Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

KAIETEUR NEWS Printed and Published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd. 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, Guyana. Publisher: GLENN LALL Editor: ADAM HARRIS Tel: 225-8465, 225-8491 Fax: 225-8473, 226-8210

EDITORIAL

That proposed tariff on steel

I

n advancing the neo-liberal economic theory, the term “free market” was coined to justify the eco nomic behaviour of countries in the modern era. Even though there are limits to free market, it is basically the economics of supply and demand which is driven by the individual hand and thrives on the basis of mutual interest that leads to the economic well-being of people and countries. The concept of the free market theory evolved from the writings of the 18th century Scottish economist and philosopher, Adam Smith. However, Smith was not advocating that in economic matters, people should be free to do as they please no matter what. Certainly, Smith’s concept of “free market” was expanded by greedy and selfish leaders to advance their country’s economic security and interests. Smith argued that it is for selfish reasons that leaders try to promote their country’s economy in order to gain the upper hand over their counterparts. In his book, The Wealth of Nations he asserted that free markets do not mean that nations should open up their markets to all and sundry in order to be taken advantage of by selfish and greedy leaders. It means that a handful of greedy leaders/countries should not be allowed to freely destroy others. This in essence supports President Trump’s decision to impose a tariff of 25 percent and 10 percent respectively on imported steel and aluminium. The goal is to bolster US steel and metal industries which have been crippled by lower prices of imported steel from China, Canada and the European Union (EU). President Trump stated that it is time for Americans to shed their self-imposed impotence on unfair trade practices that have strangled the economy and made the lives of steel workers in the United States miserable. As he puts it, “Our steel and aluminum industries have been decimated by decades of unfair trade and bad trade policies with countries from around the world. We must not let our country, companies and workers be taken advantage of any longer. We want free, fair and smart trade.” Following President Trump’s announcement to impose tariffs on imported steel and aluminium, all three major US stock indexes tumbled with the Dow Jones industrial average falling more than 500 points or 2% at one point. Meanwhile, US Steel’s stocks soared by over five percent, while Trump’s decision is in keeping with his campaign promises, it is viewed by economists as a step toward protectionist trade policies which could lead to higher prices and affect US consumers. The tariffs would most likely trigger retaliation from other countries. As reported, China is already looking into restricting US exports of sorghum and soybeans, which are important crops for tens of thousands of American farmers. And the EU is in serious discussions with its member countries about imposing tariffs on US agricultural products such as cheese, bourbon and other foodstuff. In a worst-case scenario, a trade war could emerge with the implementation of more protectionist trade policies by China and the EU in response to the decision by the Trump administration. Many in the US are worried that the imposition of tariffs on imported steel and aluminium could lead to a substantial increase in the price of goods that use those products and cause inflationary pressures on the US economy. The Trump administration has been warned that an aluminum tariff could increase the cost of cans, which in turn could lead to higher prices for beers and other canned products. While the price increases could be limited to a few sectors or goods, the possibility of retaliatory measures by other countries could pose a greater threat to the US economy.

Tuesday March 06,2018

GuySuCo - Beginning of the End DEAR EDITOR, It has been reported in the news media that after three years of mismanagement and continuous heavy operating losses, the Government has transferred control of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), Guyana’s largest agricultural industry and employer, from the Ministry of Agriculture to the Ministry of Finance, where it will be managed by the National Industrial and Commercial Investment Limited (NICIL) and its Special Purposes Unit (SPU). NICIL/SPU has been mandated to ensure that GuySuCo returns to profitability, and it has wasted no time in accomplishing this assignment by firing GuySuCo’s long-time chairman, Professor Clive Thomas and its board of directors and replacing them with a new board with Mr. Heath-London as the

newly appointed Chairman. The track record of the newly appointed team suggests that they have little or no experience in formulating plans and executing policies to turn around an agricultural-based company in deep financial trouble and plagued with a host of diverse technical, management and agricultural problems. Nevertheless, it seems that the way forward for GuySuCo is still being determined, particularly with respect to the management of its three operating estates and privatization/leasing/ selling of the assets of the remaining four. Today’s prices show that sugar is being sold on the world market at less than US$0.14/lb while it is costing GuySuCo an estimated US$0.40/lb to produce . To eliminate this differ-

ential and return GuySuCo to profitability, the cane-fields will have to be converted for full-scale mechanization (which is not possible with the existing fields’ layout), improve cane varieties for higher yields of TC/TS, and modernization of the manufacturing process and farming equipment for higher production and efficiencies. The existing acreage under cultivation will have to be increased to reduce overhead costs. Two major constraints among others have prevented GuySuCo from implementing programs to return it to profitability - lack of timely capital investments to upgrade and diversify its run-down facilities and equipment, as well as its failure to train its personnel to acquire the knowledge and skills for diversified manufacturing.

This was clearly evident at the Skeldon estate where an ultra-modern factory was poorly operated and managed, while anticipated cane production increase never materialized to meet the factory’s designed processing capacity. There was also the halfhearted attempt at field mechanization and the failed diversification efforts at Wales after the Estate closed. A loan of $30B being sought by NICIL to upgrade the three operating estates (Albion, Blairmont, Uitvlugt) with the intent of returning them to profitability is a ‘pipe dream’, for reasons stated above herein. The SPU will be seeking a loan of about $15B to refurbish the four closed estates (Skeldon, Rose Hall, Enmore, Wales) to make them (Continued on page 5)

DEAR EDITOR, My attention was today drawn to the following opening gambit of an article headlined -”Auditor General gives GECOM more time to review fraud reports”. This appeared on page 62 of the Kaieteur News of Sunday February 25, 2018. Such beneficence is not his to bestow let alone unvarnished threats. And again: “Following the audits at GECOM, Sharma had recommended that the reports be turned over to the Police for criminal investigation”. Ditto. The Auditor General is presumed to be a man of integrity and does not suffer from any form of cognitive decline as far as I know. I therefore have to ask rhetorically of him,

“What are your motives, sir?” Policy of the Commission is decided by the Commissioners and the Chairman thereof. This independence is fiercely guarded by the author of this letter and any infiltration therein is abhorred. Previous articles appearing in past editions of the Kaieteur News have been brought to my attention. It seems that your medium was used to unleash unhinged ad hominem accusations against the Chief Election Officer, Mr. Keith Lowenfield particular under the cover of “professional inquiry”. The Auditor General’s antics, when unmasked, reveal a departure from the hallowed principle

of “explore, examine, explain where necessary” and he has delved perilously close to the realm of “excessive conduct” unbecoming of his calling and profession. His unsubtle attacks on the integrity of the Chief Election Officer break with the orthodoxy of impartiality which his profession imposes on its members. If the Auditor General has a mandate qua Auditor General to refer any matter within his domain to the Police for inquiry then, for heaven’s sake, just do so. Threats do not abide comfortably on the shoulder of this Chairman and the entity for which he has statutory responsibility. They avail nothing and are to be treated with disdain which I hereby do.

If the Auditor General has a personal issue with Mr. Keith Lowenfield as Accounting Officer then, certainly at least as a private citizen, he has a right also to make submissions to the proper authorities for the appropriate remedies. Nothing, Editor, betrays a more base and ungenerous spirit than the display of public and unwarranted stabs to a man’s reputation. The worthy Auditor General seems to have been eroticized by power, naked power, dare I say, and he should attend the proper place for the appropriate therapy. Yours sincerely, Justice (Ret’d) James Patterson Chairman Guyana Elections Commission

DEAR EDITOR, Please allow me space in your newspaper to respond to an article published in the Guyana Chronicle on 03/03/ 2018 and captioned “The Politics at City Hall has become rotten” which was penned by a Mr. Peter Padmore as his response to a letter which I had sent to all of the local newspapers. It is quite clear that Mr. Peter Padmore’s (if that is his real name) intention is to excuse his friends at City Hall from the numerous allegations of corruption and mismanagement, and to deflect from those issues by surreptitiously injecting his well-rehearsed but erroneous counter arguments of wrongdoing by the previous government. He should be reminded that current accusations of corruption and mis-

management at City Hall are also being raised and documented by members of his own party and coalition members, including the late Councilor Garrett, and also from citizens across the political spectrum. I should inform Mr. Padmore that two Councilors who are members of the coalition have filed a Motion of NoConfidence against the Town Clerk based on numerous questionable actions by the Council’s administration. I will declare here that I support that measure and also to state that I have been calling for a comprehensive forensic audit of the Council for a very long time. It is my moral authority to question what is taking place at City Hall based on the fact that I am a concerned citizen who lives in Georgetown.

Based on the fact, that I was not involved nor remotely near any of the unproven (in a court of law) accusations of corruption, which Peter Padmore has carelessly levelled against the previous administration. I am also an elected Councillor of the City of Georgetown, so it is my duty and responsibility to ensure that the affairs of the City Council are conducted in an efficient, accountable and transparent manner and that core services are being performed. It is appalling that this writer could express such disregard for the welfare of the citizens of Georgetown by his deliberate attempt to find a scapegoat in the form of the previous PPP/C administration and his condescending attempts to find excuses for the mismanagement of

Georgetown. All well-meaning citizens should speak out against the current situation at City Hall, regardless of which political party they support, since these issues affect all citizens and stakeholders of Georgetown. I must say without reservation that I am against corruption by public officials. However, the government or authorities must not selectively pursue reports of corruption, but should pursue such reports even if it involves members of their own political party, in the name of good governance. We have heard of forensic audits authorized for many ministries and agencies for the period when the PPP/C was in government. But we have not heard of any Commissions of Inquiry or (Continued on page 6)

“What are your motives, sir?”

Our citizens and stakeholders deserve much better from City Council

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A fair media for a better country DEAR EDITOR, Referring to your editorial “Responding to restructuring of the sugar industry”, of March 04, 2018, it can be described as accurate in a somewhat brief illustration of the private media, per se, decidedly hostile attitude to the coalition government, that commenced just after taking office. The opinion piece was definitely conservative in content; much too charitable, as I suspect that the intention may have been not to ruffle feathers of sister outlets. But, there comes a time when a spade must be called a spade, with the truth being made clear. What we have been witnessing since 2015 is a well-orchestrated right wing attack on the David Granger administration, with an unmistakable racist agenda, which is questioning the right of an AfroGuyanese-led government. This is a strategy that comprises some representative elements of civil society, and the business and com-

mercial sectors, among others. And they are led by the PPP/C opposition, whose leaders are being allowed by the private media to sanitise themselves after an abysmal two decades in government, during which Guyana became a criminal state with every conceivable venality being committed against the people of this nation. While I do agree that the media is an open window for discussion, it has the moral obligation to give proper shape, guidance, intellectual content and objectivity to such debates, without becoming bandwagoners and opportunists. Above all, in such an ethnically polarized society, its role has to be careful mediators; “honest brokers” as you pointed out in Sunday’s opinion, and being able to diffuse tension, rather than assisting such a dark agenda to continue its odious spread. In any other jurisdiction, there would have been outright media condemnation of the disrespectful con-

duct given to the President during his address to our National Parliament. Instead, what was offered were veiled excuses that in effect supported the PPP/C mob. It was another abysmal example of some media houses aiding and abetting what has been the most blatant example of parliamentary disrespect, thus far in this country’s modern political history. There was even a declaration of economic war against the government and state, when a collective deliberately began the hoarding of foreign currency. The aim no doubt, was to destabilize the economy, creating an artificial crisis. Instead, the media houses began blaming the government, rather than call out the saboteurs. But the government ended their anti-state action. With the exception of one of the print dailies that realized what had been taking place, the others (Continued on page 6)

Backwardness is passing for public policy in Guyana today

DEAR EDITOR, I continually ask myself this question; why is Guyana still so poor in spite of it having so many resources? Why are we not seeing progress under this Granger regime? After all, President David Granger was the one who promised the nation the good life. But after three hard years, he is the lead proponent of the backwardness that passes for public policy in Guyana today. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight with a sustainable solution. All this promise of oil money is more of the same carrot tied to the donkey’s head on a stick. Yes, there will be pennies on the pound coming Guyana’s way, but after the politicians apply their discounts, there

will be very little left for actual human development. The big challenge today is that the majority of our citizens have less disposable income than they had before Mr. Granger acceded to power. So they have little options to make the choice between saving and investing. You cannot save what you do not have and when you have to buy food. Rather it is an environment of survival of the fittest and this brings out the worst in our people. Just observe the current crime wave. On top of that, the politicians are not prepared to provide world-class public goods and services to the people, because they are so entrapped in the process of

their self-enrichment and selfaggrandizement. This statement reconciles towards understanding why Mr. Granger’s government has chosen to build a bridge across the Demerara River with 1990’s technology rather than modern technologies? Even the Chinese Ambassador had cause to add his voice to this low-class ‘dotishness’ being practiced by Team Granger. You see when President David Granger sold himself to the nation in 2015 as the better candidate this is what he said in his manifesto: “The APNU+AFC coalition is actually more than six parties. It has already become a national movement for transformation.” (Continued on page 6)

I too feel extremely uncomfortable with the Exxon oil contract DEAR EDITOR, I would like to add my voice to the growing chorus of Guyanese who feel extremely uncomfortable with the Exxon oil contract. I have to believe that Guyanese financial experts, Chris Ram, Nigel Hinds and others who are clamouring for this contract to be renegotiated, want the best deal for our country. Editor, Guyanese are not stupid and the politicians do not know it all. They are also not elected to dispose of the country’s resources to fill their pockets at the expense of the potential development of Guyana for all its people - for the present and future. This contract must be revisited and it must reflect the fact that we have learnt from the mistakes of those countries that found them-

selves in this position before us. There is great disappointment and confusion about what we are getting ourselves into. This feeling is in stark contrast to the expectation of well-paid nurses, teachers, police men and women and other public servants, with the ensuing benefits to the entire population.We look forward to our homeless, our mentally ill, and our senior citizens being well taken care of. Among us are citizens who need urgent specialized medical care who cannot afford it.Editor, with such a small population, every sector of our society should be able to see and feel a significant rise in our standard of living with pending oil revenue. Yours respectfully, Keith Fraser

GuySuCo - Beginning of...

