14th September 2013

Bridging Corentyne River still on the cards

Students

Australian company seeking permission for large scale mining

Magistrate leaves bench after prisoners threaten to kill police Venezuelan soldiers weren’t allowed entry into Guyana

Candidates make pitch for UGSS presidency GPL’s countrywide raids net 3921 illegal connections Govt insists there is a shortage of stones

U.S. ambassador hosts “Jazz by the Sea wall”

Students of St John’s College display placards as they join their colleagues from

Croker photo)

saturday, september 14, 2013 | guyanatimesgy.com

Bridging Corentyne River still on the cards

– Guyana, Suriname pursuing funding

The ambitious plan of the governments of Guyana and Suriname to bridge the Corentyne River is still on the card and Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon said some preliminary works have been completed and ground work will begin shortly.

He told a news conference on Friday that a final decision is yet to be made regarding the construction of the bridge, but discussions are continuing and officials are now looking to finalise preliminary studies to continue with the project.

Dr Luncheon also said the Guyana government was looking at the possibility of the bridge being completed within the next three to five years, but this would not be possible.

Feasibility

“A considerable amount of works have been completed at the site where it will be built, selection and feasibility etc,” Dr Luncheon said.

The Cabinet secretary noted that the project calls for serious planning, pointing out that making a decision on the project will require a step-by-step process. This, he said is to ensure that both the Surinamese and Guyanese governments

are not at any point accused of poor technical work.

Funding for the project has been an ongoing deliberation between Suriname, Guyana and international financial institutions.

Dr Luncheon said the two countries have signalled strong support for the establishment of land linkages across the Corentyne River.

The initiative was identified as one of a series of projects that would further physically integrate South America at a recent Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) meeting.

During his presidential campaign, Surinamese President Desi Bouterse had promised to build a

bridge across the Corentyne River, should he be elected. Bouterse had said that it is necessary for technical assessments to be done before the project meets the construction phase.

During a one-day meeting in Suriname last year, President Donald Ramotar and Bouterse had agreed to move to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to seek joint financing for the bridge that will link the two countries via the Corentyne River.

The two presidents had reiterated the importance of the construction of the bridge across the Corentyne River, noting that it would considerably enhance trade and economic relations as well as cultural exchanges between the peoples of the two countries.

“They decided on a joint approach towards the IDB for the purpose of identifying modalities for financing,” a joint statement had said.

Security talks

Meanwhile, Dr Luncheon gave an insight on the outcome of the Guyana, Suriname engagement held on September 6 and 7. Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee and a high-level delegation of security officials attend-

ed that meeting.

“Rohee reported to Cabinet on the very successful outcome of the latest engagement between Guyana and Suriname under the Presidential Engagement Initiative,” Dr Luncheon said.

Top of the agenda were issues relating to military, civilians and revenue authority matters. “Minister Rohee was loud in recognition of the quality and outcome of the meeting,” Dr Luncheon said.

Joint operations

Rohee, during a recent a press briefing on the twoday visit to Suriname, reported that the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and Surinamese National Army (SNA) renewed their commitment to combat transborder crimes through joint operations in the Corentyne River.

Also, the GDF and the SNA have agreed to give mutual support in an effort to strengthen their militaries. At that media briefing, Guyana’s Chief-ofStaff, Rare Admiral Gary Best made a proposal for Suriname to capitalise on the Officer Cadet School in Guyana; similarly, the GDF can tap into programmes offered by the SNA.

Two released, two remain in custody for WCD businessman’s murder

Crime Chief Seelall

Persaud on Friday confirmed that two of the four suspects, who were arrested for the robbery and murder of Zulfikar Namdar of Meten-Meer-Zorg, West Coast Demerara, have been released.

He said that as the two remain in custody, police officers are continuing their investigations, but did not offer a comment as to whether or not they will face prosecution.

With the two men in custody, the police might have substantial evidence against them since the 72-hour detention period would elapse shortly.

On Thursday, acting Police Commissioner Leroy Brumell disclosed that four people were taken into custody, including a taxi driver, a man in whose possession a cellular phone was found, and two other individuals.

He added that the police are trying their utmost to solve this crime and the others that have been plaguing society recently.

Zulfikar Namdar, 27, also called “Vicky”, was killed by one of the bandits who visited the business place under the pretext of making a purchase. During the ordeal, the businessman’s mother Fazila Namdar suffered injuries to her head, while a shop assistant Stephen Mohamed was shot in the left leg.

The bandits had also robbed the family of cash and other valuables. According to information received, three of the gunmen were keeping watch on the road, as the others invaded the Lot 76 Meten-Meer-Zorg, West Coast Demerara home and demanded cash and jewellery. After the ordeal, the gunmen made good their escape, discharging several rounds indiscriminately in the streets.

The young businessman is survived by his two children ages three and five, his wife, and parents, and was laid to rest on Thursday.Over the years, the members of the Namdar family have become well known for their deep devotion to Islam and generous charitable contributions to various communities on the West Coast and West Bank Demerara.

Slain businessman: Zulfikar Namdar

Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on Saturday, September 14 from 11:35h to 13:05h

The Berbice River Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on Saturday, September 14 from 12:30h to 14:00h.

WEATHER TODAY

Countrywide: Thundery showers are expected during the day, with clear skies in the evening over coastal regions and near inland locations. Temperatures are expected to range between 26 and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East south-easterly at 4.47 to 4.02 metres per second.

High Tide: 11:58h reaching a maximum height of 2.20 metres.

Low Tide: 05:16h and 17:54h reaching minimum heights of 0.91 metre and 1.04 metre respectively.

saturday, september 14, 2013 |

CANU destroys US$14.3M in seized drugs

By: Bhisham mohamed

The Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU) on Friday destroyed approximately US$14.3 million in cocaine and cannabis that were seized from various operations in 2013.

The drugs are from cases that have been concluded and the offenders sentenced. The exercise was done in a secured environment in the presence of heavily-armed officers on Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown, in the presence of media operatives. A total of 401 kilograms of cocaine and 30.465 kilograms of cannabis were set alight.

Media presence

The sealed cocaine exhibits were opened in the presence of the media and were subsequently tested to verify that it was indeed cocaine being destroyed.

The illegal substance was innovatively stashed in

Smalta bottles, post cards, fish feed, hand cream, electricity bulbs, Fern Leaf Milk tins and capsules that were excreted by cocaine mules.

At the eradication exercise, CANU Director James Singh explained that apart from the amount of cocaine destroyed on Friday, there is still a lot more, but the court cases are still pending.

He explained that until the offenders are prosecuted and found guilty; those exhibits cannot be destroyed. One such case is the cocaine in lumber at Soesdyke, East Bank Demerara, where more than 300 kilograms were unearthed.

Most of the drugs that were destroyed were

seized at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), the Guyana Post Office Corporation (GPOC), the Guyana National Shipping Corporation (GNSC) Wharf and during several raids. Singh also added that a small portion of cannabis was seized at the Ogle International Airport.

Among the drugs destroyed was the 233 kilograms of cocaine unearthed in fish feed at the GNSC Wharf destined for China. The street value of one kilogram of cocaine in China is estimated to be between US$100,000 to US$120,000.

New market

Singh added that drug traffickers are looking for new markets, noting that traditionally, it is smuggled to North America and Europe but of recent, it has been shipped to Africa and Asia, particularly China.

He noted that working with other law enforcement units and stakeholders including the Customs Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) and the Police Narcotics Branch (PNB) have been very successful, reiterating that the collaboration has made it more difficult for drug traffickers.

While he is cognisant that Guyana is a major trans-shipment point for cocaine, he was unable to say on an average, the amount of drugs that pass through the country, but stated that the collective efforts of the various task forces established by the Home Affairs Ministry and other units have put a dent on the drug trade.

CANU has been working closely with regional and international agencies to further put a dent in the drug trade.

The CANU head commended the Drug Enforcement Unit of the Guyana Revenue Authority, claiming that they have had several successful busts during 2012 and thus far in 2013.

Meanwhile, with respect to the cocaine found in a shipment of rice from the Guyana Rice Development Board in The Dominican Republic; Singh disclosed that they have been collaborating with officials in that country and Jamaica to solve the puzzle.

He confirmed that the Venezuelan national who was arrested with the false seals of the container is still in police custody in The Dominican Republic. Guyanese law enforcement officers are still trying to ascertain whether the 73.34 kilograms of cocaine that was found in a shipment of rice was actually loaded onto the vessel in Guyana.

The Liberian-registered vessel was scheduled to leave The Dominican Republic for Caracas when authorities there found the cocaine.

The vessel is said to be a Liberian-flagged cargo ship.

The rice shipment had departed Guyana on August 2 and docked in Jamaica before moving on to The Dominica Republic where the narcotic was found and laboratory tested.

CANU officials unraveling cocaine and cannabis to be burnt on Friday

Head of CANU James Singh displays a Smalta bottle and a set of hand cream in which cocaine was stashed

Editor: Nigel Williams

Tel: 225-5128, 231-0397, 226-9921, 226-2102, 223-7230 or 223-7231. Fax: 225-5134

Mailing address: 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown

Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

Trafficking in persons

Recently Guyana has been seeing some positive signs from the U.S. authorities based in Georgetown in relation to tackling Trafficking in Persons (TIP). In the past, the government had always protested the methodology used and the kind of analysis done to come up with a ranking for this country.

The U.S. Congress uses the State Department’s assessment of each country’s efforts to adhere to the Palermo protocol as a basis to decide whether or not to extend trade benefits or other incentives to these countries.

Guyana was downgraded from Tier 2 to the Tier 2 Watch List in this year’s State Department TIP Report. However, Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Georgetown Bryan Hunt seems to be taking more of a friendly and cordial approach in helping Guyana deal with TIP, and certainly the Guyanese authorities would find this very comforting.

From all indications, Hunt seems to understand and appreciate the concerns Guyana has been raising for quite some time now and is willing to collaborate with the authorities here to address them. Subsequent to the TIP report’s release this year, the Guyana government denounced its findings and declared that it would no longer cooperate with the U.S. government’s survey for information on human trafficking.

This newspaper had made its position on the issue known before. That is, it makes no sense for the U.S. to use certain information gathered from whatever sources and come up with an annual TIP rating for this country, if they are not willing to share that information with the authorities here, so that the necessary action could be taken to investigate and penalise those persons found to be involved in TIP.

In a more general sense, we had made a passionate call for there to be more collaboration at all levels and between a range of stakeholders on the issue since it is only by collaborating and sharing of resources that the fight against TIP could be successful.

Hunt in a previous interview with this publication had conceded that the Guyana government was “not happy” with the downgrade. But he made it known that the crux of the matter on human trafficking is not about where Guyana ranks on the report but what is being done collectively to address the issue. He acknowledged that the Guyana government has taken in the last few months a number of very important steps to begin to address the issue, to begin to arrest and prosecute those who are responsible for human trafficking in the country.

We do not believe that there is a lack of political will on the part of the Guyana government to address TIP. In fact some of the actions that are required are outside of government’s control. And in no way are we saying that the government should not be criticised when it is found that they are not taking the kind of action that is required to deal with TIP. However, it would be helpful if the U.S. authorities were to recognise that the administration has indeed taken some crucial steps to illuminate the scourge.

