Kaieteur News

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Kaieteur News

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Letters... Where your views make the news... Letters... Where your views make the news

GWMO has no powers of arrest, but offers a lifeline for young women DEAR EDITOR, We the members of the Guyana Women Miners’ Organisation (GWMO) would like to respond to a letter authored by Cobeer Persaud and published in the September 6 edition of the Kaieteur News. Firstly, we would like to thank Mr Persaud for showing such keen interest in the operations of the GWMO. In response to the many questions he asked as it relates to the GWMO let us assure Mr Persaud that our organisation is duly registered. It is governed by a constitution and should Mr Persaud do some research he would find that we would have publicly declared our aims and objectives. As to how our officers are elected, it is done through an electoral process, which sees persons being nominated and voted for. Now to the real gist of Mr Persaud’s letter where he mentioned that had there been any law enforcement officers and other officials involved in our rescue mission in the Puruni Backdam our President Simona Broomes would not have had allegations of assault and theft levelled against her. That may or may not be true. What we would like to state is that on all occasions that we have gone into the backdam to rescue women and children it was always after complaints would have been made to the relevant authorities and no action taken. Or in some cases, those who are involved in holding the females against their will would be alerted and they would most times hide the victims or move them to another location. The GWMO does not hold itself out as an organisation with powers to

arrest anyone and indeed that has not been our mission. We have been involved in the rescuing of victims. In the past we have attempted to collaborate with both the police and other authorities to rescue persons after receiving reports, but unfortunately they have not resulted in any success. When we receive reportsseveral a week- we attempt to be as discreet as possible so as not to alert persons because if this is done the victims are placed in more danger. Mr Persaud we are not going to see women and girls being exploited or held against their will and do nothing. We are not going to leave the women and girls begging, sometimes holding on to our persons, for us to remove them from the area. We spend our own resources to help these persons because of the years we have spent in the interior

and have seen daily how women and girls are exploited. We would like to state that we are open to collaboration with the police and any other organisation, willing to move with our vision, but unfortunately we cannot provide transportation for these persons. We the members of the GWMO stand resolute in our quest to helping victims of Trafficking in Person and exploitation. We will continue to help women and girls to leave the interior where they are being abused and we would hand them over to the police. It will be up to the police to investigate and for the powers that be to provide the necessary assistance they need, but we will continue to offer assistance to victims. Dana Jones, Marion Shepherd, Marina Charles for the Guyana Women Miners Organisation

DISCLAIMER

DEAR EDITOR, I wish to refer to article published in the Kaieteur News of 9th September, 2013, page 3, captioned Medical Council finds unregistered doctors working in public health facility. I would like to state that I did not make a public statement about the Chief Medical Officer, MOH. The Ministry of Health is our closest and most crucial partner. Further the newest members of our medical fraternity are the key to Guyana attaining the best health care in the Caribbean. Dr. Vivienne Mitchell Chair, Medical Council of Guyana

For the BEST rates, call us on telephones numbers: 226-8210, 225-8452, 225-8458.

THE ELECTRICITY SITUATION IN MAHDIA

DEAR EDITOR, The rationing of electricity by the Mahdia Power and Light (MPL) is causing lots of discomfort and suffering for the residents here. In my opinion this is totally unacceptable to ration electricity from 24 hours to 12 hours. The business community is severely affected since it has to find additional source of electricity to preserve perishable goods, even as the businesses are prepared to pay their electricity bills. Worst off are the school children. The schools are very hot, especially the primary school. This school was built without any ventilation at it top, which makes it very hot during the daytime. Without fans these schools are more like concentration camps than learning institutions. These schools also need electricity to access potable water because they do not access water from the Salbura water system, (since that system is faulty). The primary school is receiving water from a well that a businessman Mr. Roger

Hinds drilled. I would like to take this opportunity to thank this businessman on behalf of the residents here and myself for this kind gesture. In order for the school to receive water from this well for drinking, washing, and the lavatories water has to be pumped up with an electrical pump and since there is no electricity during school hours one can just imagine what these children are going through. Also those children who need to access the internet cannot do that during school hours. Mr. Editor while the children are suffering the Regional Administration has the luxury of a standby generator that they put on when the power goes out allowing the REO and staff to work in Air conditioned rooms and have internet access all day long. I was told that this standby generator can supply all the government buildings and the schools with electricity. I also learnt that the Regional Administration has not paid any of its electricity bills to the power company for

the entire year. The debt is now millions of dollars. Instead of paying its bills the administration prefers to buy fuel to run a standby generator. I believe that with the amount of revenue that is being collected by Government from Region Eight from gold, diamonds, timbers etc. the government should assist the MPL. It must be noted that in 2012 Gov’t collected revenue from over 76,000 oz. of gold from mining district # 2 (Potaro). Oswald Timothy Junor Regional Democratic Councillor Region#8

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Kaieteur News

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Letters... Where your views make the news

Members should choose Leadership of Parties

DEAR EDITOR, M. Maxwell is being pretentious when querying whether the PPP August 2013 congress elections were manipulated (KN Sep 8). I have no confirmation about electoral manipulations. Like Maxwell, I just heard allegations. The questions for Maxwell are: Which party’s elections were/are not manipulated in Guyana? Which of the parties allow a true, open vote by its members or supporters in selecting its leader and party executive or as M.Ps or Councillors? There were numerous complaints about rigging in the PNC last internal election – Several delegates I spoke with said that they were not allowed to vote, that they felt the outcome was manipulated. Many who were denied voting rights felt Carl Greenidge won the vote. Some also felt Dr. Faith Harding was cheated in the leadership vote. And there were also serious issues with the selection of the leader and executive of Maxwell’s own party, the AFC. Has Maxwell forgotten the arrangement to rotate position among a select

few – Is that not manipulation? And how about the selection of delegates to the convention? So it seems that all the parties have serious problems with their elections denying people an opportunity for participation in affairs of their party. It is about time, therefore, for a national policy (law) on how party leaders, executives and candidates for government office are chosen – a process that should be fair, open, transparent giving all members (and even supporters) of a party an opportunity to vote for a choice of candidates to lead a party as well as in the selection of party executives and representatives in parliament and local government. In America, machine party politics similar to Guyana was entrenched for over one hundred year in which selection of leaders, party executives and candidates for office were manipulated by the leadership — Tammany Hall politics. Voters took the parties to court and the bourgeois judges (as our socialist leaders in Guyana like to call them) ruled in favour of the

working class – that is right, the working class was empowered by independent judges in bourgeois America allowing them to choose their leaders. The court ruled that the party members must be allowed to choose their leaders and candidates for office in primary elections or some other fair democratic process in which members have the ballot. Ironically, Tuesday was Primary election day across America and the working class from Guyana, now settled in America, are enjoying that right to vote for the leaders of their party as well as to select a candidate to represent them in office. Why shouldn’t the working class in socialist Guyana be given similar powers as the working class in imperialist America? Will Maxwell and his friends in the AFC be prepared to join voters in a class action lawsuit to help democratize party elections? And will the AFC itself allow one person, one vote in the selection of its executives? Maxwell’s party has a lot of lawyers – please file a petition in court to empower the voters to select the leaders of parties. Vishnu Bisram

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Kaieteur News

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Kaieteur News

Wednesday September 11, 2013

The 10th Parliament is the worst, I wish I could resign By Abena Rockcliffe “If I stay on any longer, I will die from a stress-driven stroke”. There was more than a level of frustration when Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, made known his burning desire to divorce himself from the Tenth parliament and the “stress” it carries. Isaacs yesterday said that he had earlier sought approval from President Donald Ramotar to demit office and be paid full benefits. However, President Ramotar duly informed him that he, Isaacs, was needed in the National Assembly. But Isaacs is once more seeking to justify quitting his job because, in his view, the Tenth parliament is the worst ever. He told Kaieteur News that he has been working in the Public Service since 1972, and at Parliament since 1992. He assumed the position of Clerk in 2002. “I never experienced so much frustration until this tenth parliament.” Isaacs said that the frustration has been growing for quite awhile now. The President didn’t address the things that he identified as the source of his worry, he said. Yet he was sent back to work. The Clerk said that he is simply just “sick’ of the confusion in the Tenth parliament. What pushed him over the

edge seems to be a letter that was sent to him by APNU leader, David Granger, addressing the status of the four Local Government Bills. The letter called on Isaacs to “release the Bills forthwith.” An aggravated Isaacs told this publication, “I don’t think that he (Granger) has that authority over me.” Granger also sent out a Press statement calling on Isaacs to fulfill his “constitutional obligations.” Isaacs seemed to be particularly upset about Granger’s turn to the media. He contended that had Granger waited upon his response to the letter; the politician would have been adequately informed. “Parliament is not equipped with a legal mind that could have adequately inserted the necessary amendments to the Bills”, Isaacs said. “It won’t be proper to send ill-prepared Bills to the President to sign.” According to the Clerk, it was in light of the aforementioned that he sent the Bills to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel, Cecil Dhurjon. Dhurjon is stationed at the Ministry of Legal Affairs. Isaacs sought to make it clear that he didn’t just dump the Bills at the Ministry of Legal Affairs and not look back. “I continuously checked and checked.” The Clerk said that he was told by none other than the

– Clerk of the National Assembly Minister of Legal Affairs himself, Anil Nandlall, that the Bills were receiving the attention of “his people.” Isaacs said that he wished to state categorically that “until such time that a legal hand is appointed to handle the affairs of these complex Bills, I will continue to send them to the Ministry of Legal Affairs.” He said that he takes his chances with the Bills coming from Private Members (Members of the Opposition) because, as he claimed, those are pretty straightforward. However, Isaacs was adamant that he cannot take chances with the contentious Bills. The entire episode that unfolded yesterday - from Granger’s action to Isaacs reaction - stemmed from the fact that it has been more than a month since four Local government Bills necessary for the holding of elections were unanimously passed in the National Assembly. Nineteen years after the last Local Government Elections were held in Guyana, the National Assembly, on August 7, approved a suite of legislation to pave the way for a fresh round of elections. The House approved the Fiscal Transfers Bill, the Municipal and District Councils (Amendment) Bill, the Local Government (Amendment) Bill and the Local Government Commission Bill. This was after a 12-year period of attempting to reform the process. The Bills attracted some amount of “drama” in the National Assembly as the Government and the Opposition went head-to-

head with differing opinions. Yesterday, Isaacs, who only has four years before retirement, said that he thinks if he stays one more year he will suffer a stroke. He said that all he wants is his benefits and he will be happy to sing farewell to the Parliament “because if I continue like this I will certainly drop.” Isaacs and Speaker Raphael Trotman previously had problems that were ventilated in the media. But yesterday Isaacs accounted that he and Trotman now have an excellent working relationship. “It is just the general situation that is frustrating.”

Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs

Clerk must fulfill his constitutional obligation - APNU A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) is calling on the Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, to fulfill the obligations of his office and send four Local Government Bills to the President. APNU made its call with reference to Article 170 (2) of the Constitution which provides that, “When a bill is presented to the President for assent, he shall signify that he assents or that he withholds assent.” And Article 170 (3) which provides, “Where the President withholds his assent to a Bill, he shall return it to the Speaker within twenty-one days of the date when it was presented to him for assent with a message stating the reasons why he has withheld his assent.” The party said in a press statement yesterday that it recognizes that the above

mentioned articles do not state who has the responsibility for presenting Bills to the President and that, until the President is presented with the Bills, the prescribed time cannot be said to have elapsed. Standing Order (S O) 67 of the Standing Orders of the National Assembly, nevertheless, clearly reposes responsibility for the presentation of the said Bills to the President in the Clerk of the National Assembly. APNU pointed to Standing Order 67 which prescribes that, “Every Bill passed by the Assembly shall remain in the custody of the Clerk who shall, subject to Article 164 of the Constitution, at the earliest opportunity, submit the Bill to the President for his or her assent.” It was stressed that the words “shall remain in the custody of the Clerk” are mandatory.

APNU noted that despite the Clerk’s requirement to submit the Bills for assent “at the earliest opportunity,” the four Bills, passed a month ago, have not been sent to the President. The statement carried that “APNU considers that it would constitute a breach of the duty and an abdication of the specific responsibility of the Clerk of the National Assembly for the said Bills to be submitted to the AttorneyGeneral and Minister of Legal Affairs after their passage by the National Assembly as there is no provision in the Constitution or Standing Orders authorizing such a procedure.” The Bills in question are the Local Government Commission Bill, the Local Government (Amendment) Bill, the Municipal and District Councils (Amendment) Bill and the Fiscal Transfers Bill.

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Kaieteur News

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AMAILA IS MERELY ON ICE

A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) never needed a reason to oppose the Bills that were seen as necessary to move the Amaila Falls Hydroelectric Project forward. APNU, facing a maelstrom of criticisms over its decision to not support the Bills, has advanced a series of implausible reasons as to why it did not support the Bills. Among those reasons were inadequate information about the financial architecture of the project and concerns over whether there would be adequate savings to the consumer. APNU had sufficient time and the forum to have its queries answered. It did not

make use of those opportunities, because its non-support of the Bills had nothing to do with the reasons advanced, but more with the nature of its understanding of politics and its need to force changes in the governance mechanism. APNU has always had a blinkered vision of politics. It sees Guyanese politics as a zero sum game. It cannot conceive of a situation where the ruling party and itself can win at the same time. For APNU, a win for the PPPC means a loss for APNU and thus it only supports positions where it stands to gain. While it no doubt

recognizes that the country needs hydroelectricity, it also feels that the PPPC will milk too much political capital from being the architect of this development and should such a project be advanced during this term of the PPPC administration it will hurt APNU’s chances of doing well in the next elections. APNU did a detailed analysis of the results of the last elections, and it would have no doubt discovered what the PPPC had long been keeping a secret - that the PPPC forfeited a majority by agreeing to accept the results of the last elections after it was known to the PPPC that the results for Region 3, a

Dem boys seh

Thiefing rampant in Government circles Money deh all over de place and people doing all kind of thing to put dem hand pun it. Some of dem does forge documents like de people who drunk an old man and claim how he sign over he house to dem. De situation get serious because de Americans get involve. De old man is an American citizen. That is how dem boys find out that people pay de police because when people call pun dem de very police claim how dem can’t go to de scene. Dem go one day when somebody tell dem that de Americans ain’t gun give dem visa. But that is petty tekking.

