Kaieteur News

Thursday May 11, 2017

This former education official once stifled creativity DEAR EDITOR, Chairman of the Education Sector’s Commission of Inquiry, Mr. Ed Caesar said, “We must treat them better; we must empower our head teachers, too, and let them understand that they can think outside of the box. We must praise their creativity.” (Kaieteur News, May 4, 2017). This has to be the most definitive statement made about education in the last 20 years. Unfortunately, Mr. Caesar should not be the one making such a statement. In his capacity as Chief Education Officer, Mr. Caesar took away creativity from teachers and replaced it with inflexible record keeping. He did not empower head teachers, instead he made them into clerks. For his information, I wish to remind him of Circular 6 of 2004 issued on the 18th November, 2004 signed by him as Chief Education Officer. This circular outlined 57 records which must be kept by every school. This circular was indicative of a shift in policy in 2004. Following the issuance of this circular, 11 Regional Education Officers, 3 Assistant Education Officer, two Deputy

Chief Education Officers and the Chief Education Officer produced the School Records and Documents Manual which outlined every facet of records to be kept. It meant that the Ministry of Education was no longer interested in creativity; instead was interested in accountability. This has been the interest of the Ministry of Education since 2004. This was a culture created and advocated by the very Caesar who is now advocating creativity. The same undercurrent exists now, except that the number of records has increased from 57 to more than a 100. The Ministry of Education conducts supervision of schools centrally through the MERD unit, Secondary Sector, ACEO (Primary), ACEO (Nursery) and NCERD and regionally through the Departments of Education. So many agencies supervise schools, yet things are still the same. The reason for this is that all these supervisions focus on whether the infinite number of records is present. The instrument used for the supervision focuses on the presence of the record document Continued on page 6

The 100 million City Hall grab that got rejected DEAR EDITOR, The frenzied eagerness and quick acceptance of a proposal to host the 51st Flag Raising Ceremony at the Stabroek Square (now removed to D’Urban Park) by a senior administrative official of the Georgetown Municipality and the almost immediate demand for one hundred million dollars to prepare the venue, is yet another pellucid display of the venality and ineptitude of the Council’s Administration. In the first instance, without having a comprehensive estimate prepared, without doing a strategic plan of the development of the area, and without even consulting the stakeholders including the vendors, taxi operators, and businesses in the area, like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat, this official just nonchalantly came up with this round mammoth figure. How funny! Of course there would not have been any bidding or adherence to national tender procedures, but rather just like the parking meter scam, the works would have been handed to their favourite contractor, who is the ‘Francis or Jack of all trades’ and these hard earned taxpayer dollars

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Kaieteur News

would have disappeared into the pockets of a few. When will the President stop having confidence in these vultures at City Hall? When will decent, honest, visionary, and competent persons be placed to manage our city’s affairs? Persons who could come up with designs and proposals that would see the transformation of the downtown area, including relieving the traffic congestion, the vending problem, the crime infestation, the bellowing music carts, the three card tricksters and the general chaos of that area. Thankfully the government smelt the rat and stopped the Council’s officials from putting their hands into taxpayers’ pockets and extracting a cool 100 million, by returning the ceremony to Durban Park. Indeed, in normal circumstances the idea of using the Stabroek Market area would not a bad one due to the historic nature of the area, the centrality of the location and the layout of the region which would have allowed the military to march up and down Brickdam before doing their tattoo display. Continued on page 6

The tale of the Golden Jubilee masterpiece – D’Urban Park DEAR EDITOR, So after spending literally hundreds of millions of dollars to erect the world’s worse stadium, and after lying about the purpose for its construction, the Coalition is again showing how inept they are, by moving the National Flag Raising to “some” other place then backtracking after there was denunciations. Let’s go through this step by step. First the newly minted Coalition told the very excited Guyanese public that the millions being spent to construct the Jubilee Park were donations from the Diaspora and local contributors. They refused to name any of their donors, saying that if they do the PPP would victimize them. That of course was a reasonable excuse. The PPP and particularly Jagdeo, do have that nasty side of vendetta. So the Coalition kept the names of the so-called “do-

nors” under wraps. Then when asked, they said that they cannot disclose the cost of the project because the final tally had not been done. When pressed further, they said that the change of managers from the Larry London’s group to the Ministry of Infrastructure – the David Patterson’s group – does not allow for an accurate audit, at the moment. We still await the final audit on that project. You would remember that the change of manager was ordered by President David Granger, after it was found out that the stands being constructed were virtual deathtraps and that journalists were literally, physically, removed from the site, because they were filming and recording the shabby works being done. They were also claims of cronyism and rampant theft of the funds and materials. The embarrassment was too much

from the young government, so Mr. Granger held his nose and rearranged the deck. Next we heard that the multi-millions used to construct it were not really from donations, rather, the monies were from the public purse. So in the 2016 budget, a supplemental payment of five hundred thousand US$ dollars was sought to pay the contractors. Actually, that was not really to pay the contractors. That was to give the contractors a little-something because the contractors say that they were owed more. But in vintage PNC style – using bully tactics – they were told to “Take it or leave it!” Then on one of the President’s weekly media programme, he announced that the Jubilee Park’s project would be halted, meaning that that nice picture on that expensive billboard, of a transformed Durban Park, with

tracks, and booths, nicely landscaped walkways, etc. will not materialize. The place has now become an area where you find stray animals and where vagrants reside. At nights it is transformed into a place where lovers and prostitutes frequent to ply their trade. Editor, it was not as if the Government was not warned of this eventuality. The hundreds of millions spent on Durban Park could easily have been used to renovate the two existing places we have for such activities. If the Government thought that they need more seating capacity at special events, then portable tents and chairs could have been brought in. All this was told to the administration. However, commonsense did not prevail. The king has on no clothes and no one wants to tell him. Now after all that money spent to build that Continued on page 6

High praise for Prime Minister’s representative in Region 6 official DEAR EDITOR, Jimmy Carter, former President of the United States once said that, ‘You can do what you can do, and sometimes you can do it even better than you think you can’. This quote aptly fits the Prime Minister’s Representative for Region 6, Mr Gobin Harbhajan. This man has arisen above the expectation of everyone and his contribution towards the social and economic development of Region 6 towers above all the rest. His dedication and commitment toward these are exceptional. Another noteworthy attribute is the fact that while the other PM’s representatives are relatively unknown and another has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, Mr Harbhajan has been the new face of the AFC in Region 6 even overshadowing that of his erstwhile colleague, Dr Ramayya. In addition, he has been able to work along well with not only his AFC members and the APNU members, but he has been getting strong recognition from even the opposition side. PPP members would frequent his office to seek his input in resolving various issues almost daily and he would never refuse them though he is often criticized by his own colleagues for this. Fortunately, he has been building bridges across the political and racial divide where top officials from all the political parties have failed. Moreover, what is amazing is the fact that he is not doing this for political mileage or monetary gains - this guy is a

great humanitarian who simply loves to help people. Another noteworthy characteristic is the fact that Mr Harbhajan is pro-developmental. He has been instrumental in bringing top government officials and even ministers to Berbice to address both social and economic developmental problems and he has a good working relationship with the RDC Chairman, the Vice-Chairman, the REO, the Estate Managers, the NDCs, businesses, Chambers of Commerce and religious leaders. He does all of this while

interacting and listening to the complaints of nearly 20 persons on a daily basis. Other government appointed officers in the Region should emulate this man since nothing is ever heard about these people. This is also such a great variance in performance what public servants are contributing to the Region. Some of them hardly do anything on a daily basis. This man is also a great visionary and at one time it was thought that he would be replacing Dr Ramayya as the REO in Region 6.

Region 6 has two DREOs and an Accountant already but what it lacks is an REO with a vision for development, not someone who is only adept at spending taxpayers’ monies. Mr Harbhajan is the best candidate for that position since he is aware of the sociodevelopmental needs of Region 6. What is notable also is the fact that he delivers; he does not campaign. The best thing the Prime Minister has done for Region 6 is to appoint this man as his representative. Raj Lakram

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This former education... From page 5 and not on its quality. It cannot focus on the quality of the records because there are too many. For example, every school must have an Action Plan however, no supervising officer have ever checked to see whether the Action Plan is being implement and whether it is working or failing. Imagine, a classroom teacher has to prepare 10 pieces of records before they go to teach a class. Is this necessary? Doing this means there is no time for creativity. What is worst is that every supervisory arm of the Ministry of Education has a different understanding of what each record should be. As a result, records are changed, discarded and adjusted every time a supervisory team visits a school. There is no place for creativity. Conformity is demanded. Non-conformity means disciplinary action. I put it to Mr. Caesar, which will teachers do? Conformity or creativity? I find it unacceptable that the former CEO would say at a public forum that “some of the Regional Education Officers don’t seem to understand their responsibilities.”

Firstly, he is just passing the blame for a situation which he has created. It can be argued that we have a decentralized education system, which Mr. Caesar would contend, when he teaches his Issues in Education at UG. But this is far from the reality. In reality, the Departments of Education are the whipping boys for the incompetence of the Ministry of Education. The PIMU unit of the Ministry of Education, through a Deputy Chief Education Officer, directs the action of each Department of Education in this country. Additionally, the MERD unit was created to supervise the Departments of Education. No policy can be implemented by the Departments without the knowledge of the Ministry of Education and the Departments of Education can only monitor through guidelines given by the Ministry of Education. The Departments, knowing that they will be subjected to the rigorous inspection of MERD, do what they are told to do by the Ministry of Education. Mr. Caesar must understand that the sins of a man live long after he gone into that gentle good night. Mohammed Hussain

The 100 million City Hall... From page 5 But thanks to the Georgetown City Council, the area is far from ideal for hosting any such activity. Embarrassingly the Stabroek Tower Clocks which were to be fixed to usher in the Jubilee year are still not working. All but a few of the bulbs that adorned the Market for last year’s special anniversary have blown and have not been replaced, vagrants have made several parts of this area their homes, there are several derelict or abandoned buildings in the area such as the Old GNCB Headquarters and the building which was formerly a gas station, the Stelling and wharf area aback of the market is in tatters and

Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

a threat to life and limb. And yet the Council feels justified in wanting to just make some cosmetic improvements and then host the Country’s birthday bash. All in all, much is left to be desired of the area and hosting such an event there would only give the Council another opportunity to create more hardship and confusion for the vendors, taxi and mini bus operators, commuters, and shoppers. The Council needs to permanently fix the area, and stop doing clean up drives for special occasions, which only benefits the contractors who are improperly given the tasks of effecting these clean up exercises. Anu Bihari

An adumbration of the greatness of our food exporting farmers DEAR EDITOR, Guyana is poised to make further advances into its history of being a prime producer of food in quality, quantity and variety, to meet the needs of its citizens, and to be able to export a significant volume of these agricultural products, not only rice and sugar, etc. Our farmers have proven their worth, who operating under some may say primitive conditions, have displayed extraordinary abilities to place Guyana among food exporting countries. There is more to agriculture than cultivating crops and rearing of livestock. As the basic industry, agriculture being the mainstay of employment in Guyana, we must ensure that it maintains its hegemony. This submission here seeks to point out that we are lucky in that our Guyana is poised for greatness, to which some of us will have to bear the burden; which burdens have already been exhibited by our pioneer farmers who journeyed up the far reaches of the Mahaicony, Mahaica, Abary, Berbice, Pomeroon Rivers, (the floods of 1968 put an end to the Pomeroon’s role as a major fruit producer, and further the demise of carambola processing completed Pomeroon’s chances of recovery). Not to leave out those in the hinterland, such as the Northwest Districts where nascent tree crop farms produced abundant supplies of avocados, citrus, coffee and other fruits. The migration from the Northwest to Venezuela, witnessed the end of yams on a large scale, and by the same token tree crops, peanuts, oil palm etc. How do we assure the descendants of those early settlers that their parents’ sacrifices to dwell and produce food in god-forsaken places were worth the effort? We venture to suggest to them that they have been making a valuable contribution to the nation’s economy, that they must hold the fort.

