Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur M@ilbox Attorney General reacts to Oscar DEARAG: Me Hamilton Greene who Ramjeet is now in Texas has given be I tried to contact you on your email address your cell this morning, but DEAR EDITOR, Reference is made to a letter under the pen of Mr Oscar Ramjeet in the Stabroek News and Kaieteur May 4, 2018 editions purporting to be responding to a letter from the Attorney General Chambers which had dismantled several contestations he had made inanearlierletterabout the work of the chambers. Let me say from the outset that I wish not to engage Mr Ramjeet in any public tit for tat if that he so desires as this Attorney General is very busy attending to matters of the State and r e s ponding to the needs of citizens who have placed their implicit faith and confidence in him and the Government he is part of to lead this nation. However, in the interest of setting the records straight regarding Mr Ramjeet’s claim that he never sought employment at the AG chambers and his idle posturings about his virtues, I have attached the unedited email correspondence from him to yours truly on different dates. I trust that your newspaper will be kind enough to publicise in its fullest these emails of Mr Ramjeet as his attack on a sitting Minister of Government also extended to our Government. Yours Respectfully, Basil Williams SC Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affair ** DEARATTORNEYGENERAL Re Milton Ragbeer v Kempton Mariah
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My client Mr Kempton Moriah who lives in Maryland USA needs help. He is trying to regain possession of his property in Hopetown west coast Berbice which is now in occupation by Milton Ragbeer There was a magisterial matter in the Berbice court number 49 of 2004 which was appealed and so far it has not been determined Understand the magistrates notes cannot be found hence the reason why the appeal was not determined The magistrate was Kumar Dorasammi who is no longer a magistrate Ryan Crawford is on record as representin g Moriah and Perry Goosai is for Ragbeer. Grateful if you can ask one of your aides to check with the appellate court to ascertain the statusAnother appeal involving the sane parties was filed a few mon t h s a g o concerning a High Court decision Thanks Oscar Ramjeet Tel 561 716 6114 Florida ** DEARAG: I tried to contact you on your cell this morning, but voice mail came on. I left a message indicating that I wish to return and serve my country.I sent my resume to you about two weeks ago. Please indicate if you are willing to have me in your team. Sincerely Oscar Ramjeet Florida 561 716 6114 **
voice mail came on. I left a message indicating that I wish to return and serve my country.I sent my resume to you about two weeks ago. Please indicate if you are willing to have me in your team. Sincerely Oscar Ramjeet Florida 561 716 6114 ** AG I am anxiously awaiting a response from you concerning the two emails I sent you. I honestly feel I can be of great assistance to your ministry Sincerely Oscar R ** DEARAG I also have experience in Financial Services having served as Chairman of the St. Vincent Trust Authority which at the time controlled off shore companies. I have contacts with CFTC officials. Dr. Robert Mathavious of the BVI who is considered the authority of financial services in the region is a friend of mine.I think I can be an asset in the new administration.My cell number is 561 716 6114 Sincerely Oscar Ramjeet ** AG I am sending my resume (Continued on page 6)
Kaieteur M@ilbox The Cyber Crime Bill Is Repulsive And Must Be Withdrawn DEAR EDITOR, The controversial Cyber Crime Bill No.16 of 2017 is profoundly undemocratic. Its fundamental premise, is perverse, namely that social peace will be secured by protecting the reputation of elected officials from public scrutiny by criminalizing opinion, destroying principles of plurality, freedom of expression and the human right to access the internet. The Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) believes this Bill should be withdrawn in its entirety. Although public attention has focused on the revival of ‘sedition’ as a crime in Clause 18 of the Cybercrime Bill, it is only one of many obnoxious features. Rather than protection of the principles and benefits which cyberspace offers to advance a richer enjoyment of rights by all citizens, the Bill is uniformly negative, dangerously vague and discretional and views cyberspace as a zone populated by people with a threatening agenda. The genuine issues the Bill seeks to address – grooming of minors, financial crimes, cyber-bullying and vindictive misuse of personal information to humiliate people could be largely and more effectively grafted into existing legislation. In addition to the penal-
ties outlined below, this Bill suppresses the right to freedom of expression, encourages censorship and self-censorship, eliminates content, blocks internet sites, prompting parallels with role of morality police associated with the most repressive regimes. The draconian character of the Bill is established in the first substantive Clause, which states: 3. (1) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally, without authorisation or in excess of authorisation, or by infringing any security measure, accesses a computer system or any part of a computer system of another person. (2) A person who commits an offence under Subsection (1) is liable – on summary conviction to a fine of three million dollars and to imprisonment for three years; oron conviction on indictment to a fine of five million dollars and to imprisonment for five years.The sweeping negative character of the Bill is sustained throughout. Clause 30, for example, states: 30. (1) A person who has knowledge about the functioning of a computer system or computer data storage medium, or security measures applied to protect computer data, that is the subject of a search warrant shall, if re-
quested by the police officer authorised to undertake the search, assist the police officer to access the computer…. 30(2) A person who fails, without lawful excuse or justification, to comply with Subsection (1) commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of three million dollars and to imprisonment for one year. The infamous Clause 18, which has dominated public comment on the Bill states: 18. (1) A person commits an offence of sedition if the person…. (a) brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in Guyana….. 1(d) encourages, incites, induces, aids, abets, counsels any person to commit or to conspire with another person to commit any criminal offence against the President, Prime Minister or any Minister of the Government established by law in Guyana… In between anyone interfering with any computer and anyone knowledgeable being compelled to help the police, internet service providers and other intermediaries are to become censors of the activities ( and opinions ?) of their users. Clause 21 (2) states: (a) (Continued on page 6)
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Kaieteur M@ilbox
Kaieteur M@ilbox
GTT needs to improve Bartica service DEAR EDITOR, I am deeply frustrated with the attitudes of the technicians and their supervisor in the manner they handle my complaints. It has forced me to write this letter. On Monday, a truck came into contact with GTT cables, damaging two and leaving six hanging, mine included. On the said day, I tried contacting the local office here but got a fax tone. I then made a report to the Customer Support Call Centre (CSCC). The representative took my name, address and contact number. She apologized and assured me a report will be dispatched immediately. My neighbours and I made several calls. Each time, I was required to give the same information and got the same response. None of the representatives was able to tell me when the technicians will be able to fix the problem. However, while I was not at home on Friday, the technicians came and replaced the damaged cables only. When my neighbour asked about the hanging ones; she was told that they did not get any report to fix those and they will be fixed the next time. It was made clear that if
we cannot provide the information on who damage the cables in the future, there will be systems so that the consumer will have to pay for the replacement. On my return home, I made a call to the CSCC and was referred to the Security Section but to no avail. On Saturday, a truck came in contact with my cable and damaged it further. This could have been avoided had the technicians fixed them on Friday. From Saturday, I have been asking my neighbour and family members for calls to CSCC which is so embarrassing, but in vain. I asked to speak to the supervisor but was told that he will return a call to me. After four hours, he called. To my dismay, he was unable to answer my question about when the line will be replaced. He just apologized for the inconvenience caused and said he had received complaints about the technicians and that Bartica has a problem, but there is a 10-days waiting period. The following week, I spoke to another supervisor who told me that the PUC gave GTT a 20-days waiting period. Mr Editor, some
residents are without service for months. My sister made several reports. She even visited the Georgetown office. Her phone is not working over three months. My cousin said when the technicians visited her neighbour, she insisted that they fix her line which was not working since last year.It is my opinion that GTT has no care for its customers but is rather concentrating on its profits. This is the only company that has systems in place for automatic disconnection for failing to pay bills on due date.
I don’t have internet service since the incident. I was told I have to pay the full amount and wait for a rebate, if not I will be disconnected. GTT bills are paid at the banks, post offices and Bill Express but customers can only get a directory at the GTT tower station, which is always closed.I do hope that this letter gets the attention of those in charge and something is done to arrest this problem that has been plaguing the residents of Bartica over the years. Shirley Douglas GTT Loyal Customer
The Cyber Crime... From page 5 Where a body corporate commits an offence under this Act and the court is satisfied that a director, manager, secretary, or other similar officer, of that body corporate(a) consented or connived in the commission of the offence; or (b) failed to exercise due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence, that director, manager, secretary, or other similar officer commits an offence. According to Clause 21 (2) summary conviction on any of these offences renders both the ‘body corporate’ and individuals who commit an offence to a fine of five million dollars and to imprisonment for three years; and on conviction on indictment to a fine of eight million dollars and to imprisonment for five years. It seems not to have occurred either to Government or Opposition parliamentarian involved in the Special Committee that reviewed this Bill that ‘exciting disaffection’ and ‘contempt’ has been a
central feature of Guyanese politics thanks in no small part to the contributions made by both major political parties. Were this Bill passed into law any form of ‘disaffection’ expressed by militants in their ranks in a tweet, a post, or other form of public social media statement, could trigger application of the above penalties to themselves and their party leaders. Cyberspace is not some form of disease that needs to be ‘cauterized’ lest it becomes rampant and destroy us all. On the contrary, it is both an expression and a reflection of today’s reality and that of the foreseeable future as well. Draconian legislation of the kind being proposed in the Bill will have little if any impact on this reality. A more enlightened approach is required – one, which does not begin by seeking refuge in what will inevitably become a legislative quagmire in an already unstable criminal justice system. Executive Committee Guyana Human Rights Association
We should reflect on Karl Marx DEAR EDITOR, May 5 marks 200 years since the birth of one of the greatest revolutionary thinker of all times. I refer to none other than the German philosopher, Karl Marx. Several celebratory activities are being held throughout the world in honour of this iconic and monumental philosopher especially in his hometown in Germany, Trier, where a18-feet statue was erected in his honour. To say that Marx’s ideas have influenced millions of people throughout the world would be an understatement. He did much more. He shook the foundations of the capitalist system and showed that there is an alternative model of development where the working class is not only the creators of wealth but also the prime beneficiaries of that wealth.
Not surprisingly, his ideas continue to inspire millions of people throughout the world who long for a more humane and dignified existence. “Philosophers have interpreted the world in various ways; the point, however, is to change it,” he once wrote. Marx, to his credit, not only interpreted the world but he managed through his radical and voluminous writings to be that catalyst for fundamental changes to the structure of global politics and economy. As we observe the birth centennial of Dr. Cheddi Jagan this year, we should also reflect on the bicentennial of the birth of Karl Marx whose influence on Dr. Jagan especially during his early years was both substantial and defining. Hydar Ally
Attorney General ... From page 5 You will see I worked in two jurisdictions, St Vincent and Belize as Solicitor Genreral. Also acted for three years as DPP in St Vincent Sincerely Oscar ** AG I am sending my resume You will see I worked in two jurisdictions, St Vincent and Belize as Solicitor Genreral. Also acted for three years as DPP in St Vincent Sincerely Oscar ** Dear AG Congratulations on your appointment as AG. I know you were and are very busy with the day to day activities
in your tremendous task. It has always been my desire to serve my country, but was unable to do so with the previous administration. Now that we have a sincere government I would like to offer my services in whatever suitable capacity. I worked as Solicitor General and acting DPP in St Vincent for five years and also as SG in Belize for two years. In addition I have a diploma in journalism and public relations and have tremendous regional connections. I am sure I can be an asset in the new administration Yours sincerely Oscar Ramjeet Will send resume under separate cover
Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur M@ilbox OSCAR RAMJEET RECANTS D e a r E d i t o r , I now recall that weeks after APNU/AFC, won the elections I wrote to the new government offering my services to the administration. I suggested employment
in the Financial Services sector since I am familiar with the activities of the CFTC having served as Chairman of the St. Vincent Trust Authority, the Department, which dealt with International Business Companies
One of my emails stated that I would like to serve my country in any suitable capacity — since I am an att o r n e y, j o u r n a l i s t , a n d holds a Diploma in Public Relations. Oscar Ramjeet
US$460M “bonus” is a seditious ... From page 4 billion barrels-plus some, in Guyana's offshore waters. At the current oil price of US$65 per barrel, five billion barrels has a value of US$325B or G$68.25 Trillion. A huge lot of loyalty can be bought and trust betrayed for extremely small fractions of the value of Guyana's oil. The mantra of our representatives seems to fit with the Oscar Wilde statement: “Resist everything except temptation”. Guyana is now dubbed a “frontier” country, don't be misled. It means small and undeveloped by those who coined the term. Yet, developed mega corporations from so-called “developed countries” are lining up in droves to access resources in the “frontier countries”. Don't expect any of the first world expert analysts to question the absurdity of the two percent royalty or to ask for an explanation of the farcical US$460M claim that was thrust into the 2016 Petroleum agreement and by extension upon Guyana. Socrates, the Greek philosopher was noted as saying: “I tell you that virtue comes
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not from money but from virtue comes both money and all other good things for mankind”. Let us start the renegotiation process now to change this dinosauristic Esso/ Guyana Petroleum Agreement. In a Walter Rodney-like ad mixture, Guyanese need to picture Esso in their own minds, as a representative of Exxon Mobil, the largest publicly traded multi-national oil and gas company in the world, crouched over Guyana's oil assets, currently worth US$325B, and under the cover of a 2016 Petroleum Agreement from hell; dictating that Guyanese will only receive US$6.5B in royalties, less delivery costs. Guyanese must resist un-
ceasingly, in a brave, courageous and united manner, this reprehensible 2016 Petroleum Agreement, until it is changed to allow Guyanese a fair share of what belongs to us. I ask our informed commentators not to be sidetracked by issues 40 years into the future- transfer pricing, ring fencing of taxes and tax concessions. T h e f o c used action needed now is to have a decent royalty of at least 10% and the absolute rejection of the US$460M seditious clause in the 2016 Petroleum Agreement. Nigel Hinds
State arms must be strengthened to realize benefits of oil industry- Ramson Abena Rockcliffe-Campbell As Guyana continues to prepare for first oil in 2020, many, including the skeptics, are expecting tangible increases to their livelihoods with the additional revenue. But, there are several examples around the world to show that additional State revenue does not always transcend to improved conditions for the masses. Former Member of Parliament (MP) and qualified oil and gas consultant, Charles Ramson, said that if Guyana is serious about development, there must be a strict and organized movement towards the strengthening of the State and its agencies. “It is a fact,” he said, “that Guyana cannot record any major improvements unless there is reform.” Ramson said that that all arms of the State—Judiciary, Legislature and Executive— are in trouble. “We know all too well about the many problems with the Government, so let me tell you about the judiciary
- Says weak judiciary represents another drag on the economy and our legislative arm (Parliament),” said Ramson. Ramson said that the Judiciary and the Legislative branches are supposed to keep the Executive in check “but those institutions, in their current state, will breed a political elite having virtual exclusive benefit from Guyana’s oil and gas wealth. That is why there is no vested interest from the government to reform them,” said Ramson. THE JUDICIARY Ramson said it is a mistake to think that the judiciary is not a critical component for economic activity and growth, which is what will make everyone benefit from the oil and gas revenue. The Attorney-at-law explained that every commercial case, property or estate dispute, or even
Former MP, Oil and Gas Consultant, Charles Ramson delayed estate grant, is keeping capital out of the economy. Ramson said that the huge backlog of cases and appeals slows the (Continued on page 73)
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Introduce renegotiation, periodic review clauses in all Oil contracts - Chatham House advises Guyana By Kiana Wilburg
I
n an effort to ensure transparency and ac countability, Chatham House has advised Guyana and other emerging economies in the oil sector to input renegotiation and periodic review clauses in all oil contracts. Chatham House is London-based, a non-profit, nongovernmental organization. Its mission is to analyze and promote the understanding of major international issues and current affairs. In its 2016 report, Chatham House said that the aforementioned clauses would allow renegotiation when specific triggers are activated. It advised that such a move helps to maximize eco-
nomic returns to the state. Additionally, Chatham House advised that Guyana and other emerging producers should design fiscal terms that are aligned with a national vision and ensure clear fiscal priorities. It said that these must also clearly articulate the fiscal terms that govern upstream petroleum activity. Chatham House said, “Emerging producers must also develop simple tax structures. Tax obligations should be defined in the tax code rather than in contractual agreements. This includes provisions for taxing capital gains earned by companies that sell or assign their rights or part of their rights before or during production.” The London-based orga-
nization said, “New producers seeking capital for exploration should focus on requiring viable work programmes in order to encourage drilling activity. To attract and retain investors, the use of progressive, flexible fiscal formulas and royalties that respond to changes in profitability is par-
ticularly recommended.” It added, “Emerging producers must strive to reduce the knowledge asymmetries they encounter in negotiations with foreign oil companies. For example, Governments can engage consultants or technical advisors to evaluate the baseline conditions for the award of acreage. To simplify negotiations, emerging producers should move as many contract elements as possible into laws and regulations that apply across licences.” Chatham House said that new circumstances, such as a major discovery being made, or a rise in commodity prices, may prompt many producers to seek to change the terms of their contracts with foreign companies. It said that similarly, low prices may prompt companies to ask Governments for revisions of terms. Chatham
House said that Governments should respect existing contracts, and their first remedy when changes become needed should be to amend future licensing. HELPAVAILABLE If Government so desires, it would be able to tap into the expertise of an international group which helps countries in the successful renegotiation of contracts on a pro bono basis. The group is called the International Senior Lawyers Project (ISLP). Over the past 17 years, with support from law firms, foundations and government agencies, ISLP has mobilized hundreds of experienced lawyers to provide more than $100 million worth of pro bono legal assistance in support of just, accountable and inclusive development in more than 80 countries. The Project was successful in helping Liberia renegotiate its contracts with ArcelorMittal S.A., a Germanbased steel manufacturing company and American company, Firestone Tire and Rubber. According to the Project’s website, former Board Chair and current Board Member, Joe Bell, received a letter from former President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, thanking him for ISLP’s legal assistance following her election and in
the years that immediately followed. The letter from the former President read, “When our administration commenced in 2006 and was faced with a collapsed economy and dysfunctional institutions, we reached out for support in evaluating and renegotiating concession agreements and contracts and we quickly received the assistance required. “This resulted in the landmark renegotiation of the Firestone and ArcelorMittal Concession Agreements with significant improved benefit to Liberia.” “Throughout the twelve years of the Administration, ISLP provided pro bono service as requested in a wide range of endeavors, including those that required a restructuring and regularization of the country’s nascent petroleum exploration programs... “Today, we have new petroleum exploration laws which meet the highest international standards in terms of transparency and accountability thereby ensuring the basis for renewed action in exploration. “Thank you for helping Liberia to be what it is today, a peaceful nation with the foundation in placed to ensure sustained development.” The group has also helped other countries across the world in the renegotiation of oil contracts. ISLP is also no stranger to Guyana as it has provided support to the Attorney General’s Office for the review of Guyana’s Cyber Crime Bill and Electronic Transactions Bill. CALL FOR RENEGOTIATION Local commentators have also expressed concern over the lopsided deal Guyana signed with ExxonMobil, especially when it is compared with the agreement ExxonMobil signed onto with the African country, Ghana. The glaring disparities between the two contracts also underscore the need for the Guyana-ExxonMobil contract to be scrutinised by Parliament, critics say. The Ghanaian contract, for example, has an entire section dedicated to procurement laws, which ExxonMobil must follow at all times. Those provisions are in place to ensure that a significant number of the local companies are able to benefit from the nation’s oil sector. On the other hand, Guyana’s contract mentions nothing about procurement laws. Given the aforementioned and other factors, locals have been calling for the contract to be renegotiated.
