Kaieteur News

‘Paper Shorts’ murder probe... Richmond, two others released on $1M bail each

Three men detained in connectionwiththeongoing investigation into the highprofile March 2021 execution-style murder of Ricardo Fagundes, popularly known as ‘Paper Shorts’ have been released on $1 million station bail each.

The suspects, former manager at Mohamed’s Security Udoh Kanu, auto sales dealer Amarnauth

Ramsook, and Mark Richmond,aformersecurity guard, were released from police custody following days of detention Richmond, who had been held since Wednesday, July 8, was represented by Attorney-at-Law Damien DaSilva Kanu was represented by prominent attorneyNigelHughes.

HighDramaatPolice Headquarters

Family members of Richmond expressed relief outside police headquarters following his release Speaking to the media,

R

described what they termed “distraction tactics” by the police during the release process. According to his family, Richmond was initiallykeptattheCriminal Investigation Department (CID) Headquarters, Eve Leary After instructing his family that investigators

required his passport, police officers reportedly moved himtotheRegionalDivision 4“A”PoliceHeadquartersin whathissistersclaimedwas anattempttobypasswaiting mediapersonnel.

“They just brought him hereanddroppedhimoffasa distractiontoavoidthe

Continuedonpage16

Car rental receipt showing Shemroy Stewart as the owner of the vehicle.

Mark Richmond’s sisters happy he was released

GTEcontractorscanbedebarredunderGuyana’sprocurement lawsover‘hiddeninfo’,checkingoffsubstandardwork

Two of the key contractors entrusted by the government of Guyana (GoG) to develop the nation’s first Gas-to-Energy (GTE) project, which is expected to transform the country’s energy landscape, omitted key details in bid documents and reportedly missed major structural defectsintheprojectthatcan potentially cause the companiestobedebarred.

Over the past weeks, KaieteurNewshavereported a series of articles exposing thequestionableprocurement process, business practices and operational activities of theEngineeringProcurement andConstruction(EPC)firm, LindsaycaGuyanaIncaswell as the consultant, Engineers IndiaLimited(EIL)

B a s e d o n t h e s e disclosures, advocates are calling for an administrative review under Guyana’s Procurement Act 2003 (Cap 73:05) and the Procurement (SuspensionandDebarment) Regulations2019

The 2019 Regulations outline non-discretionary grounds for vendor suspension and debarment. Under Regulation 3(1)(h), a contractor can be debarred for misrepresenting any fact duringprocurement.

In April this year, Kaieteur News reported on

the company’s financials between 2016 and 2019. These documents revealed that Lindsayca was drowningindebttothetune of millions of US-dollars. Importantly, the bidders must demonstrate financial capacity in accordance with Section 5(1)(iii) of the 2003 ProcurementAct.

Accordingtothatsection of the law: “Every supplier or contractor wanting to participate in procurement proceedings must qualify by it is not insolvent, in receivership, bankrupt or being wound up, its affairs are not being administered by a court or a judicial officer,itsbusinessactivities have not been suspended, and it is not the subject of legal proceedings for any of theforegoing.”

Be that as it may, L i n d s a y c a ’s p r equalification submissions showed high debt and a qualified2018auditopinion where auditors could not verifymaterialrevenues. Research by this newspaper also uncovered a trail of foreign litigations which Lindsayca may have omitted from its bid to the state to grab the lucrative deal A

procurement process in Guyana for the Wales

project, Lindsayca had ongoing overseas lawsuits including Adversary ProceedingNo.22-03125in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court (Southern District of Texas) alleging corporate financial misrepresentation, and a $8.7millioncontractdispute withGazprominVenezuela.

Section5(vi)ofthe2003 Procurement Act also requirespastperformanceto be substantiated by documentary evidence, yet this newspaper found that t

y personnel attached to Lindsaycawasquestionable.

It was reported that Project Director Ruben Figuera previously had $5.3 million in assets frozen by And

ties investigatingfundslinkedto Venezuelan state pipeline contracts.

P e r h a p s m o r e importantly, the project’s protracted delays provide a statutory basis for review under Regulation 3(1)(a) of theProcurement(Suspension and Debarment) Regulations 2019, which authorises sanctions for a direct con

ProcurementAct

Byfailingtomeetcritical execution timelines, the contractor is arguably in breach of Section 5(1)(i) of the Procurement Act 2003,

which mandates that a vendor must possess the requisite technical competence, managerial capability, and reliability to perform the contract Lindsayca and its partner CH4 were initially expected to deliver the Wales project in December 2024, but the 300megawatt(MW)facility remains incomplete as of mid-2026, pushing simplecycle and combined-cycle operations well into 2026 and2027respectively

In the meantime, this newspaper has revealed the useofprivateluxuryjetsfor travel by company execu

ves and even transportation of cargo that wascostingGuyanamillions weekly

This raises sharp questions about the group’s local performance and whether Guyana hired the bestcompanyforthejob.

These concerns however are not limited to Lindsayca but overlap to the government’s consultant as well.

It was reported that Engineers India Limited

(EIL) as supervisor of the 3,000-pile foundation phase oversaw concrete pours for the heavy turbine mounts.

Subsequent structural cracking and foundation disputes in these turbine zones have led critics to a

sed pours constitutes lack of technical competence as required by 5(1)(

2003 ProcurementAct.

Beyond corporate titles stand the giant in the room, theheadandheartoftheGTE project, the Taskforce head and consultant, Winston Brassington His firm, WB Consulting Group LLC was hired by the government to leadtheproject

Brassington,likethetwo foreign contractors hold equal responsibility in the delayed mega-project which continues to cost Guyanese milliondaily

As lead negotiator, Brassington’s team cleared Lindsayca’s qualified audits and failed to address active litigation involving the firm

This oversight constitutes a directfailureofduediligence

Head of the GTE Taskforce, Consultant, Winston Brassington

under the general provisions of Section 5 of the ProcurementAct2003,which explicitly requires procuring entities to verify that suppliers possess the legal capacity, financial reliability, and lack of disqualifying legal proceedings necessary to execute a contract By neglecting these statutory evaluation standards, the team compromised the safeguardsoperationalisedby theProcurement(Suspension and Debarment) Regulations 2019 Furthermore, the negotiators reportedly accepted lopsided liquidated d a m a g e s c l a u s e s , disproportionately exposing the government to severe delay-relatedfinancialrisks

Researchshowsthatin

Continuedonpage10

Kaieteur News

PrintedandPublishedbyNationalMedia& PublishingCompanyLtd. 24SaffonStreet, Charlestown,Georgetown,Guyana.

Publisher:GLENNLALL-TEL:624-6456

Editor:NIGELWILLIAMS

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

EDITORIAL

Anomaly – a new one

It amazes the lengths to which this government goes to deny important matters. When it is unable to deny, it deflects. However, when efforts at deflecting come to naught, it is time for minimisation to takeover So, in the contextoftheirgreatnationaloilpatrimony,citizensheara curious word, one intended to banish fears, to put them at ease. The word used by the government is “anomaly” and then “a slight anomaly” only There is clear evidence of water bubbling directly above the ExxonMobil gas pipeline'spath,andcitizensarelefttocontendwith“aslight anomaly.” Wearehappythatthegovernmentdidnotthink ofinsultingthepeoplebyreleasingastatementconfirming that the bubbling water in that gas pipeline area was the resultoffishperformingtheirversionsofaquaticsports.

Ananomalyissomethingoutoftheordinary Soremote andirregularastobenothingtoworryabout. Toemphasise thatitismuchadoaboutnothing,twogovernmentagencies informedthepublicthatitwasnotjustananomaly,andthen onlyaslightone. Sosmallandsomeaninglessastomean nothing. When governments go to these lengths, with not one,buttwostateagenciesdeliveringaverytersemessage,it isusuallyconfirmationthatthereissomething. Ministerof Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, had a slip of the tongue. Onlyaslip,notaslide. Attheinception,hedenied and dismissed a report about a problem around the ExxonMobilgaspipeline. ItwaslefttotheEnvironmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) and the MaritimeAdministration Department (MARAD) to rush out and try to plaster over thatdiscrepancy Thatmove,delegationtotwoagencies,in itselfwasinstructive.

Instructive because the Wales Gas-to-Energy project fallswithintheportfoliooftheOfficeofthePrimeMinister (OPM). For reasons known only inside the circle of government, OPM took itself out of the loop, and left the holdinganddealingwiththathotcake(bubblingwaterabove thepipeline)totheEPAandMARAD. Apparently,nobody in the PPP/C government wanted to touch it. Natural Resources Minister Bharrat was the first who stepped sideways,whenheshouldhavehadasay,madeithisdutyto be in the know What does that patch of bubbling water abovethepipelinemean? Doesitrepresentawarningsign, some lurking danger? Or, is it as the EPA and MARAD asserted “a slight anomaly?” When governments start to fisharoundandpassaroundwhathastobegottenontopof immediately,theygiveawaythemselves.

RelativetoGuyana,thefirstgiveawayishowmuchthe PPP/C government is first about putting up a defensive shield around anything that has to do with the interests of ExxonMobil. Anything that could lead to embarrassment for the American oil giant has to be nipped in the bud, dismissed as worrying over nothing. The Government of Guyana needed to be supersensitive to any suspicious, mysterious, bubble, anything that looks out of place. Yet there were two government institutions talking from both sides of their mouths. On one side, the EPAand MARAD couldattest“unequivocallythatthereisnofactualbasis”for concernsaboutarupturedpipeline. But,fromtheotherside, bothagenciescouldadmitthatthereis“aslightanomaly.”

What did the EPA and MARAD do to arrive at those conclusions, one “unequivocal”, the other “slight?” From wheredidthetwoagenciesobtainthebasisfortheirrelease, infuse them with that confidence? We at this publication hopethattheinformation(facts)supportingtheirposturedid not originate from ExxonMobil. It should not require Guyana'sLeaderoftheOppositiontobesokeenofeye,so committed to national priorities, that he is the one spilling the news about water bubbling directly above the ExxonMobil gas pipeline. The government has to be the firstoneonthejob. Governmentmustbethefirstsourceof developments having some relationship to the oil and gas sector Thefactthatthepipelineisinactiveisirrelevant. Because the PPP/C government is so protective of ExxonMobil, citizens worry about what is hidden from them,whattheyshouldfear

Oil revenues 2025 and Guyana's shares

DearEditor, Guyana Oil Revenue 2025 is technically: US$100 million, a drop in theUS$17.2Bbucket

The 2025 Combined Financial Report for the Guyana oil consortium (Exxon, Hess/ Chevron, and CNOOC) show that total revenue is US$17.2 billion; and the total profit is US$12.1 billion.

Given that profits are to be shared equally between the companies and Guyana, it is clear that Guyana and the companiesshouldeachreceiveUS$6.1 billion.Additionally,withroyaltiesof2 per cent of total revenue, which works outtoUS$344.3million,thismeansthat Guyana total take home is US$6.4 billion.

However, noting that Guyana pays the taxes from its share for the consortium, this amount (US$2 3 billion) is subtracted from Guyana's share of benefits (Profits, and Royalties); and it is added to the consortium'sbenefits(profitsandtaxes paid by Guyana) Given these distributional specifications, the total

combinedbenefitfortheoilconsortium is US$8.4 billion, or 66.9% of the total benefits (US$12.4 billion), compared with US$4 1 billion (33 1%) for Guyana(Table1).

It should also be stated that this distributionoftotalbenefitsofUS$4.1 billion for Guyana (33.1% of total benefits of US$12 5 billion) is overstated.

This is because Guyana's profit is not US$6.1 billion, but only US$2.1 b i l l i o n i n 2 0 2 5 ( R a m : https://kaieteurnewsonline.com/2026/0 6/28/part-1-six-to-one-is-not-50-50/)

Furthermore,thereareadditionalcosts, includingamountsforinsurance,lossof fishermen'sincome,andenvironmental balance; but the budgets for these cost categories are unknown. When the tax payment for the oil consortium and other cost adjustments are included, along with the other costs, Guyana's benefit in real terms is reduced from US$4.1billiontonomorethanUS$100 million(Table2).

Another troubling outcome of this arrangement is that the taxes (US$2.3

billion) paid by Guyana is greater than the profits that Guyana receives (US$2.1billion).

Whatisalsodisconcertingwiththis arrangement is the fact that Guyana's shareoftotalbenefits(US$100million) is only 1% of the total benefits (US$12.5billion),whencomparedwith the US$12.3 billion that is captured by the company Consequently, Guyana's shareofoilrevenuein2025isnomore than a drop of oil in a US$17.2 billion revenuebucket.

The underlying cause for this outcome is not only the tax payment made by Guyana for the company; but thecostrecoveryformulawhichinflates the average cost of a barrel of oil and reducestheprofitthatGuyanareceives. This issue will be presented in a subsequentletter,wherethecostwillbe analysed in conjunction with the benefits.

Sincerely,

C.KenrickHunte

JoePersaud

DarshKhusial

OnbehalfofOGGN

African community must test limits of U.S. foreign policy in Guyana

DearEditor,

It is timely to examine the impact of U.S. foreign policyonGuyana'sdomestic politics, particularly its implications forAfrican and Indian politics, bearing in m i n d t h e p

geopolitical realities. What options, if any, are open to theAfricancommunity?Are wenowinapositionsimilar to that occupied by the PPP and much of the Indian communitybetween1964to 1992?