From page 4 attractive for investors to buy lease as was recommended by NICIL’s consultant PwC, based on the premise that to obtain premium prices for the closed estates they should be presented to investors as going concerns, functional at both the field and factory levels. This is likely to be a ‘no go,’ as investors are aware of the Government’s dilemma and will be looking at the estates as ‘fire sales’ and then convert their acquired bounty of abandoned sugar lands into real estate development and other financially lucrative deals for quick profitable turnovers (as Houston/ Versailles Estates have done) and avoid venturing into sugar manufacturing with limited or no growth and questionable profitability. It is evident that the Govt.

has lost its way, groping in the dark with no clear coherent plan to return GuySuCo to profitability nor to bite the bullet and wind down the industry and find/create jobs for the laid-off workers. Guyana’s Treasury cannot continue to subsidize GuySuCo indefinitely at the expense of other urgently needed national programs. The adverse social and

economic effects of laid-off sugar workers will sooner or later spill over into the communities at large. The growing crime rate in Georgetown and other urban areas with high unemployment clearly indicates what could happen when large segments of the society are unemployed/unskilled and wandering around. Yours faithfully, Charles Sohan

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A fair media for a better ... Our citizens and stakeholders... From page 5 began an open chorus of chiding the government for not managing the economy well. In fact, most of the private media, supported the dishonest argument, completely ignoring the fact that the local economy had already been in decline since 2013. This was a fact made known by a former Georgetown Chamber and Commerce Industry (GCCI) chairperson in 2016.As to the GuySuCo industrial tragedy, the Stabroek News’ numerous pieces, inclusive of opinions, apart from being an enemy to truth, carried media dishonesty to new lows. It was shameful, and shocking for the lies of its own brand, and those from the opposition and sundry, that it fed its daily readership.

How could such dangerously misleading pages, designed to whip up ethnic fears, ever aid GuySuCo’s search for a solution? How does such dishonest reporting benefit the nation? The late publisher David de Caires must have turned in his grave! Undoubtedly, there is resentment against this government, by the political opposition, and other known forces, for its efforts in seeking to introduce a different type of governance that will be more transparent, and accountable to the people of this country; and where all Guyanese are counted, irrespective of race. We believe that given our not so distant past experience, when the former administration had been a law unto

itself, and where the rule of law had been continuously desecrated – that any media that upholds good governance and morality in the conduct of the State’s affairs, should support such high principles.In fact, the media has a welcomed role to play in any democratic society, particularly on the seminal subject of governance. However, it does not have the right to aid, abet, and foster discussions on government in terms of its leadership capability by ethnicity; encourage contents that are inherently dishonest, and which do not add to finding solutions.The nation has had enough of such a media that does not make for a better Guyana. Regards Earl Hamilton

Backwardness is passing ... From page 5 I particularly raise this declaration made by Mr. Granger, because it is important that the young people of Guyana understand how empty his rhetoric really is today. It is more than three years now, but Team Granger is still stuck on the record of blaming the PPP for their current failure. But in reality that song is not relevant anymore, the blame today lies squarely at Mr. Granger’s feet. The nation is failing in 2018 because of the incapable team he has around him and his own poor leadership. That is why I believe that today Mr. Granger’s transformation has been lost in transition. The style and nature of the Granger government today is one of narrow-minded political dominance that exhibits an attitude of ethnic and racial superiority.

To add to that defect, we can find all over this Granger regime, embedded orthodoxies that tell the youths that they must wait their turn until the septuagenarians and their political creatures complete their plunder of the Treasury. Married to such a mindset is the rigid inflexibility on how our resources are distributed (no money for severed Wales Estate sugar workers, but we have G$1.5 billion for a parade ground because the leader loves his pageantry). But the most distinguishing feature of this Granger regime is that it exhibits many attitudes of core incompetency and inexperience on many fronts. One just needs to reflect on how it has handled the many crises that have invaded the nation since May 2015. So when Mr. Granger says that “This Manifesto promises a bright future for all….” (see APNUAFC Manifesto) any

member of the public can quickly observe one of two things. One – a man who is out to sea on what it takes t o p r o v i d e t h at bright future….Or two, a man who is totally and absolutely devious and deceptive as he walks on a path that will end in the people being scammed out of their resources by a cabal of a few in Congress Place. That i s w h y w i t h “humble hearts and head bowed down” (quoted from a national song), we the children of Guyana must recommit to fighting all the trappings of this odious a p p a r a t u s b e ing constructed by President Granger. As Churchill once charged his nation “…. we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender”. To Mr. Granger’s grave disappointment, this fight is not going to be with guns, but with the willpower of the people as they slowly amalgamate to resist this current day oppression and social injustice just like our foreparents did during the Burnham days and won. We won then and we shall win again, because there is a famous Biblical saying, “all come from dust and to dust all shall return”. Regards Sasenarine Singh

From page 5 forensic audits ordered for the Durban Park project, the drug bond, the parking meter contract, the oil agreement with ExxonMobil, and the fact that even with overwhelming public outcry of allegations of corruption and mismanagement leveled against the Georgetown City Council, the government has not seen it fit to order a forensic audit or Commission of Inquiry into the operations of City Hall. Mr. Padmore should be aware that the Auditor General is required by law to audit the books of the City Council every year but has not been able to perform successful audits for many years due to missing records or improper record-keeping procedures in addition to the many cases of unauthorized spending discovered. Mr. Padmore should call on his friends to explain the Auditor General’s findings on the $300 million subvention given to the Council by government for the Jubilee cleanup in 2015, where there were 167 instances where payment vouchers were not authorized, 140 payment vouchers were not approved by the Treasurer, 58 payments were not approved by the Finance Committee with a combined total of $352 million, without proper records or authorizations. Then Peter Padmore should also be informed that the Auditor General had also reported that all of the related contracts, payment vouchers and other supporting documents for the $200 million government subvention given to the Council in 2016 for the Georgetown Restoration Program were not presented to the Auditor General. As a result of their continued financial and recordkeeping irregularities, the Auditor General announced in February 2018 that he will conduct a forensic audit relating to this $200 million subvention which is also the subject of investigation by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament. Many citizens want to know why City Hall is getting this special pass or exemption by the government where accountability is con-

cerned. Is it because the Council and central government are controlled by members of the same political coalition and that exposure of corruption or mismanagement is not desirable on their part? Shouldn’t the interest of the residents of Georgetown be paramount here Mr. Padmore? The ‘honourable man’ Mr. Padmore refers to happens to be the Chairman of the Council’s Finance Committee responsible for financial matters and Chairman of the Human Resource and Management Committee responsible for personnel. The Finance Committee is led by Councillor Oscar Clarke, who has been a Councillor for approximately eighteen years; and has been in the Finance Committee for a very long time. My contentions and concerns will always be about the offices that these individuals hold and their competence or satisfactory discharge of their responsibilities, and not of a personal nature. Does Mr. Padmore know that the Chairman and members of the Finance Committee are responsible for approving all payments of the Council and that they have authorized payments for work which were not tendered or approved by the full Council? The Finance Committee and its members have never produced a detailed financial statement on the payments that they have approved or any contract, which they have examined and agreed to, except for the parking meter contract, which Council was forced to release. Mr. Padmore is obviously confused about whose responsibility it is to keep Georgetown clean. It is the responsibility of the Mayor and Councilors of the City of Georgetown to take care of the maintenance of Council’s roads, drainage, garbage and sanitation, markets and other areas. It is indisputable that Georgetown became known as the garbage city because the City Council failed in their responsibility to keep the City clean. The Council has not repaired any roads for years and this was previously done by the PPP/C administration when they were in office, and is currently being done by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, which is also assisting in cleaning drains and canals. The PPP/C administration also poured hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance to the City Council over the years. The current government has also poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the Council to keep Georgetown clean. It should be to Mr. Peter Padmore’s advantage to learn

why the coalition government or the Minister of Communities did not release money directly to the City Council to pay the garbage contractors who were owed over $300 million in 2017. The government, through the Minister of Communities, negotiated directly with the garbage contractors and paid them without any money passing through the “hands” of the City Council officials. Why was that done? And why did the Minister of Communities decide to hire contractors directly and pay them to complete Phase One of the Kitty Market rehabilitation project instead of giving the money directly to Council? The Council wanted that subvention from the Ministry, but it was not given to them. It should be noted that Georgetown has been controlled since our country’s independence in 1966 by one group, and they continue to exercise control over the affairs of the City to this day. No one in the wildest stretch of his or her imagination (perhaps except for Mr. Padmore) could say that City Hall was efficiently managed for the longest time. From one crisis to another involving finances, records, workers’ salaries, garbage, drainage, failing to remit deductions from employee salaries to NIS, GRA and Credit Union, unauthorised issuing of leases, violation of tendering procedures, unauthorised fees among many other issues. It is disappointing that Peter Padmore cannot look at this situation objectively and recognise that there is a big problem at City Hall, which needs to be corrected for the benefit of our citizens and stakeholders. The citizens of Georgetown would like to have their City managed properly with trained people who are accountable for the monies entrusted to them and for drainage problems to be fixed; garbage removed; parapets weed and cleaned; roads repaired; markets repaired; better security; laws to be followed; all required services to be performed; proper accountability; transparency and last but not least good governance to be implemented at City Hall. I trust that Mr. Padmore and those individuals who share his sentiments will look beyond their political allegiances and work towards remedying the issues that plague the Council since our citizens and stakeholders deserve better. Yours faithfully, Bishram Kuppen – Councillors Mayor & Councillors of the City of Georgetown

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Parliament yet to act on Ombudsman report into Maurice Arjoon saga It’s been over three years since the matter was tabled in the National Assembly but the House is yet to debate the Ombudsman’s report into the matter involving former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of New Building Society, (NBS), Maurice Arjoon. Arjoon and two other managers were placed before the courts for allegedly defrauding the financial institution of $69 million. The charges against the men were subsequently dismissed for want of evidence. Arjoon then moved to file a lawsuit against the Institution for termination of service and payments due by NBS, including pension. Judge Brassington Reynolds ruled on Mr Arjoon’s case last July, but NBS appealed. The bank filed a stay in the court of appeal. In 2014, Arjoon filed a complaint with Ombudsman, Justice Winston Moore. The Ombudsman’s report concluded that police wrongly charged the former CEO and two of his managers for fraud. The Ombudsman forwarded his report to Parliament in November 2014. The matter was tabled in the National Assembly since June 2015 but the conclusion appears to be nowhere in sight; the parliamentary debates are yet to be placed on the agenda for debates. Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs had explained that the Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Barton Scotland, had expected to determine whether the issue is sub judice (under judicial consideration and therefore prohibited from public discussion elsewhere) since Arjoon ‘s case was yet to be determined by the court. However, those close to the matter are contending that the matter is not subjudice at all since the Ombudsman’s report does not deal with the civil matter, which is before the court but rather the wrongdoing by

Maurice Arjoon those in Public Office. Towards that end, the affected parties are seeking an investigation into the wrongdoings of public officials. The Ombudsman’s report cleared the three managers, and questioned how investigators recommended charges when there was clearly no evidence in the police file. Justice Moore noted in his findings that the standard required for conviction of a criminal offence is proof beyond a reasonable doubt for every element of the offence – the acts as well as the mental ingredients. “The missing exhibit indicates interference that was highly irregular. The fact that this document was removed from the Police file is not surprising.” “Without intending any disrespect to anyone, I would state that carelessness; most species of negligence, foolhardiness or even stupidity are not the standard of proof of guilt for a criminal offence. I do not hereby state any finding or conclusion that anyone at the NBS should be blamed for any of these.” Justice Moore had opined that he can only observe that persons who hold high political offices, and are burdened with

weighty affairs of state, who are only human after all, need to be very careful what they say in expressing frustration in the presence of subordinates. “Underlings sometimes improperly invoke the name or office of the powerful when they seek to oppress others. He noted that Dr. Ashni Singh, former Minister of Finance, failed to comment on the allegation by Mr. Arjoon that he deliberately suppressed the Bank of Guyana Report. Added to that, Justice Moore that the rush to the conclusion that the three top managers had orchestrated a massive fraud from the account of a depositor with their own organisation, is an area that angels would fear to tread, not to mention that Mr. Arjoon, the CEO was six months away from retirement. “The humiliation and trauma suffered by these persons and their families must have taken a toll on their health, not to mention the effects of these events on the

morale of the NBS staff.” The Ombudsman said, “I have no jurisdiction to pronounce on the action of the NBS Board in firing the managers and I therefore refrain from any comment.” In his complaint Arjoon, said that at the time of the “trumped up charges”, he was six months away from retirement, which would have entitled him to receive a lucrative monthly pension and substantial benefits. Arjoon believed that an independent investigation would have revealed that persons from the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG), and the Director of Public Prosecution, Shalimar AliHack, did not want to take action against the real perpetrators of the fraud. The reasons were simple. Arjoon had noted that while NBS is supposed to be a private company, it is run by persons aligned to the Government and or the CIOG. It was punishment for “certain decisions and/or recommendations I made in the interest of the NBS but were deemed unfavourable to the President of Guyana and certain Directors of the NBS.” The President back in 20062007 was Bharrat Jagdeo and the Government had been seeking monies to finance the construction of a bridge across the Berbice River. Jagdeo‘s request for $1 billion to fund the Berbice Bridge was refused by Arjoon. It was shortly after that the Managers faced charges for fraud.

Guyana foolishly accepts...

From page 3 in Infrastructure Development award. While accepting the award, Managing Director and Lead Country Manager of ExxonMobil affiliates in Nigeria, Nolan O'Neal said, “We are committed to the development of Nigeria and its people - Every year, we invest several million dollars on projects primarily in the areas of Health, Education, skill-set improvement and capacity development.” The same article noted that through its academic support and s c h o l a r s h i p programmes, ExxonMobil has invested over N8B

(US$22M) in Nigeria's educational system at all levels (primary, secondary and tertiary) since 2008. It has also contributed over N19B (US$52.8M) to the fight against malaria. Read full at http:// corporate.exxonmobil.com/ en/company/worldwide-operations/locations/nigeria/ news-releases/exxonmobilnamed-best-overall-company-in-csr.Also, in one of the many donations ExxonMobil made to a US organization named, the United Way, ExxonMobil handed over a cheque for over US$10M. Yet it gave US$300,000 to an entire country.

