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Kaieteur News
Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: Adam Harris Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210
EDITORIAL
CLOSING THE GENDER PAY GAP One of the promises made during the election campaign by the APNU+AFC Coalition was to narrow the gender pay gap. This, however, may be one of the more difficult promises to fulfill now or anytime in the future. Gender inequality has unfortunately become the norm, worldwide. According to the latest statistics, in almost every country, women on average trail behind men in terms of earnings and Guyana is no exception. The estimated earned income of a woman in Guyana is roughly 27 percent less than that of a man. In other words, women earn between 71 to74 cents to every dollar earned by men, which is a very significant pay gap. This has resulted in Guyana ranking very low in terms of estimated earned income between men and women. Can the new government fulfill its election promise of gender equality? The irony is that while various members of the business community have stated that women are better workers than men, they continue to pay women less for doing similar work. This dates back to Guyana’s historical and cultural situation which valued women’s work less than men’s work, whether in households or in communities. Even if a position is occupied mostly by women, the pay and value attached to it is lower than a position retained by men. The Granger administration, unlike its immediate predecessor, has promised to end this type of inherent injustice against women. The low rate of pay for women in Guyana is striking, since there is a relatively high level of female participation in the labour force. In fact, the ratio of women to men in the country is about 53 percent compared to 47 percent for men. While the number of women in the workforce is also higher than men, their earnings are considerably lower. And the levels of women’s participation in secondary and tertiary education are much higher than their male counterparts, which translate to a considerably better literacy rate. In terms of political empowerment, women lag considerably behind. According to the Bureau of Statistics, more males than females are employed in agriculture, forestry, fishing; petroleum, mining, security, construction and transportation. At the same time, more females than males are employed in wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, hotels; finance, real estate, insurance, business services; teaching, nursing and community services. In addition, it gets worse for men as more than 85 percent of household chores are done by women, notwithstanding the fact that 92 percent of all single parents in Guyana are women. There is often the feeling that while some women have risen to senior levels in political leadership, it should be recognized that some of these roles are usually stereotypical and quite frankly, window dressers. Frustrations among women still exist and have become deep-rooted, because the old boys’ club continues to discriminate against women and enforces favouritism. In a country with a population of 747,000, women should not accept such a lopsided pay gap. They must hold the government accountable and pressure its leaders to change the dynamic. The government must not only talk, but it must take action and ‘walk the walk’ to level the playing field for women and create more opportunities for all. Being aware of the problems of women in relation to gender inequality, it will be in the Coalition government’s best interest to solve them. The administration must address this problem immediately if it is to maintain credibility with the people, especially women. They should be aware that unequal pay is a symptom of a social malaise which reflects cultural tendencies that veer toward the male species and, therefore, should implement legal mechanisms to close the gender pay gap and end the exclusion of women in all institutions, both public and private. While some may say that Guyana has come some way in addressing gender inequality, the new administration must do much more to narrow the pay gap. It is time.
Friday June 05, 2015
Letters... Where your views make the news
I could not place half a billion dollars in the hands of this Council DEAR EDITOR, 1) Quite recently, because of serious flooding in Georgetown occasioned by heavy continual rainfall, and whether by coincident or intent; an apparent arson attempt reportedly in a section of the Ministry of Communities building where documents related to the Cleanup activities were said to be housed has brought to the fore the issue of the management of the allocated finances for the Clean-up my Country Project. And this, notwithstanding the fact that (a) fortnightly reports of the completed activities under the Project (b) details of work in progress (c) details of procurement of goods and (d) financial reports that provided information with respect to finances approved and provided through the Ministry of Finance were provided fortnightly by the Head of the Technical Planning and Implementation Committee for the Project. And may I add that this Committee saw representation from a number of Ministries besides the Ministry of Local
Government and included also representation from the Georgetown Municipality. 2)The attempted arson, apparently following closely on a Ministerial Order to have a forensic audit of the Project done has obviously caused some to attribute nefarious ulterior motives for the act, while the impact of the recent flooding has been attributed by others to poor planning and implementation in the design and implementation of the Clean up Project. Most of the conclusions are pungent with the smell of anger and a vexatious spirit on the part of those who have been very vocal; especially those who had publicly declared that they expected that the Government would have placed the approved sum in their hands to misspend. 3)As the Minister whose Ministry was tasked with the planning and overseeing the implementation of this Project; let me emphasize the fact that I did determine ab initio that (i) I could not and would not place the
responsibility for the expenditure of half billion Guyana dollars for an important exercise of this nature in the hands of a Council that had shown the lack of will and ability to manage Rate Payers money and who had clearly demonstrated that transparency and accountability were not integral to their work (ii) the available resources were limited and consequently one had to optimize the use of these resources. It is for this and other reasons that necessary activities were listed and prioritized. Let me also point out that it was never the expectation of the Committee / the Ministry that consequent on the satisfactory completion of its work; flooding would cease and garbage in public spaces would become a habit of the past. Public education and awareness and the sustaining of the Project by the Local Authority legally authorized were determined to be prerequisites to the sustenance of the Project. 4)This Minister also determined (Continued on page 31)
Muneshwer’s never blocked this koker
DEAR EDITOR, I would like to address this issue regarding the koker at our port facility at Water Street. 1) When we purchased this property from the PNC government in 1991 there was an existing koker running through the premises. That koker remains present to this day in its present constitution. The dimensions of this koker remain intact. It was covered by a number of manholes, some of which collapsed over time and were subsequently relaid by us. We did not cover the koker, block it or build on top of it to expand our facility. 2) The koker is the property of the City of Georgetown. The city council is responsible for the full maintenance of it, not Muneshwer’s. Yet we dredged parts of it repeatedly and recently replaced an entire section that was collapsing with a concrete revetment structure, to the tune of several millions. If that section had collapsed it would have caused untold damage to the city. We did not call in the media for free publicity or score cheap political points as some are doing right now.
We are also actively cleaning the sections of the koker that run under our property, with the help of our contractor, Kares Engineering, and under the supervision and support of the city council. 3) Recently a renowned contractor visited our facility unbeknownst to us and apparently made some critical insinuations that were not based on reality. We were not given the courtesy of being able to represent our side of the story. Later, I spoke to him and he was adamant that he was not blaming our company for the blocking of the koker. I took him at his word since I consider him to be an honourable gentleman. 4) Some journalists, commentators and others have seized upon this video to launch virulent attacks on us. Not one single person who made these comments, I can assure you, has taken the liberty to visit our facility. On the contrary, we have been visited by a swarm of government ministers, renowned engineers, Ministry of Public Infrastructure and GWI officials, and I should add, various sections of the media whom I personally
invited, and not one has commented on us having blocked or built on the koker to expand our facility. In short, the only people who have been critical of us are those who have not visited our facility. 5) One of the engineers on his visit to the various facilities last Sunday made some remarks about the Lamaha sluice to Demerara Waves and he noted that a contractor had covered part of the inlet to accommodate his heavy duty machinery. I should note in passing that this is the same honourable contractor that visited our facility to star in the above mentioned video. 6) A large number of media practitioners in this country would rather not observe the basic tenets of journalism which is to gather the facts on the ground and speak to both sides. Facts are usually complicated, mundane and boring. Further, they tend to get in the way of a good story. However, they remain stubbornly present and cannot be wished away. I am willing to invite any of these equally honourable citizens to our facility to observe the facts. Robin Muneshwer
Why is Mahender Sharma still running the Guyana Energy Agency? DEAR EDITOR, First let me start this letter with a congratulatory note to his Excellency Brigadier David A. Granger and his cabinet Members. Secondly as my question stated, why is Mahender Sharma still running the Guyana Energy Agency? Mahender Sharma is a known candidate of the now opposition party and who is still running the Guyana Agency to date, this man openly spoke at rallies condemning the now Government of wrong doings and taking the country backwards, which
was captured in the Guyana Chronicle dated May 10th 2015, yet this man still holds public office both at the Guyana Energy Agency and at the Guyana Power &Light. Mahender Sharma has no scruples, no respect for worker. He has over the years placed a lot of people out of jobs. Mr. President, we cannot condone these people any longer. put this Agency in the hands of capable, honest law abiding citizens who are qualified and who will have all employees’ interest at heart and not just some. We have waited 23 years for a new Government, one which we can take our
concerns to and it can be heard, one who is just and have the Guyanese people at heart a Government for all and not just for some. Party members of the now opposition have gained so much over the years because of favoritism and wrong doings. Mr. President you need to get rid of such people from office and in so doing a thorough audit should be carried out at this Agency for it is my belief a lot of wrong doings have taken place over the years. Looking forward to seeing change.#itistime!!! Michael Mars
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Letters... Where your views make the news Letters... Where your views make the news
An Open Letter to the New Minister of Public Health DEAR EDITOR, You have my sincerest gratitude for providing me with the opportunity to pen my letter to the new Minister of Public Health. Earlier during the course of last week The Honourable Dr. Norton had made mention that he will ensure that justice be served to mothers who had lost their babies by malpractice and negligence of healthcare professionals. However, from my perspective, every second that passes by another mother and child are placed at risk; which begs the question, should we just sit and allow those acts of malpractice and negligence to continue with no degree of sanctions taken against those responsible? Please allow me to bring to the forefront two cases where there is clear evidence of negligence. I am strongly convinced that an
immediate investigation should commence and have those responsible sanctioned accordingly. Firstly, the case of Teresa Lalltoo, the 30 year old mother of one, who lost her expectant second child after what were described to be bad calls made by both doctors and nurses. After coursing through a full term of pregnancy, Teresa was overjoyed at the fact that all was well with her child but little did she know that the same persons she put her trust in would cause her a great tragedy. She was taken to the West Demerara Regional Hospital after experiencing severe pain and seen by nurses who were hesitant in providing her with care. This escalated throughout the course of her stay at said hospital when not only was she given oxytocin (Continued on page 31)
SOME BROKERS STILL WAITING FOR LICENCES DEAR EDITOR, Please permit me space in your newspaper to respond to a letter which appeared in the Wednesday June 3, 2015 edition of the Stabroek News. The letter captioned “those who passed customsbroker exam in October 2014 still waiting for licences,” highlighted the plight facing persons who would have written and successfully completed the Customhouse Brokers exam in October 2014. First off, the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) takes this opportunity to thank the letter writer for raising the issue and sincerely apologizes to all successful candidates for the unusual delay which was as a result of several internal and external checks and balances that were necessary to ensure the high standards of the exam and by extension, the integrity of licence holders. The applicants may not be aware, but their exam sheets were marked and
several internal processes followed to ensure that only suitable, upright candidates were selected in keeping with the provisions of Section 204k Of the Customs Regulations. Further, in keeping with the GRA’s established Standard Operations Procedures (SOP) and as the letter writer underscored, all relevant documentation and information were then sent to the GRA Law Enforcement and Investigations Division for routine background and verification checks as well as to authenticate the information provided by the applicants to the GRA. Undoubtedly, the issuance of licences has been delayed as a result of these necessary investigations. The findings of these
investigations are now complete and the GRA has commenced the process of making contact with the successful applicants to have them visit the Agency and pay the relevant fees. Persons who have not yet received any correspondence from the GRA, for the reasons stated above, are assured that they will be contacted by the GRA Training Division shortly, since we are now in a position to do so. It should be noted that in order to be issued with the requisite licence, the successful candidates will first be required to pay the $5000 annual fee. Khurshid Sattaur, CCH Commissioner-General Guyana Revenue Authority
My response to Ruel Johnson DEAR EDITOR, It must be clearly understood, Ruel, that I am no one’s mercenary; there’s no one who can bring a document to me paint a scenario of half truths and I become their Cerberus. I objected to your tirade, because, had you followed the advice you suggested to me that I should have called you, likewise, you should have called Paloma and in the Interest of the National good you may have written your letter differently. Are you implying that Derek Walcott inspired you to think, or agreed with you that CARIFESTA 1, was a burlesque? If not, then why mention the name of this Icon. I can further assure you beyond any doubt that neither Claudette Earle, whose talents far exceeded Sharief Khan’s, or the talented Michelle Nurse were in agreement with what you wrote about CARIFESTA. If your implication of this colleague and mentor of mine respectively in your letter, defines the rest of the content of what you’re saying publicly, then you need to sit with a professional. Your obvious obsession with entitlement based on serial letters with the absence of people-projects brings me to the stoic pause that you should take heed; that like fire, the ego is a bad master. On my Cartoon relationship with GNNL, I was a young artist/writer in 1981 when the then Director of Art, Dr Denis Williams (whose office I had engaged with my Illustrated novel) took me to GNNL, to its Editor In Chief
Frank Campbell, with an illustrated story titled ‘The Shrouded Legacy.’ I was benefiting from Burnham’s policy to engage local talents. They ran the series, paid me and I began a relationship with newspaper publishing. I again engaged The Chronicle in 1984 when they advertised for a commercial Artist. I met Ulric Captain, who was one of the most energetic Managers Chronicle would have. I had come a long way since then in my Graphic field; with the encouragement of Editors Godfrey Wray and Claudette Earle, I created ‘Times of Vincent’ and ‘Bugs,’ two social commentary cartoons. I also self published Folk & Culture and The Shadow of the Jaguar, a trilogy that took to the stage in October 1992, featuring the late Norman Beaton as El Dorado. October 1992; the PPP came to power, Sharief Khan became Editor In Chief and no less than three weeks called me to his office, showed me some letters from so called party supporters for ‘The Jaguar’ strip (then a Sunday feature), termed by them as a black super hero to be dropped. He insisted that the social commentary Cartoons should remain to which he had some topic suggestions. He did reveal his suggestions and I disagreed, so by early 1993, I no longer
submitted Cartoons to GNNL. Do not equate my relationship with GNNL with yours. Any researcher that goes back to the GNNL post election editions of that Newspaper would understand why I’m saying this; the above is a mere synopsis. You do realise that the Caribbean Press evolved out of CARIFESTA 8? I will add two distortions in your tirade *[1] it’s a lie that the Caribbean Press published three books for Paloma. Actually, it’s one book 20 yrs old. I called her about that. *[2] You have also been misled on the $75.000 per month salary paid to Paloma, It’s not true. I advised Paloma to not respond to your tirade as it will, and has began to implode. As for the Minister of Culture, Frank Anthony, the man was out of his depth. He is trained in Public Health, which has nothing to do with Culture. Burnham, and President David Granger were and are aware of the power and potential of Culture as a tool of Industry, Education and National self esteem, the PPP under Jagdeo never understood that. I wrote letters inquiring about the Caribbean Press, but never developed a media cult on attacking Frank Anthony. I did compile a dossier on the abused (Continued on page 31)
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Accountant detained after arson attempt at Ministry - Former minister unaware of misuse of funds One day after an attempted torching of the Ministry of Communities in Kingston, investigators yesterday held a senior official of its Finance Department. Police sources confirmed that an accountant of the Ministry was detained after he was grilled. On Wednesday afternoon, shortly after Internal Auditors started a probe into last year ’s spending of a $1B project to ‘clean up Guyana,’ staffers were alerted to smoke in the building which houses the Audit Office and the office of Minister Ronald Bulkan. What fire investigators found initially was startling. There was an obvious attempt to set the building on fire as evidenced from kerosene found at the scene. Two chairs and the walls were badly damaged. It was in a room not far from the Audit Office which reportedly held receipts and other documents pertaining to the spending. The building is largely a wooden one. Yesterday, investigators reportedly viewed video footage from security cameras and noticed a male bearing what appeared to be a container heading into the room where the fire started. Based on investigations, the accountant was picked up, questioned and later arrested. Permanent Secretary, Emil Mc Garrell, disclosed that
police were carrying out their investigations with a statement expected after it is completed. Yesterday also, former Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Norman Whittaker, in a statement said he is unaware of any issues with respect to the intentional misuse or mismanagement of cleanup resources which “were never brought before me or the Committee or the Cabinet and not addressed.” That ministry has been merged with the Ministry of Housing and Water to create the Ministry of Communities. The new Government, under President David Granger, had vowed to review spending for a number of projects that were implemented by the previous administration. With heavy rains over the weekend which left several parts of the city flooded, the spotlight had come down on the $1B cleanup project by the previous Government. Minister Bulkan and staffers reportedly found wheelbarrows, tools and other supplies in the Ministry’s boardroom last week. Ministry sources disclosed that following Wednesday’s incidents, steps have been taken to beef up security at Kingston offices and secure the records. AGGRIEVED Meanwhile, according to former Minister Whittaker
Ministry of Communities
I did my part! Norman Whittaker, former Local Govt. Minister yesterday in a statement, recent newspaper articles on the arson attempt have created the “perception, real/ imagined, that the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development which I headed may have been guilty of mismanagement of the funds made available by the PPP/C Government for the countrywide cleanup.” He said that after reading a report of the story, and in the satirical column ‘Dem Boys Seh’, in the Kaieteur News, he is offended, and “of the opinion that any reasonable person would read it the same way: “Whittaker mismanaged the funds and the recent ‘arson attempt’ was an attempt to conceal whatever documentation there is at the Ministry”. I ask you all to randomly interview any staff of the Ministry on this matter and if you come across even one who can speak of ‘ former Minister Whittaker’s dishonesty’; bring me in
guilty. I am upset, and so too is my family with the content of these articles. The authors did not even seek my comments. How sad! How unfair!” At no time did Kaieteur News mention Mr. Whittaker’s name. He pointed out that fortnightly reports of the project detailing work in progress, the procurement of goods and financial reports with respect to finances approved and provided through the Ministry of Finance, were submitted by the Head of the Technical Planning and Implementation Committee for the project. “And may I add that this Committee saw representation from a number of Ministries besides the Ministry of Local Government and included also representation from the Georgetown Municipality.” He said that the attempted arson apparently following closely on a ministerial order to have a forensic audit of the project done and “has
obviously caused some to attribute nefarious ulterior motives for the act while the impact of the recent flooding has been attributed by others to poor planning and implementation in the design and implementation of the cleanup project.” NO WAY Whittaker insisted that as the minister charged with implementation of the project, he could not place $1B in the hands of the Georgetown City Council which had “shown the lack of will and ability to manage” rate payers money and which “clearly demonstrated that transparency and accountability were not integral to their work”. The former minister said that it was never the expectation that the project that flooding would cease and garbage in public spaces would become a habit of the past. “Public education and awareness and the sustaining of the Project by the Local Authority legally authorized
were determined to be prerequisites to the sustenance of the project.” He said that the project provided an opportunity for consultation and employment of persons from their respective communities. “The people of Albouystown, East Ruimveldt, Alberttown, Lodge, Agricola, Alexander Village etc… would I am sure attest to this fact.” Whittaker pointed out that he was instrumental in establishing the Audit Department which will be probing the $1B spending. “I may not have been at the Ministry long enough to analyse the work of the Department but I am happy to see it start its work. I proudly leave with those who would wish to t a r n i s h / blemish my more than four decades of honest, unblemished public service to my fellow Guyanese: a commitment to continue to serve with diligence, humility and honesty. I know of no other way.”