The Government of Guyana and we the people are mindful of their sacrifice. Though isolated in the Canje, Bonasika and other “ukhu-aha” places, they are always in our thoughts. We have to insist to them that Guyana would do all in our power to uphold their industry, by providing the goods and services they need to stay in place. Our farmers on the Coastland, better days are ahead. Government must comfort our noble farmers that agriculture is the main pillar of the economy and, having been the mainstay for decades, would be so for the foreseeable future, not just to reduce and restrict the food import bill, but to continue creating jobs, as this paper will reveal. Agriculture is the main engine of growth for all times. We are charged to initiate change and development by starting with ourselves. Values cannot be imparted through nice speeches, newspaper articles. Values are performative, that is they can only find and offer meaning through action. We who want to change the decadent morality of our society will need to practice the values we preach. Live and work among the ordinary folks, who are the organic intellectuals, who know about the hardships faced in their daily experiences, who are the salt of the Earth, who do not possess the luxury to plan and express ideas. Their insights are seen to be inferior by those who think they are superior in intelligence, education, job position or social status. Guyana has a rich history and experience with land development and land settlement; commencing from before independence, when sugar workers were recruited to become farmers on these land settlement schemes, be it Anna Regina, Cane Grove, Vergenoegen, to name the better acquainted ones. Then to larger operations such as Bonasika-Boeraserie,

Black Bush, Tapacuma, Garden of Eden, Kent Dam, Mahaica - Mahaicony Abary, Branwak-Sai, Mara etc. These land development facilities have contributed magnificently to our agri and rural development; and significantly to our knowledge on how to manage them. There have been complaints as to their maintenance and upkeep. It must be appreciated that maintenance of drainage and irrigation, fair weather roads/dams, and other access road/dams are costly. It is imperative then, that each acre in these land development areas be productive. Nevertheless there has never been talk of the uselessness of the land development/ settlement scheme, just criticisms of their management. Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past. The present diversification from sugar must give birth to a new term, which is transition; for we are to use the first phase of this transition as a model of 21st century agriculture and a post sugar economy.

The 21st century economy for Guyana has been decided by policy and fate, to be one which will be based on both a green and agricultural economy. We have the resources: land, water, sunshine and skilled farmers and - farmers in waiting — who have displayed great acumen towards their industry. To achieve our prosperity, we have to appreciate that this phase of Guyana’s economic development has to entertain the utilization of modern technologies that, devolved to household level but correlated to community level, can ensure efficiencies in production, processing logistics and marketing. Wales presents an opportunity to redirect an awareness of the falsity of the ideology that only the wealthy that have money can make money. That, the poor are always fated to be a market for the length of his existence. Because as they know instantly, as shown by their current efforts to protect themselves, collective community efforts is a great weapon against deprivation and a wonderful tool for community prosperity Hafiz Rahaman for Rural People organization

The tale of the Golden... From page 5 monstrosity, that stands as a collection of death-traps, the Government ran around looking for a place to locate the Flag Raising Ceremony. This was ridiculous! I would therefore like to suggest that President Granger revert to his original plan and have those stands dismantled and donated to community parks across the country. We are also suggesting that careful attention be paid to the reconstruction of the stands and that monies be allotted for the painting of the stands, when they are erected in the communities. We all are aware that this is a comparatively new administration, with a collection of

political novices. However, their mistakes are too numerous and their blatant and unapologetic arrogance does not allow for much goodwill across the national divide. This is our country and all of us must have a say in how it is governed and how our money is spent. Finally, this administration has disappointed and frustrated many of their diehard supporters and even those who were willing to work with them. Could it be that they were looking for another location because of the embarrassing numbers that would have showed up at these national events and the Jubilee Park would tell the sad story? Dr. Vishnu Bandhu

PPP mistreated sugar workers and their children over the... From page 4 have very little opportunity for securing a life much better than their parents, except that family members would either pull them out of the country or adopt them financially. As a matter of fact, both the PPP and PNC, recognizing the abject welfare of sugar workers, are both guilty of not doing enough to give them a better life by moving to close the industry in the first instance. The futures and lives of sugar workers were sacrificed

over the decades just so that Guyanese could enjoy the benefits of being able to purchase imported goods on their shelves. Sugar workers were never paid the real value of their wages, and it will remain a fact that they will never receive the true worth of their labour. This was the fundamental principle of the industry’s operation from time immemorial slavery. It is my considered opinion that no Guyanese should ever be condemned to the hard

life of indenture as a sugar worker. The sugar industry should have long ago been put in a national strategy which included its closure and its loss in foreign revenues being strategically recovered by investing heavily in other export industries. Guyana would of course have to import sugar. All of this would obviously have been done with consultations with the workers and their representatives along with other stakeholders. To those who question

this option, also ask if we are satisfied with wh e r e t h e sugar industry is today, and should Guyanese be condemned to a life of indenture cutting cane. The bottom line is that both the PNC and PPP shafted the sugar workers and their children over the decades. This is why the DNC, to be brought on stream by a well-known contributor to our national discussions, looks forward to the votes and support of sugar workers in 2020. Lance Cumberbatch

Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

Parliament’s 10 pm curfew stifling democracy – Nandlall

Sittings of the National Assembly have on recent occasions ended at 22:00hrs (10:00pm) after beginning at 14:00hrs. However, this time limit has been flagged as a deterrent to democracy. It does not allow for the proper ventilation of issues of national interest, says the political opposition. The People’s Progressive Party Civic Member of Parliament and former AttorneyGeneral Anil Nandlall, made this known during a press conference on Monday during a break in the 64th Sitting of the National Assembly. He said that the constant closing of sessions at 22:00hrs can be described as continued stifling of debates in the National Assembly. Nandlall said that this practice seems to have become a permanent feature of the Assembly. He said that it merges into a complete authoritarian takeover in Guyana where at every level there are attempts to deny people their basic freedoms. Nandlall’s statements came about based on the motion tabled by PPP/C MP Pauline Campbell-Sukhai calling for the revocation of the Commission of Inquiry surrounding the claims of

From left: Former AG Anil Nandlall, and other PPP/C Parliamentarians, Priya Manickchand, Juan Edghill and Chief Whip, Gail Teixiera Amerindian land titling. He said that Monday was ‘Opposition Day’ and that the particular motion was placed on the order paper in compliance with the relevant standing orders. Nandlall said that his party was told that Monday’s sitting will not extend beyond 22:00hrs. “Now you have seen the support that this motion has received from the Amerindian

community in our country. Every major Amerindian representative organisation in Guyana, has expressed deep concern, has expressed their anxiety and it is those concerns which we have captured in that motion.” Nandlall posed the question, “Why is it that a parliament, whose function it is to allow in a democracy, robust and elaborate debate, is be-

the motion, anything in writing or otherwise that they were going to make corrections; made those corrections, placed the matter on the order paper and sent out notices to us and because I was terrified, I did not agree with the corrections or the amendments.” Manickchand said that not wanting to raise any objections to throw the motion off, her party did not react to the amendments. She said on Friday last she received a letter from the Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, informing her that the Speaker was killing the motion. “A most untimely death because he suddenly changed his mind and decided that the motion had

breached some rule or the other. This is another attempt to shut down debate on a very topical issue. This is the government bullying the people of Guyana. If you believe that your policy of imposing VAT on parents and students and families is a sound one then come here (parliament) and Continued on page 23

Speaker’s shooting down of VAT on tuition motion ill-thought – Manickchand

As a response to concerns that were raised with members of the People’s Progressive Party Civic, regarding the imposition of 14 per cent Value Added Tax on private tuition, the party had moved a motion in the National Assembly to have the issue debated. This motion was brought by PPP/C MP and former Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand. She is of the belief that if the government of Guyana believes it is doing the right thing with imposing the tax, then its parliamentarians should not be running from a debate on the issue. According to Manickchand, the disinterest by the government to have the issue debated in parliament is aided by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Barton Scotland. Manickchand was informed via a letter from the Speaker that the motion could have been discussed at the 64th sitting of the National Assembly. “So what we had was, the Speaker looked at the motion, and corrected it, in my view unlawfully or without jurisdiction to do so. He did not communicate to me, the mover of

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ing denied to the opposition in the Guyanese parliament repeatedly?” “We have another exhibition of an attempt to stifle debates in our parliament.” Nandlall said his party had asked through its Chief Whip, Gail Teixiera, that if the motion could not be debated fully on Monday, within the time allotted then there should be an extension. The former AG reminded members of the press that while his party was in office, there were debates in the Parliament which lasted until the wee hours of the morning so as to get the government’s business and the people’s business discussed and fully ventilated. “This is a matter of paramount importance to a section of our population and we have asked that that it be extended beyond 10:00pm; there is nothing wrong with

that; that is not unprecedented. In fact, we have a tradition in this parliament to take debates beyond 10:00pm on important national issues.” Nandlall said that his party would have offered to the government the option to extend the debated beyond the time slot. However, he said that this offer was rejected. He said that it was then proposed that the sitting ends at 10:00pm as scheduled but to continue discussions on the following day (Tuesday) or any other day in the week that is convenient to the government. Similarly, this offer was rejected. He said that this would not have allowed the proper ventilation of the is-

sues because the issues have some history. He said that for the speakers from his party to do a proper and effective distillation of the issues to put them before the House and Guyanese listening, time is necessary. “So again, we lament that we are not getting to debate matters of national interest properly in the parliament of Guyana and again we are witnessing a guillotining of debates and we are witnessing parliamentary democracy being under siege.” Following the press conference only two speakers were allowed to present arguments on the motion before the session ended at 10:00pm.

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Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

US$45.5M ECD Road Expansion...

Bonds from Chinese contractor needed before works can begin Works on the East Coast Demerara Expansion Project were expected to commence on April last however, the contractor is yet to submit the required bonds. Permanent Secretary (PS) of the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Geoffrey Vaughn, told Kaieteur News that the Chinese Contractor, China Railway First Group Limited, is yet to submit the funds which are needed before the contractor begins the mobilisation phase. The funding for the project was made available by the former Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China, Zhang Limin, through the inking of a Framework Agreement for a concessional loan from the Export-Import Bank of China for the widening and improvement of the thoroughfare between Better Hope and Belfield. Some of the immediate benefits to be accrued from this intervention include reduced travel time, traffic congestion, vehicular maintenance and accidents. The project is also expected to enhance local and inter-regional trade since a significant part of Guyana’s economic activities rely on this thoroughfare. The first phase of the project began some time in 2012 and concluded in 2015.

These works were regarded as “preparatory works” which were executed to the tune of $500M. That phase of the project was tainted by the findings of the Auditor General for the years 2014 and 2015. The reports showed that a number of overpayments were made to the phase one contractors, under the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) government. Vaughn said yesterday that the Ministry is optimistic that works will commence soon. However, he could not provide a definite time. No monies have been disbursed to the contractor, he said.

continues to move east into the heavily populated areas, the challenges have emerged. The primary challenge Vaughn said, is the lack of alternative routes. He said that works have to be carried out while the road is being used by commuters. He however noted that safety measures have intensified due to this. He said that the contractors are working assiduously to complete the project by the deadline, approximately seven months from now.

A section of the public road on the East Bank of Essequibo already completed.

WEST DEMERARA ROAD EXPANSION PROJECT Meanwhile, works on the US$42M West Demerara Road Expansion is moving apace. The works remain at between 60 and 65 percent complete as was reported one month ago. Vaughn pointed out that the works do not just include paving, but also includes the construction of drains, the removal of utilities and the replacement of structures. He noted also that several parts of Hydronie and some villages located east of Parika have already been paved however, as the contractor

Works being carried out in Harlem, West Coat Demerara. (File Photo)

Inclusion of special needs children...