Sunday May 06, 2018
20 years later …
Central Bank moves to bring transparency to lending between banks
B
ank of Guyana is seeking to shed a light of transparency on lending between banks. This is according to a document it prepared in partnership with the World Bank to pave the way for the modernization of the nation’s National Payment System (NPS). According to the document, interbank money markets play an important role in an NPS. They facilitate liquidity management, enhance transparency with respect to interbank lending, and provide a valuable tool for the implementation of monetary policy. Central Bank officials noted, however, that the current bilateral lending practices can take time to arrange. It said that for the time being, “The (current systems) fail to provide Bank of Guyana and the commercial banks with information on the rate the intraday or overnight lending is taking place, as well as important information on
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the demand for funds.” Going forward, Central Bank said that it intends to establish an interbank money market. Once the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and Central Securities Depository (CSD) are in place, Bank of Guyana said that the establishment of an interbank money market can be fairly straight forward. It also noted that the CSD provides a means to pledge government securities as collateral for an interbank loan. The RTGS on the other hand provides the means to transfer the funds from one bank to the other. Central Bank said that a trading platform would be the only piece missing. The Bank of Guyana also intends to improve its powers to monitor the interbank money market by strengthening its governing legislation. In fact, the Bank of Guyana (Amendment) Bill is already before the National Assembly. This Bill also seeks to amend the Bank of Guyana
Act by explicitly giving it the power to provide temporary liquidity assistance to deposit taking financial institutions. The document outlines that this is an integral measure which is employed in maintaining the stability of the system. NATIONALPAYMENT SYSTEM The National Payment System Development Plan which was released by Finance Minister, Winston Jordan, consists of four chapters and five annexes. Chapter One examines the current state of payment in Guyana. It notes that the Bank of Guyana is the institution responsible for payments. Be that as it may, the document makes clear that there is need to upgrade the laws, regulations and infrastructure for a safe, efficient and modern payment system. The chapter analyses the role of the main players in the (Continued on page 71)
Dem boys seh...
De Dougla did want dem Arrival Day Guyanese like to hear de word holiday. Since you miss, dem want holiday. And is not dat dem does want it to stay home and rest. Dem does want to do more than dem does do in a working day. Yesterday was a holiday. If things was left to Jagdeo was only one set of people woulda celebrate it. He get he people to declare de day Indian Arrival Day.From de time he do dat de Putagee, de Chinee, de Black and even de Dougla seh he got to get a day fuh remember when he come. When dis was happening, de Amerindian people sit down trying to remember when dem come because dem was here before everybody else. De Putagee people re-
member dat dem come after de slavery done but dem couldn’t remember de date. Kit think it was just before Christmas because somebody claim dem was mekking garlic pork de day after dem land. People love a garlic pork fuh Christmas. De Chinee seh dem arrive in January. In fact, dem can fix any date because dem already change de New Year. When people celebrating on January de First, dem does celebrate later in de month. De Blacks didn’t have a date either. De White people beat dem so much, dat all dem could do was plan to mark de day when de beating gon stop. Dat happen in August. De Douglah man had to
come long after de Hesperus land suh Jagdeo had to find a day fuh him too.Is a good thing some people see de problem and decide dat dem gun use one day fuh seh everybody come pun dat day. Is a nice holiday but dis year people vex. De holiday fall pun a Saturday and dat don’t really count. Another holiday coming later dis month and it fall pun another Saturday. Dem boys seh Guyana should do like de States. All dem holiday fall pun Monday, regardless of de date. If dat was de case everybody woulda been smiling. Talk half and thank de Man Above fuh de holiday.
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GRA starts stamping cigarettes in smuggling clampdown A Customs official demonstrating how the excise stamp should be placed on cigarette packs.
The stamps on the cigarettes.
F
ollowing the introduction of stamps to ensure liquor entering Guyana have been taxed, authorities have now turned their attention to cigarettes. According to the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), it is now alerting importers, retailers and resellers of
tobacco products that its Customs, Excise and Trade Operations (CE&TO) has commenced the application of Excise Stamps on imported tobacco products. “Customs Officers are currently visiting premises to verify existing inventories to initiate the stamping process. Upon the conclusion of the
verification excise for tobacco products, the Commissioner-General will announce a cutoff date after which, those who purchase such products without the stamps, may be penalized in accordance with the Customs Laws.” GRA warned that it is the responsibility of the importer,
retailer or reseller to provide the staffers to affix the stamps under the supervision of the Customs Officers. GRA has also reminded that the cut-off date for liquor in stock was February 28.” “As such, Customs Officers are currently conducting visits to premises, and any unstamped alcohol products will be deemed illegal and may be seized and dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the Customs laws.” The affixing of excise stamps on alcohol and tobacco products is an antismuggling measure, in accordance to the law, GRA said. In November last year, the tax agency in one of its most telling strikes to reduce smuggling and collect its taxes, launched a major project to stamp imported alcohol.
GRA’s Deputy Commissioner, Rohan Beekhoo, demonstrating how the stamp is to be affixed during the rollout on the alcohol, back in November. The high-security barcoded stamps are designed to reduce the leakage of an
estimated $2B in taxes that Guyana loses annually from (Continued on page 13)
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HIGH SEA PIRACY ATTACK...
Several more arrested in Suriname
Surinamese Recovering the Bodies of Sailors.
Suriname authorities, speaking with Kaieteur News via telephone, have confirmed that more than five more suspects were arrested yesterday morning for questioning. The police over there stated that as of now, they are just suspects but they have also moved to question some boat owners in connection with Friday and Wednesday’s pirate attack. In addition, the police in Berbice managed to secure an extension yesterday from the Director of Public Prosecutions to allow for further questioning of the three suspects in custody. Seven other suspected were arrested on Thursday. Nakool “Fyah” Manohar, boat owner and businessman of Number 43 Village, Corentyne, Berbice was
Pirate Attack Survivor, Sherwyn Lovell
Randy ‘Burnham’ Couchman Presumed Dead.
arrested on Thursday after information was filtered to the police that he may have possibly orchestrated a revenge act in honour of his late brother, Somnauth Manohar.
Manohar, also a boat owner, was shot in his yard in Suriname during a drive-by shooting on March 30. He was reportedly involved in a string of piracy attack in Continued on page 13
Sunday May 06, 2018
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Increase the likelihood of crooks being caught – Commonwealth SG Guyana and other Commonwealth member states are being called upon to focus on increasing the likelihood of crooks being caught and relieved of their ill-gotten gains. Secretary General of The Commonwealth Secretariat, Baroness Patricia Scotland, said the focus is on the effectiveness of the antimoney laundering legislation. “We have to increase the likelihood that the crooks will be caught and secondly, we have to relieve them of the burden of their ill-gotten gains. The two things they enter into crime for is the money. “They think that they wouldn’t get caught so we have to increase the likelihood that they will get caught; we have to take away all the assets that they illicitly obtain from their corrupt activities. If we do that, we make crime not worth their while,”
Baroness Scotland explained. The SG attended the twoday training for judicial officers in Guyana which ended on Friday. She shared the view that when one looks at the difference between the money held legitimately and the money needed it is the sum equivalent to that which is siphoned off across the world by corruption. According to the SG, there are those who are internationally attacking all the systems whether it is through money laundering, people trafficking, drug trafficking, arms dealing or terrorism. “We are all therefore at threat,” Baroness Scotland. She said that there is the belief that money laundering is a victimless crime where no one suffers. The SG noted that that this is not true because if the money is taken out of legitimate processes
Several more arrested...
From page 12 neighbouring Suriname. It was also revealed by a source that samples were taken from some relatives of the missing fishermen to be sent for DNA analysis to aid in identifying the bodies that have already been recovered. A high level delegation from Guyana, including Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan; Deputy Commander of ‘B’ Division Wayne DeHearte; and Guyana’s Deputy Crime Chief have headed to Suriname. The team is expected to hold a consultation today with Surinamese authorities. Minister Stuart Faithful of Justice and Police had consulted with Ramjattan about the tragedy in the fishing sector. Minister of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Lekhram Soerdjan, had a meeting with the Visserscollectief on Thursday, immediately after arriving from Brazil.At that meeting, the organization and the permit policy were discussed. After Thursday’s meeting, a government coordination team headed by the Minister of Justice and Police, Stuart Getrouw, together with his colleagues Soerdjan and Ronni Benschop, of Defence held a meeting with members of the permanent Assembly Committees. The fishermen’s collective was also present at this meeting. Meanwhile according to a Surinamese news outlet a “silent March” attracted hundreds of Guyanese, some of them friends, relatives and colleagues of the 20 fishermen who were attacked at sea. Thus far, three partly decomposed bodies have been recovered. Twelve more are still missing. One of the 16, Sherwin Lovell survived the horrific ordeal and was rescued. The 42year-old man who got emotional while being interviewed, had the scars to show. Lovell suffered injuries to both arms and his left leg. He also had burns to his back because of having hot oil thrown on him.
GRA starts stamping...
From page 10 smuggled hard liquor and cigarettes. Using a mobile scanner, enforcement officers could determine right away whether the taxes have been paid or attempts were made to forge the stamps. GRA has internal controls that can tell which batch of stamps has been affixed to which imported liquor. With alcohol products attracting high duties, smugglers have been capitalizing on corrupt law officials and some Customs Officers, along with unmanned open borders. Popular liquor like Absolut, Ciroc, Johnny Walker, wines, Hennessy and Malibu and even beers are being smuggled. GRA has admitted that its capacity is severely tested to reduce smuggling, with the reality that there will never be enough staffers to monitor the expansive 83,000 square miles. After careful assessment, it was decided that GRA will engage Canadian Bank Note (CBN), the company which has been working on the security on Guyana’s bank notes, to come up with a programme to ensure that import liquor can be tracked. The project was announced since 2016. Importers are asked to register with GRA. The cost for stamps on imported alcohol is $16, with the one for tobacco being $8. GRA is estimating that smuggled alcohol is about 60-70 percent of what is imported annually.
then the people who suffer are all the citizens. “Where do we get the money to build our schools, to make our roads, to send our children to university, to do the healthcare that we need and to really keep our
environment as good as it can be and house all our people? “If we don’t have the money we can’t do that. This money laundering and fraud and dishonesty, it has victims and the victims are the old, the poor, disadvantaged and
those in need of support,” Baroness Scotland pointed out. She said that work is ongoing to improve anticorruption instruments, particularly as Africa opens up to provide market access to 2.4 billion people.
“We are going to take advantage of this new market. We have to have fair system, robust systems, but we also have to make sure that the corrupt does not take advantage of this new delivery,” Baroness Scotland stated.
Sunday May 06, 2018
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Kaieteur News
---Hinds’ Sight by Dr. David Hinds---
The PPP and African Guyanese:
You don’t destroy the psyche of a community, and then beg for votes as if nothing happened
I
ended last week’s col umn with quotes from three PPP leaders on their interpretation of my politics. Their central thrust was two-fold. First, they contended that I was only concerned with the interests of African Guyanese—the inference is that I am racist or something near to it and that by extension, I am anti-Indian Guyanese. Second, they concluded that despite my criticisms of the current government, I am not pro-PPP; that I cast the government in better light that of the PPP. I have repeatedly responded to the former charge over the years, so I will not deal with that in this column. Instead I want to focus on the second charge. I had concluded long before the 2015 election that the PPP had lost its way and was taking Guyana to a place that surpassed where the PNC left Guyana in 1992. I, therefore, put my activism at the service of the causes that worked to bring an end to that government. I am glad I did. Although the current government is flawed in many ways, I do not regret helping to undermine the PPP government. I was part of the struggle that ousted the PNC In many ways, the PPP government got a freer ride than its predecessor. Whereas the PNC, given its minority ethnic base, had to resort to naked electoral malpractice to remain in power, the PPP, because of the Indian Guyanese majority, could maintain the façade of a democratically elected government. What that meant was that the opposition was not presented with an automatic clarion call. The government hid behind the mask of democracy while it ruthlessly destroyed every democratic institution and dominated the society in ways reminiscent of the colonials. That domination had the face of the PPP’s ideology of
“manifest destiny”—the belief that the PPP has a Godgiven right to govern Guyana; that all other parties are subservient to the masterparty, the vanguard. Vanguardism has long been at the core of the PPP’s ideological outlook. That is why party leaders found communism attractive. They paid lip service to its egalitarianism, but they were deeply in love with the narrow definition of democracy inherent in aspects in communism – in other words they loved the “dictatorship” more than the “proletariat” in the slogan, “dictatorship of the proletariat.” That they abandoned any pretense at being a socialist government when they returned to power in 1992 was inevitable. Socialist rhetoric was a means to an end - domination. Going along with the ideology of party-domination was the PPP’s fidelity to the ideology of ethnic domination. Again, communism was the mask that was used to hide the PPP’s acceptance of ethno-racial praxis as integral to its reason for being from 1956 to the present. The severance from the PPP in 1956 of the so-called Ultra Left, who were mostly Black and Brown comrades, and their replacement in the party’s leadership by “Indian patriots,” mostly from the ranks of the Indian Guyanese elite, transformed the once multi-racial party into an unmistakably Indian party. Since then, the PPP, despite its multiracial rhetoric, has remained the natural political home for most Indian Guyanese. And the party jealously guards that image and role. The PPP attributed its removal from office in 1964 to a combination of external intervention and African Guyanese bullyism. So, when it returned to power in 1992, it was logical that it would do anything to ensure history did not repeat itself. Towards
this end, it moved swiftly to weaken the African Guyanese community through a combination of force and co-option. What followed was a systemic use of policy and naked state force to bring that community to its knees. As soon as it took office, the PPP purged the Foreign Service of most of its Black workers. It then moved to dismantle Mashramani, which had developed into an African Guyanese dominated festival. When Dr. Jagan died in 1997, the PPP, in a vulgar display of ethnic domination, ensured that Sam Hinds did not become his long-term successor. It imposed Mrs. Jagan on the country and then put in place a formula to ensure that an Indian Guyanese succeeded her. It then declared war on the mainly African Guyanese Public Service, leading to the 1999 strike. Up till it left office, the PPP government never fully honoured the recommendations of the Arbitration team it set up. The government never put the necessary investment into bauxite as it did for sugar. Instead it sought to remove the electricity subsidy from the bauxite community and when the community protested, it ordered the police to gun down the protestors, leading to the death of three citizens. When African Guyanese organizations asked for the 1823 monument to be erected at Parade Ground, the PPP ignored them and erected the monument at a location of their choice. All this time the regime subsidized a constant diet of partying in the Black community—exploiting that community’s penchant for celebration to keep it distracted from political engagement. The government targeted selective African Guyanese leaders and showered them with money and other material benefits to serve as enforcers in their communities.
The Baccoo Speaks The madness in Suriname will test the relationship between the local police and their counterparts in the neighbouring republic. Guyanese over the years have left to seek the hospitality of the Surinamese, now they are being accused of abusing it. There will be calls from the residents for deportations. Appeals will be made to Guyana.
** Motorcycle bandits are on the rampage again. And to make matters worse, they are riding around in plain sight
without helmets, but the police appear to care less. One group will stage a robbery and in the escape bid, will ride into a vehicle while attempting to overtake it. ** The authorities will uncover yet another fraud. This one will be in the Guyana Revenue Authority. The discovery will embarrass the organization and spark an unprecedented investigation.
When the February 2002 jailbreak occurred, the PPP retaliated to the Buxtonbased violence with a paramilitary onslaught spearheaded by the dreaded Phantom Squad that summarily slaughtered hundreds of black youth. It simultaneously used the state forces to terrorize the Buxtonion community under the guise of eradicating the violence that had taken root there. During the PPP’s rule, it never implemented one policy that was aimed at uplifting African Guyanese— not one! By the time it was finished with that community, it had lost all confidence in itself—it did not even believe that the PPP could be dislodged from power and that an African Guyanese could become the country’s leader. One of the dirty secrets of the African Guyanese community is that many of them who are today jumping behind Granger were prepared to support Nagamootoo as the
Coalition’s presidential candidate because they felt that an African Guyanese could never become leader of Guyana. I well remember that this writer was the only African Guyanese public person that had the courage to say publicly that to ask African Guyanese to choose between two Indian Guyanese candidates was unacceptable. It is the above behaviour of the PPP that I feel compelled to remind Guyanese, in particular, African Guyanese, about. Mr. Jagdeo recently has been talking about wooing African Guyanese to the PPP for 2020. I am giving the PPP an early warning—unless that party acknowledges what it systematically did to African Guyanese during it previous reign and atone for it, it will have to contend with my so-called Black Nationalist voice. You do not destroy the psyche of a community and then in five years beg for its votes as if nothing happened. It is not that the PPP did not hurt other communities, but
Dr David Hinds the attacks on the African Guyanese community were deliberate and disproportionate. More of Dr. Hinds ‘writings and commentaries can be found on his YouTube Channel Hinds’ Sight: Dr. David Hinds’ Guyana-Caribbean Politics and on his website www.guyanacaribbeanpolitics.news. Send comments to dhinds6106@aol.com
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Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur News
By Michael Jordan
F
rom what his friends and family told me, taxi driver Colin Clarke made quite a few fatal errors on Friday, November 27, 2015. First, he picked up a tall dreadlocked man near a bar at the Vreed-en-Hoop Stelling, even though he had felt uneasy about this passenger, who had hired him earlier that day. Second, as had happened on the earlier trip, Clarke allowed his passenger, who had a strange accent, to sit in the back seat of the shiny Toyota Allion he was driving. But that passenger had given Clarke $5,000 for that first trip to the East Bank of Essequibo. Perhaps it was the thought of making another
Clubbed to death and dumped in a canal: Taxi driver Shurland Dalloo
Strangled and dumped in a canal: Taxi driver Colin Clarke, called “Ole Boy’
$5,000 that made the 57-yearold Clarke less cautious than he should have been. Clarke, known as ‘Ole
Boy’, lived at his sister’s home in Crane Housing Scheme, West Coast Demerara. He had worked as
Wanted: Sheldon Colin Abrams a mini-bus driver for several years, but in the latter part of 2015, a woman, with whom Clarke had a previous relationship, hired him to drive her silver-grey Toyota Allion, HC 4993. From reports, he would return the car every night at 7.00 p.m. But on the night of Friday, November 27, 2015, the woman contacted Clarke’s sister to enquire about Clarke’s whereabouts, since he not returned the vehicle. Clarke’s relatives were unable to contact him, since he had no cell phone. The following day, one of Clarke’s sisters contacted a close friend of Clarke’s and informed the friend that her brother was missing. The friend became alarmed. The previous day, Clarke had told the friend that he was soliciting passengers near the Vreed-en-Hoop Stelling when a tall man with dreadlocks attempted to hire him. Because the man had “a funny accent”, Clarke had said that he found it difficult to make out what the man was saying, and asked a female taxi driver to take the passenger. The passenger reportedly took the man to Crane, West Coast Demerara, and the man reportedly paid her $1,000. Later that day, the same man reportedly approached Clarke and asked to be taken to Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo. Clarke reportedly agreed, and told the friend that the man sat in the back seat. Since he felt uneasy, the taxi driver reportedly suggested that the passenger sit next to him. “I like sit in the back seat,” the passenger reportedly retorted.On arriving at their destination, Clare reportedly took the passenger to a back street in another community. The man exited and spoke on
his cell phone, while flashing several five thousand dollar notes. Clarke reportedly became even more suspicious, and exited his car and began to converse with some men who were working nearby, to give the passenger the impression that he knew the men. Later, the passenger reportedly stopped near a house and engaged in a heated conversation with a woman. He then returned to the car and Clarke took him back to Vreed-en-Hoop, where the passenger gave Clarke $5,000. At around 3.00 p.m. that same day, the same passenger reportedly approached Clarke and requested to be taken back to Tuschen. Clarke reportedly picked him up…then disappeared. On December 3, six days after Colin Clarke’s disappearance, residents of Uitvlugt, on an early morning stroll detected a foul smell in the vicinity of a bridge. The villagers alerted the police, and soon after, a man’s decomposed body was pulled from beneath the bridge. The victim was Colin Clarke...and he had suffered a cruel death. The murder weapon was a strip of barbed wire, with sticks tied at both ends. The killer had drawn this improvised weapon so tightly around his victim’s throat that flesh was left embedded in it. But where was the victim’s car? That mystery was solved a week later, when the Toyota Allion was discovered under a house at Perth, Mahaicony, East Bank Demerara. While the licence plates were missing, the vehicle was intact. The house was occupied by an elderly couple. The elderly male occupant told investigators that a man had brought the car to the house and had asked the resident to keep it, until he returned from Suriname. Because the man is an acquaintance of his son, who was out of the country, the homeowner agreed. But after weeks passed and the man failed to return to collect the car, the homeowner became suspicious and contacted the police. Detectives also found
Clarke’s driver’s licence in the vehicle. They also reportedly observed bloodstains in the back seat, and this led them to believe that Clarke had wounded his attacker. Clarke is said to have always carried a sharp ‘chopper’ in his vehicle in the event of being attacked. Meanwhile, some of Clarke’s relatives have suggested that he was not a victim of a carjacking. There are some hints that jealousy over a woman could have led someone to hire the individual who killed Clarke. “This killing is a ‘set-up,’ this is no robbery,” one relative told me. “The people (owners) get back their car intact.” One sister even suggested that the individual who killed her brother may also have murdered Shurland Dalloo, a taxi driver who was slain a month prior to Clarke being slain. Dalloo’s decomposed body was found on November 1, 2015 – one week after he went missing - in a canal at Onverwagt, Number 27, West Coast Berbice, a few miles from where Clarke’s car was recovered. Dalloo also operated on the West Coast Demerara, but was based at Parika. His car, a silver-grey Toyota Carina, has not been recovered. Meanwhile, in what appears to be a significant development in the Colin Clarke case, on Tuesday last, the police issued a wanted bulletin for 47-year-old Sheldon Colin Abrams, of Lot 6 Supply, Mahaica, East Coast Demerara. Abrams is being sought for questioning in relation to the murder. “Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of Sheldon Colin Abrams is asked to contact the police on telephone numbers 2262870, 229-2655, 229-2289, 2271149, 226-7065, 911 or the nearest police station. All information will be treated with the strictest confidence,” the police said. If you have any further information on this case or any other, please contact us at our Lot 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown office or by telep h o n e . We can be reached on telephone numbers 225-8458, 225-8465, or 225-8491. You need not disclose your ident i t y . You can also contact Michael Jordan at his email a d d r e s s e s : mjdragon@hotmail.com; or kamarangnight@gmail.com
Sunday May 06, 2018
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Kaieteur News
==THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN==
Guyana: always the mundane, never the magical
I
was born into a politi cal environment that was anti-colonial, proThird World, heavily leftwing in ideological orientation, assertive in Black pride. Those instincts have never left me, though I would say I have philosophically matured and I am not as pro-Third World as when I was a university freshman. I do believe the Third World occupies an unfair position in the global economy and big powers cruelly exploit them. A good example would be coconut oil. We grew up hearing about the health benefit of olive oil and nothing about coconut oil. But the latter is an even better product. The Third World has far more beneficial fruit juices, but the dominant countries of the world emphasize apple, blackberry, blueberry, cranberry juices as health products. In those ways, the Third World loses out. But the Third World has atrophied since the abolition of colo-
nialism. Its society and leadership have become morally, culturally and philosophically bankrupt, though I believe India is an enduring exception. The Third World fought for Independence, got it, and thereafter became a boiling cauldron of stagnancy. There is no transformational social movement, no heroic government, no breath-taking scientific research, no great, exceptional leader (counting out Mandela) since Independence. The Third World is not a place where freedoms are constantly being purified. The Arab Spring froze to death in the winter of violent mediocrity. So here we are in 2018 with a dramatic reversion on the world stage – the US has an untrustworthy president with dangerous traits. But even Donald Trump embodies a psychology that is likely to cause him to do something iconoclastically positive. But there is no such personality
in the non-white world. The non-white world is saddled with mundane leaders who show no sign of being even vaguely transformative. In my country Guyana, the lack of ideas is simply disastrous and the chasm is very, very close. You look at the social and moral landscape of Guyana, and rut canopies the entire territory. The picture reminds me in the West Indies of running groundsmen, tarpaulin in hand, covering the cricket ground when the rains come. Every day, an opportunity to break with a stale past is wasted. It is as if a destructive tsunami has sunk the power to think in the collective leadership of this country. When the British ruled their colonies, legislation throughout the Commonwealth was patterned after English Bills. The law establishing the Ombudsman was the same in most ex-colonies.