De Sharma boy who wife wukking wid Brazzy finds heself in a dem seh because he hardly prepare some statement fuh de fuel Guyana buy and wha he workplace sell. He workers see wha going on and dem and all decide that dem gun tek. Dem hold up a lady wid a fuel tanker and demand one Michael from de lady. De problem is that she talk and Sharma people get hold. When dem call de boss and tell he that police hold dem de boss man tell dem that dem stupid to get ketch and that dem got to face de music. Chris Ram check and he

find out that everybody hustling. He was de one that find out bout de Amaila Falls hustle that cause de project to cost more than two times de real price. Dem boys shut down that project. Is now people seeing wha happening. Contractors tek government money and run after de project meet halfway. De government trying to collect de money and this is one old story. De thing is that some of dem contractor don’t even worry to pay back de money because dem seh that others in de government thief more than that. Talk half and keep watching fuh de thiefing.

Region which the PPPC won handsomely, excluded the votes cast at nineteen polling stations. APNU therefore knows that the one-seat majority that the combined opposition has during this term is its last chance of forcing any lasting change in the governance mechanism in the country. It knows that the same mistake will not be allowed to happen again and the PPP will easily retake its majority come any future election. Time is therefore running out on APNU to force a new system of governance, one that involves the opposition, and thus it felt compelled to flex its political muscles to demonstrate that it can frustrate the development aspirations of the PPPC. During the negotiations over the 2013 Budget, APNU wanted a new governance mechanism. It was not interested in any piecemeal approach where some concessions will be asked for and granted. It wanted a more structured and permanent arrangement. The PPPC, as has been its nature, is opposed to such an arrangement, because it knew all along that it was cheated out of a majority due to the fact that the results of the

nineteen polling stations were excluded. The PPPC was therefore never interested in any political compromise, because it is confident of winning back its majority, once the same fiasco does not occur again. The PPPC therefore was intransigent over the Budget. And APNU and the AFC then went ahead and demonstrated their destructive power when they chopped the airport expansion project and the specialty hospital offers out of the 2013 Budget. APNU’s failure to support key legislation raised the political risk of the Amaila Falls Project and the developer decided to walk. The developer, Sithe Global, is an American company, and they have the support of the United States government and with this support things can happen, no matter what hard line postures APNU takes. Forbes Burnham once took a hard line stance towards Reynolds, that is,

until the Americans dispatched a top-level politician who read the riot act to Forbes. The contents of the meeting between Burnham and the official are now declassified. Burnham meekly submitted to the US demands and ended up turning a nationalization into a buy-out of the company. APNU can therefore kick and snort all it wants. American diplomacy is as such that it allows the other side to save face. But make no mistake, Sithe Global investments will not be allowed to go down the drain because of APNU. Amaila is thus merely on ice. It will be resurrected soon, regardless of all the arguments taking place in the media about this project. The Americans will make sure of that.

When we pause and experience silence, we discover answers that activity does not have time to reveal. During your day, take three-minute “vacations”. Relax and re-energise. Take time out to feel the peace of silence.

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Wednesday September 11, 2013

THE FREDDIE KISSOON COLUMN

Expectations after 2011 Three news items in recent days offer some hope that we may move away from the traditional stagnation that has been with us since the fifties. First, there is the statement by Minister Robeson Benn that construction of the road to Amaila Falls will continue. Secondly, the same Minister told the press that he hopes the airport expansion project, halted by budget cuts, will proceed. Thirdly, the Attorney-General hinted at sanctions by the

international community over the stalled anti-money laundering Bill. Reading these statements, it must occur to every Guyanese that it makes no sense to spend so much on the road and then it is left to die in the wilderness. So it looks like the government will pursue the Amaila Falls project after all. Once it decides that, then the wisest thing to do is to avoid secrecy and inform the major stakeholders about the new investors and what the details

are. If the airport extension was stopped by the opposition, dialogue with them and let the project go through. This writer, though, does not believe the opposition will remain inflexible. Finally, the anti-money laundering Bill is the major one for the private sector. It has direct bearing on the private sector. It would be more than commonsense for the business community to sit down as urgently as possible with APNU and AFC personnel and discuss what it is they want to see in the Bill. Last week there was a spat between Mr. Carl Greenidge and Mr. Clinton Urling over local investment in the Amaila Falls project. Both gentlemen had their strong points but Mr. Urling may have missed the Freudian underpinnings in the plausible analysis of Mr. Greenidge. And it all goes back to the election results of 2011. Mr. Urling is right when he wrote that Guyana’s private sector is tiny compared with what takes place globally; therefore investment in

Amaila may not have been easily forthcoming. But Mr. Urling should be reminded that Dr. Bobby Ramroop’s investment in the Caribbean Premier League was no minor involvement. That was a huge financial investment by Caribbean standards. I think Mr. Urling has failed to situate the continuing annoyance of APNU and the AFC people with the PPP Government within the 2011 election results. Once it was made public that the PPP lost a majority in Parliament, the feeling in and outside of Guyana is that there will be constant and bruising negotiations between the Government and the opposition. That it turned out the other way has to be a disappointment to all Guyanese and those countries that have good intentions about Guyana. The graphic fact is that the 2011 election results have not produced any form of working relation between the two pillars of power – executive branch and the legislature. It is this lacuna that private sector leaders like Mr. Urling fail to provide

leadership for Guyana. The opposition denunciation of stakeholders like the Private Sector Commission (PSC), though the opposition may not admit it, has a Freudian underpinning. The opposition leaders must be wondering to themselves how the PSC can be both silly and selfdestructive. Here you have a situation where the PPP controls the Executive, APNU and AFC won the legislature. Any stakeholder as important as the PSC ought to act as a sincere mediator. This is not only the PSC’s nationalist duty, but their self-interest is so obvious that their inaction borders on self-destruction. Why would the PSC ignore the fact that the opposition has the authority to pass legislation and the presidency does not? We return to commonsense. It would be in the interest of the business community in Guyana to act as an honest broker. But the business people would be doing themselves great harm if they choose the side of the Executive. And that is what they have been doing.

Frederick Kissoon It is an unconscionable act because it degrades the opposition. It washes away the solid gains the opposition made in the 2011 elections. You cannot go to the opposition and say, look, pass the Government Bills, they are good for the country. It may be fine to say so, but what about the opposition’s opinions and disagreements with what is inside these Bills? Mr. Urling objected to Mr. Greenidge’s description of him as a PPP supporter. If Mr. Urling understood the Freudian thing I mentioned above then he may understand why Mr. Greenidge took that interpretation. I don’t think the PSC will accept an honest broker role in our current political impasse. If Mr. Urling wants to play that role, then he has to recognize that the PPP has to meet the opposition halfway.

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Tenders submitted for Amaila Road crossing The Ministry of the Public Works received two bids for the Amaila Falls Access Road, Butukari River Crossing. The bids were opened yesterday by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), Ministry of Finance, Main Street.

In addition, three bids were also opened for the installation of traffic signs on declared public roads in Georgetown.

Meanwhile, the Transport and Harbours Department (TH&D) received two bids for the docking and rehabilitation of the M.V Makouria. In July last, the T&HD received a solitary bid of $200.5M by GNIC for the docking and repairs of the vessel. The M.V Makouria has a capacity to hold 1200 persons, 30 cars and 15 trucks. It will later this year complete 50 years of service since it was commissioned. The bids opened yesterday were:

The National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) under the Ministry of Agriculture received bids for the operation, servicing and monitoring of NDIA hydraulic excavators, bulldozers and draglines for the Aurora land development projects, region two.

Still within the sector, bids opened for the construction of a seepage canal and installation of tubes at A&B Line area, Boerasirie.

The Guyana Improving Teacher Education Project (GITEP) under the Ministry of Education also received bids for the consultancy for intensive coaching of teacher educators at CPCE and UG School of Education and Humanities on improving the teaching of mathematics.

Still within the sector, price proposals were opened for the consultancy for intensive coaching of teacher educators at CPCE and UG School of Education and Humanities on improving the teaching of science.

In addition, price proposals opened for the consultancy for intensive coaching of teacher educators at CPCE and UG School of Education and Humanities on improving the teaching of reading and writing in early grades and reading for understanding and critical thinking.

Meanwhile, the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) received bids for the construction of core houses. The bids were divided into six lots: Lot-1 Construction of core houses at Recht-Door-Zee; Phase 2. Lot-2 Bell West Phase 2; Lot-3 Area B, Lusignan, Block XXX Non Pariel; Lot-4 Ordnance Fortlands Phase 2; Lot-5 Ankerville and Number 76 village and Lot-6 Amelia’s Ward phase two and three region 10.

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PPP didn’t know Nigel Hughes was Secretary to Amaila Falls Hydro Inc. Recently appointed General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), Clement Rohee, is saying that his party was not aware, prior to the publication of the fact, that Alliance For Change (AFC) Chairman, Nigel Hughes is the Company Secretary of Amaila Falls Hydro Inc. Rohee made the disclosure at a PPP press conference held at Freedom House on Monday. When asked if the PPP was aware of Hughes’s professional attachment to the entity, in the aforementioned capacity, Rohee’s response was that he was not in a position to pronounce on the Party’s knowledge on that issue. The General Secretary was then questioned as to whether he personally knew of the development, to which he responded in the negative. Rohee said that he was personally unaware and doesn’t think that the government was aware. It was asked how the

AFC Chairman, Nigel Hughes government didn’t know what was going on in its own camp especially taking into consideration that Amaila is the government’s most important project of the day. Rohee’s only response to this was “these things happen.” Also at the press conference was Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall who lambasted both Nigel and Cathy Hughes for their

A mini health check is the first step to donating blood

involvement in the very project government promotes. He said that it was incestuous that the Alliance For Change (AFC) called to be informed on the project when it’s Chairman— Hughes—knows all that there is to know. Nandlall refuted Hughes’s claim that he wasn’t party to any of the meetings between Amaila Falls Hydro Inc, Sithe Global and the government. According to Nandlall, that cannot be true, as Company Secretary you must know all that is going on in the company and must therefore be present at meetings. Nandlall and Rohee’s accounts conflicted, as Rohee said the government most likely didn’t know while Nandlall said that Nigel Hughes was at meetings with the government. In the end, Rohee was asked to give an account as to whether the Amaila Falls Hydro Project was dead or alive. The General Secretary said that he could only respond using the old adage “You can heal the sick but you cannot raise the dead.”

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Corentyne rice miller, 73, shot dead in botched robbery Lala Persaud Jagadeo, a 73-year-old Corentyne rice miller was shot dead last night when bandits stormed his Number 55 Village, Corentyne home. According to reports, the elderly man was responding to a commotion in the bottom flat of his residence when one of the gunmen discharged a round which hit him. He died before he could receive medical attention. Kaieteur News understands that five bandits entered the bottom flat where some of Jagadeo’s relatives were relaxing around 19:45 hours. The elderly man who was upstairs heard the commotion and went downstairs to

investigate. A licenced firearm holder, Jagadeo, responded to the situation without his firearm. One of the startled bandits saw him and opened fire. By this time other residents who heard the screams began converging on Jagadeo’s residence and the bandits, fearing that they would be cornered, shot their way out and escaped. When they left, Jagadeo’s relatives picked him up and rushed him to the hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival. The police were informed and up to late last night were conducting intense investigations.

West Dem. businessman dead as bandits terrorise Meten-Meer-Zorg A well-known West Demerara businessman was last night shot dead after heavily armed bandits descended on his MetenMeer-Zorg home, leaving the community in shock and anger, and continuing what has been a surge in violent crime across the country in recent weeks. Dead is Zulficar ‘Vicky’ Namdar of 76 Third Street, Meten–Meer–Zorg. Also shot in the leg during the ordeal which lasted less than 10 minutes was Stephen Mohamed, a teenager who works part time for the family. Namdar, in addition to running his popular grocery also has a trucking business with the Guyana Sugar Corporation and is a prominent member of the Muslim community. Crowds of shocked residents, relatives and government officials were at the scene last night. According to Mohamed, the attack began around 20:45hrs when six men entered the business place and demanded everybody lie on the floor. A shot was immediately fired and this was what struck Mohamed after “bouncing” on the floor. One of the bandits had apparently been aiming at Namdar and missed. He again fired and the bullet, said to be from an assault rifle, struck the businessman in the throat. “They ask for all the phones, and knock up the mistress in she head and tek a bag of money. The bossman was in the washroom.” Mohamed was referring to Namdar’s father, Goolzar, 50, and mother, Fazila. According to the grieving father, Vicky was his only son, and he was doing well.”Everything was going for him and he wanted his family to be happy.” “I was in the washroom preparing for prayer and I hear one shot. I hear somebody

DEAD: Zulficar ‘Vicky’ Namdar demanding to give everything over.” The elderly Namdar said he remained in the washroom, not knowing his son was shot. “This thing lasted five minutes. I found my son in the corner and I knew he was dead.” Goolzar is a popular Commissioner of Oaths in

INJURED: Stephen Mohamed

West Demerara area and the Regional Vice President of the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG). The bandits are believed to have escaped with jewellery, over $400,000 in cash, passports and other valuable documents. “I am very hard hit by this. My son is of good disposition, known by lots of people and doing good business. He and his mother birthday is the same day… on May 28th. He never left home.” The dead man’s wife and his daughter were reportedly at Enmore, on the East Coast of Demerara at the time of the shooting. Residents said that the armed gunmen quickly exited the business place, and fired several warning shots before escaping. In recent weeks, there have been several high profile killings, raising concerns about the crime situation.