Further, most would agree that it is not the obligation of the government alone to tackle TIP. There is need for sustained action by a wide cross-section of stakeholders if we are to really deal with the problem. Guyana has shown that it does not want lectures from Washington on how to deal with TIP, it wants to seriously engage all stakeholders, including the U.S., to confront the problem head-on.

While the authorities here must continue to press the U.S. for more information sharing and resources to fight TIP, the general approach taken by the new U.S. embassy’s deputy chief of mission is most welcome.

Tourism potential between Guyana and Suriname

Dear Editor, Guyana is attracting increasing attention from its Dutch neighbour, Suriname, as close to 200 tourists arrived here over the last few days.

A Dutch speaking reporter from Suriname was here at the Inter-Guiana Games and I was quite privileged to hear her pronounce all the Dutch places in Guyana. It was a treat. If only for this reason, I think that promoting these visits is very much worth it. I even learned a few meanings of some words.

There is historical and

intellectual wealth in these visits. We have many people here in Guyana, who would jump at meeting many Dutch visitors.

Now, I think that there are other reasons for this kind of Dutch influx – the allure of the food, festivities, fascinating people and the relationship between the two South American neighbours, among others.

This is how I am reading it in the press. But I have this feeling too that a lot of people do come to check out these Dutch places. Recently, a contingent from the Suriname’s Girl

Scouts came to Guyana and they were well exposed to our rich cultural heritage, visiting many historical sites in Georgetown and the Essequibo Islands, mingling among the country’s flora and fauna, and absorbing exotic cuisines. They have legitimate great stories to tell.

The tourism minister is now pledging to further enhance this and other such relationships so as to quadruple the number of visitors by the end of the year. It means that our Christmas can be so much more enhanced.

I was actually told that we have some 2000 Surinamese and Dutch residents crossing Guyana’s borders on a monthly basis, and this is something that we must continue to encourage. I see a bright future where tourism is concerned in this regard, and if we add the element of commerce and natural education, then the take off is already on its way. All we have to do is to keep everything legal and safe.

Yours faithfully, Rueben Jacobus

The assault on businessmen must stop

Dear Editor,

It is getting too much for me to read about these horrible attacks on businessmen all across Guyana. I am so depressed and with reasons too. Just about now, I am getting not only fed-up, but quite angry.

In a recent case, a 73-year-old Corentyne rice miller was shot dead in a botched robbery. Bandits are now being more and more emboldened and something has to give. I mean they have to be ferreted out even when they are not in the act. Let me say it clearer – they have to

be put on a wanted list and then be hunted down. The only criterion I need for this is that of being able to establish that indeed they are bonafide thieves.

What irks me is that I am not hearing anything from the various human rights groups in Guyana. I heard however that the police used too much force when a man was killed as he was trying to get rid of some police officers.

I am also hearing some political groups saying that these kinds of crimes come about because people cannot find work and it is the gov-

ernment’s fault. We have armed bandits – they have weapons and so innocent people are seriously disadvantaged. These bandits strike at anytime and in good sized groups. I think that anyone, caught with an illegal weapon should be jailed for a long time.

I also suggest that more raids be made, so as to intercept possible caches of guns and ammunition. We can then find suspected perpetrators very easily. Of course I put forward that they be jailed if the raids turn up anything. Finally, police have to see criminal activities as an insult to them. This should motivate them to do things differently. I know of a few policemen, who are in high ranks, who keep extra watch on businessmen. They constantly exchange information and even when they are off-duty, they can be contacted if needed.

My point is clear then –we do all we legitimately can to root out banditry.

Yours truly, Stanton Felix

Schools should be involved in CWA

Dear Editor, This 12th edition, of the region’s premier agriculture event, the Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA) from October 5-12, is really a big event and all Guyana should

take note of it. We must not forget that, today, marketing, processing and distribution of agricultural products are all accepted as a part of modern agriculture.

It might not be a bad idea then to push for farmers from far off places to be present at the exhibition. It would also be good to get our schools totally involved and, for sure, the National

Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) and the University of Guyana (UG).

Yours sincerely, Colleen Brown

This awesome fire-breathing dragon is the world’s largest walking robot. At 30 feet tall and 51 feet long, Tradinno is a gargantuan mechatronic beast you would not want to mess with (Yahoo! Games)

Patience and hard work paying off at Skeldon Yachting should be pursued right here in Guyana

Dear Editor,

It is very relieving to see that the level of sugar production being delivered at the Skeldon Sugar Factory indicates that the upgrade works done on the facility by Bosch Engineering are bearing fruit.

This was exactly the pronouncement that came from the agriculture minister, who also made mention of the fact that the factory is beginning to work as anticipated.

But I still do not rule out a few teething and labour problems, however, we must not allow set-backs to cause us to fight and attack one another. The large picture of the local sugar industry is one that we must always keep in mind. It lends stability to so many people and the history of it shows that solidarity for national goals is always possible.

The Skeldon factory has produced an impressive yield thus far, producing more than 2500 tonnes of sugar, with the second crop almost equalling the production of the first crop. This now takes the factory’s total production for the year so far to some 95,000 tonnes. This is not bad at all.

The goal is quite attainable, as overall it is to reach 155,000 tonnes for this crop and to exceed the 200,000 tonne target. So even though the bad weather factor must be kept in mind, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) is quite optimistic that there will be improved yields, with the possibility of grinding until Christmas. This will translate to surpassing of the 155,000 tonnes for this second crop.

I go back here to the furious attacks from many on the South African firm Bosch Engineering. This

company was hired to execute rehabilitative work at Skeldon and had conducted a series of successful tests. I am not technically inclined, but I go with effectiveness. I have to give my judos to this group and the government for taking this route.

Let us not forget that in quite a few Caribbean Community (Caricom) member countries, the sugar industry has been experiencing a lot of problems. In Trinidad and Tobago, a privately-owned sugar mill, estimated to cost $9 million, took things over to help out. Then in Jamaica, the Sugar Company of Jamaica Holdings for Chinese firm COMPLANT International Sugar Industry Company Limited purchased government’s remaining sugar assets, including the Frome, Monymusk and Bernard Lodge factories. I guess this is the long

term result of the implementation of sugar quotas by the U.S. Let us not forget that sugar quotas have often been used for political objectives against Caribbean countries.

Since 1985, millions of U.S. dollars have been spent and wasted in an attempt to revive the sugar industry by poor Caribbean countries. Narrowly implemented U.S. trade policies have even pushed Caribbean sugar economies to the verge of collapse.

The U.S. annulled the Cuban sugar quota in 1961, just two years after the Cuban Revolution. So in many ways, Guyana is faring quite well. We have not collapsed and we have kept our holdings and things are looking up. We just have to stay with our long term plans and goals.

Yours truly, Gary

Prescott

Communities can help with the safety of our children

Dear Editor, We seem to have a problem with taking care of our children. Parents are just too flippant. They just up and leave their children with elderly people, relatives and family members and the next thing is that tragedy strikes.

Not too long ago, there were drownings at a creek. Now recently, a toddler near his home. So adults, particularly parents, must be more careful. It could be that many of them are trying hard, but responsibilities are overwhelming them.

Who knows, it could be that they are just too care-

less. The bottom line is that there must be some form of accountability. We cannot allow innocent children to die by falling or drowning. This is where the next level comes in – the government must apply the law here. Those responsible must be brought to some kind of justice.

How about an intervention from a village that says we can have a nanny for a few babies? This happens in many apartment buildings across North America.

Someone who is stable and at home is chosen to take care of a few babies whenever there is a need to

do so. It comes not with a professional pay as such, but a little stipend from the beneficiaries collectively. It is a good way to go and it will also usher in a healthy community spirit.

We cannot sit and wait on others to help us. We must be wise and copy the good examples of others. If well-developed countries have this, why don’t we go this route? I am sure that many mothers can afford a little donation and this will add up, and the end result will be far better.

Yours sincerely,

Corinne Heyliger

Dear Editor, I feel very proud that Guyana is looking toward establishing a yachting marina in the near future in aid of promoting yachting as a major part of the local tourism industry. We only hear of yachting when it comes to sporting activities at various games. So having a little bay here, with a few of these vessels, will really be something special.

Now that we are thinking along this line, it is a confirmation that tourism is just about totally entrenched in Guyana. So this first rally of yachts in Guyana recently must not only be seen as an eye-opener. It must lead to some bigger and permanent things.

A word here on tourism in Guyana – it is that it is not likely to fluctuate. Most tourist destinations have a lot of back-and-forth movement and are usually monot-

onous. I have known of many tourist friends who will not go back to say Barbados or St Lucia – these places have a sameness about them and they have little to offer when it comes to experiencing the real natural word. This is where Guyana must make its move.

I followed Guyana at the recent British Bird Watching Fair in London and we did well. We were exceptional. So we have to move in the direction of having bird enthusiasts come here.

I cannot envisage this being that difficult to pull off. Bird watching is a growing hobby and here in Guyana we have about 800 different species of birds to advertise to the world.

Getting back to yachting – I think we need to realise that we are beautifully located for it. Essequibo is the third largest river in South

America and with Guyana being south of Trinidad and out of the hurricane zone, it is a safe haven for yachting. Sailing is often regarded as a hobby more than a sport, and so it will be here. Sailing has health benefits too and must not be taken for granted. We love surrogate sailing experiences, and Moby Dick has been read over and over again. As for actual yachting, participants have spoken positively of muscle strength and endurance. This clearly shows that this idea of a yachting marina is worth it. Let me add a few more positives – investment opportunities, a possible niche market, employment for things like refuelling and maintenance. We have to move with the idea now. I call for some urgent action.

Yours faithfully, Carmen

DeFreitas

The continued assault on police officers

Dear Editor, Recently, there was yet another report of an attack on a police officer. This time, a fisherman was remanded to prison after he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts answering to the charge of assaulting and causing actual bodily harm to a policeman.

It was just a few days ago that a man died as a result of a gunshot, triggered by his attack on police officers. This criminal offence must not be tolerated.

In this case here, the police officer attached to the Ruimveldt Police station,

was responding to a report that was made and so he had cause to speak to the man. However, the man picked up a piece of wood and dealt the officer a solid lash to the back. No provocation and no tussle!

If I rely on talks, this attitude is reflective of a feeling among many aggressive and supposed bad boys that no police officer can touch them. I actually overheard a person of this type boasting that it “ain’t got no jail for him”. This talk was hurled at a man with whom he was having a heated argument.

Maybe, for these few, who like to attack or who

feel they can attack a peace officer, when all is said and done, they should come out and say how they paid the price for discovering harsh reality. To attack an officer of the land is to say that I can do what, when and to whom I want. If the law can be enforced like this all the time, then we will get a change. The message will catch on – this country is not going to tolerate those who abuse and assault – it does not matter who is the victim.