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
Death toll climbs to 82 as China starts righting capsized ship
local residents pray at a candlelight vigil to pay their respect to the passengers of the sunken cruise ship The death toll from a Chinese cruise ship that capsized on the Yangtze River has climbed to 82, state media said on Friday, as authorities began righting the vessel and said there was no chance of finding anyone else alive. The rescue mission has become an operation to recover hundreds of bodies from the ship, which was carrying 456 people when it overturned in a freak tornado on Monday night. Only 14 survivors have been found, including the captain. “In a situation in which the overall judgment is that
there is no chance of people being alive, we could start the work of righting the boat,” transport ministry spokesman Xu Chengguang told a news conference late on Thursday. Rescuers, many from the military, worked through the night to right the ship. Pictures on state television showed the ship, which had capsized completely, now lying on its side. More than 200 divers have groped through murky water after cutting through the hull, searching every cabin on board, but have
found no more survivors. The weather is expected to improve on Friday, after days of heavy rain, which should help rescuers. “We are already mentally prepared,” said a 33-year-old woman surnamed Gao, whose 58-year-old mother was on board the ship. Underscoring the sensitivity of the disaster, the ruling Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee, China’s apex of power, called on local authorities to take measures to help grieving families and to “earnestly safeguard social stability”. Some family members have expressed anger at the scarcity of information, and many have come to Jianli county in Hubei province where the incident happened. Hundreds of people, their eyes brimming with tears, knelt in the center of a square in Jianli city on Thursday night clutching candles and flowers. Hu Kaihong, a government spokesman, told a news briefing there were now more than 1,200 family members in Jianli.
Ukraine’s Poroshenko warns of Russian invasion threat after fighting surge Ukraine’s president told his military on Thursday to prepare for a possible “fullscale invasion” by Russia all along their joint border, a day after the worst fighting with Russian-backed separatists in months. His address in parliament was one of the first times Petro Poroshenko has used the word “invasion” to refer to Russia’s behaviour since the start of a separatist rebellion in the east in which the United Nations says more than 6,400 people have been killed. Referring to a 12-hour firefight involving artillery on both sides on Wednesday when Ukraine says the rebels tried to take the town of Maryinka, Poroshenko said: “There is a colossal threat of a renewal of large-scale military operations from the side of the Russian-terrorist groups.” “The military must be ready as much for a renewal of an offensive by the enemy in the Donbass as they are for a full-scale invasion along the whole length of the border with Russia. We must be truly ready for this.” In Washington, State Department spokeswoman
Marie Harf would not comment on whether the United States sees signs of a pending invasion but warned Russia to refrain from further aggressive actions in the region. The United Nations Security Council is due to meet on Ukraine on Friday, diplomats said. Ukraine and its NATO allies have long accused Russia of sending weapons and troops to fight on behalf of separatists who control part of two provinces in its east. Moscow, which seized and annexed Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula last year, denies its troops are participating in the fighting in the east. A ceasefire has mostly held for the past four months, after the separatists spurned an earlier truce to launch an advance and seize more territory for their self-proclaimed state in what Russian President Vladimir Putin calls “New Russia”. The joint border stretches for more than 2,200 km (1,375 miles), most of it far from the area where there has been fighting. Earlier, Ukrainian military officials said that five Ukrainian servicemen had been
killed and 39 wounded in the fighting around Maryinka, which lies 23 km (14 miles) to the west of the rebel stronghold of Donetsk. The rebels updated their own casualty toll to 21 dead five civilians and 16 fighters and blamed Ukrainian forces for indiscriminate shelling of populated areas. The fighting went far beyond regular low-level skirmishing that has occasionally flared since the shaky ceasefire was brokered in February by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France. The West and Kiev say Russia has failed to fulfil the terms of the peace deal worked out in Minsk, Belarus and say it must pull out its forces and stop arms deliveries to the separatists. Moscow takes the side of the separatists, accusing Kiev’s forces of ceasefire violations The Kremlin on Thursday accused Kiev of provoking new fighting with the aim of putting pressure on the European Union, which is due to decide on whether to extend economic sanctions on Russia soon.
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GINA Director resigns Director of the Government Information Agency (GINA), Neaz Subhan, has sent a letter of resignation to the Minister of Information, Moses Nagamootoo, while several others are expected to follow suit. Subhan sent his letter on Wednesday last. Beverley Alert, a former GINA employee, is tipped to replace Subhan. Alert is a member of the Alliance For Change (AFC) component in the new coalition government. Director of Public Information, Imran Khan told Kaieteur News yesterday that Subhan “has acted honourably” in submitting his resignation. Khan said that the construct and tone of Subhan’s letter of resignation was cordial and decent “I offered him kudos and my personal best wishes.” “I met with him yesterday (Wednesday) and we had a civil and cordial meeting during which we had a frank and respectful exchange of thoughts and ideas. He indicated his intention to resign and did so as he had committed.” Subhan’s resignation has given the requisite one month’s notice as per his contractual agreement. Khan told Kaieteur News
- Govt. anticipates other such actions that a decision is yet to be taken as to whether the government will allow Subhan to work until that month ends. Khan said that there seems to be many professionals currently employed with the state media who are prepared to work with integrity and purpose in lifting the standard. “These persons should have no worry that there will be any witch hunt against them.” On the other hand, he was keen to point out that “there are persons in the state media and at GINA whose conscience should instruct them as to what the honourable thing to do is. Neaz has set an admirable example.” Khan said that the move towards professionalizing will require the absence of many “toxic” individuals. He added, “We have demanded the resignations of no one, but equally persons would be naïve to think that given their history of willfully presiding over the appalling discriminatory practices in maligning the people’s representatives in parliament, in condoning reprehensible racist attacks against persons and of allowing themselves to
Decomposed body fished out of Cozier Canal Police assigned to the Charity Outpost, yesterday morning, recovered the body of an unidentified man who they presumed to be in his thirties at a trench, at Cozier. Information received suggests that the unidentified man was apparently attempting to cross a bridge at Cozier when he slipped and fell overboard. Other reports indicate that the man was intoxicated. Police were alerted at the scene after persons in the area were hit by a strong stench emanating from the area. Detectives later transported the body to the Oscar Joseph Hospital, in Charity. A Post Mortem examination revealed that he died from drowning.
be professionally compromised, of surrendering their professional ethics and dignity, that they would have a place in the process of moving forward. The public can have no confidence in these persons. “ Khan said that the new government is not going to be a protectorate of persons who for years have aided abetted the misuse of the state media. “Change and progress
demand that personnel are changed, that leadership is changed. We cannot have change by having the same people in the same positions with the same mindset doing the same things,” said Khan. Kaieteur News understands that the new government is anticipating the resignations of other senior officials. It is also expected that members of both the NCN and Chronicle Boards of Directors will be replaced.
Neaz Subhan
Director of Public Information, Imran Khan
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Friday June 05, 2015
=== The Freddie Kissoon column ===
Epistemology: The koker on Muneshwer’s property One of the great schools of inquiry in philosophy is called epistemology. Epistemology is the study of the origins, nature and possibility of knowledge. Two questions epistemology seeks to answer - what is knowledge; is knowledge possible. In attempting to answer the second question, three
philosophers have left everlasting legacies – George Berkeley (1685-1753), David Hume (1711-1776) and perhaps one of the greatest minds whoever wrote, Immanuel Kant (1724-1804). Kant is the most difficult philosopher to read and if you are interested in him, and you are not a philosophy student, then it is advisable to seek
guidance. His seminal work and one of the great books of philosophy, “Critique of Pure Reason” is the most complicated philosophy book ever written. These great philosophers may have different approaches to answering that second question, but they agree that the physical object has no existence. Knowledge
of the object is based on our perception. It sounds crazy, but you have to read these epistemologists to understand what they mean by the nonexistence of the object. In his book, “An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding,” Hume writing on substance and matter told us that “We may well ask what causes us to believe in the existence of material substance. It is certain there is no question in philosophy more abstruse…by what argument can it be proved that perception must be caused by external objects entirely different from them? By appeal to experience? The mind has never anything presented to it but its perceptions, and cannot possibly have any experience of their connection with objects…as nothing is ever present in the mind but perceptions, it follows that we can never observe any object or any connection, casual or otherwise, between perceptions and objects.” Berkeley puts it another way and perhaps clearer than Hume and the recondite Kant, when he wrote in his book, ‘Principles of Human Knowledge,’ the following, “Can you but conceive it possible for one extended movable substance to exist otherwise than in a mind perceiving it …when we do our utmost to conceive the existence of external bodies, we are all the while only contemplating our own ideas.” (end of quote).
What Berkeley is saying is that trees, tables, kokers etc., are not material things that exist outside the mind. Reading Berkeley will make you like philosophy. I immediately thought of these three philosophers when I saw the koker on Muneshwer’s property and the family’s response to its blockage. Does the blocked koker exist? Is it real or just an expression of perceptions in our mind? If you accept the epistemological constructs of Berkeley, Hume and Kant, then the blocked koker does not exist, so I am not going to proceed with my inquiry as to who covered the koker. The Muneshwer family said that it has been spending its own money to maintain the koker? Who am I to call the family liars? I don’t have the proof that they were stingy in not spending money. But I know what I read. I read in the two independent dailies a letter in which an employee accused the family of a policy whereby the staff at the family’s large Water Street store had to buy their own toilet paper and hand sanitizer. I did two columns on that. Of course I didn’t expect a reply from the family, but I would have thought that civil society and the Guyanese people would have made an enquiry from the family. In my opinion that would not have gone uncommented in any other country in the world. The story of the koker brings into focus how broken down this country has
Frederick Kissoon become these past thirty years. What was a koker that drains a large part of the city, including my hometown of Wortmanville/Werk-en-Rust, doing on private property? Let us say that the Muneshwer family did not upkeep it, contrary to what the members claim (a citizen has the right to believe or disbelieve) but in a brutally practical way the question can be posed as to why should they have spent money on it in the first place. The koker is public property. It should never have been allowed to fall into the hands of a private business. As I wrote earlier, given my acceptance of Berkeley, Hume and Kant, I don’t know if the koker exists and therefore cannot level pungent criticism against the family, but surely there should be an investigation. What intrigues me is the thought of the koker remaining in private hands. If it does, I hope the operator and the watchman aren’t compelled to buy their own toilet paper when they are working at the site. Toilet paper is an object that exists.
Dem boys seh...
Don’t put cat fuh watch milk When people want to hide anything dem does try everything. For example, if a man is like Kwame then he does get married to fool people. Dem had some who want to hide but de space limited so even if dem hide dem head, dem tail does lef in de air. Bulky didn’t know wha he was getting into when Soulja Bai and dem other colleagues decide to ask him to check how money was spending. He open he mouth big, big and announce how he gun audit de accounts. Dem boys seh that people didn’t put cat fuh watch milk. You don’t put an accountant to check de same books that you want to use to send
people to de place wheh dem does wear pumpkin jumpsuit. De accountant know that he had he finger in de kitty, because he know all he senior officers was tekking money that didn’t belong to dem. Wha get he worried is that he know that he tek too much and it woulda show up. But if he think he got problems, dem got some married men who got more problem than he. When dem been in high office dem use to tell dem wife that dem wukking. De result is that dem boys use to see nuff of dem wife wid other ladies in dem night club. Times change. Dem men deh home and de wives still going out. Of course some of dem husband use to quarrel; that is until dem read bout de husband who kill he wife and de sweet man. Dem want to know if dem got some sweet man waiting fuh dem to drop to sleep to kill dem.
That is wha does happen. When dem was busy dem wife was also busy. Of course, some men believe that once dem pass money everything alright. That is wheh de sweet man come in. He like a fish get hooked and suddenly he in love. But some of dem picking sense from nonsense. Dem even following dem wife to de market. And dem boys seh that Guyana now in de tail end of de bad wind that Jagdeo bring in. All dem murder that happen this week is like de end of a hurricane-a bad hurricane. Dem boys seh that prayer changes things and now that people praying a lot of things gun change fuh de good. That is why de fire didn’t ketch at de Ministry Wednesday night. Talk half and watch how some of dem now following dem wife.