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BLACK PLASTIC BAGS W/S- CALL:695-4785/6137437

Toyota Premio PRR series $2.2M- Call:642-3185

One Toyota IST 2004 model: 16" rims, DVD, HID price $2.3M- Call:621-7497/6236600

1 Leyland DAF 60 single axle & dump- Call:216-1315/6136615

Toyota Spacio PMM series: Music, rims etc. excellent condition- Call: 604-0000

1 Leyland DAF single axle hauler truck with 40ft Trailer Call: 683-0632

One Mitsubishi canter. Latest series, 15ft tray- Call: 254-0247/613-2150

One Nissan 4x4 4 doors pick up, excellent condition price $3 million negotiable- contact Junior:261-5304/261-5030/ 665-4611

1 Jailing Scooter CF74 first owner- Call:268-3468/6667908

Used DVD duplicators $50,000, Xbox 360 $70,000 & power tools- Call:621-7497

We repair fridge, freezer, AC, washer, dryer call:2310655,683-8734 Omar

(1) Crown amp Macro-tech 5002VZ. Price negotiableCall: 674-8992/665-1575

Permanent & Visitors Visa Applications, Profressional Immigration Consultant Room D5 Maraj Building Call:225-6496,6626045,223-8115

For sale 2 used Dihatsu Feroza parts- Call:647-2943/ 225-9032

HOUSE PLAN DRAFTING FOR ONLY $10,000CALL:694-9843/227-2766 Repairs to Fridge, Freezer, AC, Washers, Stoves: Call 683-1312,627-3206 (Nick) House Plans, estimates and construction- Contact T.Boodhoo 625-9883/ 6759296 Professional and affordable landscaping and tree trimming services. Budram’s Landscaping ServicesCall:656-1326/678-0058 We Refill HP cartridges for $1800 call: 650-7699 Pandit Chrishna Persaud Justice of the Peace, Commissioner of Oaths to Affidavits & Marriage Officer- Call:225-6344/6425165

Spare for washing machine, microwaves, fridges, stoves, timers, gearbox, pumps, etc call: 225-9032, 647-2943 (1) Blackberry Q10 2 months old. All accessories includedCall:661-9499 between 8:30am-4:30pm Honda welder 270 amp with 15,000 watts generator, 1 Mig Welder & 02 Tundra- Call: 220-4495/ 611-5114 Fluffy Dashund pups- Call: 226-9548/ 670-2653 Pure Rottweiler- Call:2206879

WHOLE PLUCK CHICKENCall:676-0931/686-7180

Live/pluck chicken-Call:6504421/220-9203 One stall (3 in 1) at La Penitence market. Also 1 glass cooler 110 volts & one 125cc Jailing ScooterCall:695-5815 Video recording Spy Pen $6,500- Call:671-6177

Potting Soil and quality cow mould- Call:656-1326/6780058

The Gent’s Spa: Let beautiful sophisticated masseuse pamper you: New masseuse available- Call:657-5979 FOR SALE/RENT American Pool Table - Call: 277-0578

One Slate pools table for sale- Call:610-6322 15-15-15 Fertilizer in damaged bags- Call:266-2711/609-4594 Pure breed Cane Corso puppies 8 weeks. Tail crop, have shots & ready for new home- Call Tony 623-9099 Games PS2 $900, PSP $900, X-Box 360 $2600 & PS3 $2600- Call: 672-2566 30KVA Waker Neuson super silent generator on wheels, 2012. 5630 Skid steer BobcatCall:662-7388

CAR RENTAL A i d a n ’s C a r R e n t a l & Pickup- Call: 645-7981/ 698-7807 Wings Car Rental- Call:6431131 Premio, vitz call: 679-7139 Dolly’s Car Rental- Call: 225-7126/ 226-3693dollysautorental@yahoo.com/ www.dollysautorental.com Fab’s Rental: Cars to RentCall:671-6051/609-6890

Timberjack Skidder VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Caterpillar 330 BL Excavator VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 Pressure Washer 4000-4500 PSI Honda VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 Pitbull pup 4 months oldCall:650-3327

Tibetan Terrier puppies mix with Pekinese- Call:227-0945/ 623-8811

MASSAGE

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Dell laptops & desktops complete computers from $45,000 Futuretech call: 2312206 German Shepherd pups. Tel: 619-6086/699-7077. Original Games- Call:6722566 Air, split, relay and blow valve, clutch cylinder, alternator for Leyland Daf truck- Call:6911161/264-3268 Backhoe JCB 3CX-12M Excavator $14M VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758

1 RX8 Mazda: A/C, stick gear, wheel, lights, fog lamps, fully powered, PPP series, low mileage- Call:653-2477

(1) JL150T-3 motorcycle new, recently crashed- Call:2232812/661-1717/645-6413 Leyland DAF 150-45 21ft tray length. GNN seriesCall:673-9996/255-0618 (first owner) New RX8 (red) rotary 7 speed engine: new rims, tyres, music (kickers), lambo doors- Call:627-8786

PROPERTY FOR SALE Durban Street Near Mandela Ave. 55ftx85ft with Wooden Building VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 Golden Fleece E/Bo- 18 Acres VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 Diamond Middle Income Houselot VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 Stanleytown B/bce WaterFront Land 1 Acre VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 46 Houselots in Canje VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Canje Bridge Junction & 19 Road 55x750 Approx 1 Acre VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 LBI 2 Storey Concrete Corner Lot Property Newly built with 3 Bedrooms VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 Fenced Community near Canje Bridge Lot- 50x100 VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 62 Acre Riceland Highbury VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758

VEHICLE FOR SALE

Nissan Wingroad 2003-4 VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 Toyota Mark 11 2004 VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Tundra Pick-Up 2004 VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758

1 Low Bed (hauler & trailer), 1 Freight Liner Hauler, 1-48ft trailer- Call:613-6979 First Class Auto: Allion, Verossa, Axio, 212- Call:6098188/602-6307 1 Toyota- AT212, AT192, Ceres, EP71 Starlet, Tundra, E24 Nissan van- Call: 6445096/697-1453 One Tractor Ford driven 600 HRS. Excellent condition price $3 million negotiablecontact Junior:261-5304/2615030/665-4611 Toyota 110 Sprinter. Top condition $1.1M negotiableCall:611-3210/690-9168/ BBpin-27017D39 One Toyota Raum PKK series, A/C, remote start, excellent condition $1.275 Neg- Call:612-6693 1 Toyota Verossa: HID, leather seats & mags. PPP seriesCall:618-7618 BUY/SELL VEHICLES OR PROPERTY save time and money using photo ads www.gytrader.com- Call:6514300/670-4300 Toyota Prado 2004 VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758

41 Acres at Silver Hill/ Moblissa Linden Highway $18M Neg- Call:223-7181/ 627-4900 Wa i a k a b r a , Linden Highway: 1,409’ x 403’ or 13.73 acres. Concrete house thereon. West of Highway- Call:619-4152 Parfaite Harmonie $1.2M, $1.3M, $1.4M & $900,000Call:675-7292 Land for sale @ 14th Avenue first corner Diamond new scheme- Call:610-0901/6805112 Business land for sale Soesdyke Linden HighwayPlease Call:678-7355 400 acres land for sale in the Demerara River; suitable for agricultural- Call:622-7881/ 658-1426

1 Hilux pickup solid DEF, 2 ton winch, crash bar etc. Call:644-5096/697-1453 A.V.S Auto Sale: 2009 Ford F150 newly registered $6.6M negotiable, like brand newCall:688-9078/227-3728

LAND FOR SALE House lot for sale: Friendship, Diamond EBD & drafting of house plans call: 223-0733, 223-0730, 692-8513

Transported corner lot 58’x30’ at Garnett and Republic streets, NewtownCall:601-6000 TO LET Fully furnished Vacation home with all amenitiesCall during working hours227-1218 Fully furnished short term apartments, Eccles call: 6797139 Refurbished three bedrooms house Freeman Street $60,000 monthly- call: 695-2631

46 House lots residential area between Charles & Peter Sts. Parika, E.B.ECall:622-6971 LEARN TO DRIVE Soman & Sons Driving School @First Federation Building- Call:225-4858, 6445166,622-2872,615-0964

3 Furnished apartments located in Industry, E.C.DCall:222-6001 Short term apartment available- Call:687-3017 Apartment/houses for rent from US$400 and commercial rentals. Phone: 621-6888, 6524492 Harmony Inn: Apartments fully furnished, airconditioned apartments: $5000 per night- Call:6680306/602-8769/694-7817 Two bedrooms furnished apartment- Call:665-2548 Secret Villa apartment, fully furnished apartments Landof-Canaan E.B.D- Call:2665243/266-5245 Fully furnished short rentals one (two) bedroom apartment @ lot 721 West Minister Parfaite Harmonie- Call:6978315/226-2196

TO LET 1 Bedroom bottom flat for couple $28,000 monthly, water & light includedCall:223-3958 or 660-9463 Small cottage at lot 36 Kuru Kuru Linden HighwayCall:697-8315/226-2196 10 Acres farm land @ Lot 31 Kururu Linden SoesdykeCall:697-8315/226-2196 Campbellville $100,00, Kingston US$900, Queenstown US$1500, BelAir US$950- Call Diana 2272256/626-9382 Furnished 2 bedroom apartment in Linden for short term local & overseas guestsCall:614-4415/444-4704 (Continued on page 23)

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 23

Letters... Where your views make the news

Urling cannot interpret Carl Greenidge’s comments DEAR EDITOR, I was surprised to see in the Sept 10, 2013 issue of KN a second letter from Mr Urling which referred directly to me, even as you continue to refuse to carry my letter on his interview referring to my work as not being professional and to a comment that he interprets as a suggestion that the entire investment in Amaila (US$157mn.) should be undertaken by the Guyana indigenous/private sector. In his second letter, Mr Urling does not repeat his claim that my comments, as opposed to his, were not ‘professional’ but purports to be surprised at the tone of my letter which was published by another paper to which it was sent when it became clear to me that KN had no intention of publishing it. He also repeats the silly suggestion that the private sector cannot invest in large sectors such as Amaila. As far as I am aware the very sector he chose to cite as the ultimate proof of this, namely petroleum, has, by way of CGX attracted local investment. This brings me to the point of this note. If I wish Mr Urling to interpret my comments I would ask him myself. In fact he is a most inappropriate interpreter in the circumstances. It cannot be either fair or principled, therefore, for the editor of a paper to allow only one protagonist in a debate to air his views and to interpret the views of another. I apparently aim to be afforded no right of reply in the face of either an attack on my professionalism or on the facts. It is this very attitude which had for years led to the noticeable absence of reasoned contributions to the discussion and letter pages of most local papers. I had expected better of KN although after the malicious Maxwell /Kissoon

episode in connection with the Standing Orders of the Assembly and advice I am supposed to have received from Ms Teixeira, I ought to have known better. Carl B. Greenidge EDITOR’S NOTE: The letter that came to me appeared to be incomplete and a far cry from what was published in Stabroek News. Until then, we have published every missive that Mr Greenidge would send to the newspaper. It is unfortunate that he would arrive at the conclusion that this newspaper would only allow one protagonist to “air his views and tio interpret the views of another.”

SALON Make Up Courses, Artist Trained & Certified in Trinidad. Call: 660-5257, 647-1773 Natural beauty salon & spa: Grove Market Street EBD tele:265-4138,652-5800 specialized in everything for women & children 6 Weeks course starting September 16th: facial, pedicure, manicure, basic make-up. Certificate @ the end of course- Call:618-8536/ 696-2295

EDUCATIONAL Institute of Academic Supremacy: Form 1-5 CXC adults/ lesson classes. CXC Maths, Engilsh, HSB & Business- Call:690-5008 I.A.E (Camp street): Forms 15, lessons & adult CXC classes: Maths, English, Business & ScienceCall:223-0604/683-5742 Writing CXC Maths/ English, Business subjects, Social-St/HSB, Biology. Jan/ June, 2014. Forms 1-2 inclusive- Call Mr. Lee 2312076

PROPERTY FOR SALE

VACANCY

‘BB’ Eccles- Concrete house 3 bedrooms upstairs, downstairs 2 self contained apartments, 2 bedrooms each toilet & bath $28M- Call:2278409/660-4764

Hire Car drivers from E.C.D @ A1 Taxi- Call:220-1000

2 storey concrete 3 bedrooms at Somerset Court- Call:2657223/662-4540 VERSAILLES: Furnished 5 bedrooms, self-contained rooms, modern facilities, generator, beautiful landscape, gated community- Call:592624-8704/ 592-684-9203

Jump Start your Career!!! Phone: 220-0401-3 or 220-3488 to schedule your Interview Or Email: recruitment_guyana@ qualfon.com NOTICE URGENTLY REQUIRED removal of 3 stands at the GCC Ground, BourdaCall:226-3130 for more information

(From page 22)

WANTED CONTRACT CARS @ CITY TAXI SERVICE CALL: 660-1100 One live in & one live out babysitter from 12-8pm- Call: 225-6070 Workers to work on farm at Yarrowkabra- Call:265-3586

Large plot of land with 20x30 house on it @ #2 Canal. Must sell, owner leaving country- Call:697-8058/6708612

One experienced person to look after layer birds in the Interior- Contact:666-6836

For sale by owner: House and Land @ D’Edward, W.C.B.- Call: 689-2973/6983703

Experienced Dispatcher, contract cars & driversCall:613-0419/600-4066

One 2 storey building with 8ft drive way with two apartments bottom flat in Kitty- Contact Ameer 6955815 Do you have a property to let or sell? Then call Diana 2272256/626-9382 West Ruimveldt $5M, Section ‘K’ $40M, East bank $10M$15M, Prashad Nagar $40MCall Diana 227-2256/626-9382 Wharf 62ftx300ft Prime Location G/Town- VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Lombard St. Land 60ftx100ft VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 Symth St. 86ftx101ft. Corner Property Ideal for Residential, B u s i n e s s / Wa r e h o u s i n g VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 Symth St, 87ftx105ft Ideal for Residential, Business/ Warehousing VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Friendship 150ftx450ft with Steel Building Frame 100ftx300ft- VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 Friendship Wharf 950ft River Front-5 Acres VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Caledonia 350ft River Front5 Acres VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 Caledonia 350ft. Road Frontage- 86 Acres VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Friendship River View Appox. 40ftx600ft VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758