With regards, Christine Blackman

You can send your letters with pictures to: Guyana Times, 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown, Guyana or letters@guyanatimesgy.com

The Skeldon Sugar Factory

september 14, 2013

Page Foundation

10 reasons to work hard in school

BY STEVE REIFMAN

Think about the organised activities in which children participate. At band practice, for example, musicians understand why they need to rehearse. They know that practicing is important because at a later date the group will perform its songs to a live audience. The connection between today’s preparation and tomorrow’s performance is straightforward. Young actors in a drama club are also aware of this relationship. So are players on a little league baseball team. The leaders of these activities generally do not need to spend much time explaining the purpose of practicing because children can figure it out for themselves. Interestingly, the organised activity that occupies more of a child’s waking hours than any other –school – is the one where the purposes of attending each day are typically the least well understood by its participants. What are the purposes of attending school? Most students answer that they come to school to learn. But when pressed further, they are often unable to articulate compelling reasons why learning is important. The larger purposes of edu-

cation are not as obvious as those of Little League, band, or drama club. As a result, children have greater difficulty discovering on their own what these purposes are.

As parents and teachers, if we want children to work with a sense of purpose in school, we must communicate with them to establish a sense of purpose. There is no more fundamental question an adult can pose to a child than, “Why is it important to do a good job in school?” We can’t assume that they already know.

to delay gratification, better able to find meaning in their work, and better able to connect today’s learning to tomorrow’s opportunities.

* Learning adds quality to our lives. The development of the mind is a joy

well in elementary school generally leads to good grades in middle and high school. It also opens the door to honors classes and other important opportunities. In addition,

In this article I share 10 important reasons why it matters to work hard, value education, and take school seriously. Children who understand the many purposes of education will be more motivated to learn, more committed to their studies, more likely to persevere during challenging times, more willing

and benefit in and of itself. Learning is interesting and fun, and it should feel good. When children work hard in school, they learn knowledge and develop skills. That builds confidence and self-esteem.

* Working hard prepares children for higher levels of education. Doing

consistent academic success increases the likelihood of earning admission into selective colleges and universities.

* Working hard in school helps children develop lasting habits. In my classroom I emphasise two important sets: “habits of mind” that predispose us

to think and act in certain ways and “habits of character” that focus on study habits, social skills, and attitudes about our work. In Horace’s Hope, educator Theodore Sizer once said that, “Knowing stuff is nice. Being able to use that stuff makes sense. Being disposed to use it always, as a matter of habit, is the brass ring, the ultimate standard.”

* Working hard can help children find their passion. Many well-known individuals discovered their future careers and areas of intense interest in school. Books, videos, and other curricular material can expose children to people, music, languages, endeavours, and ideas that they might not have come across any other way.

* Doing well in school helps people establish themselves as individuals. The classroom is one of the primary places in which we determine our personal standards of quality. Students who work hard and do well in school learn to establish a high expectation level and expect great things from themselves.

They decide that they want to strive to become the best of the best and will settle for nothing less. They will carry these standards with them as they get older. Children need teachers and parents who hold high expectations, but ultimately, what matters most is whether they make the personal commitment to aim high.

* Education helps us get the jobs we want. It is a simple fact that people who graduate high school earn more money than people who don’t, and people who graduate college earn even more. Over the course of a lifetime, this difference in earning power is significant. Making money is certainly not the only reason to do well in school, but it is an important one.

* Doing well in school maximises our options in life. Education opens doors. Not only does it help us obtain higher-paying jobs, but also it enables us to access a wider variety of jobs that offer challenge, interest, and the opportunity to contribute to our communities. Education also opens doors that are unrelated to our careers. A track record of school success, for example, can help us earn worthwhile volunteer opportunities.

* Working hard in school empowers us to become more effective consumers. In school, of course, we learn the arithmetic skills that help us make correct change, balance our check books, and manage a household budget. Beyond that, we also learn the higher-level thinking skills that empower us to be consumers in the larger sense – consumers of news and information who have the ability to analyse issues critically and make intelligent judgments.

* Education empowers us to make a difference in the world. The more we know, the more we can contribute to the lives of others. Working hard in school enables us to help people, both through our formal roles, such as doctors and nurses, and through informal roles, such as when we tutor a neighbour or assist a younger sibling with reading.

* Education empowers people to participate fully in civic life. Healthy communities need involved citizens. Voting, attending city council meetings, writing letters to the editor, and taking action on important issues are necessary to preserve and strengthen our democracy. By working hard in school, we learn the history of our country and the responsibilities that we all have as citizens. (stevereifman.com)

Students rally for better education

Amidst a slew of slogans, all calling for a better quality of education here, President Donald Ramotar on Friday again recommitted his administration’s support for the education sector, saying he will work to ensure every Guyanese is afforded an equal opportunity to a quality education.

He said the administration is currently examining the possibilities of putting several University of Guyana (UG) degree programmes online.

Ramotar was at the time addressing a large group of students and teachers who gathered at the National Park for a rally after participating in a walk around Georgetown.

The president said government is currently examining the idea of the online degree programmes so that people from the most remote parts of the country who cannot afford to attend UG, can have access to tertiary education.

He said this will be made possible through the advancement of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, noting that the government will continue to work on ICT with the aim of taking it to other parts of the country.

Ramotar said the government’s dedication to further develop the education sector is reflected in the national budget. The largest sum of monies is allocated to the education sector.

Thoughtful investments

“That is why right now, as we speak here, we are building a new secondary school in Kato because we are serious of having equal opportunities for all our people,” he said.

He underscored too that the investment also includes heavy support services, making reference to the Guyana Learning Channel, the first of its kind in Guyana and the Caribbean.

Ramotar told the students that education is important in ensuring that

President Donald Ramotar delivering the feature address at the Rally for Education at National Park

the country is free from the many social ills, including poverty, adding that the world is changing at a rapid pace and education will always be important.

“Today, more and more education is playing a bigger and bigger role in the economy of our society, the workers of tomorrow as the workers of today must be very educated and be able to deal with some of the most modern of tools and technology,” said Ramotar.

Responsibility

He told the students that many of them will soon join the work force and will have the opportunity to become builders of the country and to help realise the dreams of generations of Guyanese who have struggled to make this land a better place.

“I believe we have the capacity and capabilities to take our country to a higher level and it is the young builders that will have the honour to take the country to another level of development,” Ramotar said.

In light of numerous violent incidents between students and teachers, Ramotar told the children that they must respect their teachers.

He said the government has come in for criticisms for the performance of the education sector, but said the gained achieved was as a result of hard work.

“Today, the proportion of

trained teachers has risen from 58 per cent five years ago to 70 per cent... this is important because we believe the foundations laid at that level is extremely important to take our students forward,” said the president.

Ramotar said he is also pleased that more male students are staying in school.

Collective body

Meanwhile, Education Minister Priya Manickchand said government, the Education Ministry, teachers, students and parents must work as a collective body, to ensure each learner strives to do their best.

“If anybody in legs are weak we are not going to go as fast as we can go… the PPP/C has the first leg covered, we are committed to making sure education is the number one priority and that you are educated to the best of your ability,” she said.

She also assured the commitment of the Education Ministry in working to ensure students are educated. Turning her attention to the students, Manickchand told them they are the strongest leg in the team, adding that “if you are not disciplined… you are doing yourself harm and you will fail to give yourself the best opportunity to be the best they can be”.

The education minister said it cannot be overemphasised how important it is for students to have their parents as partners in their education, stating that they need good mothers, fathers, and guardians.

“If we don’t have people who support their children at home, we are not going to get the best out of our children… When we say we need a good mother or father, we need you to be a good parent, we don’t need you to be a scientist or mathematician, you don’t need to know math to be a good parent… you just have to pay attention,” she said.

The rally started at the Parade Ground, Middle Street, Georgetown and culminated the National Park.

Australian company seeking permission for large scale mining

An Australian-based company has applied to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeking permission to undertake a large-scale gold mining project within the Hicks/ Kaburi Concession located at Black Water Creek, Kaburi area, Region Seven.

Pharsalus Gold Inc is an Australian-based company and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Australia-based Azimuth Resources Limited. It has been engaged in gold and uranium mining here

in Guyana for a number of years with properties including West Omai Gold Project and the Amakura Uranium Project.

According to an EPA notice, the project entails the development of an open pit mine that involves clearing the vegetation, removal of the topsoil and the blasting of hardrock and construction of a processing facility, laboratory, cyanidation facilities and ground water wells. It also included an upgrade to the access road.

In keeping with the

Environment Protection Act, Number 11, 1996, an environmental impact assessment is required for such a large-scale gold mining project before any decisions are made since this development may have significant impacts on the environment. Members of the public are invited to make any written submissions to the agency to set out those questions and matters which they require to be answered or considered in the environmental impact assessment within 28 days of the notice.

saturday, september 14, 2013

Magistrate leaves bench after prisoners threaten to kill police

Berbice Magistrate Sherdel Issaacs Marcus was forced to leave the bench after refusing bail to two brothers who appeared before her on armed robbery charges.

The duo appeared in a New Amsterdam Magistrate on Friday to answer to two robbery charges when they became abusive and threatened police officers at the court.

“I will kill you when I see you on the road, boy you dead, I gon shoot you meself,” shouted one of the two accused men to the police officers who were responsible for their arrest.

According to the police, Tony Samaroo of DeVeldt

Village, Upper Berbice River and Allan Samaroo of Angoy’s Avenue, New Amsterdam, while in the company of a third person, committed the offences.

Police Prosecutor Corporal Orin Joseph told the court that on September 8 at the Mayor and Town Council Scheme, New Amsterdam, the duo, armed with a gun, robbed Winston Benjamin of one gold ring valued $60,000 and $20,000 cash.

Joseph said the men also committed a similar offence during the same period.

They robbed Kirk Bristol of one cellular phone and $20,000. Tony,

32, said he is a farmer while Allan, 17, told the court that he is a porkknocker.

In an application for bail to be refused, Joseph argued that Allan is currently on bail on a similar matter while Tony does not reside in the jurisdiction.

“Both were positively identified by the robbery victims and are known to them,” he said.

In refusing bail, Magistrate Marcus asked the accused if they had anything to say, and Tony told the court that he is a vegetable farmer and “I don’t thief, I come out of the Berbice River last month”.

Asked why he appeared in court without a shirt, Allan said it was the way he was picked up on Tuesday.

“Me family bring clothes to me this morning but they ain’t allow me to get it,” he said.

The brothers were jointly charged and ordered to return to court on September 27 when statements should be available.

Before they were taken away, several other threats were made at the police officers.

Accused Tony Samaroo

Accused Allan Samaroo

saturday, september 14, 2013| guyanatimesgy.com

Four remanded for receiving stolen property

Four men were on Thursday remanded to prison after they appeared before Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on receiving stolen property charges.

It was alleged that on September 10 in Georgetown; Omalo Williams, 21, of 83 Leopard and Grady Street received from Nicholas Choy one flat screen television valued $110,000 property of Mahendra Boodhoo knowing it to be feloniously stolen or unlawfully obtained. He pleaded not guilty to the charge as it was read against him.

Attorney Paul FungA-Fat, who represented Williams, told the court that his client has a wife and one child. He went on to say that Williams has been locked up for three days and there have been no caution statements or ID parades.

In his application for reasonable bail, he stated that the articles have been recovered.

Twenty-five-year-old tattoo artist Nicholas Choy of 184 Charlotte Street also pleaded not guilty to the charge which read that on September 7 at

Georgetown, he received from a person or persons unknown one flat screen television and one DVD player valuing a total of 260,000 knowing it to be feloniously stolen or unlawfully obtained.