Do you know New Zealand broke with tradition and appointed an Ombudsman that was not a former judge? Do you think here in Guyana our leaders have the ideational courage to do a similar act? Commonsense can tell you that an Ombudsman who was not formally trained in law can seek legal advice. Do you know that the Cabinet has completed the amendment to the Marriage Act? It is now awaiting its place on the Order Paper of the House. The change abolishes the two-week residency period for a foreigner to get married in Guyana. And guess who made that announcement? President Granger when he addressed Parliament in October 2016. There were loud cheers that greeted the following words of the President; “Your Government will amend the Marriage Act.” This same government didn’t find the time to amend the 1933 obsolete Divorce
Act. This same government is refusing to approve changes to the anti-narcotics law in relation to harsh penalties for small amounts of ganja, even though the completed amendment was on the Order Paper way back in 2016 in the name of MP, Michael Carrington. This same government did find the time to amend the Legal Practitioners Act which is an insult to a 21st century mind. Months ago the committee arising from the Act was installed. All the members are from the legal profession. The committee is to hear complaints against members of the Bar and to recommend disciplinary measures. Why would any human in the 21st century not see that the legislation is outdated? Why should society accept a committee consisting only of lawyers to discipline lawyers? What is wrong in having a non-legal person on the committee? The answer is everything is right about having
Frederick Kissoon such a person. The vacant head of the Police Complaints Authority is to be appointed shortly. All the short-listed names are former judges. What is essentially wrong with having an experienced university professor in a discipline unrelated to law like sociology, journalism, international relations, or a longstanding administrator in public management? Why only a legal mind can comprehend situations where police ranks have misbehaved? How do you compare Trump with Guyana’s present leaders? Who is a more change-maker?
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Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur News
NEC agrees … the decades of neglect must end! The Alliance For Change held its second quarterly National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting for this year at the Georgetown Club on Tuesday May 1st, the same day that thousands of workers across the Country were celebrating/observing Labour Day 2018. An AFC representative from the Eastern Caribbean nation of Grenada also attended as a representative of overseas delegates.NEC members from all around the Country examined a broad spectrum of issues, from preparations for Local Government Elections (LGE) to the recent horrific pirate attack. This one, not unlike some others, has shocked the nation to the core. Our already small population is now minus more productive citizens because of greed and whatever else that caused this tragedy. The AFC sends our deepest condolences to the families of
every victim. At the meeting, a report from the Public Security Ministry addressed recent work done to reduce the frequency of pirate attacks. The report specified the collaborative work already done by several ministries, agencies and the fishermen’s coop societies to end piracy and the accompanying murders. Members said that the hardworking fisher folk in Berbice and Essequibo have lost way too many children and relatives, money and equipment to piracy, and recalled that piracy actually became rampant some 15 years ago under the PPP regime. It is now up to this Government to put an end to it. The NEC also used this meeting to examine the progress the Coalition has made since the 2015 General and Regional Elections, as well as the pervading suspicions of pharmaceutical racketeering in the health sector – in the distribution of
pharmaceuticals to hospitals and regional health centres, high dispensing rate of certain medicines, drug shortages, and the continuation of the old practice of referring patients to private clinics, pharmacies and hospitals. The party acknowledges that this is a very complex issue and some indicators point to malfeasance by certain staff with close ties to the political opposition. The NEC took the opportunity to commend the high quality of work done by Minister of Public Health, Hon. Volda Lawrence, and pledged to continue to support every effort of the Public Health Ministry to “clean up” the Health Care delivery system by removing systemic and personnel deficiencies and irregularities. This is to ensure that every public medical facility remains sufficiently stocked with pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, trained
personnel and working equipment. So, as we move towards constitutionally required LGEs tentatively scheduled for November, members last week laid out the AFC’s approach to the polls, and the steps immediately following. To ensure that every AFC member, affiliate and working group is fully apprised of the decisions taken last week, we present the highlights of the discussions: Executive Member and one of our lead electoral experts, David Patterson, laid out past poll results recorded in the various Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) and municipalities, and made strategic recommendations for the upcoming polls. Leader Raphael Trotman reported that he was in receipt of a response from the leadership of Coalition partner APNU to the AFC’s letter dated February 26th, which had outlined several matters, including our combined participation in the next LGE. The NEC deliberated and then mandated the Leader to respond in a prescribed manner. The AFC will
issue a more detailed statement on this matter when the parties arrive at a definitive position. Several members reported that the party’s support continues to be strong at the grassroots level, and that farmers, particularly rice farmers in Region Six, are pleased with the work the AFC is doing as part of Government to ensure that their sector continues to expand. NEC Chairman, Khemraj Ramjattan, also reported that rice farmers are satisfied with the current price for their paddy. Residents in Region Six, he said, are pleased with the massive infrastructural works and upgrades which are ongoing in the region, most notably the recently installed street lights on the Corentyne Highway, which has improved road safety and general security. He reiterated that the AFC is part of a Coalition government that is intent on fixing structural and services defects throughout the country whether the people and communities (especially in Region Six) are traditional supporters of other political parties.
v
“That is of no concern to us,” he stated. The AFC is determined to improve the quality of life for every Guyanese, whether they live in Region 6, 5, 10 or 3, or in the Hinterland. The decades of neglect must end. Two other key items also formed part of the day’s agenda, one linked to overseas groups and how they operate, and the other involving the libel case brought against the Party Chairman. The Committee discussed the process by which Diaspora Groups are recognized, accredited and held accountable, and asked that a detailed proposal for future action be presented to them at the next NEC meeting scheduled for June 23, 2018. The Chairman also reported that the judgment was recently handed down in the case of libel which had been brought against him, along with DTV Channel 8 in New Amsterdam, by the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU). He reported that the judgement was in their (defendants’) favour. The AFC reaffirmed that the Coalition Government is strong and cohesive, and it remains focussed on everything that has to be done in every single productive and service sector to better the quality of life for all Guyanese.
Sunday May 06, 2018
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Kaieteur News
My column
S
ome things cannot be explained by a ra tional person. At the same time, people can be more cruel than some animals. Indeed, animals can be exceedingly cruel. A man called me from the Essequibo Coast to report his neighbour who has a lot of pit bulls. The man said that the courts ruled in a land dispute, giving another neighbour claim to a plot of land next door to the pit bulls’ owner. Here the owner of the dogs decided on a measure to prevent the neighbour from accessing his land. He built high fences around the other sections of his property and left an almost open section at the site of the contested land. The dogs ensured that there was no occupation; in no uncertain measure. They would enter the property to the point that they attacked the neighbour’s dog and killed it. The report is that the police are doing nothing about this naked threat. Then there was the case of the man who operated a sanctuary at which there are lions. One particular lion was ten years old. The owner of the sanctuary had bottle-fed it as a baby, so the owner believed that this animal, a lion, would be almost a pet. I saw the video. There was this man in a closed section with the lion. He is walking toward the camera when the lion went for him, grabbed him and dragged him away for a meal. Fortunately, there were people around and one of them had a gun. He shot the lion. This was a clear case of turning against the person who fed you. And so we come to another set of animals, this group operating in the Atlantic off Suriname. I don’t know the genesis of this act of unprecedented cruelty, but here was this group of seamen attacking some fishermen. The men who are said to be pirates descended on four fishing boats and attacked the crew. The attack does not stop there. The pirates strapped batteries to the feet of the fishermen and tossed them overboard, alive. This action alone should give any reader nightmares, but that is not all. They beat and tossed nearly two dozen
others overboard. Most of them died, but one man survived. He tells his story of swimming for two days, testimony to the human will. Most people would sleep after a few hours, but this man was keen to save his life. He then trekked through dense overgrowth for days, eating what, I don’t know. Meanwhile the killers had returned to shore to live among people. In fact, they ventured to sea again to kill another boat captain. There have been arrests and I can only wonder at the nature of the trial. I will also await a comment from the Guyana Human Rights Association, the United Nations, and all those who talk about the death penalty being cruel and inhumane. I await visits by these sanctimonious people to the relatives of the victims and to the survivors. I know for sure that none of the dead was in any way related to any of these people who say that theirs is the duty to guard all life. Two of the killers have been arrested in Guyana. I expect lawyers to argue about the crime being committed in Suriname waters, but I has-
ten to point them to the ruling in the matter involving Deokinanan. A greedy fisherman named Deokinanan murdered three sailors of the vessel ‘Miss Carol’ on the high seas, Corentyne River, and enriched himself by $12,000 and 1500 guilders. The killer then removed the seacock from the launch, causing it to take in water and sink. From there he swam to Powis Island in the Corentyne River, where he hid the coveted money under the roots of a marked tree. The year was 1963. After the badly mutilated bodies of the three men were found floating in the Corentyne River, Deokinanan was held by the Berbice Police for questioning. It might have been the perfect crime, had it not been for the fact that while in Police custody, Deokinanan, wanting to secure the hidden booty, sought the help of his trusted friend, Balchand, whom he told where the money was hidden and sent him on a mission to collect the loot. His lawyer argued that the killing was in Suriname waters and he was actually discharged in the magistrate’s court. But while he was cel-
ebrating with his relatives and friends, the police went back for him. He was retried and sentenced to death, but that conviction was overturned by the Court of Appeal which contended that the courts did not have jurisdiction. A challenge saw that decision being overturned in 1965. Deokinanan later died on the gallows. Those arrested in Suriname will be tried by laws different from the British law that sent Deokinanan to the gallows. I ask myself how these people can sleep at nights, knowing what they did to people whom they knew. Beasts have no place among human beings. Then there is the case of
a man who killed to save his own life. Peter Yansen is walking on Eastern Highway in Prashad Nagar when a motorcyclist rode up to him and demanded the bird he was carrying. Yansen ran away calling for help, but he was pursued. He became involved in a struggle with his attacker, and survived by stabbing his attacker, suffering wounds to his hand. Everyone, including the police, contended that it was a case of self-defence, but the state is moving to try him for manslaughter. I cannot understand how a man who defends himself can be tried for killing his attacker. One argument is that there should be an inquest. Another is that it is best for Yansen’s peers on a jury to
Adam Harris decide his fate. The matter may be discharged in a magistrate’s court given the evidence that the killing stemmed from selfdefence, yet the mere charge seems so unfair. This would suggest that criminals have an advantage. Must people surrender their lives in the face of a criminal attack to avoid jail?
PAGE 30
(Excerpts from an address by H.E. David Granger to the Guyana Press Association on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day 2016)
I
t is my considered opin ion that the State is obliged to preserve, protect and promote citizens’ right to freedom of expression. The State protects this freedom by enforcing constitutional and legal guarantees and by providing that citizens must have access to information. The communications media are vehicles though which citizens receive and transmit information. Independently controlled and professionally constituted media are essential to freedom of expression. Information is a public good, it is a ‘non-rivalrous’ and ‘non-exclusive’ service, it is free for all. Free access to information
Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur News
is an inalienable right of every citizen. It is an indispensable condition of democratic society. Citizens’ access to information is a democratic right and information is necessary for citizens’ informed participation in society. Restrictions in the flow of information deny citizens the opportunity to participate fully in decision-making and, thereby impair democracy. Every Journalist I think, should have over his or her bed, Article 146 of our Constitution; “Except with his consent, no person shall be hindered in the enjoyment of his freedom of expression, that is to say, freedom to hold opinions without interference, freedom to receive ideas without interference, freedom to communicate ideas and information without interference, and freedom from interference with his communication”. That is our supreme law
and nothing is more supreme that our supreme law. Article 146 is an unambiguous and unclouded statement of our supreme law as nation. It is an assurance of every citizen’s right to freedom of expression. There are, inevitably, exceptions and the same Article continues to provide those exceptions; “…in the interest of defence, public safety, public order, public morality or public health or for the purposes of protecting the reputation, rights and freedoms of other persons….” The State has an obligation, not an option, to ensure that it provides information to the public and the State exercises this duty through its own State-owned media. State media are those which are controlled financially and editorially by the Government. My administration recognizes the roles of and respects
the separation of power among the three branches of government; the Legislative branch, the Executive branch and the Judicial branch. My Government accepts that the State-media have a duty to report accurately and without bias on all three arms of the State and they’re obliged to report the views of all parties in the National Assembly in the course of public business. My Government accepts that the State-media have a duty to ensure that the opinions of those persons on the margins of society are heard and that the media should serve the interests of all of the people of Guyana and not just of the Government. The State will continue to have a presence in the media. This is necessary because private media are located largely on the coastland. They are not located in rural and hinterland areas. They are all located in the city of Georgetown. They do not possess sufficient resources to provide public information to all of our citizens, especially those in the hinterland and rural areas. State-media therefore have a duty to provide information to all of the citizens of this country. They are not intended to compete for or to dominate the information space. The State is committed to protect citizen’s constitutional right to communicate ideas and to receive information. State-media will continue to provide this service in a
dispassionate and a professional manner. State-media have a duty to report our national development. Since such information is not often sensational enough to be given attention by the private media, that responsibility will continue. State-media have an obligation to inform the people about community development projects. The people are entitled to know the details of these projects. State-media can also play an important role in disseminating economic, environmental, public health and climate advisories and providing information about public services, and as I said, there are so many areas of this country which the private-media cannot penetrate and the State- media have an obligation to provide these services. My administration’s policy therefore, is to develop ten strong regions administered by ten ‘capital towns’. It is our expectation that in the not too distant future each ‘capital town’ could contribute to closing the communication gap with its own citizens by establishing its own media, its own newspapers, the Lethem News, the Linden News, Mabaruma Daily, Bartica Express, why not? Its own radio, its own television, along with its ability to facilitate the prevalent social media. Journalism is a noble profession. Journalism like any other profession is based on a sense of social responsibility. It is not for the reckless, it
is based on education. It is not for the uneducated. It is based on ethics, it is based on experience. The Guyana Press Association (GPA) has a duty to enforce these high standards of performance among the media. The GPA has an obligation to protect the ideals of this profession, from abuse. The Government of Guyana is committed to the promotion of a high degree of media professionalism. My Administration will not undermine the professionalism of State-media workers by subjecting them to political direction or interference with their work. My administration is committed also to non-interference in the independent media. Independent media act as watchdogs of the Government. They promote transparency by ensuring that information is provided to the public on the work of the Government. They are a source of valuable feedback on the effectiveness of the efforts of the Government. There is no good reason for the State to interfere in the work of the private-media. The relationship between the State and the private-media must be seen as a partnership in providing a public good, that is, public information for the citizens of this country. Independence of thought must be preserved, professionalism must be promoted and the Constitution of Guyana must be upheld.