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 06,2018

Labourer gets 50 months Sixth gang member in for robbing cop of $240 ranch robbery captured A labourer who was caught “under the clock” at Stabroek Market with a stolen wallet containing $240, and a cellular phone, after robbing an off-duty police constable was yesterday sentenced to 50 months imprisonment after pleading guilty to the offence. Darren Bailey, 21, appeared before Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and pleaded guilty with explanation to the charge which alleged that on March 2, at Hinck Street, Georgetown, while being armed with a pair of scissors, he robbed Mahindra Dudhnauth of one cellular phone valued $25,000 and $240 cash. Bailey in his explanation to the court stated that it was a case of mistaken identity. He added that on the day in question he was walking on the Plaisance Park when he approached the victim who resembles someone from the interior who owed him gold. The court heard that Bailey walked up to the victim and placed the scissors to his neck and relieved him of the articles mentioned in the charge and made good his escape. Police Prosecutor Arvin Moore told the court that on the day in question, the victim was walking north along Hinck Street when he was approached by Bailey, who was armed with a pair of scissors. He placed the scissors to the victim’s neck and relieved him of his valuables before making good his escape south along Hinck Street. The victim then reported the matter to the police station. Ranks from the Tactical Services Unit (TSU) were in the area when they received certain information . The ranks then carried out a search in the area and they found the accused “under the clock” at Stabroek Market. A search was carried out on him and the wallet, which contained the $240 and the cellular phone were

P

Jailed: Darren Bailey recovered. He was then arrested and taken to the Brickdam Police Station. The Magistrate after listening to the prosecutor and Bailey told the court that she took into consideration the age of the accused and she also took into consideration the serious nature of the offence and the need to prohibit others from committing the same offence. Before sentencing the accused she said, “Do not steal from people because they work hard for what they want. You should do same, don’t go about the robbing people.” The accused was sentenced to 50 months imprisonment.

olice in ‘B’ Division have made headways into the robbery committed on a businessman’s ranch in Pottoco Ranch, Canje Creek. It was confirmed by a police source that an individual named Rondell Crawford, 21, of Betsy Ground, East Canje was arrested in the area at approximately 13:00 hrs. He was reportedly the sixth member of the gang that invaded Krishna Persaud’s ranch in the Canje Creek. Amar Bissoon and Indarjit Sham were reportedly a part of the said gang when they committed the brazen robbery on Persaud’s ranch proprietor of K. Persaud and Sons trucking service of Vryheid, New Amsterdam, Berbice. Two other members, including Timothy Sampson and two others were also arrested over the weekend. Details have since revealed that two workers for Persaud were on the ranch in Pottoco Creek, Berbice River when the six men approached them. They were held at gunpoint when they stole 23 sheep, 15 ducks, a solar panel, a radio, a quantity of rope, and other valuables; the property of a 50-year-old businessman of Vryheid, West Canje, Berbice. They loaded the items on a boat and subsequently esc a p e d .

Dead: Indarjit Sham

Dead: Amar Bissoon

Shortly after the robbery occurred, police in ‘B’ Division were informed and a team led by a Senior Detective intercepted a boat with suspects who are now in custody, in the Berbice River and based on further information, the ranks proceeded to a location where the robbery allegedly took place. There, they discovered all of the animals with their legs bound and the other stolen property loaded inside of a camouflaged aluminum boat. As soon as the ranks disembarked their boat, they came

under fire by the now dead men, who discharged several rounds at them. The officers quickly adapted tactical positions and returned fire, fatally wounding the men were positively identified by the victims as members of the gang who committed the robbery. A 12-gauge pump action shotgun, a .32 pistol, eleven live cartridges, and five live.32 rounds were found in possession of the bandits. Also three spent cartridges and a .32 spent shell were retrieved at the scene.

Tuesday March 06,2018

Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 06,2018

GTT announces free internet ...

SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION, W E D D I N G S , ANNIVERSARY, ETC. CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 216-1043; 677-6620 Visa Application: U.S.A, Canada & UK;Guyanapassport application. G r a p h i c s design, advertisement. Tel: 626-7040; 265-4535. ICONIC MARKETING & PRINTING –TEL: 6004212: We create A/works, logos, busi ness cards, posters, etc, placements of ads included. Budhram’s Landscaping & Tree cutting service. Free advice, Free design, Free after care follow up. Tel#626-1044 Repairs to refrigerators, gas stoves, A/C units, washing machines. Call Lindon: 6411086/ 694-2202 Austin Powers Repairs & Services: Regas Fridges, Freezers, AC, Washer, Dryer & Wiring. Lot 114 Brushe Dam Friendship. E.C.D Tel#685-2588/613-1711 Bucket truck with driver/ operator for rent. Banners/ CCTV, street lighting, work at height. Call: 642-9447 Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezerCall: 610-5846 or 661-8158

FOR SALE LARGE QUANTITIES OF HIGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICK SILVER) 99.99995% PURITY$19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754. Supari palm, Lipstick, Royal, Foxtail. Exora 4 for $1000 Ficus 4 for $1000. Organic potting soil. Tel: 626-1044 Parts for Tacoma Tundra Titan for sale. Tel#686-9608. 6000 pound ice box (1) 48 Yamaha engine 13.4 length fishing vessel. Four hundred pound sein. Tel#690-8089 1- 320 BL cat Excavator 1- 215 B cat Excavator 1- 428 cat Back-hoe 1- 450 Honda Atv. Contact: 275-0367, 683-7225 1 Double steel wheel roller 1Pneumatic roller 1- Leyland Daf truck 1- Hand spray bitumen kettle. Contact: 2750367, 683-7225 1-320 CL- Bucket 1, Hydraulic pump 1, 4 Hydraulic Ram. #628-1832 Use Daff 620 truck parts. Contact: #650-0402/603-1402 Unregistered DAF trucks: Dump trucks, Flat Bed, Flat bed with Crane & Hauler. Call: 659-3100 New Triangle truck tyres, front & all wheel drive, size: 295/ 80R22.5 Call: 647-2022 Large and small household items for sale! Double door wardrobe, 32" Panasonic flat screen, ornaments etc. Contact: 691-3726, 629-4637

Eagle’s: Re-gas –low prices, washing machine repairs, gas stove, plasma flat Screen, computer repairs & more. Call: 697-2969/646-0966 Installations, Repairs and parts for AC, Fridge, Washing machine, Stove etc call Nick 627-3206, 630-1600

EDUCATION CXC adults classes (Business & Science subjects) Form 1-5 lessons, Grade 2-6 lessons (slow learners, personal tutor) #690-5008,618-0649 Electronic classes beginning March 6th. Enroll early, limited spaces. Abdul Electronics. Tel: 226-6551/ 225-0391.

SALON Make-up Courses with Mac, Bare Minerals, etc. -CosmetologyCourses:$90,000 Nail Technician Course: $35,000. Call: 647-1773/6880009

TAXI SERVICE GR TAXI SERVICE. CALL: 219-5000; 227-1982 & 2257878 (24HRS) LEARN TO DRIVE C. Persaud & N. Outar Driving School formerly Soman & Sons Driving School @ Maraj Building- Call: 644-5166; 6222872; 615-0964; 689-5997 (affordable packages).

FOR RENT

WANTED

VACANCY

PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620

One Industrial Electrician. Tel# 227-1717 Experienced Handyman, porter all below 40 years. Apply with written application. Keyfood McDoom Village. Experienced General Manager to operate stringer (string gold) in the interior. Contact number: 223-7165

Hair station & Barber station rental, New market street #638-1106. Experienced persons preferable.

Vreed-en-hoop junction. Lessons place, church, storage bond, office, other. Call: 603-6400. Fully furnished two bedrooms apartment in providence & three bedroom in Diamond. Tel: 672-1906, 216-2299 (1) downstairs for rent for supermarket including living quarters (preferable Chinese) @ Lot 171 Section B Non Pariel ECD. Tel#629-4764. (3) Bedrooms house to rent in (Lamaha Gardens) 2 1/2 Bath, fully air conditioned US$2000. Tel#653-7961/ 6749244 One three bedroom house to rent on Grove Public Road, serious enquries #667-5414 Space for rent at Ashmin’s Building- suitable for salon or office- Call today! 683-7954

Land to buy in Parafaite Harmonie, Eccles, Uitvlugt, Tuschen,Covent Garden, Herstelling, Diamond, Providence & Zeelugt. Tel#686-9608 One nail technician please call: 647-8268 Live in or live out babysitter/ domestic- Call: 223-7500 Monday to Saturday 8:15am4:15pm Log truck driver to work in Buckhall. Call: 664-6062 Chainsaw operators to work in the interior. Contact: 2237165 Security to work with mining firm, must have experience in said field Ages 38-45. Contact: 500-5923/676-8764 Experienced hire car drivers at Princess Ramada Hotel. Call: 265-7076 or 616-5419

VEHICLE FOR SALE 2011 Raptor fully loaded 4x4 Auto excellent condition blue 6.2 litre super charged. Tel# 610-5370 Long base canter GRR series 2 million hydraulic lift tray good condition Tel# 609-1040 Primo motor car, Mag rims, C lights, in top condition 2005 model, late PSS series. Phone: 638-8797, 328-7659 Bluebird 2012- 2.6M Axio2.5M Tida-2.2M All vehicles unregistered and have reverse camera. #655-3400 1- TwinsteerDoubleaxle Leyland DAF 4- LeylandDAF Flatbed 10- Guysuco Lorries 1-620-240 DAF engine. #2285655, 649-8449 LAND FOR SALE Parafaite Harmonie, Eccles, Uivlugt, Tuschen, Covent Garden, Herstelling, Diamond, Providence, Zeelugt. Tel# 686-9608 18,731 acres mining land Gold & Diamond Mazaruni $5,000,000 USD Contact: 6951356, 687-8445 Parafaite Harmonie main road 2M 1.5M Parafaite (10) year up 3M 3.5 Eccles 6M Uivlugt 2.8M Call: 604-6724 Parafaite Harmonie 2.5M 3M 1.5M Eccles 6.5M Providence 4M Uivlugt 3M all price negotiable. Call: 666-2326

KITCHEN ASSISTANT (HOUSEKEEPING DAYSHIFT) REQUIRED AT AAGMAN RESTAURANT. CONTACT: 219-0158 BETWEEN 9AM - 5 PM (WEEKDAYS) Accounts clerk- knowledge of NIS,PAYE,VAT and QuickBooks. Call: 614-4358 Female cleaner for office in Eccles. Call: 233-2745 Experienced sales persons with CXC qualifications. Apply @ Christine’s Variety, Lombard Street. Contact: 2278529/626-8003 Experienced male sales attendant, stocktaking knowledge, computer literate, excellent service attitude, able bodied. Key Food McDoom Village. 1-Grillman hrs 4:00pm1:30am, 1 mature nanny livein , 1-kitchen asst. 8:00am5:00pm. Contact X’s Grill & Cuisine 675-2550 10am5:30pm Experience sales person to work in general store on the East Coast #642-1141

Attractive live in waitressCall: 327-0252/674-4665 Drivers & Contract cars. Tel: 231-0316. 231-0002 Servicemen and heavy duty diesel mechanics to work in the interior. Contact: 2237165 Driver for pitbull bus Route 44 Georgetown - Plaisance #694-0500, 665-9174 Experienced curry cooks, pastry maker, counter servers. Apply @ Hack’s Halaal with H/written application. 5 Commerce St. PROPERTY FOR SALE Yorrowkabra, Linden Highway, House, Chicken pen, New foundation, Land 200' x 100' Fenced, water & light. 6.5M neg. Contact: 6867180 Property for sale (1) 3 story building at 97 Sugarcane street S/Rvldt Gardens. Price US 1.5M neg. Tel: 695-1356 & 687-8445 House & Land @ Diamond, 3 bedrooms big yard space. Price $21.5 million Tel# 6966327/603-3949 Serious enquiries only! 11 Peter’s Hall Public road, East Bank Demerara. Roy #692-2110 Lot 15 Public road #2 Village. West Coast Berbice. 49ft by 10,314ft. $20M. Contact:6487109/686-4818

CAR RENTAL PROGRESSIVE CAR R E N TA L : S U V F O R RENTAL- $4,000 & UP PER DAY- CALL:6435122/656-0087, ,EMAIL:PRO_AUTO RENTAL@YAHOO.COM DOLLY’SCARRENTAL-CALL: 225-7126/226-3693 DOLLYSAUTORENTAL@ YA H O O . C O M / W W W. DOLLYSAUTORENTAL.COM AIDAN’S CAR RENTAL:PICKUP,9-11 SEAT MINI BUS, GOOD FOR AIRPORT & FAMILY OUTINGS, CHEAPEST RATE . Call: 698-7807 WING’S CAR & PICKUP RENTAL: LOW DOWN PAYMENT, CHEAP RATES,SPECIAL OFFERS! . CALL: 690-6494 TOLET One fully furnished apartment to rent in South Riumveldt $25,000 weekly. #694-7817, 668-0306 1 5-bedroom house in Good Hope, Rooms in Albertown, 2 bedroom apartment in Eccles. Contact: 225-3234

From page 16 schools are Lusignan, Sophia and Paradise. The summit will boast of two events- the first titled Innov8 Expo, which will be held on March 24 to 25 while the second- Innov8 Business Forum which will be on March 27. GTT said that the goal of both events is to showcase the diversity of technology and its impact on all spheres of life in Guyana. “It is an opportunity to display the innovations and gadgets created by some of the best and brightest players in Guyana's technology arena. It will also feature international speakers from Google, Microsoft and other industry trailblazers.” Additionally Innov8 Summit is an “open house' which will wow visitors as they experience all the innovation GTT has to offer. GTT will display technology possibilities available in the ways never seen before. Some exciting features that the Innov8 Expo visitors will experience are hands-on-robotics, online gaming, a gaming tournament, animation, smart gadgets and a smart home. The Innov8 Business Forum on March 27 will feature GTT's newest enterprise solutions, host local and international Technology and Business Leaders while charting a path for the development of ICT in the business and finance arena. “GTT's, ongoing investment in technology and leadership, is instrumental in the development of the Guyanese ICT (Information, Communication and Technology) sector and has created a platform for innovators to power their innovations”, said CEO Justin Nedd. GTT strategic partners will have the opportunity to purchase exclusive booth spaces to showcase their products. Among some of highlights are showpieces of Bravo Arts, a company that specializes in costumes. Present at the launch also were UG's Vice Chancellor, Ivelaw Griffith and Professor Paloma Mohamed. Griffith, who hailed the upcoming events, sees technology in Guyana and UG's role expanding even more. Also there was Food For The Poor's local chief, Kent Vincent, who praised the initiatives of GTT.STEM Guyana's Colin Sawh explained that the money will be used for a number of youth projects.