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Manu Durant killed in Fitness gives you the winning edge! shootout at strip club - Schools’ Physical Display National C/ships kick off
Manu Durant The popular Baroombar Strip Club on North Road was the scene of an early morning shootout yesterday, which resulted in the death of 40year-old Manu Durant. Durant, a popular figure who was well known to law enforcement authorities, succumbed at the Balwant Singh Hospital, a few hours after another man pumped two bullets into his chest, following a heated argument inside the bar. The incident occurred around 04:30 hours, just when the bar was about to be closed for business. Police in a press statement said that Durant, of Atlantic Ville, East Coast Demerara, was involved in an argument with another man, during which he was shot to his chest. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. While police had detained a few persons shortly after the shooting, they are looking for another man who is only known to them as ‘Lion’. Details of the incident were initially sketchy, as persons associated with the bar remained tightlipped. However a police source told this newspaper that Durant became annoyed after his alleged killer told him that the music had to be turned off. According to the source, an upset Durant, who had a glass with liquor in his hand, approached the man and began arguing with him. The brief exchange of words escalated and led to Durant whipping out a gun
from his waist and discharging a round which narrowly missed the man with whom he was arguing. He did not cater for the man having a gun too. A few seconds later, the man pulled out a gun and aimed it at Durant’s chest and squeezed the trigger several times, sending the bullets into Durant’s body. The man then calmly walked out of the bar and disappeared, while Durant lay motionless on the floor. Durant, who was at one time linked to the infamous phantom squad, is no stranger to violence, having cheated death a few times before. In 2002, he narrowly escaped a vicious attack by gunmen in his home village of Buxton, when he was forced to run and leave his car behind with a friend inside. The car was set on fire after the gunmen summarily executed his friend. Then in February 2008, police issued a wanted bulletin for Durant, in connection with the disappearance of Tenisha Morgan, the girlfriend of the late notorious Buxton gang leader Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins. Durant subsequently turned himself in with his lawyer but was later set free. In 2009, Durant was standing with friends outside the Wild Berry Night Club in Kitty, when two men on a motorcycle rode up to him and one of them shot him behind the right ear from close range.
The Ministry of Education kicked off its Schools’ Physical Display National Championships 2015 at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall yesterday. The event which is held annually, but was originally a one-day affair, has now been expanded to two days. The competition ends today. The programme started with a march past of schools, from most of the administrative regions, decked out in a variety of colours. This was followed by the Welcome and Opening Remarks delivered by Nicholas Fraser, Head of the Ministry’s Physical Education Department. “This is the 16th annual championship for the i n d e p e n d e n c e celebrations…All the schools participating are champions of the regional championships held in February last. This year we expanded for the first time to a two-day event, prizes will be given to the best teams such as trophies, equipment and vouchers,” Fraser told the gathering. Education Minister Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine, then made brief remarks before the competition got underway. “This event, which began in 1992 for the Mashramani celebrations, has since grown… This year we will be focusing on our 50th Independence anniversary (in 2016) so this will be the beginning of a year-long preparation for a mega event”. “Education is far more than what takes place in the classrooms but most importantly what happens outside of the classroom, in our homes etc… I intend to work with the programmes that worked well in the past and mend those that didn’t work that well”.
He added, “This is a test of your coordination, integration and physical skills… Our biggest problem is bringing everyone together to work in unity and build our nation as one, and this is what we intend to do, because this is nothing less than what our children deserve”. The Minister then declared the event open. No time was wasted, as the Primary School Jump rope participants took centre stage. Seven schools participated in this segment from regions two, five, six, seven, nine, 10 and Georgetown. After some impressive performances, St Ignatius Primary of Region Nine emerged the winners with 141.5 points followed by Regma Primary of Linden with 119 points and St Pius Primary taking third place spot with 117.5. The Secondary school’s presentation of combinations was nothing short of spectacular with schools from regions one, two, three, four, 10 and Georgetown providing an explosion of dexterity. It was very close in the end, with the first and second place winners just 0.5 points apart. St John’s Secondary with 123.5 points took the title, with Aurora Secondary coming in just behind with 123 points. Harmony Secondary of Region 10 was third with 117 points. As the morning progressed it was time for the primary schools to show off to the judges, as they displayed their moves in the combinations (6-11) group category. Regions two, three, four, five, six, 10 and Georgetown contested. Regma Primary with ‘Razzmatazz’ emerged as top performers with 137 points
over second place winners St Therese’s Primary whose ‘Bodies in Motion’ gave them 121.5 points. Third place was awarded to Kabakaburi Primary who gained 113 points with their ‘Body Fitness’. A 90-second individual freestyle jump rope presentation for the primary level was presented to the judges with only five schools competing for the title. St Pius Primary’s Akeisha White walked away with the title with 121 points. St Ignatius Primary’s representative took second with 109 points, while third place went to Regma Primary with 108.5 points. Before the competition advanced to its final two categories for the day, a side attraction was provided by gymnasts from the Guyana Defence Force. Loud screams were heard from all around as ‘flying’ soldiers showed off their bodies and leaping skills in an effort to keep the crowd on their toes. The pyramids competition then kicked off with President’s College who performed earlier in the morning to facilitate their examinations in the afternoon, which was the initial schedule. Regions two, three, four, six, 10 and Georgetown all tried their best to win the hearts of the judges in the challenging division. In the end, Aurora Secondary copped the title
with 141 points. JC Chandisingh took second place with 129.5 points and St John’s Secondary secured third with 126 points. To close off the first day’s activities was the ‘Last Man Standing’ freestyle competition. This was also a thrilling part of the programme which entailed skippers of each primary school in the competition to present five participants. The large number soon became just a few as the majority were disqualified for stopping and the others because of being too tired to continue. However the final three competitors were Regma Primary’s Amesha Charles and St Ignatius Primary’s Christi James and Joy Gomes who were all rewarded for their over 20 minutes of skipping. The competition will conclude today at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall with the Secondary Schools Banks DIH Coca Cola skipping competition.
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Friday June 05, 2015
UG Unions pledge to “work with” new Education Minister Even as they express no confidence in Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi, the Unions of the University of Guyana are simultaneously pledging to work with recently appointed Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine. In a joint statement issued yesterday, the University of Guyana Senior Staff Association (UGSSA) and the University of Guyana Workers’ Union (UGWU), respectively headed by Dr. Mellissa Ifill and Mr Bruce Haynes, said that they welcome the unreserved commitment to the University of Guyana by the new Minister of Education, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine. Dr. Roopnaraine, during an interview with this publication, acknowledged that the University’s subvention has not been nearly enough to ensure an improved operation, and he committed to transforming the tertiary institution within five years. “As Dr. Roopnaraine accurately surmises, the University has been starved of finance critically needed to
- express ‘no confidence’ in Vice Chancellor maintain its physical plant and ensure the availability of needed material supplies for effective instruction. We therefore expect that the verbal commitment enunciated by Dr. Roopnaraine will be matched by an adequate financial one,” the unions said in the statement. It was also highlighted that staff and students look forward to the day when classes will be held in wellequipped lecture rooms rather than “the ‘stables’, when snakes, horses, cows, stray dogs and other animals are not regular visitors to our walkways and environs and, when visits to faculty and university offices to get basic tasks completed are not met with apologetic shrugs because ‘there is no ink, paper, white board markers, ’ or ‘the printer, photocopier isn’t working’”. In addition to the funding crisis, the Unions are urging the Minister to simultaneously address an equally critical problem,
Education Minister Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine
UG Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi UGWU President, Mr Bruce Haynes
UGSS President, Dr. Mellissa Ifill
namely the governance crisis at the University. Grave deficiencies, it was noted, currently exist at two levels the University Council and Administrative/Management. GOVERNANCEAT COUNCIL LEVEL Moreover, the Unions in their extensive statement amplified the belief that the University has always suffered from a dictatorial, authoritarian structure that
gives the ruling party excessive influence through the University Council. It was pointed out that in April 2012 the two staff Unions along with the students’ Union, the University of Guyana Students Society (UGSS), petitioned Parliament requesting a review and urgent change in the UG Acts and Statutes to ensure the depoliticisation of the Council. This was due to the fact, the statement outlined, that the UG Acts and Statutes give sole discretion to the sitting Minister of Education to determine eight members of the Council – this constitutes a quorum. With (a) the absence of four nominees from overseas University Associations, who are never appointed due to either insufficient funds to pay for
their attendance at meetings or to the fact the organisations no longer exist; and (b) a mere four academic members of the 26 member Council, the academic purposes of the University aren’t being realised. Instead, the Unions noted that Council is dominated by partisan political appointees who act in the best interest of their political parties, a situation that “has been the status quo for 50 years and must change!” “It is instructive to note that both President David Granger and the Minister of Education, Dr. Roopnaraine, supported the Unions’ bid to change the statutes while in opposition. In fact, Dr. Roopnaraine introduced the petition on our behalf in Parliament and he chaired the Parliamentary Select Committee that was established to examine the UG Acts and Statutes,” the
Unions reminded. It was emphasized by the Unions that through Dr. Roopnaraine, a petition was made for Council members to be appointed with significant experience in academia and who are chosen via an open, inclusive and participatory process involving the Minister of Education, the UG Academic Board and the National Assembly. Moreover, the Unions are calling on the Education Minister to speedily ensure that the UG’s Acts and Statutes are changed to ensure that those appointed to serve on the Council have the adequate qualifications/ experience to contribute in a meaningful manner. This is in light of the fact, that the Select Committee has conducted hearings and received both oral and written submissions, and much of the work on the revision has already been completed by the Parliamentary Select Committee during the 10th Parliament. Another factor that will have to be taken into consideration is that Dr. Roopnaraine, (Continued on page 25)
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
UGSS demands details on spending of Facilities Fee - calls failure to include students “deceitful and discourteous act” Although Vice Chancellor of the University of Guyana (UG), Professor Jacob Opadeyi, had assured students that the use of the Facilities Fee will be transparent, students are beginning to raise concern in this regard. President of the University of Guyana Students’ Society (UGSS), Joshua Griffith, yesterday announced that the UGSS will be communicating its related discontent to the University’s Council. In an advisory to students yesterday, he noted that “it is with great disappointment that we are compelled to inform you, the student body, that the Committee indicated to have the responsibility of managing the learning resource fees ($40,000 per student)...the majority of the recently imposed hefty Facilities Fee has not been properly convened to date, some nine months after the beginning of this academic year 2014/2015.” The purpose of the learning resource fee is to cater to classroom resources among other programme delivery needs. It is therefore the role of the Committee to manage the spending and allocation of the Facilities Fee, while ensuring accountability. According to Griffith, the UGSS has been reliably informed that while the Committee reportedly convened one meeting sometime last year, the students’ society was not invited. This development, Griffith said, resulted in numerous letters being inked to the University’s administration over the past months which only resulted in unfulfilled promises to properly convene the Committee. “We have witnessed small improvements to the learning resources of the campus (whiteboards, projects, etc.), however these projects did not receive input or guidance of a convened Committee, as was mandated by the University’s Council,” Griffith explained. For this reason, he pointed out that “...we are unable to state the true cost of these improvements and therefore how much of our money was actually spent, especially in this manner that blatantly disregards an established agreement and principle.” Regarding the state of
UGSS President, Joshua Griffith affairs as an affront, Griffith added that the trust and sacrifices made by students to pay increased fees must go on record as yet another deceitful and discourteous act by the University’s administration. With the hike in the tuition fee implemented last year, students were required to pay a Facilities Fee amounting to a total of $50,000. Professor Opadeyi had disclosed then that the fee would go towards the enhancement of the University’s facilities. He revealed that the fee would be managed by Four Committees, including one which will see input from student representatives, a measure that is expected to cater to accountability. The then Registrar, Mr Vincent Alexander, noted that transparency will be readily permitted on an individual basis as each student will be able to see online, as well as on his/her invoice, the specifics of the Facilities Fee. “It is broken down item by item on the invoice and online so that they (students) can see it,” said Alexander as he pointed out that there are a number of areas that Committees will oversee. One Committee, according to him, will cover the General Facilities Fee, which will cater to classroom resources among other programme delivery needs. Other Committees will direct focus to a Sports Fee, Library Deposit and Students’ Society dues, all of which are included in the Facilities Fee, Alexander said. The latter fee, he intimated, would understandably gain attention from the student body members. But based on the disclosures of the UGSS President, who posted his concerns to his Facebook page yesterday, the process has not been as transparent as it was touted to be.
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Kaieteur News
Friday June 05, 2015
Heavily overdrawn Consolidated Armed men rob labourers Fund will affect Budget of cash, jewellery
Former Auditor General, Anand Goolsarran contends that the heavily overdrawn Consolidated Fund will definitely affect the next budget and even the process for it. The Chartered Accountant in an interview with Kaieteur News said, “The overdrawn balance will definitely affect the size of the budget and the process for it if government is to exhibit financial accountability and control. We have to aim over a period of time to ensure that we have a balanced budget, meaning that expenditure must not exceed revenue.” In addition to asserting that Guyana has been living beyond its means and has accumulated billions in deficits, the former AG insists that the government needs to pay particular attention to revenue assessment and collections. “I am on record as having stated that the Guyana Revenue Authority has the
- Former AG
Former Auditor General, Anand Goolsarran potential for increasing revenue collections by at least 50 per cent, which works out to be approximately $60 billion. Then, we have the “parallel treasuries” in NICIL, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), not to mention the Lotto funds,” said the Chartered Accountant.”
Goolsarran stated that if all these monies are placed into the Consolidated Fund, the overdraft is likely to be reduced significantly. He said, too, that there are also numerous bank accounts sitting at the Bank of Guyana. He said that a “clean-up exercise” needs to be undertaken to identify funds that belong to the Consolidated Fund so that the necessary transfers can be made. During a meeting with several officials within the Ministry on May 19, last, Finance Minister Winston Jordan said he was told that the Consolidated Fund being in overdraft is due to the behaviour of the Guyana Gold Board and its failure to reimburse the account. Jordan had said that while he believes that the Gold Board has been drawing (Continued on page 25)
The location where the labourers were robbed Two labourers were early yesterday morning relieved of their cash and jewellery by armed bandits in the compound of the Georgetown Fishermen’s Coop. Society Ltd at Meadow Bank, Georgetown. But they were not the intended targets. According to the victims, the two gunmen were after a group of fishermen who would normally count their profits around 7:00 am at a gas station in the facility and conceal it in black plastic bags. The labourers said that when the robbers realized that they would not be raking in anything substantial, they decided to “settle for anything” available at the time which happened to be $24,000 in cash, one gold chain and a ring. Suresh Dass of Alexander Village recounted the “frightening” incident. “I was right here in de gas station fixing up dem bottles and then I see these two
young boys appear in front of me. One had plait hair and the other one had he hair cut low. They had some long guns in dem hand. They tell Ivan and me fuh lie down pun the ground and they start kicking me and asking us fuh give them de bag and how they want the bag with the money. I beg them fuh spare me life and I told them me ain’t got no bag of money just $24,000. They took it away from me,” the 45-year-old man expressed. Ivan Hill of Broad Street, Charlestown added, “They turn to me and snatch me chain and me ring and punch me to me eye and run out. They fire a shot in the air and we stay down on the ground until we de sure that they gone.” But the fishermen at the wharf seemed to be suspicious of the story being told by the two victims. Several said that Hill’s story is “not convincing” as he was not seen wearing any jewellery yesterday morning. One said, “This is
worrying. How did the robbers know that they should go straight to the gas station to find us? That is where we would go around 7 in de morning and count our money after our sales. That only started happening the other day, so these bandits had information from somebody. Why didn’t they come to the back? And in these times, how come these two walk away without any injury? They saw the bandits face and they ain’t got no injury? Something is too fishy about this situation.” Leonard Jettoo of Mon Repos who is in charge of the fisheries agreed with the sentiments expressed by the concerned fishermen and stressed that he will get to the bottom of it. The businessman said that security will be increased to ensure the safety of the workers. In the meantime, the matter was reported to Ruimveldt Police Station and investigations have commenced.