Sunday May 06, 2018
By Dr Zulfikar Bux Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine
A
sthma is a chronic (long-term) dis ease of the lungs. It inflames and narrows the airways. These are tubes that carry air into and out of your lungs. It most often starts in childhood, but can affect people of all ages. The airways of people who have asthma are extra sensitive to the things they’re allergic to (allergens). They are also sensitive to certain substances that can be inhaled through the air. Asthma symptoms start when irritants cause the lining of the airways to become inflamed (swollen) and narrow. The muscles around the airways can then spasm (contract rapidly). This causes the airways to narrow even more. When the lining of the airways is inflamed, it produces more mucus (cold). The mucus clogs the airways and further blocks the flow of air. When these symptoms are severe and not easily controlled, persons start to cough, have shortness of breath and wheeze. This is called an “asthma attack.” WHATARE THE SYMPTOMS OF ASTHMA? An asthma ”flare up,” or attack, happens when excess mucus causes your air tubes to swell and tighten. Asthma attacks can be mild, moderate, or severe. Symptoms of an asthma attack include the following: § Coughing - coughing from asthma is usually worse early in the morning and at night. This can lead to problems sleeping. § Tightness in the chest you may feel breathless and like something is squeezing your chest. § Wheezing - a hoarse, squeaky, musical, or whistling sound when you breathe. § Coughing with mucus or coughing up “cold” as is better known locally. § Shortness of breath WHAT CAUSES ASTHMA? An exact cause of asthma has not been determined. There is a general thought that genetic and environmental causes lead to asthma. These may include: § One or both parents have asthma. § A genetic history of allergies in the family. § Having certain respiratory infections during childhood. § Contact with allergens or infections during infancy and early childhood, when the immune system is still developing. Many things can cause your asthma to flare up, in-
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cluding: § allergies § viral infections (such as a cold) and sinus infections § tobacco § air pollutants (such as wood smoke) § cold air § exercise § perfume or chemical fumes § heartburn. For some people, strong emotions or stress can trigger an asthma attack. Pay attention to the way these things affect your asthma. Work with your doctor to figure out which things bother your asthma. HOW IS ASTHMA DIAGNOSED? Your doctor will ask you for your medical history, especially any family history of allergies and asthma. Keep a record of your asthma symp-
toms and when and how often they occur. Your doctor will want to know what seems to trigger and worsen your symptoms. They will listen to your breathing and look for signs of allergies and asthma. These can include wheezing, swollen nasal passages, and allergic skin conditions (such as eczema). They will conduct a spirometry test. You will breathe into a machine called a spirometer to see how well your lungs work. It records the amount of air and how quickly you breathe in and out. Your doctor may need to perform other tests, such as: § Allergy testing. § Tests to rule out other conditions with symptoms similar to asthma. § C h e s t X - r a y or ECG (electrocardiogram) to
make sure there is nothing else in your lungs (a disease or foreign object) that is causing the symptoms. CAN ASTHMA BE PREVENTED OR AVOIDED? Asthma cannot be prevented, and there is no cure. You can help avoid asthma attacks by avoiding the triggers that can start an asthma attack. Examples of common allergens and irritants include: § air pollution § dust § mold § pollen § tobacco smoke § pet dander § exercise § changes in temperature § certain foods § sulfite (food preservative in red wine, beer, salad bars, dehydrated soups, and
other foods) § heartburn § strong emotions (such as crying or laughing) § perfume § colds and viruses. WHATARETHETREATMENT OPTIONS? Your doctor will work with you to create an action plan to control your asthma. The plan will include recognizing your symptoms and avoiding your asthma triggers. It will give guidance on taking medicines properly. Your plan will help you track your level and control and know when to seek emergency care when needed. Asthma medicines are divided into two groups: controller medicines (to prevent attacks) and rescue medicines (to treat attacks). Your doctor will talk to you about these medicines and what to
Dr. Zulfikar Bux do if you have an asthma attack. Ensure you understand how to use these medicines as it can be the difference between you having mostly asthma-ridden days or normal days.
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SUNDAY Sedition clause in cybercrime bill must be scrapped – TIGI President …Says both political parties have failed to address it since 2016 Local transparency watchdog, Transparency Institute Guyana Inc. (TIGI), has called for the scrapping of the sedition clause in the Cybercrime Bill which is currently before the National Assembly. The clause has survived a bi-partisan parliamentary special select committee which reviewed the 2016 Bill that was tabled by Attorney General, Basil Williams. President of TIGI, Dr. Troy Thomas, told Kaieteur News that it is surprising that the clause has survived the committee’s review. ”When we read the clause as it is in the Bill, I don’t know why in this day and age where we have a democratic system of governance, leaders can believe that this clause is reasonable. What it comes down to is you saying something against the Government and then you are guilty of sedition. That is just nonsense. There is no other way to describe that.” The overall thrust of the Bill is to make illegal, certain activities using a computer and over the internet, such as child pornography, cyber bullying, theft of data, and revenge porn among others. However, there are concerns about aspects of the Bill. The most contentious is Section 18 (1) (a) of the Bill which indicates that a person commits the offence of sedition if he brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in Guyana. According to Section 18 Missing boats
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(1), a person can commit the offence whether in or out of Guyana by intentionally publishing, transmitting or circulating by use of a computer system or any other means, a statement or words, either spoken or written, a text, video, image, sign, visible representation, or other thing. The penalty ranges from four months in prison to a life sentence where death occurs. Dr. Thomas noted that the inclusion of the clause takes Guyana back to ‘the dark days’ when some persons fled Guyana out of fear of retribution for speaking out against the Government. PAC’s latest findings and recommendations a copy and paste job…Goolsarran says Committee not equipped to hold Govt. accountable The recommendations and findings contained in the latest report of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) are nothing new. In fact, they merely represent a repetition; a copy and paste job of what existed in previous PAC reports. This was recently pointed out by Chartered Accountant and former Auditor General, Anand Goolsarran. In his recent column, Goolsarran noted that the PAC’s latest documentation looks into the Auditor General’s reports for the years 2012, 2013 and 2014. After its examination of the Auditor General’s reports, the PAC documented its findings and made several recommendations. Some of its findings include expired drugs donated to regions, accounting officers persistently signing off on incomplete projects, accounting officers not implementing measures to avoid the recurrence of overpayments, lack of adherence to stores regu-
PAC Head, Irfaan Ali lations and log books not being properly maintained. Its subsequent recommendations noted that accounting officers should acquaint themselves with the relevant financial laws; that there be continuous training exercises and dishonest officers be removed from the system. Goolsarran said that these comments are not new and can be traced back to the early 1990s. He said, “For example, of the 17 issues highlighted (in the PAC report), nine (53%) were a repetition of those contained in the PAC 2010-2011 report; six (35%) in its 2009 report; and eight (47%) in the 2007-2008 report. Who is to blame?” The Chartered Accountant said, “Given that the PAC is not a full-time body, and considering the above observations, it is evident that the PAC is not equipped to deliver on its mandate to hold the Government accountable for its stewardship and ac-
countability responsibilities.” Goolsarran stressed that given the aforementioned, the National Assembly should adopt the United Nations model whereby an independent committee of experts meets immediately after the Auditor General issues his report to review the report; conducts hearings involving Heads of Budget Agencies and other concerned officials, and issues its own report to the PAC. Guyana will get less than one-third of the what Liza 1 will generate – Ramson Guyana will secure less than a third of the revenue to be generated from the Liza Phase one project. This was pointed out by Attorney at Law and Oil and Gas Consultant, Charles Ramson. Ramson said that this should not have been the case because the APNU+AFC government had an opportunity—after oil was discovered in commercial quantities—to
Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran alter the ExxonMobil contract. He said that Guyana should have been receiving way more based on its proven oil reserves. ”Our government should have ensured that we developed a physical regime that would have allowed us to secure more than that which we are expected to collect.” Ramson noted that ExxonMobil is expected to produce no less than 450 million barrels of oil in Liza Phase one. At the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) projected figure of US$50 per barrel, the Liza project will generate US$22.5B. Of this sum, Ramson pointed out that Guyana will only get US$7B. The consultant said that Guyana’s revenue from royalty will be US$450M. But that is over a period of about 20 to 22 years. Ramson calculated the average royalty per year at US$22.5M He said that contrary to what the politicians have been saying, Guyana will not secure over US$300M in 2020. Ramson said that a more accurate figure is US$213M. This is based on the model provided by ExxonMobil on its Facebook page. (See link for further details: https:// www.facebook.com/ exxonmobilguyana/photos/ a.251348068653034.1073741828.241589262962248/ 445374762583696/ ?type=3&theater) Ramson said that Guyana will have to wait until 2021 to receive a projected US$320M. The Oil and Gas Consultant asserted that that trend will continue in a very similar pattern for the next two years when cost is still high. He said that coming close to end of the project cycle, Guyana is projected to receive around US$125M per year. Ramson quoted Open Oil which said that there is a significant possibility, as re-
serves growth gathers pace, that Exxon and its partners could achieve “super profits”, rates of return of over 25% and edging considerably higher under certain conditions. Open Oil also said that Guyana ranked the lowest of eight frontier counties when the fiscal regimes were compared. Further, Ramson pointed to the IMF that said that the “Stabroek PSA has the lowest Average Effective Tax Rate (AETR) of all the fiscal regimes evaluated. This result confirms that the terms offered in the agreement are generous to the investor, but were probably required to attract investment at a time when little was known about the geological prospects of the country.” MONDAY Sedition clause was inserted by Govt. – Former AG Anil Nandlall Former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall has labelled the sedition clause in the 2016 Cybercrime Bill as a colossal attack on freedom of speech and the press. The clause was not part of the 2015 version of the draft Bill, which was circulated by the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) +Alliance For Change (AFC) Government. The clause was subsequently inserted in the 2016 Bill, which is now before the National Assembly to be debated at the next sitting. ”Sedition is one of those offences that are archaic, anachronistic and is really a relic of the past. An offence like sedition has no place in modern society and certainly in a society where there is a constitution that is the supreme law which guarantees (Continued on page 33)
Sunday May 06, 2018
From page 33 free speech, freedom of expression and freedom of the press as a fundamental right.” The former Attorney General noted that sedition has been abolished in England and no one has been charged for sedition for nearly 130 years prior to its abolition. The overall thrust of the Bill is to make illegal, certain activities undertaken using a computer and the internet, such as child pornography, cyber bullying, theft of data, and revenge porn among others. However, there are concerns about aspects of the Bill, which was tabled by Attorney General, Basil Williams. The most contentious is Section 18 (1) (a) of the Bill which indicates that a person commits the offence of sedition if he brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in Guyana. According to Section 18 (1), a person can commit the offence whether in or out of Guyana by intentionally publishing, transmitting or circulating by use of a computer system or any other means, a statement or words, either spoken or written, a text, video, image, sign, visible representation, or other thing. The penalty ranges from four months in prison to a life sentence where death occurs. Nandlall sat on the bipartisan parliamentary select committee, which reviewed the Bill. The clause survived the review. Nandlall noted that unfortunately, every time the committee sat it conflicted with his commitment to the court and as a result, he does not recall attending any of the seven committee meetings held over a two-year period.
One of the four men who survived
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Special officers being trained to monitor metered oil production by Exxon Mobil – GRA Boss The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) intends to have special officers trained to monitor metered oil production by ExxonMobil. This was revealed recently by GRA Commissioner General, Godfrey Statia. During an exclusive interview with Kaieteur News, the tax chief said this is an important part of ensuring accountability and transparency in the oil and gas sector. He assured that customs officers will be trained to deal with monitoring in quality and quantity of oil produced. The Chartered Accountant noted that this type of monitoring is important as there are documented cases where the failure to do so has cost nations billions of dollars in revenue it deserves. In fact, several anticorruption agencies have been warning nations on the road to first oil, like Guyana, to be vigilant when it comes to the determination of the volume of oil produced. The Canada-based organization, Publish What You Pay (PWYP), has published a detailed report documenting how many countries have suffered for failing to have an independent team monitoring the oil being metered and assessed by oil companies. Publish What You Pay is the world’s leading coalition of civil society organizations united in the call for a more transparent and accountable extractive sector. With more than 800 members, a global secretariat and 40 national coalitions that span the globe, PWYP has committed to working to-
The fence where Nandlall was speaking with the alleged shooter gether to ensure that citizens have a say over whether their resources are extracted, how they are extracted and how their revenues are spent. In its latest report, PWYP explained that the determination of the volume of petroleum produced is easier than most minerals as the methodologies for measurement are widely accepted. It noted however that, “careful government monitoring is essential”. In this regard, the organization said that the Norwegian government, for example, employs five individuals to ensure the accurate metering of petroleum production and export. Construction worker gunned down at home – men in ‘hoodies’ fled on bicycle A 29-year-old construction worker was gunned down at around 23:15 hrs on Saturday at his Better Hope, East Coast Demerara, allegedly by two men in ‘hoodies’ who fled the scene on bicycles. Daniel Nandlall of Lot 21 Lalchan Street, Better Hope, was shot in the lower back shortly after a relative heard him conversing with someone. He succumbed at the Georgetown Public Hospital. Nandlall’s cousin, Alisha Douglas, said she along with Nandlall and some other family members were sitting outside conversing at around 23:15 hrs. She added that it then began to rain, so she went inside. A few minutes later, the woman said that she heard Nandlall speaking with someone. While she did not hear what the person was saying, she heard Nandlall say: ”Come back tomorrow, the man ain’t deh home.” She added that she then heard a
loud explosion. On looking outside, she saw her cousin lying on the floor with blood gushing from his lower back. The woman said that she and other family members started shouting “thief thief.” The woman said that she assisted another family member in lifting the wounded man in a taxi, which took him to a private hospital. However, due to financial constraints, they were forced to transfer him to the GPHC, where he succumbed after undergoing emergency surgery. While no motive was given for the killing, family members said that neighbours claimed to that two hooded men on a bicycle fled the scene. Nandlall’s body is presently at the hospital’s mortuary awaiting a post mortem examination. TUESDAY Guyanese captain tells of horrific pirate attack in Suriname waters… Car batteries tied to crewmen’s legs, 16 missing after thrown overboard Several Guyanese fishermen are said to be missing after a horrific high seas attack over the weekend by persons who are said to be their countrymen. Suriname authorities including the Coast Guard, and the boat owners, were out searching for at least 16 crewmembers of four fishing boats. It is unclear how many of them are actually living in Guyana. The crewmembers were said to have been beaten, and dumped overboard with batteries tied to legs of a few. Of the 20 men on board four boats, only four have been accounted for.
The attack reportedly occurred Friday evening at a place known to fishermen as Double High Bush, on the Atlantic Ocean, in Suriname waters. The Babooram family, from Guyana, lives in a place called Commewijne, on the right bank of the Suriname River. Thousands of Guyanese live in that neighbouring country. It is not unknown for scores of Guyanese fishermen to be working in Suriname waters and would return after every trip. It has been that way for years now. Getting answers from accounting officers is like pulling teeth – PAC Chair…Plans to have the officers take oath The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is moving to implement a plan to have accounting officers take an oath when they appear before the committee to be questioned about Government funds. PAC Chairman, Irfaan Ali, told reporters at the end of another grueling session, Monday, that from time to time the committee encountered difficulties where accounting officers deviate from the wholesomeness of answers and they change their answers when pressed in different corners. ”The oath will remind accounting officers and all those who are giving evidence before the PAC. It would remind them of the seriousness of the information they are presenting. ”They way they are presenting the information and the truthfulness of the information and answers they give to PAC. In this regard, the oath will serve as a reminder as
an enforcement mechanism as it relates to the information that is provided to the PAC,” Ali explained. During the hearing, Ali repeatedly reminded officials from Region Ten, Upper Demerara-Berbice that they were before the PAC and warned about the answers they were providing to the Committee. Asked if getting answers was like pulling teeth, Ali replied, “Sometimes, it takes a lot of probing.” He added, “Sometimes it takes a lot out of the members because to prepare for a meeting is not just turning up. You have to read the report; you have to understand the issues. ”Sometimes accounting officers are deliberate in their withholding of information. It takes a lot of probing and that is what takes up a lot of the time.” He stated that the PAC would like accounting officers to share information in a wholesome way and with general honesty that is required in answering questions, According to Ali, the Standing Orders of Parliament provide for persons coming to give evidence before the PAC that they subscribe to an oath. ”An oath is just like any other oath that you take in a court of law and anywhere else. The same conditions that govern an oath there governs an oath that you take when you come before the PAC. ”You have repercussions for an oath. An oath is an oath whether it is taken in here or in a court for example. The oath has the same weight and consequences,” Ali noted. According to Ali, the next PAC report, which will be (Continued on page 34)
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From page 33 tabled in the National Assembly will include the recommendation for the accounting officers to take an oath going forward. WEDNESDAY Suriname authorities continue search…Attack on fishing boats “revenge for pirate captain’s death” Guyanese and Suriname authorities have activated a major search and rescue operation for 16 fishermen, 15 of them said to be Guyanese, who were beaten and thrown overboard by pirates last Friday night. Up to late last evening, Suriname justice minister, Stuart Getrouwof, said that the National Coordination Centre for Disaster Relief (NCCR), the National Army and the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries (LVV) have launched an in-depth investigation. Guyana’s Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, disclosed that he has received information and has activated the necessary mechanisms of cooperation. ”There are immediate searches, we are still working,” the Suriname minister assures in a Star Nieuws report. ”I read that the actions have stopped, nothing is less true,” says the minister. The Coast Guard, the military and the Police Force Suriname are still looking for survivors with support from French Guiana. According to the minister, the searches will continue. An aircraft is being used also, he
An aerial shot of the body that was spotted
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said. The minister pointed out that the search is of enormous importance to the family members of the fishermen. There were initial reports in Suriname Tuesday that the search was abandoned. RETALIATION The four boats with 20 crew members were attacked by sea pirates on Friday evening in Surinamese waters in the vicinity of the Wia Wia bank. Only four of the crew members, including a captain of one of the boats, managed to make it to shore. The rest are believed to have perished. It is believed that the attack was retaliation by pirates from Guyana for the shooting death of their leader, a Guyanese pirate called “Paddy” a few weeks ago. The pirates blamed the fishermen. The pirate leader was reportedly shot dead during an attack on fishing vessels. It did not make the news in Guyana. Since the news of the attack on Friday evening became known, the jetty at the Anton Dragtenweg, Suriname, where these boats normally moor, was flooded by desperate family members. They believe the authorities have acted too slowly. Officials in Suriname said that 15 of the missing men are indeed Guyanese, living both in Guyana and in Suriname. Mark Lall, chairman of the Visserscollectief, confirmed that one of the vessels was found submerged. The fishermen were thrown overboard or had to jump into the water themselves. One of the crew members could not swim and he disappeared. Another
One of the four boats found sunk by the pirates
person’s hands were tied and a car battery was attached to his feet, after which he was thrown overboard. Oil companies pad bills with “inflated and ineligible” costs 87% of the time…Int’l team warns countries to audit all bills received International organization Publish What You Pay (PWYP), has cautioned that countries should audit all bills submitted by oil companies. The entity’s call in this regard is based on its years of research which shows that “inflated and ineligible” costs are often part of an oil company’s bill more than 87 percent of the times. Publish What You Pay is
the world’s leading coalition of civil society organizations united in the call for a more transparent and accountable extractive sector. With more than 800 members, a global secretariat and 40 national coalitions that span the globe, PWYP has committed to working together to ensure that citizens have a say over whether their resources are extracted, how they are extracted and how their revenues are spent. The Canada-based organization noted in its latest report that inflating project costs reduces government revenue because it lowers net (after-cost) income upon which profit-based taxes are assessed. It stated that in some cases, costs claimed are simply ineligible. In extreme cases, which have occurred hundreds of times, false invoices are filed even when no work was actually done. The international organization said that Chile for example, was a major victim of false invoices by companies in the extractive sector. Publish What You Pay also noted that more commonly, claims are made for costs that should be excluded, but are often not caught by the relevant authorities. It said that case study evidence demonstrates that this includes companies seeking to claim expenses that: were incurred prior to the signing of the contract; were for the personal interests of expatriate employees and families; involved duplicate invoices for goods or services that have already been expensed; and which are clearly ineligible, such as costs related to mergers and acquisitions, or transfers in participating interests. The report said that oil companies have thoroughly
abused Indonesia in this regard which led to that nation ultimately abandoning the use of Production Sharing Agreements and provisions for cost recovery. The anticorruption agency noted that the revenue impact of accepting ineligible costs is heightened in a production sharing system where the main source of government revenue is their share of overall production (termed “profit oil”). It stated that Profit oil is divided between the company and government only after “cost oil” has been allocated to the company to reimburse eligible project costs.It said, “Any increase in project costs results in a decrease in available profit oil. Where increased expenses are legitimate, both the company and the government suffer. There is simply less ‘profit oil’ to be shared. But where ineligible or inflated expenses are accepted, the company receives the full value in cost oil rather than only a portion of the value through profit oil.” Two perish in Linden Highway smash-up An early morning Labour Day smash-up in the vicinity of Loo Creek on the Soesdyke/Linden Highway, has claimed the lives of two men, leaving two others with injuries. The accident occurred around 7:00 hrs. Dead are 24-year old, Teon ‘Samuel’ Hope, a police corporal of Lamaha Park and 25-year-old Quason Anthony of Regent Road, Bourda. Hope was said to be in the front passenger seat at the time of the accident. The driver was identified as Rishawn Pierre, a 23 year old who resides at Durban Street, Lodge. He is currently in custody assisting with investigations. The other occu-
pant of the vehicle, 20 year old, Jermain Samuels is currently at the Linden Hospital Complex receiving treatment for injuries sustained to the head. The now dead policeman and his three friends were reportedly returning from a concert held in Linden the night before. At the time of the accident, the four men were said to have been heading to Georgetown in a blue Toyota Spacio. The car, PNN 1278, was reportedly being driven along the highway at a high speed rate when the driver lost control of the vehicle and smashed into the rear of a lorry, GWW 8443, with trailer TWW 8912, driven by Mohamed Nazir. The truck was laden with lumber at the time, which smashed into the window of the vehicle. The car’s owner is Niall Stanton of North Ruimveldt. THURSDAY High seas attack in Suriname…Three bodies sighted; local cops hunt killers Five days after pirates attacked four fishing boats off Suriname waters throwing 20 crewmen overboard, the bodies have started to surface, confirming the fears of desperate Guyanese families who are awaiting news. Of the 20, four, including a captain, managed to escape what they say was certain death. On Wednesday, one body was sighted from air, in the afternoon, in the vicinity of the attack at Wia Wia Bank area, about 40 miles from Paramaribo, near French Guiana. Two more were later spotted. In Guyana, as a result of (Continued on page 35)
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From page 34 intelligence shared with Surinamese authorities, a hunt was on for several men believed to be linked to the killer gang. Several Guyanese families, who received news that their loved ones had gone missing as a result of the attack on Friday night, have journeyed to that neighbouring country in the hopes of receiving good news. Oil companies often misallocate operating and capital costs …Int’l team warns that vigilance will be needed by local authorities The authorities of oil producing nations should not only be on the lookout for inflated costs, but also, misallocated costs by petroleum companies. This is according to the Canada-based organization, Publish What You Pay (PWYP). In its most recent report, the entity warns that there are strong incentives for companies to misallocate costs between different categories and, for some fiscal regimes, between different concessions or blocks. The anticorruption agency said that most fiscal regimes draw a clear distinction between capital costs (e.g. permanent infrastructure and machinery) and annual operating costs (e.g. salaries and consumables such as fuel). It noted that operating costs can be fully claimed in the year in which they were incurred. In most cases, however, capital costs are “depreciated,” meaning that they are claimed over a series of years. Publish What You Pay
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says that the depreciation of capital costs affects the timing of government revenues. The international organization said, “Companies therefore have an incentive to classify costs as operating costs when they should in fact be classified as capital costs. ”Auditors from India for example, have highlighted the revenue risks due to the misclassification of costs between the different project phases (exploration, development and production) and also between capital and operating costs.” Furthermore, the company stated that costs can be misallocated between different blocks or concessions. It said that this is common, particularly in the petroleum sector, for operations to be “ringfenced” at the level of the contract area or block. Army Captain charged with murder…Defence seeks second psychiatric evaluation Police Prosecutor Shawn Gonsalves on Wednesday told the court that Psychiatrist, Dr. Bhiro Harry, had handed over a report of the psychiatric evaluation, which the court had ordered for Orwain Sandy and they are ready to proceed with the matter. However, Sandy’s lawyer, James Bond, asked the court for time, since they will have an independent psychiatrist to evaluate him. The lawyer added that the independent psychiatrist will also study the findings of Dr. Harry report and give his view. Orwain Sandy, a former
Charged: Orwain Sandy
Captain in the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), is currently before the court for the murder of Travel Agent, Reona Payne, who was fatally gunned down. The killing occurred on March 31, last, at Alexander Village, Georgetown. Payne who reportedly sustained 14 gunshot wounds about her body, died on the spot. Sandy surrendered at the Ruimveldt Police Station immediately after the shooting. Sandy, of 130 Section ‘C’ Golden Grove, East Bank Demerara, is facing a murder charge before Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts. On Wednesday when the matter was called, a once again teary Sandy, while seated in the prisoners dock turned to the weeping relatives of Payne and stated, “I’m really sorry, please forgive me.” The Magistrate after listening to both sides adjourned the matter until May 24. FRIDAY 7 Guyanese arrested in Suriname - wounded survivor surfaces; had walked five days in swamp As both Guyana and Suriname continue to come to grips with two of the worst cases of pirate attacks on fishermen in the span of six days, the hopes of families have lifted with one survivor who has surfaced Thursday. According to reports in neighbouring Suriname Thursday, the fisherman, whose only name was given as “Sherwyn” walked through swamp for five days. The man was picked up sometime Wednesday evening by a boat, badly shaken and wounded. He was transported to a Suriname hospital in a critical condition. This is now the fifth survivor of the gruesome attacks on several Surinamese fishing boats that occurred Friday night. He reportedly said that the pirates came with one in-
Missing: Joshua Glenroy Jones tention – to kill. He walked through the swamp for five days, looking for help. He would have arrived at Braamspunt around 10:00 Thursday morning. ‘Sherwyn’ is said to be one of 19 Guyanese and one Surinamese who were chopped, beaten and thrown overboard about 40 miles from Paramaribo last Friday night. A number of the men had batteries tied to their legs during the murderous rampage on four fishing boats. Men were shot at, and beaten with pieces of wood while in the water. The announcement of the one survivor would also come amidst news that at least seven fishermen, said to be Guyanese, were arrested in Suriname. High seas attack in Suriname… Brother of recently gunned down man arrested in Guyana As local authorities continue to hunt for the suspects believed to be those who committed the deadly attack on 20 fishermen in Suriname waters, B’ Division Police have made an arrest. Senior police sources in the Division have confirmed that Nakool “Fyah” Manohar, attached to the Number 43 Fishing Co-op, was arrested Thursday at his home in the said village. Manohar ’s brother, Somnauth Manohar, was killed in his yard in Suriname during a drive-by shooting on March 30, 2018. It is suspected that the recent attack was a reprisal for his death. Somnauth was said to be involved in piracy acts on fishermen out at sea.