Limited training, resources undermine delivery of special education – GTU President Not only is adequate training lacking for teachers but there are also limited resources to deliver proper lessons to children with special education needs. This is the view of President of the Guyana Teachers Union [GTU], Mr. Mark Lyte. Lyte has an appreciation for this state of affairs since he has served a teacher for many years. According to the GTU President, children with special needs require attention and therefore a teacher with merely the mainstream training cannot do justice to a process of education delivery to such learners. Moreover, he noted that a move to integrate these children into regular classrooms, without adequately trained teachers, could prove to be disastrous. This, Lyte said, is compounded by the too large class sizes that often constitute the public school classrooms. “These children need special attention and as such

must be placed in small classes,” said Lyte as he continued by highlighting that the current curriculum in the public school system does not really cater to children with special education needs. “These children are at a disadvantage compared to a normal child...our present outdated curriculum which is in need of review, and has to be fixed before we bring these children in to the regular classrooms,” said Mr. Lyte as he underscored that there are a number of factors that must be addressed with urgency otherwise children with special needs will continue to be short-changed. Special education needs is one of the areas in which the Commission of Inquiry [COI] into the education system has had a keen interest. According to Chairman of COI, Ed Caesar, the Commission has viewed special education as “an important part in any Ministry, any Government and in any country.” He, moreover, disclosed that the subject matter is one

that will be highlighted extensively in the final report of the COI slated to be handed over to the Education Ministry in a matter of weeks. “The final report will speak to special education in a major way but for now because we have gone to places like the Society for the Blind; to David Rose School for the Handicap, to two special schools in Region Ten and so on, we recognise that enough attention is not being paid to those of us who are challenged. We have got to look at our brothers and sisters who are challenged,” Caesar said. He added, “If we do not cause those who are challenged to become employable the burden to maintain them will be on our country. Therefore we have to look at special education in a major way.” For this reason, Caesar said that the Commission is suggesting that there be the creation of an Advisory Board in Education. Continued on page 23

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Kaieteur News

How to stop the weekly scandals The government is facing a crisis of credibility. It came into office on a bandwagon of promises of improved accountability and transparency but its record in this regard has been dismal. It need not despair though. There are simple steps which it can take to reclaim the moral high ground. You would be surprised how simple steps can lead to great leaps. The government needs to act with alacrity so as to avoid a further dent to its credibility. It seems hardly a week goes by without a new scandal breaking out. Just this week, allegations were levelled against two government ministries. One of the allegations is being deemed a fabrication. The second set of allegations is said to have been uncovered by the accounting

officer of that ministry and therefore has to be treated with some seriousness. Just keeping abreast with all the scandals is too much even for the media. A few weeks ago we read about investigations being launched into financial improprieties involving NDC funds in West Berbice. Nothing more has been heard about what was the outcome of these investigations. With a new scandal every week, it is hard to been track of all that went before. But some people have long memories and these scandals will be resurrected at the appropriate time to score political capital. If the government continues to generate scandals at the rate of one a week, Guyana can end up becoming the most corrupt and scan-

dal–ridden country on the continent. The instinctive reaction to a situation where every week some new scandal breaks is for the government to make some people an example so as to send a message to others. In reality this never works because of lot of those who are embroiled in the scandals are considered untouchables because they are ‘party’ people. Also, the tendency has been to touch a few small fish to show the public that stern action is being taken against wrongdoing. But in reality it is the small fish that are being used as a fodder to excuse the actions of the bigger fish. The second reaction is to create a political diversion by making a major arrest or going after a top political personality. We have seen this sort of reaction from the new

Dem boys seh...

De presidency mek Jagdeo hair fall out Some things don’t agree wid everybody but de people involved don’t see it. Last night dem boys was talking bout how certain things change people. Dem point to Obama who go in de White House wid a head of black hair and when he come out he was grey. Right away one man seh Jagdeo tun de president wid ahead full of hair and by de time he done he was bald. Dem boys seh is not de wuk that cause that. Is de crookishness mek that happen because when people think to do bad things dem hair does fall out. Some people point to others who suffer like Jagdeo. One man seh when he know Dicky Van, de man had one of de biggest Afro. He tun Minister and from then was downhill. Soulja Bai give him de wuk at GWI and he ain’t even done de wuk and all he hair fall off. Dem boys want to know wha he thinking about. But dem have other things that causing problems for people. On Monday, was con-

fusion around parliament. In de first place dem had de barricades. Now dem boys remember that is Jagdeo start wid dem barricades around Parliament. Soulja Bai did promise to move dem but he decide to lef it because Jagdeo still deh in Parliament. Monday was more barrier than anybody ever see. De Traffic Chief seh that he read how some man drive some car into de Parliament in London and kill couple people. Well dem boys want to know who in Guyana gun tek a good car and use it to kill de set wha deh in Parliament. Instead, dem taxi drivers use dem car to mek real money. Dem charge people more than ten times wha dem should pay because dem couldn’t go to dem car park. And people pay. It mean that somebody lying when dem seh that people don’t have money. Money deh but dem boys gun talk about that another time. Talk half and see who gun change next.

government. The problem however does not go away. In fact, those who are spared by such diversionary tactics become more emboldened to continue their wrongdoing. So what can be done? The first is that the government should avoid countering specific allegations with a general defence. If specific allegations are made against person or persons, then those allegations should be addressed specifically and not through generalized statements and counterclaims. The allegations will not go away unless they are specifically countered and dismissed. Secondly, measures should be taken to strengthen oversight within those government departments where

allegations are emerging. What is needed is oversight by independent agencies, not the employment of more persons to watch over the “milk”. This latter strategy has never worked. The Office of the Auditor General once used to have a permanent presence in a number of government agencies. This allows the Office of the Auditor General to be able to detect wrongdoing and breaches of financial regulations very early because the auditing is taking place in real time. The government should provide greater resources to the Office of the Auditor General and ensure that that office can have an office in almost all government so as to keep an eye on what is hap-

pening. Thirdly, the government should adopt a policy of not harassing whistleblowers. The government should ensure that there is no victimization of whistle blowers because this will deter people who have knowledge and information about wrongdoing from coming forward and revealing what they know. These three simple steps – ensuring specific answers are given to specific allegations; increasing the presence of the Audit Office in government ministries and encouraging whistle blowers – will make a big difference in reducing the scandal rate within the present administration.

Wanted man gets 5 years in absentia Orin Glasgow, who is wanted by police for robbery under-arms, has been jailed for five years in his absence. He was found guilty yesterday by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan of robbing a woman at gunpoint. On December 30, 2016 while armed with a gun at Bagotstown, East Bank Demerara, Orin Glasgow robbed Felicia Gilchan of two Samsung cell phones, a quantity of clothing; $130,000 in cash and a hand bag. The court was told that the victim, who operates a

store, was held at gunpoint by Glasgow and relieved of the articles mentioned in the charge. During her ruling, the Chief Magistrate told the court that after a revision of the evidence led by the prosecution, there was sufficient evidence against Glasgow for him to be found guilty of the offence. The convict did not get to tell his side of the story since he was absent from court. Based on reports, the convict was previously charged and remanded to prison for robbery under-arms and

possession of unlicensed firearms. Last June, Glasgow of Bagotstown, East Bank Demerara and another man were brought before the court for allegedly robbing a woman of cash and a quantity of items. They were also accused of robbing Sheik Imran of a .32 Taurus revolver and six live matching rounds. Further, the duo were accused of attempting to rob a man and being in possession of an unlicensed .32 revolver and six .32 rounds of ammunition.

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Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

=== The Freddie Kissoon column ===

A crazy animal kicked Mark Benschop in jail When it was announced that former Prime Minister, Hamilton Green, will be given a pension based on current calculations and not the 1992 rates when he was Prime Minister, I did not agree and still don’t. One argument that entered the Green pension debate was that Green had perpetuated grievous wrongs against people when he was in power and should not be rewarded for such past tyranny. That point was bound to come up but it lacked a premise from which it could have been concluded. The issue was Green was a past Prime Minister. He was a Prime Minister therefore that fact was central to the argument.

There are countless persons that the Jagdeo regime put in paramount occupations that should not have been there and they will earn a pension that no legal mind can successfully argue against. In my never-ending years of political activism and my studies of Guyana’s postIndependence evolution, one of the appointments that has jarred my nerves violently was the selection of Bibi Shadick to be the Pro-Chancellor of the University of Guyana. It was like putting a botanist to be the country’s Attorney-General. Ms. Shadick had no connection or ever had any connection to academia. Ms. Shadick will earn a pension from UG that no one can stop. But once Green’s name came up his history had to enter the picture. And his history is certainly not as attractive as the leadership of his party, the PNC, feels. It is the same analysis we

should apply to a school of politicians in the PPP that wants to return and lead this country in the 2020 elections. There are two important items in yesterday’s Kaieteur News the Guyanese people need to give some thought to. There was the report that since the new government came into power, there has been no action on two investigations that the office of the Ombudsman completed and submitted – my contract termination at UG and the Arjune story at the New Building Society. The second item is a letter published in yesterday’s edition of this newspaper in which Mark Benschop questions the conspiratorial role of Anil Nandlall in his treason case. Benschop’s letter is an unambiguous description of the role of politics in contorting the rule of law and it brings in to sharp focus the evil hypocrisy of those who want to rule Guyana again. These two wrongs high-

light the nature of the regime that was removed from power in the 2015 elections. It is important that society keeps reminding the people of this land about the evil hegemony that canopied this country for fifteen years by Bharrat Jagdeo. Every word that comes out of the mouth of Bharrat Jagdeo, Roger Luncheon, Gail Teixeira, Donald Ramotar, Clement Rohee, Leslie Ramsammy, Anil Nandlall and their acolytes whether at a press conference at a public meeting or in Parliament is about violations, victimization and witch-hunt by a government that is merely two years in office. The analyst simply does not know where to start if he/ she wants to do an in-depth description of this evil hegemony. The two items referred to above in yesterday’s Kaieteur News are a timely reminder of these people who are at the gates of Guyana waiting to have the key to re-

enact this evil hegemony. I am glad the newspaper touched on my contract termination and I am happy to see Benschop writing again. Others must follow

Frederick Kissoon Benschop and write, expose, and denounce those who violated the rights of untold numbers from 1992 to 2015 so the likes of the tribal supremacists like Aksharananda, Ravi Dev, Ryhaan Shah and their types could be confronted when they tell their adherents about

widespread dismissal from state employment and marginalization of their constituencies. Carol Ann Munroe, in 2016, penned a missive to this newspaper that was almost one full page. Readers seldom digest a letter that is so long. But no doubt Carol Ann Munroe’s account of the behaviour of the police when they came to her house to arrest her for treason was read in its entirety. This was what we lived under during the misrule of Bharrat Jagdeo and his surrogate, Donald Ramotar. There is a boundless energy inside the PPP that leads to at least two letters a week in all the newspapers from Ramotar, Rohee, Nandlall, Ramsammy etc. about the violations of central power. Nandlall uses a letterhead titled, The Crazy Horse. Mark Benschop contends a crazier animal kicked him in jail. And wanted him to stay there.