Before Guyana's independenceandthereafter, the U S has exerted tremendous influence and pressure to shape political outcomesinthecountry At various periods of our politics, the U.S. foreign policy considerations have had to be accommodated, e

considerable pressure During the cold war, U.S. policywasmainlyshapedby anti-communism. Today, it is increasingly driven by strategic competition with China, oil security and interests, and the reassertion of American influence in the western hemisphere.

The U.S. foreign policy under the first Trump administrationwasdrivenby the mantra “make America strong again,” which significantly refocused U.S. foreignpolicygoals,making themmoreself-centered.His present administration has taken a more aggressive, unilateral, and militarised approach to achieving

foreign policy objectives

The US/China competition for global hegemony has manifested in the Caribbean and Guyana, with a shift of the U S focus from democracy, human rights, a n d d i p l o m a c y t o transactional relationships and support for politically aligned governments Trinidad and Guyana in the so-called English-speaking Caribbean are notable examples.

While it faces pushback initseffortstoridetheregion of growing Chinese economicinvestments,ithas achieved more success in m u t i n g r e g i o n a l governments' objections to its military actions in its socalledwaronnarcoticsinthe Caribbean Sea and in bullyinggovernmentstoend the Cuban doctors' historic servicetotheregionalhealth sector, in which Guyana has been a major beneficiary for decades.And the PPP/C-led government unashamedly capitulated to U.S. pressure and“whitemail.” Guyana, a petrostate, is important to U.S. strategic interests.Thecountryisinan unprecedented position, given the strategic importanceofenergytoU.S. national security, and the importance that the country attachestocontrol/accessto theworld'senergyresources. Now, with U.S. control of Venezuelan oil after kidnapping its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, the U.S. has control over the world's largest known oil reserves, which objectively reduces the

importance of Guyana oil in relation to America's national security and energy needs. Except that Guyana's low-cost production and sweetgradeoilgiveitspecial consideration, if not preference, overVenezuelan heavycrude.

In short, the U.S. has its hands on both countries' oil reserves, thereby denying any competitors. Guyana's domestic politics reflects this reality There is no significant political force that represents a real challenge to the present US/Western political domination in Guyana, u n l i k e t h e p o s tindependence period (1966 to 1992), when antiimperialismandnationalism were major tenets of our nation's politics in both major parties, the WPA and otherleftistgroups.

With Venezuela under

U.S. control, Washington is nowinasituationofdivided loyalty,sotospeak. While the Trump Administration has since repeated its support for Guyanainthebordermatter, it is no secret that forces in the U.S. have already been working to change the US's present position to once moreinfavourofVenezuela, citingthatcountry'soil/gold and other natural resources and a large domestic market for American goods and services, when compared to Guyana. Critics of the U.S. have warned that, given President Trump's transactional politics, Guyanaisindangerofbeing forcedbytheU.S.toreacha “deal” with Venezuela to divide Essequibo between the two countries, despite a favourableICCrulingonthe territorialclaim.Ironically,it (Continuedonpage6)

Secrecy over state lands demands independent scrutiny

DearEditor,

So,Mr.JermaineFigueirahasmaintainedhisnewposition to defend his new friends in high places. This explains his theory that the burden of proof in with the accuser. If, as I suspect,hemaybereferringtothelargeacreagesacquiredby hisnewidol,thenwiththecloudsofsecrecyovertheland,and the fear of officers in the many government ministries and agencies to speak up, then according to him the matter has alreadyreachedadead-end.

I make two comments first; should not some person concernedabouttheintegrityofourcountryutilisetheoffice oftheOmbudsman.Second;Iamhopingtofindthetimetogo for a literary prize, my bit of literature, or let us say “fiction writing”, will be titledAlly-Bhar-Rat and the Four Thieves, with apologies to 18th centuryArabic folk taleAli Baba and theFortyThieves.

Respectfully, NigelBacchus

GWI insists water quality safe, says Dr. Adams misrepresented facts

DearEditor,

The Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) has taken note of the concerns raisedinarecentlettertothe editor,publishedbyKaieteur th News in its 10 July, 2026, edition with the headline “GWI's statement is irresponsible, callous and dangerous–water630times safe limit”. GWI wishes to provide important clarification to ensure that thepublicreceivesaccurate, balanced and scientifically groundedinformation.

GWI reiterates that the utilitytakesitsresponsibility to provide safe and reliable water to the people of Guyana paramount The statement previously issued by the company was intended to distinguish between aesthetic water quality parameters and indicators of direct public health risk, not to dismiss publicconcernsorminimise theimportanceofimproving waterquality

As previously noted, while iron levels and the associatedturbidityincrease

due to oxidation in some l o c a t i o n s p r e s e n t intermittent challenges, this isnotthenorm.Construction and upgrade of treatment facilities have been and continue to be aggressively rolled out to permanently address these issues

Through the Government of Guyana's ambitious Coastal Wa t e r T r e a t m e n t Infrastructure Programme ( C W T I P ) , G W I i s implementing one of the largest investments in water treatment infrastructure in the country's history, with new treatment plants, upgraded facilities and transmission systems being developed to significantly improve water quality for coastal communities. This programme represents a long-term and sustainable solution to historical groundwater-related challengesthathaveaffected someareasfordecades.

RegardingpHvariations, it is important to note that Guyana's diverse natural g e o l o g y a n d hydrogeological conditions undoubtedlyinfluencewater

sources across the country VariationsinpHlevelsoccur naturally in surface water systems and, while operationally important for water treatment and distribution management, they do not automatically translate into adverse health impacts for consumers. It mustalsobenotedthatmost of the water pipes are PVC and do not contain lead or coppermetalstobeimpacted bylowpH.

Similarly, while isolated high turbidity elevations have been observed in some locations, particularly in systems with elevated iron

oxidation may occur within thedistributionnetwork,the PUC report did not identify s i m u l t a n e o u s microbiological concerns or p a t h o g e n - r e l a t e d exceedances. This confirms the biological safety of the water being supplied and supportsGWI'spositionthat the issues identified relate primarilytoaestheticquality ratherthanimmediatepublic health risks Collectively, (Continuedonpage6)

The mother of all wars is coming

DearEditor,

On the eve of the just concluded NATO summit in Turkiye, Mark Rutte Secretary of General of NATO is reported to have said “We are preparing for a warwithRussia.”

Around the same time, Finland which borders Russia agreed to allow the importandtransitofnuclear weapons on its territory At this point in time, there is absolutely no doubt that NATO countries are providing military and intelligence assistance to UkrainetofightRussia.

What is the significance of these statements and developments? Clearly, they signify beyond the shadow ofdoubt,thattheoutbreakof a war between Russia and NATOcountrieswhetherfor offensive or defensive purposes is looming on the horizon.

The line between having 'the right to defend one's country'andhaving'theright to protect one's sovereignty' has been blurred in the war betweenRussiaandUkraine; AssupportforUkrainefrom the West intensifies, the distinction between the EU

andNATOishardtofind.

Inthefogofitswarwith Ukraine and the in midst of harsh and undiplomatic exchanges with NATO governments, Russia has declaredthatitwillnotsiton its hands and do nothing while warmongering European governments openly declare that they are preparing for war with Russia.Toachievethisgoal, everyeffortisbeingmadeby belligerent forces in Europe to drag the U.S. into a war with Russia just as Israel is workingovertimetodragthe U.S.intoawarwithIran.

With the hope of deescalatingincreasedtensions between Russia and Europe, Russia declared is not looking for a war with Europe nor does it have intentions to invade or to occupy territory in Europe, nevertheless,itispreparedto defend itself should a war with Europe becomes unavoidable.

Inthewakeofincreasing tension in the European theatre what is abundantly clear is that the human, material and environmental destruction that will result from the outbreak of a war with drones, hypersonic missiles and weapons of massdestructiononland,air andseawillbeunimaginable andunprecedentedinhuman history

With Russia declaring thatithaselevateditsSpecial Military Operation in Ukraine to a full-scale war, the prospect of NATO joining openly that war and with it eventual becoming a nuclearwarislikeagigantic clock ticking inexorably towards the hour when such awarappearsmenacinglyon theglobalhorizon.

Based on empirical evidence, the peoples of the world do not want wars of anykind.

They prefer jobs, better (Continuedonpage6)

African community must test limits of U.S. foreign policy in Guyana

Frompage4 was the U.S. that urged Venezuelatorenewitsclaim as part of its Cold War considerations, given the likelihood of Dr Cheddi JaganandthePPPgoverning independent Guyana, given that party's commitment to the then USSR The consequences of that policy

have had a negative influence on Guyana's economic and political development for decades, withgovernmentsconscious

of the U S role in the equation. Earlier, I raised the question: what options, if any, are open to the African community? Are we where the Indian community and the PPP were in (1964 to 1992)?Insomeregards,yes! The PPP today occupies a position similar in some respects to that of the PNC

after 1964, that is, benefitting from sustained U.S.support. Ithasenjoyed and maintained that support

largely from 1992 to the present. A key reason has been its shift from its historical allegiance to Marxism/Leninism/Socialis m and anti-imperialism to a pragmatic and self-serving alignment with U.S. foreign policy priorities Having paid a political price for its earlierideologicalpositions, the PPP has embraced a strategic relationship that p

for Washingtonatthecoreofits

The mother of all wars is coming

Frompage5

wages, enhanced social security and an improvedstandardofliving.Reportsindicate that there are certain leaders in Europe and North America who, think otherwise, they believeandsaythattheworldwillbeabetter place with a weaker and ultimately, with the totaldestructionofRussia.

Thereisalingeringpredispositioninsome European capitals that a war with Russia by 2030 is unavoidable if not inevitable. This belief is grounded in the outdated, unscientific and mechanistic thinking about waging war in these modern times. Should thisviewmanagetosucceed,itisclearthata warbetweenRussiaandEuropemayresultin a nuclear catastrophe affecting not only European cities, town and villages but way beyondEurope'sborders.

Itisthiskindofthinkingthatleavesthose of us who live in this part of the world wonderinghowcometalkofwarhasbecome so commonplace in the narrative of some world leaders that it is now an acceptable inevitability in the practice of international relations.

Westernmega-mediahavemanagedtotip the balance for reporting the Russia/Ukraine war in favour of Ukraine and NATO. They bury objectivity, and, by highlighting the possibilityofwarbetweenRussiaandEurope ignore reality that the nature of war has changed so drastically that nuclear war is morepossiblethatprobablethanever

A war of such proportions and pregnant with untold ramifications will be the mother of all wars and will either bring an end to all warsoropenthepossibilityofaThirdWorld

War

WeGuyaneseapartfrombeingconcerned about the territorial controversy with Venezuela, ask; what is the purpose of a Russia/NATOwarandwhoseinterestswillit serve?

WeGuyanesearenotinterestedinhearing neitherplatitudesnorhyperboleabout'shared values' nor 'freedom from autocrats' or about 'shared interests ' For us it is tangible economicbenefitsthatmattersmostofall.

We Guyanese are fundamentally interested in talk about life and living, not aboutkillingpeoplelikecannonfodder,butit seemsveryhardforthewar-mongerstostart talking about peace and human development thatwillservethepeoplesoftheworld.

Guyanese should ask what and who are the forces driving the madness towards a worldwarandwhatisthefuturetheyhavein mind.

WeGuyanesewouldliketoknowwhatis the motivation for preparing for war with Russia.We are not interested in knowing the ideologicalnorpoliticalreasoningbywhichit can happen; nor are we interested in hearing thatawarwithRussiawillbelaunchedinour interestnationalorotherwise.

Itisonethingtotalkaboutloftyintentions towagewarbutanothertoimplementaplan to wage war for which we Guyanese never offeredtohelpdesign,nortoplayanypartof it's implementation. Where's the glory here andforwhom?

Afterall,ourlivesmattertoo!

Yoursfaithfully, Clement

J.Rohee

FormerMinisterofForeignAffairs

situation, however, differs fundamentallyfromthecold war era. Unlike the period when Dr Cheddi Jagan and the PPP were viewed by Washington as ideological adversaries, there is no comparable ideological challenge to U.S. political, economic, or security interests. In this political environment, where there is little or no ideological contestation, the African community and its political leadership have more space in this equation than the Indian community and its leadership had in the period (1964 to 1992) that was characterised by intense ideologicalstrugglebetween the political parties and ethniccommunities.

My argument is against Africans' self-inflicted paralysis that sees U S foreign policy as the death knell to theAfrican fight for justiceandequality/equityin Guyana.

Effective politics requires that we pursue our interests, even when doing soclasheswithaspectsofthe U.S.policy

Now, let us look at the concrete challenges facing theAfrican community Our 400 years of presence in Guyana have been

c h a r a c t e r i s e d b y enslavement, deprivation of hundreds of years of generational wealth, c o l o n i a l i s m , n e ocolonialism in the form of Independence, and cultural

and spiritual destruction, putting us at a disadvantage in our plural, ethnically dividedcountrywithintense political, economic, social, and cultural competition

Even before oil, theAfrican community has been doing badly due to historic damage, structural, and institutional.