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 06,2018

Violence hinders proper development of children

Minister Amna Ally and UNICEF’s Mr. Paulo Marchi Violence against children plagues many societies and deprives children of the possibility to develop in the best possible manner. This is the observation of Deputy Representative of the United Nations Children Fund [UNICEF], Mr. Paulo Marchi. At a recent forum, he said his organisation is extremely pleased to partner with the government of Guyana and religious organisations to reduce the instances of violence against children. Marchi, during his two years in Guyana, has come to appreciate the role of religion in Guyanese society and stressed on its importance in eliminating violence against children. The occasion was a special meeting of the Ministry of Social Protection held in collaboration with UNICEF to inspire the support of religious organisations to help prevent violence against children. According to Director of the Childcare and Protection Agency, Ms. Ann Greene, the Agency is ready and willing to collaborate with Religious Organisations. Greene, at that recent forum, took the opportunity to report on child abuse cases for 2017. The report recorded the highest number of cases of child abuse being reported in Region Ten with 22.1 percent followed by Region Three with 20.6 percent and Region Four with 17.6 percent. Based on statistics from the CPA, 2017 has seen an in-

crease in reports of child abuse. The statistics suggests that there has been a consecutive increase in reports over the last four years. The increase does not mean an increase in the instances of abuse, but represent the success of the agency’s multi-media campaign and continuous efforts to have more persons report cases of abuse to the Department. The Social Protection Ministry is of the belief that religious organisations are in a unique position to make an impact on situations of abuse because of their close relationship with vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. According to the Minister sitting at the helm of the Ministry, Ms. Amna Ally religious organisations are indispensable partners in the government’s focus on reaching the most vulnerable in society. She further stated, “It is the moral influence of religion that can have a major impact on perspective, foster dialogue and set priorities for members of its community…many people in Guyana identify religious leaders as the group they trust the most.” She added, “It is you who are the skilled and influential communicators that can reach the hearts and minds of people in ways that other institutions cannot, it is you who have more access to the family and personal spheres than most outside actors. “You serve as an impor-

Director of CPA, Ms. Ann Greene and members of the religious community tant conduit of communication for social change and transformation of child protection mechanisms in Guyana”. The profound influence religion can have on children’s development and socialization, offers the potential to reinforce protective influences and promote resilience. Pastor Ronald McGarrell, National Director of the Fam-

ily Federation and Chairman of the Interreligious Organisation (IRO) said the IRO has been working on various initiatives as it relates to the family and child protection and would like to participate actively in collaborative efforts with the Childcare and Protection Agency. Also speaking at the forum was Ms. Alima Nassir, Chairperson of the Rights of the Child Commission. She said

that based on the statistics presented, a collaborative effort is needed to tackle the issue, especially since the reported cases do not represent all of the instances of abuse, particularly in Hinterland areas. Nassir, who is also the Head of the Women’s Arm of the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG), said the CIOG is willing to partner with the Gov-

ernment to arrest the issue of Child Abuse. CPA is responsible for making timely interventions in matters concerning children. This includes any action that is deemed necessary to ensure the safety and well-being of children or prevent, reduce and alleviate the effects of the abuse and neglect of children by offering effective services their rights entitle them to.

Commercial banks restrict staffers’ phone use A programme to pay informants for details of criminal activities has been established. The disclosure was made yesterday by Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, during a press conference on the 42nd anniversary of Community Police Groups (CPG) in Guyana. The Minister was being asked about concerns over the recent spate of robberies of persons leaving commercial banks. Persons have been trailed, shot and killed. It appeared the bandits even knew where people lived and were even waiting for their

victims.According to Ramjattan, he has asked the Commissioner of Police (ag), David Ramnarine, to carry out sting operations to catch the bandits.However this will require information. Already, the commercial banks are carrying out their own investigations to determine whether any staffers are involved. Staffers are not allowed phones on their person while they are paying out customers. There are indications that businesses are telling family members and even allowing neighbours or others to know when they withdrawing a large amount of cash from the

bank.Urging for more information from the communities, Ramjattan was insistent that people know who are involved but are unwilling or scared to talk. He cited the recent cracking of gangs involved in carjackings with bases located in the Soesdyke and Timehri area. While neighbours appeared to have suspicions, it appeared that it was information coming from members of Community Policing Groups that helped cracked the cases. Several cars were recovered in one of the biggest cases in recent times. Several persons, including ex-cops, were charged.

Ramjattan bemoaned the fact that family members know. He pointed to a recent case last week in Berbice were two men were shot dead by police after a robbery raid on a ranch. Surely family members knew. The Minister also tagged the importance of information in breaking gangs like the incidents of piracy in Berbice. Based on information, police were able to carry out surveillance on suspects and later arrests were made. The official also admitted that there were cases of even members of the CPGs sharing information with criminals, giving advance warnings.

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Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 06,2018

Grand Bahamas refinery agreement cause for concern, says former minister (Nassau Guardian) NASSAU, Bahamas — Former minister for Grand Bahama, Dr Michael Darville, said on Friday that he has “great concern” with certain provisions contained in a heads of agreement the Bahamas government signed with Oban Energies to build a multibillion dollar oil refinery on Grand Bahama. Darville, who served under the former Christie administration, which agreed to the project in principle, said the fact that the agreement was signed without an environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a major issue. According to the heads of agreement, which was tabled in the House of Assembly on Thursday night, “the government shall

not have the right to terminate these heads of agreement based upon any EIA report, but instead shall work with the developer to mitigate any concerns”. “I have great concern about it,” he said regarding that clause.“I don’t think it should be included in the heads of agreement. I always said from the beginning that it is important not to put the cart before the horse.“I believe that in this particular case, the government should have done their due diligence to ensure that the EIA was adequate for the proposed site rather than going the opposite way. “They will definitely have major criticisms as a result of that clause.“To backpedal now, to try to figure it out could mean litigation or some

issues for the government if they try to pull out of the deal.” When the government signed what appeared to be the heads of agreement last week with Oban nonexecutive chairman Peter Krieger, there were concerns that an EIA had not yet been completed. At the time, Krieger said the EIA will be completed in 45 days.Darville said, “I would not have signed the heads of agreement without an environmental impact assessment to ensure that the project would be viable and safety protocols necessary to protect our environment in that sensitive area were place.” But he added that he is “all for growth and development for Grand Bahama” so long as it is done in a environmental safe and transparent way.

Hunger, obesity paradox in the Caribbean - FAO

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica (CMC) – Haiti has the highest proportion of hungry people in the Western Hemisphere, even as the Caribbean “is a world champion when it comes to obesity”, says Julio Berdegué, assistant directorgeneral of the FAO Regional Representative for Latin American and the Caribbean. “In terms of hunger, we have one country which is of huge concern to FAO, which is Haiti, in the Caribbean,” Berdegué, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) yesterday at the opening of the 35th FAO regional conference for Latin America and the Caribbean. “In the rest of the countries, in different degrees, the situation is far less severe in terms of hunger. But Haiti remains the highest in terms of proportion of hungry people in the Western Hemisphere and Haiti is FAO’s top priority in this hemisphere when it comes to achieving the zero hunger target,” he said. Despite the decline in child undernutrition, the FAO says obesity continues to be one of the main health issues for Latin America and the Caribbean. In 2016, the prevalence of obesity in adults was on the rise and children under 5 years of age were overweight – affecting 7 per cent the population, and ranking above the 6 per cent of overweight children registered worldwide. According to the latest calculations, 24 countries in

Julio Berdegué Latin America and the Caribbean record a proportion of obese people in values close to or above 20 per cent of the population. In Antigua and Barbuda and Trinidad and Tobago, nearly 29 per cent of the population were reported to be obese; while The Bahamas registered 32 per cent. On the contrary, the lowest rates are observed in Haiti, with 11 per cent. At a regional level, obesity rates have generally increased in all countries, between 1980 and 2014, being more prevalent in women, the FAO says. “It is a paradox that this region produces the best athletes and at the same time has such a high proportion of obese people so this is a very, very serious concern,” Berdegué told CMC. “We need to discuss that. We will have a meeting with the Caribbean sub region to address this issues,” he said at the commencement of the

four-day meeting, in which the 33 member countries of FAO in the region will develop an agenda to fight hunger and malnutrition, build a future without rural poverty, and transform agriculture to be sustainable and resilient to climate change. Although Latin America and the Caribbean produces enough food to meet the needs of their population, this does not ensure healthy and nutritious diets, the FAO says. The organisation has emphasised the need for creating sustainable and nutrition-sensitive food systems to provide varied and safe foods, with good nutritional quality that help put an end to hunger and all forms of malnutrition. Both the economic slowdown in Latin America and the Caribbean and the slower pace of poverty and extreme poverty reduction dynamics over the last few years have hindered the eradication of hunger and malnutrition. The organisation also noted that persisting income inequality puts pressure on access to food, with the ensuing impact on food and nutrition security. On the topic or rural development, Berdegué said the main concern seems to be the area of jobs for the youth. “There is a huge need to be able to create and have more and better jobs for rural youth, men and women. We have a gap there and we receive a lot of demands from Caribbean governments [for support].”

Michael Darville (L) and Dr Hubert Minnis According to the heads of agreement, once Oban has completed the EIA, the government, upon receipt of it, has 60 days to offer feedback.That clause also notes that Oban has the right to abandon the project. “If, as a result of the government’s review of an EIA, the government determines that the relevant portion of the development (as proposed to be constructed) cannot be implemented in an environmentally safe and sustainable manner, then the

government shall propose that the developer take additional specific precautions and or make specific modifications to the proposed development in order to address the government’s specific concerns,” the agreement said.“The developer shall, prior to commencing construction of the relevant portion of the development, take such additional precautions and or make such modifications to the proposed development as are commercially reasonable to

address the government’s specific concerns; alternatively, the developer shall retain the right to abandon the proposed development. “The parties agree that the government shall not have the right to terminate these heads of agreement based upon any EIA report, but instead shall work with the developer to mitigate any concerns. If the government does not provide any such comments to the EIA within the aforementioned 60-day period, the EIA shall be deemed acceptable to the government.” Once the EIA is complete and before construction on the project begins, Oban must prepare an environmental management plan, which, among other things, must detail terms and conditions regarding the manner in which construction waste shall be disposed of, mitigation measures and penalties to be imposed on Oban for material environmental infractions caused by the company.

Matthew's Ridge manganese... From page 9 phase, the mine ore processing plant, washing plant, warehouses and factory will be established. The company is currently procuring equipment Ma explained. Ma pointed out that the company is facing logistic challenges in terms of moving the ore from the plant to sale. While road and port facilities were identified, GMI, Ma said, is currently mapping and surveying these to design the best solution going forward. Minister Trotman said that the government is committed to doing work on the road but will do so in collaboration with the company, particularly as it relates to maintenance. He also committed to discussing the sharing of facilities with bauxite company Rusal, as GMI resolves the logistics challenge. The Minister stressed the importance of mining in Region One to GMI. “We'd like to see a resurgence in this region and so Government is very keen on getting it started,” he said. Minister Trotman also charged the company to honour its corporate social responsibility and singled out the community hospital for attention in this regard. “We expect you to be a good corporate citizen and to give back,” Minister Trotman said. Meanwhile, Region One Member of Parliament, Allen Richard, said the region in par-

Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman examines the manganese mineral with Steven Ma Assistant General Manager of Bosai's Overseas Department, and Chinese Ambassador to Guyana Cui Jianchun (far right). ticular is looking forward to the resurgence of manganese mining. “This is a timely visit when not just Matthew's Ridge or Matarkai sub-region is looking forward for the establishment of the manganese company which brings relief and lot of employment,” he said. Chinese Ambassador Jianchun said he is proud of the example Bosai has set in Linden and charged GMI to have a similar integrated approach in Region One. “Through this project, there is a push to let the people benefit. I am concerned that we can create more jobs for the local com-

munity,” Ambassador Jianchun charged. He also encouraged the company to be good corporate citizens. GMI purchased four prospecting licences that covers an area of 45,729 acres, exploration results, mineral agreement, certain properties and infrastructure from RMI of Canada in November 2016. The total manganese resource in Matthew's Ridge is some 26 million tonnes. Ma said to produce the manganese concentrate, the company will have to mine some two million tonnes per year which will see the life of the operation lasting some 13 years, if there are no other resources to be added.