Cleaner- Call:225-3234 TOUR Suriname return trip 12-16 October. Shopping siteseeing lots of fun- Call: 6440185/ 639-2663/ 227-8290/ 665-5171

FOR RENT 1 Barber, Salon chair nail station $5,000. LG space for office etc. $2,500- Call: 6027960 One Business spot ideal for Pharmacy etc. also one upper flat three bedrooms- Call:2239727/673-0373/650-0077 2-3 Bedroom Property SemiFurnished VERS Realty 2231217,600-2041,686-1853,6935085, 600-5758 1-10 Bedroom Property VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Warehouse - divided 2000,4000/ 8000 sq.ft for rental VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 1-Store Front & Office Brickdam G/Town VERS Realty 223-1217,600-2041,6861853,693-5085, 600-5758 Top and Bottom Flat Louisa Rowe Wortmanville G/Town VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 1-200sq ft. Business/Office Space Sendall Place G/Town VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758 Rooms- Call:225-9223 Top and Bottom Flat Norton St, VERS Realty 223-1217,6002041,686-1853,693-5085, 6005758

Spaces to rent in La Grange, Vreed-En-Hoop, Tuschen & Diamond (for lessons). Preferably by main roadCall:684-7403

VACANCY Male bond attendants/ porters & cashiers. Send in application & passport size photograph @ Survival Shopping Complex 173 Sheriff St. Call:227-5286-89 MedexPharmacy Assistant, 5-8yrs experienced in Pharmacy or medical field. Full time basisCall:660-3766/658-3882 24 Hour East Coast Guyoil needs night pump attendants, salesgirl & office assistant- Call:663-1751/6842838

Tutor needed at E.B.DCall:657-8732

2 Receptionists, 1 Salesgirl & 1 Cashier. 4 CXC subjects required for cashier: Apply with application @ 27 Norton & Creen streetsCall:225-5501

Female for live in domestic duties, salary $55,000. Small family. Care taking duties. Driver- Call:6102978

Data Entry Clerk: CXC, Acounts, QuickBooksEmail application to gjphonecardinvestment @gmail.com

Attractive live in waitressCall:327-0252/674-4665

Cool Square Inn lot 30 Daisy street West Ruimveldt for security/ handyman, apply in person- Call:225-7407

One live-in or live out maidcall:668-3985/264-3355/6837936 General domestic maid on E.B.D; 1 Handy Man, 1 Small Engine Mechanic 3 yrs experience- call:233-2408 One Welder must know to do grill work- Call:613-3879 Attractive live in WaitressCall:228-5129 Attractive live-in waitress to work in bar, attractive salaryCall:686-4818/699-6994 1 General domestic. Must be able to prepare vegetarian meals. Apply @ Alabama Trading G/Town Ferry stelling Stabroek 2 Carpenters with own tools & 2 mason with own toolsPlease call:265-3586 1 Whole day maid for East Bank area- Call:614-4358 3 Wash Bay attendants to work- Call:227-5169 Moulder operators, wood mizer operators and portersCall Richard: 609-7675/2332614 Ark-settling welder for vehicle- Call:228-5655/6281756 Wanted contract cars @ Atlas Taxi Service: South Ruimveldt gardens, VHF radio network- Call:661-3043

Night Dispatcher for a Foreign Trucking Company: UG Graduate, 7 days a week 12 midnight to 8am. $120,000 monthly- Contact:673-5475/ 624-0001 Industrial Electrician, Welders, Fabricators, Skilled Machinist & Trainees: Technical Services Inc. 1823 Eccles Industrial Site, E.B.D (1) Male Accounts Clerk. Experience in preparing VAT, NIS & P.A.Y.E, must be computer literate- Call:6144358 for more info Cashier: Apply to Marcos Trading, experience would be an asset. Address:11 North road LacytownCall:225-9445 Pump Attendant @ Shell Service Station Providence, E.B.D: Must be able to work shift (5am-3pm & 3pm12pm)-Tel:265-7305 Cashier/Sales order Clerk: CXC, Experience- Email application to gjphonecardinvestments @gmail.com Vacancy exists for Carpenters, Welder and Porter: Apply at Alabama Trading G/Town Ferry Stelling

Page 24

Kaieteur News

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Kaieteur News

Page 25

GPL firing 30% of field staff annually for illegalities One- third of the field staffers at the state-owned Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL) are being sent home annually because of corrupt activities, as the entity continues to battle high technical line losses and theft. Testifying during a public session last week on GPL’s performance in 2012 and for the first half of this year, officials also disclosed that a number of factors, including high levels of defective meters and theft, helped contribute to targets not being met. By the end of June, the utility company was supposed to ensure its total losses, from theft and technical issues, did not move beyond 29.7%. Instead, it went up to 32.1%. Under regulations, GPL has to periodically report its performances and steps it has taken to raise its standards, particularly as it relates to customers. Last year, GPL failed to bring down its losses from the 31.5% in 2011. That went up to 31.7%. Because of the state of GPL’s transmission lines and some aging equipment, it will

be difficult for losses to come down in any significant way, unless monies are plugged in new technologies to prevent theft and infrastructure to reduce leaks, Chief Executive Officer, Bharat Dindyal said during the public session at Duke Lodge, Kingston. This is especially so as more electricity is being plunged into a distribution system that has not been upgraded in any significant way for decades now. Also there were representatives of the regulator, Public Utilities Commission. Adding more engines and not addressing the leaking systems will not improve the situation. Already, the company has started to change out its transmission lines on the coast under a US$38M Chinese-funded programme to also build seven sub-stations. SLOTH IN COURT It has been no secret also that commercial and industrial customers continued to rack up millions of dollars of losses for GPL because of theft. Several large companies have been found with ingenious

systems of bypassing its meters by taking power directly from the lines. To address these, GPL has moved to reroute concealed lines and installing tamperproof Itron meters at businesses. For residential customers, those found stealing have had prepaid meters installed on top of the power poles as a deterrent. The company is also embarking what it calls the medium voltage distribution system which will see new transformers being installed in strategic areas with mechanisms in place to prevent illegal connections to businesses. For the first half of the year, GPL installed 271 Itron meters to businesses with just over 2,000 meters being replaced for being defective. Almost 6,700 prepaid meters were installed with 3,921 illegal connections found. Last year, a total of 7,475 illegal connections were unearthed. However, perhaps it was the figures regarding prosecutions and the time it takes in court that have GPL unhappy. There are over 1,000 cases

- facing skills shortage, raid affected

GPL has expressed worry over the fact that it is being forced to fire up 30 per cent of its field staff annually for corruption. in court that are pending for at least five years. Matters are dismissed because of the lack of employees to provide evidence, due to high staff

Police Force offers free computer classes in Essequibo

Police ranks and villagers exchange concerns over the community. Interested persons on the Essequibo Coast, especially in the areas of Dartmouth and Suddie, have the privilege of attending free computer classes offered twice a week by the Guyana Police Force. The law enforcement agency in a meeting with the Region Two communities last Friday, made the announcement as part of its drive to improve computer literacy. The initiative represents one of the force’s attempts for capacity building and police/ community coalition. Residents were encouraged to take advantage of the services offered at the Zara Computer Centre at the

Richard Fikal Police Training College in Suddie. As part of remedies to some of the woes facing the out-of-town communities, Superintendent of Police Stephen Mansell, who was accompanied by several senior and junior ranks, suggested other initiatives to improve the social wellbeing of the community, while offering means to bettering younger residents who were determined as being most prone to criminal activities. Several community members gathered at the Eighth of May Secondary School to air their concerns about what they believe the police is lacking in their

community. Apart from stressing on the necessity to occupy young community members in their spare time, residents were adamant about the need for increased police presence and vigilance. The residents expressed concerns over the increase of narcotics trafficking and the use of illegal substances. They were even more concerned about the increasing number of young people using such substances in the area. They said that these activities have led to additional worries such as increased gambling, again involving several young people. Community members also complained about the

overcrowding of buses, loud music and the behaviour of minibus operators. The police were not spared a slamming for what community members say is a lack of meaningful investigations and presence, especially in the most needed areas. Ranks were accused of performing poor investigations and even “taking sides” in conducting their work. Residents asked for an increased police presence in their communities and an improved approach towards dealing with their complaints. The ranks have in turn invited parents in the community to encourage their children to join the police youth group which will be launched this Saturday. Several other communities, including those in and around the city have seen the launching of such youth groups, which are said to be doing life-changing things for these young persons. The youngsters are expected to become involved in camping activities, academic and skills training. The open opportunity for interested persons to become members of the police force was also highlighted. Apart from that, it was discussed that a community policing or watch group is needed for the different areas, while commitments have been made for it to convene.

turnover and protracted delays in completing cases. The delays result in many repeat offenders. Last year, 292 customers were arrested for theft of electricity with 11 convictions recorded and the rest pending in the courts. This year, for the first six months, 260 persons were nabbed, a clear indication that GPL is fighting an uphill battle. COLLUSION In 2012, GPL’s Operations Department recorded over 13,000 inspections of meters with 778 found tampered with. Just over 3,100 were also found defective, a worrying trend that has significant impact on the technical losses facing GPL. In the first half of 2013, the Operations Department visited 15,740 premises and carried out 12,478 meter investigations. Some 1,104 meters were tampered with and over 2,100 found defective. According to GPL officials, some of the key challenges it is facing includes corruption, recruitment of staffers, sloth in court, illegal connections and finances. As a matter of fact, there has been significant collusion found at its loss reduction arm, particularly with large business clients. GPL, because it has taken action against staffers, disclosed

that it is facing a massive 30% annual staff turnover. While the loss reduction department at one time boasted 18 crews, this has been reduced to 12. Corruption among staffers is causing a major problem, with GPL remaining unclear as to the extent of theft from tampered installations and defective meters. A shortage of skills is also causing the utility to fall short of its targets, resulting in a slower rate of its loss reduction programmes. Another major problem facing GPL in its fight to reduce theft of electricity is that of threats. “Currently staffers are under constant threat of physical harm to body, life and property. Staffers are beaten and threatened with weapons ranging from knives, cutlasses and guns,” said Kumar Sharma, Division Director. This has affected the company’s ability to fully implement work programmes as there is a heavy dependence on police who are only available at certain times. Despite many reports of illegal connections, timely action is also being affected. The GPL officials hinted that its field activities may not be meeting the success it wanted because customers continue to perpetuate the act because of infrequent raids. (Leonard Gildarie)

Page 26

Kaieteur News

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Syria vows to give up chemical weapons, no deal yet at U.N. WA S H I N G T O N / AMMAN (Reuters) - Syria accepted a Russian proposal yesterday to give up chemical weapons and win a reprieve from U.S. military strikes but serious differences emerged between Russia and the United States that could obstruct a U.N. resolution to seal a deal. Even as the White House said it was determined to push ahead with a congressional resolution authorizing force, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the weapons plan would only succeed if Washington and its allies rule out military action. In what amounted to the most explicit, high-level admission by Syria that it has chemical weapons, Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem said in a statement shown on Russian state television that Damascus was committed to the Russian initiative. “We want to join the convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons. We are ready to observe our obligations in accordance with that convention, including providing all information about these weapons,” Moualem said.

“We are ready to declare the location of the chemical weapons, stop production of the chemical weapons, and show these (production) facilities to representatives of Russia and other United Nations member states,” he said. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington believes the proposal must be endorsed by the U.N. Security Council “in order to have the confidence that this has the force it ought to have.” Moscow has previously vetoed three resolutions that would have condemned the Syrian government over the conflict. The latest proposal “can work only if we hear that the American side and all those who support the United States in this sense reject the use of force,” Putin said in televised remarks. Kerry and U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told Congress the threat of military action was critical to forcing Assad to bend on his chemical weapons. “For this diplomatic option to have a chance of succeeding, the threat of a U.S. military action - the credible, real threat of U.S.

military action - must continue,” Hagel told the House Armed Services Committee. U.S. officials said Kerry would meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Geneva tomorrow for further talks. Amid the whirlwind of diplomatic activity focused on the response to a suspected chemical weapons attack on a Damascus neighborhood on August 21, the civil war resumed in earnest, President Bashar al-Assad’s jets again bombing rebel positions in the capital. The United States and its allies remain skeptical about the Russian proposal and President Barack Obama sought to keep the pressure on Syria by maintaining his drive for congressional backing for a possible military strike while exploring a diplomatic alternative. At the United Nations, Britain, France and the United States discussed elements of a draft Security Council resolution that a diplomat from one of the three countries said would include a timeline for Syria to declare the full extent of its poison gas arsenal and to cede control of