Thursday May 11, 2017

Man, three sons held for chopping death of Uitvlugt robber Investigators have detained a man and three of his sons for the Uitvlugt, West Coast Demerara (WCD) chopping death of 36-year-old Clinton Walks, whose body with multiple chop wounds was found on the roadway. Kaieteur News understands that the men were picked up Tuesday night after ranks at the Leonora Police Station received a tip off. It is suspected that Walks’s body might have been dumped at the location in the wee hours of Sunday after being killed at another location. It is also believed that the victim might have been killed during a robbery. Walks of Lot 3 Bus Shed Street, Uitvlugt, was found with multiple chop wounds on the roadway at Uitvlugt Bus Shed Street. The police said that Walks was wanted in connection with several reports of break and enter and larceny, as well as simple larceny. He had served an 18month sentence in 2015 after being convicted for break and enter and larceny. Junella Hall, the slain man’s sister, said that she last saw him at the family’s home on Saturday afternoon. He then went out, but did not relate where he was going. He did not own a cellular phone. According to Hall, who is

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Kaieteur News

a member of the area’s Neighbourhood Community Police, a family friend came to her residence on Sunday morning and informed her that “‘Bongo’ was lying at the back of the pasture with his guts coming out.” The sister said that she and other relatives ventured to the scene where they made the gruesome discovery. The woman added that her brother did odd jobs in and around the community to sustain himself and was recently released from prison. Although she admitted that her sibling is usually in and out of the lock ups, she refuted reports of him being wanted by police. ”He is well known in the community. If the police did want to catch him they could have done so,” the grieving woman said. Hall expressed horror at the manner in which her brother met his demise. ”They shouldn’t have beaten him. They should have carried him to the station and not take the law into their own hands.” She described him as a very helpful person who always lends assistance to persons in the neighbourhood. She however disclosed that her brother was very “disgusting at times” and would set fires “when he cannot get what he wants.”

CCJ orders Guyana to reimburse Trini drinks company $$ millions in taxes The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has ordered Guyana to repay a Trinidadbased beverage company, millions worth in taxes. The CCJ granted judgment to SM Jaleel & Co Ltd (SMJ) and Guyana Beverages Inc. and ordered the government to reimburse the tax it collected between the period March 7, 2011 to August 7, 2015. The judgment would carry interest at 4% per annum from the date of delivery. Guyana was also ordered to pay 70% of the legal costs incurred by the companies. The Court also limited the claim to taxes collected within five years of the claim, from 2011 to 2015. The company SM Jaleel, (SMJ) had judgment handed down in their favour during a video conference hearing with CCJ and the Attorney General, Basil Williams at the Court of Appeal in Georgetown on Wednesday. The summary judgment was handed down by President of the CCJ, Sir Dennis Byron. In his ruling, Sir Byron held that the companies were not unjustly enriched at the expense of its customers, as customers were free to determine whether they would purchase the product, taking account of its quality and other competing products in the market place.

In the present case the Court reiterated that the tax did not promote cross-border investment provided for by the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, (RTC) Treaty but, “tended to frustrate free movement of goods, distorted competition and discriminated against the Claimants who should have been protected as belonging to the Community.” The CCJ head made reference to a case by the Suriname company, Rudisa, in which the CCJ had ordered that Guyana refund the environmental tax amounting to more than US$6 million (GYD$1.2 billion). “Given the Court’s decision in the Rudisa case with similar tax, SMJ and GBI are prima facie entitled to a declaration…by Guyana of the monies it should never have collected,” Sir Byron said. In that matter, it was noted that only non-Guyanese companies were required to pay the $10 environmental tax on all non-returnable containers. In his summation, therefore, Judge Byron said that Guyana has no basis for retaining the unlawfully col-

President of the CCJ, Sir Dennis Byron lected tax. He added that “to permit this course of action would be to allow Guyana to be unjustly enriched by exploiting the trader’s efforts and by making an illegal profit out of legislation known to be unlawful.” The CCJ President said that while Guyana had amended its Customs law to remove provisions that discriminate against companies in the rest of Caricom Single Market, the legislation did not provide for an exemption for

non-returnable containers which qualify for Community treatment. “ There was no similar tax payable in respect of locally made non-returnable containers, this giving Guyanese manufacturers a clear competitive advantage over other Caricom manufacturers, thereby, allowing discriminatory treatment to those Caricom manufacturers,” he added further. The Court therefore ordered Guyana to pay to the companies “the aggregate sum paid by them in Environmental Tax” from March 7, 2011 to August 7, 2015 together with interest at four percent per annum from the date of judgment. Guyana and the companies were given one month to agree to the aggregate amount to be refunded.

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Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

E-Government “catastrophe” now a success story - Minister Hughes During the previous administration, the eGovernment Network project was fraught with troubles pertaining to m a n a g e m e n t , misappropriation of assets and various forms of corruption. It was often described by the APNU+AFC Party as a “catastrophe”. It appears now that this project will turn out to be a rather useful initiative for the nation. According to Minister of Public Telecommunications, Cathy Hughes, this new state of affairs did not come by any stroke of luck. Hughes stressed that it took months of review, the implementation of crucial changes and much needed repairs. Hughes indicated that the

administration was able to consolidate the eGovernment Network constituting the Fibre Optic backbone around Georgetown with a LTE network stretching from Charity to Springlands. She acknowledged that this network was first established in 2012 but was only operationalized last year. She said it is now the basis for interconnecting Government Ministries and Agencies. To this end, Hughes disclosed that the Government has connected and provided secure, controlled internet access to over 140 locations. “With this level of interconnectivity we have equipped 86 secondary schools, three Regional Education Officers’ locations, three Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) locations, two University of Guyana (UG) locations, and six technical and vocational institutions with reliable highspeed access to educational content in their computer laboratories, as well as advanced the effectiveness of law enforcement,” Hughes shared.

For this year, Hughes said that Government will assertively pursue the development of a Guyana ICT Platform that shall be manifest in the form of an ICT ecosystem. “As the ministry began to build out its operational capacity during 2016, we recognized that a major priority was the creation of an open, liberalized telecommunication sector. “To this end, we laid before Parliament and passed the 2016 Telecommunication and amended Public Utility Commission Bills which have now been assented to.” The Telecommunications Minister said that the passing of these Bills established the framework and conditions under which the telecommunications sector will be liberalized. “As part of this framework, we also completed the eight sections of regulations as required by the new legislation and sent them out for public consultation and comment. To come are Electronic Transactions, Data Protection, and other relevant legislations,” expressed the Minister.

Hughes noted that $1.58 billion is budgeted for investment in eGovernment initiatives. Of that, an estimated $114 million is allocated for the provision of public Internet access at over 600 Government buildings across the country. The politician said that these Public Internet Access Points (PIAPs) will increase the opportunities, and channels through which thousands of individuals will access online resources as part of Government’s aim to reduce the digital divide and increase digital interaction with Government. Hughes said that key to this initiative is the transformation of strategically located post offices into comfortable, refurbished ICT hubs which will provide opportunities for citizens to visit these hubs to access the internet free of charge to receive government services. The Minister said that all Post Offices within reach of the eGovernment Network especially those located in digitally excluded communities such as Lethem, Linden, Bartica, Mahdia, Mabaruma, and Port Kaituma will become

Minister of Public Telecommunications, Cathy Hughes community ICT hubs. The Minister said that an estimated $90 million will be used to provide ICT access for hinterland, as well as poor and remote communities throughout Guyana. “We intend to expand the reach of Government services to the hinterland. Community ICT hubs and PIAPs will be established in Masakenari, Annai, Lethem, Waramadong, Paramakatoi, Aishalton, St. Cuthbert’s Mission, Linden, Bartica, Mahdia, Mabaruma, Port Kaituma, and Kwakawani, in addition to at least 24 more pilot communities across Guyana.” Hughes said that the aim of this initiative is to improve the livelihoods of persons in

these regions and to reduce the digital divide that exists between coast and hinterland. A further $674 million has been allocated towards the provision of connectivity and Internet access to the over 140 Government locations already connected to the eGovernment Network; and the more than 600 Government locations planned for 2017. Government has also recognized there is a need to boost ICT human capacity. Approximately $160 million will be spent on the delivery of specialized ICT training, in collaboration with the Government of India, through the Centre of Excellence in Information Technology (CEIT).

Thursday May 11, 2017

PAGE 21

Kaieteur News

Venezuela protesters fling The AFC slipped at times but regained its footing feces at soldiers, unrest due to unexpected chalcurve to conquer and – Trotman a l o n g t h e w a y o u r f e e t lenges. takes 2 more lives “But we feel satisfied that Today marks two years slipped at times but we reAfter two years in Government…

since the Alliance for Change (AFC) joined forces with A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) to secure a win at the May 2015 General Elections. This saw the 22-year reign of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) come to an end. Reflecting on that day, the Leader of the AFC Raphael Trotman said that the coalition was definitely the right turn for his party. “The country was demanding change from a regime that had overstayed its time; we had to answer the call to get together with the five parties that had formed the APNU. “The AFC gained 12 parliamentary seats and was able to bring its skills and abilities to link arms with the APNU to form a formidable and credible government.” Trotman, the Minister of Natural Resources, said that being in government as a coalition partner has been exciting, challenging and fulfilling for the AFC. “Save for one member, no other Minister had been in government before so we had a steep learning

covered and found our footing, and overall, as leader of the AFC, I am extremely proud of our efforts as Ministers, Councillors and in the other spheres where we have been able to serve the people of Guyana.” Responding to the question of what few things he would have liked to see change as it relates to the agreement between the AFC and the APNU, Trotman stated that he wished that time allowed the AFC to have the Cummingsburg Accord in place before February 14, 2015. “Essentially, the Accord has everything necessary for good and strong government and needs only to be strengthened at the level of local government in terms of laying out protocols of engagement and service, and enablers to ensure the bonding between the women and youth arms of the parties.” Asked whether the union with the APNU would have affected the A F C ’s membership, Trotman responded: “We have not seen a decrease

AFC Leader and Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman. in membership or enthusiasm and this was evident at the recently held biennial conference in January 2017. “ We a r e a w a r e t h a t there is some discontent in some quarters as members expected us to move faster in holding former government officials accountable for misdeeds and for not providing some aspects of the “good life” in as timely a manner as hoped.” Trotman said that the AFC accepts, also, that t h ey would have not achieved everything that was intended. This, he said, was

we were able to accomplish much in a short period. There is much work to be done. The people have good things to expect in the coming three years. 2017 is expected to be the most challenging of the five-year term.” Asked whether he thought the Coalition has another shot at the upcoming General elections in 2020, he responded, “Most definitely we will win the next elections. “A term of office is for five years and we are only two years into the term and the people will be quite satisfied with our overall performance at the end of the five years when juxtaposed with the PPP’s tenure and when the Manifesto promises begin to be ticked off one by one as being completed.” “The benefits of many of the measures that we complain about in 2017 will in fact bear sweet fruit in 2020. Citizens need to remember where we came from and to keep the faith as we proceed on the journey to where we are destined to be. “It is in the middle of the journey that the going is the roughest. All will be well.”

(Reuters) Young Venezuelan protesters lobbed bottles and bags of feces at soldiers who fought with tear gas yesterday to block the latest march in more than a month of nationwide protests against socialist President Nicolas Maduro. The extraordinary scenes, in what was dubbed the “S**t March” on the main highway through Caracas, came as thousands of opposition suppo r t e r s a g a in poured onto the streets decrying Venezuela’s economic crisis and demanding elections. “These kids live in a dictatorship, they have no other option but to protest however they see fit,” said Maria Montilla, 49, behind lines of youths with masks, slingshots and makeshift wooden s h i e l d s . Many carried stones and so-called “Poopootov cocktails” feces stuffed into small glass bottles - which they threw when N a t i o n a l Guard troops blocked their path, firing gas and turning water cannons on the crowds.

“There’s nothing explosive here. It’s our way of saying ‘get lost Maduro, you’re useless!’,” said one y o u n g p r o t e s t e r, w h o asked not to be named, between tossing bottles of feces. Wednesday’s chaos in Caracas claimed another life, with 27-year-old Miguel Castillo killed during the protests, the state prosecutor ’s office said, without giving more details. With trouble flaring in various parts of Venezuela, there was also another death in the Andean city of Merida. Motorbike taxi driver Anderson Dugarte, 32, died yesterday after being injured in a protest, the state prosecutor’s office said. Local media said he was shot in the head. The unrest has killed at least 39 people since early April, including protesters, government sympathizers, bystanders, and security forces. Hundreds have also been hurt and arrested. Maduro says foes are seeking a coup with U.S. encouragement.