Kaieteur News

Tuesday March 06,2018

Aid reaches Ghouta but retreats after shelling; Syria presses assault B E I R U T / G E N E VA (Reuters) - Aid trucks reached Syria’s eastern Ghouta region yesterday for the first time since the start of one of the war’s deadliest assaults, but the government stripped some medical supplies from the convoy and pressed on with its air and ground assault. The convoy of more than 40 trucks pulled out of Douma in darkness after shelling on the town, without fully unloading supplies during a nine-hour stay. All staff were safe and heading back to the capital Damascus, aid officials said. The Russian-backed Syrian army has captured more than a third of the eastern Ghouta in recent days, threatening to slice the last major rebel-held area near Damascus in two, despite Western accusations it has violated a ceasefire. The United Nations says 400,000 people are trapped inside the besieged enclave, and were already running out of food and medical supplies before the assault began with intense air strikes two weeks ago. “The team is safe, but given the security situation a decision was taken to go back for now. They offloaded as much as possible given the current situation on the ground,” spokeswoman Iolanda Jaquemet of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in Geneva. Another aid source told Reuters that 10 trucks left the town “fully sealed”, while four more had been partially unloaded. Hours earlier, a senior U.N. official accompanying the convoy said he was “not happy” to hear loud shelling near the crossing point into eastern Ghouta despite an agreement that the aid would be delivered in safety. “We need to be assured that we will be able to deliver the humanitarian assistance under good conditions,” Ali al-Za’tari told Reuters at the crossing point. A World Health Organization official said the gov-

ernment had ordered 70 percent of medical supplies to be stripped out of the convoy, preventing trauma kits, surgical kits, insulin and other vital material from reaching the area. The ICRC confirmed some medical equipment had been blocked but gave no details. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said strikes targeted frontlines near the town of Harasta and the villages of Beit Sawa and Hosh alAshari. The monitor later said 80 were killed and more than 300 wounded in the highest toll in one day since the U.N. Security Council resolution was adopted 10 days ago. A military media unit run by the government’s ally Hezbollah reported that the Syrian army had taken the village of al-Mohammadiyeh, located on the southeastern corner of the enclave. President Bashar alAssad said on Sunday his forces would continue the push into eastern Ghouta, a densely populated area of farmland and towns just outside Damascus which government forces have encircled since 2013.Many civilian residents have fled from the frontlines into the town of Douma.Assad and his allies regard the rebel groups that hold eastern Ghouta as terrorists, and say a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding a country-wide ceasefire does not apply to operations against them. A week ago Russia unilaterally announced five-hour daily pauses in the fighting, but clashes have continued during those hours and Western countries dismissed it as inadequate. PATTERN The fighting in eastern Ghouta follows a pattern used in other areas recaptured by the government since Russia entered the war on Assad’s side in 2015, with sieges, bombardment and ground offensives combined with an offer to let civilians and fighters who surrender escape through “humanitarian corridors”. For the rebels fighting to

oust Assad, the loss of eastern Ghouta would mark their heaviest defeat since the battle of Aleppo in late 2016 and end their ability to target the capital. Rebel shelling on Damascus has killed dozens of people during the last two weeks, state-run media has said. The Observatory said government forces had captured a third of the area in their advance from the east. Syrian state television on Monday said the army had made major advances, seizing 40 percent of the area previously held by the rebels. It broadcast live from several captured villages, showing collapsed concrete buildings, rubble-strewn streets, bullet-pocked walls and smoke rising above fields in the distance. Monday’s convoy carrying aid was the first to reach the besieged area since Feb. 14 and only the second since the start of 2018. Za’tari said the shipment had been scaled back from providing food for 70,000 people to providing for 27,500. The United Nations says Syria has agreed to allow in the rest of the food for the full 70,000 in a second convoy in three days. Marwa Awad, spokeswoman for the U.N.’s World Food Program, said it had delivered supplies from the trucks after meeting local councils, including food and nutritional assistance. The two-week assault has brought footage of children being carried out of rubble and hospitals being bombed to viewers around the world once again. Since the fall of Aleppo more than a year ago, government forces had focused their efforts mainly on Islamic State-held territory in the more remote east of the country, but they have now renewed their campaign to crush anti-Assad rebels in the heavily-populated west. Moscow and Damascus deny they are killing large numbers of civilians. Assad has dismissed Western statements about the humanitarian situation in eastern Ghouta as “a ridiculous lie”.

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Trump faces pushback on tariffs but says he will not back down WA S H I N G T O N (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump faced growing pressure yesterday from political and diplomatic allies as well as U.S. companies urging him to pull back from proposed steel and aluminum tariffs, although he said he would stick to his guns. Inside the White House, there still appeared to be confusion about the timing and extent of the planned tariffs, which would hit allies like Canada and Mexico hard. Efforts by Trump and U.S. trade negotiators to link the NAFTA trade pact talks to the duties received short shrift from Ottawa and Mexico City. Leading Republicans turned up the pressure on Trump, with House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan leading the charge. Ryan’s home state of Wisconsin would be hit by proposed European counter-measures on Harley Davidson motorbikes. Representative Kevin Brady, another top House Republican, called on Trump not to hit America’s closest allies. The planned tariffs have roiled world stock markets as investors worried about the prospect of an escalating trade war that would derail global economic growth.

Stocks across the globe rose yesterday, however, after four days in decline as investors saw the tariff threats as a U.S. negotiating tactic and not a done deal and as pressure grew on Trump to back off. “We’re not backing down,” Trump said during a White House meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “I don’t think you’re going to have a trade war,” he added, without elaborating. Earlier comments from Trump had stoked talk of a global trade war as he described them as easy to win and issued a threat to German carmakers. One of those, BMW, runs a plant in the United States that is the largest single autos exporter in the country and has created thousands of jobs. Most responses to Trump’s proposed tariffs have been targeted. The European Union said it would hit Harleys, bourbon and jeans, iconic American products. It did not threaten to ramp up the issue. China has been largely mum, urging caution, and both Canada and Mexico have stressed the targeted nature of any response. Trump was expected to finalize the planned tariffs later

in the week, although some observers familiar with the process said it could occur next week. The initial announcement by Trump last week came as a surprise. The United States, Mexico and Canada have been holding talks over changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement, a pact that Trump has threatened to abandon. Six months of tense talks have produced little in the way of progress and a move by Washington to link the steel and aluminum tariffs to progress on NAFTA was rebuffed by Canada and Mexico. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer also attempted to drive a wedge between Canada and Mexico when he suggested the United States would be willing to hold bilateral, rather than trilateral talks. The two countries again stood firm. In Washington, aides scrambled to meet Trump’s demand for the paperwork to be completed for a formal announcement. The exact timing was unclear as the tariff documentation had to be drafted and go through a variety of reviews, a process that takes days, an administration official said.

Tuesday March 06,2018

Kaieteur News

Ex-Russian spy critically ill in Britain after exposure to unidentified substance LONDON (Reuters) - Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, who was convicted by Russia of betraying agents to British intelligence, was critically ill yesterday after exposure to an unidentified substance in Britain, two sources close to the investigation told Reuters. British police said two people, a 66-yearold man and a 33-year-old woman, had been found unconscious on a bench in a shopping centre on Sunday in the southern English city of Salisbury after exposure to the unknown substance. Both are critically ill in intensive care. Police declared a major incident. Skripal, once a colonel in Russia’s GRU military intelligence service, was convicted in Russia of treason in 2006 but exchanged as part of a Cold War-style spy swap in 2010 on the tarmac of Vienna airport. Skripal is 66 years old. British police did not release the names of those who were being treated but two sources close to the investigation told Reuters that the critically ill man was Skripal. It was unclear what the substance was, they said. “This has not been declared as a counterterrorism incident and we would urge people not to speculate,” Wiltshire police’s Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Craig Holden told reporters. “However, I must emphasize that we retain an open mind, and that we continue to review this position.” Relations between Britain and Russia have been strained since the murder of exKGB agent Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium-210 in London in 2006, a killing which a British inquiry said was probably approved by President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied any involvement in the killing.Litvinenko, 43, an outspoken critic of Putin who fled Russia for Britain six years to the day before he was poisoned, died after drinking green tea laced with the rare and very potent radioactive isotope at London’s Millennium Hotel. It took some time for British doctors to discern the cause of Litvinenko’s illness. SPY SWAP Skripal, who was arrested in 2004 by

Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) on suspicion of betraying dozens of Russian agents to British intelligence, was sentenced to 13 years in prison in 2006. But he was later pardoned in 2010 by thenPresident Dmitry Medvedev as part of a spy swap to bring 10 Russian agents held in the United States back to Moscow. The swap, one of the biggest since the Cold War ended in 1991, took place on the tarmac of Vienna airport where a Russian and a U.S. jet parked side by side before the agents were exchanged. One of the Russian spies exchanged for Skripal was Anna Chapman, who was greeted as a hero by the Kremlin.

Brazil judge sentences Decal do Brasil executive to over 10 years SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Decal do Brasil co-founder Mariano Marcondes Ferraz was found guilty on corruption charges and sentenced to over 10 years in prison yesterday for bribing a former executive at state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro to win contracts for Ferraz’s own firm. Judge Sergio Moro found Ferraz guilty of paying $868,450 to Petrobras’ ex-director of refining and supply, Paulo Roberto Costa, to renew at inflated prices contracts Decal do Brasil had with Petrobras to provide tanking and docking services at the Port of Suape in northeastern Brazil. Moro ruled that Ferraz could remain free on appeal. The office of Ferraz’s lawyer said they had no comment. Group Decal, an Italian company

that set up Decal do Brasil together with Ferraz, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Decal do Brasil first signed contracts with Petrobras in 2006, according to prosecutors, and by 2012 had signed several other contracts worth a total of 423 million reais ($130.29 million). Ferraz was arrested in Brazil in late October 2016 but freed on 3 million reais bond about two weeks later. At the time of his arrest, Ferraz was also working at Swiss trading company Trafigura as a board member and the key executive for business development in Brazil and Africa. Trafigura was not a party to any contracts between Petrobras and Decal and had no business relationship with Decal.

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China warns Taiwan it won’t tolerate separatist activities BEIJING (Reuters) China said yesterday that it would never tolerate any separatist schemes for selfruled Taiwan and would safeguard China’s territorial integrity with the aim of “reunification” with an island it considers its sacred territory. Premier Li Keqiang issued the warning in a speech at the opening of the annual session of China’s parliament, his stern words coming amid mounting Chinese anger over a U.S. bill that seeks to raise official contacts between Washington and Taipei. On Friday, China said Taiwan would only get burnt if it sought to rely on foreigners, adding to the warnings from state media about the risk of war.The U.S. legislation, which only needs President Donald Trump’s signature to become law, says it should be U.S. policy to allow officials at all levels to travel to Taiwan to meet their counterparts, permit high-level Taiwan officials to enter the United States “under respectful conditions” and meet U.S. officials.In his address to the largely rubber-stamp assembly, Li said China would pro-

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang speaks at the opening session of the National People’s Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. REUTERS/Jason Lee mote the peaceful growth of relations across the Taiwan Strait and “advance China’s peaceful reunification”. “We will remain firm in safeguarding China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and will never tolerate any

separatist schemes or activities for Taiwan independence,” Li said, to applause from the 3,000-odd legislators at the Great Hall of the People. “As fellow Chinese living on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, we share a bond of kin-

ship. As long as we go with the tide of history and work together for our nation’s greater good, we will together create the future - a beautiful future of national rejuvenation.”Speaking in Taipei, Huang Chung-yen, a

spokesman for Taiwan’s Presidential Office, said protecting peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait was the joint responsibility of both sides. “On cross-strait relations, our country’s policy of being committed to regional peace and protecting stability across the strait has always been clear and consistent,” Huang told reporters. “When it comes to cross-strait relations, Taiwan of course has never been the one which brings a negative impact.” ‘RESOLUTE WILL’ Separately, China said defense spending for 2018 would rise 8.1 percent compared with the previous year, a number that will likely add to Taiwan’s concern about Chinese intentions amid a stepped up Chinese military presence near the island. Zhang Zhijun, head of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, told reporters after Li had finished speaking that China’s people would never stand for any bid by Taiwan to secure its independence. “We have resolute will, full confidence and even fuller ability to prevent any

sort or form of Taiwan independence separatist acts,” Zhang said.China’s hostility towards Taiwan has risen since the election to president of Tsai Ing-wen from the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party in 2016.China suspects Tsai wants to push for formal independence, which would cross a red line for Communist Party leaders in Beijing, though Tsai has said she wants to maintain the status quo and is committed to ensuring peace.Beijing considers democratic Taiwan to be a wayward province and integral part of “one China”, ineligible for state-to-state relations, and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Hong Kong has been another troublesome area for China’s leadership, especially after students organized weeks of protests in late 2014 to push for full democracy. China will continue to implement to the letter and in spirit the “one country, two systems” method of rule for the Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macau, Li said.

Barbados signs loan with IDB to improve tourism industry BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – The government has signed a US$20 million loan with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for a National Tourism Programme, which is expected to give Barbados’ tourism industry a necessary fillip.Minister of Finance, Christopher Sinckler, and Chief of Operations at the IDB, Francisco Javier Urra, signed the document last Friday, at Government Headquarters. The Programme, which will be implemented over a five-year period, has as its overall objective to increase the resilience of Barbados’ tourism industry, with a focus on increasing tourism receipts. The components include developing four new tourism products targeted at addressing the cultural and heritage priority themes; strengthening digital marketing; and improving airlift. Sinckler said Government and the tourism players had invested a lot of resources in promoting Barbados as a premier destination in the tourism field, especially in the traditional markets. But, he added, there was always a demand to upgrade and diversify the product, as

well as introduce new ones. “We discovered that with the emergence of new destinations, particularly in the Mediterranean, even in South America, traditional tourism markets like Barbados were bein g p u t u n d e r considerable pressure as people were going after the same tourists that we w a n t e d . We r e c o g n i s e d that if we were to regain our strong footing in the markets, then we would need to seriously look at reforming and refreshing the tourism product.” Stressing therefore that this was a good partnership with the Bank, he continued: “The IDB has a very strong South/Latin American presence and therefore it is a win-win for all as we tap into those historical links. The National Tourism Program will help us to diversify and upgrade our product offering and it will help with some marketing as well.” Sinckler added that conversely, it would give the IDB an opportunity to venture into new economic partnerships with members, in areas that were not necessarily traditional to the Bank.“This is a perfect type of project that will bring vast benefits for Barbados and I

believe going forward, it will put a platform for Barbados’ take off in the South American market,” he opined. The Minister thanked the IDB for again finding an appropriate, critical and important opportunity to partner with Barbados to assist in building its economy and society. Acknowledging that the loan process had been a long one, Urra stressed that it was inclusive as his organisation had extensive consultations with various members of civil society, including taxi drivers and vendors. “Barbados has an impressive history in terms of reaching good quality, high level tourism; [but] the challenge is to keep it,” he stated, adding that the loan would greatly assist in that regard. “Barbados is a very mature market but with a lot to offer…. It is a country with h i s t o r y, h e r i t a g e a n d culture, that people enjoy visiting. Barbados has done a great job in general by making a contrast with other Caribbean destinations that just offer sun and beach tourism…. That is why tourists keep coming back because there is an emotional and personal connection,” he said.