Choy was represented by Attorney George Thomas who stated that his client has one minor child and has one pending matter before the court.

In his application for reasonable bail, he told the court that his client’s passport has expired and is willing to subject himself to any conditions the court wishes to impose on him.

He also stated that bail should be granted so that Choy can receive medical attention pointing out to the court the bloodstains on his client’s green T-shirt.

Blood on shirt

Magistrate Latchman asked Choy how he got the blood on his shirt. He told her that he was severely beaten by two police officers, Landry and Thom.

He said they picked him up and took him to a burial ground where they both took turns trashing him.

The other defendant, Orin Brady 42 of 59 Prince William

Street, Plaisance pleaded not guilty to the charge which read that on September 9, he received from a person or persons unknown one flat screen television valued $110,000.

He was represented by Attorney Mandisa Breedy who stated that her client is a taxi driver and the sole breadwinner for his two children. She also said that he is not a flight risk.

In her application for reasonable bail she stated that Brady was before the court on a charge for receiving stolen property and not for stealing the said property.

Assaulted

Brady also told the court that he was allegedly assaulted by two police officers and was threatened by someone who told him, they are good friends with Shawn Hinds and they will kill him.

Jason David, 30 of Lot 10 Bent Street, the fourth defendant, told the court that he is not guilty of the offence. The charge read that on September 9, he received from a person or persons unknown, three flat screen television sets and three DVD players valuing a total of $750,000.

He was unrepresented and in giving evidence he told the court that he is a taxi driver and has no pervious run-ins with the law.

He also stated that he has a wife and two children.

He further stated that Officer Looknaught and another officer allegedly took him to St Phillips. He said that they made him get down on his hands and knees with his head on the ground and proceeded to kick and beat him with a wood.

He added that when they took him to the outpost, someone came and told him they are really good friends with Shawn Hinds and that they will make sure he and his friends are freed so they can kill them.

Prosecutor Vishnu Hunt objected to bail for all four defendants on the grounds of the nature of the offence and the penalty attached to such an offence.

Along with the fact that if granted their pre-trial liberty, there is a likelihood they will not return to court.

Magistrate Latchman refused bail. The matter is set to return to court on September 16.

Labourer sentenced to three years imprisonment

On Thursday, a man was remanded to prison after he appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on a break and enter with intent charge.

Twenty-nine-year-old labourer Quincy Andrews pleaded guilty with explanation to the charge which

stated that on September 9 at West La Penitence, he broke and entered the house of Lilian Collins, 72, with intent to commit a felony.

According to Prosecutor Bharat Mangru, on September 8 about 20:30h, Collins secured her home and went to bed. She was awakened by a noise, which was her 16-year-old granddaughter screaming.

She went out of her room and into her granddaughter’s room and found the Andrews standing over her bed. Andrews exited the room and made his escape though a window. The matter was reported and he was arrested and charged.

An unrepresented Andrews told the court he has one prior run in with the law and he stated that

the whole neighbourhood is against him. He went on to say that he does not know why he entered the house and is very remorseful about what he has done.

Magistrate SewnarineBeharry considered the fact that he pleaded guilty at the first instance before she made her ruling of three years imprisonment.

Woman on bail for failing to pay for clothes on credit

On Thursday a woman was placed on bail after she appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts for two counts of fraudulent conversion.

It was alleged between April 1 and 15, Marlyn Barrington, with intent to defraud, obtained in credit cosmetics, clothing and other items valued $123,700 from Vashti Anys and failed to pay said debt. It was further alleged that between March 1 and 31, with intent to defraud, she obtained items from Carol Smith valuing a total of $86,000 and failed to pay her debt. She pleaded not guilty to the charges read against her.

Attorney Paul Fung-AFat represented Barrington and told the court the defendant is 34 years old and resides at Port Kaituma, North West District. He also made an application for reasonable bail.

There were no objections to bail and Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry granted it in the sum of 126,000 for both counts. The matter is set to return to court on September 20.

Self-bail granted to woman who used abusive language

Awoman on Thursday appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts after she was charged with two counts of threatening language and one count of abusive language.

Jennifer St Romain, 58, pleaded not guilty to all the charges read before her. It

was alleged that on July 2 at Sheriff and Duncan streets, she made use of abusive and threatening language to Bibi Khan. It was further alleged that on July 14, she made use of threatening language to Khan at Sherriff Street.

According to the facts, on July 2, Khan was in her yard when she heard loud music playing. Upon check-

ing, she saw the defendant, St Romain in the yard with a mop stick.

St Romain then started to verbally abuse her and threatened to kill her. On July 14, St Romain saw Khan on her way to masjid and started to call her derogatory names and again threatened to kill her.

Attorney Paul Fung-AFat told the court that his

client, Jennifer St Romain is married and is an accountant. He stated that she will defend herself against all charges. He also made a request for her to be placed on her own recognisance.

There were no objections to bail put forward by the prosecution and she was placed on self-bail. The matter was transferred to Court Two for fixtures.

Eyew tness

Not minding...

opposition's business

Your Eyewitness has been railing about the opposition lusting to take over the executive’s business – while shirking their own duties. It’s all to do WITH their greed for power. We hope their supporters – what’s now left after their endemic foot-and-mouth disease – are taking note.

Look at this ruckus they’re raising about the Guyana Energy Authority (GEA) after Suspenders Ram claimed the agency hadn’t been submitting its reports to Parliament. Khemraj Ramjattan had the temerity to admit he didn’t know these autonomous state agencies submitted reports to Parliament!!

Can you believe this???! How many years has he served in Parliament? Twenty years? What the heck has he been doing all this time? Apart from collecting a fat salary and duty-free cars, we mean. Or tippling. No wonder the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) didn’t think twice about throwing him out on his ear.

So he nominates Suspenders Ram for an Order of Excellence (OE) for the “discovery”!! Suspenders doesn’t mind...he’ll do anything for recognition. But he’s like a new Columbus. He’s discovered something everyone –excepting Ramjattan of course – knew about all along. But what makes the whole hullabaloo beyond ridiculous is that Suspenders knows he’s just making meaningless noise.

He’s complaining that the GEA has submitted audited reports of its “massive” financial accounts but not “reports”. We know you’re scratching your heads by now. With all the fuss Suspenders and the other members of the opposition made about the organs of the government having their accounts audited by the auditor general, you’d think audited accounts are the thing, wouldn’t you?

Well, it’s obvious what’s “important” – according to Ramjattan – is whatever Suspenders thinks it is. OK, let’s break it down for you, shall we? Audited accounts will reveal whether there’s any hanky panky going on with any entity – governmental or autonomous. This is what the GEA has submitted to Parliament.

Reports, on the other hand extract a balance sheet from the audited accounts to present an analysis typically made by the board of directors and the chief executive officer (CEO). OK, rap the GEA and whoever’s in charge for not presenting these reports – basically pieces of public relations. But don’t go around screaming that because the GEA handles all the bills for the fuel we import, the lack of reports proves malfeasance.

We aren’t surprised Ramjattan fell for it. After all he confessed, “I am not sharp with accounts....” The question that has posed itself for quite a while now is, “What exactly is he sharp about?”

...needed investments

Portia Simpson Miller just returned from China where she was able to secure some pretty hefty loans at concessional rates. You’d think with all the financial woes of Jamaica, the opposition would be happy, wouldn’t you? I mean having the highest debt-ratio in the world (greater than Greece that just went belly up) should suggest that some help should be appreciated, no?

Especially after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) just put them into one of their famous “programmes” to “bail” them out. As they discovered in the 1970s under Michael Manley, being put into jail is like living life in London, compared with those IMF “programmes”.

But like oppositions everywhere (as we know to our cost), they’ll always look a gift horse in the mouth – and kick the giver in the cojones. It’s OK to be humiliated by the IMF – but it’s denigrating to be assisted by the Chinese.

The Jamaican opposition also complained about Chinese workers coming in for some of their funded projects. Is this in any way different from what the U.S. and Europe’s been doing all these years? While the number of their “consultants” might be smaller – each of their salaries is equivalent to a hundred Chinese workers’ salaries.

...Sparrow’s business

We’re so happy the announcements of Sparrow’s demise were greatly exaggerated. The man’s been a oneman institution to Caribbean culture. We need to honour him better before he goes.

Logger might have suffered broken neck, shoulder

Relatives of 54-yearold logger Wilford Lim, of 415 Kuru Kururu Village, SoesdykeLinden Highway, who died on Thursday evening following an accident on the highway remain puzzled and are trying to ascertain the cause of the accident.

They have received several conflicting reports by eyewitnesses, but according to them, it is not clear if the vehicle in which Lim was driving suffered a blowout or experienced a “speed wobble”.

However, what they know was that Lim sustained a broken neck and shoulder as a result of the accident that occurred in the vicinity of Chanter Creek, SoesdykeLinden Highway.

This was told to them by doctors of the Diamond Diagnostic Centre, where Lim was examined.

Speaking with a close relative of the dead man on Friday, Guyana Times was told that Lim left home earlier on the fateful day to repair a truck belonging to his son, which had experienced mechanical problems at Mabura Hill.

After fixing the truck, he said the now dead man jumped into his 4-runner while his son, Andre Lim, drove his truck. On their way from the logging communi-

ty, the truck reportedly overheated and this forced them to stop at Kairuni on the Soesdyke-Linden Highway.

Again, the problem was remedied and they continued their journey to Kuru Kururu. According to information received, his son drove in front and he followed behind with his pickup.

After a while, his son reportedly told relatives that when he looked through his viewing mirror, he did not see his father so he telephoned him.

Upon answering the call, his father reportedly told him that he was close behind and instructed him to go ahead since he lives farther than him. His son lives in Soesdyke.

Upon reaching the Soesdyke-Linden Highway junction, Andre reportedly attempted to call his father,

"Juici Patties" comes to Guyana

Camex Restaurants Inc, the franchisee of Church’s Chicken, Mario’s Pizza and Quiznos proudly announces the opening of their fourth franchise, Juici Patties from Jamaica.

The Juici Patties chain of stores is one of the most popular fast food brands with a total of 50 stores across the island of Jamaica.

Juici Patties also has a manufacturing plant in Ontario, Canada. While there are no Juici Patties retail stores in Canada, the brand is extremely popular and their products: Juici beef, chicken, vegetable and shrimp patties are available in some of Canada’s major supermarket chains and convenience stores.

Juici Patties currently has distributors in the Cayman Islands, Turks and

Caicos, Dominica and St Lucia. Camex Restaurants Inc is very proud to be opening the very first Juici Patties store outside of Jamaica. The company is even more thrilled to be opening not just the first, but six Juici Patties stores countrywide with more stores planned in the very near future.

The six Juici Patties stores will include the new location at Vreed-en-hoop, Camp Street, Hinck Street, Parika, Linden and Bartica. These locations will all open their doors to the public over the next few days.

The official opening of Juici Patties Guyana will take place on Wednesday, September 18, at their brand new location at Lot 3 Plantation, Vreed-en-Hoop at 10:30h.

but there was no answer. He tried several times after reaching home, but it was the same scenario.