This was so even when an African-dominated party (PNC) held power for 28 years. Today, after 29 years oftheIndiandominatedPPP in power the African community faces an existential threat to its survival with oil and the old and new challenges emergingthat,ifnoturgently addressed, will inevitably lead to a new form of enslavement In this situation, therefore, the African community has legitimate reasons to push back against international actors, including the United States, in pursuit of our struggle against an existential threat. It is not normalpolitics.

Let me illustrate. If the U S insists on internal stability to promote investment and economic activity, but the application of that policy contributes to African domination and a new form of enslavement, then that policy does not serveAfricaninterests.

With this in mind, we must push back and seek to exploittheelasticityinherent in the application of U.S.

foreign policy This approach takes nothing for granted; we seek true struggle and diplomacy to determine what is possible. Some argued that if the opposition and by extension the African community engaged in aggressive protest actions, the U S would take the side of the government, and doing so would enhance the regime's ability to repress While there may be some truth in this view, to use a Guyanese saying, it is not a done deal. Thistypeofthinkingisselfdefeating and devoid of an understanding of foreign policy history. It was in Trump's first government that the U S State Department report assessed that,asweadvancewithoil, Guyana needs a more inclusive governance system.

The African community and its political leadership should avoid assuming that t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l environment is permanently closedtotheirconcerns.The task is neither blind confrontation nor passive acceptance, but active political struggle and engagement that tests the elasticity of U.S. foreign policy possibilities for advancing equity and a new governancesystemthatends winner-take-all governance. Only by doing so will we understandwhatispossible. Yourssincerely, TacumaOgunseye

GWI insists water quality safe, says...

Frompage5

thesefactorsdemonstratethatwhileaesthetic deficiencies remain in some areas intermittently and continue to require attention, the parameters identified do not directly compromise public health Nevertheless, GWI recognises that public expectationsextendbeyondsafetyalone,and substantial infrastructure developments are underway to address these concerns permanently

GWI has invested in a state-of-the-art Laboratory certified to GYS 170:2021 Standard of the Guyana National Bureau of Standards. The GWI laboratory remains committed to transparency, continuous monitoring, regulatory compliance and ongoing investment to ensure that every citizen has access to water that is safe, reliable,andofanincreasinglyhigherquality standard.Thecompanywillcontinuetowork closelywiththePublicUtilitiesCommission and other agencies as part of this

commitment to continual improvement in servicedeliveryforallGuyanese.

Finally, true to his usual political motive comfortably wrapped in his deeply flawed analysis, Dr Adams refers to a “world class Water Authority handed over to the PPP/C Govtin1992”.

What he deliberately failed to tell the nation was that the water woes suffered by the population in the 1970s and 1980s including widespread untreated and unsafe water and a decrepit transmission and distribution network was as a result of the previousPNCgovernment.

GWI in its mission to provide quality water to the population and with funding by the Government of Guyana has constructed 31 and upgraded 12 water treatment plants with10moreplantstobecompletedby2028.

Kindregards

KesiHenry CommunicationOfficer GuyanaWaterInc.

Govt. must come clean on Exxon’s Govt cost bank balance -OppositionLeader

...seeks answers on why Guyana not receiving its full 50% profit

L e a d e r o f t h e Opposition, Azruddin Mohamed is demanding a n s w e r s f r o m t h e Government of Guyana (GoG) on whether the country has managed to repay ExxonMobil for its initial investments in the StabroekBlock.

The Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) with the

oil giant allows the operator to take out up to 75% of Guyana’s oil for expenses monthly After those costs are recovered or repaid by Guyana, the country would be entitled to 50% of all the oil produced, after the company takes out operational expenses. This would significantly increase Guyana’s current 12 5%

profits currently being paid into the Natural Resource Fund(NRF).

Early last month, the Vice President and Business

Limited (EMGL), John Colling told reporters that US$4.5billionwassittingin thecostbanktoberepaidby Guyana up to the end of

2025.

“Through the end of 2025,therewasoverUS$55 billion in the cost bank of which US$51 billion had been recovered As I mentioned in my prior talking points, US$4 5 billion was yet to be recovered by ExxonMobil Guyana Limited and its co-

explained.

Calculationsdonebythis newspaper show that at an average oil price of US$80 per barrel, considering daily productionfortheyearsofar at approximately 900,000 barrels per day (bpd), the Stabroek Block generated approximately US$12 3 billioninrevenueupto20th June,2026.

Accordingtotheoildeal, 75%ofrevenueisdedicated to cost, as such, it could be estimated that US$9 2 billionwenttowardscost,far morethantheUS$4.5billion that needed to be recovered accordingtoExxon.

This means that Guyana should already be receiving its full 50% profits outlined in the PSAas the cost of all sevenoilprojectssanctioned bytheGoGhasbeenrepaid.

COMECLEAN

Tothisend,leaderofthe We Invest In Nationhood (WIN) party urged that government comes clean on the progress of the company’scostrecovery.

He told this newspaper, “If indeed ExxonMobil and its partners have fully recovered their initial investment in the Stabroek Block, then the government owes the Guyanese people an explanation. Why has there been no official announcement?Whyhasthe public not been updated on the current cost recovery figures, the amount remaininginthecostbank?”

Mohamed highlighted that Exxon itself revealed thatthecountrywillclearall costs for the seven projects by2026yetgovernmenthas beensilent.

He argued, “The government must tell us whether new development, exploration, and other recoverable costs are still being deducted from oil revenuesandatwhatrate.”

The leader went on to question, “Are these costs continuing to prevent Guyana from receiving a largershareofrevenues,oris Guyana now receiving the full 50% share of profit oil after allowable expenses? If Exxon’s initial investment has been fully recovered, where is the money going? Could the PPP provide

informationontheportionof that revenue allocated to the naturalresourcesfund?”

Mohamed stressed that the subject is of national importance involving billions of US-dollars in wealth that belongs to the peopleofGuyana.Infact,he maintained that the government cannot remain silent or leave the public to speculate on the costs being recoveredbyExxon.

“We are calling for full transparency and the immediate release of the figures so that every Guyanese can understand how much is being earned, howmuchisbeingdeducted, and how much is actually coming to Guyana.The PPP has an issue with transparency We long for brighter days,” the party leaderstated.

FORMULAFOR CALCULATING PROFITS

While the Opposition Leader demands answers from the government on the cost recovery process, Chartered Accountant Christopher Ram previously raised questions on the formula being used to calculate the country’s profits.Recentfinancialsfor the Stabroek Block coventurers show that Exxon andpartnersmadefivetimes the revenue earned by Guyanain2025.

This is significant since thecountryisentitledto50% of profits generated in the Stabroek Block, while the contractor,EMGLenjoysthe remaining50%.Thecountry also receives 2% of all oil produced in the Stabroek Block,accordingtothe2016 PSA This means that Guyana’sprofitshareshould be greater than the contractors’, yet the oil companies each reported earnings that vastly outperformthenation.

Ram argued that while Exxon repeatedly cites unrecoveredcoststoexplain whytheconsortiumreceives a much larger share of petroleum revenues than Guyana, none of the three companies disclose the outstandingbalanceofthose recoverablecostsorhowthat

Continuedonpage10

Opposition Leader, Azruddin Mohamed

The resource curse is a disease of economics before it is a disease of institutions

Countries rich in natural resources have frequently suffered from poor governance, rent-seeking elites, and weakened public institutions. Yet there is a danger in reducing a complex economic phenomenon into a simple proposition that resource wealthinevitablybecomesa curse when politicians become too powerful or when institutions fail to restrainleaders.

The evidence from economic history tells a morecomplicatedstory The Resource Curse does not begin when institutions becomeweak.

Itbeginswhenacountry fails to build the economic, social, and institutional foundations necessary to transformnaturalwealthinto broad-based human development.

Oil itself is not a curse. Weak economic structures arefundamentallythecurse.

Countries do not experience failure because they possess natural resources.They fail because they lack the systems

required to convert temporary resource income into permanent productive capacity. The central economic challenge of resourcewealthisnotsimply

preventing corruption; it is m

y, diversifyingproduction,and ensuring that resource revenues create capabilities that survive after the resourcesaredepleted.

Consider the contrasting experiencesofresource-rich nations. Norway discovered enormous petroleum reserves, yet it avoided the classic pitfalls associated with oil wealth. The reason wasnotmerelythatNorway had strong institutions before oil It also had deliberate economic policies: disciplined fiscal management, investment in humancapital,technological development, and the creation of a sovereign wealth fund designed to convert finite petroleum wealth into permanent nationalassets.

By contrast, countries such as Nigeria and Venezuela suffered not simply because politicians became too powerful, but becauseoilrevenuesbecame substitutes for economic transformation. Theireconomiesbecame overly dependent on petroleum income, while productive sectors weakened, fiscal systems beca me vulnerable to oil

price cycles, and political competition increasingly revolved around controlling accesstoresourcerents.

The lesson is not merely aboutinstitutionsrestraining leaders.Itisaboutwhethera state possesses the developmental capacity to use resource wealth intelligently

The argument that the ResourceCursebeginswhen institutions fail to challenge political power risks confusing symptoms with causes.Weakoversight,lack oftransparency,andpolitical patronage are often consequences of deeper economicfailures.

When a country's entire economic system revolves around capturing resource rents rather than producing wealth, politics naturally becomes a struggle over controlofthoserents.

The critical question is therefore:“Canthestateuse resource revenues to build institutions, industries, infrastructure, and human capabilities that reduce dependence on political controlofnaturalwealth?”

This distinction matters greatly for developing countries. A country emerging from decades of underdevelopment cannot be judged solely by the

DEM BOYS SEH

Security is de fastest growing profession

One of de biggest employers in Guyana nowadays is de security sector Dem gat so much security guards that sometimes Dem Boys wonder if we gat more guards than police. When crime decide fuh tek a vacation,securityguardsdoesstartworrying aboutredundancy

Nowadays,ifyuhbuildahouse,yuhneed security If yuh open a business, yuh need security If yuh own a backdam, yuh need security Before long, if yuh plant a row of bora, somebody gan advise yuh fuh hire a guard fuh watch de bora from hungry neighbours.

Dem who can't afford a security guard does invest in a dog. Some buy German Shepherd, some buy Rottweiler, and some buy pit bull. But even de rice-eating pot hound does earn he keep. De poor animal mightsleephalfdeday,butoncehehearone strangefootstep,hebarklikeheapplyingfuh promotion.

Matteroffact,somesecurityguardsdone discover de value of outsourcing. Every nightdemreachwukwidalilbagofdogfood and recruit de neighbourhood stray dogs. Feed dem once, and de dogs become loyal employees.

De guard stretch out pun two chair and catchuppunhesleepwhilededogspatrolde compound, barking at every cat, rat and breeze.Comemorning,deguardrewarddem wid stale rice and a few bones. Everybody happy—thedogsgetbreakfast,deguardget eighthourssleep,anddeemployerswearhe

institutional standards of

m a t u r e i n d u s t r i a l economies Institutions themselves evolve through economic development

Building effective

regulatory agencies, independent oversight bodies, and sophisticated public administration

requires resources, expertise,andtime.

The experience of successful developing countries demonstrates that resource wealth can be a platform for transformation when governments focus on long-term development Botswana,forexample,used diamondrevenuestofinance infrastructure, education, and public services, avoiding many of the failures associated with mineral economies Its success was not because political leaders were powerless; it was because the state developed a coherent strategy for converting mineral wealth intonationaladvancement.

This does not mean a c c o u n t a b i l i t y i s unimportant. Far from it. Transparency and oversight

are essential But accountability must be understood within a broader development framework. A country does not escape the Resource Curse simply because it investigates politicians Nor does it succumb to the Resource Curse simply because a political leader owns a privatefarm.

The true test is whether national institutions are capable of ensuring that resource wealth serves national development rather than narrow interests. This requires competent public administration, sound economic planning, investment in education, diversification of the economy, and mechanisms that prevent resource revenues from becoming toolsofpoliticalpatronage.

The greatest danger facing oil-producing countries is economic dependence.

securitysystemworkingperfectly

Dem Boys hear one businessman boasting that he security cameras got artificial intelligence. Dem ask if it could stop thief. He seh, "No, but it could record dem in high definition while dem carrying awaydegenerator."

Long ago, another place wah did need securitywasdecemetery Tombraidersused to believe dead people had expensive taste. Sincenotevenderichcouldaffordatwentyfour-hour guard over dem relatives' graves, plenty families used to avoid burying loved ones in fancy caskets or wid expensive jewellery

Yet,sometombraidersstillusedtodigup graves hoping fuh strike gold If not jewellery,maybeagoldtooth.

One night one of dem get catch redhanded.Insteadofhangingheheadinshame, de man had de nerve fuh ask, "But what I do?"

De cemetery security guard look at him andseh,"Man,yuhmekagravemistake!"

Dem Boys seh de security business now looksetfuhexpandevenmore.Everywhere yuhturnsomebodywatchingsomebodyelse. Soon yuh gan need a security guard fuh watch de security guard, another one fuh watch de one watching de first one, and finallyonewatchdogfuhsupervisedewhole operation.

Even de Popo doing watchman wuk. SomeofdemwatchingAZMOeverymove. Talkhalf.Leffhalf

The ultimate safeguard against the Resource Curse is not suspicion alone; it is development.