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Doping: Sky and Wiggins crossed Late Matic strike... ‘ethical line’ - UK parliamentary report LONDON (Reuters) Team Sky crossed an”ethical line” by using permitted medication to enhance the performance of Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins, said a British parliamentary committee report published yesterday. Team Sky immediately issued a statement to “strongly refute” the claim. The long-awaited Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) select committee report on ‘Combatting doping in sport’ said the widespread therapeutic use exemption (TUE) system was open to abuse. It was unable to say for sure what was in a mysterious package delivered to Wiggins at the 2011 Criterium

Sir Bradley Wiggins (Stephane Mahe/Reuters) du Dauphine race but found no “reliable evidence” to support Sky’s assertion that it was a legal decongestant. Briton Wiggins took to Twitter to criticize the report. “I find it so sad that accusations can be made, where people can be accused of

things they have never done which are then regarded as facts,” he wrote. “I strongly refute the claim that any drug was used without medical need. I hope to have my say in the next few days and put my side across.” The committee said it be-

Tuesday March 06, 2018 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) Take your leadership abilities to a new level, Aries. Gather some friends and plan a trip that you've long been considering but were reluctant to act on.

LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) Put your wisdom into action, Libra. There is no good in accumulating knowledge and then letting it sit, collecting dust like an old book on a shelf.

TAURUS(Apr.20–May20) There may be a stalemate when you're unwilling to express your feelings, Taurus. You might automatically assume that things will go smoothly if you leave the decisions up to someone else.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Enjoying the good times may be fun, but it may also get you into trouble down the road, Scorpio. Be careful of spending all your resources on pleasure without setting something aside for leaner times.

GEMINI (May 21–June 20) ecisions don't have to be as hard as you make them, Gemini. You may feel as if a strong force is pulling you in a clear direction, so don't resist it. CANCER (June 21–July 22) Look at things from a more philosophical perspective, Cancer, instead of seeing everything from such an intensely emotional one. LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) This is your day, Leo, so don't waste it. Being the helpful, friendly person you are, you may find yourself catering to other people's needs and desires. VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) Reward yourself for all the great things you've done for you and other people, Virgo. You deserve to be treated like royalty, so make sure that you do.Reward yourself for all the great things you've done for you and other people, Virgo.

SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) The surge of power within you is going to let others know that you mean business, Sagittarius. Make good use of this fantastic boost of energy by conquering your own goals CAPRI (Dec. 22–Jan. 19) Be more adventurous than usual, Capricorn. Feel free to take a trip somewhere without bringing a map or having any specific destination in mind. AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) You might find yourself in a difficult situation when faced with a person who doesn't necessarily approve of how you're handling yourself, Aquarius. PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) Your interest in certain offthe-wall topics may be encouraged when you're engaged in a conversation with someone who shares similar thoughts, Pisces.

lieved a powerful corticosteroid, triamcinolone, was being used “to prepare Bradley Wiggins, and possibly other riders supporting him, for the Tour de France”. “The purpose of this was not to treat medical need, but to improve his power to weight ratio ahead of the race,” the committee said. Wiggins, an asthma sufferer who has said he sought no unfair advantage, had been granted a TUE for the banned anti-inflammatory ahead of the 2012 Tour. The report said that while there was no violation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code, “it does cross the ethical line that (team principal) David Brailsford says he himself drew for Team Sky”. “In this case, and contrary to the testimony of David Brailsford in front of the Committee, we believe that drugs were being used by Team Sky, within the WADA rules, to enhance the performance of riders, and not just to treat medical need.”The report also accused Sky and British Cycling of “serious, unprofessional and inexcusable” behavior in failing to keep proper medical records. FULL RESPONSIBILITY Team Sky said they took full responsibility for mistakes made in areas where they had already acknowledged they fell short.“However, the Report also makes the serious claim that medication has been used by the Team to enhance performance. We strongly refute this,” the statement said. “The report also includes an allegation of widespread Triamcinolone use by Team Sky riders ahead of the 2012 Tour de France. Again, we strongly refute this allegation.”Sky said they were surprised and disappointed that the committee had “chosen to present an anonymous and potentially malicious claim in this way, without presenting any evidence or giving us an opportunity to respond”.

East Coast... From page 35 Western Tigers (four games, 10 points) and table stragglers Cougars FC (five games, five losses) that are staring the threat of relegation; that game kicks off at 17:30hrs. And, the second match will see fourth placed Fruta Conquerors (four games, three wins, one loss) against second place Den Amstel (five games, three wins, one loss, one draw) in a very anticipated game from 19:30hrs.

From page 34 76th when Alexis Sanchez’s effort came back off the bar and Romelu Lukaku turned two defenders to fire home. Matic then snatched the points when his volley from 25 metres curled away from diving keeper Wayne Hennessey into the top corner to put United back into second spot on 62 points, 16 behind Manchester City, and left Palace in the relegation zone. “It was a nice goal,” said Matic. “I am happy for the team, not because I scored but because we won and picked up the three points. We showed character after going 2-0 down and they had the crowd behind them. “We are delighted to have turned it around. Every point matters and it’s so important to win games like this.” United’s win put them nine points ahead of fifthplaced champions Chelsea in the battle for the top four which brings a place in next season’s Champions League group stage.It also took Jose Mourinho’s team back above Liverpool, who are two points behind before the pair clash at Old Trafford on Saturday, with Tottenham Hotspur a further two points behind.

With nine games left, Palace are third from bottom with 27 points but only a point outside the safety zone. RASPING DRIVE When Townsend struck the opening goal it was the first time Palace had led United in the Premier League and the home fans could hardly believe their eyes when their Dutch international Van Aanholt beat De Gea at his near post with a rasping drive. However, Palace’s second goal stung United into life and they were soon back in the match when Valencia clipped a cross to the far post where Smalling was lurking on his own to direct a header back across Hennessey’s goal into the far corner.The game was then an absorbing end-to-end battle as both sides attacked but United found the equaliser when Sanchez’s shot was deflected onto the bar and came back for Lukaku who managed to find some space inside the area and fired home.The game was still on a knife edge but United started to pile on the pressure and the almost inevitable breakthrough came when the ball fell to the visitors’ Serbia midfielder Matic who instinctively struck a superb shot into the top corner.

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Mickelson ends five-year Starc, Hazlewood swing victory drought in Mexico Australia to 118-run win (Reuters) - Phil Mickelson ended a five-year victory drought as he sank a par putt on the first playoff hole to defeat Justin Thomas at the WGC-Mexico Championship on Sunday. The 47-year-old Hall of Famer, who had not won since the 2013 British Open, was thrilled to find his golden touch and make a longawaited breakthrough at the Club de Golf Chapultepec in Mexico City. “For it to happen here in Mexico City in a WCG event against the best players in the world is such an encouraging and validating feeling for all the lows and difficult times I have experienced the last four years,” said Mickelson, who claimed his 43rd PGA Tour win. “This is hopefully going to propel me on to better stuff.” Thomas, who had waited for more than half an hour after a closing eagle to start the playoff, hit first and was long on the 17th hole. The 2017 PGA champion then missed a putt for par to end a weekend in which he had come from 11 strokes back to contend. The Americans completed regulation tied at 16under 268 for a one-stroke

The victory in Mexico is Phil Mickelson’s first title since the 2013 Open at Muirfield. (Getty Images) lead after Thomas, the earlier finisher, shot seven-under 64 and Mickelson 66. England’s Tyrrell Hatton and Spaniard Rafa Cabrera Bello both shot 67s to tie for third at 15-under 269. Hatton had been tied with Mickelson and Thomas going into the last hole, but a bogey on the par-four 18th ended his hopes. Overnight leader Shubhankar Sharma of India crashed out with five bogeys in a final round 74 to finish tied for ninth at 274. Thomas, the playoff winner in last week’s Honda Classic, appeared headed for another title when his eagle at

18 gave him a two-stroke lead. “To make that wedge (shot) on 18 is pretty unbelievable,” said Thomas, who had six birdies and a bogey in his final round to back up a course record 62 on Saturday. But Mickelson, who had led earlier before a bogey at 11 temporarily stalled him, fought back with birdie putts at the 15th and 16th holes to reel in Thomas. “There was none bigger than that one (on 16) because it got me tied to the leader that was already finished and in the clubhouse,” Mickelson said. “That gave me a chance at 17 and 18 to try and win it.”

Josh Hazlewood claimed Quinton de Kock’s wicket to wrap up the first Test, South Africa v Australia, 1st Test, Durban, 5th day, March 5, 2018 © Getty Images ESPNcricinfo - Mitchell Starc missed out on a hat-trick but Australia had little trouble in wrapping up a 118-run win on the fifth morning in Durban, where they took a 10 lead in the four-match series. Bad light had halted Australia’s march to victory on the fourth evening with just one wicket required, so it was possible that it could have taken just a single ball to end the game on day five. In the end, it took 22 deliveries. Josh Hazlewood confirmed the result by trapping Quinton de Kock lbw for 83

in the fourth over of the day, as South Africa were dismissed for 298. Morne Morkel finished not out on 3. Starc had been denied the chance to bowl for a hat-trick late on day four after he bowled Keshav Maharaj and Kagiso Rabada with what became his last two balls of the day, as the umpires declared that the light was sufficient only for spin bowling. He instead bowled for his hat-trick with the first ball of the fifth day and rapped de Kock on the pads, but the ball was sliding down leg. The result gives Austra-

lia a good start as they aim to maintain their remarkable record of having not lost a Test series in South Africa since readmission. The teams now move on to Port Elizabeth for the second Test, which begins on Friday. Scores: Australia 351 (M Marsh 96, Smith 56, Warner 51, Maharaj 5-123, Philander 3-59) and 227 (Bancroft 53, Maharaj 4-102, Morkel 3-47) beat South Africa162 (de Villiers 71*, Starc 5-34) and 298 (Markram 143, de Kock 83, Starc 4-75, Hazlewood 3-61) by 118 runs.

IAAF CEO Gers quits after less than 18 months in job Women may be better suited to (Reuters) - IAAF chief executive officer Olivier Gers has resigned 18 months into his role citing differences with the global governing body of athletics’ commercial strategy, he said in a statement yesterday.The Frenchman’s departure came as a surprise, particularly after he was appointed by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 2016 amid much anticipation after a six-month search involving more than 200 candidates. “While I’m sorry to be leaving, the pre-existing commercial framework makes it difficult for me to apply my talents and fully leverage the assets of the IAAF in the way I would like,” said Gers. “Given my stance, I have resigned so the IAAF can pursue a different commercial strategy for the sport.” The IAAF said Gers would continue in his role for the next three months after which a new CEO would be recruited.The news is another blow to IAAF President Sebastian Coe in what has been a difficult period for the Briton and his organization.

Formula E than F1, says Jorda

IAAF chief executive officer Olivier Gers (left) has resigned. (Getty Images) Coe was criticized this week by a British parliamentary report for providing “misleading” answers to questions in a 2015 hearing about what he knew about doping in Russian athletics before he took office.Coe, who was elected IAAF chief in 2015, had previously denied misleading the committee. “I would like to thank Olivier for the work he has done particularly around putting a strong team in place at the IAAF, developing a strategic plan and securing broadcast and digital rights to expand audiences for Athletics globally,” Coe said.

“Coming off the best world championships we have ever had, having established a set of reforms that solidly underpins the governance of the sport and having established a solid foundation for growth, we will move forward with the innovation that will bring in new fans and new partners.” Despite the success of last year’s world championships in London, Coe has a challenging task to restore the reputation of his sport given the fallout from the findings of the 2016 McLaren report into widespread doping by Russia athletes.

LONDON (Reuters) Spanish racing driver Carmen Jorda has suggested women could be better suited to Formula E than Formula One because the all-electric cars are less physically challenging. The comments, made to reporters after the 29-year-old former Lotus and Renault F1 development driver tried out a Formula E car in Mexico City at the weekend, drew criticism from other women racers. “My eyes rolled so far back in my head I nearly passed out,” said Britain’s Pippa Mann, a regular competitor in the Indianapolis 500, on Twitter. “She does know that the reason IndyCar drivers are bulkier than F1 drivers is that we have to lift bigger weights because our races have no power steering at all, and that women succeed over here right?” Jorda, who also sits on the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA)’s women’s commission, said the Formula E car was easier

Spanish race car driver Carmen Jorda Buades (motorsport.com) for women to drive. “It’s a less physical car than in Formula One because of the downforce and because of the power steering as well,” ESPN quoted her as saying. “The challenge that we women have in Formula Two and Formula One is a physical issue and I think in Formula E, we won’t have it,” added the Spaniard. Jorda, who has never

raced a Formula One car and achieved only modest results in junior series, has also advocated an all-female motor racing championship. Claire Williams, deputy principal of the family-run Wi l l i a m s F o r m u l a O n e team, expressed her firm opposition to that idea when asked about it at preseason testing in Barcelona last week. “I think women should be able to compete alongside men,” she said.”Why would you segregate them? “We’ve always been a sport that has allowed women to compete alongside men...so why would we now want to make what I view as a regressive step by creating an all-women championship?” Formula One has not had a woman driver on the starting grid since 1976. The most recent woman to compete in Formula E was Swiss racer Simona de Silvestro in 2016.

