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Kaieteur News
Wednesday June 24, 2020
Kaieteur News Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL, TEL: 624-6456 Editor: SHARMAIN GRAINGER Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491. Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210
EDITORIAL
Elections traumas and nightmares continue What is going on here? Why is it that when Guyanese expect the Solomonic they end up with more of the hypnotic? When will the national coma end? Will it ever end, this political vegetative state?As we look at the continuing comatose state of this society, the eloquence and wisdom of Winston Churchill applies: “It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” This is about electoral Guyana, because on every occasion that there is leaning towards some sparse optimism that the nation’s nightmare is about to be over, it is given a new lease on life with more magic and more mysteries. On Monday, the reasonable expectations of numerous Guyanese, and befuddled observers, were that the country would be finally put out of its miseries, and make a start to returning to some degree of normalcy. Unfortunately, it was not to be, as we all know now, and as the sands of judicial weighing and rulings delivered more of the confusing and dividing. Unsurprisingly, the judiciary itself comes across as yet another strange creature in a land of many strange ones. As is now the norm, and in the blink of an eye, both the coalition and the opposition rushed to the fore to make their own declaration. The perspective of both clashing sides is that it stands justified and now the way forward to announcement of its electoral triumph is guaranteed. In such a contradicting milieu, it seems that all and sundry in the political arena are given judicial license to make any declaration that pleases. In the meantime, the struggling and stonewalled chair of Guyana’s elections agency is neutralized and sidelined to the role of meaningless spectator. Handcuffs limit both chair and agency in the freedom to deliberate and declare. As all of this is considered, the conclusion is that this country is condemned to the fate of William Shakespeare’s tragic King Lear: it is forced against its will to find its way blind, barefoot, brain-dead through newer and more damaging minefields. For starters, interpretations as to what the learned judges of the Court of Appeals handed down mid Monday afternoon already abound in this land, with approximately 750,000 of such swirling back and forth. It is how a suspended country ties itself into Gordian knots, and more and more of them. This is what results, when there is this endless playing of games with words and phrases, and the countless things they mean to many people. As examples, we point to words like “credible” and “valid” followed by “jurisdiction” and others such as “more” and “qualitative”.The pundits and politicians are having a feast from the lavish banquet of Guyana’s growing elections dictionary. What does this or that mean? How can it mean anything other than this (which is what one or the next side says that it must)? And to these we add and ask our own question: when will the national insensibilities and societal insanities come to an end? For while the smart and the slick gorge on the fat of elections developments, citizens starve and shrink from the political sicknesses that burden them and torture them still more. They ask: when will this end? Will it ever end?Rather regrettably, when news of the latest evolutions come, the answer to those last two questions point to and conclude at one ominous place only. It is to what and where, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. Keith Rowley, prophesied almost an eternity ago: this is not going to end well. As we at this paper ponder over that commonsense, but alarming, oracle, we cannot help but agree, as hope continues to dim and disappear. For whatever it is worth, and it is worth the reminder and the reflection, some clarity comes back to haunt. It is for hard and tricky times like these, the most delicate and pivotal of times, that local political players with foresight take comfort in what was pushed for doggedly or objected to just as rigidly. It is why there is so much dispute and lack of movement in appointing or confirming a Chancellor, a Chief Justice, and a chair of GECOM, among others. It is not which one is the best choice, but which one will be worth weight later in political gold at times like these. Now we stumble forward numbly and forlornly from bad times to worse times. When will it end?
Despite what was brought before the court, some words still have their basic meaning DEAR EDITOR There are still a number of Guyanese professionals with excellent legal brains despite the brain drain and the passing of a number of legal luminaries. Resorting to the Caribbean Court of Justice by some Attorneys raises a number of serious questions. Is it because we have little confidence in the local judiciary which has often been bashed for partisan rulings biased on political or racial consideration? Or is it an attempt to get a second opinion on issues? If an appeal is filed based on
arguments that there were errors in the trial’s procedure or errors in the judge’s interpretation of the law then that hinges on the question of competence. Indeed law is not an exact science and the English Language, like other languages, changes with time. However, the most words remain constant over a long period. We call a spade a spade. But what color is the black pen? For argument sake one may talk about different shades of black. Indeed there are cases where interpretation of some words should be sought. One of the
earliest cases I remember was that of “The Trial of Lady Chatterley’ in which the British court was asked to interpret what is the meaning of “obscene” as a result of the publication of by Penguin Books of “Lady Chatterley’s Lover.” It was the first case that was brought under the Obscene Publications Act. It was perplexing when Guyana’s Appeal Court was asked how to interpret “more votes are cast” in Article 177 (2) (b) of the Constitution and whether it should be interpreted to mean “more valid and credible votes cast.”
Without question, a vote can only mean and be counted as a valid vote after it would have gone through an elaborate screening process by GECOM Staffers and representatives of political parties. As far as I know the word “vote” is one of those basic words which, as far as I know, has not undergone a metamorphosis. However, in the eyes of APNU, it can certainly mean “invalid votes” which the PNC has used in a number of rigged elections to declare victory. Yours truly, Dhanraj Bhagwandin
Reforming GECOM should be the top priority of the next government DEAR EDITOR It was good for many of us to read the Caricom Observers’ recent recommendation about reforming the structure of the Guyana Elections Commission. It is in fact quite supportive of the recommendation made by the Carter Center’s Observer team of 2006.The actual quote was as follows: a) “GECOM should be independent from the government and be accountable to and receive funding from the National Assembly. The independence of GECOM from the government’s administration will bolster the Commission’s credibility and independence. b) The Carter-Price formula for GECOM should be changed to ensure that GECOM is not divided solely along political lines. (I) GECOM should be composed of individuals who are solely committed to carrying out a successful and transparent elections process, and who have the confidence of political parties, but
who can also maintain independence, as noted in The Carter Center’s report on the 2001 elections, “As part of electoral reform efforts, Guyana should give careful consideration to alternative models, possibly reducing or eliminating political party representation and increasing the role of independent members of civil society and professional experts.” (II) Gender representation should be ensured in GECOM’s composition. c) Communication between GECOM, the political parties, civil society, and election observers needs to improve. This can be achieved through the establishment of a liaison office to coordinate communication with political parties, observer groups, and civil society. Such an office would need adequate staffing and funding. (I) GECOM’s transparency will be elevated by additional communication with these parties, and could easily be achieved through pub-
lication of GECOM meeting minutes or a summary of such minutes. (II) Improved communication will also strengthen the relationship between GECOM and domestic observer groups. d) Ensure that appropriate legal remedies be exercised in considering challenges to the electoral results. In addition, new legislation should be debated that provides for correcting results, if evidence is later provided that errors were made in determining the composition of the National Assembly. e) Speed up reporting of the vote count. This might be achieved using electronic means to transmit preliminary results. Such means should be tested thoroughly before the next general elections, if possible, during local government elections. Please note that the above along with other observations and comments were submitted after several meetings. The Carter Center lead-
ership delegation met with the following: - President Jagdeo - RNCR-1G leader Robert Corbin - Leaders of the AFC - GECOM Chairman As well as the: - European Union - Commonwealth - US; and CARICOM ambassadors and group leaders - Senior Civil Society leaders” This construct was, however, studiously ignored by all interested parties, despite being one known to obtain in Barbados, Jamaica and other Commonwealth member states e.g. Canada, Australia. One hopes that all the current relevant commentators will together insist that this electoral reform be a priority objective of the next government. All parties, great and small, should be required to commit to ensuring that such a target be achieved as expeditiously as possible. Yours truly, E.B. John
Roger Harper has shown anti-Guyanese prejudice in the non-selection of Verasammy Permaul DEAR SIR, Kindly allow me some space in your newspaper for this letter. After the uproar caused by the omission of Verasammy Permaul from the West Indies team to tour England for a three test series, Chief Selector Roger Harper in an interview on the radio show “Mason and Guest”, when asked about the nonselection of Permaul, said that the conditions in England do not favour spin bowling, but are conducive to fast bowling and that is one of the main reason Permaul was not selected. I consider that statement by Harper as pure garbage
and nonsensical and lacking in honesty. I wonder how he must have felt when his own assistant coach Roddy Estwick, in an interview in England, recently said that with the present prevailing conditions in England he expect Cornwall to do well and even be a match winner. So there you have it – Harper is saying one thing and Estwick the opposite. The fact is Harper is not truthful to the Guyanese people. Let me state the facts. There are nine Bajans in the fourteen man squad and four in the eleven man reserves. That is thirteen Bajan in the
twenty-five man touring party. Even if Permaul could not find himself in the fourteen man-squad, he should have been in the eleven-man reserves before Warrican. Warrican picked up a mere 16 wickets in six games this season, while Permaul took 50 wickets in eight matches while also being the leading bowler for the past six years. Yet Warrican was selected before him. And let’s not talk about Kraigg Brathwaite who has been a failure for the last ten tests averaging just 12 and many others who only after one season is in the team. The truth is, it is clear Roger
Harper does not have much say in the team selection, Jason Holder calls the shot as he has been doing for the longest while now. Imagine there is no Guyanese in the team after Hetmyer and Paul withdrew, yet Harper did not see it fit to pick Permaul. If Jason Holder gets an opportunity the entire team will be Bajans. I again call on the Guyana Cricket Board to withdraw from Cricket West Indies Inc. and apply to the ICC to be an Associate Member so that more of our cricketers can get greater opportunities. Yours truly, Imtiaz Baccus.