Missing: Randy Burnette Guyana-born boat captain dies in another attack PA R A M A R I B O , Suriname – While authorities here are still searching for victims and recovering bodies from last Friday’s deadly attack on four fishing boats in Surinamese waters pirates attacked another fishing boat Wednesday night killing at least one fisherman. According to Mark Lall, secretary of Visserscollectief, a local fishermen’s association, the captain of the boat was killed. The whereabouts of his crew members is uncertain. Several fishing boats, the Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies are currently on their way to the area near Matapica Canal where the latest attack allegedly took place. ”When we arrive at the location we will know more about what has happened,” Lall told local media. Youth locked up for 7 years freed after child rights intervention Almost seven years after being detained for murder, 19year-old Ian Henry, an Amerindian youth from Baramita, North West District, was released from the Juvenile Holding Centre in Sophia, Georgetown, after the intervention of the Rights of the Child Commission, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the Georgetown Legal Aid Clinic. Henry was only 13 when he was charged for murder and remanded awaiting a trial date; but without proper representation and the court date
Missing: Tilaknauth Mohabir being canceled, in addition to other obstacles, Henry was forced to be in state detention for all those years. He recounted his time in the detention centre at a press conference held at the Ministry of Public Security Thursday.”This jeopardized my whole future, no one can give it back to me,” Henry said. He told reporters that like him, there are many other youths who are currently in the same situation he was fortunate enough to get out of, because of the help of the three entities who stepped in. ”If I had not met these people, I would still be in here. Just imagine, from the age of 13 to 19,” he said. Henry said that he was denied an education. “How can I go back to Secondary school? My dreams were snatched away from me,” he said.Henry said that his only option now is to attend a trade school. He told the media that there should be a system in place to educate youths while detained. Meanwhile, Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan said that he was saddened by the situation when it was brought to his attention. He said that he was unaware of the issue but when Amar Panday, Chief Executive Officer at the Rights of the Child Commission, approached him for permission to visit Henry, he granted same. SATURDAY GPL slapped with hefty fine over outages, higher systems losses In a highly unusual move, (Continued on page 36)
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From page 35 the state-owned Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL) has been fined by the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for failing to provide an improved service and meeting targets. According to the regulator, the fine is equivalent to five percent of the total value of the dividends that would have been due to the shareholders (Government of Guyana) for the year 2017. It would be the first time in years that the regulator has made known such a penalty. In its decision dated April 25, 2018, and made public on Friday, PUC disclosed that the decision emanated from a review of GPL’s Operating Standards and Performance Targets (OSPT) for 2017. GPL has been facing tough criticisms over the years with aging infrastructure, and infrastructure and timely investments unable to keep up with growing power demands. As a result, the company has been battling total system shutdowns in especially the integrated Berbice and Demerara systems. GPL has hired experienced Jamaican utility executive, Albert Gordon, as its Chief to turn things around. According to the PUC, in its previous order, it cautioned that it was not appropriate to make any award of a monetary penalty on the company. It was made clear
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Kaieteur News
then that PUC expected GPL to make a concerted effort to fulfill its mandate to provide a safe service at reasonable price to consumers. “Unfortunately, our expectations of an improved service did not materialize. The Commission, in fulfillment of its obligations and having considered the extent to which the company has failed to meet the OSPT, together with the impact on the Licensees’ consumers, hereby fines the company in the amount of 5% of the total value of the dividend payable to the company’s shareholders in the just concluded calendar year.” The Commission warned that it will continue to monitor the operation of GPL and it will demand a reporting on its “standards as the Commission deems fit”. CCJ orders New Building Society to pay architect $15M for new Head Office designs The Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) on Friday ordered the New Building Society Ltd to pay an architect firm more than $15 million for services provided in relation to the construction of its new headquarters. The CCJ, which is the country’s last court of appeal, discharged a stay of execution that had been granted in a lower court, enabling Rodrigues Architects Ltd to
The suspects that were arrested in Suriname recover the funds owed. In 2015, the High Court ordered the Building Society to pay the architects the sum of $15,897,625, plus six percent interest per annum from 27th November 2008 to 29th September 2015 and thereafter at the rate of four percent per annum until fully paid. The High Court also ordered that the Building Society pay $100,000 for costs and that there be a stay of execution for a period of six months from the date of the order. No judgment, however,
has yet been delivered to provide reasons for the order. New Building Society Ltd applied for a stay of execution of the judgment pending the appeal. Another judge granted the stay until the determination of the appeal but ordered that the judgment sum due to Rodrigues Architects Ltd be deposited with the Registrar to be put in an interest-bearing account to await the outcome of the appeal. Rodrigues Architects Ltd failed to get Guyana’s Court of Appeal to overturn the de-
cision and applied to the CCJ to discharge the stay of execution and obtain the deposited sum. The CCJ, after reviewing the affidavit evidence, found that the judge had erred in making his orders, and the Court of Appeal had erred in reviewing those orders and letting them stand. It ruled that no stay should have been granted because it had not been shown that there was a good prospect of the appeal succeeding, nor that there was no reasonable probability that
the company would be able to repay the money received from the Building Society if the latter’s appeal succeeded. Further, the CCJ noted that one of the Directors of the Company, who has been in business for over 35 years, had been prepared to guarantee that he would personally repay the judgment sum paid to Rodrigues Architects Ltd if the society’s appeal succeeded. As security, he agreed that he would not encumber or dispose of a particular property of his worth over $50 million.
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Could gut bacteria cause joint pain? A new study probes gut bacteria and their role in osteoarthritis. Obesity comes with a raft of related health risks, including diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It is also intimately tied to osteoarthritis. Often referred to as the “wear and tear” arthritis, osteoarthritis involves the slow degradation of cartilage, or the padding between bones in a joint. In the United States, osteoarthritis affects an estimated 31 million people and is a leading cause of disability, globally. As it stands, osteoarthritis cannot be cured. People who carry excess weight put extra strain on their joints. This, it was thought, explained the increased risk of osteoarthritis that comes with obesity. A new study, published this week in the journal JCI Insight, looked at a more intriguing mechanism that might link these two conditions: gut bacteria. We have billions of bacteria living in our intestines. They are vital for good health and, over recent years, just how vital they are has become increasingly clear. Researchers from the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York set out to explore what links there might be between diet, obesity, gut bacteria, and osteoarthritis. To begin with, the researchers fed mice a high-fat diet over a 12-week period. They quickly became diabetic and obese, doubling their percentage of body fat. Next,
the bacterial residents of the animals’ colons were assessed. As expected, their microbiomes were off-kilter; their bowels were overrun with pro-inflammatory bacteria and had a distinct lack of healthy, probiotic bacteria, such as Bifidobacteria. At the same time, the scientists observed body-wide inflammation in the obese mice, including the knee joints. To induce osteoarthritis, the researchers tore the animals’ menisci, or the cushion of cartilage between the shin and thigh bones. This type of injury commonly causes osteoarthritis. In the obese mice, osteoarthritis developed much more quickly than in the control mice. In fact, within 12 weeks, virtually all of the obese mice’s cartilage had gone. “Cartilage,” says Michael Zuscik, Ph.D., an associate professor of orthopaedics in the Center for Musculoskeletal Research, “is both a cushion and lubricant, supporting friction-free joint movements. “When you lose that,” he says, “it’s bone on bone, rock on rock. It’s the end of the line, and you have to replace the whole joint. Preventing that from happening is what we, as osteoarthritis researchers, strive to do — to keep that cartilage.” For the next phase of the study, the scientists started the protocol again: they fattened up mice with a 12-week, high-fat diet. But this time,
they included a prebiotic called oligofructose. Prebiotics — not to be confused with probiotics — cannot be broken down by mouse (or human) guts. However, many beneficial bacteria, such as Bifidobacteria, thrive in their presence. This subtle but important change in diet promoted the growth of healthy bacteria and produced a marked reduction in pro-inflammatory bacteria. Importantly, it also reduced inflammation in the joints, and the knee cartilage of the obese mice was indistinguishable from that of the non-obese control mice. The addition of a prebiotic to the diet also reduced diabetic symptoms. But it made no difference to the amount of weight that the mice gained. So, even though the joints were subjected to the same amount of strain, they were healthier. This supports the theory that inflammation, rather than mechanical strain, is the key driver of osteoarthritis. “That reinforces the idea that osteoarthritis is another secondary complication of obesity — just like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke, which all have inflammation as part of their cause.” Robert Mooney, Ph.D., a professor of pathology and laboratory medicine “Perhaps,” adds Prof. Mooney, “they all share a similar root, and the microbiome might be that common root.” https:// www.medicalnewstoday.com/ articles/321533.php.
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Meghan Markle Won’t Have a Grey’s Anatomy Season 15: Ellen Pompeo Maid of Honor at Royal Wedding Reveals the Storyline She Wants to Tackle Meghan Markle decided not to have a maid of honor for her wedding to Prince Harry. With just 15 days left until the couple says “I do” at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, Kensington Palace has now confirmed to E! News that the bride-to-be doesn’t have a maid of honor.“She has a very close-knit circle of friends and she didn’t want to choose one over another,” Kensington Palace tells us in a statement. ‘All have been actively involved in helping her prepare for the day and will be there in the days beforehand. She’s very happy to have their support.” Details about Meghan’s bridesmaids have yet to be released, but one of her close friends who will be in attendance at the royal wedding on May 19 is Quantico star Priyanka Chopra.Earlier this week, the actress confirmed on SiriusXM’s The Jenny McCarthy Show that she will be at her pal’s wedding. “I’ve known Meghan for a few years now and I’m super happy for her, and I’m just really happy to be a part of her big day, ya know?” Priyanka said.“I think she was born to be a global influencer and this has given her the opportunity to do that,” Priyanka went on to share. “She’s always been someone who’s so just aware and interested in the world. I met her three or four years ago and that’s what we bonded on—was how much we feel like we contribute to that as public people. I really feel like that’s what she was born to do and I hope this gives her the opportunity do that. “On Friday, a statement from the Communications Secretary to Prince Harry was released, which shared details about the
couple’s upcoming wedding, including how they’ll be honoring the late Princess Diana at the ceremony.“All three siblings of Diana, Princess of Wales will be in attendance and Lady Jane Fellowes will give the reading,” the statement reads. “Prince Harry and Ms. Markle both feel honoured that Lady Jane will be representing her family and helping to celebrate the memory of the late Princess on the wedding day.”
Like you, Ellen Pompeo has some hopes and dreams for Grey’s Anatomy season 15. The ABC series will return for the 2018-2019 season, making it the longest-running drama in ABC’s history. “I’d like to get in to neurological diseases, and disease in general and talk about what’s causing it,” Pompeo told E! News about her season 15 hopes. “What we’re ingesting, what we’re inhaling, the chemicals that are in our food, water, air—what really is making people sick. I’d love to deal with that. I don’t know if that’s a popular thing on network television and sponsors may not like that, so I don’t know that we’ll do that. We can’t be so political, right? We’re half rom-com, half procedural, but I would like to tackle the issue of illness and the chemicals in our environment that are poisoning the planet and our people.” Pompeo is now a producer on the show, so there’s
a good chance we’ll get at least some of that disease stuff as a story. As for more Scott Speedman as Dr. Nick Marsh in season 15, that remains a question mark. Pompeo said “he’s welcome anytime, he knows that.” “Him and I had so much fun, so that door is open for him if ever he wants that, he knows that,” Pompeo said while promoting her partnership with Young Living Essential Oils.
Executive producer Krista Vernoff will remain on the series as showrunner for the upcoming season. Now, Pompeo said, the cast and crew are in competition with each other. “We’re in a competition with ourselves, like: Can we keep the quality up? Can we keep the storytelling up? Can we keep this audience? So, it’s kind of a fun competition we’re in with ourselves,” P o m p e o said.www.eonline.com
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Vendor gets two years Juvenile court to be established soon for wounding friend Neville Haynes of 419 North East, La Penitence, stood without remorse before Magistrate Leron Daly, as he was sentenced to two years imprisonment for chopping his friend over a bicycle dispute. It was alleged that on April 27, at Dowding Street Kitty, Haynes unlawfully and maliciously wounded Collin Moore with the intention of causing bodily harm. The court heard that prior to the day of the incident, Haynes, the victim and another friend known as “Redman” were hanging out at a stand with the bicycle. During this period, the defendant fell asleep. He consequently woke up to find his bike and the friends with whom he was chatting, missing. The 38-year-old defendant began looking for the two guys and found “Redman” who told him that the bike was in Moore’s possession. Prosecutor, Sanj Singh stated that Haynes confronted Moore and as the dispute escalated, Haynes pulled out a knife and chopped Moore across his face. The wound required 23 stitches outside and 13 stitches on the inside. When asked if he had anything to say, the defendant told the court “It gon teach he not to thief from he friend.” Magistrate Daly imposed a sentence of two years on Haynes.