Oil wealth should be viewednotasatemptationto be feared but as a historic opportunity to accelerate economic transformation The countries that succeed will not be those that avoid politics;nosocietycan.

They will be those that use resource revenues to build economies in which prosperity depends not on the possession of oil, but on the knowledge, skills, innovation,andproductivity oftheirpeople.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinionsofthisnewspaper

When oil becomes the dominant source of national income, every institution becomesvulnerablebecause the entire society becomes organisedaroundcontrolling theresource. Therefore, the answer to the Resource Curse is to strengthen the productive foundationsoftheeconomy

Thislandismyland– resign or rearrange

The question has been put to me in no uncertain manner: should Pres Ali resign? It’s my sabbath, so theanswerwillhavetowait. Also,letthismuchbesaidin the open-air: whatever the recommendationsIoffermy president,itwouldbeforhis ears only Having said that, there’s still my duty to the Guyanesepeople. Whenthe people ask questions, the peoplemustgetanswers.

No one, neither man nor woman, should stick around when his name has become mud. Whenthere’snobasis, the claims are unfounded, thenhemusttakethefightto theenemy Stick around and stick it to the wackos and sickos. I did. Pres Ali has a lot of land. Means that there’s plenty mud for him to wade through when it rains Rockygroundwhentheheat arrives, the slush freezes. Where could this lead: heavenorhell.

Moreover,PresAlihasa ton of sheep, cows by the cargo plane, and shrimp by the seine full It’s a

wonderful life when a man has a sweet weekend resort toretreatto,andlistentothe grass grow But all those flocksofrichlyfedfowlsand ducks, cows and sheep, tells me that Pres Ali has a considerable amount of manure to navigate around. Hemaydososuccessfully

But the odors, Mr President. Odors of that kindhaveahabitofclinging stubbornly Like secondhandcigarettesmoke, that is also hazardous to health. Including politicos. Even presidents don’t have theproperlevelofimmunity insuchsituations.

Resign in the wake (and stench) of PresAli’sAnimal Farm Should he, or shouldn’t he? Having myself managed with more than one PPP Govt-inspired witch-hunt, the president may try his luck. I remind him of this one nonnegotiable condition: it would be better if he has no brooms lying around in secretcompartments.

Those are dead giveaways and spur on the

hunters to more raucous efforts.

I use the opportunity to remind Pres Ali and his posse of that old truism: what goes around comes around. Iwarnedheandhis people: don’t mess with me. Well, his own people now turn against he (and he against them) in a war of words, claims and counterclaims, over sheep, land,fowlandduck.

Guyana (and the PPP) has degenerated into a regular meat market. Me, I still going to chuch, reading my Bible, keeping the faith. Caution: Mock Maker! And areckoningcomes.

All those piety stops in o ff - l i m i t s h o u s e s represented the lows in political hypocrisy Using God, and recruiting some greedy pastors to sell their souls (and flocks), has payback. Indeed, there’s a timeforeverythingunderthe sun.

There was a time when Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Azruddin Mohamed monopolised the laughter in

Guyana. Now, it seems, is their time for pointing fingers at one another, tradinginsults,andweeping. There was a time when Dr Ali’s people said that I am Mohamed’s people. Now the same Mohamed alleges that Dr Ali is that kind of people.

Land in Long Creek Lan-tun posts by the Linden Highway Lakes for a languid fish life The common denominator is the national leader According to him, the banks have his back (loans). According to him, he has the papers to drive some perverse people outofthepress.

From storied English Literature, I use Lady Macbeth to remind Excellency All all the perfumes in Arabia will not sweetenthislittlehand.” He has some sanitising to do. Capableofdoingso,Ithink. Mustdeliver

The question lingers Hints rejected. Strongarm maneuvers tried. Should he resign? Should he stay and reign? He does and he is

shaggier than the sheep on that farm. Badwhendry Worse when it is wet. The smell that overpowers. I am trying to give the president some subtle nudgesonhowtosaveface.

The longer he sticks around, the greater the risk that there is nothing left to save A considerable amountofdamagedone. It’s timeIleave.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinionsofthisnewspaper

Frompage8

balancechangesfromyeartoyear

According to the lawyer, that omission conceals what maybethesinglemostimportantfiguregoverninghowoil revenuesaredividedbetweenGuyanaandtheconsortium.

Previously, the Institute for Energy Economics and FinancialAnalysis (IEEFA) also raised questions over the formulausedtocalculateGuyana’sprofitshare.

OnmultipleoccasionstheGoGwasaskedtoexplainthe formula used to calculate Guyana’s profits. It has only offered the 75% cost recovery and 50/50 profit split explanation while questions on the glaring disparity in earningsremain.

GTEcontractorscanbe...

Frompage3

2021theCaribbeanCourtofJustice(CCJ)ruledthatpublic tenders are strictly bound by the ProcurementAct 2003. In theBKInternationalInc.v GGMC[2021]CCJ13AJ(GY), the Court established that state entities lack the administrative discretion to waive mandatory prequalificationcriteria.

ThisthereforequestionsthecontractawardtoLindsayca with glaring red flags plastered on the company during the biddingprocess.

Additionally,inCaraInvestmentsLtd.v.BankofNova Scotia&ChristopherRam[2026]CCJ5(AJ)GY,theCCJ formally recognised the “process contract” (Contract A) doctrine within Guyanese procurement law Entering a public bidding process creates a binding contract requiring the state to act with “honesty, fairness, good faith, and transparency.” Failing to evaluate material legal liabilities andcorporaterestructuringsbreachesthisstandard,granting prejudicedbiddersgroundsforlegalchallenge.

In October 2019, Guyana moved to enforce Regulation 3(2), blacklisting 13 non-compliant firms including China RailwayFirstGroup.

JSC announces new appointments for Registrar of Deeds, Land Court Commissioners

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has announced the appointment ofnewRegistrarofDeedsat the Deeds Registry and five new commissioners of title toserveinthelandcourt.

According to a press releaseissuedbytheJSCon Tuesday, Ms. Zanna Frank has been appointed the new Registrar of Deeds at the Deeds Registry, with effect from1stJuly,2026.

The release noted that Frank brings extensive legal and public administration experiencetotherole.

TheJSCnotedthatFrank earnedherBachelorofLaws (LL.B.) from the University

ofGuyanain2012,followed by a Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2014. ShealsoholdsaDiploma in Public Management obtained in 2007 and completed a Masters in Public Policy and Administrationin2023.

Priortoherappointment, Frank served as Deputy Registrar of Deeds, a position she assumed in 2016. She held that office until being elevated to the postofRegistrarofDeeds. The Judicial Service Commission said the appointment marks a new

chapter in the leadership of theDeedsRegistry

Additionally, the JSC announced the appointment of Deputy Registrar, Alicia Lowenfield, Magistrate Annette Singh, Magistrate Alicia George, Magistrate Shivani Lalaram and

Attorney Utieka John to the post of commissioners of Title to serve in the land Court. The new appointees will take oath of office before Prime Minister Brigadier Mark Phillips today

Furtherthereleasestated that Alicia Lowenfield obtained a Bachelors of Laws Degree from the

University of Guyana in 2004 and a Legal Education Certificate from Hugh Wooding Law School in 2006. She was admitted to the Bar in Guyana in 2006 and to the Bar of Trinidad and Tobago in 2009. Her professional journey commenced as a State Counsel in Chambers of the AttorneyGeneralinGuyana. She later served as a R

s

ered A

ciate AttorneyinTheBahamasfor two years and a Judicial Research Counsel in the Judiciary of Trinidad and Tobago for six years. Ms. Lowenfield returned to Guyana in 2016 to take

appointment as Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court.

M

obtainedaBachelorofLaws Degree from the University of Guyana in 2006 and a Legal Education Certificate from Hugh Wooding Law School in 2009 she joined practice as a state counsel attached to the Attorney General Chambers. In 2014 she was appointed to the magistracy, where she remains.

Magistrate Alisha George obtained Bachelors of Laws Degree from the University of Guyana in 2007 and a Legal Education

Certificate from Hugh Wooding Law School in 2009 and a Master in Natural R

sources Management in 2025. She served as the Head of the Regulatory Department at theGuyanaPowerandLight Inc and as State Counsel attached to the Chambers of the Attorney General. Ms. George has been a Magistratesince2024. Utieka John obtained a Bachelors of Laws Degree from the University of Guyana in 2014 and a Legal Education Certificate from Hugh Wooding Law School in2016sheobtaineda Continuedonpage15

Ms. Zanna Frank, Registrar of Deeds at the Deeds Registry Alicia Lowenfield

Attorney Utieka John Magistrate

Annette Singh

Shivani Lalaram

Alicia George

Canadianfirmstepsupnucleareducation campaignamidscrutinyofGuyanauraniumproject

As concerns mount over the proposed Kurupung uranium project in Guyana, Canada-based U92 Energy Corp. has been ramping up educational posts on social m e d i a t o o u t l i n e environmentalmanagement, safety and benefits of nuclearenergy

The Kurupung Uranium Project spans approximately 922 square kilometres in Region Seven and carries a historicalresourceestimateof 20 6 million pounds of uranium U92 completed its acquisitionofLIAIndustries, a Singaporean firm, earlier thisyear,givingtheCanadian company control of what is currently Guyana’s only knownuraniumproject

The Kurupung project is listedonU92’swebsiteasits onlyproject.Inrecentweeks the company has shared a series of Facebook posts explainingvariousaspectsof the nuclear industry, from uranium mining waste management to the reliability and safety of nuclearpower

These posts come as the project has attracted public scrutiny, with indigenous group and environmental advocates raising concerns overthepotentialimpactsof uranium mining and some calling for the project to be halted pending greater consultationandassessment. Uranium is a naturally occurring radioactive element that serves as the primary fuel for nuclear power plants worldwide. It is primarily used to produce electricity, providing a highly concentrated energy source and its special properties also make it the main source of fuel for nuclearreactors.

R e c e n t l y , t h e

Amerindian People’s Association (APA) has called for the project to be halted, citing the absence of public and community-level

consultations and a lack of information about the project. APA stressed that uranium exploration presentssignificantrisksand lacks Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) with the Indigenous Peoples whoselands,livelihoodsand future are now under threat.

APA also criticised the lack of transparency surrounding the proposed uranium project and called it “deeply troubling.” It argued that Indigenous communities are leftinthedarkwithoutbeing adequately informed about the nature of the project and potentialimpactstheproject poses especially to the environment and their livelihood.

InapostonMonday,the company outlined how waste from uranium mining is left behind and how managing mining waste is partoftheprocess.

“Conventional milling produces tailings, the leftoverrockaftertheuraniumis removed.Thesearestoredin engineered facilities and capped to keep them stable forthelongterm,”U92said. It further explained that insitu recovery (a mining technique used to extract minerals like uranium and copper)producesnotailings butgroundwaterusedduring the process is restored afterward, flushed and returned toward its original conditionaftermining.

CitingtheWorldNuclear Association, U92 said the information was shared for educational purposes and was “not investment advice.”

Earlier this month, U92 pointed to what it described as“oneoftheclearestsignals ofthenuclearrevival.”

In another post, U92 outlined that nuclear power

hasan“imageproblem”that the data does not support. It e

researcherscountthefulltoll of each energy source, including accidents and the

air pollution from burning fuel, nuclear turns out to be among the safest ways to makeelectricity

“Per terawatt-hour, coal islinkedtoroughly25deaths and oil to around 18, while nuclear sits at about 0.03, alongside wind and solar

Thegapbetweenfossilfuels and everything clean is enormous. The difference between nuclear, wind and solar is, by comparison, tiny,”thecompanyadded.

It also highlighted nuclear energy’s reliability citing figures from the UnitedStatesDepartmentof Energy showing nuclear plants achieved a capacity factor of more than 92% in 2024, higher than natural gas,coal,windorsolar

“This is why nuclear is called baseload. It is the power that is simply there, around the clock, regardless ofweather Asdemandfrom d a t a c e n t r e s a n d electrification climbs, that constancyisexactlywhatthe grid is short of,” it further noted.

Notably,eachofthe

Continuedonpage15

JudyLatchmanappointedChiefMagistrate

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has announced that appointment ofPrincipalMagistrateJudy Latchman to serve the Judiciary of Guyana in the postofChiefMagistrate.

The appointment which w a s m a d e b y t h e Commissionon7thJanuary, 2025 will take effect from that date. Latchman has in

excess of 16 years experience as a magistrate and has served at several tiersofjusticesystem.

She is a qualified and experienced attorney who is a f e l l o w o f t h e Commonwealth Judicial Institute and member of the Commonwealth Magistrate and Judges Association as wellasthejudicialeducation instituteofGuyana.

The JSC also announced the appointment of six new magistrates.

In a press release issued onMonday,thecommission said the successful appointees are Ocelisa Marks, Nikkisha Logan, Jimelle Joseph, Shareefah Parks, Taneisha Saygon and CaressaHenry

AccordingtotheJSC,the new magistrates will officially take the Oath of

Chief Magistrate, Judy Latchman

OfficebeforePrimeMinister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark PhillipsonWednesday,15th July,2026.