PAGE 22

WANTED One female vegetarian cook in the Interior. Call: 668-6421 Articulated/Dump truck driver for interior location, must be experienced. Call: 618-2020 for further details. SERVICES PLANNING AN EVENT? BIRTHDAY PARTY, GRADUATION,WEDDINGS, ANNIVERSARY,ETC.-CALL DIAMOND TENTS: 2161043; 677-6620

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Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

LAND FOR SALE Land @La Parfaite Harmonie: $1.5M, $1.6M, $1.8M, Tuschen -$1.2M, Herstelling -$3.5M, Farm, -$3M, House & land @ Parfaite -$14M. Call: 666-2326 VEHICLE FOR SALE Allion, Primo, Fielder Wagon, Spacio, Bluebird, 212 Carina, NZE, Honda CRV, Toyota IST, RZ & Pitbull – Call: 650-7501 Toyota 212 New Model, Fielder Wagon 07, Spacio, all in excellent condition. Price neg. Tel: 681-6488, 657-5839. 1-620-240 Leyland DAF engine foreign used and I.S.L Cummings Engine starters, all foreign used. Call:649-8449 Nissan Pathfinder Jeep $1.5M, Toyota Ipsum 7 seater, fully loaded -$2M. Great deals! Must be sold! Call: 609-7766 1 Black Primo. Call: 612-5356

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Thursday May 11, 2017

Cop grilled about CCTV in Pike Street murder trial Police Corporal Derwin Eastman yesterday faced a series of questions in relation to the investigations into the murder of Pike Street Businessman, Ashok Raghu. Raghu was shot and killed on August 18, 2014, during the furtherance of a robbery at Vlissengen Road in the vicinity of the Botanical Gardens. Travis Mc Dougal is indicted for the murder. Justice Navindra Singh is presiding over his trial at the Georgetown High Court. Yesterday, Eastman gave the court an account of viewing a surveillance tape in which the suspect was wearing a purple helmet and riding a motorcycle. Under questioning by State Prosecutor Tuanna Hardy, the policeman also told the court that when the accused was detained, the purple helmet was found in his possession. Under cross-examination by Defence Counsel, Nigel Hughes, the policeman explained that the footage was taken from a surveillance camera at Rubis Service station —-about 400 yards away from the scene of the shooting. Hughes then suggested to the policeman that the distance between where the camera was located and the crime scene would make it difficult to see anything in that vicinity. Eastman maintained that he viewed the footage from the Rubis station CCTV. Questioned further, the witness said that he could not say, at present, where the footage from the Close Circuit Television Camera (CCTV) can be obtained. The policeman said later that he never saw the foot-

age again. He admitted, too, that the footage was never shown to the accused. After responding with a series of “I can’t recall,” to the questions about the surveillance tape by defence counsel, the Judge made an order for a copy of the footage to be presented to the Court. On Tuesday a Crime Scene Investigator, (CSI) testifying in the trial recalled that a warhead and samples of blood were collected from the vicinity where Pike Street businessman was allegedly shot. CSI Mark Gasper told the court that he visited the scene of the shooting along with a party of policemen. According to Gasper, the officers collected warheads and what was suspected to be blood at the scene of the crime. The policeman recalled that the samples were collected and placed in an evidence bag. The policeman’s evidence followed the presentation of evidence by the daughter of the deceased. Vinata Raghu told the

From page 7 debate it.” She added that representatives of private schools and parents had applied to conduct a protest outside of parliament but were denied permission. The former Minister said that parents have been very vocal in their objections to the impo-

sition on them and their children both as it relates to services and goods. “That is, they (parents) are finding it difficult to purchase basic things which their children need for school as well as to pay school fees. There have been weekly protests, sometimes bi-weekly

Travis Mc Dougal

court that on the day of the incident, her parents left their home; her father was carrying his usual black haversack. She said she was not sure what was in the bag The witness said that the next time she saw her parents was at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, (GPHC). Her father, she said, was unconscious but her mother was awake. She spoke to her mother. According to Raghu her mother had called her; she immediately left and went to the emergency room of the GPHC. Initial reports had indicated that Raghu of Pike Street, Campbellville, was shot in the chest, while his wife, Shyrazadi Raghu, was shot in the thigh by two gunmen on a motorcycle, who cornered them at the Vlissengen and Regent Road traffic light. The robbers escaped with a bag containing an undisclosed sum of cash and the slain man’s licenced handgun. Raghu operated a gold mining operation at Arimu Backdam, Cuyuni, and the family recently moved from Berbice to Georgetown. Raghu had picked up his wife from a city bank and was heading south along Vlissengen Road when they were forced to stop at the traffic light near the Botanical Gardens. The gunmen then rode up to the couple’s Toyota Carina, PGG 8291 and tried to relieve the businessman of his money. One of the robbers shot Raghu when he resisted. The businessman was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, (GPHC).

Speaker’s shooting down of VAT on tuition...

Limited training, resources... From page 8 “We are also saying that if the Committee systems that exist in Education...if those systems function well there will be no need for an Advisory Board. The Senior Policy Making Group [SPMG] suggestions come from the bottom... “People down there have suggestions and recommendations to make to the most senior of us in the Ministry or in this country but are we listening to them?” questioned Caesar.

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The National Centre for Educational Resource Development [NCERD] has been offering some level of training to teachers in hopes of helping to improve the delivery of special needs education as part of the process of fostering inclusion of children with special education needs. But from all indications this is not nearly enough to prepare the mains t r e a m classroom to cater to the needs of children with special needs.

protests against the government to raise awareness on the issue.” She said that there is a petition which was sent to government containing 14,000 signatories. Further, three letters have been sent to PPP/C parliamentarians pleading for the imposition to be reversed or at least make an effort to have the issue debated in the National Assembly.

Man continues to suffer two years after gator attack The British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC, on Tuesday, broadcast a story in which a ten-year-old American girl fought off a tenfoot alligator which had grabbed onto her left leg. The youngster said, “I was there swimming when this ten-foot alligator grabbed my leg. I hit him, but he did not let me go. So, I put my finger up its nose and it could not breathe, thereby forcing it to open its mouth to breathe, and at the same time releasing my leg. That is what you do.” The injuries sustained were not severe enough to keep the victim off her feet. She was presented in the video clip just a short time after the incident, with her left leg heavily bandaged, but she was able to walk without support even though with a limp. A sixty-nine year West Berbice man, Mahadeo Narine, of Plantation Ross, who two years ago cheated death like the young American did, after an encounter with an alligator, was however not as fortunate. On June 12, 2015, the West Berbice man, also known as Tilak, had begun his day as usual. He could not have imagined that it would have marked such a change in his life. He counts himself as being very fortunate to be alive. It was about 7:00 hours, and Tilak had gone to the nearby canal as usual to wash

Still suffering: Mahadeo Narine a trough which was used to feed his ducks. According to the farmer, he had just assumed a stooping position when there was a sudden swift attack by a ten-foot alligator which totally surprised him. Even if there may have been alligators around, he never thought that there might be an attack on humans. The alligator with one swift motion, grabbed him by the right arm, between the wrist and the elbow, and dragged him into the water which turned out to be chest deep. In that moment, Tilak said that he recalled hearing about alligators resorting to the death roll to drown their prey, and so rather than to give way to panic, he put the reptile

into a head lock, squeezing with all his might to ensure that the animal could not go into the death roll. At the same time he kept shouting for help, but no one came to his assistance. The struggle raged for about 20 minutes until the alligator, maybe realising that it was not making the kind of progress expected, released its grip and swam away. Tilak himself was quite relieved when he realized that the alligator had decided that it had had enough. Tilak emerged from the canal with a mangled right arm, and was taken to the Mahaicony Hospital where the authorities cleaned up his wounds before transferring him to the Georgetown Public Hospital. He was hospitalized for over two weeks. Doctors were forced to implant metal in the arm because of damage done to the bone. He has twice had surgery on his arm so far, and has another appointment later this month, as doctors seek to restore the damaged arm in the best way possible. And Tilak is quite hopeful, especially since he cannot do much using that hand. While he is able to grab a pen and other small objects, he claims that the hand cannot take much pressure. However, he is very happy to be alive, as the situation could have been worse for him.

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PAHO launches virtual directory of digital health profiles in the Caribbean WASHINGTON (CMC) – Information on the health situation and the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the Americas, including the Caribbean, now has a new home, with the launching of a virtual directory of digital health, or eHealth, profiles that includes data and statistics from 47 countries and territories by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). O n Tu e s d a y, PA H O said that the profiles detail the health situation of each country, such as basic indicators, life expectancy and total expenditure on health per capita – “all in one place.” They also feature the degree of countries’ develop-

ment in digital health, as compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO) Global eHealth Observatory. This includes national policies and strategies, legal frameworks, telehealth, electronic medical records, eLearning, and mHealth, which involves the use of mobile devices for health care. “Althou g h m u c h r e mains to be done, the profiles are a unique space to learn about what is happening in eHealth in our region,” said David NovilloOrtiz, coordinator of the PAHO eHealth Program. Moreover, he added, the profiles will serve to “support decision-making and public policies that can change the lives of thousands of people in the Americas.”

Wife lied to cops to save... From page 3 possibly been saved. A sister-in-law of the woman had also told reporters that Charlie had a drinking problem and her husband Lakhraj would sometimes request that she stop the heavy imbibing. However, sources revealed to this publication

Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

that Charlie and her husband would regularly imbibe together at their home and arguments were frequent when the two were intoxicated, but this time around one of those arguments ended tragically. A post mortem will be conducted shortly to determine the cause of death.

Law books were ordered for AG’s library - 2014 budget records There are indications from 2014 budget records that several Commonwealth Law Books ordered and paid for by the state were for the library of the Attorney General’s Chambers. Those law books are now being hotly contested and are the subject of a larceny charge filed recently against former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall. Nandlall is contending that the law books are his; that under a special arrangement from former President Donald Ramotar, the state paid for them as part of his remuneration. After his party lost the May 2015 general elections, Nandlall left his office with the reports. However, the new David Granger government is claiming the books. Nandlall was arrested and placed before the court last week. A whistleblower has come forward with documents insisting there is irrefutable proof that the Commonwealth Law Books belong to the state. According to the Ministry of Legal Affairs 2014 Current Estimates proposal, which would have formed part of the last budget presented by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic, Nandlall was a member of the Agency Budget Committee (ABC) of the Ministry of Legal

Affairs which signed off on the figures after reviewing it. Also signing it were Indira Anandjit, the then Permanent Secretary, and a number of other officials. Under the section, “Attorney General’s Chambers Law Library”, the proposed budget of the ministry explained that the library has been functioning on a daily basis, and is being used by state counsel, judges, and magistrate who normally use the library for their daily duties in office as well as in court. Being used regularly were law reports, law texts, Official Gazettes, acts, and Bills. It was explained that efforts will be made to purchase updated volumes and other reading materials to enhance the library. The proposed budget explained that the library was enhanced with new IT equipment through the Modernization of Justice Administration System. Also included were new shelves and workstation. The library was also in receipt of books donated by the Guyana High Commission in London. However, with relevance to the Commonwealth Law Books in question, under the section “Justifications for Estimates of Appropriation

Former AG, Anil Nandlall in court last week Expenditure…”- Program 521-523 Main Office, Ministry Administration, and Attorney General’s Chambers, the 2014 budget proposals of the ministry was made even clearer that monies was to be set aside for a specific purpose. This is what Line Item 6224 said: “There is an ongoing effort to modernize the Attorney General’s library, in order to facilitate research and preparation or case with up-todate listing of law materials. This includes legislations, law reports and text books. In recent years new laws have been passed in Parliament and as such this would have to be obtained. The relevant text would have to be purchased to update the resources of the library.