He decided to call the home number, but was told that Lim was not at home. After a few minutes of disconnecting the call, his mobile phone rang and the person on the opposite side of the line informed him that his father was involved in an accident.

The son, upon receiving the news, rushed to the scene where he saw his father’s motionless body on the roadway. He was picked up and rushed to the Diamond Diagnostic Centre where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

The post-mortem examination will be performed on Monday. Lim is survived by his four children, wife, grandchildren and a number of siblings.

saturday, september 14, 2013 | guyanatimesgy.com

St Nicholas Primary School gets boat engine to transport students

Central government, through the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region One handed over a 15-horsepower Yamaha engine to the St Nicholas Primary School at Manawarin, Region One on Wednesday.

The region’s Vice Chairman Fermin Singh said the engine will be used to power a boat that transports children of far-off communities, to and from school so that they will be able to attend classes more regularly and punctually.

The engine was handed over to District Education Officer Ignatius Adams, who in turn presented it to the St Nicholas Primary School.

It will be managed by the Parent Teacher Association (PTA).

The school is also in the process of acquiring funds to purchase a boat. The government of Guyana through the Amerindian affairs and

local government ministries and the regional administration has been providing

such transportation to assist residents, especially in riverine areas.

Dead: Wilford Lim

Region One Vice Chairman Fermin Singh (second from right) presenting the 15-horsepower engine to District Education Officer Ignatius Adams (extreme right)

GEA audited accounts for Parliament soon – prime minister

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds said that an audited financial statement of the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) will be tabled in Parliament soon, dismissing claims by opposition adviser Christopher Ram that the agency’s financial accounting reports were unfinished and unavailable.

Hinds, who has ministerial responsibility for GEA, said the articles have little substance but much conjecture and suggestions, and seem intended to create (or perhaps, to suffer from) confusion and illusions of corruption.

Erroneous concerns

“As minister responsible for the operations of the electricity and energy sector, I sense a need and a duty to set the record straight, dispel any erroneous concerns and doubts, and assure the majority of our Guyanese people, as well as others, that the GEA is being run reasonably well, as well as any other corporate body in Guyana, whether publicly or privately-owned, in the context of Guyana today,” Hinds said in a letter to the editor.

He acknowledged that the GEA was many years late in beginning to have reports for tabling in the National Assembly, noting that currently, the GEA is in possession of its audited accounts and reports up to 2012, audited by the Audit Office of Guyana, which will be tabled in the

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds

National Assembly soon after sittings are resumed in October.

“Further, I can state that as of now, GEA is in compliance with all of the relevant reporting requirements, which include the Companies Act of Guyana and the International Financial Reporting Standards,” the prime minister said.

Financial statements

Concerning whether an annual report, or just an audited financial statement, is to be tabled in the National Assembly, Hinds said government maintains that Section 30 of the Guyana Energy Agency Act speaks to audited financial statements.

Further, that section prescribes that the minister determines what level of details any other report accompanying same

should include.

“For those who are really interested in learning what the GEA is doing, there is a lot of information provided throughout the year on the GEA website, various press releases and press conferences, our budget presentations, and also in GEA appearances before the relevant sector committees of the National Assembly,” he said.

According to Hinds, Ram has failed to disclose that, on enquiring, he had been provided with a summary of the works and the draft strategic plan of the GEA.

Notwithstanding the large amount of information available through the various avenues at all times, “we recognise the convenience in tabling in the National Assembly, a complete annual report for the GEA, which would include the audited financial statement, and indeed, we would so do in the future.”

Fuel imports

On the issue of fuel imports, the prime minister said since about the 1980s, much consideration has been given to the question regarding the role of the GEA in the arrangements by which Guyana has been acquiring all of its petroleum fuel, taking into account the role of GEA’s predecessor, the GNRA: whether as trader, in principal, or as an agent.

He said the auditors, at that time, recommended the treatment and presentation, which is reflect -

21 grams of cocaine found in Essequibo house

Police on Friday seized 21 grams of cocaine during a raid on a house in Essequibo. According to a police statement, about 14:45h, ranks conducted a search on a house at Danielstown, Essequibo Coast, during which 21 grams of cocaine

were found.

A woman and her son have been arrested and are in police custody assisting with the investigations.

ed in the annual financial reports.

GEA accepted and complied with that ruling, and has had the impression that while other auditors might have required that these transactions be represented differently, either way is acceptable.

Nothing of substance

“I am not aware that Ram has raised any question of any substance about the financial statements of the GEA.

"Mr Khemraj Ramjattan’s words in the article of Thursday September 12, with little substance, try to be even more suggestive in talking about GEA handling a whopping US$350 million of the national transactions.

"He could have been kind and could have commended the GEA for efficiently and effectively handling such large transactions, and at minimal costs.

"He could have accepted the auditor’s clean report rather than speak of the allegation, as he claims, of someone who has passed on and is not here to speak for himself,” Hinds said.

G-PEE-Hell gon mek Skeldon suffer

Old people does seh when people clumsy dem don’t know dem leff hand from dem right hand and dem left foot from dem right foot. Some people clumsy in dem actions and some people clumsy in dem brains. When people clumsy in dem brains it mean dem don’t know de leff side brain from de right side brain. And some people clumsy all over – hand and foot and brains.

Rum Jhaat is one of dem. He never know that certain guvament agencies does have to send reports to Parliament and Rum Jhaat is a parliamentarian. And Rum Jhaat gettin advice from a old Ram. Is either Rum Jhaat like de rammin from a old Ram or he don’t know he leff side brain from he right side brain. Whah Rum Jhaat know good bout is dem rum bottles whah he does empty like when rum goin outta style.

It also look like plenty of de big ones in dem high offices at GuySuCo in Skeldon don’t know dem leff side brain from dem right side brain too. One time de sugar production low and another time de sugar production high. One time dem gon meet dem target and next time dem can’t meet dem target.

Dem gettin just like G-PEE-Hell and blamin all kinda tings like weather and equipment. Every ting and every body does get blame except de big ones. Dem big ones only doin de talkin. And of all tings dem big ones at GuySuCo decide fuh ask G-PEE-Hell to look after de Wartsilla generators fuh dem at de Skeldon sugar factory.

Now who in this day and age does ever ask G-PEE-Hell fuh help? People does more likely gotta cry fuh help and dial 911 when G-PEE-Hell come round. Dem is de people who can’t solve dem own problems and dem goin and try to solve somebody else problem.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie! Now it gon be sheer problems fuh de people at Skeldon becaue any where G-PEE-Hell go, is sheer proplems. So look out fuh see when Wartsilla gon turn to fartsilla!

APNU wants tough police action against criminals

– urges more intelligence gathering

In light of the recent increase in criminal activities, the A partnership for National Unity (APNU) has called on the security forces to up its game and enhance crimefighting strategies so as to provide a safe and secure environment for Guyanese.

This call was made on Friday by APNU parliamentarian and former Police Commissioner Winston Felix, who recommended that the security forces develop an intelligence gathering system which will assist them in tackling criminal activities.

“The nature of these crimes today suggests that these crimes are well planned and executed and so traditional methods of responding are to be enhanced and that is why I’m advocating intelligence gathering, upon which sensible counter-police operations can be mounted,” he stated.

The former police commissioner highlighted the increase usage of firearms in criminal activities, noting that when such a spree arises, the police have a standard procedure which they ought to follow.

He said that they have

to identify the areas where crime is prevalent and increase patrol in those areas.

Speaking on the issue of firearms, Felix said some licence holders, despite being told of the responsibilities and code of conduct, do not adhere and use their weapons in a willy nilly manner.

He cited the Vive La Force, West Bank Demerara incident where a 14-yearold boy was shot from across the Demerara River.

It is suspected that persons were practicing over the East Bank with highpower weapons and the police had questioned a businessman; however, nothing came out of the matter.

“No one has been positively identified but we are led to follow an assumption that that the Vive La Force incident may have been committed by a licensed firearm holder, now that qualifies… any misuse of a firearm requires an investigation, initial seizure of the firearm while the investigation is going on and if the allegations is proven, that licence is to be revoked by the commissioner,” said Felix.

The APNU parliamentarian continued that another factor that leads to

such a high use of illegal firearms is the absence of stringent police presence at the borders.

“We have an unpoliced border,” he said while pointing out that people travel through the North West District and rivers without any hindrance by the police and with that freedom comes the opportunity to smuggle items such as firearms, citing the arms cache that was found in Lethem late last year.

Felix noted that the time is now for interior policing to be supported by the use of aircraft, which he said can be used to transport officers to strategic locations to carry out regular searches. The opposition parliamentarian was asked whether his party takes any responsibility for the crime situation since its position against the home affairs minister could have been seen as an advantage to perpetrators to conduct their illegal activities.

He responded adamantly, saying this is not the case.

Meanwhile, he went on to say that public engagement should also be a top priority by security sector.

Phillips to take oath as new GDF chief on Monday

President and Commander-inChief Donald Ramotar will confirm the appointment of the new Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Chiefof-Staff Mark Phillips on Monday in the credentials room at the Office of the President.

Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon made this disclosure during his post-Cabinet briefing held on Friday. “After receiving his promotion, the head of state will confirm his appointment as chief-of-staff of the GDF on September 16 at 10:30 am,” Dr Luncheon said.

Brigadier Phillips will fully assume the office and duties of the GDF chief-of-staff and chairman of the Joint Services Coordination Council on the retirement of the Chief-ofStaff, Rear Admiral Gary Best on September 20. Phillips will also receive this designation from his successor through a ceremonial handing over on Tuesday, subsequent to his confirmation which will be held at Camp Ayangana.

In August, after receiving his promotion, Brigadier Phillips pledged his commitment to moving the force forward. He thanked President Ramotar

and the army for recognising his service to the Guyana Defence Force and the nation at large. He assured that professionalism will be his guide as he assumed his new office as chief-of-

staff designate.

Phillips hails from the mining town of Linden, where he attended the Christianburg Primary School and the Christainburg Wismar Secondary School prior to joining the GDF in December, 1980.

Upon graduating from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the United Kingdom in 1981, he served the GDF in several junior and senior level appointments over the last 30 years.

Prior to attending the advanced course in hemispheric defence and security, Colonel Mark Phillips held the appointments of colonel administration and quartering, and colonel general staff in the defence headquarters. Colonel Phillips was Guyana’s head of delegation to the Inter-American Defence Board from 2008 to 2009, and at present is Guyana’s non-resident military attaché to Venezuela.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in public management from the University of Guyana (1998) and a master’s degree in public sector management from La Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra in The Dominican Republic in 2000.

Bunny Wailer, Professors Beckles, Shepherd to address reparations confab

Professors Sir Hilary Beckles and Verene Shepherd, as well as famed Jamaican reggae artiste Bunny Wailer, are among those who will make presentations at the threeday Regional Conference on Reparations which begins in St Vincent and the Grenadines on Sunday.

At the opening ceremony, there will be addresses by St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, Barbados Culture Minister Stephen Lashley and Jamaican educator Professor Shepherd.

Bunny Wailer (born Neville O’Riley Livingston) will perform at the opening, and will make a presentation on behalf of the Rastafarians the following day.