Canada to release $30M for Region 9’s cassava processing, farine storage Canada has signaled its continued support to the new Government in a number of ongoing programmes. The commitment was made as Canada’s High Commissioner to Guyana, Dr. Nicole Giles, met on Monday with the Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan. Giles was accompanied by Carleen Langford, Foreign Policy and Diplomacy Officer and Krysta Bisnauth, Development Officer. Present at the meeting in addition to Minister Bulkan were
A mini health check is the first step to donating blood
Permanent Secretary, Emil McGarrell and Research Assistant, Mark Da Costa. “High Commissioner Giles expressed the High Commission’s desire in working with the new administration to further advance Guyana’s development and the shared interests of both countries. Dr. Giles iterated Canada’s foreign policy focus, which is geared towards providing developmental assistance with the objective of creating sustainable economic growth.” In particular, the Minister and his team were briefed on Canada’s current activities in the communities sector. Among these are the CARILED programme which
has completed phase 1, catering for initiatives and interventions relating to economic activities and developments in Regions 2, 3, 4 and 6. Other initiatives include two food security projects based in Region 9, where Canada will be providing over CDN $188,000 ($30M) to establish and maintain a modern cassava processing and farine storage facility, where Wowetta village is expected to process and store 10,000 pounds of farine. “Similarly, Moco Moco Village in Central Rupununi, will be able to process and store 20,000 pounds of farine for use during and after disasters,” a Government statement said yesterday.
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Kaieteur News
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Chinese businesses “eager to continue contributing to economy” - want to know new Govt.’s stance on trade, investments One week after a scheduled meeting with the Government was postponed, the Chinese business community is still hopeful for the engagement to take place. Yesterday, some 16 companies participated in a meeting of the Guyana-China Business Council (GCBC), saying afterwards that they are “eager to continue playing an integral role in creating jobs and contributing to the Guyanese economy”. Following the recent general elections, Chinese businesses were said to be anxious about the reception by the new Government under President David Granger. The previous Opposition, now in Government, had signaled intended reviews of a number contracts and concessions granted by prior administrations under the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic. One particular logging and mining company,
BaiShanLin, reportedly received significant concessions for vehicles, tax breaks and a host of other benefits. In recent years, Chinese businesses have been springing up countrywide, gaining significant inroads in trade. The landscape around central Georgetown has especially changed in this regard. According to a statement from the GCBC, which is chaired by Clinton Williams, a founder member, the meeting yesterday was a precursor to the impending engagement with President Granger. In addition to the 16 companies present, there were also representatives from the Chinese Embassy and the Chinese Association. “Of interest to the companies represented at the meeting was the need to engage the new administration on its policies
Guyana-China Business Council members and other officials at the meeting yesterday. towards investment and trade with China. Companies also expressed several concerns including those related to security, immigration, taxation, dumping, internet fraud and substandard imported products.” According to the council, while acknowledging some of the challenges that exist, the general consensus was one of “optimism” that the
relationship can be strengthened to the mutual benefit of investors and the people of Guyana. Williams, GCBC said, indicated that steps would be taken to establish a security mechanism with the hierarchy of the Guyana Police Force in order to address the security concerns of the Chinese entrepreneurs and businesses.
“The introduction and implementation of a continuous education campaign to inform Chinese businesses and contractors of their responsibilities with respect to Guyana’s laws and regulations as regards to environmental management issues and regulations, taxation laws and statutory requirements, employment practices and labour laws of
Guyana will also be pursued.” The council had announced it was preparing for a meeting last week with Government officials, but the scheduled forum at the Arthur Chung Conference Center, Liliendaal, was postponed. GCBC, which was established in 2006, represents the interest of both Chinese and Guyanese entrepreneurs and investors.
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Kaieteur News
Friday June 05, 2015
Food and Drug Dept. to execute “seize and destroy” plan In a matter of months the Food and Drug Department will be undertaking a “seize and destroy” tactic to tackle the protracted challenge of unlabelled food products on the shelves of some establishment. Food and Drug Director, Marlan Cole, told this publication yesterday that this approach is being embraced to address what he described as a “lawless situation” that has permeated the society for too long. Moreover, he informed that his Department will no longer sit by and let the risky practice continue unabated. He warned that the Food and Drug Department is entirely against the repackaging of food products, as he alluded to vendors opting to repackage products such as milk in unmarked packages. This
state of affairs, he noted, could not only result in contamination but trickery on the part of some vendors. “It is a complete violation of the Food and Drug Act,” said Cole, who also pointed out that repackaged products that are also unlabelled could prove to be a further challenge for the Department. This is in light of the fact t h a t “ i f a n u n labelled package is found to be contaminated we can’t prosecute anybody, because it is not represented by anybody.” As such, he noted that the intent of his Department is to bring some semblance of order and discipline on the local market in the quest to protect consumers. “We have to ensure that people respect the laws of Guyana and in doing so, we have to be able to address
- aimed at tackling unlabelled foods on local market safety risks and even unfair competition, because there are people out there doing the right thing and they are being short-changed because of the illegal practices engaged by others.” In the strategic process, the Department will also be clamping down on some supermarkets that engage in repackaging. He explained that repackaging is only allowed at supermarkets that have been granted a permit from the Food and Drug Department to become involved in such undertakings. “We have to first inspect the premises and ensure that the condition is sanitary enough before a permit is
Alleged assault victim is no-show at court After pleading for justice in relation to an alleged assault, gold miner Melvin Shewprasad, the virtual complainant, was a no-show when the matter was called at the Lethem Magistrate’s Court on Monday last. Shewprasad is alleged to have been badly beaten by a senior army officer at Tabatinga, Lethem in midApril. An associate of Shewprasad said that the
man is currently abroad. Kaieteur News understands that before the adjournment, the court indicated that should Shewprasad not attend court when the matter is called in two weeks, it will be another three months before the next date. The alleged assailant was present at the court hearing. Shewprasad has claimed that he was attacked in the wee hours of Sunday April
Melvin Shewprasad 12, last, at a night spot in Tabatinga, and that the assault stemmed from a misunderstanding over money, a few hours earlier.
granted, but some supermarkets seem to think that they have the right to repackage without permission. However, that is not the case, and we will not tolerate it,” Cole said, as he observed that “some are even re-packaging on the roadsides.” As of yesterday, the Department commenced sending out letters to selected defaulting proprietors requesting that they voluntarily remove repackaged and unlabelled food products from their shelves, Cole disclosed. He added that businesses across the country engaged in such practices will be similarly targeted. As part of the process, the National Food Safety and Control Committee of the Department will next week conduct a meeting to detail a strategy that will be implemented to address the situation on a national scale. According to Cole, the Committee has representation from each administrative region and these representatives will be tasked with disseminating warning letters to proprietors in their respective regions. It is expected that within the next two to three months the Department would have appropriately warned all proprietors, after which, the “seize and destroy” plan will be carried out. In a statement issued yesterday, Cole outlined that the Department is advising
consumers against the purchase of improperly packaged, unsealed and unlabelled foods such as flour, milk powder, powdered spices, seasonings and salt. According to him, the absence of a label on the product clearly eliminates the unknown manufacturers or repackager from any liability in the event that the food product is found to be contaminated and/or hazardous. In addition, there is no guarantee that the premises where the product was manufactured or repackaged was approved or inspected by the Department, or that the personnel handling the food are knowledgeable about the tenets of good manufacturing practices. Cole noted too that a product that is repackaged at the retail level is usually unsealed and also stands a greater chance of becoming contaminated with physical and/or chemical matter, whether by deliberate means or accidentally. Contaminants, according to him, could include cleaning compounds such as soap powder, insecticides, rodent droppings and airborne particles. Added to this, he observed that “the failure to ensure that the product is properly labelled could result in a mix up of commodities at the time of purchase; for example salt may be mistaken for white sugar or Epsom salts for Monosodium Glutamate (popularly referred to as Aji no Moto in Guyana).” Moreover, consumers who fail to heed the advice of the Department will run the risk of purchasing foods that
Food and Drug Director, Marlan Cole maybe adulterated, short weighted, expired, or more importantly, contaminated with disease-producing and spoilage micro-organisms as a result of poor hygiene practices during handling, preparing, packaging and storage. According to the Food and Drugs Regulations of 1977, Chapter 34:04, Section (18) (1), “No person shall sell a food unless a label is applied to the food in compliance with these regulations. (2) On the main panel (iii) a correct declaration of the net contents in terms of weight, volume, or number in accordance with the usual practice in describing the food. (b) On any panel (i) a complete list of ingredients in descending order of the proportion or quantity of each ingredient is stated in terms of percentage. (ii) The name and address of the manufacturer of, or the person preparing the food and its country of preparation or origin.”
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Kaieteur News
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UG Unions pledge to “work... 'Palms' staffers stage... (From page 12) who submitted the petition and chaired the Parliamentary Select Committee, is now the Minister of Education under whose purview the University rests. Even as the process to change the statutes is in train, the Unions are also appealing to the Minister to quickly withdraw those distinctly politically partisan appointees on the Council and, following consultation with the varying interest groups they ought to have represented, replace them with individuals whose sole agenda is the development of UG. GOVERNANCEAT ADMINISTRATIVE/ MANAGEMENTLEVEL Despite acknowledging Professor Opadeyi as the ‘executive head of UG’, who is ‘responsible for the general administration’ of UG, the Unions at the same time stressed that they have no confidence in him. The Vice Chancellor is also tasked with ‘maintaining and promoting good order’ at UG and therefore is the key university officer with much authority and responsibility for good governance, financial management and control. But the Unions are of the considered view that Professor Opadeyi has failed to deliver in these areas of his authority and responsibility. “We further believe there can be no transformation of the University under his leadership. The Unions believe his contract must not be renewed because of the following: His misconception of the role of UG in national development and consequently failure to fulfill the mandate of the University,” added the
Unions. Detailing the Vice Chancellor’s failure, the Unions outlined how he failed to prioritise the teaching and learning environment, and consequently, there has been virtually no improvement in that environment despite increases in student fees, and student action to demand such improvement. “His dictatorial, vindictive micro-management style has led to him presiding over demoralised and demotivated staff. His untrustworthiness, as exemplified by his countless broken promises and the currently stalled negotiations process. His unwillingness to genuinely consult with the established decision-making bodies of the university,” were listed among the failures of the Vice Chancellor. And these are compounded by “his alienation of staff at all levels as he seeks to arbitrarily close departments, including the most productive research department at UG, the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) and bully staff on the Workload policy.” According to the Unions too, “His circumvention and breach of university financial systems, practices and procedures including: (a) Failure to convene and chair the Academic Board’s Estimate Committee which has a statutory mandate to prepare estimates of expenditure required to carry out the work of the University and to submit them to the Council for approval.” Instead, the Unions observed, Professor Opadeyi has “usurped this function and assumed virtually total control over the Bursary; (b) His continued perpetration of the illegal act of failing to
remit our GRA and NIS contributions to the relevant bodies in a timely manner – an act that he used to secure the termination of the services of the former bursar and chief accountant.” Accusing him of illadvised cost-cutting measures, which take no account of the university’s commitment to the delivery of quality education, the Unions went on to blame the Vice Chancellor for divided loyalty due to his continued employment at the University of the West Indies and his private consultancy activities. ”In other words, the VC has failed to maintain and promote ‘good order’ at UG by dominating or disregarding all the university structures and committees. This generalised ‘system over-ride’, ensures that only his priorities, plans and whims are accommodated,” said the Unions as they reiterated lack of confidence in Professor Opadeyi. “He does not possess the required skill set and therefore cannot be trusted with the task of positively transforming the University,” they added. As such, the Unions are calling on the Education Minister to review the uncritical support of Professor Opadeyi he displayed as a member of the University’s Council. “We pledge to work with the Minister and MoE staff to ensure that the University becomes transformed into the tertiary institution our students and nation deserve - one that produces innovative, nationally relevant and groundbreaking research and offers the highest quality education to our students,” asserted the Unions.
Heavily overdrawn Consolidated... (From page 14) heavily from the Consolidated Fund hence the state it is in, he will provide a more concrete position when he is informed of the state of affairs of the Gold Board. He had said, too, that he has asked the Accountant General to provide him with some figures in that regard. Goolsarran later stated that the Minister was inappropriately informed and emphasized that while the heavily overdrawn Consolidated Fund can affect the budget process, it could have an impact at the rate at which the new government achieves certain goals within one hundred days. Only recently, the financial commentator disclosed that based on his findings, Guyana has
accumulated over $80B in debt with respect to Treasury Bills and estimated that the Consolidated Fund could be overdrawn by as much as
$60B. Goolsarran said that the overdraft situation can be traced back to 1992 and earlier periods.
From page 22 one of the buildings. Another male staffer said too that instructions had reached his immediate boss that the administration no longer wanted him in the compound yesterday. “Because I was standing here, he just come and tell me I must come out the compound; they don't want me here. The boss man told her to snap a picture of me saying I was in the crowd.” One nurse complained bitterly that she was made to manage an entire ward on her own, while she was pregnant. “They say I am not qualified for gratuity and this year they're saying it again. I need my money. I've been working for four months without my salary.” The nurse said she is a mother of three struggling to survive. “I work with my big belly and now they say I can't get my money. You got to come and see what is going on. It's not easy for one nurse to run a ward,” the nurse emphasised.
The staff made no qualms as they intimated that the conditions were substandard at the palms for not only them but also the patients. In one ward this newspaper visited, there was a reported dead animal beneath the building and it reeked. The nurses emphasised that it was unhealthy, stating that the animal had been left there for days. “In here it's so unhealthy, while the administrators them sit up there and do whatever. They come in the ward with their long boots and gloves on their hands. They just come here to dictate,” the staffers said. The areas where the laundered clothes of the patients were supposed to be hung was taken over by large bush and makeshift lines were made under the building of the ward visited. Kaieteur News noticed windows that had been displaced and left open. Staffers complained that it made them and the residents feel unsafe, yet nothing had been done about it. The nurses' room in that
flat had two hospital-sized beds, a table. Uneven and shaky floors were in the wards as well as nurses' room. Of note, many of the patients at the Palms move around in wheelchairs. The nurses registered disdain at the cupboards where the patients' clothes were being kept, as well as the kitchen, which had basic items like cups and plates. “Donation come here every time and God knows what they do with it. This is the condition here and they sit up there doing nothing. You can't talk for your rights,” one nurse said. They said despite complaints and calls for improvement, nothing was being done. Attempts to contact the Assistant Administration proved futile.