Also law reports, such as the West Indian Reports, the Criminal Law Report and the Commonwealth Law Reports are being updated every year; hence there is a need to purchase these books annually.” It is the last explanation in the Line Item 6224 for the ministry which made it clear that the Commonwealth Law Books being ordered are for the library, the whistleblower said. Former president Ramotar had written the Auditor General, Deodat Sharma, acknowledging that he had given Nandlall permission to buy the books and keep them as part of his remuneration. However, there are apparently no records to support this.

Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

Brazil ex-president Lula appears in court to face graft charges (Reuters) Embattled former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva appeared in a federal court yesterday to give his first direct testimony before a crusading, anti-corruption judge on graft charges he dismisses as a political witch hunt. Lula is accused of receiving a beach apartment in return for helping the OAS construction firm win government contracts. His court appearance before Judge Sergio Moro, who has spearheaded Brazil’s biggestever corruption probe is expected to last several hours. A ruling by Moro is not expected until July. Lula, who is charged in four other corruption cases, is the highest-profile defendant in a sprawling corruption probe known as “Operation Car Wash.” The investigation centres on construction firms who have already admitted to paying billions in kickbacks in return for lucrative contracts at state-run oil company Petrobras. The former president has repeatedly said he is innocent of all charges. The investigation has greatly expanded since it began three years ago and now encompasses several state-run companies. More than 90 powerful busi-

nessmen and politicians have been convicted, and scores of sitting federal congressmen and one-third of President Michel Temer’s cabinet are being probed. Lula got out of a car about a block away from the courthouse yesterday, where he was met by supporters chanting, “Lula, warrior for the Brazilian people!” As he made his way to the building, a stern-faced Lula grabbed a Brazilian flag and began waving it high above his head, but made no comments as he pushed through the crowd. Thousands of Lula supporters have descended on Curitiba, mostly members of activists groups and unions, arriving in chartered buses from across the country. They set up makeshift tents along railroad tracks a few kilometres from the federal courthouse. “Even if they were to prove that everything he has done was wrong, I would still vote for him,” said Gabriel Marshall, an 18-yearold member of the Landless Workers Movement who made a 10-hour bus trip from his cooperative farm in Parana state. “He was the only one in power who has not robbed from the poor.” A small group of supporters of the Car Wash investigation

gathered in a different area of Curitiba. Last week, Moro released a video on Facebook asking that those backing the inquiry not travel to Curitiba to avoid the chance of clashes with Lula supporters. During two terms in office, Lula, Brazil’s first working class president, greatly expanded the nation’s social safety net. Helped by a booming economy and an innovative cash-transfer program, his administration yanked tens of millions of people out of poverty into the middle class, and Lula left office in 2010 with an 83 percent approval rating. Lula has said he wants to run for president again in 2018, but if convicted in any of the trials and if the ruling is upheld by a second court, he would be legally disqualified from running and likely go to prison. Lula was deeply involved in the graft scheme, according to federal prosecutors and former Petrobras executives who negotiated plea deals or are seeking them. Millions in bribes allegedly were funneled into the campaign coffers of his Workers Party as well as nearly every major political party, they say.

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Thursday May 11, 2017

Thursday May 11, 2017

Bottas can turn it up to 11 in Spain From page 28 give us a chance to really fight with Mercedes and Ferrari or at least get us closer,” said Ricciardo. The driver of car number 11, Force India’s Mexican Sergio Perez, has racked up 14 successive points finishes and he too will have aerodynamic updates on his car. Of the current crop, o n l y F e r r a r i ’s K i m i Raikkonen and McLaren’s Fernando Alonso have won twice at the Barcelona circuit with their first victo-

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Kaieteur News

ries in 2005 and 2006 respectively. Alonso will consider it a bonus to get as far as the starting grid on home soil, having failed to make it even that far in Sochi before his car broke down, in his last race before heading to the United States and the Indianapolis 500. “I’m not sure what we can expect from this weekend,” said the Spani a r d . “ We ’ r e e x p e c t i n g some various new parts...but we can’t really

focus too much on performance until we have solved our reliability issues.” The lap times will be closely scrutinized, with Barcelona a benchmark for the 2017 regulations that aimed to make the cars five seconds quicker, thanks to wider tyres and revised aerodynamics. There will also be more of a buzz in the paddock, with teams rolling out their ‘motorhomes’ — palatial multi-storeyed hospitality units — for the first time this season.

Thursday May 11, 2017 ARIES (Mar. 21- April 20) Catch up on overdue paperwork. Visit friends or relatives you don't get to see very often. Invite friends over rather than spending money on lavish entertainment. TAURUS (Apr. 21- may 21) Don't hesitate to sign up for creative courses or physical fitness programs. Short trips will be educational. Put your time and energy into travel, philosophy, and soul-searching.

LIBRA (Sept. 24 -Oct. 23) Get involved in worthwhile endeavors and meet new friends. You are best to listen for the time being. You may be emotional and quick to judge others. SCORPIO (Oct. 24 - Nov. 22) You will take on too much if you aren't careful. Stick to basics. Get help setting up a reasonable budget. Look into ways of making extra cash. Don't divulge secret information.

GEMINI (May 22-June 21) Don't let others know about your private affairs. You can expect opposition from family as well as colleagues. Your charm and generosity will bring new friends and romantic opportunities.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23 -Dec. 21) Fitness or weight loss programs will help your self esteem. You may be out of sorts if you have been extravagant or have let children or friends take advantage of you financially.

CANCER (June 22-July 22) It is best not to upset the apple cart if you learn information that may damage a colleague's reputation. You may have problems with children. You're undergoing changes.

CAPRICORN (Dec 22.- Jan. 20) Don't give your heart too readily. Your creative talent will prove to be lucrative if put to proper use. Go over their important documents and take the time to suggest alternatives.

LEO (July 23-Aug 22) Abrupt action will cause difficulties with relatives. Make money using your ingenuity and creative talent. You will benefit through hidden assets and property investments.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 21 -Feb. 19) You will be subject to pushy individuals if you get involved in uncertain organizations. Dinner, theater, or a comedy club may be just the place.

VIRGO (Aug. 23 -Sept. 23) You need to keep everyone on your domestic scene too busy to complain. You will earn recognition for the work you are doing. Heart to heart talks will clear up vague issues.

PISCES (Feb. 20-Mar. 20) You can take advantage of opportunities if you are quick to make a move. Plan to get out and do a bit of travel. One of your female friends may try to disrupt your day. Stand up for your rights.

Buxton United hammer... From page 26 night, the flood gates were opened thereafter. Dillon Wright added his name to the score sheet in the 63rd minute showing great awareness as a Monedderlust defender was lethargic in clearing the ball which the alert Wright eventually stole and tapped into the nets to double the lead.

Regal Sports Softball continues on Sunday The Regal Sports softball tournament is set to continue on Sunday at several venues in Georgetown. At Everest on pitch one, Regal Masters will battle Savage at 10:00hrs and at 12:00hrs Regal Masters will tackle Mike’s Wellman. On pitch two, Regal All stars will play Farm at 09:00hrs, at 11:00hrs Regal All stars will face Success, at 13:00hrs Regal All stars will take on Mosiah XI and at 15:00hrs Regal All stars will face Brickery XI. At Malteenoes on pitch one Mike’s Wellman will battle Amazon at 09:00hrs and HS Masters will play Amazon at 11:00hrs. On pitch two, De Hoop will face Queenstown at 09:00hrs, at 11:00hrs De Hoop will entertain Brickery and at 13:00hrs Queenstown will match skills with Rockaway.

On 78 minutes, the score was further increased with Paul Kingston’s goal, while the icing was put on the cake when William Europe hammered home his effort in the 84th minute to seal a good win for the Buxtonians, 4-0. It was Monedderlust’s eight loss in nine matches and they remain at the bottom of

the table going into Sunday’s final match day at the GDF ground where the home team, already winning the SEL will come up against second placed Fruta Conquerors. The main supporting match pits Topp XX against Buxton with opening rivalry at 16:00hrs between Victoria Kings and Monedderlust.

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Rain, Azhar frustrate West Indies ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC – West Indies were frustrated by rainy weather along with half-centuries from Azhar Ali and Babar Azam, as Pakistan got the better of the exchanges on the opening day of the decisive third Test here yesterday. Rain, which savaged the post-lunch session, allowed for only 69 overs at Windsor Park, but Pakistan kept their wits about them to navigate the interruptions and reach 169 for two at the close. Azhar was eyeing his second hundred of the series unbeaten on 85 while veteran outstanding right-hander Younis Khan, in his final match in international cricket, was on 10 not out. Babar Azam struck a solid 55 but perished in the final session to be just one of two wickets to fall in the truncated day’s play. He and Azhar added 120 for the second wicket after left-handed opener Shan Masood fell cheaply in the opening session for just nine. The right-handed Azhar, who struck a century in the Kensington Oval Test last week, has faced 219 balls in a patient knock and struck seven fours and two sixes. He now also requires 77 more runs to pass 5 000 runs in his 60th Test. It was his enterprise which ensured Pakistan a productive first session after they were sent in by West

Indies on a sluggish pitch offering precious little to the faster bowlers. He and Masood looked at ease against new-ball bowlers Shannon Gabriel and Alzarri Joseph and West Indies turned to spin from as early as the ninth over, with the move paying dividends. Chase, who beat Masood a couple of times with ones that spun, struck on the stroke of the first hour when he had the batsman edging a defensive prod low to captain Jason Holder at second slip with the score on 19. However, Azhar and Azam then denied West Indies any further success, batting purposefully to guide Pakistan safely to lunch at 70 for one. Azhar, in particular, showed positive intent, twice depositing Chase over the ropes – first over long on and then over mid-wicket – in successive overs. Rain delayed the resumption by nearly 40 minutes and when play finally got underway, only two overs were sent down before the adverse weather returned to drive players from the field again, with Pakistan on 75 without further loss. When play finally got underway again under clearer skies following the scheduled tea break, the Windies missed a chance to put Pakistan on the back foot when wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich

Shan Masood edged Roston Chase to Jason Holder, West Indies v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Roseau, 1st day, ©AFP dropped a chance off Azam on 28 after the right-hander edged leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo behind, in the third over after the resumption. He made the most of the opportunity, gathering his fourth Test half-century in his ninth outing, all told spending 124 balls at the crease and striking three fours.

Operating in the fourth over of a new spell, Joseph got the breakthrough when he had Azam caught at first slip by Kieran Powell after the 22-year-old batsman tried to pull out of a stroke but managed instead to nick the ball into the cordon, leaving Pakistan on 139 for two. Azhar, unbeaten on 36

at lunch, had earlier brought up his 26th halfcentury in Tests an hour after tea when he stroked Bishoo through point for a couple. He then cashed in on loose balls from Holder, clipping the lanky seamer to the fine leg boundary and steering him over slips for another four, in an over that leaked 10 runs.

Azhar also slapped Gabriel behind point for his fifth four to move into the 70s before slog-sweeping Chase to the ropes at mid-wicket to ease into the 80s. He has so far put on 30 with Younis who is yet to register a boundary in 44 balls at the crease. The three-match series is tied 1-1.

Stag Elite League

Buxton United hammer Monedderlust to move into 3rd position ahead of final day By Franklin Wilson Buxton United jumped ahead of East Coast counterpart Victoria Kings with a solid 4-0 win over Monedderlust in the lone match on the penultimate night of Season 2 of the Stag Elite League which was contested last evening at the Tucville ground. In registering their fourth win of the league, Buxton strengthened their position to end in the top three position with all six teams set to play their final match on Sunday when a triple header would be played at the GDF ground, Camp Ayangana. The first half did not produce any goals in a match that saw end to end action for most of the opening 45 minutes, neither team relented in their offensive intentions but it was the Buxton boys who muffed the chances that came

their way. Monedderlust, desperately in search of their second win in season 2 looked sharp and matched the Buxtonians but as the match matured, it was the East Coast boys who found the back of the nets to set themselves apart. The opening goal would come from a well executed free kick off the boot of Denver Dennis in the 56th minute. Aiming from 32 yards out, Dennis, one of the better free kick takers, made the opportunity count and he was assisted by poor judgment on the part of Monedderlust’s custodian, Selwin Jack who rather than advancing to the ball waited on it but it bounced over his head into the back of the nets. It was the opening that Buxton were searching for all (Continued on page 25)

Buxton United goal scorers (from right); William Europe, Paul Kingston, Dillon Wright and Denver Dennis.