The Free Syrian Army fighter prepares homemade shell in the old. (REUTERS) it to the United Nations. France said the resolution should be legally binding and state clearly that Syria would face “serious consequences” if it failed to comply with the resolution’s demands diplomatic code for military force. Such language will be resisted by Russia. The U.N. Security Council initially called a closed door meeting asked for by Russia to discuss its proposal to place Syria’s chemical weapons under international control, but the meeting was later canceled at Russia’s request. French officials said their draft resolution was designed to make sure the Russian proposal would have teeth, by allowing military action if Assad is uncooperative. “It was extremely well played by the Russians, but we didn’t want someone else to go to the U.N. with a resolution that was weak. This is on our terms and the principles are established. It puts Russia in a situation where they can’t take a step back after putting a step forward,” said a French diplomatic source. Russia, however, made clear it wanted to take the lead. Lavrov told his French counterpart that Moscow would propose a U.N. draft declaration supporting its initiative to put Syria’s chemical weapons under international control, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The United States and France had been poised to launch missile strikes to punish Assad’s forces, which they blame for the chemical weapons attack. Syria denies it was responsible and, with the backing of Moscow,

blames rebels for staging the attacks to provoke U.S. intervention. The White House said Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Francois Hollande had agreed in a telephone call on their preference for a diplomatic solution, but that they should continue to prepare for “a full range of responses.” Obama asked Congress yesterday to delay votes on authorizing military strikes in order to give Russia time to get Syria to surrender its chemical weapons, according to U.S. senators. “What he (Obama) wants is to check out the seriousness of the Syrian and the Russian willingness to get rid of those chemical weapons in Syria. He wants time to check it out,” Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin said. The White House said Obama, who has called the Russian proposal a potential breakthrough, would still push for a vote in Congress to authorize force when he makes a televised address to Americans yesterday. But the U.S. congressional vote now appeared more about providing a hypothetical threat to back up diplomacy, rather than to unleash immediate missile strikes. A bipartisan group of senior members of Congress was working on a resolution that would take into account the Russian proposal. While the prospects of a deal remain uncertain, the proposal could provide a way for Obama to avoid ordering unpopular action. It may make it easier for him to win backing from a skeptical Congress, which could have severely

damaged his authority if it withheld support for strikes. Opinion polls show most Americans are opposed to military intervention in Syria, weary after more than a decade of war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Whether international inspectors can neutralize chemical weapons dumps while war rages in Syria remains open to question. Western states believe Syria has a vast undeclared chemical arsenal. Sending inspectors to destroy it would be hard even in peace and extraordinarily complicated in the midst of a war. The two main precedents are ominous: U.N. inspectors dismantled the chemical arsenal of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in the 1990s but left enough doubt to provide the basis for a U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was rehabilitated by the West after agreeing to give up his banned weapons, only to be overthrown with NATO help in 2011. The Syrian war has already killed more than 100,000 people and driven millions from their homes. It threatens to spread violence across the Middle East, with countries endorsing the sectarian divisions that brought civil war to Lebanon and Iraq. The wavering from the West dealt an unquestionable blow to the Syrian opposition, which had thought it had finally secured military intervention after pleading for two and a half years for help from Western leaders that vocally opposed Assad. The rebel Syrian National Coalition decried a “political maneuver which will lead to pointless procrastination and will cause more death and destruction to the people of Syria.” Assad’s warplanes bombed rebellious districts inside the Damascus city limits on Tuesday for the first time since the poison gas attacks. Rebels said the strikes demonstrated that the government had concluded the West had lost its nerve. “By sending the planes back, the regime is sending the message that it no longer feels international pressure,” activist Wasim al-Ahmad said from Mouadamiya, one of the districts of the capital hit by the chemical attack. The Russian proposal “is a cheap trick to buy time for the regime to kill more and more people,” said Sami, a member of the local opposition coordinating committee in the Damascus suburb of Erbin, also hit by last month’s chemical attack.

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Italian lawmakers delay showdown over Berlusconi (Reuters) - Italian lawmakers yesterday pulled back from a showdown over the political future of Silvio Berlusconi after allies of the billionaire media tycoon threatened to bring down Prime Minister Enrico Letta’s unstable ruling coalition. A meeting of a crossparty Senate committee charged with deciding whether Berlusconi should be barred from the Senate following a conviction for tax fraud ended without holding a vote, easing political tensions at least for the time being. The centre-left Democratic Party (PD), which has the largest presence on the 23-member committee, accepted centre-right demands to slow down hearings on the case, but it maintains its position that Berlusconi must lose his seat. The meeting ended at around midnight (2200 GMT). Hearings will resume on Thursday at 1300 GMT, Senator Benedetto Della Vedova of Mario Monti’s Civic Choice said. “The discussion will start again in the next few days and it will take a long time,” the Senate group of the antiestablishment 5-Star Movement, which is most hostile to Berlusconi, said in a tweet as the meeting neared its end. After a tense day in which centre-right leaders threatened to pull out of Letta’s coalition, potentially triggering snap elections, a sign of reduced hostilities came when Berlusconi called off a meeting with his lawmakers scheduled for today.

Many observers had expected that meeting to sanction the end of the Letta government if the centre-left had maintained the uncompromising stance it had shown at an initial committee meeting on Monday. Berlusconi’s centre-right People of Freedom (PDL) party has sought to halt the hearings pending an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights but has been rebuffed by the centre-left which says the appeal is no more than a delaying tactic. Whether the PDL’s repeated threats to bring down the government go beyond simple brinkmanship remains unclear but the wrangling around the hearings has underlined how entwined Italy’s political stability remains with the personal fate of Berlusconi, 20 years after he first entered politics. At yesterday’s meeting the centre-right agreed to drop a series of technical objections to try to halt the hearings on the agreement that each of the committee members could speak at greater length in a broad discussion on the merits of the case. Ahead of yesterday’s hearing arguments had raged between the main partners in the cross-party coalition led by Letta, who comes from the PD, with each side accusing

Silvio Berlusconi the other of creating a crisis. With Italy straining to contain its 2 trillion euro public debt, the Berlusconi imbroglio has also hobbled efforts to reform the euro zone’s third-largest economy, causing worries that extend well beyond its own borders. Berlusconi, convicted by Italy’s top court last month of being at the centre of a vast tax fraud conspiracy at his Mediaset television empire, could not be expelled without a full vote on the floor of the upper house. But he in any case faces banishment from front-line politics for at least a year after the court sentenced him to a four-year jail term that was then commuted to one year under house arrest or in community service. Whether a government crisis would necessarily lead to new elections is unclear, given President Giorgio Napolitano’s reluctance to

send Italy back to the polls. If the PDL eventually makes good on its threats, Napolitano could try to oversee the creation of a new government formed around the PD with the support of dissidents from the centreright or 5-Star party. Berlusconi’s own party remains divided between hawks pressing for a showdown with the PD and more moderate elements and executives from his business empire who fear that the party risks isolating itself with no guaranteed payoff. With the European Central Bank pledging to step in to prevent bond market turmoil of the kind which threatened Italy at the height of the euro zone debt crisis in 2011, financial markets have shown no signs of panic. But Italy’s borrowing costs have crept up over the past few weeks and an auction of mid-term bonds tomorrow will be closely watched for any signs of investor nerves. Yesterday, Spanish government bond yields fell below Italy’s for the first time in 18 months as worries over the political standoff hit sentiment. Although there have been faint signs of improvement after some two years of recession, data yesterday showed the economy still far from recovery.

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Child bride in Yemen dies of internal bleeding on wedding night: activist SANAA (Reuters) - An eight-year-old Yemeni girl died of internal bleeding on her wedding night after marrying a man five times her age, a social activist and two local residents said, in a case that has caused an outcry in the media and revived debate about child brides. Arwa Othman, head of Yemen House of Folklore and a leading rights campaigner, said the girl, identified only as Rawan, was married to a 40-yearold man late last week in the town of Meedi in Hajjah province in northwestern Yemen. “On the wedding night and after intercourse, she suffered from bleeding and uterine rupture which caused her death,” Othman told Reuters. “They took her to a clinic but the medics couldn’t save her life.” Othman said authorities had not taken any action against the girl’s family or her husband. A local security official in the provincial town of Haradh denied any such

incident had taken place. He did not want to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the press. But two Meedi residents contacted by Reuters confirmed the incident and said that local tribal chiefs had tried to cover up the incident when news first broke, warning a local journalist against covering the story. Many poor families in Yemen marry off young daughters to save on the costs of bringing up a child and earn extra money from the dowry given to the girl. A U.N. report released in January revealed the extent of the country’s poverty, saying that 10.5 million of Yemen’s 24 million people lacked sufficient food supplies, and 13 million had no access to safe water and basic sanitation. Human Rights Watch urged Yemen’s government in December 2011 to ban marriages of girls under the age of 18, warning it deprived child brides of education and harmed their health.

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Iran’s Rouhani says time for resolving nuclear dispute limited DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said yesterday that the time for resolving Iran’s nuclear dispute with the West was limited, and urged the world to seize the opportunity of his election. Iran has been engaged in on-off negotiations with major world powers and the United Nations about its nuclear program for more than a decade, and has been subjected to several rounds of U.N. and Western economic sanctions. The last round of talks with the big powers - the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany - was held in April in Kazakhstan, before Rouhani’s election, and both sides have said they want to continue soon. “The world must know completely that this period of time for resolving the nuclear issue will not be u n l i m i t e d . We h a v e a specified period of time,” Rouhani, a centrist cleric who took office last month, said in a live interview on state television.

Hassan Rouhani “The world must also use this period of time and this opportunity that our people created in this election. We will also use t h i s o p p o r t u n i t y. G o d willing, I am hopeful we can, step by step, solve this problem.” Western countries in particular object to Iran’s uranium enrichment program and fear it may be developing a capacity to build nuclear weapons. Iran says the program is purely peaceful and designed to meet its

energy needs. Rouhani, who succeeded Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a conservative known for his bellicose rhetoric on the international stage, has pledged moderation in Iran’s foreign and domestic policies and called for “constructive interaction” with the world. He has also made a number of appointments that suggest a more pragmatic foreign and n u c l e a r p o l i c y, w h i l e reiterating I r a n ’s consistent line that it has a right to enrich uranium. Rouhani said yesterday he would meet with the foreign ministers from some of the six powers - Russia, China, France, Britain, the United States and Germany when he attends the U.N. General Assembly in New York this month. “I believe that if the opposite side has a serious will, the nuclear issue can be resolved in a not very long time,” he said. “In the nuclear issue, the end of the game must be a win-win game. Win-lose has no meaning,” he said. “We

can have a win-win game, we are ready for a win-win game. I think the beginning of this work will start in New York.” Rouhani’s attempts to create a better atmosphere for the talks have been complicated by the war in Syria, currently absorbing most of the big powers’ diplomatic attention. Shi’ite Muslim Iran is Syrian President Bashar alAssad’s main ally against mostly Sunni Muslim rebels, so a mooted U.S. strike against Assad would be

almost certain to spur demands for a tough antiWestern posture from the hardliners who dominate Iran’s parliament and the powerful Revolutionary Guards. Rouhani expressed strong support for a Russian-backed plan aimed at averting a U.S. strike, under which Syria said it would hand over its chemical weapons and join a convention that prohibits their use. “The probability that this danger (of a U.S. strike) has

lessened is very great,” Rouhani said. Rouhani and other Iranian officials have condemned the use of chemical weapons, pointing to their use against Iranian soldiers by the Iraqi army during the 1980-88 IranIraq war. “The Islamic Republic of Iran has joined this t r e a t y, t h e c h e m i c a l weapons ban treaty, and we believe that all countries in the region must join these requirements and this treaty,” Rouhani said.

Britain warns EU against trying to control its defense industry LONDON (Reuters) Britain warned the European Commission yesterday that it would oppose any moves to enforce new rules on the region’s defense industry that impinged on the competitiveness of British companies. Defense Secretary Philip Hammond expressed skepticism over proposals from Brussels aimed at helping Europe’s defense industry cope with the pressures of falling military budgets and increased competition from new markets. In July the Commission, the European Union’s executive body which has traditionally left defense issues to its 28 member states, presented a paper looking at how Europe can strengthen its fragmented arms industry and bolster a common defense policy. The measures proposed include allowing greater competition in the internal market currently dominated by companies s u c h a s B r i t a i n ’s B A E Systems, Franco-German g r o u p E A D S , F r a n c e ’s Thales and I t a l y ’s Finmeccanica. Hammond said he

would resist any proposals that are not in the interests of British companies such as allowing the export market to be controlled centrally on a panEuropean basis. “There is a tendency for proposals to come out of Brussels which talk about increasing the competitiveness of European industry and what they really mean is imposing a dirigism on E u r o p e a n i n d u s t r y, ” h e told a defense conference. “We have to be very clear (on this) if Europe is to stand a chance in the global defense industry.” He said Britain was not alone in resisting the push for the European Union to take a more active role in the sector with the debate triggered by July’s paper set to culminate in a summit of European leaders in December. Britain’s defense industry revenue was 22.1 billion pounds ($35 billion) in 2011 with a study showing China replaced Britain in the top five arms-exporting countries in 2008-2012 alongside the United States, Russia, Germany and France. E u r o p e ’s defense industry had sales of 96

Philip Hammond billion euros ($126.9 billion) in 2012. The Commission has promised a crackdown on discriminatory practices and distortions affecting the defense market in Europe, where governments often try to keep manufacturing and other skills at home by favoring domestic companies. It said it would monitor the openness of member states’ defense markets and make sure that new rules on buying defense equipment were applied by EU governments. Many EU officials see the failed $45 billion merger between EADS and BAE Systems last year, which collapsed in the face of political differences, as a missed opportunity to consolidate the European defense industry. Hammond told industry leaders attending the threeday Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEi) exhibition in London’s Docklands area that he had their interests at heart. “I will do my best to protect you from unnecessary bureaucracy and regulatory burden,” he said.

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Colombia’s Santos vows to thwart Nicaragua’s ‘expansionist plans’ BOGOTA (Reuters) Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said on Monday he will do everything in his power to prevent Nicaragua’s “expansionist” ambitions over domestic territory and called an international court ruling that gave waters to Nicaragua inapplicable. After years of diplomatic wrangling, the International Court of Ju s t i c e i n November drew a demarcation line in favor of Nicaragua, reducing the expanse of ocean belonging to Colombia and s p a r k i n g a d i p l o m atic dispute that led both sides to send armed vessels to patrol the contested waters. Colombia has been angered by Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s plans to allow foreign companies to explore for oil in Caribbean seas that Colombia maintains are its own and Santos has ordered his navy to remain in the disputed waters. Santos said Nicaragua also wants to push its maritime borders closer to the historic city of Cartagena. “Colombia is confronting, and will confront, such expansionist pretensions with all the determination and rigor it requires,” Santos said in a televised national address. “What I guarded as a sailor and defended as a minister, I will protect until the ultimate consequences as president,” said Santos, a

Juan Manuel Santos former defense minister and navy cadet. Describing the court ruling as “not applicable,” Santos said he would oppose any attempt by Nicaragua to extend its sea frontier toward Colombia and has a series of technical and judicial arguments ready to press its case, which he declined to reveal. Any sign that Colombia is headed for victory in the dispute could give a boost to Santos whose approval ratings are just 21 percent, according to a recent Gallup opinion poll. He must say by November whether he will run for a second presidential term in elections next May. In a strongly worded address sure to raise the hackles of leftist Ortega, Santos said the ruling would only be applicable if it was accompanied by an international treaty which

would be subject to congressional approval required by Colombia’s constitution. The government has already withdrawn from the so-called Bogota Pact, a treaty under which signatory countries agreed in 1948 to recognize rulings by the International Court of Justice and to find peaceful solutions to their conflicts. Santos, 62, a Harvardeducated scion of one of Colombia’s most influential families, stopped short of saying he would not abide by the ruling and he has stated in the past that Colombia would not go to war to resolve the dispute. The Hague-based World Court’s decision increased the size of Nicaragua’s continental shelf and economic exclusion zone in the Caribbean, which gives it access to underwater oil and gas deposits as well as fishing rights. Ortega has already begun to carve up areas to offer for oil and gas exploration, enraging Colombians. But he has also indicated he may be willing to discuss the maritime boundaries set out in the court ruling. In 2007 the court ruled that three large islands in the maritime area - San Andres, Providencia and Santa Catalina - belong to Colombia. The islands are a popular holiday destination for Colombian and foreign tourists.