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SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. – CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 Advertisements; Guyana Passport & Visa Forms Application, USA, Canada and England. Tel: 626-7040; 265-4535. Repairs & spare, fridge, freezer, A/C, washers, stoves. Contact Nick: 6831312, 627-3206 Your Dream Yard Today! Stunning designs, Assortment, colourful plant choices, Professional Landscapers Tel: 219-0468/ 648-1821 Balloon decorating for birthdays, weddings, anniversary etc, make your event extra special! Tel Maya: 642-6664 R E PA I R S AT L O W COST: FRIDGES, AIRCONDITIONERS, WASHING MACHINES, TVS, MICROWAVES, FREEZERS - CALL: 6294946 OR 225-4822 EAGLE’S FRIDGE RE-GAS - $8,000 & WASHING MACHINE REPAIRS. PHONE: 697-2969, 6460966
Kaieteur News
Driver- must have canter license & valid police clearance is also requiredCall: 592-609-8114 or 592-6120599 One able-bodied male to provide customer assistance for bottle refilling- Call:6242391, 222-5990 Need an advisor to help with setting up a new Private School, email details to mozatart@yahoo.com One Ranger, must know to use GPS contact 223-5273/4 Cook must know to bake, able body cleaner, housekeeper & general domestic, waitress Tel: 679-5933 Staff for plant shop, Located in Georgetown, Plant knowledge an advantage. Tel: 643-4049 One maid must know to cook Indian dishes, wash & clean in Georgetown- Tel: 2235897, 614-3764, 653-2840 Live- in domestic 35-45 years. Light duties- Tel:227-1830 Experienced cashier: must know point of sale (shift work) @ Fortune House Restaurant, 98 Sheriff Street. Live in domestic must know to cook Indian dishes, salary $70,000 monthly - Tel: 610-3974
CAR RENTAL PROGRESSIVE AUTO RENTAL:CARS&SUV FOR RENTAL- $4,000 & UP PER DAY- CALL: 643-5122, 2193900, EMAIL: PRO_AUTO RENTAL@YAHOO.COM DOLLY’S CAR RENTALCALL: 225-7126/226-3693 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL@ YAHOO.COM/WWW. DOLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM Aidan’s Car & Pickup rental, cheap rate, low security - Tel: 698-7807
LEARN TO DRIVE Soman, Son & Outar Driving School at Maraj BuildingTel: 644-5166; 622-2872; 6150964; 689-5997
SALON
VEHICLE FOR SALE
Make Up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, Black Opal and Sacha cosmetics. Call: 647-1773/660-5257
Unregistered fully loaded, Toyota IST $2M - Call: 6917475
WANTED 1 Maid, 40years and older to work in SurinameContact: (+597) 322-5442; (+597) 651-6666 Taxi Drivers wanted at Princess Hotel - Tel: 616-5419
Female to work in prodcution department - Call: 644-5151 One live-in person to care for an elderly man in Georgetown- Call:223-9888 1 family to work & live in for an elderly man & living @ Timehri (living accommodation free) - Call: 223-9888
WANTED CANTER DRIVER AND SALESMAN, SECURITY GUARDS FOR LAND OF CANAAN, E.B.D BUSINESS. POLICE CLEARANCE REQUIRED. 266 4427 Wanted to Purchase One Toyota RAV 4 2000 CC – Tel # 600-5253. Experienced salesgirl @ Christine’s Variety store @ Lombard St.- call:626-8003, 227-8529 Salesgirls and porters, apply at 1E Dennis & Middleton Street, Campbellville with written application. Two experienced welder, must know to operator torch and fabricate –Call: 222-3844 Cutter head dredge operator/ Missile Dredge operator. Kindly make contact with 600-7344, 600-8812 between 9am-2pm. Maid to cook and clean, 3 days per week - Tel: 614-4358 One nanny contact - 2235273/4 Truck drivers, security guard, office staff: 5 CXC subjects minimum & computer literate, to work in Georgetown - Tel: 218-5105 Four (4) General Managers for a hinterland operation. Attractive salary. Contact 223-5180 (2) Two men to operate a mineral crusher - two crusher operators - for a gold mining operation. Attractive salaries and benefits. General domestic maid at Diamond- Contact: 626-8003/ 227-8529
1 Maid to wash and clean @ E.C.D-Tel: 603-5416; 644-9802
Experienced pastry makers, Roti/Puri & Curry, cook, cleaners, apply @ Hack’s Halaal, 5 Commerce Street. Mechanic trainee to work in workshop age 17-25 – Call: 660-1269; 616-6007
1 L-Touring Wagon, excellent condition - A.C Alarm & Remote start, flair kit, CD player, 16" mags, price -$1.3M - Tel: 626-2884 V8 Titan (2005) KIA SPORTAGE 2003 - Call: 275-1230
Urgently needed live in waitress-Tel: 693-4154
Experience female accounts clerk- 4 years working experience. Apply in person @ Alabama Trading Georgetown Ferry stelling Stabroek
Friday June 05, 2015
MASSAGE American Style Massage Service: Heaven on Earth Massage, relaxation awaits you. Call: 678-7499 FOR SALE/RENT 1 Three Storey building, established business- Call: 227-1042; 601-3369 For Sale: Rush, household items: TV, etc. For Rent: house. Tel: 628-7884
Noah and Voxy Unregistered. Call: 668-0000, 603-7900 Star Cars Auto Sales: In Stock, Premio, Vitz, Bluebird, IST, Alteeza, Benz C200, Spacio - Tel: 679-3140 1 Noah BSS excellent condition-$1750, 1 Noah recently registered, blue bird Sylphy 2006 (unregistered) – Tel: 652-0709; 614-4777
EDUCATION Register now with Alpha foundation for chill care, care for elderly, cosmetology, dressmaking, cake decoration & more –Phone: 264-1052; 663-7930
FOR SALE LARGE QUANTITIES OF HIGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICK SILVER) 99.99995% PURITY$19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754.
Private homeschooling for CXC English and all SSEE subjects - Call now:696-7467
One Mitsubishi freezer canterGPP 4798- Call: 622-5717
Kids Summer computer classes, age 5-16 @ Micrographics Technology – Vreed-en-Hoop - Tel:2643057 (Register Now!) Computerized Accounting 4 Courses @ $30,000: POS Quick Books, Excel 2013, Peachtree. Micrographics Vreed-en-Hoop - Tel: 264-3057 Super Deal for CXC 2015 Students: 9 Course in Computer studies -$30,000 @ Micrographics –Tel: 2643057
Toyota Hilux 5L Manual $2.350M negotiable –Tel: 684-1776; 617-8188
We buy & sell vehicles for cash, also parts available & 30 seater buses; Extra Cab pickups; 2006 TacomaCall:680-3154 Honda Accord 2003: 31,000KM, 2L, leather interior, touch screen TV, DVD, 6 CD changer & radioCall: 689-1194 Massey Ferguson 399 Contact: 601-9903 1 Toyota Prado & Toyota Hilux both in excellent condition, owner migrating – Call: 601-0053; 691-8079 One Noah registered in BTT series, never used. Reasonable price- Call:6988617 Toyota, Honda 600RR, BB, AT192, AT212, Premio, Hilux Pick up, RZ minibus & Pitbull, Nissan Blue Bird –Tel: 644-5096; 697-1453 1 RZ BGG 6179 in good condition- $600,000 – Call: 601-3253 One Toyota Allion 2004 Model & 1 new & unregistered Mazda Axela, excellent condition -Tel: 649-0956 2004 Spacio -$2M 2008 Fielder (new shape) -$2.5M unregistered –Tel: 617-2891 Unregistered Nissan Bluebird 2006 for sale $2.650M negotiable – Contact: 689-7325/644-9277 2002 Yamaha R6, in excellent condition, owner leaving country - Call: 661-2953; 6505500
Spare for washing machine, microwaves, fridges, stoves, timers, gearbox, motors, etc call: 225-9032, 647-2943 Registered pure breed Rottweiler, first litter male & female (8weeks). Viewing of parents- call:231-5902, 2272958 One Tohatsu outboard 15HP for sale –Call: 656-9921 One BMW X5 in immaculate condition- Call: 628-8777 House and land at Diamond Housing Scheme, E.B.DPrice $9.5M - Contact: 6879107
(2) 75 DAF GHH 7237, GNN 5366, 1 IST Car PMM 755 – Contact: 613-5212, 664-1030 AT192, 212, Allion, unregistered Premio, Hilux Surf, BNN, RZ & Pit-bull, 7 seater super custom. Cash / terms- Call:680-3154
Great Deals on video games & all gaming consoles. PC, phone games & applications. Delivery also. Call: 672-2566; 265-3232
FOR RENT PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 12 Offices @ 220 South Road G/Town –Tel: 227-1042, 6013369 Five bedrooms house, 107 Lamaha Gardens & Large Parking; AC Rooms Hot & Cold, Purified Water System Call: 661-8908, 335-3590 GT TOOL RENTALS: COMPACTOR; CHIPPING HAMMER RANSOM & FLOOR SANDER, JACK HAMMER, CONCRETE SAW & MORE- CALL: 6750767, 627-5098 One 3 bedroom upper flat apartment for rental in 5th Avenue, Diamond H/Scheme E.B.D. Tel: 662-9335 Fully furnished apartment with 2 bedrooms, hot & cold, cable, A/C. 1 bedroom unfurnished apartment. Rooms- Call: 689-5877 Office spaces 15 x 25 & 25 x 25 at Hadfield St. behind Brickdam Police Station- call Simone: 227-0501, 626-5317
For sale copra contact # 600-0540 One two stroke 90 Yamaha outboard, one 14ft aluminum boat, one 25 Yamaha 4 stroke outboard – Contact: 601-1138 DAF truck: flat rack, Perkins eagle turbo, 350LM, 12.17LT, 350HP, GVW 32,000KG, mileage 71,000kmCall: 676-9413, 223-0050 Crashed Toyota IST 07 Model. Price negotiable, tel: 614-1443 XBOX One, XBOX 360, PS2, PS3, PSP and Nintendo DS system, plastic barrels $6,000-Call: 603-8643; 6217497; 649-3277 One Toyota Forklift 2004, 10,000 lifting, 8ft fork, fuel propane 3 stages lift, sliding fork- Call: 629-7444 15-15-15 fertilizer, going cheap-Tel: 266-2711; 609-4594 PROPERTY FOR SALE Property for sale, Grove $18M neg. Tel: 625-5461. TO LET Prime office space @ lot 239 Quamina Street, Central Georgetown, parking available in Private yard. Tel: 592-227-2913, 592-689-3033 Two bedroom apartment & studio @ Eccles – Call: 6447000, 233-3133 or 233-2369
VEHICLE FOR SALE Toyota Prado, Price$4.4M Neg. Call: 643-2403 One BMW X5 in immaculate condition- Call: 628-8777
One bedroom apartment at Mon Repos, no ChildrenTel: 662-9043 Apartments in Eccles & Rooms in Alberttown - Call: 225-3234 Continued on page 31
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Letters... Where your views make the news Letters... Where your views
An Open Letter to the New Minister of Public... From page 5 drips with full knowledge of a lack of theatre staff, should there be a worst case scenario, but her water bag was clipped without the consent of any physician. It was apparent also that while having all of this done, one of the doctors had denoted his interest in her condition, even up to the point in calling it an “experiment” because she was not experiencing pains even when on the drips. Clipping her water bag marked the beginning of the greater problems since the umbilical cord presented itself first, getting lodged in the vagina causing a cord prolapse leading to a diminished supply of blood to her baby. Noting this emergency, and knowing well that there was a lack of theatre staff on such a day at what was supposed to be a premier health institution, the doctors were still hesitant in
transferring her to the main referral hospital, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. It was not until her unborn baby was in a dire state that they made the choice to have her transferred, but by the time she arrived, it was too late. Her baby had succumbed due to an inadequate supply of blood. Her tragedy did not end there as she was then put in a position where she had to give birth to a dead baby; followed by being placed on a ward full of happy mothers who were successful in giving birth as well as having to share a bed with another mother. This had dire psychological effects on her, yet still no investigation was done to have those responsible brought to justice. Secondly, it is indeed sad how the previous administration has failed Natalie Caseley, who continues to fight for justice for her four year old son, Jaden Mars,
I could not place... From page 4 with the concurrence of the Committee and the then Cabinet that contrary to what ‘Dem boys seh’ in Thursday, June 4, 2015 issue of the Kaieteur News, the focus would be on community involvement in the Clean up Programme. This provided opportunity for consultation and employment of persons from their respective communities. The people of Albouystown, East Ruimveldt, Alberttown, Lodge, Agricola, Alexander Village etc ( Refer attached details) would, I am sure, attest to this fact. The limited contractual works were in respect of works requiring specialized expertise and capital machinery / skills not easily available at the community level. 5) Fellow Guyanese, the fortnightly Reports of Works in Progress and Finances received and expended constitute public information available. These were presented to the meetings of the sub Committee on Local Government and the Cabinet meetings themselves. These reports were also made available to the City Council. If neither the Mayor nor his Council found the reports worthy of discussion or consideration, this is pathetic and affirms our decision to manage the resources ourselves. 6)To all readers I draw attention to the final Financial and other Reports of the Technical Planning and Implementation Committee of the Project and wish to affirm that while I did not see or handle $ 1 of the Project Funds and indeed had no reason or cause
to; I am unaware of any question /issue with respect to the intentional misuseor mismanagement of these resources which were ever brought before me or the Committee or the Cabinet and not addressed. I am happy that the Audit Department of the Ministry of Communities, a Department which I was instrumental, with the support of the former Minister of Public Service Management, Ms Jennifer Westford and Cabinet in setting up a few months ago, has been tasked with the audit of this Clean up Project. Like most Guyanese, I eagerly look forward to the report and its recommendations. I have repeatedly emphasized to staff of the Ministry, the Regional Democratic Councils, the Municipalities and the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils that the setting up of adequate systems for recording, planning, analyzing, interpreting and reporting on the financial resources of the Local Authority and the use of those resources are critical to the work of those Authorities. I may not have been at the Ministry long enough to analyse the work of the Department but I am happy to see it start its work. I proudly leave with those who would wish to tarnish/blemish my more than four decades of honest, unblemished public service to my fellow Guyanese: a commitment to continue to serve with diligence, humility and honesty. I know of no other way. Norman Whittaker Former Minister of Local Government and Regional Development
who died at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) over one year ago. The toddler was merely taken to the hospital for a few stitches after biting his tongue during a fall but died shortly after spending a total of six days on life support. For such a simple case, death should not have been the outcome causing Caseley to strongly believe that her son may have been overdosed or the right procedures may not have been undertaken. Casely has subsequently been campaigning against those responsible for her child’s death, constantly reiterating the prevalence of negligence by the health sector which are being
overlooked on too many occasions. I have campaigned with both Teresa Lalltoo and Natalie Caseley through social media and picketing exercises from which I can conclude that these mothers are determined and eager for justice to be served in a most timely manner. Both parties had submitted written reports to the Chief Medical Officer however, the excuse was always that reports were not submitted by either hospital or that the issue was still being investigated. This inefficiency is inexcusable especially when dealing with human lives. Furthermore, we can question whether Dr. Shamdeo Persaud
is the most appropriate person to be titled the CMO and assigned the duties of investigating cases of these natures. To add, it is just to ask, under his tenure and that of the previous administration, has any case of negligence or malpractice been brought to fruition? In closing, I wish to acknowledge Kaieteur News and Stabroek News for channeling these cases through their various news reports and being at the forefront in publicizing them. Also, thank you in advance to the Honourable Minister of Public Health and his team for picking these cases up and working assiduously to allow justice to prevail. Dave Lalltoo
Was the use of the Consolidated Fund in this manner legitimate? DEAR EDITOR, In the Wednesday May 20, 2015 edition of the Kaieteur News, it was reported that the Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, discovered that the Consolidated Fund was heavily overdrawn and this was due to the behaviour of the Guyana Gold Board and its failure to reimburse the account. I would like to seek
clarification of the following issues. 1) Is the use of the Consolidated Fund in this manner a legitimate and proper transaction? 2) When was the practice of hedging implemented and under whose watch was this scheme implemented? 3) How much gold did we buy at the higher prices and can we verify that the
My response to Ruel... From page 5 Caribbean Press and give it to a young APNU Parliamentarian. I wrote Dr. Anthony’s office requesting a meeting along with other interested parties. He never responded. I eventually met him at the Women Artist’s exhibition at Castellani House. He told me that I request a lot of money for my work arrangements, [ someone had told him this]. I replied that a publishing house is supposed to make money and pay money; we never crossed paths since. Cultural development, Ruel, is not ‘I’; it constitutes ‘We’. I am well informed, I need not conspire against you, I have nothing to gain nor can you affect me in any way.[ Leave the Prince Claus Fund out of this, I implore you, do not hurt anyone else.] Before your awakening, I have long understood that the PPP is bad for Governance, in every area, the most recent was the shifting of CXC in the hope to use Arrival Day, and the visit of an significant Indian personality to manipulate emotionally to canvas ethnic votes. But remember Ruel, the Gods turned the man who fell in love with himself into stone. Of my encounter with