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Kaieteur News

GFF/Pele Alumini Frank Watson U15 League – EBFA

Agricola’s Lambert fires in 7 goals in 2 matches; Grove suffers first defeat - Timehri move to 3rd It was another productive weekend for leaders Agricola Red Triangle which further increased their advantage with back to back wins as they maintained their unbeaten run, Grove Hi Tech suffered their first loss as they endured mixed fortunes when rivalry in the East Bank Football Association (EBFA) leg of the GFF/Pele Alumini Frank Watson U15 Intra Association League continued on Saturday and Sunday last at the Timehri Red ground. Also in winner’s row were Herstelling Raiders which also suffered mixed fortunes, Diamond Upsetters, Timehri Panthers, Swan and Mocha. But the weekend belonged to Agricola and their leading forward, Brian Lambert who fired in a helmet-trick in their 5-1 win over Samatta Point/Kaneville on Saturday and followed up on Sunday with a hat-trick when they trounced Friendship, 4-0. Lambert’s seven goal performance on the weekend has taken him to the top spot on the goal scorers list with 15 goals in seven matches overtaking Herstelling Raiders’ Shoran James who has 14 also from a similar amount of matches. Lambert netted in the 10th, 21st, 36th and 52nd minute against Samatta Point with

Leon Hope tucking in the other in the 51st minute. Samatta Point got their consolation goal from Matthew Austin in the 53rd minute. The lone walk over on the weekend out of eight matches was recorded when Mocha did not show up for their match against Hetstelling Raiders on Saturday. Diamond Upsetters waltzed to their third win in seven matches when they stopped Soesdyke Falcons 3-1 on account of goals from Michael Pierre (18), Shafeek Russell (38) and Jamal Thomas in the 43rd minute. Soesdyke had taken the lead in the 4th minute through a Tyrone Burnette goal. Timehri Panthers handed Grove Hi Tech their first loss of the league, a 6-0 whipping. Ishmael Pulsarran led the way with a hat-trick (28, 68, 69), while there was one apiece for Yohance Reynolds (18), Prince Forde (30) and Tywell Lovell in the 44th minute. Swan FC, based on the Linden Soesdyke Highway, posted their third win in six matches when thy thumped Samatta Point/Kaneville 4-1 in the opening encounter on Sunday. Azeem Calistro opened proceedings in the 12th minute and was emulated by Joshua Joseph who scored twice in the 22nd and 24th minutes before Kevin

Brian Lambert – Agricola Red Triangle Daniels got his in the 35th minute. Jaded Forthe was the lone scorer for Samatta Point in the 39th minute. Agricola then took the field for their clash with Friendship and ran away comfortable 4-0 winners led by Lambert with a hat-trick (5, 11, 13), Brandon Narine converted the other goal on 39 minutes. Mocha Champs, which did not show up on Saturday, ensured they did so on Sunday and took full points in their match against Soesdyke Falcons, 3-1. Mocha wasted little time in stamping their authority and within eight minutes had already put the game in the bag. Kelvin Gordon (3), Genesis Lewis in the 5th and

Oscars 2018: NBA legend Kobe Bryant wins prize for best short animated film BBC Sport - NBA legend Kobe Bryant won the Oscar for best short animated film in Sunday’s award ceremony in Los Angeles. The six-time NBA championship winner was recognised for Dear Basketball, a five-minute film based on a love letter to the sport he had written in 2015. When Bryant ended his career in 2016, the LA Lakers retired the two jerseys he wore during his 20-year spell. In accepting his award, the 39-year-old spoke in defence of athletes’ influence on cultural and political life. He said: “As basketball players, we’re really supposed to shut up and dribble. But I’m glad we do a little bit more than that. “Thank you, Academy, for this amazing honour.” His words referenced comments made by Laura Ingraham, a Fox News presenter who criticised Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant and Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron

Dear Basketball, written by Bryant (left) and directed by Glen Keane (right), is based on a letter Bryant wrote announcing his plans to retire. (Getty Images) James for openly stating their opposition to US President Donald Trump. She had said they “should keep the political commentary to themselves, or as somebody once said, shut up and dribble”. Dear Basketball, written by Bryant and directed by

Glen Keane, is based on a letter Bryant had published on The Players’ Tribune website, announcing his plans to retire from basketball. Bryant remains the Lakers’ all-time point scorer - he only ever played for one team - and is third on the NBA’s all-time list with 33,643 points.

From right, Prince Forde, Yohance Reynolds, Ishmael Pulsarran and Tywell Lovell – Timehri Panthers FC Team P Agricola 7 Grove 8 Timehri 5 Kuru Kururu 6 Diamond Upsetters7 Swan FC 6 Herstelling 7 Mocha 6 Samatta Point/KV 6 Friendship 7 Soesdyke 7 Diamond United 4

W 6 4 4 4 3 3 3 2 2 2 1 0

Jermaine Harry in the 8th minute netted for Mocha, Tyrone Burnette scored the lone goal for Soesdyke in the 31st minute. Ann’s Grove rebounded well from their loss on Saturday to win an exciting duel against Herstelling Raiders, 2-1.

Latest Points Standings L D F 0 1 22 1 3 11 1 0 16 2 0 8 3 1 5 3 0 19 4 0 22 2 2 7 3 1 7 5 0 6 6 0 10 4 0 1 Herstelling had taken the lead through the energetic and lethal Shoran James in the 16th minute, his 14th goal of the league. But Grove, led by their Captain and main defender Devon Padmore were not in the mood to go down again.

A 3 11 2 7 7 7 13 5 14 14 19 33

GD +19 0 +14 +1 -2 +12 +9 0 -7 -8 -9 -32

Points 19 15 12 12 10 9 9 8 7 6 3 0

Padmore it was that netted the winning goal in the 32nd minute, his fifth of the league but that was after the equalising effort of Jaden Isaacs in the 26th minute. Eight more matches are carded for this weekend at the same venue, four each day.

Guyana Table Tennis Association to hold Annual General Meeting March 25 The Annual General Meeting of the Guyana Table Tennis Association will be held on Sunday 25th March 2018, from 1:00pm at the Guyana Olympic Association Building Block XXX Lilliendaal, East Coast Demerara. Notice of Motions must reach the Hon. General Secretary no later than Monday 19th March 2008. Each club registered with the Association is entitled to send as many delegates as may desire, however only one authorized member will be allowed to vote. Clubs are reminded to ensure that their annual subscriptions have been paid by the 16th March, 2018. The Agenda for the AGM is: 1. Welcome 2. Minutes/ Matters Arising 3. President Report

4. Secretary ‘s Report 5. Treasurer’s Report 6. Motions 7. Election of Office Bearers for Period 2018-2020 8. Installation of Office bearers 9. Any Other Business The current serving Executive Committee of the GTTA Godfrey Munroe

President Dr. Pradeep Balram Senior Vice President Mr. Jonatha n Sankar Junior Vice President Mrs. Deirdre Edghill Hon. Treasurer Mr. Linden Johnson Hon. General Secretary Ms. Lisa Lewis Assistant Secretary Mr. Joel Wilburg Assistant Secretary

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Tuesday March 06, 2018

Kaieteur News

Lyon fined 15% for de Villiers incident

Nathan Lyon claimed two wickets in his first over. (AFP) ESPNcricinfo - Nathan Lyon has been fined 15% of his match fee by the ICC for dropping the ball near AB de Villiers after the South Africa batsman was run out on day four of the Durban Test. After the incident was reviewed by the match referee Jeff Crowe, Lyon was charged with conduct contrary to the spirit of cricket, a level one offence. He was found to have breached Article 2.1.1 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “conduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game”. In addition, Lyon has had one demerit point added to his disciplinary record, a first offence for the player since the introduction of the revised Code in September 2016. If a player accrues four demerit points within 24 months, he receives a oneTest or two-limited-over game ban. Lyon is believed to have contacted de Villiers overnight to apologise. He had also accepted the charge and no hearing was required. The ICC decided, however, that no action would be taken following a confrontation between David Warner and Quinton de Kock during the tea break on day four. Adam Gilchrist, the former Australian wicketkeeper and

captain, said the team would need to reassess how they reacted to such incidents. “As an outside observer, I think you would find that a little bit off-putting at times, a little bit bad taste at times,” Gilchrist told SEN Radio. “And the question may even come over all those eras as a general statement. Australian teams have generally been at the top of the pile, not every minute of those times, but generally they’re a very competitive, world class team,and some would say they don’t need to do that. “Why do you need to present that somewhat ugly look if you’re playing such good cricket? And they’re not good images and it’s hard to know, to comment specificially about this incident overnight, and any other time, unless you’re there and know the ins and outs of what was said and what sparked it and the verbal volleys that would have been thrown around. “Very hard to comment on the detail of it but no denying that some of the parts of the celebration of the run-out of de Villiers and then obviously this incident that I’m sure you’re getting to, of this leaked dressing room footage, it’s not a very good look. I think it needs to be considered how to react in certain scenarios and learn from the

scenarios.” Speaking about Warner, Gilchrist said the Australian vice-captain was not projecting the image of a leader. “I think with Davey...there is no one denying his capabilities with the bat in hand. It’s funny...he came into cricket and had his natural aggression mindset both with bat in hand and in the field,” Gilchrist said. “He used to pride himself being the guy that got into the verbal stoushes and was a leader of the aggressive mindset. But he then went the other way and he was very, very outright in saying ‘I’ve put that away, that’s not me any more’. “It was really extreme the opposite way, and now he’s come back again saying ‘old Davey’s back’ and all his team-mates are saying ‘the Reverend’s gone, Bull’s back’. It’s always a worry in any situation when someone is so extreme on one direction or the other. I think Davey’s got to find somewhere in between that. He does pride himself in being a leader of the team, he did that very well in the T20s [against New Zealand and England recently] as captain but what we’ve seen in the last 24 hours probably isn’t the images that you want your captain projecting.”

Guardiola accepts FA charge for wearing yellow ribbon (Reuters) - Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has accepted an FA charge for wearing a yellow ribbon during matches in support of jailed pro-independence politicians in his native Catalonia. The former Barcelona boss has continually sported the ribbon in City’s Premier League matches as well as games in domestic and European cup competitions, prompting the FA to charge him for violating their kit and advertising regulations. A hearing has been requested, with a date to be set in due course, the FA said. The 47-year-old Spaniard wore the ribbon during his side’s 3-0 League Cup final victory over Arsenal at Wembley Stadium. Many City

fans also wore yellow ribbons which were being handed out on the Wembley Way approach to England’s national stadium before kickoff. However, Guardiola did not wear the ribbon during Sunday’s 1-0 league win over Chelsea. Earlier on Monday, FA chief executive Martin Glenn spoke out strongly in defence of his organisation’s decision to charge Guardiola. Glenn later apologised over comments he made regarding political and religious symbols in which he included the Star of David and the Nazi swastika among those that should be kept out of the game.

Nervous Gatlin ready for 150m debut in South Africa (Reuters) - Justin Gatlin may be the world 100 meters champion with a decade of experience behind him, but the American says he is feeling like a rookie again. A trip to South Africa is firing up the top-ranked sprinter, he told Reuters. “I’ve never been to South Africa, I’ve never run a competitive 150 and I’ve never run this early when I didn’t compete indoors,” Gatlin said in a telephone interview from his Florida home. All that changes on Thursday when the 2004 Olympic champion competes in the Athletix Grand Prix Series in Pretoria, South Africa. “It’s exciting,” said the American, not long past his 36th birthday.”You get that nervousness but also excitement. It makes you feel like a rookie again. “I actually jumped at the opportunity when my agent called. We’ve got hundreds of 100 meters to run and we can run a 200 anytime so I said let’s run a 150. Let’s go out there and see what it feels like.” There is no official record in the infrequently contested event, but retired Jamaican 100 and 200 meters world record holder Usain Bolt set the world best, a flashy 14.35 seconds he ran at Manchester, England in 2009. Gatlin would not speculate on how fast he might run.“I am just going to zone in on my technique to be as competitive as possible,” he said, adding he is dedicating the race to the Atlanta-based

Justin Gatlin

Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research with whom he is now partnering. His only 150 meters have come in training. SPEED ENDURANCE No longer an indoors competitor, Gatlin admitted he was not at top speed yet. “We’re in speed endurance time right now,” the 2005 and 2017 world champion said of workouts with coach Brooks Johnson who is mentoring Gatlin again. “We’re just getting to the speed phase so it’s not like we are incredibly fast when it comes to racing right now.” His first 100 meters will not likely come until the Shanghai Diamond League meeting in May. “I’ll just jump in relays and work on speed,” Gatlin said of his plans after the South Africa trip. Somewhere along the way - on or off the track - he is

likely to meet up with America’s newest sprint standout, 60 meters world record holder Christian Coleman. They chat frequently and both attended the University of Tennessee where they were multiple collegiate champions. “He’s amazing when it comes to his transition,” said Gatlin.”He’s strong, he’s focused and there is something that you see in him that you don’t see in a lot of other athletes. It’s that hunger to be the best. “When he comes across the line even if he wins a round, you can look at the disappointment on his face because he didn’t run as fast as he wanted to. “He is constantly trying to be a better athlete, not just settling. That’s the kind of athlete that stay around for a long time.”

Serena’s comeback her greatest challenge, says coach Mouratoglou (Reuters) - Serena Williams’ return to the WTA Tour following the birth of her first child will be the “greatest challenge” of her career, but the American can get back to her best in time for the French Open, according to her coach Patrick Mouratoglou. Williams, who won her 23rd grand slam title at last year’s Australian Open before going on maternity leave, pulled out of this y e a r ’s t o u r n a m e n t i n Melbourne. She represented the United States in a Fed Cup doubles match last month and is scheduled to take part in the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells this

week. Asked if her latest comeback represented the biggest test of her career, Mouratoglou said:”It probably is... now she is 36, just had a child, a second blood clot, has gone more than a year without any competition. I think we can say without a doubt that this is her biggest challenge.” Former world number o n e Wi l l i a m s , w h o r e turned in 2012 from surgery for a life-threatening blood clot on her lung and climbed back to the top of the rankings, said she almost died after giving birth to her daughter in September. Mouratoglou said fans

had to give Williams time to adjust to the rigors of the sport. “I think she’ll be ready for Roland Garros. The competitions she will play until then will help her and every day she progresses on her fitness,” he told the Wo m e n ’s Te n n i s A s s o ciation website. “Serena’s target will be to win grand slams. She knows that coming back might take some time, but her level of expectation is high as always. There are three grand slams left this season. They will be her three main goals for 2018.”