‘DJ Cheddie’ killing…

Alleged shooter may have been a “hit man” The alleged gunman behind the killing of Tucville resident Sheldon Cheddie did not know his victim personally, and investigators therefore believe that someone hired him to commit the execution-style hit. A source said that police are hoping to question the suspect further to find out who hired him and the motive for the killing. This newspaper was told that the injured suspect, identified as Omal Williams, of Berbice, is still hospitalised. Detectives have already swabbed his hands for possible traces of gunpowder residue. Results of those tests may be known today. Kaieteur News understands that police who scoured the scene failed to find any spent shells or

DEAD: Sheldon Cheddie warheads and no firearm was recovered from the suspect. Cheddie, also known as “DJ Cheddie,” of 39-949 Jackson Street, Tucville, was shot at least seven times at around 20:30 hrs

last Monday by one of two men who rode up to him on bicycles. An eyewitness told Kaieteur News that Cheddie and several of his friends were sitting under a tent near the Tucville area known as Turning Point when the two men approached. There was no exchange of words and one of the two men walked up to Cheddie and shot him at least seven times. The two, according to eyewitnesses, quickly rode away. However, while some of Cheddie’s friends rushed him to hospital, others pursued the alleged shooters. They managed to apprehend one of the men, who was later identified as Wi l l i a m s , i n E a s t L a Penitence, and inflicted a beating on him.

Wednesday September 11, 2013

Brazil leader accuses US of spying for ‘economic’ interests Brazil President Dilma Rousseff accused the United States of spying on oil giant Petrobras for its own “economic and strategic” reasons — not for national security. The latest allegations of online snooping by the National Security Agency emerged Sunday night when TV Globo reported Brazilian oil giant Petrobras — world leader in deep-water oil exploration — was among those targeted, along with Google and the French foreign ministry. Rousseff said in a statement that, “if the facts are confirmed, it would be clear the espionage was not for security or the fight against terrorism, but to respond to economic and strategic interests.” “Without doubt, Petrobras is not a threat to the security of any country,” the president said. These attempts to steal “data and information are incompatible with democratic co-existence between friends,” she added, saying Brazil would “take all measures to protect the country, the government and its companies.” Petrobras said in a statement it has highly qualified and constantly updated systems to protect its internal communications

President Dilma Rousseff network. Brazil’s foreign minister headed Monday to the Untied States where he is to meet this week with National Security Advisor Susan Rice over the spying row. The meeting between Luiz Alberto Figueiredo and Rice is planned for Wednesday or Thursday in Washington, though the date has not been confirmed, a spokesman for the Brazilian foreign ministry told AFP. Rousseff had expressed her “personal indignation” over the allegations of online snooping by the US National Security Agency during comments on the sidelines of the G20 summit last week in Russia. The Brazilian leader had

been scheduled to make a state visit October 23 to Washington, but Brasilia now says the trip depends on the US response to the spying allegations. “The Brazilian government is determined to get clarification from the US government ... and require specific action to remove the possibility of espionage once and for all,” Rousseff said Monday. TV Globo reported Sunday a leaked US intelligence document highlighted Google, Petrobras, the French foreign ministry and SWIFT, a provider of secure financial messaging services to 10,000 banks and other financial institutions in 212 countries, as “targets” of the US online snooping. The channel said it obtained the information from Glenn Greenwald, a blogger and columnist for the Guardian newspaper, who got secret files from former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden. US National Intelligence director James Clapper responded to the allegations in a statement, saying the US “collects foreign intelligence — just as many other governments do — to enhance the security of our citizens and protect our interests and those of our allies around the world.” (AFP)

St. Vincent PM wants regional governments to discuss legalising marijuana KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent - CMC – Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves has written to the chair of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) grouping calling for a discussion on the medicinal and other uses of marijuana. In his letter to Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar, who is also the Trinidad and Tobago head of government, Gonsalves said it is high time that CARICOM addresses regionally “this matter in a sensible focus not hysterical manner”. Prime Minister Gonsalves said that the marijuana plant has a bundle of proven and potentially beneficial uses and while it is true that its use and abuse and the consequential criminalisation of its cultivation, possession and supply have impacted on the health, welfare and security of the people. Gonsalves in his letter made a plea for “a reasoned debate” led by CARICOM political and civic leadership in the context of the

Dr. Ralph Gonsalves legislation of marijuana. He said the matter should be explored at the next meeting of the Bureau of CARICOM leaders scheduled for Trinidad Friday. The letter added that preparatory work can possibly be done so as to place the matter in the agenda of the CARICOM InterSessional summit to be held here in February next year. Prime Minister Gonsalves

said the general public disappointed with “the failure and or refusal of the political and civic leadership in CARICOM to jettison it or unnecessary caution and lethargy in addressing some of the controversial contemporary issues of real import”. Distinguished Caribbean professionals including Jamaican chemist and cancer researcher, Dr. Henry Lowe have been urging the use of marijuana product for a range of medical purposes. Earlier this month, Dr. Lowe, speaking at a forum organised by the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper, spoke of how he was discouraged from pursuing work on the medicinal properties of the weed several years ago. Lorne suggested that local politicians tended to wilt under the glare of the United States (US). “As a consequence of the US wielding that big stick over our head, our politicians are in fear,” he told the forum.

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Dino Bouterse to stay PM denies return of property tax in jail until November NEW YORK – CMC - A Federal judge has extended the detention of Dino Bouterse, the son of Suriname’s President Desi Bouterse, who was arrested in Panama last month on charges of drug trafficking and possession of illegal weapons. Manhattan federal Judge Shira Scheindlin extended the pre-detention of the 41-yearold Bouterse to November, when his trial is scheduled to begin. Dino Bouterse was arrested in Panama on August 29, and handed over to US authorities, who charged him with drug trafficking and illegal weapons possession. US authorities had characterized Bouterse as a dangerous seasoned narcotics trafficker, who as recently as last July shipped 10 kilogrammes of cocaine from Suriname though the Caribbean into the US.

Dino Bouterse His fellow suspect Edmund Muntslag, 29, was arrested in Trinidad and Tobago, where he remains in custody. If convicted, Bouterse faces the possibility of life imprisonment and his mother, Ingrid Fiqueira, the first wife of President Bouterse, is reported to have left Suriname

for the United States. President Bouterse told a news conference that while he is concerned about the situation, his son is a grown individual. “I don’t know everything my 41 year-old son, who himself is father to 14 children, is up to. He is not 12 years old anymore.” Since the arrest, opposition legislators in Suriname have been calling for President Bouterse to step down. Bouterse has dismissed the calls saying he would seek re-election in 2015. He has said the arrest was part of a plan by Washington to disrupt the activities of the Union of South American States (UNASUR) which was holding a summit in Suriname at the time. “They chose a perfect moment; I couldn’t have done it better. Fortunately it didn’t reach its intended goal,” Bouterse said.

Jamaica embarks on massive cane planting programme KINGSTON, Jamaica CMC – Jamaica has embarked on a massive cane planting and re-planting exercise aimed at producing 1.4 million tonnes of sugar cane by 2018, the government said. The initiative is part of Jamaica’s Cane Expansion Fund, a partnership between the government and the European Union. “We are aiming to increase cane yields to above 70 tonnes of cane per hectare from the current average of 50 tonnes (cane farmers) and bring an estimated 8,000 hectares of new land into production,” said Agriculture Minister Roger Clarke. J a m a i c a ’s sugar industry produced more than 600,000 tonnes of sugar annually in the mid1960s, a number that fell to 128,000 tonnes during the 2012/2013 period. Despite its struggles, however, sugar earns around $90 million in foreign exchange for Jamaica every year, according to

“We cannot forget the sterling contribution of sugar to the education, health and sporting capacity of this country,” Clarke said. “In short, our industry output is low, our productivity is low and our costs are high. These are some of the key challenges we are now tackling head-on.”

Roger Clarke government data. That makes it the largest foreign exchange earner in the country’s agricultural sector. We cannot forget the sterling contribution of sugar to the education, health and sporting capacity of this country,” Mr. Clarke says. In spite of the positive contribution of the sugar sector in many areas, there are significant challenges, which must be dealt with, he says.

Four years after vigorously opposing a proposal by the then People’s National Movement (PNM) government to introduce a new property tax system, the coalition People’s Partnership government is insisting that it has not backtracked on its original position. Finance Minister Larry Howai, delivering the TT$6.3 billion (One TT dollar = US$0.16 cents) budget on Monday, told legislators that a land and building tax regime would be introduced here in three phases. He said that a land and building tax regime is a key pillar in all modern tax systems. “The backbone of a successful land and building tax is the proper valuation of properties within a transparent framework. This will require the property rolls being brought up-to- date. I propose to phase in these taxes over the period 2014 to 2017 during which time the properties will be valued and consultations will be held with all stakeholders.” He said phase one which goes into effect immediately would allow for the “valuations of all industrial land, including plant and machinery, whether housed or un-housed with a view to implement this tax by July 1, 2014. “In phase 2, we will impose a tax on commercial properties and in phase 3, we will impose a tax on agricultural lands and on residential properties with a

Kamla Persad Bissessar deductible allowance to provide relief to certain agricultural land owners and low-income homeowners.” Prime Minister Kamla P e r s a d B i s s e s s a r, w h o when in opposition had even proposed going to the courts to challenge the legislation brought by the then Patrick Manning government, told reporters

that there would be no property tax as had been outlined by the PNM government. “I want to make it very clear that my government will not introduce any property tax, there will be no property tax,” said Persad-Bissessar, explaining that industrial taxes would be imposed on corporations such as the state-owned oil company, PETROTRIN. She said this tax measure would not apply to residential and agricultural lands. “In fact, I had given instructions for a Bill to be drafted that will clearly take the land and building taxes as it was prior to 2010 before the law that was passed by the PNM for the property tax,” she said. However, Opposition Leader Dr. Keith Rowley described the tax proposal of the government as a “deliberate distraction. (CBC)

Venezuela quits regional rights bodies it calls U.S. pawns (Reuters) - Venezuela withdrew yesterday from the Organisation of American States’ (OAS) human-rights bodies, which it has denounced as pawns of U.S. foreign policy that have been antagonistic to the South American nation’s socialist government for years. Venezuela’s formal exit from the OAS’s rights court and commission, a move it announced 12 months ago, came a day after opposition leader Henrique Capriles sent documents to the OAS accusing President Nicolas Maduro of cheating him of the country’s April 14 election. Maduro, who has presented himself as a disciple of his socialist predecessor Hugo Chavez, said this week that his former boss had rightly perceived Venezuela’s sovereignty and pride were at stake as a result of bias shown by the OAS’s rights bodies.

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Jordan win shootout, reach Sehwag, Gambhir, Zaheer to ... intercontinental play-off Jordan beat Uzbekistan 98 on penalties to book an intercontinental play-off against the fifth-placed finishers in South American qualifying for a ticket to the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™. The Asian rivals drew 1-1 in Amman last week, and they registered the same result over 120 minutes in Tashkent to send the tie to a shootout. It took just five minutes for Uzbekistan to send their supporters wild. Server Djeparov curled in a free-kick

from the right, which Amer Sabbah could parry into the path of Anzur Ismailov, who slotted it home from close range. Mirjalol Kasimov’s charges took their foot off the gas thereafter, though, and the half looked like ending with the hosts at a one-goal advantage until the 42nd minute. That’s when, out of nothing, Saeed Al Murjan thumped a stunning 25-yard half-volley into the back of the net to restore parity. Uzbekistan had a lot of

possession, and a series of corners, in the second half, but they failed to convert that into a goal and the game went into extra time. The visitors, coached by Egyptian legend Hossam Hassan, defended resolutely in the additional 30 minutes and forced the contest into a penalty shootout. Jordan will now prepare for the two-legged tie against South American opposition in November. (FIFA.com)

Wednesday September 11, 2013 ARIES (March 21 - April 19): Things are apt to remain quite orderly for you, Aries. Even though your heart may want to soar into the clouds, you'll find that there's a stable side to the equation that's working to keep things in perspective. ******************* TAURUS (April 20 - May 20): The engagements in your social calendar are likely stacking up to the point of absurdity, Taurus. Make sure you schedule some time for yourself somewhere in there. ****************** GEMINI (May 21 - June 20):Just because your heart is feeling extra generous now doesn't mean that you need to send flowers to everyone you know, Gemini. ******************** CANCER (June 21 - July 22): You may be confused by your heart, Cancer. It may be extremely frustrating when you can't keep a tight rein on your emotions. ********************* LEO (July 23 - Aug. 22): Your mind gives you a great deal of security, Leo, which allows you to explore other worlds. You have your satellite outpost operating smoothly, and you can now take trips into the frontier knowing that you have a secure facility to fall back on. Find new ways to bring love into your life. ******************* VIRGO (Aug. 23 - Sept. 22): This is a good time to get more serious about your art, Virgo. You were probably born with talent, but perhaps you don't treat it with as much respect as someone endowed with only a fraction of your natural ability.