Days after Ian Henry was released from the State Detention, the United Nation’s Children Fund (UNICEF) and Rights of the Child Commission (RCC) announced that they will be working together to ensure the establishment of the Youth Court in Guyana. Addressing a Press Conference, on Friday in Queenstown, UNICEF Representative, Sylvie Fouet, said that the establishment of the Youth Court in Guyana will address issues plaguing youth that would have committed criminal offences. Fouet said that the Youth Court would assist in fast tracking cases. It will also have “dedicated personnel to make the judgments.” She said that the importance of having dedicated and trained persons to deal with childrelated cases cannot be
Sylvie Fouet, Ian Henry and others at the Press Conference held at the RCC on Friday. overstated. “We need the Bill, and more importantly, we need the people to make it happen,” Fouet said. Speaking on the recently passed Juvenile Justice Bill, the CEO of RCC, Andre Gonsalves, said that he is satisfied with the way in
which it was constructed. “We don’t think it is a perfect Bill but it will address many of the glaring inequities we have right now, and we think it is a good starting point…” Also speaking of the Bill, was Fouet who said that its operationalisation is
important. She said that the intent of the Bill has all the elements that were important to have. “It has the criminal aging; you have the detention as the last resort. Then you have the use of corporal punishment, and the use of alternative Continued on page 69
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Man remanded for New National Standard stealing from store owner for tyres available
STANDARDS IN FOCUS
Since the commencement of its product monitoring programme, the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) has been monitoring tyres to ensure they meet the requirements of the available national standard. However, the ban on used tyres imported into Guyana, has resulted in the revision of the tyre standard to include specific requirements for new tyres. This revised standard was approved at the end of 2017 and is currently being used by the GNBS to monitor the importation and sale of the commodity. Inspectors monitor these tyres at ports of entry, bonds and outlets, where they are examined for labelling and quality requirements. Annually, tyre importers and dealers register with the GNBS to import and sell tyres on the local market. A large majority of these registrants import tyres from Europe, North America, and Asia in a variety of brands. To ensure tyres meet the quality and labelling requirements prior to importation, importers should acquire a copy of the new standard: Requirements for Pneumatic passenger car tyres GYS 67:2017 from the GNBS. This standard specifies the requirements for new and used pneumatic passenger car tyres, along with their storage conditions. It does not apply to tyres for highway commercial vehicles. The standard addresses size and construction characteristics, service description, which includes load index and speed categories. Tyre marking, choice of tyre
sizes, storage conditions and inspection and selection requirements are also specified in the standard. Importantly, the new standard states that new tyres shall not be more than two years old from the date of manufacture at the time of importation into Guyana. It also states that tyres that are six years or older shall not be sold or offered for sale in Guyana. The standard prohibits the importation of used tyres into Guyana and such tyres, which exceed six years from the date of manufacture shall not be sold, or offered for sale for use on passenger cars. To ensure that new tyres are stored and displayed according to the requirements of the standard Inspectors of the GNBS conduct routine surveillance inspections of outlets and storage bonds. This is necessary because inappropriate storage can result in dry rot over time. Deterioration can also result from exposure to chemicals, high temperatures, sunlight, etc. Defective tyres are destroyed by the Inspectors during monitoring. Finally, importers and dealers of tyres are reminded to register with the GNBS as the Bureau will continue to monitor the quality and labelling of tyres imported and offered for sale in Guyana. To ensure quality tyres are available for consumers, in the absence of the requisite testing facility, the standard requires that importers supply test certificates of compliance showing the results of tests conducted. For further information, kindly contact the GNBS on telephone numbers: 219-0065, 219-0066 or 219-0069.
Fourteen year old goes missing Fourteen-year-old, Adasier Jones of Lot 338 BB Eccles, Housing Scheme was last seen leaving her home on May 1 in the afternoon and has not returned since. The teen was reportedly going out with a friend on the day she left. A report was made at Providence Police Station. After searching frantically, the family could not find the child. She had gotten away from home before. This is said to be the longest she has ever stayed away from home. She was last seen wearing a pair of black jeans and white T- shirt. Adaiser is said to be medium built and about 5ft tall. Anyone with information leading to Adaiser Jones whereabouts is asked to contact 697-1370 / 689-7538 or the nearest police station.
MISSING: Adasier Jones
A 35-year-old labourer on Friday faced Magistrate Leron Daly after he allegedly stole from a rental storeowner. The court heard that between April 30 and May 1 at Lot 7 North Road, Georgetown, Seon Birth allegedly broke into the store owned by Nigel Pile about 14:00 hrs and stole items from the store. He denied that he broke into the rental store and stole 24 chairs valued $600,000, one air conditioner compressor valued $85,000 and a mattress valued $85,000. According to the charge, Pile had locked up his business on April 30, 2018 and upon his return on May 1, he noticed that someone had broken into the store. After the matter was reported and investigations were carried out, nine out of the 24 chairs were recovered in the possession of the defendant. The defendant told the court that he resided at 142 Quamina Street and works as a labourer, but according to the Prosecutor, Birth does not have a permanent place of residence.
REMANDED: Seon Birth In his defence, he told the court that some other guy had placed the chairs there in his care. The prosecutor objected to bail being granted and Birth was further remanded to prison. The matter is expected to be heard again on May 25.
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CONSUMER CONCERNS
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INDIAN ARRIVAL DAY by PAT DIAL Yesterday, 5th May, Indian Arrival Day was commemorated. Arrival Day is one of the significant days in the Holidays Calendar in that it marks the building of a greater Guyanese nation. Plantation slavery, though officially ended in 1834, in fact continued with the Apprenticeship System
until 1838. In 1838, the African freedmen were permitted to leave the plantations, which they did in increasing numbers. With this movement from the plantations grew the Village Movement whereby African freedmen and women purchased abandoned sugar estates and established villages such as Buxton, Victoria and Queenstown in
Essequibo. To meet the labour shortage, which occurred with Emancipation and the exodus away from the plantations by the African freedmen, the planters scouted about the world to find a regular and able labour supply. They brought indentured immigrant workers from Malta, Madeira, the islands of the Caribbean, from India and China. Of these, the Indians were found to be the most suitable and so the planters concentrated on importing Indians who came to be the main workers on the plantations. Approximately 240,000 Indians were imported. About one-third of them died before they could return to their homeland, onethird returned to India under their indenture contracts and about one-third of them remained in the colony on the plantations. Indian indentureship ended in 1917. The basic characteristics of the Indenture System, which continued for approximately 80 years were that a worker was recruited for five years to work on the sugar plantations with the promise of an agreed wage. They were to be given housing and were to be transported from
Calcutta to Guyana and return at the end of their indentures, except they wished to reindenture. But the terms of their indenture were never respected by the planters and the immigrants found themselves entrapped in a situation little better than slavery. Indeed, the early indentured immigrants were treated almost exactly like the slaves before them. The life of the indentured workers was not a happy one. The workers on the sugar plantations were the lowest paid in the colony. They worked from sunrise to sunset; the logies in which they lived were the same ones, which formerly housed the slaves; their food was of poor quality; there were no recreational facilities, no proper hygienic facilities or drinking water. There were no educational facilities for children who were forced to be engaged in child labour. Their culture and religions were regarded as inferior and treated with contempt. From 1872 onwards, there were continuous labour disputes erupting in eight major ones, the last of these being at Enmore on the East Coast Demerara and the first being at Devonshire Castle estate in Essequibo in 1872. Owing to the resoluteness and commitment of the workers, the planters felt they could not negotiate settlements in their favour and had the colonial authorities declare these labour disputes “riots� so that they could be suppressed by military means with some workers being killed. The reasons, which precipitated these labour disputes were only taken cognizance of after the police violence and loss of life. Despite their harsh living and working conditions, a good percentage of the sugar estate populations evinced the entrepreneurial spirit and economic creativity as well as development of their cultural and religious life. The immediate economic impact the indentured workers made was that in a few years after their arrival, they were able to quadruple sugar production from the base year of 1838 and this trend was maintained. And the same trend was seen in their other contributions to the economic advancement of the country, especially in Agriculture: They established a viable rice industry which helped to give Guyana food security and a steady foreign exchange income. The coconut industry was established with Continued on page 69
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INDIAN ARRIVAL... From page 68 numbers of profitable coconut estates resulting, among other benefits, of the country being self-sufficient in cooking oil. FOR RENT
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. Budram’s Landscaping Services. Free advice, Free designs, Free after care follow up Tel#626-1044
FOR SALE LARGE QUANTITIES OF HIGH PURITY MERCURY (QUICK SILVER) 99.99995% PURITY$19,000 PER POUND CALL: 592-227-4754. Organic potting soil $700 Supari palm, Foxtail, Sugarcane palm @ $1000 Ashoka trees, Crotoons. Tel#626-1044 Used metal lathe, drill press, shaper & Re-surface machine. Tel# 642-7898. Centrally located land at 10 Good Success, Wakenaam. Call Lena: 442-1680 or 862-2247680. Good Hope, ECD- 4 bedroom 2 storey- $18M. Contact: 2251230/687-6647
South Riumveldt Park- 3 Freezing Point Refrigeration bedroom 2 storey- $30M & Electrical Service- regasing Contact: 225-1230/687-6647. fridge, freezer, repair dryer & No agents please. washer AC.Lot 114 Friendship EBD. Tel#274- One Chain-lift, 1/2 ton HP, Price $1M. Contact: 667-8770 0755/613-1711
Repairs at affordable prices: fridge, air conditioner, washing machines, dryers, TV, microwaves & freezerCall: 610-5846 or 661-8158 Gent’s Spa- We do all types of massages. Call for appointments. #644-7557 USA Graduate. Hair, Waxing, Eyebrow threading & Colour. 39 Greenwich park, Public road EBE. Tel: 661-0019 Customized Salon Furniture, Kitchen cupboards, Drawface, Cabinets, Doors etc. 39 Greenwich Park Public road EBE. #661-0019
SALON Make-up Courses with Mac, B a r e M i n e r a l s , etc.Cosmetology Courses: $90,000 Nail Technician Course: $35,000. Call: 647-1773/688-0009
PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620 Prime Office on Camp Street, next to Shell gas station #6447724/639-4499/622-9560. Furnished apartments 318 East Street, between Middle and New Market Streets. Phone: 226-3199, 653-0490, 641-4614 Upper flat 3 bedroom house to rent in 4th Avenue Diamond Housing Scheme. Contact No: 216-0589/6865645 Hair and nails station to rent in Middle Road LaPenitence $6,000 weekly. Contact#6831080 PROPERTY FOR SALE Two Family house located at 8th street, Tuschen, East Bank E s s e q u i b o . Price:$13,000,000(Thirteen Million) Call: 675-1430 Mon Repos (Melsha Road) $7.8 Million. #647-2303/6161195. Located at 70 Belfield Housing Scheme ECD, Transported land 2 story concrete building. Contact Number:675-3395 New building with two apartment downstairs for sale.10 minutes from Georgetown .Call:675-1510/ 613-7964 Lovely property for business, Rusell Street, Charlestown. 3 lots together, Contact Ray’s Realty #627-9685 Gorgeous 2 storey home, Enterprise C East Coast Demerara 3 BR’s $32M neg. Contact Ray’s Realty #6279685 Paradise ECD Dazell Housing Scheme. Land 150x60. Contact Ray’s Realty. #627-9685 Property at Prime Location, Pere Street Kitty, Second house on Lot. Contact Ray’s Realty #627-9685
EDUCATION Register your child for after school classes for slow learners in Mathematics, Reading, Phonics, Spelling, etc. Call: 675-4379
WANTED Live in or live out babysitter/ domestic- Call: 223-7500 Monday to Saturday 8:15am4:15pm Plantation Friendship CDC is hiring residents in Friendship Village EBD to clean drains. Contact: 662-5133 (1)Electrician apprentice #6177493/682-2971 Wanted urgently1 experienced Industrial electrician must have knowledge of motor rewinding.Please call: 6449084 or 664-9635 Wanted land to buy: Parfaite Harmonie or anywhere on the West Coast/Providence. Tel#642-1252/681-8746 1 Experienced waitress & livein domestic, must know to cook, 18-25 & 35 from East Coast. $20,000 weekly respectively. #610-3974 One Mature person to make and bake puri and roti 3 hours’ work. #226-2320 1 Experience Female cook to cook for family in the interior. #699-4718 Domestic worker to work at home on East Coast Demerara. Contact: 626-3253 for details. Drivers for Hire and Private. #225-9223 Attractive live in waitressCall: 327-0252/674-4665 House cleaner wanted. Send SMS to 699-0313 with name and address. (1) Manager to work on farm in Pomeroon river, must have past farming experience. #5005923/226-9768 (1) Diesel mechanic to work in interior, knowledge of Doosan excavator & Perkins/Duetz engine. #500-5923/226-9768 Excavator operator to work with mining firm. Contact: 5005923/226-9768
TO LET Furnished House in AA Eccles. Tel# 629-0636/6237731 Grilled 2 bedroom A/c Bottom flat, Back up electricity, DSL, Optional alarm- South Riumveldt Gardens. #6188436 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). VACANCY Chef and Assistant cookPreferably Carnegie tranied. Call 225-7933, or visit 173 Sheriff street. One male Janitor. Apply in person at Alabama Trading, Georgetown Ferry Stelling, Stabroek. Office clerk Senior/Junior CXC English/Mathematics, Computer knowledge an asset, Call: 223-7500 If you need a job or training, we can help www.jobfairworldwide.com Call: 233-6997, 622-1957 Labourer/Porter to work in Georgetown. Call: 618-2020 Experienced painter. Apply in person at Alabama Trading, Georgetown Ferry Stelling, Stabroek. Workshop Driver, Operation supervisor, Registered Car/ Van license. Call: 227-1717 Drivers & Customer service attendants. Applications can be sent to Beacon Cafe. Call: 225-9409 for more information LAND FOR SALE
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They established a dairy industry and for most of the 19th and 20th century supplied the country with fresh milk until powdered milk replaced fresh milk. They also became producers of ground provisions, bananas and plantains, and other market garden produce, contributing to a more plentiful and affordable food supply. And from the latter half of the 20th century, the indentured servants and their descendants went into industry, increasing the wealth and employment of Guyana. The economic contribution made by these indentured workers and their descendants is immeasurable. Guyanese cultural life has also been greatly enriched by these indentured immigrants. Indian cooking and recipes have been integrated into the general Guyanese cooking; dhol-puri, for instance, has become one of the most common, nutritious and affordable snack foods. And Indian dress has become part of the female fashion world. Indian music is heard much and has become part of the corpus of Guyanese music, and so is it with the performing arts in general. The Indian arrivals had introduced Hinduism and Islam as organized religions to Guyana and today Guyana is unique in having the three great world religions, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity living side by side in the greatest amity. And unlike in other countries, members of these world Faiths have no difficulty in supporting each other and even participating in their activities. Indeed, there are quiet and unconscious religious exchanges taking place among these world Faiths, which are found nowhere else in the world. One such is the important belief among most Guyanese people is that all religious paths lead to God. Indian Arrival Day therefore not only marks the first arrival of Indian indentures but it commemorates the beginning of the evolution of a greater Guyanese nation.
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From page 66 sentencing,” Fouet said. She said that UNICEF is currently finalizing the costing of the Bill and consultations will be done in the coming weeks. She further stated that the assumption that institutionalisation of children regardless of if it’s a detention centre or alternative centre is not a solution.
Sunday May 06, 2018
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Deadly high seas attack…
Ramjattan leads high-level security team to Suriname
One man being whisked away while angry shouts were coming from fishermen in Suriname on Thursday.
The survivor, ‘Sherwyn’ shortly after he made it to shore
Missing : Bharrat Heralall
Missing: Joshua Glenroy Jones
Missing: Ganesh Beharry
Missing: Missing: Rajkumar Bissessar
Missing: Ralph ‘Burnham’ Couchman
Missing: Dinesh ‘Vicky’ Persaud
Missing: Gavin Outar
M
inister of Public Security, Vice President Khemraj Ramjattan, has led a team to Suriname, for a threeday visit, amid last week’s horrifying attack which saw 20 fishermen thrown overboard during a four-boat rampage by pirates. Three bodies have been recovered and 12 are missing, said to be Guyanese-born fishermen with a major search ongoing by Surinamese authorities. Desperately worried families have travelled to Suriname or are in Guyana awaiting word about loved (Continued on page 72)
Minister Khemraj Ramjattan
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Ramjattan leads high-level security team to Suriname From page 71 ones.According to the Guyana Police Force yesterday, collaboration is continuing between various authorities in both countries. The police said that Ramjattan and three senior officers departed for Suriname, following the flow of information between police and other authorities over the last few days.The team is expected to return on Tuesday. The team includes the Deputy Crime Chief and Deputy Commander of ‘B’ Division. The Police Force also disclosed that its Immigration Department through the Office of the Commissioner of Police has expedited the processing of seven passport applications of Guyanese nationals who are relatives of
the missing fishermen allegedly attacked by the pirates. ”Information thus far indicates that apart from the four victims who reported the attack to Suriname authorities, three bodies have been recovered and one survivor from among those reported missing.” On the local scene, based on information provided by the police authorities in Suriname, three men are in custody, as investigations continue here, the Police Force said. On Friday, a search party recovered two more bodies, making it a total of three. Five Guyanese escaped death, with one man, Sherwyn Lovell, telling a harrowing tale of surviving in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean for two
days before battling the swamps of Suriname to safety.Still missing are Guyanese-born Bharrat Heralall, Gavin Outar, Ralph ‘Burnham’ Couchman, Dinesh ‘Vicky’ Persaud, Joshua Glenroy Jones, Tilaknauth Mohabir, Rajkumar Bissessar, Ramesh Sancharra and Ganesh Beharry. The three bodies are still to be identified, as the decomposed state, have forced authorities in Suriname to resort to DNA tests to ensure that there are no mistakes in handing over the bodies. It is unclear how long loved ones will have to wait for the remains. Suriname has also reportedly suspended operations of the fishermen in the
Dutch-speaking neighbouring country. With mainly Guyanese operating in Suriname, the impact is expected to affect fish supply. It is also a source of worry for fishermen and their families. The suspension would come from fears that a band of pirates who are being hunted may still be lurking. On Thursday, Suriname’s President Desi Bouterse said that engagements are ongoing with the Guyana Government and authorities. “It is a very sad thing. As the government…we will do everything we can to turn all stones over so that we get the right information and inform the community about what is going on.” The Head of State stated that so far it seems that there is more to it than just piracy. “It seems like there is more going on and possibly involves retaliation of things that have probably gone wrong.” The two bodies were among three spotted in the Wia Wia Bank, where the attack took place two Fridays ago.The attack was said to have occurred about 40 miles from Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname. On Friday, news reports said that police in Suriname were looking for families so
that a list of the missing men can be compiled. These include names, birth dates and ID numbers or passport numbers.The police urged family members to report to its Department of Capital Crimes. On the night of the attack, four boats filled with 19 Guyanese and one Surinamese came under attack by a rampaging gang who chopped crewmembers and dumped them overboard. A few of the crewmembers had batteries tied to their legs before they were thrown overboard. Four men, including a captain were later rescued. It was clear from testimonies and police report that the pirates came to kill. Another Guyanese made it to shore Wednesday after walking in the swamps for days. That means that the search is on for 12 persons. On Thursday, President David Granger described the attack as a massacre and announced that mourning will be observed in Guyana. Two men, including a Corentyne man who is a brother of fisherman in Suriname gunned down late March, were arrested in Guyana in relation to the incident. In Suriname, seven men were arrested Thursday with
a number of them released the following day. They are all fishermen- Guyanese who are living between Guyana and Suriname. Authorities are working on the theory that the attack stemmed from the killing of Somnath Manohar in Suriname. He and an employee were shot when gunmen sprayed where he sat. He died. Authorities in Suriname and Guyana are trying to determine whether his brother, Nakool Manohar, planned the attack in retaliation. He was arrested at his Corentyne home on Thursday. His family is protesting his innocence.It is believed that the fishermen, mostly Guyanese who are using fishing licences of Suriname to operate, in waters there, have been feuding a while over fishing ground and other rights. The fishermen who are missing are from the East Coast of Demerara and from Berbice. Guyana’s ambassador to Suriname, Keith George, has been meeting with families and feeding information to local authorities in Guyana. What is compounding the situation is the identification of the missing. Many of the fishermen have no records and or even passports. They have call names.
Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur News
State arms must be strengthened to ... From page 7 functioning of the market, discourages investment both local and foreign, and damages confidence in the system as a lawful dispute mechanism. Ramson quickly pointed to the fact that there are currently matters that have been waiting for over five years for a first hearing. Ramson said that even after the hearing, it can take a long time to get a decision, “in some instances years. Then when an appeal is filed, which happens frequently, you can add another five years just to hear the appeal.” The Attorney-at-law said, “This thing became so bad that a law had to be passed in 2009 for judges to write a decision within three months, from the conclusion of a case and in many instances, it is still not happening. “At one point, judges were being paid extra just to deal with backlog but the problem is not the judge. In most instances, the problem is that the system is an inherently outdated and designed for far less persons accessing the system and a less litigious society. The system therefore institutionalizes backlog.” Ramson told Kaieteur News that the new Civil Procedure Rules will speed up matters that go to a hearing but not final conclusion. He said, however, that this is only one cog in the wheel. “Some of these matters are simple disputes which could be dealt with almost instantaneously but they get lost in the backlog. If most of the persons
employed in the system are doing their job but we still end up with a backlog then the problem is not the personnel; it is the system.” PARLIAMENT Ramson then turned his attention to the Parliament. Ramson said, “We recently heard a Member of Parliament saying he was too busy with court to attend a Select Committee meeting to raise an objection to a particular clause which has no place in the modern world. “But he is not the only MP who does not attend scheduled meetings or read Bills or do quality research for technical subjects. And this is not the first time; this happens more often than not.” With the coming of oil, Ramson said that Parliament can no longer be a part-time job for MPs. “It has to become a full time job like what happens in other countries.” The Attorney noted that
Parliamentarians, whether in opposition or Government, are responsible for serious work on behalf of the people and should not be paid differently for doing the same job—which is supposed to be representing the people faithfully. Further, Ramson noted that the subject matters covered in Bills are sometimes very technical. He said that MPs need to have the research personnel to support the quality representation needed for a modern Guyana. “Some MPs only speak once or twice a year in Parliament and have effectively become persons just holding seats to vote with the party which put them there. How is this quality representation that is needed for the vast majority of Guyanese to benefit from good governance of Guyana’s new found wealth on the horizon?”