members of that Party, was Robeson Benn who was instrumental as commissioner at GGMC with William Wolford in having my nonfiction graphic novel on the Pork knockers published through a Licence arrangement. Even after he had left GGMC he did stop me on Robb Street, he did stop me in front of Freedom House in the company of now Prime Minister Nagamootoo to enquire of its progress. I later questioned him one day in Austin’s bookstore “why are you with the PPP?” That I berated the PPP [to repeat your words] should be obvious, they lowered themselves below that of national administrators to criminalize and inflict impoverishment on the Nation, and gather illegitimate wealth for themselves. The power force slap-yuh-up of the PPP[2006-2014] composed of pedestrian opportunists, the unsophisticated, the clueless and the shameless. Of the few who knew better, I could never understand why they stayed to the end. The fat lady can sing now Ruel, as I have concluded this discourse, with nothing left to be misconstrued. Barrington Braithwaite
purity levels o the gold we paid for were the actual levels that Guyana has in inventory? 4) How soon will an audit be done to ascertain the purity levels of the golf in the inventory? 5) And finally, when do we plan to dispose of some of our inventory so that we can replace the funds in the Consolidated Fund and / or cut our losses? Robert Durjan PROPERTY FOR SALE Residential lots ad houses for sale at Eccles, E.B.D $7.5M. Tel:592-227-2913 or 689-3033 1 Flat concrete house 20X38 feet, land space: 100X200 feet. Tel: 694-1090 or 661-6073 Transported concrete property for sale at Lot 458 Block “8” Mon Repos, E.C.D, Top flat 2 bedrooms, bottom flat 2 bedrooms $20M. Tel: 625-1514 Property @ Lot 63 West Ruimveldt, Estate Housing Scheme Georgetown – Contact Mark: 618-9744 Property at William St Campbellville, 2 family – 3 bedrooms over 2 bedrooms, 3 Baths 50FTX100FT lot. Call Cheryl: 226-8915 (9am4:30pnm) & Winston (917) 202-7444 Brand new 2 storey, 3 bedrooms building for sale in 5th Avenue, Diamond H/ Scheme E.B.D. Tel: 662-9335. FOR SALE IN CENTRAL GEORGETOWN: SPACIOUS HOUSE IN DESIRABLE BEL-AIR, NEW HAVEN R E S I D E N T I A L NEIGHBORHOOD. CALL: 647-8851 169 Thomas St. Kitty, double lot, vacant possession ideal for business or commercial purposes – Call Zeena: 2203348; 611-8222
From page 30
VACANCY Cutter/straight stitch/ button tack/hole operators. Call: 222-2541 (8:00am4:00pm Mon-Fri) One male technician with complete secondary education, electrical knowledge & fluent in Portuguese, email: vacancy@gsatconnection.com One female clerk - Call: 2315171 Work from home, earn $5,000-$20,000 daily Call Monday-Friday 9am-5pm #233-6517, 638-0595 www.jobfairworldwide.com I N T E R N AT I O N A L EMPLOYMENT: NURSE, TEACHERS,CARPENTERS, ELECTRICIANS, COOK, WAITERS, BELL BOYS, HOUSEKEEPERS, STOREKEEPERS, SECURITIES. CONTACT: 231-6296; 650-9880/ www.plzrecruitme.com Live in housekeeper, to care for infant 30-50yrs, long term employment-Tel: 697-8797 Male security guards, male desk staff & male supervisorcall: 225-0198 or 233 South road, Lacytown Handyman- Call: 600-7388, 225-7933 or visit us at 173 Sheriff Strett
LAND FOR SALE Land at Farm East B a n k Demerara Call: 668-0000, 603-7900 10 Acres Kuru Kuru, High Way Roadside for Resort Business - Tel: 601-3369 or 227-1042 Commercial lots available at Eccles E.B.D $14M - Tel:592227-2913 or 592-689-3033 Parfaite Harmonie (80FTX50FT) -$2M, Tushen -$2M. We buy all low income land - Call: 611-7223 50 Acres titled farm land @ The Belle, Upper Dem, River Front -reasonable offer accepted, serious enquiries only! - Tel: 695-3493 Waterfront land at Eccles 7+ acres- Contact: 954-769-0576, email: 1belair@mail.com 76ft X 52ft land at Triumph railway embankmentCall:220-6799, 657-4969
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Kaieteur News
Friday June 05, 2015
UK offshore tax havens in the Caribbean implicated in FIFA scandal LONDON, England - British overseas tax havens in the Caribbean played a key role in what US authorities have called “rampant, systemic and deep-rooted” corruption in the world of football, according to Britain’s Observer newspaper. Outlining the case against the football officials and marketing executives currently under arrest, the US Department of Justice indictment shows that three of Britain’s Overseas Territories – the British Virgin Islands (BVI), the Cayman Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) – were allegedly involved in masking kickbacks between officials and executives. British Overseas Territories are remnants of the British Empire that have not acquired independence or have voted to remain British. While not part of the United Kingdom, they fall under its jurisdiction. According to the 164page US indictment, UK citi-
Jeffrey Webb zen Costas Takkas, who acted as attaché to FIFA’s vicepresident Jeffrey Webb, used Kosson Ventures, a firm registered in BVI and with bank accounts in the Cayman Islands, to allegedly facilitate illegal payments between a South American sports marketing agency, Traffic, and FIFA officials. The indictment raises
questions about whether the banks in the Caribbean islands should have flagged the transactions to the authorities as a potential concern. “On or about November 21, 2012, two wire transfers, of $750,000 and $250,000, were sent from Front Company A’s account at HSBC bank in Hong Kong to a correspondent account at Standard Chartered Bank in New York for credit to an account in the name of Kosson Ventures, controlled by Takkas, at Fidelity Bank in the Cayman Islands,” the indictment states. Traffic made a $500,000 payment to Webb “through the account of another individual, a business associate of Co-Conspirator #2, to another account controlled by the defendant Costas Takkas at Fidelity Bank in the Cayman Islands.” Another of the defendants, marketing executive Jose Margulies, had a controlling interest in a TCI- based
Jamaica Teachers’ Association gets better wage offer The Gleaner - The Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) says it has received an improved wage offer from the government. However, JTA president Doran Dixon has declined to give details on the new offer. Dixon says the JTA is waiting for a written offer from the Ministry of Finance outlining the new proposal before commenting. He says the new wage offer was expected to be presented to the JTA yesterday. The JTA has been pressing the government for a higher offer than the five per cent presented so far. The association has submitted a wage claim requesting a 25 per cent increase, with 15 per cent in year one and 10
Doran Dixon per cent in year two. However, the government has maintained that five per cent is its best offer. In recent weeks, some teachers across the island
have been staging sit-ins, holding street protests and wearing black to work to register their frustration and disappointment with the wage negotiations.
gotiations. “This approach where workers who are genuinely disgruntled are being threatened and labelled as unpatriotic and disloyal is unacceptable. Jamaica is not a dictatorship.” he added. According to Dr Chang, the People’s National Party (PNP) under the current leadership does not understand how to treat Jamaicans and only knows how to talk about
caring for them. “Since 2012 we have seen them purchase all the creature comforts; they have a bloated cabinet, ministers spending over one million on phone calls, they bought over 60 million dollars in new cars and hired more consultants than any other Government in the nation’s history. They will make no sacrifice but yet ask Jamaicans to make all the sacrifices”, Chang said.
trolled by Co-Conspirator #1 at Barclays Bank in the Cayman Islands.” The Cayman Islands are also said to have been involved in a bribery scheme to allegedly persuade FIFA officials to vote for the hosting of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Austin “Jack” Warner, then-president of CONCACAF (the federation representing the North and Central American and Caribbean footballing nations), is alleged to have promised one official $1 million in exchange for his backing of South Africa. It is claimed that “the first payment in the amount of $298,500 was made by wire transfer sent on or about December 19, 2008 … to a Bank of America correspondent account in New York, New York, for credit to an account controlled by Co-Conspirator #1 at a bank in the Cayman Islands.” Moving on to 2012, Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Islands emerged as a candidate to succeed Trinidad and Tobago’s Warner as CONCACAF president.
According to the US authorities, “an executive at Traffic USA supported Webb’s candidacy by causing $50,000 to be paid from Traffic USA’s operating account to a Caymanian company” controlled by Takkas. Some of the money channelled through the British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean was allegedly funnelled into property. Takkas reportedly transferred funds from his Kosson Ventures account at Fidelity Bank in the Cayman Islands to SunTrust Bank in the United States, allegedly to help Webb buy luxury homes in Georgia.
Kingston and St James are some of the worst hit parishes. Commanding officer for St Andrew Central, Senior Superintendent, Fitz Bailey, says it will take at least until tomorrow for things to get back to normal. And he says sufficient officers were to ensure basic activities are done throughout yesterday. It is not clear whether the
Police Federation had called off its industrial action. Wednesday, in dismissing the court injunction obtained by the government, the union said sick cops cannot go back to work until they are better. Up to Wednesday more than three thousand of the 11,000 member JCF had called in sick, since the protest action started on Monday evening.
Costas Takkas
Police divisions still affected by ‘sick out’
The Gleaner - There are still indications that some police divisions across Jamaica continue to be affected by the sick out by thousands of Jamaican Constabulary Force (JCF) members. The rank and file members are protesting, despite a court order, to press their demands for an improved wage offer from the Government. St Elizabeth, St Andrew,
JLP stands with civil servants against a ‘wicked Government’ KINGSTON, Jamaica – General Secretary of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Dr Horace Chang says the Government’s treatment of civil servants is a breach of trust and he will stand with them against this “wicked Government”. He said in a press release that his comments are based on an analysis of the Government’s approach to recent public sector wage ne-
firm called Somerton. The indictment states that Margulies used the accounts of Somerton and a Panamabased firm, referred to by the US authorities as “Margulies Intermediaries,” to “mask the sources and beneficiaries of bribe and kickback payments”. Between March 2003 and March 2008, “Margulies Intermediaries wired more than $3.5m into accounts controlled by the defendants Rafael Esquivel [president of the Venezuelan football federation], Nicolás Leoz [former president of South America’s football confederation] and Eugenio Figueredo [head of Conmebol, the South American football confederation], almost entirely through even, six-figure payments.” Meanwhile, the Cayman Islands appear to have been used to facilitate the allegedly corrupt transactions for many years. In 1999, according to the indictment, “Traffic caused $200,000 to be wired to a correspondent account at Barclays Bank in New York, for credit to an account held in the name of an entity con-
Former Panama Vice-President Virzi held in graft probe A court ordered on Wednesday that Panama’s former Vice-President Felipe Virzi be held while he is investigated for alleged corruption. Investigators allege that Mr Virzi received a $10m-kickback (£6.5m) from a company which won a lucrative irrigation contract, which he denies. The company’s executives were arrested days ago trying to leave Panama. Mr Virzi is the latest in a series of high-ranking officials from former administrations to face investigation. In January, the Supreme Court appointed a special prosecutor to investigate claims that former President Ricardo Martinelli had inflated multi-million dollar contracts during his time in of-
Felipe Virzi fice from 2009 to 2014. Mr Martinelli denied the allegations and said they were part of a political vendetta waged against him by his suc-
cessor in office, Juan Carlos Varela. Mr Varela, who was elected last year, campaigned on a promise to clean up Panamanian politics. The investigation into Mr Virzi centres around allegations that he received $10m from a company hired by the government of Mr Martinelli to build a huge irrigation system in the Tonosi region of Panama. At the time of the alleged payment, Mr Virzi was no longer vice-president but investigators said he still had close links with the government. On Monday, Mr Martinelli defended Mr Virzi, whom he referred to by his nickname, Pipo. (BBC News)
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
Greece delays IMF payment, PM to brief angry parliament Greece delayed a key debt payment to the International Monetary Fund due on Friday as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, facing fury among his leftist supporters, demanded changes to tough terms from international creditors for aid to stave off default. The IMF said Athens planned to bundle four payments due in June into a single 1.6 billion euro lump sum which is now due on June 30. It was the first time in five years of crisis that Greece has postponed a repayment on its 240 billion euro bailouts from euro zone governments and the IMF, even though Tsipras said earlier this week that Athens had the money and would make the payment. The delay came as German Chancellor Angela Merkel said talks on a cash-for-reforms deal were still far from reaching an agreement. In a sign of accel-
erating efforts to bridge the remaining differences, Tsipras, Merkel and French President Francois Hollande spoke late on Thursday evening via conference call, according to a Greek government official. Tsipras told the two leaders that the lenders’ proposal could not be a basis for a deal because it was not taking into account the progress made in talks in Brussels over the past months, the official said adding that there was optimism that a deal could be reached soon. Tsipras, elected in January on a promise to end austerity, returned from late night talks with EU officials in Brussels to face an outcry over conditions that would breach the “red lines” his Syriza party has declared. He told ministers the government could not accept “extreme proposals” and said the creditors should understand that the Greek people had suf-
fered enough and they “have to stop playing games at its expense”, a Greek official said. “They have not made any step back, regardless of the convergence reached during these four months on reforms that the Greek side included in its proposals but the lenders draft proposal did not,” the official said on condition of anonymity. Tsipras is due to brief parliament on the negotiations from 11 a.m. EDT on Friday. Earlier the novice prime minister left the talks with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and the chairman of euro zone finance ministers, Jeroen Dijsselbloem saying a deal with lenders was “within sight” and that Athens would make a 300 million euro payment to the IMF on Friday. His tone appeared to harden after he ran into a backlash in Athens.
“Female Viagra” Pill gets preliminary OK from FDA An advisory panel to the FDA has recommended approval of flibanserin, a drug touted by Sprout Pharmaceuticals to treat Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder in women—a persistent lack of desire for sex. The 18-6 vote came with stipulations from those in favor that measures be taken to reduce the drug’s side effects that can include low blood pressure, fainting, sleepiness and nausea. Thirty-year-old Katherine Campbell says she suffers from HSDD. “After my first son was born, I noticed it right away. It was there one day, gone the next,” Campbell tells Yahoo Global News Anchor Katie Couric. Experts in the field say it’s related to brain function. “We know there is this area of the limbic system that is associated with the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine that is functioning differently in the women with HSDD,” says Leah Millheiser, MD, director of the Female Sexual Medicine Program at Stanford School of Medicine. Sprout has been lobbying the Food and Drug Administration for years to approve its experimental drug, which would be the first treatment of its kind for this problem. “Flibanserin is a novel, non-hormonal pill to treat hypoactive sexual desire disorder in premenopausal women,” says Sprout CEO
Cindy Whitehead. Critics say the so-called “little pink pill” has not proven to be safe or effective. “This is a drug that’s meant to be taken every day for the rest of a woman’s life. We don’t know what the long-term effects are,” says Adriane Fugh-Berman, MD, assoc i a t e p r o f e s s o r a t Georgetown University Medical Center and director of the research project PharmedOut. She also questions the validity of HSDD as a diagnosis. “Low desire is not a medical condition, and in fact the term hypoactive sexual desire disorder has been eliminated from the latest ‘Diagnostic [and] Statistical Manual,’” Fugh-Berman says. “Low libido can be caused by a number of different things, including diabetes, depression, other medical conditions, medications
— particularly antidepressants and relationship problems.” The FDA balked in 2013 when Sprout resubmitted a new drug application for flibanserin, which had been rejected once before, while it was held by the German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim, citing side effects such as sleepiness and nausea. It also refuted claims that the decision was in any way sexist. “We do not believe there has been any gender bias with regard to our review of this drug,” the agency said in a statement. “We engaged in a scientific process in which we evaluated whether the drug’s benefits outweigh its risk.” Sprout resubmitted flibanserin for FDA approval in February. A decision by the FDA is expected in August.