LIBRA (Sept. 23 - Oct. 22): Don't assume that the person you're trying to reach is getting your messages, Libra. Perhaps you've been waiting for a reply, thinking that this person has blown you off. ********************* SCORPIO (Oct. 23 Nov. 21): You feel reprimanded because of the way you reacted to a situation that came out differently than you'd hoped. Trust that you acted in the best, calmest, and most understanding way possible. ******************** SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22 Dec. 21): Something unusual could put a smile on your face today, Sagittarius. Look for beauty and love in the simplest things. If you can't see it, then work on adjusting your attitude. .********************* CAPRICORN (Dec. 22 Jan. 19): It's time to step up to the plate and take responsibility for the things you want to have happen, Capricorn. ******************** AQUARIUS (Jan. 20 Feb. 18):The warm, loving feeling that you've been happily nurturing is calling for a bit of practicality in order to make your romantic life work out the way you want it to. Remember that less is more, Aquarius. ********************* PISCE S ( F e b . 1 9 March 20): You might feel a bit reserved when it comes to issues of love and romance, Pisces. Other people might consider this rather strange when they see that suddenly your courageous forward motion comes to a dramatic halt.

From page 38 picked to lead India Red. Delhi are the third side in the tournament by the virtue of being defending Ranji Trophy one-day champions, and are expected to pick their team and coach soon. Zaheer and Yuvraj have spent the time outside international cricket working on their fitness in France. Not picked for the A sides, Gambhir represented Essex in county cricket. India A squad for the second and third four-day games against West Indies A: Cheteshwar Pujara (capt.), Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Sheldon Jackson, Abhishek Nayar, Paras Dogra, Uday Kaul (wk), Parvez Rasool, Bhargav Bhatt, Dhawal Kulkarni, Zahe e r K h a n , Ishwar P a n d e y, Mohammed Shami, Mohammad Kaif. India A squad for the first four-day game against

West Indies A: Cheteshwar Pujara (capt.), Jiwanjot Singh, KL Rahul, Manpreet Juneja, Rajat Paliwal, Harshad Khadiwale, Parvez Rasool, B h a r g a v B h a t t , Ishwar Pandey, Mohammed Shami, Ashok Dinda, Rohit Motwani (wk), Dhawal Kulkarni, Paras Dogra. India A squad for the three 50-over games and o n e T 2 0 a g a i n s t We s t Indies A: Yuvraj Singh (capt.), Unmukt Chand, Robin Uthappa, B Aparajith, Kedar Jadhav, Naman Ojha (wk), Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Jaydev Unadkat, Praveen K u m a r, S u m i t N a r w a l , Shahbaz Nadeem, Mandeep Singh, Rahul Sharma . India Red squad for the Challenger Trophy: Irfan Pathan (capt.), Robin Uthappa, Abhinav Mukund, Sourabh Tiwary, Gurkeerat Mann, Kedar Jadhav, Smit Patel (wk), Yu s u f P a t h a n , S h a h b a z Nadeem, Abhimanyu

M i t h u n , U m e s h Ya d a v, Suraj Yadav. India Blue squad for the Challenger T r o p h y : Yu v r a j S i n g h (capt.), 2 Akshath Reddy, 3 Naman Ojha (wk), 4 Mandeep Singh, 5 Ankit Bawane, 6 Abhishek Nayar, 7 Manish Pandey, 8 Piyush Chawla, 9 Ankit Rajpoot, 10 Vi n a y K u m a r, 11 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 12 Iresh Saxena. (ESPNCricinfo)

Kimi Raikkonen to join Ferrari as Fernando Alonso’s team-mate Kimi Raikkonen will join Fernando Alonso at Ferrari in 2014. The Finn, who won the world title with Ferrari in 2007 but was replaced by Alonso at the end of 2009, has signed a one-year deal with an option for 2015. Ferrari, who will now have arguably the strongest driver line-up in Formula 1, have not yet announced the deal but are expected to do so imminently. Raikkonen, 33, will replace Felipe Massa, who announced on Twitter that he will leave at the end of the season. The Brazilian, who had earlier been informed of Ferrari’s decision and has driven for the Italian outfit since 2006, said: “From 2014 I will no longer be driving for Ferrari.

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Soca Warriors beat Saudis 15 Schools participate in for 3rd place in OSN Cup BVA Mini Volleyball Festival Trinidad and Tobago stunned host nation Saudi Arabia with two early goals to capture third place at the OSN Cup 2013 by way of a spirited 3-1 victory at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh on Sunday. A double strike by Captain Kenwyne Jones in the fourth and sixth minutes gave T&T a dream start and an 87th minute item by Notts County midfielder Andre Boucaud sealed the win for the “Soca Warriors” after the home side threatened to level the scores after pulling a goal back in the 47th minute. This victory was T&T’s first over the four-time World Cup finalists in four outings. “I’m pleased for the players because they’ve worked hard to get the result,” Coach Stephen Hart told TTFA Media following his second victory in six games since taking over the job as Head Coach in June.s “I have a bit of mixed feelings, bittersweet really because I thought we went to sleep a bit after the second goal and we allowed them (Saudi Arabia) to force themselves back into the game and we made the game harder for ourselves. “We played some really nice stuff early, moving the ball and penetrating well. But mentally we seemed to just lose concentration and our ball possession was poor at times as well as our decision-making was rushed. We made too many errors because we were trying too hard to win a game that we were already supposed to be in control of. But overall it’s a really good result for us moving forward,” Hart added. J o n e s w a s a p roud captain - “I thought we did well as a team to grind out a result,” he said. “We got a good start with the two early goals but the game was never an easy one especially as the officials decided that they would make life harder for us on the night. But I’m happy

Kenwayne Jones

with the way we stuck together and we‘ve shown some really good progress as a team.” “Hopefully we can continue to build on this because we want to see the c o u n t r y ’s football progress and we will continue to do our part on the pitch,” added the Stoke City man. Hart used Willis Plaza and Kevin Molino as well as defender Sheldon Bateau in his starting XI for the game, and it paid dividends as Plaza’s hustle in the final third of the field made things uneasy for the Saudis. Goalkeeper Marvin Phillip also came in for Jan Michael Williams. On four minutes, Jones received a return ball from Robert Primus on the left and clinically side-footed the ball into the right corner of the net to put T&T ahead 1-0. That was Jones’ second goal for T&T in as many games and Primus’ second assist in the two OSN Cup matches. The home team could hardly settle before Jones doubled T&T’s advantage with a brilliant lob over goalkeeper Abdullah Almuaiouf from about 30 metres out as he ran on to win possession of a ball p l a y e d b a c k b y Yo u s e f Alsalem.

Saudi Arabia got more involved as the game progressed and created some opportunities of their own but solid defending by the T&T backline and a couple great stops by Phillip denied them. T&T lost Jones in the 39th minute after he received a kick to the ankle and was replaced by Marcus Joseph who went close to increasing T&T’s lead in the second half when his thunderous free kick crashed off the crossbar. Saudi Arabia caused some panic for T&T when they pulled a goal back in the 47th minute. Naif Hazazi headed home at the far post after Yahia Alsheri swung a free kick over from the left following a foul after Khaleem Hyland lost possession atop the T&T penalty box. But T&T stayed in the game with the introduction of Densill Theobald and Ataulla Guerra. Eventually Boucaud finished off the Saudis after an exchange of passes with Kevin Molino and Lester Peltier, the English-born midfielder cleverly moving past Saudi captain Ahmed Ateef and burying a low left footer into the left corner of the net to spark celebrations among the T&T contingent which included a dozen T&T nationals in the stands. T&T will now look a h e a d t o the remaining FIFA international dates for 2013 with already New Zealand expressing interest in playing Hart’s men in October. T&T’s home-based members will return to Port of Spain on Thursday following a one night stopover in London. In the final, United Arab Emirates, who defeated T&T 7-6 on penalty kicks last Thursday, captured the Cup with a 2-0 victory over New Zealand. (Trinidad Express)

Students between the ages of 9 – 13 on Friday last benefited from a one-day Mini Volleyball Festival organised by the Berbice Volleyball Association (BVA) held at the Area ‘H’ Ground, Port Mourant. The facilitators of the programme were BVA Treasurer, Godwyn Allicock who was ably assisted by National Under-19 players Vashti Pooran, Darshnie Pooran and Devendra Motiepersaud. Primary students were drawn from Courtland, Cropper, Belvedere, Fyrish, Albion, Rose Hall Town, Port Mourant, Tain and Auchlyne Primary schools while the Secondary s c h o o l s were Lower Corentyne, Port Mourant, JC Chandisingh, Corentyne Comprenensive High, Manchester and Winifred Gaskin. The students were lectured to on the History of volleyball, the role of the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB), the aims of Mini Volleyball Festivals, the role of the BVA and the Guyana Volleyball Federation. They were also introduced to basic volleyball drills with emphasis on the “Overhead Finger Pass”, while having lots of fun playing in t h e b r i l l i a n t sunshine on the Courts. At the conclusion, the students and teachers all expressed their joy and satisfaction in being involved in the event. They further said they are

Vashti Pooran (right) posing with some other students after the presentation willing to learn more and plan to organise practice sessions after school so that teachers and students can hone their skills to participate in friendly competition among themselves. Festival Coordinator Godwyn Allicock said he was happy and overwhelmed with the level of interest and enthusiasm displayed by the students and teachers and in expressing thanks to all for participating. Allicock promised that the BVA will continue to monitor the game in the schools that participated. Gratitude was extended to

Region 6 Regional Education Officer, all the Head Teachers of the invited schools, the Teachers that accompanied the students, the Rose Hall Town Interim Town Council, the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club, the Port Mourant Training Centre, the Presidents of the BVA and the GVF, the Ministry of Education Allied Arts Department and the FIVB. All of the participating schools received two kid’s Volleyballs and an FIVB Development Net. Another Festival is being planned for schools in the West Berbice area.

Greene defeats Fitzgerald in Singles final - teams up with Seetaram to win another title Sherwyn Greene p r o d u c ed a remarkable p e r f o r mance to defeat Guyana’s No.1 player Sudesh Fitzgerald in the Guyana Darts Association (GDA)organised Men’s League which was staged last Friday, at the Malteenoes Sports Club. The League which was contested among six players each playing 10 ten legs, two legs against each other saw Greene and Fitzgerald come out on 9 legs each, splitting one leg to each other. Only Nicholas Seetaram with four legs managed to score close to the two high s h ooters. Greene and Fitzgerald started the best of three final with the former placing

himself in the position to claim the opening stanza after playing for a double 18, but failed to deliver, leaving Fitzgerald with a hit for double 8 which he secured to win the first leg. Greene w i t h o u t a n y delay finished the second leg with double 20, leaving Fitzgerald with 124 points to tie the proceedings and set up a final game showdown. Both players seemed nervous in the decider and it was Fitzgerald who was left to get 72 points to finish the game with two double 18, but his first dart missed and he only managed to hit a single 18. Greene’s turn saw him score a total of 82 points which left him to get

a further 36 points to snatch the rubber, while Fitzgerald missed thedouble18again and hit double 4. In Greene’s turn, he tried to finish the game, but could only muster scores of 18 and 9, leaving himself with 9 to score. Meanwhile, Fitzgerald for the third time missed the double scoring 3 and two darts off, leaving him with 4 points. Green took the game on his turn of shooting 1 and the double 4 to win the tournament 2/3 against Fitzgerald. I n the Luck of the Draw Doubles, In the Luck of the Draw League, the pair of N i c h o l a s Seetaram and Sherwyn Greene came out champs after scoring 4 legs.

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Roshandin impresses once again Williams wants to carry on writing history as US Open champion - Registers three wins, two second places Mohamed Shairaz Roshandin continued his dominance in the Group 2A Division with another scorching display after posting three impressive wins and two second place finishes at last Sunday’s Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club ‘Race of Champions’ Meet which was held, at the South Dakota Circuit. Roshandin, who drives a Honda Civic Type R for Team M.S Roshandin Professional Diesel Works and Total Lubricants once again, demonstrated his skills and daredevilry as he eased to comfortable wins in the Group 2A Class and was even brazen enough to jump up a

weight class to compete in the Group 2B where he chased down current champion Afraz Allie, but just could not rein in the faster Toyota Starlet of Allie, who also had an outstanding day, claiming three first places. Speaking with Kaieteur Sport yesterday, Roshandin commenting about his performance said he was extremely pleased with it, adding that the Group 2A victories was excellent and the car performed superbly. Asked why he could not translate his Group 2A outstanding display in the higher c a t e g o r y, Roshandin disclosed that the car was 400 lbs overweight which was a

major disadvantage against the likes of Allie, but reckoned that he was still satisfie d with its performance. Quizzed on what is next on his calendar, Roshandin said he is eagerly looking forward to the marquee November Meet when Guyana host the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship final leg on November 24 where he hopes to upstage his foreign counterparts and successfully represent his country. “We are still in the process of doing some more modifications and come November I am optimistic that the team will be able to maintain our dominance of the Group even at the regional level,” Roshandin explained.

Guyana advance to semis in Caribbean Badminton C/ships team event The Team Event continued Monday and Tuesday at the Caribbean International Junior C h a m p i o n s h i p s (CAREBACO) which is being held in San Juan, Puerto Rico from September 8-15, 2013 and Guyana advanced to the semi-final stage of the competition. Monday the Guyana Team

gained 5 points against Dominican Republic after gaining a walk over. Their points standing which is 6 (six), put the Guyana Team in the Number one Position in Group B and give them a place in the semi-finals. Guyana were down to play Suriname in the semifinals yesterday, while the other semi-final was between

Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic. Barbados settled for 5th place after defeating Trinidad. The members of the Guyana Team are: Boys - Narayan Ramdhani, Noel Shewjattan, Jonathan Mangra, Girls Priyanna Ramdhani, Nadine Jairam, Meshonn Persaud

Bach becomes most powerful... From page 29 of the International Boxing Federation AIBA. During the last few days Bach was forced to deny allegations in a German TV documentary about his conduct during his days as a fencer in the 1970s - it accused Bach of wearing a wet glove to fool the electronic scoring system - plus other claims about his business activities. A spokesman for Bach said the claims were ‘nonsense’. FIFA President Sepp Blatter instantly tweeted his support, saying: ‘Many congratulations Thomas Bach, the new IOC President. He has my and football’s full support and I look forward to working together with him.’