The proceedings on Monday, which will be open to the public and streamed live, will feature presentations by the chairpersons of the National Reparation Committees, principal of the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies, Professor Beckles, Professor Shepherd and representatives of regional and other organisations.

Tuesday’s sessions in which attorneys, government representatives and representatives of the reparations commissions will consider legal options, will be closed. On Tuesday also, the chairpersons of the National Reparations Committees will select a Regional Reparations Commission chair.

The conference is the first major event on reparations following the 34th Caricom conference of heads of government in Trinidad and Tobago in July. At the summit, heads of government agreed

to the establishment of a National Reparations Committee in each member state with the chair of each committee sitting on the Caricom Reparations Commission. The heads of government of Barbados (chair), St Vincent and the Grenadines, Haiti, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago were identified to provide political oversight.

The community’s approach would be to hold a development conversation and to use all reasonable avenues to reach an amicable solution on reparations.

Venezuelan soldiers weren’t allowed entry into Guyana

The Venezuelan soldiers who had accompanied a group of students on a research mission in the Essequibo late last month were not allowed entry into Guyana, head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon said on Friday.

The visit had coincided with Venezuelan President Nicola Maduro’s official state visit to Guyana. The delegation, consisting of research students, arrived in Guyana on August 31, obtained the approval from the relevant authorities, but the soldiers that were accompanying them were told that they could not disembark their boat and enter the country armed.

“Official sources from the Guyanese authority at the border was that the visitors sought and received permission to engage the members of the Guyanese communities on the border who assumedly, had some relationship with Venezuela whether biological or trading relationship,” Dr Luncheon said.

Breach

However, regarding the soldiers, he said that they were not allowed, and as such, their entry constituted a breach in the agreement.

“They were not allowed was the official report provided by the Guyanese authorities, and it was as far as the authorities there were concerned, a breach of the agreement, the understanding under which they were allowed to enter Guyana, a breach drawn to their attention, they made the suitable apologies and corrected,” Dr Luncheon said.

Venezuelan media had reported that 45 Venezuelans “went on a mission crossing the Cuyuni River and into the Guyana-Venezuela disputed area accompanied by officers of the Venezuelan army”.

The report in the El

Universal online edition said officers of the Venezuelan army accompanied 45 Venezuelan citizens who carried out “an act of sovereignty in the Essequibo disputed area” on Saturday, August 31.

The report quoted Venezuelan Ricardo de Toma as saying: “We came here to carry out a civil exercise of sovereignty, but we do not understand what President (Nicolas) Maduro was doing there (in Guyana).” Maduro had been on an official visit to Guyana at the time.

"Our Essequibo" According to the El Universal, de Toma and his colleagues were members of an organisation called “My Map of Venezuela also includes our Essequibo”.

According to the publication, de Toma said that in spite of the mining projects, Guyana has been developing in the “Essequibo-disputed area with Venezuela” plus the granting of oil concessions in the Venezuelan Atlantic front, President Maduro “paid a visit (to Guyana) only to spread an ideological model”.

Foreign Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett was quoted in another newspaper as saying that preliminary reports indicated that the Venezuelans were students, who were granted permission to do research on the border.

“The preliminary information available to me indicates that a group of Venezuelans came to Guyana via Eteringbang. They indicated that they were students and sought permission from the relevant Guyanese authorities to enter Guyana.

"That permission was given. They further indicated that they were doing a research in relation to the border,” she said.

Chief-of-Staff designate Brigadier Mark Phillips

saturday, september 14, 2013 | guyanatimesgy.com

Candidates make pitch for UGSS presidency

By: SaBatini DanielS

Students

Four candidates will next week vie for the presidency of the much maligned University of Guyana Students Society (UGSS).

The winner of this election will replace former president Ganesh Mahipaul, who was suspended following allegations that he had misappropriated $800,000 of the students’ fund.

As such, the new president will have to regain the trust of many of the students who claim they are no longer interested in UG politics, due to the issues surrounding the Mahipaul fiasco.

Vision Speaking to Guyana Times, Students Empowerment Alliance (SEA) presidential candidate Richard Rambarran, 19, said his vision for UG is to have a non-violent, non-discriminatory and harmonised campus.

“Where everyone is there and working together for common good, augmenting students’ welfare and issues affecting students are brought to the forefront so that everything academic and otherwise can run smoothly.”

Student

Rambarran, who is a final year economics student, noted that everything on his party’s mandate is realistic, taking a jab at the other candidates who he said have failed to achieve many of their manifesto promises.

He said his party manifesto focuses mainly on three pillars: constitutional reform to address issues of transparency and accountability; promoting student involvement; and advocacy. Advocacy involves pushing for the private sector to partner with UG on student-oriented projects and for the establishment of a mobile police outpost.

Financial matters Meanwhile, Revolutionaries presidential candidate Samaria Deonauth, 19, said she hopes to tackle issues relating to student loans, registration and security at UG as these are major issues affecting students.

She said her party’s manifesto is based on current issues, notably financial matters. “It lends ideas of how we can help along the administration to start campus revenue to generate UG’s own funding.”

She stated that her party will also seek to build a better relationship between the Turkeyen and Tain campuses.

Deonauth, who is a final year English student, also pointed out that the the same manifesto for Turkeyen is not the same manifesto needed for Tain since at Tain there is a shortage of lectures. This issue, she said her party aims to address.

Team Visionary presidential candidate Jermain Hermanstyne, 36, said he was motivated to run for elections since as a student, he has suffered at the university and knows the hardships students face. “I believe with a strong UGSS, some of these same problems can be resolved.”

A voice for all students

The candidate, who is a second year sociology student, said if he wins, one of the first things he would seek to do is to hold talks with Vice Chancellor Dr Jacob Opadeyi on a way forward for the university.

“I want to meet with him and say look, these are the issues facing the students

and let us come to a compromise in terms of getting these things done within a timeframe.”

Student Movement Advocating Rights and Transformation (SMART) presidential candidate Yolanda Abernety Jeune, 35, said his vision is to put in place better things for students, and to make proper representation on their behalf.

Agenda

“At the forefront of our agenda and our vision is to encourage polite behaviour, student to student, student to lectures and vice versa, students to administration and supporting staff. We believe that is paramount on the basis of which anything is built.”

Jeune, a final year mathematics student, believes that much of the solution for UG can be found on its campuses, and if elected, he will work with everyone in moving the university forward.

Elections will be held on September 25 at the Turkeyen Campus, September 27 at Tain Campus and September 28 for Turkeyen’s master’s degree students.

Slain biker to be laid to rest today, suspect still at large

Almost two weeks after 30-yearold Kirk Davis was gunned down in front of his Eccles, East Bank Demerara home, he will be laid to rest today and the police are still optimistic of apprehending his killer who was sighted in neighbouring Suriname.

On Thursday, at a press conference, acting Police Commissioner Leroy Brumell told media operatives that a photo of Rondy Jagdeo, the main suspect in the murder was sent to police in Suriname following reports that he was sighted in that country.

Guyana Times understands that Jagdeo was seen shopping in a clothes store in Paramaribo by a group of Guyanese. He reportedly told them that he was on vacation and was shopping for a few pieces as he would return home shortly.

A close source to the slain biker stated that from reports gathered, the men were not aware that Jagdeo was wanted for the crime until his photograph was published in one of Suriname’s daily newspaper.

“Had they known, they would have arrested him and handed him over to the Surinamese officials,” he added.

In explaining the delay for the issuance of a wanted bulletin for Jagdeo,

Brumell said based on information they have received, Jagdeo was in the country and they were exploring all avenues to arrest him.

“After we didn’t get him and we got certain intelligence, we decided we have to send out something,” he explained.

The acting police commissioner pointed out that he is cognisant of the fact that a large number of Guyanese are in Suriname jails and it is believed that most of them flee to that country after committing crimes here, and

would continue the rampage there.

On the evening of September 3, Jagdeo appeared in front of Davis’ 7th Street, Eccles, East Bank Demerara home in a silver Toyota Premio. Davis reportedly walked towards the car and went straight into the back passenger’s seat where an argument started.

During the argument, the businessman reportedly whipped out a .9mm pistol with extended clips and deliberately shot his wife twice, forcing her to disclose information about the relationship she had with Davis.

He then turned the gun on Davis and shot him. The murder suspect then left the driver’s seat and walked towards the backdoor of the car, where he pulled out the biker and pumped a few more bullets into his body.

Davis will be laid to rest today in Bagotstown, East Bank Demerara.

A motorcycle procession will kick off from Mandela Avenue at 11:30h and will proceed to the Lyken’s Funeral Home where Davis’ body would be viewed from 12:00h-13:00h.

His body will then be escorted to his Bagotstown home for another viewing and service.

PANCAP Justice for All Programme on the way

The Pan Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) continues to marshal its forces to “beat back” the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV and AIDS with the launch of its Justice for All Programme.

The programme aims to build on initiatives to create a supportive environment for eliminating stigma and discrimination and for building consensus around the principles of human rights.

The Caribbean has made strides in promoting the inclusion of people with HIV (PLHIV) and building the capacity of networks of PLHIV and most-at-risk groups; developing model anti-discrimination legislation and policy; advocating for legislative reforms aimed at modifying and abolishing outdated punitive laws and violence against women.

Several consultations have taken place at the national and regional levels and a number of key international human rights treaties signed. Notwithstanding, HIV stigma and discrimination remains an intractable issue.

The September 2010 UNAIDS/PANCAP/Caricom and the University of the West Indies (UWI) symposium under the leadership of Sir George Alleyne, then UN special envoy for HIV in the

Caribbean, explored the varying components of human rights.

It resulted in a book, HIV and Human Rights edited by Sir George Alleyne and Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine with wide ranging proposals.

The Justice for All Programme, building on such initiatives will outline a concrete set of national actions, cognisant that one of the goals of the UN HighLevel Meeting Political Declaration (2011) as well as the PANCAP Declaration (2010) is to eliminate HIVrelated stigma.

The programme is spearheaded by UN secretary general envoy for HIV in the Caribbean, Professor Edward Greene, in collaboration with the PANCAP Coordinating Unit and other key stakeholders.

A roadmap for advocacy for the PANCAP human rights agenda will be established to guide the process. An analysis of what has been done, the results and gaps and a series of national consultations will inform the roadmap which is to be endorsed by Caribbean leaders. PANCAP is a regional partnership established by Caricom heads of government in 2001 to respond to the HIV and AIDS epidemic.

GPL’s countrywide raids net 3921 illegal connections

The Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL) on Friday said it had removed some 3921 illegal electricity connections during the period January to June, as part of its ongoing exercise to reduce commercial losses from electricity theft.

The campaign, an ongoing initiative by the power company since 2007, has been intensified over the past six months. A total of 111 raids by GPL’s technical teams, spearheaded by representatives from the company’s Loss Reduction Department and the Guyana Police Force, were carried out in communities along the East Bank, West Bank and East Coast Demerara, Berbice and the outskirts of Georgetown.

The highest number of illegal connections detected and removed, a total 2410 were discovered in Sophia

and other Georgetown locations. Some 260 persons were arrested for the illegal diversion of electricity. The rate at which cases are completed and the number of conviction, however, remains a huge hurdle to overcome.