According to the press release, Ocelisa Marks obtained her Bachelors of law Degree in 2017 and a legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2019. She alsoobtainedaCertificateof Participation in Mediation Advocacy in 2019. In 2019, Ms. Marks was appointed State Counsel within the Chambers of the Attorney General a position she still holds.

NikkishaLoganobtained a Bachelors of Law Degree from the University of the

...six others join the magistracy

West Indies in 2017and a legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding LawSchoolin2019.

She obtained a Masters ofLawsDegreeinCorporate and Commercial Law in 2023. She worked in private practice from 2019 to 2020 andservedasseniordirector of legal services/ corporate secretary at Guyana Office forInvestmentfrom2020to present.

Ms Jimelle Joseph obtained Bachelors of Laws Degree from the University of Guyana in 2018 and a Legal Education Certificate from Hugh Wooding Law School in 2020 She commenced her career in private law firm and later served as legal assistant to the Chancellor of the Judiciary, a position she currentlyholds.

Shareefah Parks obtainedanassociateDegree inCommunicationsin2013, bachelorsoflawdegreefrom the University of Guyana in 2018 and a Legal Education Certificate from Hugh Wooding Law School in 2020. She later obtained a postgraduate Diploma in C

She is presently pursuing a Master of Law Degree in law and DisputeResolutionatRobert Gordon University, Scotland.

She commenced her legal career in private practice from 2020 to 2022 f r o m j o i n i n g t h e Environmental Protection

Agency in 2022 as legal adviser She was later elevatedtothepostofsenior legal adviser a position she stillholds.

Taneisha Saygon obtainedaBachelorsofLaw Degree from the University of Guyana in 2018 and a Legal Education Certificate from Hugh Wooding law School in 2020. She has servedasaprosecutorwithin theChambersoftheDirector of Public Prosecutions since

2020.

Caressa Henry obtained a Bachelors of Law Degree from the Hugh Wooding Law School in 2021. She obtainedacertificateinanticorruption and asset recoveryin2025.

Ms. Henry obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Management in 2015 and currently serves as state counsel in the chambers of Director of Public Prosecution.

Ocelisa Marks Nikkisha Logan

Caressa Henry Jimelle Joseph

Taneisha Saygon

Shareefah Parks

Moral imperative, standard practice for GECOM Commissioners to resign after change in office -Ramkarran

Former Speaker of the National Assembly and Senior Counsel, Ralph Ramkarranbelievesthatitis morally imperative and a standard practice for commissioners attached to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to resignaftertheirappointeeis nolongerinoffice.

Ramkarran shared this viewinregardtotheongoing debacle over A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) commissioners retaining their post long after their party lost the position as the main political opposition. Thepartywastoppledbythe Azruddin Mohamed’s We InvestinNationhood(WIN) party

Sharinghisviewsviahis blogspot, Conversation Tree, the former Speaker noted that in Guyana, election commissioners are appointed on deliberate j u d g m e n t o r o n recommendation.

He explained that when the person responsible for initiating the appointment

changes, the affected commissioners, as a moral imperative and by standard political practice, ought to resign or offer their resignations.

This principle, he said is so deeply entrenched that it is recognised as a convention.

“This convention is so much part of democratic political systems that it has become the expected practice,”hesaid

Ramkarran stressed that Article 161(3) of the Constitutionprovidesforthe appointmentbythepresident of the chair and members of thecommission.

“Asiswellknown,apart from the chair, there are six members,threeappointedby the president in his own deliberate judgment and three appointed by the presidentontheadviceofthe leaderoftheoppositionafter thelatter’sconsultationwith other non-governmental political parties represented inthenationalassembly.”

He noted that some

JSCannouncesnewappointments...

Frompage11

MasterofLawsDegreeinCorporateandCommercialLawin 2024. She began her legal career at the Attorney General Chambersin2016sheservedasStateCounseluntil2019and later became employed at the Guyana Lands And Surveys Commission as the first Senior Advisor and in 2021 as CorporateSecretary/LegalCounsel.

Shivani Lalaram obtained a Bachelors of Laws Degree from University of Guyana in 2016 and a Legal Education CertificatefromHughWoodingLawSchoolin2018.Shewas in private practice before being appointed to serve the MagistracyinFebruary2024whereshepresidedinthecourts inGeorgetownandBerbice.Sheplayedanintegralroleinthe establishmentoftheMentalHealthCourtinGuyanaandhas presidedovertheDrugTreatmentCourt.

Canadianfirmstepsup...

Frompage13

posts was accompanied by a disclaimer stating that the informationwasprovidedforeducationalpurposesonlyand didnotconstituteinvestmentadvice.

U92’s educational campaign comes as debate continues over the proposed Kurupung Uranium Project. The former head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr VincentAdams and some opposition members, have raised concernsabouttheuraniumexplorationproject.Similartothe comments made by theAPA, Dr Adams and the opposition members cited lack of public disclosure, inadequate consultation with Indigenous communities, and uncertainty overtheregulatoryframeworkgoverninguranium.

This publication reported that the Guyana Geology & MinesCommission(GGMC)on19thApril,2024grantedthe Singaporean firm local subsidiary LIA (Guyana) Inc., the “exclusive right of occupation and exploration” through the issuanceoftwoExclusiveProspectingLicences(PLs).

LIA (Guyana) is a private limited liability company in Guyanawhichwasincorporatedon20thMarch,2023.

A January 2026 filing said exploration activities at the project site commenced in 2024. The prospecting licences permittheexplorationofuranium,otherradioactiveminerals, and rare earth elements (REEs) for a period of three years ending18thApril,2027.Thelicencesmaybeextendedupon application for a maximum of two additional one-year periods,extendingthetermto18thApril,2029.

includingNevilleBissember (Jr), have argued, that the three members originally a p p o i n t e d o n t h e recommendation of a past leader of the opposition are not entitled to hold office since the election of a new leaderoftheopposition.

“Therecanhardlybeany disputeoverthiscontention, but the question is, how to implement the wishes of the newleaderoftheopposition tohavenewmembersofthe commission based on his

recommendations, there being no provision in the constitution for the commissioners to leave office,andtheirrefusaltodo so,”Ramkarranreasoned.

Tothis,heprovidedthree options, the first of which is toseekjudicialintervention.

Accordingtothelawyer, a court could potentially declare that under article 161(3) of the constitution, the three commissioners are required to have the confidence of the leader of

theopposition.

Heasserted“Itmayeven go further and declare that the three members of the commission do not have such confidence, having regard to his letter to the president nominating three other persons. A court may even be prepared to say that thethreecommissioners

Continuedonpage16

Former Speaker, Ralph Ramkarran SC

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Richmond,twoothersreleasedon$1Mbail...

From page 2 media,” Richmond’s sisters who were in tears told members of the press. “We are so happy ...we were praying all thetime!”

The release of the three menisthelatestdevelopment in a five-year-old case that continues to shake Guyana. On a night in March 2021, Ricardo Fagundes was shot more than 20 times moments aftersteppingoutofthePalm Court nightclub on Main Street,Georgetown.Twogunmenemergedfromthebackof

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aheavilytintedwhiteToyota Fielder wagon to execute the hit.Thegetawayvehiclewas later found burnt along the Soesdyke-LindenHighway OppositionLeaderalleges politicalwitchhunt Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed, who previously employed Richmond and Kanu released a seriesofvideosonhis“Team Mohamed’s”Facebookpage, claimingthesuddenreactivation of the murder probe is a politicallymotivatedfabricationorchestratedbythestate. Mohamed alleged that President Irfaan Ali instructedDeputyCrimeChief MitchellCaesartoreopenthe unsolved investigation as politicalretaliation.“Idiscovered and exposed President [Ali’s] 150-acre megafarm, worth more than $5 billion,” Mohamed claimed in his address. “This exposure has thrown the President into a state of desperation and panic...causinghimtomanufacture total fabrications... andattempttomanipulatethe system.”

Alleged coercion of auto dealer

A central element of

Mohamed’s defense rests on allegations surrounding Amarnauth Ramsook, the auto dealer

Mohamedclaimedthepolice tried to coerce Ramsook into changing his previous statement to implicate Richmond as the purchaser of the white Toyota Fielder used in the execution.

According to Mohamed, Ramsook had already provided official transaction documents to investigators in July 2025 showing the vehicle was sold to Shemroy Omar Stewart, whom Mohamed identified as a security guard and close associate of convicted drug traffickerRogerKhan.

Mohamed also released an audio recording allegedly of Ramsook’s son, Dwight Dodson, claiming that CID officers and a senior Peoples ProgressivePartyCivic(PPP/ C)officialpressuredRamsook to sign a false statement to connectRichmondtothecar Efforts made to contact the namedofficialforacomment wasfutile.

RSSreportclearspoliceof cover-up allegations

Following external

whistleblowing allegations madebyPoliceSergeantDion Bascom,whoclaimedahighlevel police cover-up in the Fagundes murder, the Government of Guyana had requested investigative assistancefromtheRSS.Aformer Detective Chief Inspector from the UK’s Metropolitan Policewasdeployedtoreview the case files.

The RSS report, published on The Ministry of HomeAffairs’websiteon9th September, 2022, concluded that there was no evidence of corrupt practices or cover-up efforts by Detective Superintendent Mitchell Caesar or other investigators and that the bribery allegations raised by Sgt. Bascom were determined to be “hearsay having no provenance.”

The RSS review highlighted that a close associate of Fagundes, who was present on the night of the murder, gave highly inaccurate statements to investigators. Closed CCTV footage contradicted his claims regarding who was driving the vehicle and omitted the presence of a third occupant in theircar

Moral imperative, standard practice for...

From page 15 holding on to their seats is unlawful.However,intheabsence of a specific provision in the constitution that provides for the resignation or removalofthethreemembers or circumstances by which their offices come to an end, a court might stop short of declaring them vacant.”

The second option, according to Ramkarran, is for the government to table legislationinthenationalassembly that would amend the constitution to require commissionerstoresigninspecifiedcircumstances.

“The government and WINtogetherhavemorethan a two-third majority in the National Assembly so that such a Bill will easily pass. However, the Government hasclearlydemonstratedthat itisunwillingtoengagewith WIN in any way, shape or form. It is therefore unlikely that the government will embark on such an initiative of its own motion or if asked by WIN or by the public.”

He noted nonetheless the third option is for WIN to

tableaPrivateMembers’Bill intheNationalAssemblypursuant to clause 51 of the Standing Orders.

“It is not known whether the Government will support suchaBill.

The circumstances that prevailcurrentlysuggestthat theGovernment’shostilityto WIN is so deep-seated that it mightprefertohavethethree Commissioners retain their positions rather than amend the Constitution to have the three Commissioners unseated.

They are not morally entitled to their seats.

The omission in the Constitutionofaprovisionforthe terminationoftheirofficesis clearly an error. Prior to the reformsin1992andthecommission, the life of the elections commission came to an end three months after the elections.Thisprevailedfrom 1966 to 1992,” the former speakerexplained.

He pointed out that the samesituationoccurredfrom 1992, as is seen today, where the new leader of the oppositionappearedtohavenoconfidenceinthemembersnominated as far back as the time of Desmond Hoyte.

“When Robert Corbin was re-appointed leader of the opposition after the 2006 elections, he sought to have the same three commissioners resign.

Hewasmetwiththesame response that the three commissioners are now giving, namely, refusals on the ground there is no provision in the constitution that requires them to resign. This contention makes them the only constitutional office holdersinGuyanaentitledto holdofficeforlife,unlessremoved for cause on the recommendation of a tribunal,” the lawyer added.

Turning to the history behind the provision, Ramkarrannotedthatin1966 the drafters of the constitutionunderstoodthatthecomposition of the commission could change depending on the results of the elections, hencetheprovisionterminatingtheofficesofthecommissionersthreemonthsafterthe elections.

PENPAL

Air Services Limited shuts down rotor wing operations after years-long certification fight

Air Services Limited (ASL), one of Guyana's longest-serving aviation companies, on Tuesday night announced the closure ofitsrotorwing(helicopter) division, blaming what it describes as frustrated efforts to secure the regulatoryapprovalsneeded to keep the operation running.

In a statement released Tuesday night, the company said it spent seven years pursuing a rotorcraft Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the Guyana Civil AviationAuthority(GCAA), the agency that licenses and overseesaircraftoperatorsin the country ASL said it approached the process in good faith and expected a collaborative relationship with regulators, but instead encountered what it called repeated bureaucratic obstacles that ultimately made continuing the helicopter business untenable.

Thecompanyframedthe closure as a loss not just for itself but for the hinterland

communities that depend on airtransport.

ASL has for decades served Guyana's interior — regions with limited or no road access offering essentialservices.

In its statement, ASL argued that certification and licensing processes in Guyana remain overly cumbersomeforacountryin the midst of rapid economic expansion, and said it believes the outcome could have been avoided with more proactive cooperation fromregulators.

“ I t i s d e e p l y dishearteningthatinanation poised for rapid expansion and economic growth, the mechanismsforcertification and personnel licensing remain unnecessarily cumbersome.

Aviation is the lifeblood of our interior connectivity; it is a vital utility, not a luxury When regulatory frameworksbecomesorigid that they stifle longstanding, reputable operatorsratherthanguiding

them toward compliance, it is the Guyanese people who suffer,”ASLsaid.