Wednesday June 24, 2020
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The Coalition has abused the courts for superfluous cases DEAR EDITOR, Ever since the quest to find a legally acceptable chairman for GECOM, Guyanese who have followed the happenings in and out of courts would have either been edified or confused by the many spurious and costly attempts by the APNU+AFC not only to misinterpret our Constitution but to rewrite it as well. In the case of the unilateral appointment of James Patterson as GECOM’s Chairman, the High Court had ruled that Granger acted constitutionally. The Appeal Court ruled similarly but fortunately the matter went to the CCJ which ruled that the unilateral appointment was illegal. It must be recalled that Granger rejected three lists of nominees submitted by Opposition Lead, Bharrat Jagdeo and then illegally and unilaterally appointed Patterson claiming erroneously that the Constitution gave him that right. The CCJ ruled that he breached Article 161(2). Why did the Guyanese Courts refused to give effect to the simple literal interpretation of that Article? If the words are clear and unambiguous, they must be given the full effect. This is a basic rule of interpretation. In the case of the No Confidence Motion, the Coalition had initially accepted its validity then later challenged it in the High Court. The Coalition, through the then Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams, who had argued that the majority needed for the motion to have been considered passed was 34 and not 33, which it contended was an “absolute” majority and not merely a “simple” majority. The High Court had ruled
that the Motion was validly passed and that Cabinet should have immediately resigned. The matter then went to the Court of Appeal. The Guyana Court of Appeal, by a majority decision on March 22nd, overturned the Chief Justice’s ruling, saying that the correct mathematical formula for finding the “absolute” majority was not used. While Chancellor Yonette Cummings-Edwards (Ag) and Justice of Appeal Dawn Gregory agreed that 34 votes were required for the motion to be carried, Justice of Appeal Rishi Persaud dissented. The CCJ rejected Basil Williams’ argument and reversed the Appeal Court’s ruling in line with the High Court’s ruling. The Coalition had wanted to insert the word ‘absolute’ into Article 106(6). Again it was a simple literal interpretation of the relevant Article but the Appeal Court again did not see it that way. Why was this rule not applied? Then there was Mingo’s fraudulent tabulation which led to attempted fraudulent declarations twice by Lowenfield in complete violation of the Representation of the People’s Act. But in this case a simple and literal interpretation sufficed. Then came the Recount which Granger and Jagdeo had agreed to be supervised by a CARICOM high level team. Having thus agreed, Granger then made his trademark about turn and set up a Court case to block the recount. The High Court then granted an interim injunction blocking the recount relying on Articles 161 B and 162(1). However, Justice Holder
failed to look at Article 162(1)(b) which states that the Commission shall ‘issue such instructions and take such action as appear to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness and compliance with the provisions of this Constitution or any Act of Parliament on part of persons exercising powers or performing duties connected with or relating to matters aforesaid’ However, the Full Court ruled that the High Court does not have the jurisdiction to hear the application filed by Moore for an injunction to block the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) from moving forward with plans to have a nationwide recount. Moore had asked the court to inquire into the constitutionality of a decision made by GECOM to have a high level CARICOM team supervise a national recount of the votes cast in the March 2 elections. The Full Court yesterday discarded the decision by Justice Franklyn Holder in which he ruled that the High Court has jurisdiction to hear an application, despite objections from the opposing parties. In the same vein, the Full Court discharged the interim injunctions granted by Holder and dismissed the substantive case before him. The Chief Justice added that no question whether any
function of the Elections Commission or of any of its members has been performed validly or at all shall be enquired into in any court quoting Section 140 of the Representation of the People Act. Added to that, Justice George cited Article 162(1) (b) of the Constitution which gives GECOM powers to ensure the necessary actions are taken to ensure credible elections. Any redress must be by way of an election petition. Again instead of giving a literal effect of 162(1)(b), it was ignored by Justice Holder. Justice Holder should have realized that CARICOM’s inclusion ensured ‘impartiality, fairness and compliance’ within 162(1)(b). Then again, the recount having been concluded, the Coalition once again sought an injunction blocking the final declaration by the Chief Elections Officer. The majority decision placed emphasis on Article 177(4) which states, “The Court of Appeal shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine any question as to the validity of an election of a President in so far as the question depends upon the qualification of any person for election or the interpretation of this Constitution; and any decision of that Court under this paragraph shall be final.”
What is clear is that the ‘validity’ of an election of a President can only be done after a declaration. It is only then that the question of jurisdiction arises. This is clear and literal. Both Justice Reynolds and Justice Gregory also held that an interpretation of the words “more votes are cast” in the context of Article 177 (2) (b) of the Constitution of Guyana to be construed to mean more “valid” votes cast. Further, Reynolds said that the Court could not grant injunctive reliefs at this time since the Court could not determine whether Lowenfield’s report is valid or not. No one can ever misinterpret the words of Article 177(4), a vote must always be valid for it to be counted and that validity would have been ensured during the electoral process, moreover, the recount has already established the ‘valid’ votes for all 10 Regions. Section 87 of the Representation of the People’s
Act states which vote must be regarded as invalid and not be counted. For the Court to have been asked to interpret this Act is superfluous and a waste of time. The Court cannot insert ‘valid’ into the Article and rewrite the said Article. This is not unlike the ‘absolute’ majority in the NCM case. The GECOM’s Chair has already given the directive to the CEO for the valid votes tabulated in the recount to be used for the CEO’s declaration. Once again it is GECOM’s role to bring an end to the electoral process by declaring the PPP/C the winner of the 2020 Elections based on the Statements of Recount which were endorsed by GECOM itself, local and international observers and the high level CARICOM Team. Enough of the Coalition’s abuse of the Courts in futile attempts to rig the 2020 Elections. Yours truly, Haseef Yusuf
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Wednesday June 24, 2020
Wednesday June 24, 2020
War against COVID-19…
E
ven as the nation awaits the outcome of the March 2, 2020 election, it continues to be faced with the daunting threat of COVID-19. But can the eventual announcement of the election results impact the spread of this disease? Emergency Medicine Specialist, Dr. Zulfikar Bux, certainly believes it can. Dr. Bux, a weekly contributor to this publication, explained, “There will be winners and losers. My concern is that supporters of the winning party may gather to celebrate victory or the supporters of the losing party may gather to protest their frustration. None of these can be good for us as it will only make the environment conducive for the virus to spread. If this occurs, we may not be able to ride the waves of the tsunami to come.” A tsunami, in the typical sense, is characterized by destructive surges of water (in a large body of water) caused by underwater earthquakes. Dr. Bux noted that when a tsunami hits, it causes major devastation and often overwhelms countries and their systems. The devastating effect of the tsunami, he said, often lies in the waves that follow the first wave. The subsequent waves, he noted, tend to be
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Countries with responsible citizens are the ones that are successful - Emergency Physician
larger and spread further. Considering the manifestation of a tsunami, Dr. Bux quipped, “experts are concerned that the COVID-19 pandemic may act in a similar manner in some countries if they begin to relax and return to normalcy too fast.” Moreover, even as he shared some insight into the Guyana situation, even expressing his belief that “we have so far been lucky”, Dr. Bux highlighted some potential possibilities that await Guyana. “Our response to this pandemic has not been the ‘model’ approach. It seems that we have been exposed to a weaker strain of the virus that is not as devastating as the other strains that are wreaking havoc in some countries. Our climate (higher temperature) and lower population density have also made it more challenging for the virus to spread. This does not mean that it is over for us. A stronger strain of the virus can be easily introduced by an infected traveller coming from a country with the said strain,” he explained. As such, Dr. Bux stressed the need for the populace “to be cautious and be prepared for the possibility of a second and third wave of infection which has the potential to be
fection dissipating. He is optimistic that new infections can be prevented “by working together to adhere to prevention guidelines.” Weeks earlier, there was a perceived lull in COVID-19 cases. Commenting on this, Dr. Bux had said, “if the current trends continue, we will have to find that balance between trying to sustain a semblance of societal normalcy but restrain ourselves sufficiently to minimize viral spread. For us to do the latter successfully, we have to minimize our public appearances
Emergency Medicine Specialist, Dr. Zulfikar Bux more devastating.” These waves, he emphasized, can either come from a stronger imported strain of the disease or from relaxing and starting to ease social distancing which can cause an upsurge in the viral spread. The local confirmed cases of the disease mounted to 205 when the Public Health Ministry on Monday confirmed 21 new cases. Another case was recorded yesterday. The majority of these new cases were from Region One and a few from Region Nine. Dr. Bux has a theory on this development. He believes
Cops re-arrest former security guard who posed with weapons in video -report being sent to DPP Jermaine Kingston, the security guard who allegedly posed with high-powered weapons while making comments that appeared to incite violence, is back in custody. A police official made this confirmation yesterday while indicating that investigators had prepared a report for the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP). Kaieteur News understands that the report has still not been submitted. According to the official, Kingston was released on station bail, and was re-arrested when he returned to the station, as he had been ordered to. The official was responding to media that Commissioner of Police, Leslie James, was on Sunday served with an order to release Kingston, since the statutory 72 hours of detention had passed and no application was made to extend the period. Joshua Marcus, through attorney-at-law Everton Lammy Singh, made an application of habeas corpus in favour of Kingston. The matter was heard by Justice Simone MorrisRamlall via Zoom. She ruled that Kingston should be immediately released and that costs of $150,000 be awarded to the applicant. The 26-year-old Kingston was recently employed at the Nazerdeen Mohamed (NM) Security firm. He had not yet been allowed to carry a firearm as was merely manning the front gate at the time.Police arrested him on June 17 last following the circulation of an online video in
Jermaine Kingston which he appeared to be posing with several high-powered weapons, while apparently making comments that seemed to incite violence. Police also seized several high-powered rifles from NM Security Firm’s Berbice location.Officials at the security firm have denied that the weapons seen in the video are theirs. A senior official stated that Kingston was a ‘gate man’ at the Jumbo-Jet who sanitized customers.The suspect had only been working with NM Security Services for about three months. He was previously employed as a security guard and authorized to carry weapons with KGM security.
that “the strain we have is not as virulent but the strain from Brazil is more virulent and may have reached to Guyana. If that’s the case, we have to contain it, else it will wreak havoc if it reaches mainland.” Brazil, a neighbouring territory, has been recording massive numbers of COVID19. But according to the Emergency Medicine Specialist, there is also the possibility of the current wave of in-
and only venture out for necessities, wear masks once we are out, practice social distancing and ensure we strictly adhere to hand and general hygiene principles.” Moreover, Dr. Bux’s appeal is “Let us all be responsible and express our emotions in a responsible manner and focus on saving our country, our lives, and the lives of our loved ones . Countries with responsible citizens are the ones that are successful; let’s all be responsible for the sake of our motherland.”