In 2007, a total of 2760 persons were arrested for the diversion of electricity. Some 1490 of these cases are still pending at various magistrates’ courts. So far, 549 persons have been convicted and fined with some of the perpetrators given up to two years imprisonment. The Electricity Sector Reform Act (1999), with amendments in 2010, clearly outlines severe penalties for perpetrators guilty of electricity theft. GPL has been pursuing every case from the criminal and civil aspects with some convicted persons being sentenced to periods of imprisonment.

Murder suspect Rondy Jagdeo and slain biker Kirk Davis in happier times

Empowerment Alliance (SEA) presidential candidate Richard Rambarran

Movement Advocating Rights and Transformation (SMART) presidential candidate Yolanda Abernety Jeune

Team Visionary presidential candidate Jermain Hermanstyne

Revolutionaries presidential candidate Samaria Deonauth

U.S. ambassador hosts “Jazz by the Sea wall”

U.S. Ambassador to Guyana D Brent Hardt in collaboration with the Culture, Youths and Sports Ministry hosted a night of “Jazz by the Sea wall” on Thursday evening.

American jazz trio, Phil Dunlap on the keyboards, along with his band members, Nick Jost on the bass and Marty Morrison on the drums, entertained guests at the U.S. ambassador’s home in Cummings Lodge, Greater Georgetown.

The night of “Jazz by the Sea wall” was attended by several government ministers and members of the diplomatic corps.

Hardt told his guests that since his arrival in Guyana some two years ago, he has been desperately trying to get a jazz band to perform here, and is happy to accomplish his aim. “We wanted to show people of diverse cultures and background the quality of our civilisation, which was so beautifully reflected in jazz

music and most especially in the people who performed it,” he stated.

The U.S. ambassador noted that despite the U.S. struggles, currently and in the past with issues of race, jazz music offers a means to supersede traditional categories of thinking and to point the way forward to a better, fairer and more perfect America.

“So tonight, we are just going to have a relaxed evening with no fuss and ceremony. We want you to think of this as the ‘Blues Alley’ of Cummings Lodge, an intimate jazz club with good wine, beer and spirits,” the ambassador said.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds thanked Ambassador Hardt for providing Guyanese the opportunity to listen to American’s finest jazz music.

Relax, forget all politics

“This evening will enable us to relax and forget all the politics… let me extend the appreciation of the government of Guyanese to the visiting jazz team. For many of us of my generation who lived through the difficulties of coming together across race and colour in the U.S., will certainly appreciate jazz,” the prime minister noted.

The jazz trio has played at events across the world. Throughout this past week, they have been performing a series of concerts and have hosted educational workshops with music students at all levels.

The group has also played alongside some of Guyana’s top jazz musicians, in addition to hosting an educational presentation and performance at the St John’s Basco Boys Orphanage.

The trio had conducted indepth workshops with students and staff from the National School of Music, made educational presentations and gave performances at the Bishops’ High School and other secondary schools in Berbice.

On Friday, the trio closed their week on a high note with a concert at the Theatre Guild. The concert was opened to the general public and was free of cost.

saturday, september 14, 2013 |

Govt insists there is a shortage of stones – cites high price, imports

Works and Hydraulics Minister Robeson Benn has debunked claims that there is enough stone in Guyana to supply contractors.

The minister’s comments come on the heels of recent statements made by BK International that there is no need for government to import stones from overseas, since the company has large amounts of this material to supply a majority of the local projects being undertaken.

Benn told media operatives on Friday that every builder and contractor will be able to say that over the past two years, there has been a stone shortage in the country, which continues to exist.

The minister said two simple indicators that there is in fact a shortage locally are the already high and increasing prices and the fact that there is a need to import these products from within the region.

“There is no other, which one could ascribe or try to suggest that stone wasn’t short… if stone wasn’t short there wouldn’t be any need for the price to escalate over the last two years and no need to import stone into the country,” Benn posited.

According to him, there is a lot of building construction going on at both the public and private levels, and there is a great demand for the ma-

terial.

Benn said he is looking forward to BK International, one of the major stone suppliers in the country to provide more stones to cushion this effect and address the shortage that is being experienced.

National need

However, he said that the company only now has enough stone to supply the national need, after its supply to the construction of the Marriott Hotel slowed up.

Added to that, Benn said the government is not pleased with the high prices being attached to the product, which continues to climb.

Further, the works minister said that a recent study done by his ministry in May has proven that there is indeed a shortage of stone on the local market.

He said the report was presented to President Donald Ramotar, who made the announcement that there is a shortage of stones.

That report had indicated that there is a 40 per cent shortage. That study was done by an engineer and an economist attached to the Works and Hydraulics Ministry.

The minister did not hesitate to mention that the shortfall has also affected the quality of stones being produced locally. He also

pointed to examples of rejected piles of stones for its intended purpose by his ministry.

He reiterated that the price for stone locally is exorbitant, even though there is a chance for suppliers to lower the cost and still make a reasonable profit, especially large scale producers.

At present, imported stone is sold for $8000 to $9000 per tonne while locally produced stone is retailed for $8000 to $8500 per tonne.

“People seem to have a vested interest in maintaining that price and preventing further importation based on the president’s exhortation and willingness to have more stones imported, to keep the price down and to keep our projects moving at all levels," he said.

Benn also criticised claims made by BK International that government has failed to pay the company on time for works already executed.

He regarded the statements made by BK international as “silly, irresponsible and reckless”.

Despite these issues at hand, the minister said government will continue to work to ensure that a competitive and sustainable source of supply of quality stones locally for national projects, businesses and homebuilders is achieved.

The jazz trio entertaining guests at the U.S. ambassador’s home on Thursday evening

Foreign Ministry Director General Elisabeth Harper and Human Services Minister Jenifer Webster with others at the night of “Jazz by the Sea wall” hosted by the U.S. ambassador

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, U.S. Ambassador D Brent Hardt and his wife Sasha, enjoy soothing jazz music

Works and Hydraulics Minister Robeson Benn showing media operatives samples of stones being imported, while emphasising that they are of the same quality as local stones

Main tourism authorities to discuss inter-island ferry service this weekend

Amaster plan that includes fa-

cilities for an inter-island ferry service and a hotel is to be discussed by main tourism and port authorities at a retreat this weekend.

The retreat is to look at a recently completed Barbados Port Inc. master plan complementing the development of the Bds$300 million Sugar Point pier facility which will enhance cruise and cargo handling in the Bridgetown Port, while including a separate and distinct ferry terminal.

Sources said the retreat is planned for tomorrow with Tourism and International Transport Minister Richard Sealy, the management team of the Port, and other major players at an undisclosed location.

While port officials were mum on the master plan that is expected to be revealed by yearend, Divisional Manager of the Bridgetown Port Ken Atherley admitted that the ferry terminal had been proposed separate from Sugar Point and would indeed be part of a broader plan for enhance the 50-year-old port.

“There is provision for facilities for a ferry service and therefore that is-

sue will be covered in the separate development of the Bridgetown Port in the main harbour. So within the Deep Water Harbour, we’re making provi-

sion for an inter-island ferry terminal,” he told the Weekend Nation at Wednesday night’s town hall meeting.

Not fair to call Overseas Territories tax havens, says British PM

Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron has officially recognised that the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies operate “fair and open tax systems”.

Speaking in the House of Commons, he said, “I do not think it is fair any longer to refer to any of the Overseas Territories or Crown Dependencies as tax

havens. They have taken action to make sure that they have fair and open tax systems.”

Cameron’s comments were welcomed by the Overseas Territories in the Caribbean. Cayman Finance, the private sector group that represents the Cayman Islands’ financial services industry, said the remarks by the prime min-

ister finally recognised the transparency of the Cayman Islands financial services industry built over the past four decades.

A good, recent example of how the Cayman Islands compares to other jurisdictions is illustrated in the OECD secretary general’s report to the G20 leaders, issued in early September, Cayman Finance said.

The report shows ratings for 98 jurisdictions, based on nine criteria, giving a green, amber, or red rating for each and where ‘green’ denotes the highest rating. Cayman is rated green across all nine categories. Brazil and the U.S. have two ambers, Russia has seven, and Canada, Germany, Spain, and the UK each have one.

(Excerpt from Caribbean News Now)

Costa Rica first to negotiate sale of forestry carbon credits

The government of Costa Rica and the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) have signed a letter of intent (LOI) to negotiate an emission reductions payment agreement (ERPA) worth up to US$63 million. This would make Costa Rica the first country in the world to access large-scale performance-based payments for

conserving its forests, regenerating degraded lands, and scaling up agro-forestry systems for sustainable landscapes and livelihoods.

The signing ceremony of the LOI was presided over by Laura Chinchilla, president of Costa Rica, and Fabrizio Zarcone, World Bank representative for Costa Rica.

The LOI was signed by Rene Castro, minister of envi-

ronment and energy, and Laurent Msellati, World Bank sector manager in the Sustainable Development Department for the Latin America and the Caribbean.

The LOI commits the FCPF Carbon Fund to negotiate the purchase of carbon emission reductions (commonly known as carbon credits) up to a value of US$63 million. The coun-

try’s proposal to the FCPF Carbon Fund would help meet pending demand for additional landowners to participate in the payments for environmental services (PES) programme that will protect and regenerate forests on about 340,000 hectares of privately owned land and also in indigenous people’s territories. (Excerpt from Caribbean News Now)

UWI dismisses controversial Trinidadian environmentalist

Environmentalist, Dr Wayne Kublalsingh, who has been staging a daily protest outside the office of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar over the construction of a multi-billion dollar highway in the south of Trinidad, has confirmed his dismissal as a lecturer at the St Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI).

“I respect and understand their position,” said Kublalsingh, who was a parttime lecturer for 16 years.

Kublalsingh said his contract with the UWI, where he taught “Introduction to Poetry” was not renewed this academic year.

He said during a meeting last week with the Department of Liberal Arts he was informed that in the interest of the students, his situation had become "volatile".

“It seemed to have stemmed from the beginning of the campaign, when I was warned by the police that I would be held liable and could be arrested if the crowd here became too large,”

Kublalsingh said, referring to his ongoing protest outside the prime minister’s office.

UWI principal Professor Clement Sankat told the Trinidad Express newspaper that Kublalsingh’s parttime tenure was being reviewed since last November, when he staged a 21-day hunger strike outside the PM’s office.

“Changes took place.” Sankat said, adding “we had to make some changes whilst he was fasting. And that was the responsibility of the department. We had to get on with the students’ work, students had to be taught”. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

Removal of Caribbean Airlines fuel subsidy a “hoax” – Rowley

Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley Friday described as a “hoax” the removal of the multi-million dollar subsidy provided to state-owned Caribbean Airlines (CAL) that had been heavily criticised by other regional governments.

Finance Minister Larry Howai, delivering the TT$61.3 billion national budget on Monday, said that the subsidy, which was estimated at US$40 million last year, would come to an end from October 1 this year.

But in his response to the budget, Rowley said the removal of the subsidy was yet “another hoax on the people of this country. “Another act of naked and unnecessary deception on the part of the minister of finance. Why couldn’t the minister just come clean and tell the taxpayers that we will still be providing huge sums of money to CAL but it would not be called fuel subsidy but it will still

be a subsidy and your money anyway.”