The figure in the background of this election is the man regarded as the IOC’s ‘fixer’, Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahad al-Sabah, a member of the Kuwaiti royal family. Al-Sabah is head of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC), the umbrella group of 205 national Olympic committees which enjoys huge influence, not least through administering the Olympic Solidarity fund which has 438million dollars (£300million) to distribute between now and 2016 to needy projects. Al-Sabah publicly committed himself to supporting Bach, and also helped To-

reinstated as an Olympic sport. That led to a backlash by Oswald who is concerned he is wielding too much power. Oswald told Swiss broadcaster RTF: “The members must make their decision but some don’t like the link between Bach and Kuwait. ‘I want an independent candidate who is not dependent on certain alliances.’ Bach won by a landslide in the second round of voting, with 49 votes compared to 29 for nearest rival Carrion. Ng attracted six votes, Oswald five and Bubka four after Wu had been eliminated

kyo w/in the vote for the 2020 Olympics and for wrestling to be

in the first (MailOnline)

round.

England Hockey submit Women’s World Cup 2018 bid England Hockey has put in a bid to the International Hockey Federation to host the 2018 Women’s World Cup. A decision will be made on November 7 and, if successful, the event would be hosted at the Lee Valley Hockey Centre, which is a London 2012 legacy facility. Hockey’s World Cup is held every four years and is

second only to the Olympics in significance. England Hockey are also bidding for the Men’s Champions Event and the Men’s and Women’s World League semi-finals. “We have a clear goal to increase the visibility of hockey in England, which in turn will help drive participation and ultimately elite performance,” said

England Hockey Chief Executive Sally Munday. “Events such as the World Cup will be central to achieving these objectives.” England’s women were bronze medallists at the last World Cup in 2010. They also won silver at last month’s EuroHockey Championships, a tournament England will host in 2015. (BBC Sport)

Serena Williams is excited about what she can go on to achieve after winning her 17th grand slam singles title at the US Open. The world No 1 cemented her dominance of the sport with a 7-5 6-7 (6/8) 6-1 victory over Victoria Azarenka to collect her ninth title of the season. Williams turns 32 later this month but has already played more matches and won more tournaments than in any other year of her career. She said: ‘I feel great. I have never felt better. I feel really fit. I can play a tournament like this, singles, doubles, with tough, tough schedules. ‘I haven’t felt like this in a number of years. I’m excited about the possibilities. I don’t know what can happen. I’ll just keep playing and do the best that I can.’ Williams is already considered by some people within tennis to be the best of all time, although she is still five singles titles behind Steffi Graf’s Open era record and seven adrift of Margaret Court’s all-time mark. The American allowed nerves to affect her during the second set, which she lost despite leading 4-1 and twice serving for the match. Williams believes the two are connected, saying: ‘When you’re always trying to write history, or join history in my case, maybe you just get a little more nervous than you should. ‘I also think it’s kind of cool because it means that it means a lot to you. ‘It means a lot to me, this trophy, and every single trophy that I have. It makes me feel that I’m still fighting just to be a part of this fabulous sport.’ Williams also picked up prize money of US dollars 3.6million after winning both the title and the US Open series comprising the summer tournaments in North America. That added USD one million to her cheque - not that Williams

- bids to add to 17 grand slam titles

Serena Williams poses with her trophy in Central Park will ever see it. She said: ‘Never in my life have I picked up a cheque. I don’t play tennis for the money. I honestly love to play. I love grand slams. ‘When I grew up playing tennis in Compton, I just never thought about any of this. ‘I think my dad got me into tennis because of the money, but me being naive and silly, I never thought about it. ‘I just thought, ‘I want to win. I want to do what Venus does’. ‘I remember back in the day before wiring they used to mail (the cheque) because I just would forget it. ‘I’m just really more happy about the opportunity that I had b e c a u s e o f m y s i s t e r, because of Billie Jean King, because of so many pioneers to have an opportunity to win some money like this.’ For Azarenka it was deja vu after she also lost to Williams in the US Open final last year. The Belarusian had won both their previous matches on hard courts this season in Doha and Cincinnati but could not keep the upper hand going into the third set. Azarenka

said: ‘I don’t think there was much of a difference. I think the quality of the game and the quality of determination was the same. ‘I think this match is a different story to last year. It showed a different, maybe not Serena, but it showed a different me as a player. ‘I think that it’s important to just try to go for those chances. I can’t wait for the next chance.’ Azarenka can match Williams for competitive intensity and athleticism, if not quite for power, but the serve is a big difference. Seven double faults hurt Azarenka, while the world number two was out-aced n i n e t o t w o . ‘ Yo u c a n always pinpoint what could have been better,’ said Azarenka. ‘I’m just trying to look overall. Yes, I’m going to try to improve that particular aspect, because the gap between Serena’s serve and my serve is pretty big. ‘But I don’t want to compare that because I think she has the best serve of all time. I’m just trying to find the way to raise my level.’ (MailOnline)

Boyz draw 1-1 with Costa Rica KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jermaine ‘Tuffy’ Anderson, after being omitted from the squad for over three games, turned saviour for the Reggae Boyz Tuesday night hitting in a volley to equalise after Costa Rica went one up in the second half. Without their captain and first string custodian Donovan Ricketts the Reggae Boyz held leaders

Costa Rica 1-1 in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifier at the National Stadium in Kingston. But the door has now been virtually shut on the Reggae Boyz hopes of getting to Brazil 2014 as only a defeat of the Costa Ricans would have sufficed. After a goalless first half Costa Rica hit the back of the net in what could be considered a goalkeeping

error by substitute goalkeeper McCallum, his lone blemish between the sticks. At the start of the match Costa Rica led the CONCACAF group with 14 points ahead of USA on 13 points. Honduras was third with ten points Mexico eight points in fourth Panama fifth on seven points and Jamaica at the bottom with three points.

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Berbice TT Sub-Association hosts teams tourney Racquet-wielders in the Ancient County of Berbice returned to competitive Table Tennis (TT) last Sunday when the Sub-Association for the sport in Berbice staged an eight-team tournament at the Skeldon Community Centre Pavilion. The tournament, which was held under the auspices of the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA), saw the best players in Berbice in action. Four teams from New Amsterdam and four teams from Corriverton are involved in the ongoing competition that will continue this Sunday at the Blairmont Community Centre. The teams comprised two and three players each and were divided into two groups, with the winner and runnerup of each group advancing to the semifinals. The tournament is also being used as a yardstick for the second annual Berbice Open, which is expected to be bigger than last year. Overseas-based Guyanese, Berbician, Souvenir Ramdyal of Queens New York, will sponsor the Berbice Open that will be held over two days this year with a number of overseasbased players expected to return to participate, according to the GTTA.

National Cycling Coach, Hassan Mohamed MS has organised the 13th Annual Teach Them Young Cycle Programme under the Degree Brand 11-Race Cycle programme for Saturday September 14, 2013, starting at 09:00hrs at the National Park Circuit. The programme is sponsored by DeSinco Trading Ltd, distributor of the Degree Brand and a representative of Degree will

be on hand to distribute the prizes to the winning participants. The defending champion in the feature School Boys & Invitation race is Marlon Williams, who took 1H/14Mins/59Secs to win last year’s event. Other defending champions include: Juveniles - Akeem Wilson (23Mins 25Secs), Veterans Junior Niles (11Mins 25Secs) and 12 to 14 yrs Boys - Alfie Soonaram (7 Mins 08Secs).

Some of the participants in the Berbice Sub-Association Table Tennis tournament pose for a photo opportunity on Sunday. On Sunday, the second semi between New Amsterdam ‘A’ and New Amsterdam ‘C’ will be held to determine who plays Corriverton ‘A’ after they defeated New Amsterdam ‘B’ 3-0 in the other semi-final. Preliminary results are as follows: Group one: New Amsterdam ‘A’ (Richard Bacchus, Floyd Conway and Joshua Lalbachan) beat New Amsterdam ‘B’ (Nicholas Lawrence, Stephan Sankar

and Jordan Conway) 3-2; Corriverton ‘C’ (Hamza Hussain, Shazaad and Symeon Matthew) 3-0 and Corriverton ‘D’ (Zackery Muhammed, Angeli Persaud and A. Edwin) 3-0. New Amsterdam ‘B’ beat Corriverton ‘C’ and ‘D’ 3-0 for second place and third place went to Corriverton ‘C’ after they beat Corriverton ‘D’ 3-0. Group two: Corriverton ‘A’ (Gibran Hussain and Sherwain Sahadeo) beat New Amsterdam ‘C’ (Tony

Amerally, Levan Butchey and Ryan Anderson) 3-0; Corriverton ‘B’ (Omraj Singh, Terry Garnett and Kenneth Dhanai) 3-1 and New Amsterdam ‘D’ (Jason Sanmoogan, Rawle Mangra and Zahir Moakan) 3-0. Second place went to New Amsterdam ‘C’ after they beat Corriverton ‘B’ 3-2; New Amsterdam ‘C 3-0. Third place went to Corriverton ‘B’ after they beat New Amsterdam 3-0. The event will conclude Sunday.

World Cup qualifiers: Italy and Netherlands qualify for Brazil 2014 The Netherlands and Italy have become the first two European countries to qualify for the 2014 World Cup. Robin van Persie scored twice as the Dutch beat Andorra 2-0, and Turkey’s 20 win in Romania ensured they could not be overtaken at the top of Group D. Italy just needed to beat the Czech Republic to qualify, and goals from Giorgio Chiellini and Mario Balotelli overturned an early Libor Kozak strike. Belgium, Germany and Switzerland need two points to secure a place in Brazil. Germany guaranteed at least a play-off spot with a 30 victory in the Faroe Islands thanks to goal from Arsenal’s

Another cycle race programme set for National Park on Saturday

Per Mertesacker and Mesut Ozil and a third from Thomas Muller. Bosnia-Hercegovina and Greece both secured at least a spot in the play-offs in Group G, while France are likely to be in the play-offs after their 4-2 win in Belarus put them level on points with Group I leaders Spain, who have a game in hand. GROUPA Neither of the top two sides - Belgium and Croatia were in action. Serbia all but guaranteed third place with a 3-0 victory in Wales, while Scotland moved up to fourth with a 2-1 win in Macedonia. GROUP B Czech Republic coach Michal Bilek resigned after his side lost 2-1 to Italy in Turin,

as the hosts qualified for next year’s World Cup. Bulgaria are leading the race for the playoffs after a 2-1 win in Malta, closely followed by Denmark, who won 1-0 in Armenia. GROUP C Germany closed in on a place in Brazil with a 3-0 triumph in the Faroe Islands , but they were denied qualification when Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s first-minute strike gave Sweden all three points against Kazakhstan. The Republic of Ireland are all but out after their 1-0 defeat in Austria. GROUP D The Netherlands’ 2-0 victory over Andorra was their seventh win from eight games. Romania slipped from second to fourth after a 2-0 home defeat by Turkey. Hungary now occupy the play-off spot after their 5-1 victory over Estonia. GROUPE Switzerland won 2-0 in Norway but were denied qualification when Birkir Bjarnarson’s double gave Iceland a 2-1 win over Albania.

Slovenia are third after a 2-0 win in Cyprus. GROUP F Portugal, who were not in action, lost the lead to Russia after their 3-1 win over Israel. Luxembourg moved off the bottom with a 3-2 defeat of Northern Ireland, their first win a World Cup qualifier for 41 years. GROUP G Bosnia fought back from a goal down to beat Slovakia 2-1 and remain top on goal difference above Greece, who beat Latvia 1-0. GROUP H After a 0-0 draw in Ukraine, England remain top, while Alessandro Della Valle scored San Marino’s first goal of the World Cup qualifiers in a 5-1 defeat by Poland. GROUP I France twice fell behind against Belarus, but two goals from Franck Ribery and strikes from Samir Nasri and Paul Pogba snatched a 4-2 victory. It secured Les Bleus a play-off place but they remain second on goal difference behind Spain, who have a game in hand.

Sir Alex to receive honorary freedom ofTrafford - street to be named after him As if David Moyes first few weeks in the job were not stressful enough, now the man he replaced in the dugout is to receive the honorary freedom of Trafford borough. Former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson will be formally honoured at a meeting of councillors on October 14, said Trafford Council. Sir Alex is also being recognised by the local authority wi t h the renaming of a road near Old Trafford stadium from Waters Reach to Sir A l e x F e rg u s o n Wa y. I t means that on the day of a h o m e g a m e U n i t e d ’s new Manager Moyes will stand in the shadow of the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand, having driven to work along Sir Alex F e r g u s o n Wa y, i n t h e b o r o u g h o f F e rg u s o n ’s Trafford! S i r A l e x s a i d : ‘ I am delighted to accept this honour from Trafford Council. When I arrived at Old Trafford in 1986 I had little idea of the journey that awaited me. Over quarter of a century later, to

receive the Freedom of the Borough of Trafford and to have a part of Trafford carrying my name is truly humbling.’ Council leader Matt Colledge said: ‘Sir Alex has contributed significantly to Trafford over a sustained period of time through his strong leadership of the Manchester United team and it was felt that the Honorary Freeman title and the renaming of the street was a fitting tribute to him. ‘Football contributes significantly to the borough through the large number of visitors it attracts and jobs it creates. It has been through the success of the team that the club has grown in strength over the years, becoming one of the world’s most successful and renowned clubs.’ Ferguson follows in the footsteps of another legendary United boss, Sir Matt Busby, who in 1993 saw the road leading up to Old Trafford - Warwick Road North - renamed as Sir Matt Busby Way. (MailOnline)