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Suriname’s Bouterse accepts results of Elections PARAMARIBO (CMC): The National Democratic Party (NDP) of President Desi Bouterse has congratulated the opposition parties on their victory in the May 25 general election and their decision to move towards the formation of a coalition government in the Dutch-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country. “We wish you prosperity, wisdom, strength, and perseverance in the pursuit of the Surinamese goal, which is sacred to all of us, namely, to push Suriname to greater heights at any level,” the NDP said in a statement after the Independent Electoral Council of Suriname released the official results of the poll over the weekend. The opposition parties – Progressive Reform Party, Algemene Bevrijdings- en Ontwikkelingspartij, The National Party of Suriname, and the Pertjajah Luhur, and the Brotherhood and Unity in politics – together control 35 of the 51 seats in the National Assembly, while Bouterse’s NDP won the remaining 16 seats. DIFFICULT PATH
President Desi Bouterse In its statement, the NDP warned the opposition parties that they should remember that “the path of success is not one of roses”. “So be prepared for eventualities and thresholds. If we are all one, breathe this thought into the afterlife, it cannot be otherwise that to crown this congratulation at your address will make it immortal,” the NDP said, adding
that it wanted to wish “to every Surinamese of these coalition parties who will form the government, the blessing of the Most High of the religion you profess”. Last month, Bouterse, who remains head of state until a successor is chosen, said, “The process towards election of the functions of president and vice-president still need to take place accord-
ing to our rules and regulations.” In the statement, Bouterse said that “it is important to know that Suriname is not governed by the Westminster system. Instead, Suriname has a pluriform multiparty system in which voters vote for the 51-member unicameral National Assembly, simultaneously and popularly elected for a five-year term. These 51 individual members of Parliament will, when elected, vote for a president and vice-president,” the statement added. The election is scheduled for August.Meanwhile, the Organization of American States (OAS) said it welcomes the official proclamation by the Independent Electoral Council of Suriname, which confirmed the allocation of seats in the country’s National Assembly. “This is an important step in Suriname’s electoral process and opens the way for the installation of the Assembly’s newly elected members before the end of June as well as the eventual election of the next president and vice-president,” the OAS said.
Wednesday June 24, 2020
Policeman succumbs to injuries days after accident that killed pedal cyclist The Guyana Police Force lost one of its ranks yesterday after he succumbed to injuries he sustained following an accident at Number 68 Public road that also killed a pedal cyclist. Corporal Navindra Jodhan, 30, who never regained consciousness after the accident on June 14, 2020 died at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) yesterday at approximately 11:30 hrs. While news came as a shock to many of his friends, relatives and colleagues, Jodhan was said to have been in a vegetative state and was hospitalized in an unconscious state.A post mortem is expected to be done shortly at GPHC.Initial reports by this publication had detailed that on the June 14, 2020 Jodhan collided with pedal cyclist Malchan “Rasta” Ramdhanny on the Number 68 Public Road. Both men were rushed to the Skeldon Hospital but Ramdhanny was pronounced dead on arrival and Jodhan was transferred to the New Amsterdam Public Hospital. Because of the state Jodhan was in, he was taken to the GPHC. Reports are that
Dead: Navindra Jodhan Ramdhanny was proceeding north along the western side of the road with his bicycle ahead of the motorcycle Jodhan was riding. Jodhan, who was a short distance behind a motorcar, was travelling at an alleged fast rate when the motorcar passed the pedal cyclist who reportedly made a sudden turn into the path of the motorcycle in an attempt to cross the road from west to east.Jodhan was attached to the Anti-Crime Unit of the Central Police Station in New Amsterdam and was also a part of a bikers’ crew from Berbice while Ramdhanny worked as a Laborour to support his family.
Wednesday June 24, 2020
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Different strokes for different folks It is part of unwritten conventions that governments should not sign major agreements or make major appointments after the dissolution of parliament in preparation for elections. Yet, we are witnessing these conventions being honoured in the breach. The reasons for conventions are two-fold: firstly, since parliament is dissolved Ministers are no longer accountable to parliament and therefore should restrain the exercise of authority. The rule is intended to ensure that Ministers or their officers do not abuse their positions of authority. Secondly, there is the possibility that a government may not be re-elected and
therefore it should not engage in major agreements which would bind another incoming government. Anne Twomey, a Professor of Constitutional Law and the University of Sydney, explained that it would be unfair if a (potentially) outgoing government bind a future government just before it comes into office. “If it could do so, a losing government could leave all kinds of booby-traps or impose enormous financial commitments upon its successor.” It is therefore politically indefensible for any government to be engaged in the sale of prime lands and the disposal of assets just prior to or during the course on an
election. It is more unjustifiable for a government to be moving forward with agreements when it is merely in a holding mode. The APNU+AFC has been designated a caretaker government by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). The CCJ in its judgments of July 12th 2019 had noted, “By convention, the government is expected to behave during this interim period as a caretaker and so restrain the exercise of its legal authority.” APNU+AFC, however, has not been restrained in the exercise of its legal authority. It has been carrying on since December 2018 as if it is business as usual. It took ingenuous steps to frustrate the ef-
Dem boys seh ...
CCJ judges to write English exams De Pee-Pee-Pee-Cee run to de CCJ. Dem appeal de decision of the Court of Appeal because it look like dem nah want tek no chance with de Lolo man. Dem boys nah give dem wrong. De man true to form. De man as predictable as the rising sun. Everything he do gat some people smiling and some bawling. Dem boys agree with de Pee-Pee-Pee-Cee. Dem boys, too, nah trust de man. But is karma fuh de Pee-Pee-Pee-Cee. When dem boys skin-up de purchasing of the radio sets and pliers and dem other things, de Pee-Pee-Cee na bat a eye lid. Was like dem begging fuh a chance fuh de same man who now giving dem mo headaches dan Mingo. Dem boys think dat de Bingo man had de Man of de Year award fuh 2020 lock. But when dem boys read de Lolo man summary of observation, dem boys seh de Lolo man fly pass de Bingo. He tek de cake. De man is a court and law unto heself fuh be discounting all of dem votes.
Dem boys nearly faint away when he declare de Coalition pun de Corentyne…de same area wha dem never win and where dem send home thousands sugar workers. Dat is like de Pee-Pee-Pee-Cee winning South Georgetown. Dat is why dem school children want Mingo fuh mark dem test papers. He does add mo dan he subtract. But de Lolo man only know subtraction. Is more dan 115,000 votes he tek off. Dat is quarter of de votes all dem people in Guyana cast.De election results deh pun pause again until de CCJ dem dun rule. Dem judge at the CCJ must be wondering wha dem do in dem former life fuh get subject to all dem examinations. Fuss de elections was about Maths; now is about English. Leh we hope dat it not become about geography. Talk half and remember dat all dis could have been avoided if GEE-CUM de bring out dem Statements of Poll.