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Friday June 05, 2015
Djokovic still faces... New York Cosmos top... (From page 36) there would still be the small matter of beating either Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Swiss eighth seed Stanislas Wawrinka in the final. Tsonga shoulders the weight of a nation on his shoulders as France awaits its first men’s winner at the home slam since Yannick Noah in 1983. For Djokovic, the pressure all comes from within as he tries to become only the eighth man to win all four slams. He extended his claycourt run this season to 15-0 when he swept aside Nadal on Wednesday, but Murray has won all 15 claycourt matches he has contested this season — evi-
dence that the surface no longer messes around with his head. ”He’s been playing some really good tennis. He’s moving better, serving very well, and he always had a touch, one of the best groundstrokes in the game for the last 10 years since he’s been playing,” Djokovic said of Murray. Murray, trying to become the first British man to reach the French Open semis since 1937, said he feels confident, but dismisses suggestions that Djokovic may have peaked too early. “I don’t think there are any negatives that you can have from winning against someone that has won this event nine times and beating them in straight
sets,” Murray, who is coached by French former women’s number one Amelie Mauresmo, said. ”I’m not buying that that can be negative in any way.” Tsonga’s run to the semi-final has been a surprise. “Nothing to lose, I think. Not much to lose,” Tsonga, the only one of the four men left without a grand slam title, said when asked about the confrontation. Wawrinka was also not a hot-tip although he did reach the semi-finals in Rome. He said he will not worry about overwhelming support for Tsonga today. “It doesn’t matter for me. I’m going to play my tennis. That’s it,” he said.
Friday June 05th 2015 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) If you work in a helping profession such as psychotherapy, you're probably breaking quite a few rules and protocols right now, Aries. You may even be going against theories that were a fundamental part of your education. TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) You don't have to be a genius or do something extraordinary in order for people to notice you, Taurus. GEMINI (May 21–June 20) You aren't free enough, Gemini. This is especially true in your relationships. With the current astral energy, you can expect to break free of your chains. CANCER (June 21–July 22) If you were in charge of a company's human resources department, Cancer, today you would begin to completely overhaul the recruitment procedure. LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Leo, the romantic side of your life may be rocked by a storm of emotion. You may go from intense rage to ecstasy in an instant. The day may instruct you to get hold of your emotions. VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) The day may be somewhat oppressive, Virgo. It's possible you will receive some unpleasant news related to your domestic life. Perhaps in the past few years you haven't been especially careful about your home budget.
LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) You seem frustrated today, Libra! There's only one person who could possibly arouse your anger to such a degree, and that's you. Today's aspect is favorable for crises of conscience that result in a change of attitude. SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) This is a contemplative day, Scorpio. You seem to be developing new techniques, means, therapies, and methods to use in your main occupation. SAGIT (Nov. 22–Dec. 21) You will have to expect the day to be somewhat frustrating, Sagittarius. Your friends may insist that you be more cooperative and less individualistic. They could resent your refusal to be part of the team. CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) You mustn't expect to do whatever you like today. Quite the contrary!Youmayberestrained bytechnicallimitations.Perhapsyour financial resources will be insufficient. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20–Feb. 18) Science, space exploration, and certain other fields require the participation of all with a very strong team spirit. PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) What good does it do you to resist change, Pisces? Everyone knows that you have trouble adapting to change in the world around you. Unfortunately, that's life and you can't do much about it.
(From page 35) both teams enthusiastically in the historic encounter, which was played in a steady rain. Cuba enjoyed early possession, but the Cosmos made the most of their attempts to grab a 4-0 halftime lead. Mkosana opened the scoring in the ninth minute off a defensive error. Located 35 yards from goal, midfielder Cosmos midfielder Leo Fernandes was the recipient of a mishit Cuban clearance. He immediately found former Real Madrid and Spain legend Raul, who squared a nimble
chip swiftly to Mkosana in the middle. The 27-year-old forward was never closed down, allowing him space to fire a right-footed shot inside the left post from the edge of the 18-yard box. The host then placed several opportunities on frame only to be thwarted by goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer, before the Cosmos struck for three additional goals during a 10minute span. In the 32nd minute, Raul headed down in the box a Danny Szetela pass from the right and an unmarked Guenzatti swooped in to make it 2-0. Four minutes later, de-
fender Hunter Freeman crossed to the left post for David Diosa, who headed it back in front of the goal. Chirishian was there to tap in from six-yards out. Guenzatti turned playmaker in the 42nd minute, crossing to Mkosana for his second goal, a volley from the middle of the penalty area. Vaquero got Cuba on the scoreboard six minutes into the second half with a rightfooted effort from 10-yards out. Cuba will play Curacao in the second round of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup on June 10 and 14. (CONCACAF)
FIFA ‘paid FAI to stop legal... (From page 36) “systemic and deep-rooted” c o r r u p t i o n . FIFA is facing two criminal investigations by both the US for widespread bribery allegations and Swiss authorities over the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding processes. The Republic of Ireland were 16 minutes away from a penalty shootout for a place in the 2010 finals in South Africa before Henry handled in the build-up to William Gallas’s extra-time equaliser in the second leg of the play-off in Paris. The 2-1 aggregate win sent France to the 2010 tournament, where they were knocked out of the group stages amid a player strike. A FIFA spokesman confirmed the payment, but said it was a $5m loan and was granted for “the construction of a stadium in Ireland”. The spokesman added that the FAI was to repay the money if Ireland qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, which they failed to do. FIFA wrote off the loan on 31 December 2014. The Aviva Stadium was the only major ground redeveloped during that period. Yesterday, the FAI said the settlement was made without any conditions and was reached “following strong legal advice”, with the money going towards the new Aviva Stadium - opened in May 2010 after the old Landsdowne Road ground was redeveloped. In a statement, the FAI said: “This is fully reflected in our financial statements, which are audited independently. The FAI accepted FIFA’s settlement offer to avoid a long, costly and protracted legal case. “The settlement has at no time influenced the FAI’s criticism of FIFA as demonstrated by our consistent criticisms of Sepp
Blatter.” Delaney said he and FIFA President Sepp Blatter “came to an agreement” after Blatter publicly dismissed the country’s appeal to be made a “33rd team” at the tournament. “We felt we had a legal case against FIFA because of how the World Cup play-off hadn’t worked out for us with the Henry handball,” he said in a radio interview with
Ireland’s national broadcaster RTÉ. ”Also the way Blatter behaved, if you remember on stage, having a snigger and having a laugh at us. “I told him how I felt about him, there were some expletives used. We came to an agreement”. “It’s a very good agreement for the FAI and a very legitimate agreement for the FAI,” he said. (BBC)
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
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FIFA U-20 World Cup
Germany, Brazil advance, historic day for Fiji Both Germany and Brazil rubber-stamped their places in the Round of 16 at the FIFA U-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015 on Wednesday. The former beat Uzbekistan 3-0 in Christchurch, while the South Americans narrowly edged past Hungary with a 2-1 triumph to see the giants coast in the knockout stages. Indeed, Brazil were forced to come from behind after going into the break 1-0 down, but eventually got the better of a ten-man Hungary side that fought bravely until the end. Andreas Pereira scored the decisive penalty with just four minutes left on the clock to seal the win in New Plymouth. Germany initially struggled to get to grips with Uzbekistan but eventually imposed themselves on the game and recorded a comfortable 3-0 triumph. Marc Stendera grabbed a superb brace to emerge as the leading light for the victors.
German players in a jubilant mood.
However, it was Fiji who provided the most surprising news of the day thanks to their 3-0 win over Honduras, which marked a maiden FIFA
World Cup win for the tournament newcomers from Oceania. The players celebrated wildly and now have a chance of reaching the next
Guatemala’s Sopegno upbeat ahead of WCQ
stage in the final round of group matches. In Group E Nigeria posted a comfortable 4-0 win over Korea DPR, who themselves are yet to taste victory at a FIFA U-20 World Cup. Results Group E Nigeria 4-0 Korea DPR Hungary 1-2 Brazil Group F Honduras 0-3 Fiji Germany 3-0 Uzbekistan Goal of the day Nigeria 3-0 Korea DPR, Sokari (72’) There were 13 goals in four games on day six at the
U-20 World Cup, but the pick of the bunch was without doubt Kingsley Sokari’s strike to put Nigeria 3-0 up against Korea DPR. After the Koreans failed to properly clear a corner, the ball landed directly at Sokari’s feet 20 yards out and he wasted little time in smashing an unstoppable shot into the top-left corner. Memorable moments Fairytale script The sun may have been setting as it turned the sky red over the stadium in Christchurch at halftime, but it was then that Fiji were beginning to shine. The underdogs from Oceania, taking part at the tournament for the first time ever, were 3-0 up against Honduras and could scarcely believe they were about to record a maiden competition victory. Key to the triumph was their ruthlessness in front of goal, with each of their three shots rippling Honduras’ net. Nigeria’s Saviour Striker Saviour Godwin lived up to his name in New Plymouth, taking the plaudits for his part in Nigeria’s victory over Korea DPR. The match was goalless at the break but in the second half Godwin came to his side’s rescue, netting a brace inside six minutes to pave the way for his team to pick up all three points. Family affair One former Germany international will have been particularly delighted with the sub-
stitution that was made in the 74th minute of Germany’s match against Uzbekistan. It was then that Pascal Kopke, son of erstwhile Germany goalkeeper Andreas, a European Championship winner in 1996, was brought on to the field. The youngster was a late addition to the squad and only arrived in New Zealand three days ago. After recovering from jetlag, Kopke got his first taste of the action and played alongside the descendant of another famous figure in the world of football: Uwe Seeler’s grandson Levin Oztunali. The stat - 50 – It was a milestone occasion for Nigeria, who played their 50th game at an U-20 World Cup. The Flying Eagles have so far recorded 21 wins, ten draws and 19 defeats. Their first tournament outing was exactly 32 years ago on 4 June 1983, when they beat the Soviet Union 1-0 in the Mexican city of Monterrey. The words - “I don’t want to imagine what’s going on right now back home in Fiji. It’s an absolute dream come true for us! Misiwani Nairube, Fiji goalkeeper. Next match day - Friday 5 June 2015 Group A - Panama – Ghana, 16:00 (Auckland); Austria – Argentina, 16:00 (Wellington) Group B - Ukraine – USA, 19:00 (Auckland); Myanmar – New Zealand, 19:00 (Wellington)
New York Cosmos top Cuba in historic friendly Ivan Sopegno (center) leads a Guatemala training session at the Project Goal facility on June 1, 2015. (Photo:Omar Solis) Guatemala City, Guatemala – Despite his team remaining winless and goalless in three 2015 outings after a 3-0 loss at Mexico on Saturday, Guatemala head coach Ivan Sopegno was able to extract positives from the performance. The Chapines’ are looking to develop a rhythm before facing Bermuda in the second round of World Cup Qualifying later in June. They fell to Canada (1-0) and drew with El Salvador (0-0) in March to open the year. ”For us it was a nice experience,” said Sopegno, following his 10th game in charge (5W-1D-4L record). “There are no excuses, but we will try to make all the changes.” Since being named manager slightly more than a year ago,
the 51-year-old has handed international debuts to 17 players, including one to 21year-old forward Jose Longo against the Mexicans. ”This game helped us a lot in order to know who we can count on, who to keep evaluating for the qualifiers and who are still lacking. We need to play these kind of games with the best and make conclusions on everybody, them (the players) individually and us as a team.” Sopegno also said that Guatemala will be lifted by the additions of United Statebased standouts Elias Enoc Vasquez (Real Salt Lake), Marco Pappa (Seattle Sounders) and Moises Hernandez (FC Dallas). ”It will take work,” he
continued. “We need to bring in some players who strengthen us more. We also have players with experience, such as the boys in the MLS. I believe we’ll get better as we move forward and as we play more games. We know ourselves and recognize the good things. “Football is working with strengths and hiding the flaws.” Guatemala will visit Uruguay for another friendly tomorrow, before facing the Bermudians in a two-legged qualifying series on June 12 and 15. In next month’s CONCACAF Gold Cup, the Central American runner-up will take on Trinidad & Tobago (June 9), Mexico (June 12) and Cuba (July 15) in Group C play. (CONCACAF)
Havana, Cuba - Lucky Mkosana scored twice in the first half and the visiting New York Cosmos defeated Cuba 4-1 in an international friendly at the Estadio Pedro Marrero on Tuesday.
Sebastian Guenzatti and Hagop Chirishian also tallied for the North American Soccer League side, which became the first United States professional soccer team to perform in Cuba since the
now-defunct Chicago Sting in 1978. Andy Vaquero netted the Cubans’ only goal early in the second half. The home fans cheered (Continued on page 34)
New York Cosmos’ Raul and Cuba captain Yenier Marquez shake hands. (Photo courtesy of the New York Cosmos)
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Friday June 05, 2015
Ailing Serena beats Bacsinszky FIFA ‘paid FAI to stop legal action to reach French Open final over Henry’s World Cup handball’
Serena Williams of the U.S. reacts during her women’s semi-final match against Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland. Reuters/Vincent Kessler An ailing Serena Williams stayed on course for a 20th grand slam singles title as she came back from the brink to reach the final of the French Open with a 4-6 6-3 6-0 win against Swiss power hitter Timea Bacsinszky yesterday. The American, who looked unwell throughout the match, putting iced towels around her neck and against her forehead at changeovers, fell a set and a break down as the 23rd-seeded Bacsinszky peppered the court with backhand winners. But Williams, who won Roland Garros in 2002 and
2013, dug deep to break back and Bacsinszky cracked, losing 10 games in a row. Williams closed it out when Bacsinszky sent a backhand long and the world number one will now face Czech 13th seed Lucie Safarova tomorrow. ”I have tried everything. I thought if I lose I must fight. I have tried and tried, I don’t know where I found the energy,” Williams told a courtside interviewer in French before a coughing fit ended the conversation. Last year, Williams pulled out of a doubles match with her
sister Venus at Wimbledon after appearing disoriented and weak on court when she was suffering from a viral illness. There was no quitting this time, however. Bacsinszky had promised not to be intimidated and she was true to her word at the start of the match. The 25year-old broke for 3-2 with a quickfire service return winner, leaving a subdued Williams to walk back to her chair at a snail’s pace. Williams had her only break point of the set in the 10th game, but the Swiss saw it off with a trademark backhand winner. Bacsinszky then had set points, but fired long on the first and Williams saved the second with a backhand winner down the line. On the third, the American had her opponent on the ropes, but with the court wide open, she fired a forehand wide. Bacsinszky broke in the fifth game of the second set and Williams fought back tears at the changeover. She came back fighting, however, to break back for 3-3, held serve and broke again for 5-3. She served it out, clenched her firs t and twirled in celebration. This time it was Bacsinszky who looked disoriented and she never recovered as Williams motored away.