The company thanked the GCAAfor its role in the industry's safety record, as well as its clients and the communities it has served, while expressing hope that the regulatory environment will become more collaborativegoingforward.

“We believe that with moreproactivesupportanda genuinespiritofcooperation fromtherelevantauthorities, this outcome could have beenavoided.

We hoped for an

Govt. seeks contractor to design, build bridges at Mahaica, Mahaicony & Abary

The Ministry of Public Works in an invitation for initial selection works (shortlist) is seeking applicantsforthedesignand buildingofbridgesacrossthe Mahaica, Mahaicony and AbaryRivers/Creeks.

Thisprojectispartofthe Reconstruction of Existing Road Network on the East Coast Demerara (ECD) between Mahaica andAbary inRegionFive.

According to the ministry'sadvertisement,the Guyana Government received financing from the worldbanktowardthecostof the Integrated Transport CorridorsProject(ITCP)and intends to apply part of the proceeds toward payments forthisproject.

The tender document statesthatthecontractorshall establish the contract duration for the subject project.

“In no event shall the time for completion, which shall include the periods necessary for preparation and approval of the designs, exceed 24 months The schedule supporting the proposed contract duration will be submitted with the Technical Proposal. It is

expectedthattheRequestfor Proposalswillbelaunchedin October 2026, ” the documentexplained. Thereconstructionofthe existingroadnetworkonthe East Coast Demerara –Mahaica Bridge to Abary Bridge Road Corridor includestheimprovementof approximately27kilometers of roadway and associated roadway structures (Lot 1), and it involve the extension/constructionofthe three (3) main bridges, namely the Mahaica River, Mahaicony River andAbary RiverBridges(Lot2). Back in October 2025, the Department of Public Informationreportedthatthe g

agreement with the world bank toward the Integrated Transport Corridors Project

(ITCP).

According to the article, the project was approved in early2025bytheworldbank and is geared toward supporting Guyana in its quest to upgrade and rehabilitate the country's road infrastructure, and will focus on enhancing the country's transport network inselectedregionsinorderto allow for better equipped infrastructure that could withstand natural hazards while providing safer and more reliable movement for persons.

It was reported in the media that the government plans to upgrade the East Coast Road Corridor from MahaicatoRosignol.

Theministrypostedonits Facebook that Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill andhisprojectteamwillhost a stakeholder's engagement and consultation meeting with residents, business owners, truck operators, rice producers organisation, religious communities, bus drivers' association to discusstheproject.

th This will be held on 17 July, 2026 at the Mahaicony Technical and Vocational TrainingCentreat16:00hrs.

d themselves as partners in national development, willing to offer guidance to r e s o l v e c o m p l e x certification issues rather than simp

roadblocks,”ASLsaid.

The closure statement lands amid a wider, more public dispute betweenASL and the GCAA. Earlier this year, ASL's chairman, Captain Ahamad Mazahar Ally, a

Director General Lt. Col. (Ret'd) Egbert Field of unfairly targeting the company, telling Kaieteur NewsthatASLhadreceived verbal instructions to halt operations and restrict flights to the Matthews Ridge airstrip in Region One, along with pilot suspensions the company said cost it significant daily revenue. ASL's attorney, Motee Singh, went further, arguing the directives rested on

unsubstantiated reports rather than a formal investigation, and the company signalled it was preparing possible legal actionagainsttheauthority.

The GCAA has pushed b a c k o n t h o s e characterisations.

Inresponsetotheclaims, the authority said its actions including the pilot suspension and flight res

preventive safety measures tied to a reported incident, taken under its statutory powers in the CivilAviation Act2018.

The agency pointed to a pattern of landings outside approvedareas,includingan incident near Matthews Ridge in which an ASL aircraft overran the runway, andsaidsafetydecisionsare not optional when risk patternsemerge.

T h e G C A A h a s maintainedthatalloperators are held to the same standards.

Corentyne teen missing after swimming with friends

Family members of 14-year-old Daveanand Balram, of No. 60 Village, Corentyne,arefranticoverhisdisappearance after he and some friends reportedly went swimming in the Corentyne River on Monday.Police in Region Six have since commenced investigations as the teen, also knownasRitesh,isfeareddrown.

His family confirmed that a report was made to the Springlands Police Station, Corentyne.

Gayatree Rambhajan, the boy's mother, toldreportersthatherlastinteractionwithher son was July 2. She explained that she resides at a different location, received a worrying call on Monday

"Yesterday afternoon, around two something, I got a phone call saying my son drowned. I asked the person if 'you sure', and the person cut off the phone," she stated onTuesday

GayatreeRambhajan, mother of the missing teen

Not long after, her husband called her and asked if she had heard of anynewsregardingtheirsondrowning.Fear gripped her as she would begin receiving severalcallsfromotherfamilymemberswho wereconcernedaswordrapidlyspread.

"They told me that my son Ritesh, he comeoutandswimwithcoupleboysandhe drowned.Theysaidheholdontoawoodand theboygotobringsomeboatmantopickhim up,buttheyain'tfindhim.Bytimetheycome back,thewaterwashheaway,"theagonising motherexpressed.

Rambhajan pointed out that her son was unable to swim. According to information related to her, there were three other boys along with her son.”He don't know to swim.

Feareddead: Daveanand Balram, 14

The guys them bring him out here to teach him, that's what I hear. He'snotagoodswimmer."

Balram lived on the Corentyne with his father After she was informed of the unsettling development, she travelled to Corentyne, where she and other relatives searchedtheareaonMondayeveningandon Tuesdaymorning,withoutsuccess.

Searcheffortshavebeenimpededbythe lackofboatstoventureintothewaters.

Desperatetolocateherson,Rambhajanis appealing to anyone with the resources to assistthefamilyintheirefforts.

"Hedoescallmelikeeveryday.IfI'mat work, he does call me, or if I'm home nighttime,hedoescallandIdoestalktohim."

Thegrievingmotherexpressedhopethat hersonisfoundalive.

Air Services Limited's Bell 206L Rotocraft

Trump resumes Iran port blockade and threatens strikes on energy targets

(Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Tuesday reimposed a naval blockade of all Iranian ports and threatened to hit power plants and bridges next week unless Tehranresumesnegotiations,inthe U.S.escalationoftheconflict.

The U.S. also began a fresh round of strikes "to continue degradingIraniancapabilitiesused to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz," the U.S. militarysaid.

Tehran says it has again closed the strait after hostilities between Iran and the U.S. reignited last week, fraying an already fragile truce reached in June after several months of fighting that has killed thousands.

"I'll save the energy targets for last,butultimatelywe'llhitenergy targets," ​Trump told Fox News in an interview that aired Tuesday night on 'Special Report with Bret Baier'.

"Next week comes the power plants, next week comes the bridges," Trump said, "unless they get​tothetableandnegotiate."

U.S. negotiators had been in touch with their Iranian counterparts to tell them "you bettermakeadeal",headded.

Iran's army said early on Wednesday that it had launched droneattacksagainstU.S.positions at Jordan's Azraq base. There was no immediate comment from the Pentagon.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said they targeted weapons ​and storage facilities in BahrainandKuwait.Reuterscould notimmediatelyverifythereports.

The flare-up over the last few days has heightened doubts that a

memorandum of understanding signed last month would lead to a permanent ​halt in the war, which hasengulfedIran'sneighboursand disruptedglobalenergysupplies.

American projectiles hit a location around Bandar Abbas, an Iranian city on the strait, the governor's office told state media late on Tuesday, while Iran's state news agency IRNA said that U.S. projectiles hit an area near Sirik in southernIran.

"If the U.S. thinks that by tightening its measures against us, its military actions and its economic blockade, we will return to negotiations, it is ​making a mistake," Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said

People walk next to a symbolic mockup of an Iranian missile at Imam Hussein Square in Tehran, Iran, July 12, 2026. Majid

Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

in an earlier interview with state television.

Before the war began in February,aboutafifthofglobaloil and gas shipments passed through the​StraitofHormuzeachday

Trump on Monday floated the idea of a 20% fee on shipping through the strait, which drew sharp criticism from the U N shippingagencyandothers.

On Tuesday, he scrapped the idea and said, without providing details, that would ⁠instead seek investmentdealswithGulfstates.

The naval blockade against vessels transiting to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas camebackintoeffectat2000GMT (1600 EDT), after being lifted in

June.

Trump said the strait was open toallshippingtrafficexceptthatof Iran.Therearecurrentlymorethan 20 U S Navy warships and hundreds of military aircraft operating across the region, the U.S.militarysaid.

The conflict has proved unpopular in the U S , where gasoline prices have risen and congressional elections are loominginNovember

The price of benchmark Brent crude oil is up 15% over the last seven days to $85 a barrel, ​highest sincemid-June.

COSTOFWAR

The war has killed ​thousands, primarily in Iran and Lebanon,

sinceit⁠beganinFebruarywithjoint U.S.-IsraelistrikesonIran,andhas widened to include other Gulf nationsasIranretaliatedagainstits neighbours.

While the global economy has largelyweatheredtheenergyshock fairly well, the International Monetary Fund warned last month thatextendingthewarbeyondmidJuly posed big risks, ​especially since countries have largely used up their strategic oil reserves to cushiontheeffectonconsumers.

Half of those surveyed in a Reuters poll said ​they believed the warhad⁠notbeenworthitscosts.

IransaidearlieronTuesdaythat it attacked a U.S. Army base in Jordanwithballisticmissiles,while Bahrain, which hosts a U.S. naval base, reported fending off an IranianaerialattackandotherGulf statesalsocameunderfire.

The governor's office of Iran's Qeshm Island, on the Strait of Hormuz, said it was struck by a U.S. projectile at around 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Iranian state media ⁠reported.

Washington has asserted repeatedly that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon -somethingTehrandeniesseeking-while Iran wants the end to ​sanctions and for other nations to recogniseitscontroloverthestrait.

Trump said certain countries, withoutnamingthem,hadtoldhim they wanted to invest in the U.S. instead of being charged a transit fee.

It was not immediately clear what Gulf states ​had agreed to, if anything, and he did not mention any specific investment commitments.

Police sergeant charged for assaulting female special constable Mechanic wanted by police

OrlanzoWebster, a 42-year-old police sergeant of 'B' Field, Sophia, Greater Georgetown, was charged withAssaultCausingActualBodilyHarm,contraryto Section 49 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Chapter8:01.Accordingtoarelease,thechargealleges that he assaulted a 40-year-old female special th constableofthesaidaddressonSaturday,8 October, 2025.

th Webster appeared on Wednesday,14 July, 2026, before Magistrate Abigail Gibbs at the Sparendaam Magistrate'sCourt,wherethechargewasreadtohim. Hepleadednotguiltyandbailwasgrantedinthesum th of $150,000. The matter was adjourned to 14 September,2026.

Meanwhile, police are investigating a minor th accident which occurred on Monday 13 July, 2026, about 08:50hrs, at the intersection of Conversation Tree Road and Railway Embankment, Blygezight, Georgetown,involvingmotorjeep#PAD3891,driven bya58-year-oldmemberoftheGuyanaFireServiceof Hand-en-Veldt, Mahaica, East Coast Demerara and motor cars #PAG 3236, #PGG 9135, #PAN 4053 and #PAB2512.

The release said a preliminary investigation revealed that the motor jeep was proceeding south

along Conversation Tree Public Road when, upon approachingtheintersectionwherethetrafficlightwas reportedly signalling red in its direction, it allegedly overtook two stationary vehicles and proceeded into theintersection,whereitcollidedwithmotorcar#PAG 3236, which was proceeding west along Railway Embankment Road with the traffic light reportedly signallinggreeninitsdirection.

Asaresultofthecollision,thejeepreportedlylost control, while motor car #PAG 3236 continued forward and collided with motor cars #PGG 9135, #PAN4053and#PAB2512,whichwerestationaryon BlygezightPublicRoad.

Thedriverofmotorcar#PGG9135,a28-year-old male of Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara, sustained injuries about his body He was transported by ambulance to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, where he was seen and examined by a doctoronduty,whoadmittedhimwithafracturedright shoulder and lacerations to his face He was subsequentlytreatedanddischarged.

Breathalyser tests were conducted on all drivers, andallreadingswerebelowtheprescribedlimit.

CCTVcameras were observed in the area and the footageisbeingprocessedasinvestigationscontinue.

The Guyana Police Force (GPF) has officially issued a wanted bulletin for Satrohan Rajkumar, commonly known as "Depo," in connection with the murderofRicardoFagundes.

According to official police disclosures,thefatalshootingtook st placeon21 March,2021,outside a popular establishment on Main Street, Georgetown. The victim, Ricardo Fagundes, known by the alias "Paper Shorts", was riddled with bullets in what investigators havetreatedasatargetedhit.

The publication of Rajkumar's wanted bulletin marks yet another person being questioned by the GuyanaPoliceForcethisweek.To date, three other suspects have beenapprehended,questionedand subsequently released on $1 million bail by police regarding their potential roles in the Main Streetexecution.

Communications Unit has urged

regarding the whereabouts of Satrohan Rajkumar to contact the police immediately Anyone with validinformationcanreachoutvia 911, 227-1611, 268-2328, 2682329, 226-3411, 225-8196, 2271159, or report directly to the nearestpolicestation.