fect of the no-confidence motion and now it appears willing to benefit from the greatest electoral heist committed in the western hemisphere in more than 30 years. The APNU+AFC had been defeated in a confidence motion since December 2018. It was supposed to have called elections within three months. From the moment it was defeated, it ought to have known that it was constrained in terms of what agreements it could have entered into. Yet, we keep reading about land deals being signed by the APNU+AFC government. Incredibly some of these sales are being advertised in the Official Gazette after the elections but before the swearing-in of a new government. This clearly is outside of the political conventions. No deals should have been made prior to just after the elections. One company was able to acquire prime riverside land. The price paid raised eyebrows. And this newspaper has been reporting on the sale of prime lands on the East
Coast. Why the haste in concluding these deals? The National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) has sought to justify these transactions pointing out that the original agreement was signed since December 2019 but are only now being completed. But this in itself makes them inappropriate since the CCJ had six months earlier, since July 2019, deemed the government as caretaker administration which means it should have been constrained in making such agreements. NICIL is also pointing to the need for finance for the sugar corporation. But it seems to have forgotten that it took a G$30B loan, secured by the government to support the sugar industry. The need for money for GuySuCo therefore does not explain the haste in these prime land sales. It is very disconcerting to have read that GuySuCo lands are vested with NICIL. This is shocking revelation and one which needs further explanation since the sugar company is a body corporate
and therefore has legal rights to its lands. It should state how these lands came to be vested to NICIL. The Opposition had signalled very early that it would not recognize these deals. And therefore it was a risky decision by those who entered into these agreements, knowing that they will not necessarily be honoured by any new government. What is most disconcerting though is the mad rush to conclude these deals when there are thousands of small persons who have applied for land but have not yet been approved. It reminds one of the old adage “different strokes for different folks”. (The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)
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Wednesday June 24, 2020
Kaieteur News
=== The Freddie Kissoon column ===
Ramjattan and Nagamootoo: Quoting Shakespeare, Spinoza and Machiavelli
H
ere is what the great philosopher, Spinoza once wrote of humans. “I have striven not to laugh at human actions, not to weep at them, not to hate them but to understand them.” Three hundred years after Spinoza endeavoured to comprehend the things humans do, someone like Sigmund Freud wrote that he never really understood the full scope of human
behaviour. In the macabre election saga playing out on the world stage in Guyana, could one make sense of what people like Moses Nagamootoo and Khemraj Ramjattan are doing? It may be more relevant to quote Machiavelli and Shakespeare in our attempt to grasp exactly what these men are made of. Machiavelli observed; “All men are evil and they are always going to act ac-
cording to the wickedness of their spirits.” Unbelievable, incredible things are coming from the mouths of Ramjattan and Nagamooto. One would like to think that if Spinoza was alive today he would have hit a brick wall in understanding a nation named Guyana. Ramjattan in a 50-minute oral perambulation to his ministerial senior staff acknowledged that the 2020 election was lost by his party and
wanted to say a special thanks to them for cooperation rendered during his tenure. Days before, writing a column in the Chronicle, he justified the rigged 2020 process. In his Chronicle piece, unambiguous grammar was used by Ramjattan in his conclusion that the election cannot have a declaration because too many anomalies vitiated the entire process. One should not fault Ramjattan for moving away from his conclusions in the Chronicle article because people change their minds all the time based on new knowledge. Just as he was pellucid in condemning the 2020 election result in favour on the PPP, in his address to his staff he was crystal clear that his party lost to the PPP. He even used the words to the effect that the PPP won by 15, 000 votes. The very next day, Ramjattan went on an APNU+AFC programme and reverted to his Chronicle adumbration, repeating his outline as contained in his
Chronicle column. What words can one use to describe such behaviour? I have lived under autocratic governments in Guyana and there is no parallel with Ramjatan’s egregiousness that can be cited. Only Machiavelli’s quote has relevance here. How does one explain these contents living inside a human mind? I cannot think of any politician from colonial days passing right through 54 years of independent Guyana that have exhibited these mental irrationalities. Moses Nagamootoo in the same Chronicle of March 8 wrote; “in the 2020 elections 473,352 persons voted, as against 412,012 in 2015. From those numbers, the APNU+AFC polled 237,004 votes and the PPP/C 229,344, which gives the former a narrow lead of 7,660 votes. Again, it was a narrow margin as in 2015. And when computed, the unofficial projection is that the Coalition would again have a one-seat majority in the
Frederick Kissoon National Assembly”. After the CARICOM team concluded its observation, valid counted votes showed that the PPP won the contest by 15,000 votes a reality his AFC colleague, Khemraj Ramjattan, admitted to his ministerial staff. Now Nagamootoo has embraced the report of Lowenfield which concludes that the APNU+AFC won the election by a huge majority even beating the PPP in Berbice. Even the rigged election of 68, 73, 80, and 85 did not reflect a PPP loss in Berbice. In fact, since 1957 including all the fraudulent elections under Burnham, the PPP has won every general and local government contest in Berbice. The obvious thing for Nagamotoo to do is to embrace decency and obligation and explain to the Guyanese people how he arrived at his figures that he published in the Chronicle and how he square them with the CARICOM pronouncement on the recount and Lowenfield’s Draculean outputs. We have gone to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), as I stated in my column yesterday that we would. Nagamootoo, Ramjattan and their APNU+AFC outfit keep losing in the CCJ because those top jurists are immune from the degenerate intricacies of Guyanese political sociology. Nagamootoo will not get his wish because GECOM has now suspended statutory meetings until the CCJ’s decision. The end is coming soon because CCJ will rule against them again. But Nagamootoo knows full well that even if by some weird logic, Granger was sworn in, the era of APNU+AFC has come to an end. Sanction will result in their political destruction. It is fitting to end with the application of a quote from Shakespeare to Ramjattan and Nagamootoo, “Men’s evil manners live in brass; their virtues we write in water” (from Henry V111). (The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)
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PPP/C moves to CCJ -Court freezes GECOM from declaring election results Representatives of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) have moved to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) over the ruling on the elections credibility case. The appeal to the CCJ follows the Appeal Court’s decision that the Chief Elections Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Election Commission (GECOM), Keith Lowenfield, must calculate the valid votes in determining the results of the elections. The Appeal Court’s decision comes after a CARICOM – supervised recount exercise which showed that the PPP/C has over 15,000 votes ahead of the incumbent A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC). Already the CCJ has issued an order to prevent any further action by GECOM until the hearing and deter-
mination of the matter. This is in spite of rhetoric peddled by the government that the ruling by the Appeal Court is final. The CCJ order will help maintain the status quo until further orders are granted pursuant to the holding of a full hearing of all matters in dispute. The full hearing is scheduled for July 1, 2020, the CCJ said in an email. The order requires that GECOM, its officers and agents take no step to prejudice the fair hearing of an Application made to the Court by Mohammed Irfaan Ali and Bharrat Jagdeo. The steps prohibit, including but not limited to, declaring the results of the Guyana elections held on 2nd March 2020 until the CCJ issued final orders following the hearing and determination of the questions raised before it in the said Application.
PPP/C Presidential Candidate, Irfaan Ali Meanwhile the PPP/C, through its team of lawyers headed by Trinidad-based Senior Counsel, Douglas Mendes, has listed several grounds by which it believes the Appeal Court erred and failed in determining the application by Eslyn David. The document drafted on
PPP/C General Secretary, Bharrat Jagdeo behalf of PPP/C General Secretary and Presidential Candidate Bharrat Jagdeo and Irfaan Ali outlined the Court erred and failed by holding that it had jurisdiction to hear and determine the Notice of Motion under Article 177(4) of the Constitution, despite the absence of rules effectu-
The CCJ order
ating the Court of Appeal’s jurisdiction to determine questions as to the validity of an election of a President, as is required by Article 177(5) of the Constitution. The Party contends inter alia that the Appeal Court erred in finding that it had jurisdiction to hear and consider the Notice of Motion even though a President had not yet been elected and the issue of the validity thereof had accordingly not yet arisen. According to the PPP/C, the Appeal Court wrongfully assumed jurisdiction under Article 177(4) since resolution of the questions raised by Ms David did not depend upon the qualifications of the President or the interpretation of the Constitution as outlined by Article 177(4). “Rather,” the PPP/C said, “it is upon the interpretation of the Order made by GECOM.” Further, the Party believes that the questions raised by David fell within the exclusive jurisdiction of the High Court under Article 163 of the Constitution. “All relief sought to be raised by David fell outside of the Court of Appeal’s delineated remit and jurisdiction under Article 177(4) of the Constitution. The issues outlined by David, could only be raised on an election petition pursuant to Article 163 of the Constitution. They held that the Appeal Court erred by finding that the Guyana Elections Commission has the jurisdiction to
assess, qualitatively and quantitatively, whether the tabulation of the votes as recounted and tabulated by the Chief Elections Officer constitutes “a final credible count” or otherwise enquire into the credibility of the tabulated votes arising out of the recount,” the Party said in the document. The PPP/C noted the Court erred in law by interpreting Article 177(2)(b) and by modifying the provision to include the word “valid” and proceeding thereby to construe and interpret the Constitution of Guyana by reference to subsidiary legislation. “In effect reviewing the decision of GECOM not to make any determination on the credibility of the election, in breach of s. 140(1) of the Representation of the People Act which prohibits any court from enquiring into whether any function of GECOM has been performed validly or at all,” the Party stated.According to the Party too in making a determination, the Court in effect acted in contravention of the Constitutional doctrine of the separation of powers by authorising GECOM to usurp the specialised jurisdiction of the High Court under Article 163 of the Constitution. They noted that “the scope of Article 177(2) of the Constitution could be modified or amended by virtue of any Order of GECOM or at all outside of the manner and form requirements mandated under the Constitution.”
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Hundreds of millions in post -elections contracts…
7 out of 10 ‘hidden’ SERVICES Visa Forms Preparer. Tel#626-7040, Publish your Death Annoucements & In Memoriams online. Email: dthmemo@gmail.com ICONIC MARKETING & PRINTING –TEL: 6006887: We create A/works, logos, business cards, posters, etc, placements of ads included. PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, G R A D U AT I O N , W E D D I N G S , ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620
WANTED 1 Diesel Mechanic to work in the interior, interested persons. Tel#625-5136 MonFri 8am-4pm Typist,Written application due 1st July,2020 Cameron & Shepherd 2 Avenue of the Republic.Email: Csmain @cameronandshepherd.com Wanted: Land to Buy:Parfaite Harmoni, Tuschen , Providence, Herstelling, Farm and Uitvlugt. Call# 699-3357. One Spindler maker.Contact: Jettoo’s Lumber Yard and Sawmill.Tel#261-5041 Diana.
Installation, Repairs and parts for AC,Fridge, Washing machine, Stove etc.Call Nick#630-1600,627-3206 Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezer-Call: 610-5846 or 661-8158 Affordable construction and renovation services .Telephone#603-5124.
