’s most successful driver of all time, third for Mercedes. ($1 = 0.9820 euros)

Kyle Couchman and Matthew Singh recently battled at the Guyana National Stadium.

soned players who have been competing over the past three to four months with the adults and with the older junior players, and they also will be looking forward to having a go at each other and I’m sure it’s going to be an interesting tournament.”

The Guyana Chess Federation had a large influx of new junior players earlier this year due to the extensive work done on the Chess in Schools programme. As a result, a large turnout is anticipated for this weekend’s matches.

Interested persons can register through the GCF’s website - guyanachess.org.

Registration closes on July 15 at 17:00hrs. No late registration or in-person registration will be facilitated.

Trophies will be awarded for first, second and third places in both open and girls categories along with the best under-10 and under-8 in both at the end of seven matches.

Kaieteur News

Monday July 11, 2022

PAGE 25

Record number of entrants for MCYS swimming programme Yesterday Director of Sport Steve Ninvalle confirmed that a record number of entrants, in Georgetown alone, have been recorded for the National Sports Commission (NSC) and Ministry of Culture Youth and Sports (MCYS) Teach them Young August holiday swimming programme set to be held in four locations.

The Director of Sport informed that so far they recorded 289 and 165 total persons registered within the

Charles Ramson Jr. Minister of Sports

GALEA, NYPD donate 20 uniforms to GPF's Cricket Team

T

he Guyanese American Law Enforcement Association (GALEA) and t h e N e w Yo r k P o l i c e Department (NYPD) Cricket Team presented the Guyana Police Force with 20 complete cricket uniforms with logos to be used by the Force's Cricket Team.

Acting Commissioner of Police Mr. Clifton Hicken received the donation on behalf of the GPF from G A L E A m e m b e r M r.

Sheryar Hussain, who is also a member of the NYPD Cricket team.

The presentation was done in the Commissioner's Conference Room at Force Headquarters, Eve Leary, Georgetown.

The collaboration between the two organisations dated back to 2016 in honour of Guyanese-born NYPD detective Randolph 'Randy' Holder, who was killed in the line of duty in 2015 in New York.

Mr. Clifton Hicken expressed gratitude to the donor for the timely assistance which will aid the Guyana Police Force's efforts to boost the Force's Cricket Team as well as morale amongst players and youths.

The Top Cop noted that the partnership has grown and is getting stronger and this augurs well for future collaboration between the

two law enforcement bodies.

T h e To p C o p a l s o expressed the GPF's intention to sponsor the NYPD cricket team so that they can be in Guyana on an exchange programme, and they in turn can reciprocate as host. " We c a n u s e t h e opportunity also to explore other areas where we can integrate meaningfully and help develop capacity as part of a police fraternity," Mr. Hicken said.

Hussain, in brief remarks, said the goal of his organisation is to make a positive impact on the lives of youths. "It is all about building bridges," he stated.

GALEA, a non-profit organization, is comprised of different law enforcement agencies that are serving throughout the United States.

Also present at the hand over of the uniforms were Ravindradat Budhram, Chairman of the Police Cricket Association and Captain of the Police Officers' Cricket Team, Head of the Community Relations Department Ms. Cristal Robinson, Head of t h e C o r p o r a t e Communications Unit Mr. Mark Ramotar, Head of the Strategic Planning Unit Mrs. Nicola Kendall, Head of the Sports Secretariat Mrs. Tiffany Williams, and the Sports Development Officer Mr. Colin Boyce.

two days, taking the overall count to 454. This number has never been recorded over the years the programme has been held.

Ninvalle noted that, “The honourable Minister Charles Ramson has insisted that there will be no fees attached for registrants…. We had an Easter programme and this is the second time we will be waiving all fees associated with that…” He further informed that registration will close on the 16th of July, that's Friday of this week.

Steve Ninvalle Director of Sport

The programme caters for the age group between 9 to 18 years and sessions will be from 9:00am to 12:00noon daily following its commencement on the 18th and 19th in the respective areas.

The programme set for July 18th to August 12th at the Colgrain Pool in Georgetown, National Aquatic Centre on the East Coast, Albion Estate Pool in Berbice and Watooka Pool in Linden.

In Linden it will run from

July 19th to August 10 and in Berbice from July 19th to August 5th according to a release from the MCYS. The closing ceremony is set for August 12 at the National Aquatic Centre at Lilliendaal on the East Coast from 9:00am.

Additional persons interested in registering in this year's programme can contact: National Aquatic Centre on telephone 2221306, Colgrain Swimming pool on 226-0387 or Coach Paul Mahaica on 615-5714.

Shoriful Islam picked up four wickets to peg West Indies back. (AFP/Getty Images)

Nicholas Pooran is cleaned up by Mehidy Hasan Miraz. (AFP/Getty Images)

Mahmudullah, Shoriful Islam spur Bangladesh to 6-wkt win in ODI opener p. 20

Record number of entrants for MCYS s swimming programme t r o Sp From left: Mrs. Nicola Kendall, Ms. Cristal Robinson, Mr. Clifton Hicken, Mr. Sheryar Hussain and Ms. Tiffany Williams, Mr. Colin Boyce, and Mr. Ravindradat Budhram at the presentation.

GALEA, NYPD donate 20 uniforms to GPF's Cricket Team Printed and published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd., 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown. Tel: 225-8458, 225-8465, 225-8491 or Fax: 225-8473/226-8210.