Central Bank ... From page 9 current payments arrangement. Chapter Two examines how the Bank will lead the development of the NPS Strategy. It defines the role of a National Payment System as a series of layers in an inverted pyramid in which each layer is supported by layers beneath it. Chapter Three explores Guyana’s vision to build a safe, robust, sound, efficient and inclusive payment system that meets the current and future needs of the economy. It proposes the year 2030 as a realistic target for full realization of the NPS vision. However, in the medium term it proposes a 2017-2021 action plan as a first phase on achieving that vision. The fourth chapter concludes with a highlight of the 2017 – 2021 NPS Development Strategy and plan of actions. The Strategy also has attached five annexes. The preparation of the payment strategy has been a joint effort of the Bank of Guyana and a team from the World Bank. A preliminary draft of the strategy was issued to stakeholders for their comments in August 2016.
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Eion Greaves Appreciation Concert ... (From page 63) performed by a list of the nation’s leading gospel acts. These included Saiku Andrews, Samuel Medas , Cherlyn Maloney, Mariam Corlette-Williams, and Reverend Shawn Sobers. The singers and speakers at the event spoke of how Greaves’s music impacted their lives and ministry. In addition to his Ambassadorial status, Greaves was on Saturday April 28, 2018 conferred with an Honorary Doctorate from the Word of Life Ministries International (WOLMI), a United Nation’s Accredited Body, for his contribution to music and ministry spanning over three decades. Even as the crowds took their ‘hats off’ to the celebrated singer/songwriter, they were in for a few surprises. By the end of the night, at least eight other Christian dignitaries received honours from the United Nation’s accredited Body. The awardees were honoured for their invaluable contribution to administering the “Good News.” The church leaders were accredited with ambassadorial
and doctorate titles from the WOLMI and Canadian International Chaplaincy Association (CICA), an International University & Seminary. The Ambassadorial honourees included Pastors Denise Harris, Pastor Selywn Sills, of Linden, Pastor Kevin Perierra of Berbice, singers Mariam Corlette-Williams, Cherlyn Maloney and Former Mayor of Linden, Carywn Holland. Archbishop Wingrove David Babb founder leader of Special Miracles Ministries (Royalty Centre) Church was also bestowed with the special title of Ambassador for his ministerial work and continuous community service. Christian Deejay and radio personality, Kester Deane, was given three honours namely an Ambassadorial accreditation, WOLMI Chaplaincy Licence for which he is now an ordained Minister owing to his commitment, integrity, sound character and dedicated service in the Ministry of the Gospel of the Kingdom and a Diploma in Chaplaincy and Leadership from CICA. Ms. Bimkubwa Hintzen was also conferred a Doctor-
ate title. In conferring the titles, Pro -Chancellor of CICA University and Seminary, Dr. Devon Bannister, noted the Ambassadorial accreditation gives the honourees the right to use the title Ambassador before their names and the letters DKA after their names as after the order of Ephesians 6:20 and from the Kingdom of God Constitution in accordance to 2 Corinthians 5:20. WOLMI is the first and only full gospel church to be granted an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, (ECOSOC), the highest level of accreditation that is awarded internationally to all designates. In this capacity, WOLMI is able to appoint and accredit seventeen ambassadorial representatives annually to offices of the United Nations worldwide and numerous ambassadors at-large. Through established links with governmental bodies and other international organizations WOLMI is on a path to assist the UN in executing its mandate of maintaining world peace, promoting education and fighting poverty.
Sunday May 06, 2018
NSC supports REO Inter Secondary... From page 79 sports thus her willingness and readiness to lend valuable support. Regional Executive Officer (REO) Ms. Pauline Lucas thanked the NSC, “Some weeks ago this was an idea that we at the region decided to make a reality. I would like to express our sincere gratitude and thanks to Mr Jones and NSC because they have stepped in at the
right time with the right gears, thus ensuring that this competition can be a reality. I am forever grateful to the Director of Sports because he has ensured that we receive these gears, while lending assistance in other areas, thus ensuring that this competition will become a successful one,” she said. Mr. Jones has also committed that he and the National Sports Commission
STSC and Black... From page 78 action.Every team will allowed a maximum of two substitutes (a total of six players per team) and they will be battling for trophies, medals and cash prizes.
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The competition is organised by Johnny ‘Overseas’ Barnwell and others and is being sponsored Better Hope NDC, Trophy Stall Bourda Market and ‘Big Pops’ Habeed. Drinks and food will be on sale.
will seek to garner additional support to ensuring that the competition is very successful. The Competition bowls on May 14 with matches being held at two venues, Lugisnan and Enmore Hope Cricket grounds. At Enmore Hope, Ann’s Grove Secondary f a c e H o p e S e c o n d a r y, while at Lugisnan Lancaster Secondary begin their campaign against Beterverwaging Secondary School. Matches continue on the 15th, 16th, 17th, 18thand19th while semi-finals will be on the 21st with third place and finals being held on the 23rdand 2 4 t h r e s p e c t i v e l y. T h e competition is being coordinated by former international test cricketer, Reon King.
Sunday May 06, 2018 ARIES (Mar. 21–Apr. 19) An increased focus, clarity of mind, and sense of concentration could lead to success in career matters and increased income, Aries. TAURUS (Apr. 20–May 20) Invitations to attend social events, perhaps business related, could bring surprising results, Taurus. You might meet more than one person who shares some of your interests GEMINI(May 21–June 20) While you may not have been feeling quite your usual self over the past day or two, Gemini, today you're likely to be feeling mentally and physically stronger and more focused. CANCER (June 21–July 22) A date with a significant other could bring up discussions about plans for the future, Cancer. Talk could run the gamut of all your concerns LEO (July 23–Aug. 22) A number of visitors could come to your home today, Leo, and a number of fascinating subjects could come up in the course of your conversation. VIRGO (Aug. 23–Sept. 22) Some short trips in your neighborhood and contact with neighbors or visitors to your community could bring some interesting information your way, Virgo. It gets you thinking
LIBRA (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) A talent for interior decoration that you may or may not have been aware of could inspire you to do some work on your home. You'll probably consider a lot of different options and make long lists of possibilities, Libra. SCORPIO (Oct. 23–Nov. 21) Spiritual and intellectual matters may be very much on your mind, Scorpio. A lot of ideas could have come your way SAGIT(Nov.22–Dec.21) Although your mind may have been a bit clouded over the past few days, today the fog should clear and you'll feel more focused. CAPRI(Dec.22–Jan.19) Stimulation that you could receive today from group activities might open doors to a wealth of rich experiences, Capricorn. AQUARIUS(Jan.20–Feb.18) Uncertainty about professional matters can lead to an increased determination to get ahead, Aquarius, despite confusion as to how to do it exactly. PISCES (Feb. 19–Mar. 20) The opportunity to travel, perhaps with friends or a group you belong to, could come your way today, Pisces. Discussions with others could lead to the confirmation of practical arrangements.
Finalists... From page 80 decision was the best we can make.In the correspondence, Petra expressed heartfelt thanks to the two teams and the sponsors, NAMILCO and Rose Ramdehol Auto Sales who played a major role in arriving at this decision and special gratitude to the other stakeholders especially the spectators for their continuous support.
BCB...
From page 81 along with all stakeholders to make sure that every potential in Berbice is fulfilled and that the game of Cricket is played at all levels across the length of our great county. We are about to embark on a massive developmental coaching project, that would ensure that Berbice remains Champions at all form of the game. The BCB would also like to extend thanks Hand in Hand for their sponsorship of the tournament. Your investment is appreciated by all of us in Berbice. It is our hope that your company would continue to expand in the future, It is our hope that in 2019 that matches would be played in Berbice, where the company enjoys great support, so that our boys would enjoy the joy of playing in front of their parents and family, the release noted. The BCB would like to congratulate Mr. B. Yadram on his triple century during the tournament. Scoring three hundred runs in a single innings is no mean feat and we would like to encourage Mr. Yadram to keep aiming for the highest standard. The BCB also salutes the management team of Neil Rudder and Andre Percival on a job well done. The entire squad would shortly be honored by us in a special way as champions.
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Simpson was named-manof-the-match. Demerara skipper Bhaskar Yadram received the trophy for scoring the most runs in the tournament (366); Ashmead Nedd was the leading wicket taker (22), while wicketkeeper Junior Sinclair took the prize for effecting the most dismissals (15). GCB APPOINTS STEPHEN LEWIS AS CRICKET OMBUDSMAN
Natricia Hooper on the Podium at the Penn Relays event. From page 77 Guyana set to host matches on May 23 – 27. Prior to the T&T sojourn, Head Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph had stated that the focus would have been on rebuilding the Lady Jags brand with a focus on development: “I’m really concerned with whether our players can execute the established systems. The outcome and the results of that game are irrelevant,” He noted. The Lady Jag’s fell behind after 12 minutes when T&T’s Shenika Paul converted. The exchanges between the two nations which have also qualified for the previous two CONCACAF finals, the Lady Jags having the distinction of being the only Guyanese outfit to have achieved such a feat, kept going at each other with the Guyanese ladies holding their own. The neutralising goal for Guyana was scored by the experienced Mariam EiMasri in the 64th minute. Tw o u n a n s w e r e d g o a l s from the Twin Island Republic in the 75th and 88th minute off the boots of Karyn Forbes and Jonelle Coto carried the home team to victory and their third win in as many matches to end as the top team in the group; Guyana ended third. Despite T&T being a touch above the rest of opponents in the group, Grenada and Suriname, Coach Joseph believes that Guyana played well. PHENOMENAL SUPPORT PROPELLED ME TO THE GOLD MEDAL – GRANTSTAURT Despite competing in conditions that he is not accustomed to, Guyanese
Differently Able cyclist, Walter Grant-Stuart landed this nations first ever medal at a Para-Cycling event when he took the gold medal at the 35th edition of Défi sportif AlterGo, a UCI C1 Para-Cycling sanctioned event held last Sunday at the Circuit GillesVi l l e n e u v e , M o n t r e a l , Canada. The determined GrantStuart said he was focused from the time he received the invitation to compete and worked hard ever since by training continuously which resulted in him taking the top podium spot in the MC5 Class. From his base in Canada, Grant-Stuart commented on his historical achievement: “Being successful truly doesn’t happen without support. I would first like to thank God for everything he has done for me. He has touched the hearts of all the sponsors, all my supporters and my family. The support from you all was phenomenal. Your support made my participation in this event not only possible, but totally a success. I am very proud and blessed to be representing my country Guyana. At this moment words cannot describe how I feel.” The Continental Cycle Club members informed that the competition was very different and difficult in conditions. ”It was 8°c with freezing rain, my fingers were numb, and my legs were numb. It was really cold. Nevertheless I still made it to complete the race.” The event also afforded Grant-Stuart the opportunity of accumulating points towards his being ranked in the world. He would now be focusing on the UCI Para-Cycling Road World Cup in Emmen, Neth-
erlands, July 6-8, next. BERBICE CLAIM GCB/HAND-IN-HAND INTER COUNTY U19 50-OVER TITLE WITH FOUR-WKT WIN Berbice captured the Guyana Cricket Board/ Hand-in-Hand Inter County U19 50-over title with a four-wicket victory over the National U17 Select Team yesterday at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence. Berbice’s decision to insert the National U17 Select team paid dividends as spinner Keith Simpson pegged back their batting with some tidy bowling in hazy conditions, restricting them to 133 all out in 42.5 overs. Seon Glasgow made 51 and Andre Seepersaud 46 not out. Simpson finished with 4-33, while Kevlon Anderson claimed 2-19. Berbice lost Alex Algoo caught and bowled by Sylvon Williams for 10 with the score on 28 before Junior Sinclair was taken of Singh for 13. Left hander Javed Karim and skipper Kevin Sinclair steadied the chase nicely with a thirdwicket stand of 43 before Sinclair was caught of left arm spinner Nigel Deodat for 28 with five fours. Karim executed some handsome drives as he struck three fours and one six but fell to Prashad for 38, while Kevlon Anderson (13) was caught off Deodat one run later. Despite losing Garfield Benjamin (01) who was bowled by Deodat, Berbice were well on their way to victory as Steve Deonarine and Swamy took them home without further hiccups with Swamy finishing on eight and Deonairne on five; Berbice ended on 137-6 in 37.2 overs. Deodat was the pick of the bowlers with 3-23 from 10 overs.
Attorney-at-Law Stephen Guyon Lewis, was a p p o i n t e d a s G u y a n a ’s Cricket Ombudsman by the Guyana Cricket Board. The GCB made the announcement after its Extra Ordinary Meeting which was held at the office boardroom. The
GCB indicated that this appointment came on the demands to have a second cricket Ombudsman owing to an existing vacancy since Dr. Winston McGowan had relinquished his appointed position as Cricket Ombudsman. Steven Lewis is a prominent lawyer, graduated from the Hugh Wooding Law School, in Trinidad in 2005. Prior to his studies at the Hugh Wooding Law School, Lewis in 2002, completed reading for a LLB, Law Degree at the University of Guyana. Lewis is no stranger to cricket administration, having previously served a s P r e s i d e n t a n d Vi c e President of the Everest Cricket Club. He also served as a member of the GCB Disciplinary
Committee for a number of years and is already familiar with the rules, regulations and constitution that govern this entity. Mr. Lewis was also a part of the process that brought resolution to the Guyana Football Federation matter as a member of the panel verifying the electoral process. The Ombudsman would be responsible for verification of cricket clubs countrywide and then ensure that each county board has a properly constituted and run election by acting as the returning officer. Regulations and the rules of office are also to be drafted. The two nominees for the post were former chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Cecil Kennard and Mr. Lewis, with Mr. Lewis winning the vote by a clear majority.
Unity Cup registration in full swing, most areas to start next weekend The Unity Cup registration to determine the national Champions in four categories have begun and some areas are reporting favorable response so far and more teams are finalizing their squads in order to put their best foot forward as the reps have indicated that they are receiving calls on the tournament. The tournament is organized by the Guyana Softball League. The number entries so far collected are as follows in all categories: East Coast Upper and Lower – 31 teams; West Coast – 24 teams; Corentyne – 16; NA/Canje – 13 teams. Some areas will be merge depending on the response to have them compete. The other areas are urged to continue their quest to promote team work and guide the individuals in order to have them ready. The one ball is receiving favorable response as many persons are enquiring about the process. Any team can enter any zone. Most areas are slated to start next weekend as the reps have indicated that most teams are awaiting a start. The fixtures will be out shortly for areas, but Lower East Coast will have their start this weekend with some four matches at Success Ground. The inclement weather is also contributing to this delayed start as grounds are in an unfavorable condition with the rains being unpredictable. Meanwhile, as the organizers noted the prizes are not the most lucrative in terms of cash incentives but the pride in being National Champion is what counts and this makes the tournament a must in participation. Additionally Lower East Coast will have three matches today: At 9:30am: Success En-
Action promises to be competitive among the teams. forcers vs Good Hope Warriors; 11:00 am: Aditya Electrical vs Hope Warriors Under-15; 2:00pm: Success XI vs Enterprise XI. Prizes being offered are as follows: Male Open Champion - $50,000 and one of the Unity Cups as well as championship rings; Female Open champion - $25,000 and one Unity Cups; Masters Champion $20,000 and one Unity Cup. MVP- Trophies and one package which includes electronic accessories. Other promotional items will also be given on the spot to fans as the team goes to various grounds. Grounds to be used are Success; Better Hope; Mahaica; Leonora Primary; Uitvlugt, Parika, Scott Field, Port Mourant so far. More details are forthcoming on the grounds. Meanwhile, to get more details on the tournament persons can contact the follow-
ing representatives: West Demerara – Ravendra Ramgobin – 2761381; Premnauth Bimchan (Pampalam)– 670-9982; Rawle Higgins – 667-6374; East Bank Demerara/ Georgetown – Nadir Baksh (Gas)– 6720378;Lower East Coast Demerara – up to Enmore as well as East Bank/ Linden – Rafman Ally – 654-2233/ Darmin Ramnarine – 6423165;Upper East Coast Herman Persaud – 6433033;Linden – Mortimer Denny – 687-3326/442-1562; Berbice- Corentyne – Rajin Moonsammy – 650-7647/ Omerwar Sirikishun – 6275788/677-2826; Canje – Pinkey Arthur-615-2493/ Ravi Ramkumar – 642-1206 ; West Coast Berbice – Barrington667-8199; Essequibo board has not yet indicated that they will be participating therefore no representation has been named. Discussions are ongoing.