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By Mikaila Prince Procurement laws make it pellucid that the National Procurement & Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) should publish all bid openings, so that the public could have access to those documents. In fact, the Procurement Act of 2003, Part II under subheading ‘Publicity’ specifically states that, “The Administration shall create an Internet Website for the purpose of giving publicity to contract awards and to otherwise disseminate information about public procurement.” Not only does this rule lend to public knowledge but it aims at ensuring transparency within the agency, as stated in the mission statement of the procurement board. However, much is left to be pondered on after Kaieteur News discovered
VACANCY Domestic. Contact # 2235273/223-5274 or rtilak@ adamantiumholdings.com Sales Representative. Contact # 223-5273/223-5274 or rtilak@ adamantiumholdings.com Cook/Baker for interior location, applicants must be experienced with verfiable references. Call: 618-2020 Excavator Operators, Cooks, Miners, GM. Contact#6002455 Diesel Mechanic.Contact:2235273/223-5274. Welder.Contact:223-5273/2235274. Cook.Contact:223-5273/2235274.
Vacancy exists for one CAR RENTAL Manager to work @ Hotel & Club,located at Charity PROGRESSIVE CAR Essequibo Coast.Contact RENTAL: CARS & SUV’S #689-0572. CALL:656-0087/6435 1 2 2 , E VEHICLE FOR SALE MAIL:PROAUTORENTAL Volkswagon Jetta PYY @YAHOO.COM Model.Tel#689-0999. HEALTH 1 Suzuki Escudo.Excellent Herbal Remedies- Diabetes, condition, Low Mileage Hypertension, Hyplori, Gall & (50,000Km).$3.4M Neg.Call Kidney Stones, Respitory #649-0956. illness, PCOS etc. Contact One Toyota super custom Sparman# 676-5924 Mini bus BTT Series fully loaded.Price:2.5M Neg. LAND FOR SALE Tel#627-1216,698-1216. Parfaite Harmonie main road PEN PAL corn lot $3.2M , 1.6M, Herstelling $4.3M, Schoonard Male seeks female (18-35) to main road $4.5M.Call#666- live with or marry. Call: 6432326. 0067
FOR RENT Business/Office: South Road, Hadfield Street, Saffon St Residence: Diamond & Pearl East Bank. Contact Ray’s Realty #627-9685 PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, G R A D U AT I O N , W E D D I N G S , ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 (1)Two bedroom apartment for Rent Durban Street $60,000 per month.Tel#666-9494. Single rooms for rent.Shared Accommodations.Call#6842846. Apartments for rent in Peters Hall.Call#648-1391/698-5800. FOR SALE 1 Toyota Pitbull (15 Seat) bus @$2.4M neg..Also best quality on all windows and wooden/steel doors.Contact: 654-3736/276-1463.
NPTAB’s Deputy Chairman, Mark Bender that it was denied access on NPTAB’s website to seven of the 10 post- elections contracts, which carry price tags of millions of dollars. Kaieteur News’ quest to peruse NPTAB’s website for projects opened between the dates of March 2 to yesterday was sparked after this publication highlighted that the governing coalition was in a mad rush to legalize hun-
dreds of acres of prime lands on the East Coast of Demerara. This publication reached out to the procuring entity for a list of projects opened between the aforementioned dates. When contact was made with NPTAB, a young woman told Kaieteur News that the projects which were being sought could be found on their website. NPTAB’s only allowed access to three of the eight projects, which are dated at March 3rd, 10th and 24th. As one attempts to open the projects from March 31st to May 12th access is denied, as the page says that “You need access” from NPTAB before being able to view the projects. Notably, some of those projects denied access to in-
clude the contract sought for marketing Guyana’s crude; the contractors selected to renovate the USD$5M Ocean View Hotel, among other contracts with prices ranging in the millions of dollars. Kaieteur News subsequently made second contact with NPTAB to inform them of the hidden documents and the young woman related that she would let their IT technician “fix” the page. In addition, she promised to return a call to this publication within the hour after the problem was fixed. That task was, however, never executed. This publication requested to visit NPTAB’s office at Main and Urquhart Streets, Georgetown to collect the documents, but the woman informed that such could not be allowed and listed COVID-19 restrictions as the reason. With the aim of seeking clarity, Kaieteur News reached out last evening to the NPTAB’s Deputy Chairman, Mark Bender, for an explanation regarding the hidden documents. To this he said, “I wish not to comment on that issue, I am not aware of it.” Bender asked instead for an email to be sent to him which would list the concerns raised by Kaieteur News. That email was dispatched to Bender last evening
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NDC Chairman threatens to remove roadside fruit vendors at Peter’s Hall Persons vending fruits along the Peter’s Hall East Bank Demerara Public Road were yesterday threatened to be placed before “the court” should they not remove in three days. The vendors claimed that an official from the Eccles and Peter’s Hall Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) drove up to them in a vehicle and ordered them to leave within three days. They said that the official also warned them sternly that non-adherence would lead to them being forcefully removed by the police or even “locked up”. It was later learnt that the official was the Chairman of the NDC, Rohan Sarjoo. Sarjoo was contacted for an explanation as to why the fruit vendors must desist from earning their livelihood along the roadside. To this Sarjoo responded that “first of all it is illegal for the vendors to sell along the Public Road.” He said that these vendors have been dumping their garbage on the parapet. He claimed that recently there was one vendor who “plucked duck” and scattered his debris on the road. Another reason he gave was that these vendors are causing major obstruction to the flow of traffic. He claimed that customers would stop in their vehicles to purchase items and obstruct other motorists from passing. Sarjoo also argued that
the pavement along the roadside is built for pedestrians and not for vendors to use as stall spaces. These vendors have since denied claims that they have littered that area and pleaded with authorities for them to be allowed to vend in the area a little longer. However, Sarjoo said that the NDC remains firm with its decision, adding that the vendors were warned several times before to desist and have failed to adhere. This time around they will have to adhere or face penalties, he said. One fruit vendor, Robert Samaroo, told Kaieteur News that he had only started vending at Peter’s Hall three weeks ago. Samaroo normally sells at the Parika Market but was forced to relocate because business at the market has recently been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. “Boats are not running, people are not travelling, persons not buying, it get tough bad and I can’t make no money there,” said Samaroo. The vendor said that since he relocated things have been a little better. Another fruit vendor, Hussain Mohamed, said that he had started selling along the East Bank Public Road since the pandemic arrived in Guyana.“I used to sell in the Stabroek Market but it was closed and because of financial constraints I was forced to come out here to feed my family,” said Mohamed.
Fruit Vendors along the East Bank Public Road at Peter’s Hall
The man also told this publication that other vendors have returned to the Stabroek Market but he opted not to go because “COVID19 is still around”. “Yes my friends have returned but the place is crowded now and there is no social distancing, here I can social distance and vend in a safer condition,” he said.
Mother of eight risks life to save baby from fire
The Duncan Street house had its entire top flat destroyed.
A
Georgetown woman risked her life to save her sixmonth-old baby from a burning house last evening. Natasha Gittens was asleep with her husband, Jerry Jones, and eight children when her lot 54 Duncan Street home caught fire just after 22:00 hours . The couple’s eldest son, who is about 12-years-old, was the one who alerted his family that the house was burning down. The young boy that said he woke from his bed and went out into the hallway in the upper flat of the two-storey building. “I walk in the hallway and
see the front of the house on fire”, he told Kaieteur News last night. The boy then immediately ran to his parent’s room and banged on the door screaming that the ‘house on fire’. His father awoke to investigate but there was nothing he could have done but order his children to run for their lives. They all managed escape quickly in their bare under garments except for Gittens who stayed behind to rescue their youngest child. The blaze spread so rapidly that she was unable to use the stairs to make her escape and so she was left with no choice but run to back of
the house and jump from the top flat with her baby in hand. Neighbours who heard the commotion rushed to their assistance and contacted the fire station right away. By the time fire fighters arrived the upper flat was completely destroyed and nothing could be saved. When Kaieteur News arrived at scene, Nastasha Gittens, her foot injured swollen due to the impact of the jump, was being consoled by neighbours and her aunt. The woman’s aunt told this paper that she would be take the family of ten into her home for now.
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Djokovic tests positive for COVID-19, says ‘extremely sorry’ to others BELGRADE (Reuters) Novak Djokovic, the men’s world number one tennis player, tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday and then apologised to all individuals who contracted the virus after playing in an exhibition tournament he organised in Serbia and Croatia. Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria, Croatia’s Borna Coric and Viktor Troicki have previously tested positive after playing in Djokovic’s Adria Tour exhibition tournament in the Balkan region. Djokovic’s fitness coach Marco Panichi and Dimitrov’s coach Christian Groh have also tested positive. “The moment we arrived in Belgrade we went to be tested,” Djokovic said in a statement yesterday, adding
that he was not showing any symptoms. “My result is positive, just as Jelena’s (wife), while the results of our children are negative. “I am extremely sorry for each individual case of infection. I hope that it will not complicate anyone’s health situation and that everyone will be fine. I will remain in selfisolation for the next 14 days, and repeat the test in five days.” The organisers said that the remainder of the Adria Tour had been cancelled, the two-day event on July 3-4 in Banja Luka, Bosnia and the planned exhibition match with Bosnian Damir Dzumhur in Sarajevo on July 5. Serbia has 13,092 registered cases and 263 dead due to the pandemic but both Serbia and Croatia eased
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic during a press conference during the Adria Tour at Novak Tennis Centre in Belgrade, Serbia. (REUTERS/Antonio Bronic/file photo)
lockdown measures weeks before the tournament and players were not obliged to observe social distancing rules in either country. The tournament witnessed packed stands during the opening leg in Belgrade, players hugging at the net, playing basketball, posing for
Wednesday June 24, 2020 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Success on all levels is filling your life and making you feel absolutely wonderful, Aries. The downside of this is that you might be a little too conscientious. Are you putting in a lot of extra hours? Be discriminating about this. TAURUS(Apr.20–May20) Hard work, enthusiasm, and dedication are now paying off for you financially, Taurus. New opportunities could be opening up for you to profit from your artistic talents . GEMINI (May 21–June 20) People close to you might be a bit worried about you, Gemini. Too much work might have you feeling a bit less than your usual self, perhaps even a little feverish and headachy. CANCER (June 21–July 22) All continues to go well personally and professionally, Cancer. You're feeling strong and vigorous, but you might find that you're a bit vague today. LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) Your high from your recent successes could have you wanting to go crazy purchasing luxury items you didn't feel were practical before, Leo. VIRGO(Aug.23–Sept.22) Not only your own success but that of members of your household could have you on a real emotional high today, Virgo.
LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) Today may prove to be one of your busiest in a long time, Libra. The promise of continuing success could find you spending a lot of time on the phone, sending faxes or emails, or perhaps making a few short trips around the community. SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Business and financial successes have you feeling happy and satisfied, Scorpio. You're also looking forward to moving ahead. SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) As your career dreams continue to unfold, Sagittarius, you may find that there is a downside. First, there are new responsibilities and you might doubt your ability to fulfill them. CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) Recent spiritual breakthroughs might have you feeling both exhilarated and downcast. AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) Many of your personal goals have either been met or are in the process of manifesting, Aquarius. This has you feeling exhilarated. However, others around you might have their hands out. PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) More confirmation of career and business success could come your way today, Pisces. You're probably feeling excited and motivated to keep pushing ahead. Youmight find, however, that increased responsibilities interfere with your social life.
pictures and attending press conferences together. Djokovic, 33, organised nights out in Belgrade for the players and pictures and videos of him dancing with the other participants at his event were posted on social media. “Prayers up to all the players that have contracted Covid- 19,” said Nick Kyrgios, retweeting a video
of the players dancing shirtless in Belgrade. “Don’t @ me for anything I’ve done that has been ‘irresponsible’ or classified as ‘stupidity’ - this takes the cake,” said the temperamental Australian, who was placed on probation by the men’s ATP Tour over his behaviour last year. PROFESSIONAL CIRCUIT The professional circuit was halted in early March as nations closed borders and imposed lockdowns to contain the spread of the virus. Last week the ATP and the women’s WTA issued revised calendars for the resumption of the circuit from August while organisers of the U.S. Open said the Grand Slam will be staged without fans as scheduled from Aug. 31 to Sept. 13 in New York. The ATP said on Monday that “it continued to urge
strict adherence to responsible social distancing and health and safety guidelines to contain the spread of the virus”.“In planning for the resumption ... ATP and other stakeholders have made exhaustive plans to mitigate risks through a variety of precautions and protocols to be implemented at ATP events,” the men’s governing body said, adding they will adjust protocols aligning with latest health guidelines. Djokovic, who earlier said he faces a dilemma if a vaccine becomes compulsory for players to compete when tennis resumes, insisted that the idea behind his tournament was to raise funds for players in need. “Everything we did in the past month, we did with a pure heart and sincere intentions,” said Djokovic, who is also the head of the players council of the men’s ATP Tour. “Our tournament meant to unite and share a message of solidarity and compassion throughout the region.”
COVID backlash... From page 23 Rublev.Croatian Coric tested positive on Monday as did Serb Viktor Troicki, who did not take part in the Zadar leg of the Adria Tour but featured in the first leg staged at Novak Djokovic’s tennis centre in Belgrade on June 13 and 14. Djokovic’s fitness coach Marco Panichi and Dimitrov’s coach Christian Groh also tested positive. Djordje Djokovic said he had made the decision to cancel the Zadar final in order to contain the damage. “We wanted to protect every player and fan after learning that Dimitrov tested positive. It was a charity event and all we wanted was to play tennis and give the fans a good show,” he said. A sellout 4,000 crowd attended both days of the Belgrade event and as many turned up to watch the Zadar event, with its Visnjik tennis complex half-full after Croatia’s authorities ordered spectators to implement social distancing. The third leg which was due in Montenegro on June 27 and 28 was scrapped during the Belgrade event amid coronavirus concerns voiced by the Montenegrin government. The final leg scheduled for Bosnia’s city Banja Luka on July 3 and 4 is likely to be cancelled, although the tour’s organisers are yet to confirm its fate.
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Being 20 points ahead of this Man City side was unthinkable, says Klopp (Reuters) - Liverpool boss Juergen Klopp says he is amazed that they are 20 points ahead of a strong Manchester City squad but that he is not focused on whether Pep Guardiola’s side can catch up in the Premier League title race.Klopp said he watched City beat Burnley 5-0 on Monday and marvelled at their dominance as Guardiola made eight changes to the starting lineup to showcase their squad depth.Liverpool are due to play City on July 2, after Guardiola’s side play Chelsea, and the title could be decided by then with seven games to go but Klopp said his sole focus was today’s opponents, Crystal Palace. “What I realised when I watched the game last night was how is it possible that any team is 20 points ahead of this team, that’s unthinkable,” Klopp told reporters in a virtual news conference. “We must have obviously done a couple of things really well and right. But no, I don’t think about whether City can catch us, I think about Crystal Palace... I’m only concerned about what we are doing in the next game and not what City are doing. “I watch them because we play them in nine days, not for hoping that they lose. I wanted them to lose last year
Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino celebrates scoring their second goal versus Crystal Palace at Anfield. (REUTERS/Phil Noble)
against Leicester (City) but that didn’t work really well so that’s why I stopped doing that.”City pipped Liverpool to the title last season by a single point and the turning point was a hard-fought 1-0 win over Leicester City in their penultimate game. Palace were the last team to win a league match at Anfield back in 2017 and Roy Hodgson’s side come into the contest on the back of a fourmatch winning run.“Roy is
doing an incredible job there,” Klopp said. “The organisation of the team is really at the highest level, the team is physically strong with a good setup.“They’ve had four games in a row without conceding a goal. It’s all positive from their point of view but we have our own targets.”Klopp confirmed Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson were back in contention but James Milner and Joel Matip would not be available.
Britain’s Traynor suspended for two years for doping violation (Reuters) - British long-distance runner Luke Traynor has been handed a two-year suspension from all sport for a doping violation, the UK Anti-Doping agency (UKAD) said yesterday. The 26-year-old had tested positive for a metabolite of cocaine, a substance banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), during an in-competition urine test last May, UKAD said in a statement. Traynor, who represented Britain at the
World Cross-Country Championships in 2019, had previously apologised, admitting he had taken the substance socially and not to enhance performance. “I am sorry to my family, friends, coaches sponsors... I want to make it completely clear that my violation was in no relation to sport or enhancing performance,” Traynor said last year. Traynor is ineligible to compete until May 2021.
Gabriel going at full tilt, set to join Windies squad MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) - West Indies fast bowler Shannon Gabriel is set to join the test squad having regained his pace and fitness, head coach Phil Simmons said ahead of next month’s threematch series against England next month. The 32-year-old right-arm quick arrived in England as one of 11 reserve players, with doubts about his fitness following an ankle injury. Simmons told British media on Monday Gabriel could
join the touring party and that he was looking fit. “The last week he’s been at full tilt and he looks fit,” added Simmons. “He’s bowling as fast as I’ve seen him for a while so he’s ready and close enough to the test match.”West Indies will play two warm-up matches before the first test in Southampton from July 8 and Simmons will be keeping an eye on Gabriel’s progress before deciding whether to add him to the test pool.“When leaving home 14
were named in the squad,” the coach said.“Because of Shannon coming back from his injury, we had to let him get a little bit further and see how he is and then we’ll decide whether to make it a 15-member squad.“After that, injuries might be the cause for changes.” Manchester will host the last two tests of the series, which will be played behind closed doors in a bio-secure environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fit-again Archer hopes to play all three tests against Windies (Reuters) - England paceman Jofra Archer says he has fully recovered from a right elbow injury sustained earlier this year and hopes to play in all three tests against the West Indies next month. Barbados-born Archer’s injury had ruled him out of England’s tour of Sri Lanka and the Indian Premier League before both were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “This past fortnight has been a lot different from the previous few weeks of practice as the intensity when you introduce batters goes up without you even noticing,” Archer wrote in his column for the Daily Mail. “So far everything feels like clockwork. Crunch in, crunch out, my body feels fresh, and there are no issues with my right elbow whatsoever, touch wood.” The first test is scheduled to begin in Southampton on July 8, with the last two matches at Old Trafford, as international cricket returns from the coronavirus shutdown. “Despite the fact that the three matches of this series are played in such a short space of time ... I could play all three — but everyone will be a bit cautious in terms of workload, thinking about the body and what lies ahead,” Archer added. “... Bowling has been a gradual progression but despite the fact that I was resting my elbow injury when we
England’s Jofra Archer reacts during the Second Test at Seddon Park, Hamilton, against New Zealand. (REUTERS/Ross Setford) went into lockdown in March, I have followed similar loads
to the other England test bowlers.”
Seven more Pakistan ... From page 23 captain — has ruled out a nationwide lockdown. “The situation in Pakistan is not great at the moment and our thoughts go out to the whole country. Clearly it’s important that we get those guys in this country and we get on with that series,” Giles added. England are returning from the coronavirus shutdown with three tests against West Indies next month with the first scheduled to begin in Southampton on July 8 without spectators.