Djokovic still faces rocky road to French glory
Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns the ball to Rafael Nadal of Spain during their men’s quarter-final match. Reuters/Jean-Paul Pelissier Novak Djokovic’s muted celebrations after ending Rafa Nadal’s reign as claycourt king were partly out of respect for his Spanish victim but mainly due to the fact the his French Open mission is far from accomplished. In beating nine-times champion Nadal, Djokovic
scaled what had previously been an insurmountable barrier at Roland Garros. It earned him only high praise, though, not the title he craves to complete his collection of majors. Andy Murray, his opponent in the semi-final, perhaps poses an even greater threat to the rampant Serb who is on
a 27-match unbeaten streak in Tour matches. The way Murray dispatched David Ferrer in the quarter-finals, and the way he beat Nadal to win the Madrid title, suggests that he can wreck Djokovic’s dream. Even if Djokovic wins, (Continued on page 34)
France striker Thierry Henry handled the ball in the build-up to his side’s extra-time equaliser in their World Cup play-off against the Republic of Ireland in 2009 FIFA paid the Football Association of Ireland 5m euros (£3.6m) to stop legal action after France controversially beat Ireland in a World Cup play-off. FAI chief executive John Delaney said he believed they had a case
against FIFA after French striker Thierry Henry’s handball in the 2009 match. Delaney said a “legitimate agreement” was made to drop the claim after Ireland missed the 2010 World Cup.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter is quitting with the organisation in crisis. Delaney’s claim comes after a turbulent nine days for football’s world governing body amid claims of (Continued on page 34)
Safarova silences Ivanovic to reach first slam final Lucie Safarova became the first Czech woman in 34 years to reach the French Open final after she fought back to topple 2008 champion Ana Ivanovic 7-5 7-5 yesterday. Just when it looked as if her title aspirations were floundering, the 13th seed shook off her jitters and unleashed her A Game to pummel Ivanovic into submission. ”It’s a dream come true, I still cannot believe it. The happiness is unreal,” said a jubilant Safarova, who will be aiming to become the first Czech to lift the Suzanne Lenglen trophy since Hana Mandlikova in 1981. With his girlfriend Ivanovic looking unstoppable at 5-2 up in the first set, Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger held up two clenched fists to his face before swinging out his right arm to deliver a knockout punch. The message from the players’ box on Philippe Chatrier Court was clear for all to see — it was just too bad for Ivanovic that Safarova decided to steal the idea. The lefthanded forehand that had looked rather ordinary during the first seven games suddenly caught fire, helping Safarova to win 20 of the last 26 points in the first set. Ivanovic’s celebratory cries of “hajde”, Serbian for ‘come on’, that had often reverberated around the arena during the first 30 minutes of the contest dried up as Safarova pocketed the first set when the seventh seed slapped a service return long. However, for a player who was looking to reach her first grand slam final, keeping her nerves in check proved to be a task easier said than done. After breaking in the third game of the second set, it seemed nothing could stop Safarova from setting up a final date with Serena Williams when she went up to serve for the match at 5-4. The occasion, however, turned Safarova’s legs to jelly as first she gifted a break point with a double fault, and having survived that
Czech Republic’s Lucie Safarova in action during the semi final. Reuters / Jason CairnduffLivepic wobble, she then surrendered match point with another pair of misfired serves. The dramatic nine-minute game featured a matchpoint, two double faults and four break points before Ivanovic finally struck to level at 5-5 when Safarova’s netcord bounced wide into the tramlines. But Safarova was determined not to let the golden opportunity slip through her sweaty fingers on the hottest day of the championships and two games later, her bare upper back was caked in red clay as she marked her triumph with a celebratory roll. ”When I realized that I could be in the final, I got tense... I was overthinking and couldn’t really concentrate,” she said. “But when I lost the serve I shook it off and played aggressive again.” (Reuters)
Friday June 05, 2015
Kaieteur News
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Anti-doping chief calls for FBI to probe Mo Farah coach Alberto Salazar over drug scandal allegations
The most powerful man in the world of anti-doping wants to see Mo Farah’s coach subjected to a criminal investigation.UK Athletics are leaning towards severing all ties with Alberto Salazar, the man accused by BBC’s Panorama of supplying and trafficking illegal performance-enhancing drugs for his athletes. Craig Reedie, President of the World Anti-Doping Agency, told Sportsmail he believes it would be ‘entirely appropriate’ for Salazar to be targeted by the federal authorities in the US over the BBC claims which have engulfed the camp of double Olympic long-distance champion Farah. Witnesses told the BBC that American Salazar had provided Farah’s training partner, Galen Rupp, with testosterone from the age of 16. Further allegations claimed Salazar once even used a hollowed-out book to surreptitiously supply Rupp with drugs. Last night, UK Athletics chiefs were considering
dropping Salazar as a consultant for their leading distance runners, with a decision possibly as early as today. Farah, who is not under investigation himself, was due to be put in front of the 1,500 metres in Sunday’s Birmingham Diamond League event. That media appearance has been cancelled and Farah and his sponsors Nike — who run the Oregon base where Salazar runs his programme — were nowhere to be seen and unavailable for comment. Reedie believes the allegations could yet involve the US law enforcement authorities. ’I don’t know a great deal about US law,’ said Reedie. ‘But the authorities there certainly started to investigate the Lance Armstrong case, until it was stopped and US anti-doping took over, and it may be a federal investigation is possible here. ’The WADA view is that a criminal investigation is entirely appropriate with the trafficking and distribution of
Athletics coach Alberto Salazar (centre) has been accused of supplying his athletes with illegal drugs illegal performance enhancing drugs. What we don’t want to do is criminalise athletes.’ The FBI have had success in the past investigating sporting scandals, bringing down the famous BALCO drug laboratory in 2002 and last week starting investigations into bribes at football’s world governing body FIFA. There were three other key
developments yesterday as potentially the biggest drugs scandal in world athletics since the Ben Johnson affair escalated. * Farah faced calls from leading British distance runners to ditch Salazar as his coach. * Reedie said WADA would assist the US AntiDoping Agency with their investigation, making sure they received all the evidence available to examine the claims about Salazar and the Nike Oregon Project where he trains his athletes, Farah
among them. * Reedie also said the revelations by Panorama increased the possibility of night-time testing to combat the threat of micro-dosing. While there is no suggestion Farah is guilty of any doping offence — he issued a statement on Wednesday insisting he had ‘not taken any banned substance’ — Reedie agreed that the allegations needed to be taken extremely seriously. In Panorama’s programme, journalist Mark Daly also administered synthetic hormone EPO to himself — a process called micro-dosing — in order to prove that the current drug test could be beaten. He was successful. ’David Howman (WADA director general) said he was concerned — and he’s right,’ said Reedie. ‘We should be concerned by the allegations in two areas of the programme. ‘Obviously by the witness statements regarding Salazar but also by the experience the journalist had in administering EPO to himself and beating the test. ‘The Blood Passport (the system used to monitor all athletes) is a complicated issue but we are aware of the
challenge of micro-dosing. ’Testing athletes in the middle of the night might be an option we need to explore, as mentioned recently in cycling’s independent report.’ While WADA will assist, Reedie said he expects USADA to lead any investigation. A statement from Nike said: ‘We take the allegations very seriously as Nike does not condone the use of performance enhancing drugs in any manner. Both Alberto and Galen have made their perspectives clear and fully refute the allegations made against them.’ Nike’s apparent stance did not stop them causing a stir in the athletics world by signing serial doper Justin Gatlin earlier this year. The American sportswear giant also appears to feature in allegations made by the US Department of Justice in their investigation into bribery and corruption at FIFA, with an alleged £40million bribe to secure the kit deal for the Brazilian national team mentioned in their report. Nike are the official kit suppliers of the Brazil team. (Mailonline)
FIFA crisis: Blatter ‘working on reforms’ despite quitting Tiger Woods struggles in Memorial but Russell Knox in touch
Outgoing FIFA President Sepp Blatter says he is moving forward with a “comprehensive programme of reform” for world football’s governing body. It comes after a tumultuous nine days for his organisation, amid claims of “systemic and deep-rooted” corruption. Seven FIFA officials were held in a dawn raid last week in Zurich as they gathered for a congress which saw Mr Blatter re-elected for a fifth term. Four days later, Mr Blatter announced he would step down early from the post. He said he would remain at work until FIFA had chosen his successor in the coming months. As part of an indictment alleging widespread corruption within FIFA over a period exceeding two decades, the US Department of Justice has charged 14 FIFA officials and associates, including the seven held in Zurich by Swiss police at the behest of US authorities. There are no charges against Mr Blatter himself. Yesterday saw several developments in the story: Former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner, one of those indicted by the US justice department, said he would release an “avalanche” of evidence relating
Mr Blatter tweeted this picture of himself “working hard at reforms” to FIFA’s financial transactions. Police in South Africa launched a preliminary inquiry into allegations that officials paid bribes to help secure the 2010 World Cup. The Football Association of Ireland said Fifa had paid it 5m euros to stop legal action over Thierry Henry’s handball in Ireland’s World Cup play-off defeat by France in 2009. UK Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said England was ready to host the 2022 World Cup if Qatar was stripped of the tournament. In a statement issued last evening from FIFA HQ in Zurich, Mr Blatter reported that he had held a “a good, constructive meeting to establish a framework for action
and a timetable” with Domenico Scala, chairman of the organisation’s audit and compliance committee. The statement added that “president Blatter and Mr Scala are now working on the process to instigate meaningful reform of the administration and structure of FIFA”. It further quoted Mr Blatter as saying: “I want a comprehensive programme of reform and I am very aware that only the FIFA congress can pass these reforms. Furthermore, the executive committee has a particular duty to share the responsibility of driving this process.” Mr Blatter tweeted a picture of himself “working hard at reforms”. (BBC)
Scotsman Russell Knox was two off the lead after a 66 on day one of the Memorial Tournament in Ohio, but former world number one Tiger Woods shot a 73. World number 77 Knox, yet to win on the PGA Tour, made seven birdies and dropped his only shot on his last hole. Woods, now ranked 172, was four over after nine in his first event for a month, but rallied with three birdies. American Bo Van Pelt had six birdies in his first nine and leads on eight under with Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama. Inverness-born Knox, 29, is in his fourth full season on the PGA Tour and lost a fourway play-off at last year’s Honda Classic. This season he has recorded two thirdplace finishes and tied for 17th at the Players’ Championship last month. Meanwhile Woods, five times a winner of the Jack Nicklaus-hosted tournament at Muirfield Village in Ohio, began his round from the 10th with a dropped shot after hooking his drive and also bogeyed the next when his approach to the par five fin-
Russell Knox
ished in the stream guarding the green. He drove out of bounds on the right to double-bogey the 18th but he also produced some impressive play too, a magnificent tee shot to three feet setting up a birdie at the par-three 16th, which was one of five birdies in his eventful round. ”Physically, I feel good.
Mentally I feel beat up,” said Woods, who is playing his fifth tournament of 2015 and has a best finish of joint 17th. Justin Rose, 34, the 2013 US Open champion and world number six, birdied four of his opening seven holes in a fourunder 68, which was matched by Masters champion Jordan Spieth. (BBCsport)
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Kaieteur News
Friday June 05, 2015
Australia on top after Voges’ debut ton Adam Voges became the oldest man to score a century on Test debut as Australia took control on the second day in Dominica. It was a day of frustration and missed opportunities for West Indies, who had the chance to run through Australia but allowed the tail to wag and found themselves facing a 170-run first-innings deficit. They then lost both their openers cheaply late in the afternoon. Devendra Bishoo had given West Indies the perfect start by spinning out three batsmen before lunch and he finished with 6 for 80, but Voges remained a calm presence at the crease throughout Australia’s innings. The 97-run stand that he and Josh Hazlewood compiled for the last wicket could prove to be the difference, although Mitchell Johnson and Nathan Lyon also provided useful support. By stumps, West Indies were in an even bigger hole.
Shai Hope edged Johnson to second slip and was sharply taken by Michael Clarke, and next ball Mitchell Starc swung one in to rattle the stumps of Kraigg Brathwaite. It left West Indies on 25 for 2 at stumps, still 145 runs behind, with Darren Bravo on 3 and Shane Dowrich on 1. A mountain of work remained for them on day three. For Australia, it was a day to celebrate the achievement of Voges, who at 35 replaced Zimbabwe’s David Houghton as Test cricket’s oldest debut centurion. Patience is no problem for Voges - he has had to wait 160 first-class matches for this opportunity - and he displayed impressive concentration throughout this innings, bringing up his hundred from his 187th delivery. Having made a brisk start on the first afternoon, Voges took a more steady approach on the second day, waiting for his opportunities to work runs through gaps and taking few
risks. Rarely did he play a loose shot, although just after reaching his half-century he pulled Marlon Samuels and a diving Jermaine Blackwood at midwicket put down a tough chance. It was an example of the difference in fielding between the two sides: Australia grasped nearly everything in West Indies’ first innings, but West Indies let opportunities slip. Voges received another life on 104 when Hope dropped one at gully off Taylor, and Hazlewood was put down on 33 as the afternoon wore on. West Indies seemed unable to find the intensity they needed to finish the Australians off: the seventh-, ninthand tenth-wicket partnerships were Australia’s best of the innings. They were six down when Voges nudged them past West Indies’ total of 148 but Johnson, Lyon and then Hazlewood all offered vital support to Voges, who never looked flustered as wickets fell. For a while it looked like Voges might be denied the chance to reach his hundred: he was on 77 when Hazlewood joined him at the wicket. But Hazlewood proved himself a worthy partner, defending capably as Voges kept the scoreboard ticking along and then moved to 98 with a six slammed down the ground off Jerome Taylor. Voges was still there on 130 when Hazlewood was bowled by Marlon Samuels for 39, completing Australia’s innings at 318. It was a wonder-
School kids enjoying themselves at Windsor Park. ©Getty Images ful recovery after Bishoo threatened to skittle them cheaply. During the morning, he turned the ball sharply but also varied his degree of spin, and found enough drift to deceive the batsmen. Before lunch, Bishoo claimed the three key wickets of Steven Smith, Shane Watson and Brad Haddin, and after the break he added Johnson and Starc. Smith (25) added eight to his overnight score before he was hoodwinked by Bishoo, advancing down the pitch only to see the ball drop short of him, spin past his edge and Denesh Ramdin complete the stumping. If it is rare for Smith to be outflighted by a spinner, it is not so uncommon for
Watson, who on 11 drove hard and had his thick edge well caught at second slip by Jason Holder. Haddin showed some intent by launching a Bishoo wrong’un back over the bowler’s head for six, but Bishoo had his revenge by bowling Haddin for 8. It was a beautiful piece of legspin that fittingly came 22 years to the day after Shane Warne’s ball of the century tricked Mike Gatting. Bishoo similarly drifted the ball in and pitched it on leg stump, turning it perfectly past Haddin’s bat to clip the top of off stump. Johnson’s 52-run stand with Voges ended when Johnson top-edged a sweep and was caught at short fine leg for 20. Starc lasted only
two balls, bowled for a duck when he tried to slog Bishoo, and a quick finish appeared possible. However, Bishoo had to go off for some treatment to his hand, and Lyon’s temperament was what Voges needed at the other end, quiet and unperturbed. Lyon managed 22 from 50 balls before he walked across his stumps and was trapped lbw by Shannon Gabriel, but Hazlewood was able to offer even greater support. Bishoo looked like having a sevenfor when he trapped Voges lbw on 127, but a review suggested the ball would have turned past off stump and Voges was reprieved. It was just one more frustration on a disappointing day for West Indies.
Kevin Gutierrez gives Mexico U20s dramatic win Dunedin, New Zealand – Mexico’s FIFA U-20 World Cup campaign is firmly back on track after Kevin Gutierrez netted directly off a free kick in the second minute of stoppage time to give the Tricolor a 2-1 win over Uruguay on Wednesday at Forsyth Barr Stadium. The CONCACAF champion rebounded from Sunday’s 2-0 loss to Mali, which fell 2-0 to Serbia later in the day. All four Group D teams are level on three points with one game left to play. Gutierrez was presented with the opportunity to become the hero thanks to teammate Guillermo Martinez being fouled inside the arc by Erick Cabaco, who was dismissed for his second yellow card. Seconds later, Gutierrez expertly stroked a left-footer off the underside of the crossbar and over the line for the gamewinning goal. The strike put an exclamation mark on an
Kevin Gutierrez (#2) celebrates after scoring in Mexico’s win over Uruguay in the FIFA U-20 World Cup. (Photo: FIFA via Getty Images) action-packed encounter that featured numerous scoring opportunities. Hirving Lozano made the most of one of those chances in the 70th minute to give Mexico a 1-0 lead. The Pachuca standout stripped left-back Mauricio Lemos near the midfield line and raced into the penalty area,
before beating goalkeeper Gaston Guruceaga from 16yards out. Twelve minutes later, Uruguay was on equal terms. Facundo Castro delivered a free kick diagonally from the right into the Mexico box. Despite close defending, Rodrigo Amaral somehow directed on a shot on net, which
goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez acrobatically saved with a dive to his right. The loose ball was stabbed into the net at the left post by the quick-reacting Mathias Suarez. Mexico will complete group play tomorrow against Serbia, while Uruguay will take on Mali. (CONCACAF)