Tuesday March 06, 2018

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Kaieteur News

Windies looking to stamp authority from opener HARARE, Zimbabwe, CMC – West Indies begin their quest for a spot at next year World Cup when they face minnows United Arab Emirates in their opening match of the ICC World Cup Qualifiers here today, hoping to turn the page on their ordinary form. The Caribbean side struggled on the slow pitches here in their two warm-up matches, sensationally losing to Afghanistan before rebounding to narrowly beat UAE and escape embarrassment. Labelled as favourites but aware now more than ever that the qualifying campaign could be fraught with peril, Windies captain Jason Holder yesterday underscored the importance of a strong start to the competition. “Ideally we need to start well – it’s been a common trend in these tournaments where you really need to start well,” the all-rounder asserted. “There’s obviously been a bit of weather around in terms of rain and we don’t want to find ourselves scrambling in the end. “So I’ve really

emphasised the importance of starting well. We’ve got UAE and Papua New Guinea up front and I think it’s important we beat both those teams heading into the last two encounters with Ireland and Netherlands.” West Indies’ fickle batting remains their ever-present plight. Against Afghanistan, they failed to chase down a modest revised target of 140 and were dismissed for 110 – after being well-placed on 80 for two at one stage. The shocker came against UAE when they were rolled over for 115 and needed a strong bowling effort in order to pull off victory in the end. They boast in their ranks the veteran pair of Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels who among them have played a combined 467 OneDay Internationals, and also have the likes of match-winners like the youthful pair of Evin Lewis and Shai Hope. Holder said he was hoping for a better strip at the Old Hararians Ground as the Windies looked to mount an improved batting effort. “It should be a really good contest. We played against them before a few days ago

West Indies superstar Chris Gayle will be hoping to stamp his authority. (Photo courtesy ICC) so we had a good look at the opposition and what they bring,” he explained. “Hopefully tomorrow the conditions are a lot better than they were in the warmup game. From all reports, the last game played here … seemed to be a really good wicket with the ball coming on and you can get pretty good scores on it, so hopefully our batsmen can capitalise on the conditions tomorrow, basically stamp their authority and get us to a really good total.”

He added: “Whether we bat or bowl first, it’s about assessing the conditions and making a determination of how to go about formulating an innings. We’ve probably set our par score of 250 in this tournament. Based on the first few games that have been played here, that seems to be a par score as well so anything in excess of that should be plus for us and we should be able to comfortably defend. “I back our bowling attack

against most teams and we’ve done well up front with the new ball by taking early wickets. The beauty about the last game we played was the spinners came in the middle and continued on where the opening bowlers had left off. “Hopefully we can continue to build and improve and as we go deeper in the tournament, we can play better and better.” UAE qualified for the tournament by winning last month’s ICC World Cricket League Division 2 title in Namibia while West Indies were forced into the qualifiers after failing to finish in the top eight in the ICC one-day rankings by the September 30 cut-off date last year. Two-time former World Cup champions, the Windies are heavy favourites to comfortably reach the finals and secure one of the two remaining spots at next year’s World Cup in England. Holder, however, once again reiterated his side was taking nothing for granted. “It’s just about us coming tomorrow and executing. We’ve got to be cognisant of the fact that these teams are going to come really hard at

us. They’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain,” he stressed. “So we’ve got to understand that and we’ve got to be disciplined. I think we can probably adopt the same mentality in terms of not putting ourselves under unnecessary pressure. We’ve just got to go out there and play the cricket necessary to win.” The match bowls off at 9:30 am (3:30 am Eastern Caribbean time). SQUADS: WEST INDIES – Jason Holder (captain), Jason Mohammed (vice-captain), Devendra Bishoo, Carlos Brathwaite, Sheldon Cotterell, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Evin Lewis, Nikita Miller, Ashley Nurse, Rovman Powell, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Kesrick Williams. UAE – Rohan Mustafa (captain), Adnan Mufti, Ahmed Raza, Amir Hayat, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Ghulam Shabber, Imran Haider, Mohammad Boota, Mohammad Naveed, Muhammad Usman, Qadeer Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Zahoor Khan.

Nat U-15s selectees benefit from GCB/CGI Players Dev Programme C r i c k e t We s t I n d i e s (CWI), through the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), hosted a player’s development programme yesterday at the Chetram Singh Centre of Excellence Hostel at La Bonne Intention (LBI) and one-day seminar. The programme included the staff of the GCB, Player Development Manager of CWI, Ayana Cooper; Child Protection Officer, Orette Francois, Nicholas Fraser, representative from the Ministry of Education Allied Arts Unit along with the National Under-15 twenty member squad who were the recipients of valuable information on Child Protection and mental skills training. Fraser and Francois presented a very informative presentation on what is child abuse, neglect, physical abuse and emotional abuse. Players were also taught about their responsibilities and rights as well as the laws of Guyana with reference to abuse. A CWI Mental Skills Coach, (Guyanese) Shabakie Fernandes, presented a number of interactive sessions with the target group, which included essential topics of Coach’s Ability and attitude, readiness and goal

From left seated in photo: Rep. of Ministry of Education, Nicholas Fraser; Player Development Manager of CWI, Ms. Ayana Fraser; Child Protection Officer, Mr. Orette Francois, Manager of U-15 squad, Mr. Latchman Yadram; Coach Winston Smith along with the National U-15 20 man squad to the back. setting as well as confidence and composure.

The U15 players were very receptive, and indi-

cated that the information shared will help them to ef-

fectively execute their skills in a match setting, by

assisting them to raise their levels

PAGE 34

GCB’s U-17 Inter-County starts tomorrow The 2018 Guyana Cricket Board’s (GCB) 50-over Under17 Inter-County cricket tournament commences tomorrow at the Lusignan ground on the East Coast of Demerara and the Bourda ground in the City from 09:30hrs. Defending champions Berbice, face-off with the GCB Select Under-15 team at Bourda, while Demerara come up against Essequibo at Lusignan in the scheduled matches. The competition continues on Friday when Berbice clash with Demerara at Bourda and Essequibo battle the U-15s at Lusignan and concludes on Sunday with the U-15s opposing Demerara at Bourda and Berbice playing Essequibo at Everest. The team with the most points will be declared the winner. The reigning Champs will be led by National U17 player Jevon Schultz and includes Seon Glasgow, who also played in last year’s team, while National U-15 Captain Marvin Persaud along with his Guyana U-15 team mates Gourav Ramesh and Saif Amoi will also play in their second U-17 competition but first for Berbice. Berbice include a number of Berbice U-15 players and will start as favorites when they take on the GCB U-15s select side. GCB Secretary Anand Sanasie explained that the U15 squad’s involvement in this tournament is a part of their preparations for the Regional U-17 Tournament set for the Easter vacation. “This will be an important tournament not only for the

Sachin Singh under-17 players but also for the Under-15s since the selectors will be picking 14 players from this 20-member squad to represent Guyana in Jamaica,” Sanasie explained. Sanasie informed that the National youth selectors (Nazimul Drepaul, Julian Moore and Otto Brian Christiani) will select a training squad for this year’s Regional U-17 competition in Trinidad during the July/August School vacation. Demerara will be led by West Indies U-16 Skipper Sachin Singh and include Navendra Persaud, Garrick Persaud, Hemnauth Dindyal, Dwayne Dick and Andre Seepersaud. The Essequibo team was selected after two trial matches before the team had two practice matches at the Imam Bacchus ground, while a three day Camp was held on the Essequibo Coast. The side from Guyana’s largest County includes two players who played last year in National U-17 player Lance Roberts, who Captains the team and former Essequibo Skipper Sheldon Charles.

Teams: Berbice: Jevon Schultz (Captain), Ricardo Ramdehol, Fawaz Gafoor, Jarron France, Marvin Prashad, Nigel Deodat, Seon Glasgow, Chanderpaul Govindan, Mohabir Seeraj, Abdul Ramsammy, Gourav Ramesh, Doorasammy Mahadeo, Saif Amoi, Quincy Auldles, (Manager) Delbert Hicks, (Coach) Andrew Percival. Demerara: Sachin Singh (Captain), Navendra Persaud, Garrick Persaud, Hemnauth Dindyal, Dwayne Dick, Andre Seepersaud, Andrew Samaroo, Yeudister Persaud, Sauraf Singh, Nyron Bissu, Marlon Bole, Joshua Reddy, Jason Holder, Trevon Charles, (Manager) Ronald Sarjoo, (Coach) Orin Bailey. Essequibo: Lance Roberts (Captain), Sheldon Charles, Ameer Singh, Wasim Mohamed, Azim Mohamed, Saeed Hakh, Badesh Parsotam, Mahesh Ramnarine, Romario Stephen, Lallchand Seeram, Manoj Basrath, Sylvain, Williams, Arvind Permaul, Jason Payne, (Manager) Nazeer Mohamed, (Coach) Nandkishore Andrews. Select U-15s: Mahendra Gopilall, Nicholas Rajpat, Mavendra Dindyal, Shamar Yearwood, Zeynul Ramsammy, Tomanni Caesar, Chanderpaul Ramraj, Romel Datterdeen, Ronaldo Souten, Jonathan Rampersaud, Jeremy Sandia, Zachary Jodah, Revoldo Phillips, Shafeik Khan, Isia Thorne, Antwone Alexander, Thaddeus Lovell, Ajay Gainda, Gladwin Henry, Safie Shazad, (Manager) Latchman Yadram, (Coach) Winston Smith. (By Sean Devers)

Windies tour dates revised to April: Sethi KARACHI, Pakistan, CMC – The Pakistan Cricket Board has revised the dates for the West Indies series, with all three Twenty20s now carded for April. Initially, the tour was expected to run from March 29 to April 1 in Lahore but PCB chairman Najam Sethi announced yesterday that the Caribbean side would now play matches on April 1, 2 and 4 at the Gaddafi Stadium.

Tuesday March 06, 2018

Kaieteur News

Despite the agreement to play all games in Lahore, Sethi said he was still hopeful of having a match staged in Karachi. “The West Indian Cricket Board (Cricket West Indies) have signed a contract to play three matches in Lahore, but I will try to convince the board to play at least one match in Karachi,” Sethi told media here at the National Stadium. Though the PCB has given regular updates on the proposed tour, CWI are yet to make an announcement. A similar three-match series had been originally scheduled for last September but was scrapped because of heavy smog and the unavailability of key West Indies players because of the

Bangladesh Premier League. The PCB said last month the reciprocal tour against West Indies would be staged in the United States, with a T20 International being played for the first time in Houston, Texas and the remaining games at Central Broward Regional Park Stadium in Fort Lauderdale. Starved of international cricket since a terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in 2009 left several members of the security forces dead, Pakistan has been lobbying major sides to resume tours of the country. The PCB hopes the series against the Windies – the reigning T20 World champions – will open the door to similar tours by other sides.

BCB to host Inter-Secondary Schools Knockout U-19 Tournament - Sueria Manufacturing on board Promising young cricketers at the Under-19 level attending Secondary Schools and Technical Institutes across Berbice would be able to showcase their cricketing skills as the Berbice Cricket Board would be organising an Inter-Secondary School Under-19 Tournament. The Berbice Cricket Board with the support of Sueria Manufacturing CEO Frank Sanichara would be hosting the tournament after a long absence of schools cricket organised by the Berbice Cricket Board. Newly elected President Hilbert Foster was overjoyed at securing the sponsorship from the Berbice born Sanichara and hailed the tournament as a red letter day for Berbice Cricket. The main objectives of the Berbice Cricket Board, he stated in 2018 would be to make sure that all youths are given all the opportunities to fulfill their potential, to play cricket at all levels and to rekindle the love of the game among students. The tournament would be officially launched in Mid March and is expected to bowl off in April. Schools are encouraged to get their teams ready for the tournament and the cut-off Date of Birth is on the 1st September, 1999. Players

BCB President Hilbert Foster must be attending the school that they represent and must have an 85% attendance rate. The following Region Six Schools would be involved in the Tournament - Line Path, Skeldon High, Tagore Memorial, Central Corentyne, Black Bush Polder, Manchester High, Winifred Gaskin Secondary, Corentyne Comprehensive, Port Mourant Secondary, J.C. Chandisingh Secondary, Lower Corentyne Secondary, Canje Secondary, Berbice High School, Vryman’s Erven Secondary, New Amsterdam Secondary, Berbice Educational Institute, Tutorial Academy, New Amsterdam Technical Institute and Upper Corentyne Technical Institute. The Region Five Schools would be

Rosignol Secondary, No. 8 Secondary, Fort Wellington Secondary, Woodley Park Secondary, Bush Lot Secondary, Belladrum Secondary, Mahaicony Secondary, Bygeval Secondary and Mahaicony Technical Institute. Matches would be played 30-Overs per side and the Cricket Board would delegate Coaches and Berbice Selectors to matches with the main aim of spotting talent for coaching sessions. All of the schools are encouraged to host internal practice sessions with the objective to select the best available fourteen cricketers to play in the tournament. Each of the teams would also be required to walk along with either a Manager or Coach. The Berbice Cricket Board in 2018 also intends to host a Cricket Tournament for Primary Schools. This Tournament would be played using either softball or Tapeball. Schools are encouraged to contact or call President Hilbert Foster on Telephone number 337-4562, Vice President Albert Smith on Telephone number 610-3371 or Secretary Rabindranauth (Robby) Saywack on 2320255, 660-0049 for more information.

Late Matic strike gives United win in five-goal Palace thriller LONDON (Reuters) Manchester United’s Nemanja Matic volleyed a stunning added-time winner as they fought back from two goals down to beat Crystal Palace 3-2 at Selhurst Park and climbed to second place in the Premier League yesterday. Palace, who have never beaten United in the Premier

League, took the lead after 11 minutes when Andros Townsend ran onto Christian Benteke’s square ball and struck a left-foot shot that deflected off Victor Lindelof past goalkeeper David de Gea. The hosts went 2-0 in front three minutes into the second half when Jeffrey Schlupp took a quick free kick

after a foul on Benteke and left back Patrick van Aanholt raced at goal before firing past De Gea to put Palace in the driving seat. United pulled a goal back seven minutes later when the unmarked Chris Smalling headed in Antonio Valencia’s cross and equalised in the (Continued on page 29)

Nemanja Matic whacks a late winner for Manchester United with a swing of his left boot to leave Selhurst Park stunned. (Reuters)