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Ashley Giles warns England players not to jeopardise summer schedule
Seven more Pakistan players test positive for coronavirus
Independent - Ashley Giles has warned England players to show common sense with pubs and restaurants reopening to ensure the upcoming Test summer. Yesterday, prime minister Boris Johnson announced that an array of business, such as pubs, restaurants, hairdressers, cinemas and gyms, will be permitted to reopen on 4 July, four days before England are due to begin the first of three bio-secure Test matches against West Indies at the Ageas Bowl. While players will be unable to leave the bubble during this time, some may be allowed to return to their homes before the second and third Test which will see them take up residence at Emirates Old Trafford before 16 July right the way through to 28 July. A week gap follows the culmination of this series where all players will be allowed to return home before meeting up again to begin training for the Test series against Pakistan. Giles, the director of men’s cricket, also confirmed the ECB were looking at establishing a “bridge” to the outside to allow players to come and go safely from the bubble, especially England captain Joe Root who will be by his wife’s side when she gives birth to their second child. As such, the opportunity is there for players to take advantage of the reduction in the two-metre distancing rule. Giles, however, urges caution to ensure the series, which has cost millions to put on as the ECB looked to chase potential losses that could be as high as £380million if no cricket is played, is threatened by avoidable positive tests. At present there are no intentions to enforce restrictions on players, but the spread of the diseases is still not under control, with the UK death toll surpassing 54,000 at the time of writing. “We haven’t talked about banning them,” said Giles. “But I think we ask them to be sensible and they have been throughout this whole process of the last three months. They need to continue that. If you come back into the environment and you haven’t been adhering to the guidelines then you put everyone else and the series at risk. So that’s all we ask. But we have a group of players who are of that way anyway. “It will be down to all of us to police it. The players are all very aware of the seriousness of the situation and the reason why we putting them in. At some point we could
Ashley Giles has warned England players to respect the rules. (Getty Images) have protocols within the bubble that are very, very different from protocols in the general population. It is just about removing as much risk as we can.” Yesterday marked a step forward for the Test series, with West Indies marking an end to their two-week quarantine by playing a warm-up match at Old Trafford with a team led by captain Jason Holder taking on one led by Kraigg Brathwaite. Meanwhile, a group of 30 England cricketers convened at the Ageas Bowl where they will remain until completion of the first Test, with the final day scheduled for 12 July. Players and staff were tested upon arrival and will isolate for 24 hours in the on-site hotel, spending most of the time in their rooms. The importance of the series and a clean bill of health was reiterated by news out of Pakistan that a total of 10 players have tested positive for
coronavirus ahead of their tour of England later this summer of three further Tests and three Twenty20s. The travelling squad are due for further tests on Thursday but Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive Wasim Khan has quelled any talk for now of cancelling the series by confirming those who have tested negative “will depart as per schedule” on 28 June. The one-day series against Australia is also still on the cards. Both boards held a conference call last week which left Giles “quietly confident” of making good on the five-match series in September. However, there was a blow for recreational cricket after the prime minister confirmed restrictions on the club game will remain in place beyond 4 July. “The problem with cricket, as everyone understands, is that the ball is a natural vector of disease — potentially, at any rate,” said Johnson. “We’ve been around it many times with our scientific friends. At the moment we’re still working on ways to make cricket more Covid-secure but we can’t change the guidance yet.” The ECB, however, were bemused by Johnson’s statement, believing grassroots cricket would return as part of yesterday’s announcement, especially as cricket is not a contact sport and measures are in place banning the use of saliva on the ball as a further safety measure. They have reached out to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport for clarification.
Pakistan’s Wahab Riaz celebrates with team mates after taking the wicket of England’s Jonny Bairstow during the ICC Cricket World Cup. (Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers) LONDON (Reuters) Seven more Pakistan players have tested positive for COVID-19 after being screened ahead of their tour of England, taking the total to 10, the country’s cricket board (PCB) said yesterday. Fakhar Zaman, Imran Khan, Kashif Bhatti, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan and Wahab Riaz tested positive along with team masseur Malang Ali. The PCB on Monday confirmed Haider Ali, Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan had tested positive for the virus. “Like Haider, Haris and Shadab, none of the seven players and masseur had re-
ported any prior symptoms of COVID-19 until they underwent first round of testing on Monday ahead of the side’s departure for Manchester,” the PCB said in a statement. “The PCB medical panel is already in contact with these players and the masseur, who have been instructed to observe strict quarantine at their homes for their and their families’ wellbeing.” Pakistan’s test and limitedovers squads are set to tour England for three tests and three Twenty20 internationals. They were due to fly out later this month before going into quarantine ahead of the first test starting on July 30. England director of cricket
Ashley Giles said the tour was expected to go ahead. “At the moment I don’t think the series is in doubt. We’re far enough away from the start of the test series to not worry about that too much at the moment,” Giles told reporters yesterday. “There are some more test results coming out later from the rest of the group, so we’ll see what that says. But we’re still hopeful that the Pakistan team will be arriving in the country fairly soon.” The rate of new coronavirus cases has been rising fast in the country of 207 million people but Prime Minister Imran Khan — a former Pakistan cricket (Continued on page 22)
COVID backlash is worst scenario, says Djokovic’s brother BELGRADE (Reuters) - The debacle of the Adria Tour organised by world number one Novak Djokovic was the worst imaginable outcome as several participants tested positive for COVID-19 during and after the event, his brother Djordje said yesterday.Djokovic, who took the coronavirus test on Monday after returning to Belgrade from the Croatia leg of the event, announced the result later yesterday. “This was the worst possible scenario,” the event’s director Djordje Djokovic told Serbia’s Prva Television. “Novak was not obliged to take the test in Croatia as he had no symptoms. He took the test straight after his flight landed in Belgrade. “Around 100 people were tested and I was hard-hit by news that some of them came back positive, especially my childhood friend Borna Coric. We wish all of them a speedy and painless recovery.” Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov pulled out of the tournament in Croatia’s coastal resort of Zadar after feeling unwell following his match with Coric on Saturday.He informed the organisers ahead of Sunday’s final he had tested positive upon his return to his Monte Carlo residence, leading to the cancellation of the showdown between Djokovic and Russian Andrey (Continued on page 21)
Djordje Djokovic and Goran Ivanisevic on the court announcing the cancellation of the final match after Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID19).(REUTERS/ Antonio Bronic)
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West Indies Training Camp setting high performance blueprint for players and coaches
Phil Simmons (Head Coach), Roddy Estwick (Assistant Coach), Rayon Griffith (Assistant Coach), Floyd Reifer (Batting Coach) ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Cricket West Indies is taking full advantage of the unique opportunity to utilize the Sandals Tour of England 2020 as a high performance environment for the playing and reserve squad as well as preparation to retain the coveted Wisden Trophy #raisethebat Test Series. CWI Vice President Dr Kishore Shallow and Director of Cricket (DoC) Jimmy Adams spoke on the potential cricket benefits for the 25 players to enhance their games alongside the region’s elite coaches. “As a cricket fan, I am happy that there will soon be live international cricket, and as a CWI administrator, I am delighted for the development opportunity this tour provides for so many of our young players. This in my opinion should be paramount
in the eyes of all stakeholders of West Indies Cricket, for this tour”, said Shallow after the team completed its first week of training in their biosecure training camp at Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester, England.“Consider if we were to set up the ideal training camp for our elite cricketers and how that would look. Think of how much value this three week pre-series preparation period can add to our quality of cricket and how timely this is under the abnormal COVID-19 circumstances, not to mention the challenging financial situation for CWI. “So while the pandemic has impacted on many aspects of the CWI Cricket First program, this delayed tour to England may also turn out to be a blessing for it too. It now becomes a tremendous opportunity for our cricketers to
actually live and train in a high performance environment for almost two months under the close watch of Phil Simmons and his team of experts. I expect every player, barring injury, to come back to the region a much improved cricketer.” When Cricket West Indies held its first ever Coaching Forum in January as Head Coach Phil Simmons and all of domestic teams coaches met for first time, it ticked off both the new administrations “10 point Cricket First plan” initiative for modernizing regional coaching and DoC Adams’ aim to allow the newly appointed Coaching Development Manager, Chris Brabazon, to have his first meet-up with the regional coaching fraternity. Adams further elaborated saying:“While the worldwide pandemic has had some negative effects on the game regionally, this current situation of having a larger group of players exposed to our international support team over such an extended period is a definite positive. “We certainly would not have had a two month window in the current ICC Future Tours Program (FTP) to do it, so now that it will last that long this could create a working blueprint to use in the Caribbean for such high performance initiatives.” Reflecting on the first week benefits Simmons said: “It’s something that has been trusted upon us and sometimes you look at it and think if Cricket West Indies was at the stage financially to afford it, this would be great for us going forward. You have this squad on tour
South America U-23 Championships doubtful this year In January this year, the head of the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG), Aubrey Hutson, had confirmed with Kaieteur Sport that Guyana will be hosting the ninth edition of the biennial South American under-23 athletics championship this September, but according to the administrator now, the running off of that competition seems unlikely for this year due to the coronavirus pandemic and the political climate in Guyana. World Athletics had announced the restart of the competitive season from as early as August but the control of the coronavirus in the region and the current political situation in Guyana is making things a bit more difficult for the AAG to adequately plan the event that would’ve seen in excess of 300 athletes participating.Hutson was quoted telling the media that even if the AAG do manages to successfully put the necessary systems in place for the hosting of the event, Consudatle (the South American Athletics Confederation)
will most likely vote against the staging of the event this year, during their next virtual meeting.Hutson pointed out Brazil’s alarming rates of COVID-19 cases coupled with a few other South American nations’ inability to control the spread of the virus as a possible deterrence to hosting as scheduled. Meanwhile, on the local scene, the AAG is looking to host at least three track & field meets by August month end, namely, the National Senior Championships (August 8-9), National Youth & Junior Championship (TBA) and a road race on either July 19 or 26, pending the approval from the National Covid19 task force. Currently, the South American 10k scheduled for November is still on the books and the association is waiting for Courts Guyana Inc. to reopen its doors so they can discuss the possibility of the most lucrative and longest running 10k event in Guyana; the Courts 10k, continuing this year.