Thursday May 11, 2017

XX111 Goodwill Swim Meet commences August 18 at NAC The XX111 edition of the Goodwill Swim Meet has been set for August 18-21 at the National Aquatic Centre, Lilliendaal, East Coast, Demerara. Exciting action is anticipated as Guyana will look to turn back the challenges of Suriname, Barbados, Trinidad and To b a g o , St . L u c i a a n d guest countries The Bahamas and Greneda. The visiting countries are expected to field a squad of 40 athletes along with eight officials. Following the Republic Anniversary meet which was held in March, The Guyana Amateur Swimming Association (GASA) has shortlisted the top swimmers in the respective categories from which the final squad will be named after the July Sprints. Guyana is one of the three countries that formed the Goodwill

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Swim Meet 23 years ago which is the brainchild of Charles Corbin, Stephanie Fraser and Sean Baksh and was later joined by Joanne Lowe. Those shortlisted are Girls eight and under; Andica Vieira, Nia BurchSmith, Jasmin Allen, Joyel Forrester, Kyra Soares and Jovana Goodridge. Girls nine-ten; Aleka Persaud, Ariel Rodrigues, Patrice Mahaica, Monique Wa t s o n , K a y l a H a r d y, Kayly Hardy and Zara Crane. Girls 11-12; Lian Winter, Amber De Goeas, Nikita Peters, Maiya Ifill and Giselle Crane. Girls 13-14; Jayden George, Danielle George, Donner Carter, Sofia Pinol, Donna Todd, Latisha Blair and Krystal Brown. Girls 15-17; Nikita Feidtkou, Anna Isaacs, Kenita Mahaica, Safiya Foster, Accalia Khan and Teshanna Hunter. Boys 8 and under;

Jonathan Lewis, Aarav Singh, Iyshawn Morriah, Jeremy Sookram, Nathan Fraser and Maciah Ence. Boys nine-ten; Jeleel Anderson, Paul Mahaica, Jeron Sookram, Elliot Gonsalves, Hashim Mohamed, Vladimir Wo o d r o ff e a n d M i c a h Chichester. Boys 11-12, Leon Seaton, Raekwon Noel, Ejaz Mohamed, Ethan Gonsalves, Annan Roberts, Daniel Claxton and Nathan Jackson. Boys 13-14; Sekhel Tzedeq, Sion Jeffers, Shamal Bryan, Jonathan Sookram, Olaleye O l a t o m i w a , Wi l s o n D e Andre, David Elijah and Pires Von. Boys 15-17; Joseph De Nobrega, Antonio Rodrigues, Andrew Jordan, A l e x Wi n t e r, N i k h i l Ramnarine, Daniel Scott and George Telford. The officials will be named shortly.

Djokovic forced to put up a fight against Almagro (Reuters) Novak Djokovic was made to sweat by Nicolas Almagro in the first match of his Madrid Open defence but eventually overcame the Spaniard 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 yesterday to reach the third round. Almagro, ranked 76, broke Djokovic in the opening game but the world number two came back with a vengeance to win six consecutive games, finishing the last with a tidy drop shot. The Spaniard, who has never gone beyond the quarter-finals in a grand slam, grew in confidence in the second set, however, with the backing of the home support on the Manolo Santana court and saved two break points before forcing a decider. An upset looked on the cards when Almagro broke Djokovic at the first attempt in the third set and marched into a 3-0 lead but the Serb drew on his experience to battle back, breaking the 31year-old twice before serving out for the match.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia in action versus Nicolas Almagro of Spain in the ATP 1000 Masters - Madrid Open. (REUTERS/Paul Hanna) The Serbian, who recently split from his long-term coach Marian Vajda, is on a quest to regain his best form again ahead of the French Open. Later on Wednesday crowd favorite and four-time winner Rafael Nadal enters

the tournament to face Italy’s Fabio Fognini. In the third round of the women’s singles Eugenie Bouchard plays Angelique Kerber of Germany, having seen off Maria Sharapova on Monday in a thriller.

England face France, Argentina in pool stage at 2019 World Cup K Y O TO , J A PA N (Reuters) In-form England were drawn in the toughest pool for the second straight Rugby World Cup when they were grouped with France and Argentina for the opening round of the 2019 tournament yesterday. New Zealand’s bid for a hat-trick of titles will start against fellow southern hemisphere power South Africa and Italy in Pool B, while hosts Japan will take on Ireland and Scotland in Pool A at the start of Asia’s first Rugby World Cup. Australia, twice champions and runners up two years ago, will become reacquainted with Wales in Pool D, which also includes 11th ranked Georgia. The All Blacks and England, currently the top two teams in the world, would meet in a tantalising semi-final if they both won their pools and got through their quarter-finals. Only 12 teams were in the draw at Kyoto’s State Guest House with the other eight nations yet to qualify from various regional tournaments. England, the 2003 champions, went on an 18-match winning run after being knocked out at the pool stage when they hosted the tournament in 2015 from a group including

Australia and Wales. The Six Nations winners face another tough start against France, three times losing finalists, and Argentina but England coach Eddie Jones scoffed at the idea it was a deadly draw. “Who is calling it a group of death?” he asked. “It’s simple. Prepare well. It’s a prospect we are excited by.”We want to win the World Cup in 2019, and to win it we need to be ready to play and beat anyone.” France coach Guy Noves said it was a “balanced” group. “We are aware that the game against Argentina will be decisive,” he said. “We have two years to get ready.” Pool C will be rounded out by the United States or Canada as well as one of Fiji, Tonga or Samoa with only the top two teams qualifying for the knockout stages. “We are in a very tough group, and England and France will not be the only teams in that group to watch out for,” said Argentina coach Daniel Hourcade. POOL CHALLENGES South Africa’s slump to seventh in the world means the 1995 and 2007 champions will face the All Blacks in the pool stage for the

Bill Beaumont, Chairman of World Rugby (L) and Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan pose with the William Webb Ellis Cup during the Rugby World Cup 2019 Pool Draw at the Kyoto State Guest House in Kyoto, western Japan yesterday. (REUTERS/World Rugby/Handout via Reuters) first time in a blockbuster clash. Steve Hansen, whose New Zealand side were barely tested in their pool at the 2015 tournament, said he was pleased to be in a group that would provide “some challenges”. “(South Africa) are a team that knows us very well, we know them very well and there’s a lot of good history between the two teams,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll both

play really great rugby and inspire the tournament to go to a higher level.” Japan will be reunited with the Scots, who they lost to when they exited in the pool stage in 2015. The Brave Blossoms stunned South Africa two years ago at the tournament in England, however, and will certainly not view reaching the quarter-finals on home soil as mission impossible. “Any pool that we were

going to get put in was going to be a big challenge,” said coach Jamie Joseph, whose side will face the Irish in two tests next month.

“But now there’s some certainty around it, we can start our planning and we’re really looking forward to it.” Twice champions Australia will be confident of topping their pool having won their last 12 games against the Welsh, even if the Georgians will present a huge physical challenge in their first meeting with the Wallabies. If they win the pool, Australia would face the second place team from E n g l a n d, France and Argentina’s pool in the quarter-finals, but coach Michael Cheika said figuring out the possible permutations was not that important. “You can plan the lay of the land, know the teams you’re playing, know who the potential cross-over teams are, you can do the homework but at the end of the day it’s all about how we play,” he said. “You have to win seven games to get there.” The ninth Rugby World Cup takes place from Sept. 20 to Nov. 2, 2019.

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RHTY&SC Female Cricket Team to host first ever Mother/Daughter Pageant Invites Role Model Females and their Mothers to enter The Rose Hall Town Metro Female Cricket Team is inviting role model young girls and their mothers to enter the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club, MS first ever Mother/Daughter Pageant. The event would be organised under the Club’s highly successful Say NO/ Say YES campaign which seeks to advise youths to Say NO to Drugs, Crime, Alcohol, Violence, Suicide and Yes to Life, Education, Sports and Religion. The event would be held on the 19th of August at either the Area ‘H’ Ground or the compound of the J.C. Chandisingh Secondary School. Funds raised would be used to purchase cricket gears for the female team, provide school bags for less fortunate students and educational scholarships to children from single parent households. Club Secretary/CEO Hilbert Foster stated the event would be divided into two categories – Junior and Seniors. The Junior segment would cater for mothers between the age of 22 to 25 years, while their daughters shall have to be between six years to 12 years old. The Senior Segment would involve mothers between the ages of 36 to 50 years range, with daughters 13 to 17 years old, again using the 1st of September Cut-off date. The contest would in-

Hilbert Foster RHTY&SC Secretary/CEO volve an evening gown and casual wear segment, while contestants would also be involved in introducing themselves in an on stage interview based on their personal platform and a talent piece. All contestants would have to be drug-free, have a religious background and have no criminal background. All daughters shall have to be attending school, have an 85% attendance rate, be childless and must submit a recommendation from their school. Mothers would have to submit a recommendation from either their place of employment or a religious leader.

The top three winners of each category would win attractive prizes, be featured in the Club’s Annual Magazine, become the official face of the Club’s Say NO/Say Yes Programme and host one month segment of the RHTY&SC Television programme. Interested persons can contact Club Office on @337-4562, email foster_hilbert@yahoo.com or visit the Club during 8AM to 6PM from Monday to Saturday. Deadline for entry is the 23rd of June. Successful applicants would be informed by the Metro Female Cricket Team by the 30th of June.

Brathwaite fails to spark but Daredevils beat Lions KANPUR, India, CMC – West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite yet again failed to make an impression but his Delhi Daredevils still managed to pull off a twowicket win over Dwayne Smith’s Gujarat Lions in the Indian Premier League here yesterday. Playing in only his second match this season, Brathwaite took one wicket from four overs which cost 38 runs as Lions rallied to an impressive 195 for five after being sent in at Green Park. Australian Aaron Finch smashed a top score of 69 from 39 balls while wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik

Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

chipped in with 40 before holing out to long on in the 17th over off Brathwaite. Opener Smith made eight before falling via the run out route, failing to beat a throw from square leg to the non-striker’s end as he attempted a quick single. I n r e p l y, D a r e d e v i l s rode on Shreyas Iyer’s super 96 to reach their target with two balls remaining. They were sliding at 15 for two until Iyer arrived to strike 15 fours and two sixes in a 57-ball knock to rally the innings. West Indies batsman Marlon Samuels failed with one, run out in the 10th over by Ravi Jadeja’s direct throw

from point at 92 for four. Brathwaite followed 23 balls later with the score on 121 for six in the 14th over, top-edging right-arm seamer Dhawal Kulkarni to cover, to depart for 11. In his last game just over a month ago, Brathwaite made just one and finished wicket-less. With nine runs required from the last over, Iyer fell to the second delivery from seamer Basil Thampi but Amit Mishra smashed the third and fourth deliveries for fours to bring up victory. Daredevils lie sixth in the eight-team standings on 10 points while Lions are one below on eight points. Scores: Delhi Daredevils 197 for 8 (Iyer 96, Nair 30, Faulkner 2-39) beat Gujarat Lions 195 for 5 (Finch 69, Karthik 40) by two wickets.