Wantedmechanic: Satrohan Rajkumar

Barbados Sets the Early Pace in Rising Stars Under-19 Championship

ST. JOHN'S, Antigua –

Defending champions Barbados have made a commandingstarttothe2026 Cricket West Indies Rising Stars Under-19 50-Over Championship, emerging as theearlypacesettersaftertwo roundsofcompetition.

Back-to-back victories over the Windward Islands and Leeward Islands have propelledBarbadostothetop of the standings on 14.2 points, with their impressive performances earning not only the maximum four points for each victory but alsovaluablebonuspoints.

ClosebehindareTrinidad and Tobago on 11.6 points, having also maintained a perfect record through wins over Guyana and the WindwardIslands.

The Leeward Islands occupy third position, followed by Jamaica, with both teams claiming one victory from their opening twofixtures.

The Windward Islands and Guyana complete the standings in fifth and sixth respectively,withbothteams still searching for their first winofthetournament.

Barbados' impressive start has been inspired by captainandopeningbatsman Gadson Bowens, whose outstandingformwiththebat has made him the competition's standout performerthusfar Following his first-round knock of 62, Bowens produced a breathtaking 209 from just 122 deliveries in the secondround clash against the

Leeward Islands, powering his side to a formidable 439 for8.

Second in run aggregate with 137 is Leeward Islands' TanezFrancis,whorecorded half-centuriesinbothrounds including 82 from 98 balls againstJamaica.

The wicketkeeper and opening batsman was a member of the West Indies squad that took part in the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe and Namibia earlierthisyear

Left-arm fast bowler

Daniel Holder of Trinidad and Tobago, along with medium-pace all-rounders

JahidiHindsofBarbadosand Matthew Miller of the Leeward Islands have emerged as the leading wicket-takers, each claiming

Wednesday July 15, 2026

ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19

Because your tendency recently has been to brood overeverything,Aries,aday likethiscan'tbeanythingbut beneficial.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20)

Therearedayswhenyoufeel wonderfulwithoutbeingable toattributethefeelingtoany real event. Of course, your rational mind will search for areasonforthehappiness.

GEMINI(May21–June20)

The day ahead should be excellent You've been searching for meaning behind recent events No doubttherehavebeenalotof changes both at work and at home.

CANCER(June21–July22)

You'll probably be perfectly in tune with the day ahead, Cancer Of course, there are dayswhenit'stemptingtorun away from the reality of the momentanditshardships.

LEO(July23–Aug.22)

Don't even try to understand what'shappeningtoday,Leo, because you won't be able to fathomit.Collectivecurrents ofconcernareimposingupon your life and you're powerlesstostopthem.

VIRGO(Aug.23–Sept.22)

This kind of strange day doesn't occur often, Virgo. You no longer seem to know whatyouwant.Workortime off? Redecorate your house orliveinabeachshack?

sixwicketsaftertworounds. Holder currently tops the bowling averages among the trio, with an impressive averageof12.3.

Thetwoall-roundersalso got amongst the runs, with Hindsrecordinganunbeaten 53 in the second round, and Miller, who also represented theWestIndiesattheUnder19 World Cup, delivering a captain's knock of 72 in the Leeward Islands' first-round victoryoverJamaica.

The championship's points system continues to rewardpositiveandattacking cricket.Inadditiontothefour points awarded for a victory, teams can accumulate bonus points for posting totals above 240, dismissing the opposition, and taking wickets through pace

bowlers and wrist spinners, factors that have already begun to shape the early standings.

With three rounds still to play, the race for the 2026 Rising Stars Under-19 title remains wide open as teams looktobuildmomentumand strengthen their position in the battle for championship honours.

Start time for the remaining rounds of the tournament will be 10:00 a.m.EasternCaribbeanTime withmatchesbeingstreamed live on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel and live scoring, match reports and daily updates available on www.windiescricket.com.

POINTSSTANDINGS

Guyana–1.8

ROUND3–

WEDNESDAY,JULY15

BarbadosvsGuyana–CoolidgeCricketGround

TrinidadandTobagovs Jamaica–LibertaSports Club

WindwardIslandsvs LeewardIslands–Bethesda PlayingField

ROUND4–SATURDAY, JULY18

LeewardIslandsvsGuyana –LibertaSportsClub

TrinidadandTobagovs Barbados–Piggots

WindwardIslandsvs Jamaica–BethesdaPlaying Field

LIBRA(Sept.23–Oct.22)

Do countries abroad represent real opportunities for you, Libra? This is a question that you'll soon have to answer The grass may be greenerontheothersideofthe world,buthaveyouconsidered thepossibilitythatitisn't?

SCORPIO(Oct.23–Nov.21)

Today won't be like most other days, Scorpio. Look around and you'll see that peopleeitherhavetheirheads in the clouds, are depressed, or seem to be trying to keep upagoodfront.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21)

If you were offered the opportunity to take a trip around the world, where you wouldseewonderfulpalaces and experience a timeless loveaffair,wouldyoutakeit?

CAPRI(Dec.22–Jan.19)

Todaymightbeabitdifficult, Capricorn,becauseyouaren't likely to be as productive as usual. You won't have much to say, and you'll feel sleepy andsomewhatgrumpy

AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18)

You certainly are in a strange mood today, Aquarius True, thingshavebeengoingsmoothly for the past few days, but be carefulnottofoolyourself

PISCES(Feb.19–Mar.20)

Itwillbeasthoughyou'reina new, hopeful world today, Pisces Thepeopleyoumeetwill be cordial and caring, and the futurewillseemlikeabright.

ROUND5–MONDAY, JULY20

WindwardIslandsvs Guyana–Piggots

TrinidadandTobagovs LeewardIslands–Liberta

SportsClub

JamaicavsBarbados–BethesdaPlayingField

FINAL&PLACEMENT

ROUND–WEDNESDAY, JULY22

1vs2–LibertaSportsClub

3vs4–BethesdaPlaying Field

5vs6–Piggots

Guyana names...

Frompage25

represent a healthy blend of the country's best available local talent and experienced diaspora players, a combination he believes gives Guyana the best opportunity to compete at a highlevel.

Singh also acknowledged the continued support of the GuyanaOlympicAssociation (GOA), noting that many of the Federation's initiatives aimed at exposing Guyanese players to international 3x3 competition would not have been possible without the GOA'sbacking.

According to Singhe, the partnershipwiththeGOAhas played a pivotal role in the continued growth of the discipline and the opportunities now available to the country's basketball players on the international stage.

Guyana shines at Carifta Chess Tournament 2026 T

in U-18 and U-16 categories

Guyana had an excellent showing at the recently concluded CARIFTA Chess Championship 2026 last Saturday, July 11th, in the Under-18 and Under-16 CategoriesinaHybridformat at the Olympic House in Liliendaal The Guyanese playersfacedtheiropponents from sister Caribbean and CARIFTA nations entirely online.

Candidate Master Sachin

Pitamber's brilliant performance in his Under-16 Open Category earned him the top score of 7.5 in the nine-round tournament, but hefinishedsecondduetothe tie-breaker Sixteen-year-old Kyle Couchman, playing in theUnder-18OpenCategory, showcased his tactical brilliance, finishing third with 6 points. Fifteen-yearold Woman Candidate Master Aditi Joshi secured third place in the Under-16 Girls division with 6 points. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Ciel Clementmatchedherpodium

finish, claiming third in the Under-18Girlscategorywith 4points.

Pitamber's impressive run included seven victories, a single draw against James LeviofTrinidadandTobago, and a lone defeat to Suriname's Thie-yen Fung.

Once again, the young 2026 National Chess Champion has proven his mettle and solidifiedhisplaceatthetop ofthegame.

Scenes from Guyana's Participation in the Hybrid CARIFTA CHESS Tournament at the Olympic House July 12 2026.

CMSachinPitamber, Kyle Couchman

These top performers from Queen's College have put Guyana on the regional stageinthechessworld,and theGuyanaChessFederation (GCF)couldn'tbeprouderof them. The competition was held among players from fifteen CARIFTA Nations, usingthehybridformat,with the junior categories playing on July 11th and the Women andOpenCategoriesonJuly 12th.

Inthehighlycompetitive Open Category, CM Taffin K h a n c l a i m e d a commendable 17th-place finish Khan put on an impressive display of chess, racking up 6 points across nine gruelling rounds. He remained exceptionally difficulttodefeat,securing4 wins and 4 draws, with his solitary loss coming against his Surinamese counterpart, PratulPanchoe.

FM Anthony Drayton also delivered a solid performance, concluding the event with 5 points. Drayton started the tournament dominantly, sweeping his firstfourconsecutiverounds. Whilehefacedachallenging patch during the middle intervals, he stabilized his run to close out the final round with a hard-fought draw

Meanwhile, Keron Sandiford, another of Guyana's seasoned players, finished with 4 5 points Sandiford experienced a roller-coaster tournament of mixedresultsacrossthenine rounds,ultimatelyanchoring hisscorewith4victoriesand a crucial draw in the eighth round.

In the women's category, WCM Jessica Callender and WCM Sasha Shariff faced stiff competition, showing great endurance across nine demanding rounds WCM Callenderultimatelyfinished in 15th place with 5 points, while WCM Shariff secured 28thplacewith4points.

In the Junior category, played on Saturday, July 11th, 2026, several young Guyanese players competed across the U18, U16, U14,

U12,U10andU8categories. Nicholas Zhang ended with 5.5 points; Alexander Zhang -5 points, Parnita Kishun-4points,EmmaJohn 3 5, rounding out the Guyanese lineup in the Under-16 Open and Girls Categories. The Under-14 Category showcased incredible depth from the young Guyanese players. Leading the pack, U14 Open Chess Champion Abel Fernandez Ciria delivered an exceptional performance to finish as the highest-ranked Guyanese player, securing 6th position with6pointsinthecategory Meanwhile, Alex Ubaldo Singh claimed 11th place by scoring 6 points out of the 9 rounds. The battle in the middle of the standings was incredibly tight. Aquailani Swaminadha fought hard to secure 5 points Fellow teammate U14 and U16 Girls' Chess Champion, Kataleya Sam, matched that score with 5 points of her own.Roundingoutthestellar effort for Guyana, Sana Sreebalakumar concluded her tournament run with 3.5

points, while Rebha Lachhman finished with a hard-earned3points.

Leading the U12 category charge for Guyana was U12 Open Champion Aiden Tinnie, who delivered a strong performance to finish with 5.5 points, while U12 Girls Champion Divya Persaudsecured5points.The rest of the U12 contingent also put up a solid fight to roundoutthestandings,with Vir Narine finishing with 5 points, while Saura Ruplall andArianTinniefoughthard

in a crowded field, finishing with hard-fought 3.5 points each.

Action in the younger bracket saw Mark DeFreitas leading the way for Guyana in the U10 category with 5 points, while Malia Thompson secured 4 5 points.RoundingouttheU10 category was Isabella Shariff, who concluded the tournament run with 3 5 points, while Avery Munroe finished with 3 points to cap offtheteam'seffort. Bringing a fantastic tournament to a close, the youngest bracket showcased incrediblepromise.IntheU8 category, Pranav Suman fought hard to finish with 4 points, beautifully rounding out the stellar efforts of the Guyanese contingent at the CARIFTA 2026 Chess Tournament.

Each category featured a single, co-ed tournament involving almost 450 participants, with results separated by gender Competing nations included Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, the Cayman Islands, C

ca, Grenada, Guyana, the US Virgin Islands, Jamaica, St. Lucia,St.KittsandNevis,St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.

The Guyana Chess Federation (GCF) is incredibly proud of the players' growth and overall performance. While further training is needed to help some juniors reach their full potential, the GCF highly commends the dedication and resilience shown by all participants The GCF extends its sincere gratitude toFIDEArbiterJohnLeefor his dedicated efforts in monitoring the Guyanese delegation throughout the tournament.

Additionally, the Federationwishestoexpress its immense appreciation to the Guyana Olympic Association for generously providing the venue and facilities to support our nationalplayers.

Guyana close in on another successful CASA Junior title

Freshoffanoutstandingshowingin the Doubles competition, Team Guyana strengthened its grip on the 2026 Caribbean Area Squash Association (CASA) Junior Championship on Tuesday, producing another commanding display in the Team's Event as they edged closer to successfully defending its regional crown.

The Guyanese entered the team competition riding the momentum of Monday's doubles success, where Kaylee Lowe and Emily Fung-A-Fat capturedtheGirls'Doublestitle,while ShilohAsregadoandEganBulkanalso securedgoldintheBoys'Doubles.The team also added a Mixed Doubles bronzemedaltoitsgrowingcollection, after a seven-medal haul during the Singlesphase.

Withthechampionshipenteringits decisive stages, Guyana sit comfortably atop the standings, holding an 18-point advantage over nearest rivals Barbados in the race for theoveralljuniortitle.

continued to pile on valuable points during the fifth day of competition, with the girls producing four victories while the boys contributed three wins tokeepGuyanaincontention.

Theboysenjoyedmixedfortunesin their opening fixtures, claiming three wins from six matches. Ethan Bulkan spearheadedthechargewitharuthless straight-games victory over Barbados' EthanCyrus,cruisingtoan11-6,11-0, 11-1triumph.