where you have proper bowlers to bowl in the nets and backups right there. “Overall this is an excellent start. I think a lot of the younger players who would not have understood the difference between regional and international cricket are understanding now because of the way we are training. “It’s a great message and understanding from their point of view of what it takes to be an international cricketer. I’m loving the fact that these youngsters are getting to understand that and hopefully they carry it back and let all the other players know, who haven’t been on a West Indies tour.” President Ricky Skerritt
also sees benefits from the COVID-19 travel restrictions: “This will be the first time since I was team manager 16 years ago, that the accompanying management team comprises all West Indians on the ground. Indian data analyst AR Srikkanth, will be operating remotely with batting coach Monty Desai, unable to travel from India to join the Squad. This will also be a learning experience for the coaching staff. “This world situation has led to the unique environment which provides opportunities for our players and coaching staff to develop and learn with the overall aim to develop West Indian talent and
expertise to help move our cricket teams back up the global rankings ladder.” · Team Management: Phil Simmons (Head Coach), Rawl Lewis (Team Manager), Roddy Estwick (Assistant Coach), Rayon Griffith (Assistant Coach), Floyd Reifer (Batting Coach), Dr Praimanand Singh (Team Doctor), Ronald Rogers (Strength & Conditioning Coach), Denis Byam (Physiotherapist), Neil Barry Jr (Physiotherapist), Zephyrinus Nicholas (Massage Therapist), Nkoyo Meade (Massage Therapist), Donald LaGuerre (Team Psychologist), A.R. Srikkanth (Team Analyst) and Dario Barthley (Media & Content Officer).
Chris Gayle opts out of CPL 2020 owing to personal reasons ESPNcricinfo - Chris Gayle has opted out of the 2020 CPL a day before the players’ draft is scheduled to take place on June 24. The tournament this year is scheduled to take place in Trinidad & Tobago from August 18 until September 10 subject to permission from the local government. ESPNcricinfo understands Gayle communicated his decision on Monday to St Lucia Zouks, the franchise he was going to play for in this CPL, saying he would not be available to play due to personal reasons. Gayle’s decision was confirmed by the Zouks franchise. It is understood that in his email Gayle pointed out that due to the lockdown, he has not been able to meet his family and his young child who are in St Kitts while he has been in Jamaica. Gayle said he needed a break and wanted to spend time with his young family. Gayle signed up with Zouks in April after an acrimonious fallout with Jamaica Tallawahs, where he had returned in 2019 for a second stint. The Zouks would have been the third team Gayle would represent in the CPL after two stints with Tallawahs (2013-16 and 2019) and a two-year stay with St Kitts and Nevis (2017-18). The Zouks franchise saw a change in ownership this February after it was bought by KPH Dream Cricket Private Limited, which also owns Kings XI Punjab in the IPL. The franchise also made changes to the coaching staff, appointing former Zimbabwe
captain Andy Flower as the head coach. Gayle’s abrupt decision is understood to have disrupted Zouks’ plans for the players’ draft, which will be conducted virtually for the first time due to the travel restrictions imposed by countries to arrest the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Zouks signed up Gayle as one of the marquee players outside the draft in the US$130,000 - 160,000 price bracket. In his absence, the franchise is likely to get the first pick at the draft now. It is not clear whether Gayle’s decision was influenced by the pay cut proposed by the CPL in the wake of the pandemic. In an update he sent recently to all stakeholders, the CPL operations manager Michael Hall said top-earning players would be asked to take a pay cut of up to 30% compared to the 2019 contract. In Gayle’s case, he would have received about $112,000 after the 30% proposed cut from the Zouks. It is understood that players and staff from all the six franchises have accepted the pay cuts although the CPL has not sent out any details. Gayle is 40, but had said he desires to play until he is 45. Despite being the highest run-maker in T20s, Gayle has struggled with consistency in the past few years. Last CPL, he aggregated 243 runs in 10 matches including a century as the Tallawahs, along with the Zouks, failed to make the play-off stage. Gayle has also not featured for West Indies since the 2019 World Cup. In May, Gayle had escaped sanctions from the CPL
after his public outburst against Tallawahs’ management, including its owner Krish Persaud, Jeff Miller, the chief executive and former West Indies teammate Ramnaresh Sarwan, who was the assistant coach, for abruptly releasing him without his knowledge. In a video he released on YouTube on April 27, Gayle pulled up Sarwan for playing a “big part” in his release and blamed Persaud and Miller for “playing games” with him. While Gayle accepted to the CPL Tournament Committee that his actions would have brought “damage” to the tournament brand as well as Cricket West Indies, he stood by his original “comments” against Sarwan and the Tallawahs’ management. Gayle has been an integral force behind CPL becoming a global brand. It was his desire to finish his career in front of his home crowd in Jamaica and hence he had signed up as a marquee player in a threeyear contract with the Tallawahs at the 2019 draft. “It was my greatest wish to finish my CPL career in Jamaica - playing in front of my home crowd at Sabina Park with the franchise that I had previously led to two CPL titles,” Gayle said in his statement in May. Asked for a comment, a CPL spokesperson said that the organisers understood Gayle’s decision. “We understand that Chris has decided to not take part in CPL personal reasons. We wish Chris all the best for the rest of 2020 and hope to see him back at CPL in 2021.”
England v West Indies:
Cricket returns with practice match Shai Hope made a century in each innings in West Indies’ memorable win at Headingley in 2017. (Getty Images)
BBC Sport - Top-level cricket was played for the first time in the world since March as West Indies began their intra-squad warm-up match at Old Trafford. Kraigg Brathwaite, captaining his team, scored 84 and Shai Hope 83 in a total of 275 on the first day of the three-day game in Manchester. Pace bowler Shannon Gabriel took three wickets for the side led by West Indies skipper Jason Holder. The three-Test series against England will start on 8 July. Originally due to be played in June, it was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic and will now be played behind
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closed doors in bio-secure environments at Southampton and Old Trafford. After this practice game, West Indies will play another internal four-day match at Old Trafford, while England will have their own three-day intra-squad match in Southampton starting on 1 July. Gabriel is officially only on the list of reserves as he recovers from an ankle injury. Holder, rated as the number one allrounder in Test cricket, did not bowl because of a minor ankle injury. There has been no international cricket since Australia beat New Zealand in a behindclosed-doors one-day international in Sydney on 13 March.
Cricketers back home from T&T Several Guyanese cricketers who ply their trade in Trinidad and Tobago arrived home on Friday last following the cancellation of the season there due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The season was abandoned in March and the cricketers were forced to remain in the Twin Island Republic for almost three months since it was difficult to obtain flights due to the lockdown. The cricketers are Steve Ramdass, Kandasammy Surujnarine, Garfield Benjamin and Demetri Cameron. Speaking with Kaieteur Sport yesterday, Ramdass, who plays for Lusignan SC locally, said he is happy to be back home after such a long wait. Ramdass plays for Evergreen Sports Club in Trinidad and at the time of the abandonment of the season, his team was second on the points table in the Trinidad and Tobago National League (championship) - a two-day tournament. Ramdass played in three games and scored 120 runs from four innings with a highest score of 50 not out which came against Cedar Hill. He picked up eight wickets.Ramdass explained that during his stay in Trinidad he was taken care of by his club. “I wanted to come home after the season was called off, but I couldn’t get a flight at the time and it was very frustrating,” he added.
Steve Ramdass
Ramdass said that he did his fitness drills on a daily basis in his apartment and that he missed playing the game. He informed that he had to pay US$300 extra on his return ticket since it was a chartered flight and US$250 to get tested before he could have bored the flight. “This test had to be done in Trinidad since the result had to be submitted to the Guyana Consulate there before approval was granted to travel,” he noted.Ramdass along with the other cricketers are currently on a seven-day self quarantine at home. He indicated that the Ministry of Public Health would make contact with him on a daily basis. He expressed gratitude to Evergreen SC and the Guyana Task Force (Guyana Consulate).
Chris Gayle opts South out of CPL 2020 rt o p S America owing to personal U-23 Championships reasons doubtful this year Chris Gayle spent the 2019 CPL with Jamaica Tallawahs. (Ashley Allen - CPL T20/Getty)
AAG’s hosting of the S.A. U-23 championships this year doubtful.
Djokovic tests positive for COVID-19, says ‘extremely sorry’ to others
Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, Dusan Lajovic, Austria’s Dominic Thiem, Germany’s Alexander Zverev pose for a photo with the ballkids during Adria Tour at Novak Tennis Centre in Belgrade, Serbia, June 12, 2020. (REUTERS/Marko Djurica)
Being 20 points ahead of this Man City side was unthinkable, says Klopp
Gabriel going at full tilt, set to join Windies squad West Indies’ Shannon Gabriel in action. (Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs)
Seven more Pakistan players test positive for coronavirus
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