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Kaieteur Sport takes a look back at some of the main local events that took place in sport. ROSE AND WEBSTER LEAD COLTS TO ROAD TO MECCA V TITLE OVER RAVENS VICTORY VALLEY ROYALS STEAMROLL KOBRAS FOR THIRD PLACE There wasn’t an accolade available for the Finals MVP but Bounty Colts’ Stanton Rose would’ve been the clear cut winner for that award if it was. Rose showed his worth as a true big game player and saved his best performance of the tournament for last as he sunk a team-high 25 points with 21 of those points coming from behind the threepoint arc as Colts won a historic third consecutive Road to Mecca title. Shelroy Thomas, Skipper of Colts, was also hot at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall and he netted 20 points which was decorated with four three-pointers in the game that Colts lead from the first whistle. “We played hard but the game plan was to simply to come out and give heart and we did so and were rewarded with a deserved victory,” Thomas elated following the victory which ensured Colts received the $600,000 grand cash prize. Shane Webster proved that his MVP performance in last year’s National Club Championship (Road to Mecca IV) was no one-hit wonder after being announced the 2018 MVP after the finals. In the ultimate game of the Mecca V, he scored a double-double (15 points and 15 rebounds) in this club’s imposing victory. Webster finished the tournament as the player with the most points and most rebounds, a truly remarkable performance from the Lindener. On the losing side,
Bounty Colts skipper Shelroy Thomas receives the championship trophy from GABF’s VP Kenrick Thomas as his team poses with the cheerleaders following the victory on Saturday Night at Cash. Ravens’ acquisition of semiprofessional baller Anthony Moe, who competes in El Salvador, scored a game-high 27 points coupled with 16 rebounds. Moe’s team mate, Dominic Vincente, netted five three-pointers in his 17-point contribution but didn’t receive much support from his outspoken and proud skipper Ryan Stephen (seven points), who helped hyped the final in its lead up through social media banter. Domair Gladstone of Colts was awarded most improved player, along with the $100,000 cash prize. In the third-place playoff, Victory Valley Royals topped the Kobras 83-57. Trevor Profit had 19 points in the win, while last year’s leading scorer Harold Adams ended the
night with 17 points. Orlando Glasgow also chipped in with 14 points in the win. Carlos Edwards had 13 points, while Travis Burnett had 11 points in the poor shooting performance for the team. At the presentation ceremony held immediately after the tournament, all teams were presented with their prize money (in cash) and trophies. ANOTHER GLITZY AWARDS CEREMONY HOSTED BY RHTY&SC, 28 AND COUNTING KEVIN SINCLAIR & SHEMAINE CAMPBELLE ARE MALEAND FEMALE CRICKETERS OF THE YEAR The St. Francis Training Centre, Rose Hall Town was
Guyana’s Mariam El-Masri challenges for the ball against T&T on Sunday at the Ato Boldon Stadium.
the venue for yet another glitzy and well attended Annual Awards Presentation hosted by the leading youth and sports club in Guyana, the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club MS (RHTY&SC). Getting better with each passing year of their 28-year history, Secretary CEO Hilbert Foster was joined by a number of VIP’s including CEO of Guyana Water Inc. Dr. Richard Van West Charles, former West Indies Vice Captain and Georgetown Cricket Association President Roger Harper, Regional Chairman Reg #6 David Armogan, Director of Sports Christopher Jones, Commander of Region 6 Assistant Commissioner of Police Lyndon Alves and Clerk of the National Assembly Sherlock Isaacs among other dignitaries. The feature address was delivered by Dr. Alistair Collins who represented His Excellency President David Granger who was unavoidably absent. President Granger is also Patron of the club. Dr. Collins in his brief address to the gathering complimented the club members for working as a collective to bring the entity to where it’s at, the leading sports club in Guyana and the Caribbean. Apart from the marquee awards, headlined by the male and female cricketers of the year, the RHY&SC also recognized the services of a number of persons and entities for their collective efforts which all add up to deliver a
better life for the youths and elderly in the Ancient County. These included the Law Enforcement Awards Scheme where five outstanding Officers were recognised, Tribute to Retired Teachers and the Scotiabank Tribute to Student and Teacher programmes, among others. The Dolphin Awards, the highest award given out by the club was presented to a number of persons for their contributions which has helped to shape the club into what is has become. Among those being presented with the award yesterday were Mr. Poonai Bihrog, Mr. Bishwa Panday, Dr. Richard Van West Charles, Mr. Anil Beharry, Mr. Haridass Ganesh, Mr. Deonarine Shane, Mr. Anandranauth Gosai, Mr. Sherlock Isaacs and Mr. Roger Harper. Sponsors, one of the main lifeline of the club, were also recognized for their partnerships with the club and some were given the opportunity to bring brief remarks, among them were, Poonai’s Pharmacy and Metro Office and Computer Supplies. KMPACONGRATULATES NATRICIA HOOPER ON HER TRIPLE JUMP WIN AT PENN RELAYS Guyana had their best performance ever at the just concluded 2018 Penn Relays in the United States of America with Natricia Hooper coming out victorious in the women’s triple jump event at the games. With a leap of 13.34m, Hooper, fresh off her 9th place
finish at the XXI Commonwealth games earlier in the month, ensured that Guyana’s name goes down in the record books. Along with Troy Doris who won the Commonwealth Championship men’s triple jump, the King Medas Pansy Adonis (KMPA) Foundation would like to congratulate these athletes for their wonderful achievement. On the other hand the KMPA foundation is asking the relevant authorities to not let these two athletes disappear off the radar as has become a custom in Guyana. The KMPA was reliably informed that Doris would like to come to Guyana to host a few coaching clinics with young up and coming athletes, something the foundation thinks could be of great asset to the development of athletics in the ‘Land of Many Waters’ and its calling on all stakeholders, including the Private Sector to come onboard and make this clinic a reality. LATE GOALS RELEGATE LADY JAGS TO 1-3 LOSS TO SOCA LADIES Guyana’s Lady Jags, the flagship women’s team put a wrap on their Caribbean Football Union Women’s Challenge Series quest in Trinidad and Tobago by falling 1-3 to the home team at the Ato Bolden Stadium, Couva. This series of matches was a precursor to this month’s CONCACAF Qualifying Championships with (Continued on page 76)
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Sunday May 06, 2018
Kaieteur News
GBA’s Andrew Lewis Nat Novices Boxing C/Ships
Soldiers dominate ‘Nuff Cuff’ opening night
FYF’s Alex Murray is caught to the head with a right before he earned a TKO verdict over GDF’s Royden Grant with 26 second left in the fight. Story and Photos by Sean Devers The action on the opening night of the three-night Guyana Boxing Association’s (GBA) Andrew ‘Six head’ Lewis National Novices Boxing Championships at the National Gymnasium on Friday was fast and furious with GDF winning five of the night’s six bouts.
Middleweight Alex Murray of the Forgotten Youth Foundation (FYF) whose three-person fan group sounded like a capacity crowd with their raucous support, broke the sequence of GDF wins when he got the better of GDF’s Royden Grant with a last round TKO in one of the most entertaining fights of the night. The fair sized gathering,
which included Guyana’s first C o m m o n w e a l t h (professional) Champion Lennox Blackmore, Guyana’s only Olympic Medalist Mike Parris and South Paw Kenny Bristol, watched as only one fight on the night went the full distance. After GDF’s Jamal LaRose easily disposed of stablemate Dexter Alexander when their Bantamweight bout was
Jermain Jackman (right) goes toe to toe with Aldyn Melville before he stopped his GDF’s stablemate by TKO in the second round. stopped 51 seconds into the night’s action, Jevon Gomes beat Irvine Austin by TKO in the second round of an all GDF Lightweight battle, while the Junior Welterweight encounter between Aldyn Melville and fellow Solider Jermaine Blackman ended in a second round TKO for Blackman. The Middleweight division was the most
entertaining and had the gathering on its feet, while the Army drummers (without their trumpet) had the GDF fans dancing in the stands; creating a wonderful atmosphere of energy which rivaled the Music Set which doubled as the PA system for the Ring Announcer. The first Middleweight fight pitted Nikel Inniss of FYF and GDF’s Montel Fraser and both came out with all guns blazing and traded punches in bunches with Inniss winning a close round. The Solider began to find his range in the second round as the pair of pugilists sustained the up tempo momentum with some hard but at times unorthodox shots in a round that Fraser won. Both Boxers seemed to be tiring in the final round and their punches lacked venom but the more aggressive Fraser prevailed with a unanimous decision. The second Middleweight contest saw Grant taking the opening round as both Boxers began with plenty of aggression as they punched and
counterpunched in a high intensity round. Urged on by his vocal fans, Murray found his man with several crisp jabs which set up uppercuts to Grant’s body but Grant retaliated with combinations of his own as the pendulum swung back and forth. The three Murray fans screamed their support every time the FYF fighter landed a shot, while on the opposite side of the venue, the Army drums rolled when Grant connected to the head of Murray with a crunching straight right and GDF contingent were jumping in the stands as the second round ended ‘Even Stevens’. With both Boxers running out gas, the final round saw more holding as the minutes were running out but just with just 26 second left in the fight Grant was hurt by a good right hand and the fight was stopped to the delight of the three screams fans. GDF has the most Boxers in the Championships and would be looking to maintain their dominance when the action continued last night and tonight from 20:00hrs.
STSC and Black Stallion FC 4-a-side football tourney kicks off today South Turkeyen Sports Committee (STSC) and Black Stallion Football Club (BSFC) are set to kickoff a pre-independence four-a-side Penalty Shootout and Football competition for community teams, today at the Vryheid’s Lust playfield, East Coast Demerara from 08:00hrs.
All teams are invited to participate in the one-day event which will have an entrance fee of $3,000 and teams from Better Hope, Vryheid’s Lust, Plaisance, Sophia A, B, C, and D fields among others have already signaled their intention to be part of the (Continued on page 75)
Kaieteur News
Sunday May 06, 2018
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Tribute to Teachers and Students Awards Scheme
Scotiabank/RHTY&SC Cricket Teams continue to show appreciation
Awardees of the RHTYSC/Scotia Bank Programme displaying their rewards after the Presentation. A combined total of 18 Outstanding Teachers and Students were honoured last Sunday when the Rose Hall Town Youth & Sports Club (RHTY&SC) hosted its Annual Scotia Bank Tribute to Outstanding Teachers and Students Awards Scheme. The Teachers and Students were selected by their respective schools for being the best in 2017 and were honoured under the RHTY&SC’s Say No/Say Yes Programme which encourages youths to embrace education, sports, culture, religion and life, while rejecting drugs, crime, suicide, alcohol and tobacco. The Awardees were drawn from the Corentyne Comprehensive Secondary, J.C. Chandisingh Secondary, Lower Corentyne Secondary, Port Mourant Primary, Rose Hall Town Primary, Belvedere Primary, Cropper
Primary, Tain Primary and Rose Hall Town Nursery School. The Teachers honoured were Fyzal Moses (Lower Corentyne Secondary), Lesa Denny (Cropper Primary), Rajendra Daratt (Corentyne Comprehensive High School), Althea Minty (J. C. Chandisingh Secondary), Arlene Roberts (Port Mourant Primary), Deochand Jaiprashad (Tain Primary), Sheren Lester-Williams (Rose Hall Town Primary), Padmani Bishun (Rose Hall Town Nursery) and Youneita Sinsammy Jaiprashad of Belvedere Primary. Each of the Awardees received a trophy, medal, framed Certificate of Excellence and a collection of prizes from the Club and Scotiabank. The Students honoured were Aliyah Henry (Lower Corentyne Secondary), Gabriella Henry (Cropper Primary),
Raqquayah Rajbali (Corentyne Comprehensive Secondary), Angel Joseph (Rose Hall Town Nursery), Latoya Bethune (J.C. Chandisingh Secondary), Inkia Moore (Port Mourant Primary), Antowne Walters (Tain Primary), Jamaina Moseley (Rose Hall Town Primary) and Devlin Khargie of Belvedere Primary. Club Secretary/CEO Hilbert Foster stated that the Scotiabank Programme is a cherished one for the Club as its main objectives are to honour outstanding educators and students as a means of inspiring those in the educational sector whilst promoting the importance of education. Each of the students was presented with a trophy, medal and a collection of educational material including a school bag and exercise books.
Foster urged the teachers and students to not only maintain their standard but to aim for more excellence. Teachers, he stated was the second best role model to children after their parents and as such it was important for them to set a positive example for the students to follow. Students were reminded that an educated mind is the most powerful thing a human can have as an asset and as such they should work hard to achieve one. They were also urged to develop a culture of respect, honesty and hard work while rejecting satan and his evil world of drugs, crime, suicide, alcohol and tobacco. Foster expressed gratitude to Scotiabank for their continued sponsorship of the club and made special mention of Marketing Executive Jennifer Cipriani who was described as a true friend of the entity.
NSC supports REO Inter Secondary School Cricket Competition The National Sports Commissions (NSC) through the Director of Sports, Christopher Jones has made a major donation to the inaugural staging of the RDC Lloyd W. P. Briton REO Inter Secondary School Cricket Competition. The40 overs a side hardball cricket competition which bowls off on May 14 will see some 16 teams vying for the Championship. At a simple presentation ceremony held in the Boardroom of the RDC Region Four, the Director of Sports made the presentation of cricket bats, batting pads, helmets, wicketkeeping gloves and batting gloves to
the organisers. Among those in attendance to receive the donation were Regional Chairman, Ms. Genevieve A l l e n , R e g i o n a l Vi c e Chairman, Mr. Earl Lambert and Regional Executive Officer (REO), Ms Pauline Lucas. He congratulated them on behalf of the NSC, while urging them to continue in this vein in being proactive and innovative in providing such platforms for the youths of the region to be meaningfully engaged. “This is an excellent initiative and as the Director of Sports I would like to congratulate the RDC Four on such an initiative as this
argues well for the holistic sports development within our country,” Jones said. He thanked the Regional Chairman Ms Genevieve Allen in being aggressive and consistent in garnering the National Sports Commission’s partnership and support. He said that she has been relentless in pursuing the NSC in securing some assistance, thus helping to ensure that sports remains active and consistent in Region Four. “Regional Chairman, I am very happy to be here today as I know that you have been persistent and consistent in securing the National Sports Commission support and I
From Left Regional Chairman Allen, Christopher Jones, REO Lucas and VC Lambert. congratulate you and your team in this very innovative project. I urge you to continue with such initiatives as together we can
help in boosting sports in Guyana,” he said. The Director d Sports in further congratulating the REO, Ms Pauline Lucas on
the brave and commendable initiative and said that he is proud to know that the REO is a passionate supporter of (Continued on page 75)
Kaieteur News
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Sunday May 06, 2018
YBG/NSBF Regionals at CASH Balram Narine wins Flying Barclay, Campbell lead PC’s thumping Ace CC May Day Race
49-0 triumph over Bladen Hall girls
Tutorial High and Chase Academic Foundation win in boys’ U-19
Lloyd Roberts seen handing over the winning trophy and prize to Balram Narime in the presence of club mates and Coach, Randolph Roberts, standing left. Balram Narine, in a time of 50 Minutes 27 Seconds won the Annual Flying Ace Cycle Club (FACC) of Berbice May Day Road Race which took place on Sunday last in the Ancient County. The 10-lap contest around the Town of New Amsterdam attracted 18 members of the host club as it was not open to anyone else. Narine, who also won 5 of the 7 sprint prizes on offer, crossed the line ahead of Syborne Fernandes (1 sprint prize), Adriel Ross, David Hicks and Mario Washington in that order.
Donovan Fraser took the other sprint prize, while Maria Carrington was the first female to complete the distance. Taking the 12-14 category was Mario Washington ahead of Shivnarine Bhowandin, while the BMX 6-9 division went to Nashaun Rigby who was followed to the line by Lumesh Singh and Omar Bacchus in that order. Nehum Rigby won the 9-12 BMX race from Munish Bhowandin and Sachin Karan. FACC is extending thanks to the business community and the Guyana Police Force for making this race a success.
Annalisa Barclay and Roschelle Campbell both netted 10 points in President’s College (PC) girls dominating win, 49-0, over the recently formed Bladen Hall Secondary female team when play continued Friday last in the Youth Basketball Guyana’s (YBG) National School Basketball Festival (NSBF) Regionals; round robin phase at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH) on Homestretch Avenue. The PC girls, who are the defending champions of the Regionals leg and last year runners-up after losing to Marian Academy, came out attacking from the first whistle and didn’t let up as they took full advantage of the developing team that failed to score. Lydia Roberts assisted PC’s victory with nine points. The opening fixture of the afternoon which tipped off at 15:30hrs saw
Gamaliel Noel was outstanding with a doubledouble (17 points and 10 rebounds) for PC under-14 boys’ in their win over Marian Academy. President’s College Royals defeating Marian Academy 28-19 in the boys’ Under-14 age group. Gamaliel Noel was outstanding with a double-double; 17 points and 10 rebounds, while his
Finalists to spilt money after Corona Futsal grand finale abandoned
Annalisa Barclay and Roschelle Campbell both netted 10 points in President’s College girls dominating 49-0 win over Bladen Hall Secondary.
teammate chipped in nine points and nine rebounds. Lamar Austin – netted nine points for Marian Academy in the loss. Meanwhile, in the first boys’ Under-19 game of the day, Tutorial High School, led by Zian Gray (13 points) along with Peter Lewis (six points and 11 rebounds) and Jaden Moses (six points) defeated School of the Nations 34-18. Corey Graham sunk eight points of Nations. The final boys’ Under-19 fixture resulted in Chase’s Academic Foundation gaining a walkover victory over the Business School who didn’t have enough players to field a team. T h e To u r n a m e n t i s sponsored by Edward B. Beharry and Company Ltd, Banks DIH LTD and the National Sports Commission.
During Wednesday’s presentation at Mendonca’s square, from left to right, Jackie Boodie; Coordinator of Petra Organisation, Courtney Britton; Sparta Boss rep, Troy Lambert; Bent Street rep and Colin Stuart; Top Brandz Distributors rep. The Petra Organisation in consultation with the title s p o n s o r s To p B r a n d z Distributors and the two finalists, Sparta Boss and Bent Street, have agreed to abandon the final of the Corona Futsal Competition 2018 and split the first and second prize monies equally with the two teams which will amount to a sum of $450,000 each. The final was initially abandoned on the 14th of last month after several gunshots were discharged inside
game’s venue, the National Gymnasium on Mandela Avenue. With the score locked 2-0 in favour of Sparta Boss at halftime following goals from Jermin Junior and Gregory Richardson in the fourth and sixth minute respectively, chaos erupted inside the arena which was crowded to c a p a c i t y, t r i g g e r i n g a stampede resulting in injuries to several patrons. In a press release, Petra noted that this decision was taken after considering the
ruling of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) upon conclusion of their investigation into the incident that brought the finals to a premature end. We thought that in the best interest of the sport and all other stake holders (Sponsors, The two teams, Guyana Football Federation, Guyana Referees, Spectators, Guyana Police Force, The Petra Officials and The National Sports Commission) that this (Continued on page 75)
Action between Marian Academy (with ball) and President’s College who defeated them 28-19 in the boys’ under-14 division at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall on Friday.
Kaieteur News
Sunday May 06, 2018
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EBFA host Coaches Awareness Workshop GFCA President Gilbert – education is key component to take football forward
T
he East Bank F o o t b a l l Association (EBFA) in its continuing effort to ensure that coaches attached to its affiliated clubs are conscious of their role and responsibilities yesterday hosted a Coaches Awareness Workshop that was facilitated by the associations Technical Advisor, Winston Benons. The activity was held at the Timehri Community Centre and saw participation from eight (8) of the associations 12 clubs. President of the Guyana Football Coaches Association (GFCA) Sampson Gilbert delivered feature remarks and declared open the workshop. Gilbert, who was recently elevated to the presidency of the association, sought to enlighten the participants on the direction his body will be going so as to heighten coaches training and eventual certification. The National U-17 Coach noted that the history of the game would show that Guyana has always been competitive and always produced good players: “But the one thing we could say from a national perspective is that the level of coaches education has caused us to realise where we were, where we are and where we could be in a few years.” He alluded to the fact that the thirteen Academy Training Centers (ATC) that have been established around Guyana is an important pillar in local development and coaches have an important role to play in its continued
advancement; but they must subject themselves to be appropriately trained. ”In order for you to be a good teacher you must be educated in how, what, where and when; and these academy training centers provide the opportunity for us as coaches to work and develop not only the players but ourselves. It gives us the opportunity to work and be educated.” The attendees were taken through the paces of their roles and responsibilities as teachers of the world’s most beautiful game and the importance of being positive role models to their charges. Benons, commenting on the outcome of the workshop, informed that the objectives was achieved in that the participants are more aware of what is expected of them on and off the field of play. He also shared that the programme is designed to prepare coaches for eventual certification at the GFF level. Gilbert also took the opportunity to answer questions from the participants in relation to coaches’ certification, pointing out that the process include individuals desirous of pursuing such a career must show consistent interest by attending the many ATCs that are held on a weekly basis around Guyana. He said that coaches also need to learn the art of communicating among themselves with the aim of sharing and learning from each other. Integrity and trust he noted are also an important attributes every coach should posses.
BCB Congratulates Under-19 Team The President and Executives of the Berbice Cricket Board would to offer profound congratulations to the Management and members of our Under-19 team for bringing home both the Under-19, 50 overs and three days titles in the Hand in Hand Cricket Tournament, a release from the Board stated. The entire team has made us proud to be Berbicians and has kept alive
the legacy of our forefathers who laid the foundation for the present generation to build on. The BCB is not surprised at this success as we invested heavily into the preparation of this team and also the entire team was selected on merit. We are confident that Berbice would continue to dominate cricket in Guyana as the board would work (Continued on page 75)
EBFA Technical Advisor Winston Benons emphasizes a point during yesterday’s workshop in the presence of GFCA President Sampson Gilbert (foreground) at the Timehri Community Centre.
rt o p S GBA’s Andrew Lewis Nat Novices Boxing C/Ships
Soldiers dominate ‘Nuff Cuff’ opening night P. 78
GDF’s Montell Fraser lands a left jab to the head of REP’s Nikel Inniss to win by majority decision.
A wicked left from Jevon Gomes rocks back the head of Irvine Austin in an all GDF bout which was won by Gomes. Tutorial High’s leading scorer Zian Gray (second player left), waits for a pass during a fast break in his team’s 34-18 win over School of the Nations.
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YBG/NSBF Regionals at CASH
Barclay, Campbell lead Pc’s thumping 49-0 triumph over Bladen Hall girls Tutorial High and Chase Academic Foundation win in boys’ U-19 Printed and published by National Media & Publishing Company Ltd., 24 Saffon Street, Charlestown, Georgetown. Tel: 225-8458, 225-8465, 225-8491 or Fax: 225-8473/226-8210.