Shiloh Asregado and Joshua Verwey also delivered important victories, defeating Caden Collymore and Jai Shepherd respectively in separate best-of-three encounters to roll ahead. However, Zion Hickerson, Jude Gobin and Justin Ten Pow were unabletoaddtothetallyaftersuffering defeatsintheirrespectivematches.

The girls, meanwhile, were virtually unstoppable, overpowering theBritishVirginIslands4-1tosecure another crucial team victory and book theirplaceinthechampionshippool.

AlexisArjoon once again led from the front, continuing her impressive tournament with a clinical 11-4, 11-4, 11-1 victory over Leela Mellor Displaying sharp movement, excellent court awareness and precise shotmaking,Arjoonsetthetoneforanother dominantGuyaneseperformance.

Zoey McDonald was equally convincing,overwhelmingTaliaEvans in straight games, 11-1, 11-3, 11-3, to handGuyanaitssecondpoint.

Tehani Munroe then produced one of the day's most emphatic performances, dismantling Ivy Rose Butler 11-2, 11-1, 11-0 in a one-sided contest.

RyleeRodriguesandMaliaMaikoo completed Guyana's day five performance, both being awarded victories by default, as the defending champions continued their relentless march towards retaining the CASA JuniorChampionshiptitle.

More action was billed for later in the day (Tuesday) as the Boys' Team tookontheJamaicans.

Superb Spain beat France to reach World Cup Final

BBC Sport - Spain are through to the World Cup final after surprising favourites France with a convincingsemi-finalvictory atDallasStadium.

Luis de la Fuente's side blunted a France team brimming with attacking talent, controlled a game of few chances and will deservedly take their place in Sunday'sshowpiecethanksto goals from Mikel Oyarzabal andPedroPorro.

Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the penalty spot midway through the first half afteralapsefromFranceleftback Lucas Digne resulted in him giving forward Lamine Yamal an unceremonious wallopashetriedtoclearthe ball.

The spot-kick was confidently thumped into the cornerbyOyarzabalandwith a lead to defend, Spain's control of the match only grew

After a below-par firsthalf,Francewereexpectedto come out fighting but it was an increasingly confident

Spain's Mikel Oyarzabal scores their first goal from the penalty spot.

(REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach

Spain who seized the upper hand once more as Porro played a lovely one-two with Dani Olmo before slotting in thesecondatthenearpost. Withalittlemorethanhalf an hour to save themselves, Francewereagainthwartedin their attempts to break down an incredibly disciplined Spain outfit, who have conceded just once all tournament.

Spain remained calm, composed and full of class to the end and, ultimately, saw thegameoutcomfortably ForFrance,theirhopesof making a third final in successionareoverastheygo into Saturday's third-place play-off,whichwillrepresent theendofanera-withcoach Didier Deschamps departing at the end of the tournament after14yearsatthehelm.

Meanwhile, Spain will now travel to New Jersey, where they will await the winners of Wednesday's second semi-final between England and Argentina, as theybidtowintheWorldCup forjustthesecondtime.

Samuels half-century powers Patentia Sec' to Samaroo Investment Tapeball title

Acaptain's innings fromVal Samuels guided Patentia

anchoredtheinnings.

commandingassault.

d

Secondary to the Samaroo I

Secondary Schools Tapeball

Crickettitleafterathrillingfivewicket victory over Bishop's High School at the National Cultural Centre tarmac on Saturday

Chasing a challenging 102 for victory, Samuels produced a composed yet destructive unbeaten 67 to steer Patentia to 104-5 and secure the 2026

Bragging Rights Tapeball trophy Earlier, Bishop's High laid downacompetitivetotalof1013 after electing to bat first. Andrew Narine led the scoring with a fluent 44, while Aiyan Persaud added 28 during a productive partnership that

Jadon Birch was the pick of the Patentia bowlers, finishing with figures of 2-29 to keep the targetwithinreach.

Patentia's reply was built around the brilliance of skipper Samuels, who weathered the early stages before shifting through the gears in spectacular fashion. After a cautious start, the left-hander unleashed a series of powerful strokes, dismantling the Bishops' bowling attack with a matchwinning half-century that ultimatelycarriedhissideacross the finish line with five wickets tospare.

Andrew Narine returned to claim 2-28 for Bishop's High, whileAditya Persaud supported with 2-41, but the duo were unable to halt Samuels'

For his match-winning performance, Samuels was also named the tournament's Most ValuablePlayer

Attention now shifts to the next Uprising Promotions tournament, scheduled for Sunday, July 19, at the National Park tarmac from midday Sponsored by the DC Metro Cricket Organization of the United States, the competition will feature three leading teams battling in a round-robin format for trophies, medals and other prizes. Theeventisbeingorganised by Uprising Promotions, formerlytheGeorgetownOffice

Committee (GOAPC), and will be coordinated by James "Uprising"Lewis.

Guyana Boys team battle to 3-3 tied with the Barbados Boys' team.

Patentia Secondary lifting the Samaroo Investment Tapeball Cricket trophy, after defeating The Bishops High School by five wickets.

Curtains close on successful National Youth 18 Metres Championships 2026 as Guyana's young archers shine

Archery Guyana

successfully concluded its National Youth 18 Metres Championships 2026 on Sunday12thJuly,2026atthe Guyana Police Force Sports Club Ground, Eve Leary, bringing the curtains down on an exciting weekend of competition that showcased the country's emerging generationofarchers.

Following Saturday's qualification rounds, the championship culminated yesterday with the highly anticipated elimination and medal matches, where 31 young athletes representing school and private clubs demonstrated exceptional s

and sportsmanship.President of Archery Guyana, Mrs VidushiPersaud-McKinnon, delivered the closing remarks during the medal presentation ceremony, congratulating every athlete for their dedication and courage while encouraging themtocontinuestrivingfor excellence both on and off theshootingline.

In her remarks, Mrs.

Persaud-McKinnon commended not only the medallists but every participant,emphasisingthat every competition provides an opportunity to learn, improve,andgrow Shealso

expressed sincere appreciation to the various

affiliated clubs, coaches, p

technicalofficials,sponsors,

unwavering commitment continues to strengthen the development of youth archerythroughoutGuyana.

ChampionshipResults Recurve Under 15

Men/WomenCombined

Gold–BrandonCummings

Silver–FatimaGani

Bronze–AalimKahn

BarebowUnder15Women

Gold–NeepaChaturgum

Silver–VictoriaKum

Bronze–KaiaSingh

BarebowUnder18Men

Gold–SamuelGeorge Silver – Ch

Cooblall

Bronze–FiaazKarim

Archery Guyana extends heartfelt congratulations to all medal winners and every athlete who competed over the two-day championship. Their performances reflect the continued growth of the

sport and the increasing standard of youth archery in Guyana.

Seephotoofallmedallists:

The Federation once again records its sincere

Commissioner of Police Dr Clifton Hicken and Mr Colin Boyce, Sports Development Officer of the Guyana Police Force and R

facilitating the use of the Guyana Police Force Sports Club Ground Gratitude is also extended to Guyana BeveragesInc.forproviding Oasis Water and Altitude beverages throughout the championships, ensuring a

, volunteers, and spectators remainedhydrated.

Archery Guyana also acknowledgestheinvaluable support of the Ministry of Culture,YouthandSport,the N a

Culture,YouthandSport,for taking time to attend Saturday's competition, engaging with the young athletes and offering words of encouragement that inspired participants to pursue excellence through dedication, perseverance, andresilience.

Thechampionshipswere successfully delivered by an experienced team of technicalofficials:

Director of Shooting: Mr AfzalKarim

Commission, and Director of Sport Mr Steve Ninvalle f

d commitmenttoyouthsport.

The Federation further thanks Honourable Minister Steven Jacobs, Minister within the Ministry of

Chairman of Judges: Mr RyanMcKinnon

Judges:Mr FaraadGaniand Mrs Vidushi PersaudMcKinnon

ResultsManager:Mr Saeed Karim

Results Verifier: Ms

AnopaRamdial Results for the championships remain available through the internationally recognised IANSEO live scoring system. As the curtains fall on another successful N a t i o n a l Y o u t h Championship, Archery Guyana remains committed to creating opportunities for young people across the country to participate, develop, and excel in the sport. The Federation looks forward to building on the momentum generated over the weekend as it continues to expand grassroots programmes and prepare athletes for future national, regional, and international competition.

Malouda headlines international veterans clash at Providence tonight

Former Chelsea and France star Florent Maloudawillbethecenterofattentionwhen theFrenchGuianaVeteranstakeontheGFF President's XI in a special international veteran's football match this evening at the NationalTrainingCentre,Providence.

Kick-offisscheduledfor6:30p.m.,with football fans expected to turn out in large numbersforarareopportunitytowitnessone of France's most decorated players in action onlocalsoil.

The exhibition fixture is expected to be morethanjustafootballmatch,servingasa celebration of the sport's enduring appeal while strengthening the longstanding sporting ties between Guyana and neighbouringFrenchGuiana.Theencounter willfeatureseveralveteranplayersfrom both territories, with the Guyana Football Federat President's XI aiming to provideafittingchallenge for their experienced visitors.

Malouda, who enjoyed a glittering professional career spanning nearly two decades, remains one of the biggest names to grace Caribbean football in recent years.Theformerwingerearned 80 caps for France, scoring nine international goals, and represented Les Bleus at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, where Francefinishedrunners-up,aswellasUEFA Euro2008andEuro2012.

place among the club's notable modern-day players.

GFF President, Wayne Forde to host French Guiana Veteran team in exhibition friendly.

His visit is expected to inspire local footballers while giving supporters a chance to watch a player who competed alongside some of biggest names in world football.

At club level, Malouda was a key figure during Chelsea's successful era, making more than 140 appearances for the London club. During his six seasons at Stamford Bridge, he captured the UEFA Champions League title (2012), the Premier League crown(2010),fourFACups,theLeagueCup, andtheFACommunityShield,cementinghis

The celebrations will continue beyond Georgetown, with Malouda scheduled to travel to Linden on Friday, July 17, where football enthusiasts will have another opportunity to meet the former French international.

With a legendary name on display and regional pride on the rise, tonight's veterans clash promises to deliver an entertaining spectacle as the GFF President's XI and the French Guiana Veterans renew footballing friendshipsunderthelightsatProvidence.

The outstanding performers take a photo after the competition.

Live appearance! Former Chelsea and French star, Florent Malouda to take the field today against a GFF Vets side.

Guyana names 3x3 squads for Commonwealth Games and CAC Games campaigns

The Guyana Basketball Federation (GBF) has announced its men's and women's 3x3 basketball teams for two major internationalassignmentslaterthis month, with the country set to compete at the Commonwealth GamesinScotlandandtheCentral American and Caribbean (CAC) GamesintheDominicanRepublic.

The Commonwealth Games will be held in Glasgow from July 23 to August 2, while the CAC GamesarescheduledforJuly24to August8inSantoDomingo.

The announcements mark another significant milestone for Guyana's expanding 3x3 programme, with the men's team preparing to make history by competing in the discipline at both theCommonwealthGamesandthe CACGamesforthefirsttime.

Meanwhile, the women's team returns to the CAC Games after makingitsdebutatthe2023edition in El Salvador and will be aiming forastrongerperformancethistime around.

FortheCommonwealthGames, Guyana's men's squad comprises Anish Ramlall, Travis Belgrave, Christian Hinckson and Kevin Mickle.

The team will be coached by Kidani Brutus, who plays

professionally for world-ranked 3x3powerhouseTeamHarlemand hasrepresentedtheUnitedStatesin international3x3competition.

GBF Vice President Rawle Toneywillserveasthecontingent's TechnicalDelegate.

Following his participation at the Commonwealth Games, Hinckson will travel directly to Santo Domingo to join Guyana's men'steamfortheCACGames.

There, he will link up with TravisBurnett,NikkoloiSmithand AkilHughesasGuyanaembarkson anotherhistoriccampaign.

The women's team selected for the CAC Games features Anaya Clemons, DeAngelique Waithe, JamaicyOgleandRuthAdams.

Willon Cameron has been appointed head coach of both the men's and women's CAC teams, whileGBFVicePresidentJermaine Slater will serve as Technical Delegate.

GBF President Michael Singh described the selections as another reward for the Federation's sustainedinvestmentindeveloping 3x3basketball.

He noted that Guyana's qualification for two prestigious multi-sport events reflects years of planning and commitment by the Federation to grow the discipline

alongside the traditional five-onfivegame.

Singh also highlighted an exceptionally busy year for the national basketball programme, citingthemen'sparticipationinthe FIBA AmeriCup Caribbean PreQualifiers and the women's campaign in the FIBA CentroBasket Qualifiers as evidence of the Federation's balanced approach to developing bothformatsofthesport. Heexpressedconfidenceinthe squads selected, saying they (Continuedonpage21)

Akil Hughes

Christian Hinckson

Guyana close in on another successful CASA Junior title

Guyana Girls Team sharing the court with the BVI Girls, following their day five matchup.

Superb Spain beat France to reach World Cup Final

Guyana names 3x3 squads for Commonwealth Games and CAC

Spain's Pedro Porro celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates. (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Maria Lysaker) L