AAG releases long list of South American U-20 prospects The Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) has released a long list of several athletes, from w h i c h Guyana’s representative team for the upcoming South American Under-20 Championship, June 3-4 at the National Track and Field Centre, will be selected. The athletes include: Police Progressive Youth Club (Girls): Joanna Archer, K e z r a M u r r a y, D e l i c i a Tinnis, Tatayanna Blai r, Aaliyah Moore, Tabitha Bowman. (Boys): Denise R o b e r t s and Daniel Melville. Guyana Defence Force (Girls): Kenisha Phillips, Collia Rowe (US-based), Leanna Charles, Jamecia Scott, Kimberly Hilliman, Ta n d i e S m i t h , S h o n t e l l

Browne. (Boys): Anfernee H e a d e c k e r, Ti m o t h y Sealey, Torque Boyce, Ant h o n y Wi l l i a m s a n d Terrence Fraser. Christianburg/Wismar Secondary School (Girls): Onassha Rogers, Mian McPherson, Serena Wi l l i a m s . ( B o y s ) : Compton Ceasar, Ronald Newton, Tremaine Browne, Jermaine Simons and Hosea Glen. Super Upcoming Runner (Girls): Cassie Small, Sarswatie Matadin, Tandika Haynes, Alicia Vanderhyden and Tiffauna Garnett. (Boys): Ryan Bramble, Tyrell Pet e r s , St a y o n Wi l s o n , Laurindo Prince, Samuel Jordan, Joshua Jones, Devas Samlall and Vibert Dummett. DeChallengers (Girls):

Toyann Raymond. Andrew (Boys) Joshua Williams. Running Brave (Girls): Avon Samuels, Natricia Hooper (US-based), Claudrice McKoy, Ruth Sanmoogan. (Boys): Samuel Lynch and Matthew McKenzie. Upper Demerara (Girls): Chantoba Bright. (Boys): Daniel Williams, Nigel Gonsalves, Ronaldo Greene, Jonathan Copeland, Tremaine Beckles, Akinni Wilson. New Amsterdam United (Boys): Jermaine King. Hopetown Flames (Boys): Ruel Chester and Omeki Porter. Mercury Fast Laners (Boys): Rickie Williams, Christopher Dharry, Telon Perriera and Jonathan Garnett. (Girl): Lisette Glen.

Bottas can turn it up to 11 in Spain

Mercedes Formula One driver Valtteri Bottas of Finland waves before the exhibition race. (REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo) BARCELONA (Reuters) Valtteri Bottas can add his name to one of Formula One’s longest sequences by following up his breakthrough win in Russia with another triumph when the European season starts in Spain this weekend. The Finn, fresh from his first grand prix victory with champions Mercedes in Russia, is the man most likely to become the 11th different winner in a row at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya. No other track on the calendar has had such a variety of winners over the past decade, an ironic fact given that it is the most familiar to drivers from winter testing and was once famed for its predictability. Last year it was Dutch 18year-old Max Verstappen who became the sport’s youngest winner when he triumphed for Red Bull, on his

team debut, after both Mercedes drivers collided at the start. In 2012, it was now-departed Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado — a one-hit wonder — who handed Williams a surprise victory that remains their most recent. Ferrari’s championship leader Sebastian Vettel and Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton, 13 points behind the German, will start as favorites and success for either could be an omen given that both went on to take the title last time they won in Spain. But Bottas, who joined Mercedes from Williams in January as replacement for retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg, is the best bet to continue the streak of different winners in Spain even if he has yet to finish higher than fourth

there. “Getting that first win definitely gives me a lot of confidence that I can do it, even though I always knew I had the ability,” he said after Sochi. “And now it’s done, I just want to do it again and again.” RICCIARDO REVIVAL The only other driver from the leading trio of teams yet to triumph in Barcelona is Verstappen’s Australian team mate Daniel Ricciardo, but the Red Bull has lagged Mercedes and Ferrari on pace so far this year. That will surely change, with the flow of upgrades set to speed up now that teams are closer to their factories, and Red Bull have some big chassis modifications in the pipeline with engine improvements still to come. “I hope the upgrade will (Continued on page 25)

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St Lucia ready for C’bean Payless Varity Store on board Independence 5Km Health & Fitness Walk School boys Boxing C/ships Payless Varity Store on We l l i n g t o n S t r e e t , Georgetown is on board as the premier sponsor for the second annual Independence 5-Km Run and Health and Fitness Walk which is set for Sunday May 21 and organised by the Rising Star Track Club in collaboration with Office of the President and Guyana Community of Service. The race starts from Square of the Revolution, proceeds up Hadfield Street, round Mandela Avenue, into Homestretch Avenue and back to the starting point. The race commences at 16:00hrs. Athletes who enter for the 5-Km run, which be for both Males and Females, will pay a registration fee of $200, while anyone can enter the Fitness Walk over the same distance with no registration fee required. There is also a Masters Race in 40-45, 45-50, 50-55 and over 55 divisions for both Males and Females and registration can be done at any of the Athletic clubs or the

Shonel Benjamin of Payless Varity Store hands over the sponsorship Cheque to Avril Black of Rising Star Track Club. Mike Parris Boxing Gym. Registration can also be done on the day of the Event not later than 15:30hrs. C l a u d r i c e M c K o y, Matthew McKenzie, Masters runner Llewellyn Gardener, National Distance runner Clevand Thomas are all expected to compete for what promoter of the Event, Athletics Coach Leslie Black described as, significant cash

prizes. All Participants will receive a souvenir Medal and T-Shirts and it is expected that former High Jumper 98-yearold Hilton ‘Champ’ Lewis who competed in the 2016 US Masters games will be a main attraction since he is two years from being a Guyanese centurion and is very fit, competing with many men in their 60’s. (Sean Devers)

Fresh off their recent victory at the OECS Invitational Boxing Championships last month, a five member team has been selected to represent Saint Lucia at the 2017 Caribbean School Boys and Juniors Boxing Championships. This tournament takes place from tomorrow to Sunday at the National Gymnasium in Guyana. The St Lucia team, Coached by Conrad Fredericks and led by Nathan Ferrari, who copped the Best B o x e r Aw a r d a t t h i s tournament last year, while St Lucia‘s Julie Bonnet, who recently received certification as an AIBA One Star Referee, has been invited to officiate at the Championships. According the Coach, Conrad Fredericks, the team spirit is high and the athletes are expected to give great representation at the championships. St Lucia dethroned Grenada to become OECS Champions at

Arrive in Guyana today

David ‘Shakes’ Christopher the end of three exciting nights of boxing held in St Lucia in April. Light welterweight Ferrari, named St Lucia’s Best Junior Boxer of 2015, and Brown recently competed at an international tournament in Guadeloupe, heads the list of three boxers that will also include Kareem Boyce, Kimlyn Martie and

Jwevel Martie. The Saint Lucia Boxing A s s o c i a t i o n ’s ( S L B A ) President David ‘Shakes’ Christopher, citing the experience gained in Guadeloupe, said the team has been well prepared and he expects good things from them on their trip to South America. The SLBA expresses gratitude to the Saint Lucia National Lotteries Authority and the Saint Lucia Olympic Committee for funding the team‘s participation at the Championships. Meanwhile, the Jamaica Boxing Board has named its three-man team that will represent the country in the tournament designed to help develop talent in the region. Joshua Forrest Davidson (69 kg) and Daniel Hylton (60 kg) would be battling for Jamaica during the two-day tournament. Robert Napier is the coach. (Sean Devers)

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Kaieteur News

Thursday May 11, 2017

2017 Rugby Americas North (RAN) Fifteens (15s) Championship

National 15s ruggers named for B/dos RAN engagement

The Guyana Rugby Football Union has shortlisted a 23-man squad including six reserves to begin the defence of its Rugby Americas North (RAN) 15s title against Barbados this Saturday, at the Garrison Savannah, Christ Church, Barbados. Guyana is the South Zone champions and will be going all out to commence the campaign with a positive start against the Bajans who they defeated 48-17 last year. The ‘Green (Continued on page 25)

Thursday May 11, 2017

Kaieteur News

Page 33

DVA Launch ‘A’ Division League at 704 Lounge By Rawle Welch In a simple, but impressive Launch that was conducted at the 704 Lounge, the Demerara Volleyball Association (DVA) unveiled its plans to host an ‘A’ Division League for teams within Demerara and Bartica. The competition which will be played in Georgetown, Linden and Bartica will see clubs such as Castrol Strikers (male and f e m a l e ) , Va n g u a r d s (female), Demerara U-19 Male, Young Achievers ( m a l e ) , S t C u t h b e r t ’s Mission (female), Bartica Warriors (males), Linden (females) battle for prize monies and trophies worth in excess of $400,000. In attendance at Tuesday’s Launch were President of the DVA Trevor Williams, Guyana Volleyball Federation (GVF) President John Flores, representative from the Office of the Prime Minister Raymond Hall, Stag Beer Brand Manager Linden Henry, National Sports Commission (NSC) representative Gervy C. Harry and players from the participating clubs. GVF President Flores, who was the first to give remarks, thanked the DVA for coming up with the initiative which according to him has come at a good time. Flores said for the first time a number of communities will have the opportunity to witness top flight volleyball and this development he added could provide the fillip that the sport badly needs. He pointed out that the fans will get the chance to see most of the top players in action as they represent their clubs and this will guarantee a high standard of volleyball. Hall whose entity is one of the major sponsors said they were pleased to be involved in the event, adding that a tournament of this nature could prompt better co-operation and cohesion among the teams and communities, while also serving as a long term investment in the development of the sport. The sponsor ’s representative said with 2020 being an Olympics year, the timing of the tournament could not be more significant. He said he would like to see Guyana make a strong effort to qualify for that

Demerara Volleyball Association President Trevor Williams (second right sitting) seen with sponsors representatives, Guyana Volleyball Federation President John Flores (left sitting) and clubs representatives, at Tuesday’s Launch at 704 Lounge. event and the staging of this tournament could serve as the commencement of preparations for such an endeavour. Hall reiterated how glad the Office of the Prime Minister was to be part of the activity and wished that the sport continues on the path of development. NSC’s Harry in his presentation congratulated the DVA for organising the tournament, before lightheartedly noting the repeated calls made by the President, urging that he confirms the Commission’s support for the event. Harry threw out a challenge to the volleyball fraternity to extend the sport to other far flung communities since it is his belief that an abundance of talent reside in those areas. Henry in his remarks said the sponsorship goes way beyond financial support, but should also be seen as assisting in the further development of the game. He said the tournament is an indication that volleyball is about to take a great leap and Stag Beer is happy to be on board. Henry, who admitted that he tried his hands in the sport before, spoke of the absence of fans and urged them to come out and support the tournament which he is predicting will be a huge

success. Saving the best for last, Williams referred to the occasion as a special day for the Association, but more particularly the sport. He stated that the hosting of the tournament is the result of hard work, informing that since taking office last year, the executive has been attempting to take the sport in the right direction. Williams spoke of the DVA’s efforts to resuscitate the game in Linden; previously a community that provided a number of outstanding players to the national grid. He thanked members of his executive and all the sponsors for their crucial support, before imploring fans to come out and witness the stars of the future in action. The tournament which starts on May 21 will run until July 29 with the final set for Bartica. Meanwhile, the winning men’s team will receive $150,000 and trophy and runners-up $75,000, while the third and fourth placed teams collect trophies and medals. In the female category, the winners will take home $125,000 and trophy, while runners-up cart off $50,000, while the third and fourth placed teams receive trophies and medals.

rt o p S

Rain, Azhar frustrate West Indies Babar Azam shapes to cut, West Indies v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Roseau, 1st day, ŠAFP

Azhar Ali nails a cut, West Indies v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Roseau, 1st day, ŠAFP

Stag Elite League

Buxton United hammer Monedderlust to move into 3rd position ahead of final day

Action in the Buxton vs Monedderlust SEL match last night at the Tucville ground. (Franklin Wilson photo) 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.