Rowley said that Howai had implied that removal of the fuel subsidy would mean cost cutting of at least over TT$250 million for the airline to be viable.

“The minister says that he was assured that this would have no impact on ticket prices. How could a serious minister of finance make such an announcement”, Rowley asked. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

Ecuador’s Galapagos islands get on Google Street View

Some of the striking landscapes of Ecuador’s Galapagos islands can now be explored online on Google Street View. The launch marks the 178th anniversary of the British scientist Charles Darwin’s visit, which inspired his theory of natural selection.

The high-definition 360 degrees pictures are a joint project between Google, the Galapagos National Park and the Darwin Foundation. The pictures were

taken with a special backpack camera during 10 days in May.

Many of the animals seen by Darwin in his 1835 voyage were captured on camera by Google staff. Camera crews dived with sea lions, trekked on the islands’ biggest volcano and accompanied a leafy meal of the famous giant tortoises.

Viewers can also have a taste of less famous Galapagos wildlife, including marine iguanas, bluefooted boobies and Frigatebirds.

As in other Street View projects, you can zoom in and out and move around the images.

“The natural history of this archipelago is very remarkable: it seems to be a little world within itself,” Darwin said after visiting the islands. The Galapagos are available to browse on Street View alongside other remote places, such as the Maldives in the Indian Ocean, and the Grand Canyon in the U.S. (Excerpt

An artist’s impression of the proposed Sugar Point Cruise facility

Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley

Around

Delhi gang rape: Four sentenced to death

An Indian court has sentenced four men to death for the gang rape and murder of a student in the capital Delhi, a case which led to violent protests across India and new laws against rape.

Mukesh Singh, Vinay Sharma,

Akshay Thakur and Pawan Gupta were found guilty on all counts earlier this week. Judge Yogesh Khanna said the case fell in the “rarest of rare category”, rejecting pleas for a lighter sentence.

The woman, 23, was attacked on a

India’s BJP names Hindu nationalist Narendra Modi as election candidate

The main Indian opposi-

tion party has named a controversial Hindu nationalist as its candidate for general elections scheduled for next spring, setting up a contest between two very different visions of India in what are expected to be closely fought polls.

Narendra Modi, 62, was named by officials at the Bharatiya Janata party’s (BJP) Delhi headquarters, despite the opposition of senior members of the organisation.

“God has given me a lot of strength. The BJP today has given a lowly soldier a big mission,” Modi said after Friday night’s announce-

ment.

“I will work hard to achieve victory for the BJP in 2014 elections,” he said, adding: “I seek the blessings of millions of Indians to join our effort to steer the country out of these perilous days.”

Modi came from humble origins to win power in the western state of Gujarat and will now be projected onto the national stage. Critics see him as an extremist who, when chief minister in 2002, allowed or even encouraged mobs to attack Muslims in towns across Gujarat after a lethal fire supposedly started by Muslims on a train full of Hindu pilgrims. He denies the charge. (Excerpt from The Guardian)

bus in December and died two weeks later.

On Friday, Judge Khanna said the attack “shocked the collective conscience” of India, and that “courts cannot turn a blind eye” to such crimes.

“This case definitely falls in the rarest of rare categories and warrants the exemplary punishment of death,” he added. The men were convicted to death by hanging, and one of them, Vinay Sharma, broke down in tears as the verdict was announced.

The father of the victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said the family was satisfied with the ruling. “We are very happy. Justice has been delivered,” he said in the courtroom, according to the Associated Press news agency.

Earlier, protesters outside the court had demanded that the four men should be hanged. As they were escorted to the courtroom, the four men shouted to the crowd: “Brothers, save us!” (Excerpt from BBC News)

Taliban attacks U.S. consulate in Afghanistan

Taliban fighters have detonated car bombs at the U.S. consulate in western Afghanistan, triggering a firefight with security forces in an attack that killed at least 19 people, including two Afghan members of the security forces.

At least 17 others were injured in Friday’s attack, which happened in the city of Herat. The U.S. said its personnel from the mission were safe and that most of them were temporarily relocated to Kabul, while American forces secured the site.

According to General Rahmatullah Safi, Herat province’s chief of police, the

attack began when armed men in an four-wheel drive and a van set off their explosives-laden vehicles while others on foot fired on Afghan security forces guarding the compound.

Loud explosions followed by gunfire were heard and a plume of thick smoke was seen rising over the city. Local officials told Al Jazeera that six security guards, two policemen and two interpreters were among the dead. At least nine attackers were also killed, either by police or when they detonated bombs. Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi took responsibility for the Herat attack in a phone call with the Associated Press.

Russia hospital fire kills 37 in Novgorod region

Thirty-seven people have died in a fire that engulfed a psychiatric hospital in north-western Russia, officials say. The blaze occurred in the village of Luka, in Novgorod region. The timber-built hospital housed some 60 people.

A nurse who tried to guide patients to safety was among the dead, Russian media report. So far 22 bodies have been recovered at the scene. The fire broke out just before 03:00h local time (23:00 GMT Thursday). A patient smoking may have started it.

Officials had previously ordered the building to be closed because of safety concerns. The fire started in the male ward and spread quickly through the single-storey Oksochi hospital, emergency ministry officials say. TV pictures later showed the gutted building.

“Medical personnel saw a patient who was shrouded in flames. It’s possible that he was smoking in bed and the mattress caught fire,” regional gover-

nor Sergei Mitin told Russia’s Interfax news agency. He added that the ward housed severely ill patients.

The patients and staff had been ordered to move to a new building by August 2014 because the timber hos-

“Slave” claims as Australian prisoners sent to work in salt mines

It may be too hot to be Siberia, but prisoners in the Northern Territory (NT) are being sent to a salt mine to work. The low-security inmates have been sent to Karinga Lakes, about 250km from Alice Springs, under the Northern Territory’s new Sentenced to a Job programme.

The joint venture proj-

ect, run by Rum Jungle Resources, extracts potassium sulphate from the mineral-rich lakes, and has been included in a programme touted to businesses as a pool of reliable labour that can be of “significant benefit to [their] bottom lines”.

The NT government says the prisoners have been

sent to the remote Karinga Lake project because the company has had difficulty attracting other workers.

But the United Voice union claims the government is using prisoners as “slave labour”, paying them well below the going rate for other mine workers.

“We’ve had some miners in those different areas

we represent coming forward, and they’re a bit worried because of these large mining companies who actually quite happily use undercutting of labour and undercutting of wages to try and maximise their profits while driving down the different areas,” union secretary Matthew Gardiner said. (Excerpt from New Zealand Herald)

After 40 years in North Korea, escapee returns to Seoul

South Korean fisherman

Jeon Wook-pyo set out on a boat in the Yellow Sea more than 40 years ago – and did not get home till Friday.

Jeon’s return to his family in Seoul from North Korea raises more questions than answers, and underscores the larger issue of alleged abductions by North Korea.

Jeon, now 68, escaped last

month from North Korea to a country which has not been identified publicly, where he wrote a letter to South Korean President Park Geunhye, appealing for help to return to Seoul.

“I took a chance to escape the North because I had a growing wish to spend the rest of my life with my relatives and brothers at home,” he wrote Park, according to

South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency.

Jeon reunited with his family in the South Korean capital on Friday after undergoing questioning by South Korean officials, a Unification Ministry official told CNN.

Jeon and two dozen other fishermen were abducted from two boats off South Korea’s western coast on December 28, 1972; none

of the others has returned, Yonhap said.

South Korea was not aware that Jeon had been abducted by North Korea until 2005, when a photograph from 1974 surfaced showing him at an indoctrination camp in North Korea with several other abducted South Korean fishermen, according to South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper. (Excerpt from CNN)

pital was unsafe. Twenty-three people managed to flee the blaze. A senior investigator from the ministry for emergencies, Yuri Deshevykh, said the fire alarm had worked, triggering an evacuation. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Ban says Assad committed “crimes against humanity”

UN experts will give “overwhelming” confirmation that chemical weapons were used in Syria, UN leader Ban Kimoon predicted Friday, as he blasted President Bashar alAssad as a war criminal.

Ban did not say that Assad’s forces carried out a suspected chemical arms attack near Damascus investigated by UN experts. But he said the Syrian leader has “committed many crimes against humanity.”

A UN team is expected to send its report on the August 21 attack to Ban on Monday. The UN leader stressed that he still does not have the report.

But he predicted: “I believe the report will be an overwhelming report that the chemical weapons were used.”

Ban also gave a UN estimate that 1400 people were killed in the August 21 attack at Ghouta, east of Damascus,

which led to western threats of a military strike on Assad’s forces.

UN inspectors were in Syria to investigate the general use of chemical weapons in the country’s 30-month-old conflict when the suspected sarin gas attack took place. The United States, Britain and France blame Assad for the attack. The Syrian government, backed by Russia, say opposition rebels used the banned gas. (Excerpt from France24)

The four men had pleaded not guilty and are expected to appeal

UN chief Ban Ki-moon accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Friday of having committed “many crimes against humanity”.

The fire was extinguished overnight, and hundreds of rescuers are searching the nearby forest, hoping to find any survivors who may have taken refuge there

Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados, Dr DeLisle Worrell, urged nationals to consider buying government bonds rather than putting all their savings at commercial banks.

Addressing the fourth annual Domestic Financial Institutions seminar, Worrell said that individual savers do not do very well at commercial banks, earning 2.5 per cent on savings only because the Central Bank stipulates that

U.S. stocks edged higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 set to post its largest weekly gain in two months, with traders focusing on next week’s U.S. Federal Reserve meeting and its expected reduction of stimulus.

Despite indications economic growth slowed somewhat in the third quarter, the Fed is seen trimming its monthly asset purchases by US$10 billion to US$75 billion, with monetary policy remain-

Spain’s public debt reached a record high in June, the country’s central bank said. The figure has risen to 942.8 billion euros (£792.5 billion; US$1.3 trillion), equal to 92.2 per cent of the country’s entire economic output, the bank said.

This is nearly 15 per cent higher than the same period last year and above the Spanish government’s target limit of 91.4 per cent, despite severe public spending cuts.

minimum.

“It is no secret that banks are unhappy that there is a minimum at all. I am suggesting to individuals that, for all their rainy day savings, they consider government savings bonds instead.”

He said savings bonds were just as convenient as savings deposits, “because you buy them at commercial banks, and they are just as liquid as savings deposits, because you can cash them in at

any time.

“However, if you hold them for the full five years of their maturity you earn an interest rate in the region of five per cent, compounded over five years,” Worrell told the seminar. The Central Bank governor said one area where the local financial sector does not serve very well is the financing of innovation and of small and medium enterprises.

(Caribbean360)

Uganda and 10 other African countries have started drafting a comprehensive policy that seeks to promote aquaculture, with the private sector as the major player.

The fisheries officials and government representatives from the Eastern Africa region meeting in Kampala on Tuesday said their governments have realised that the private sector can play a big role in boosting the contribution of the fishing industry to national income.

The officials met at Hotel Africana in Kampala to evaluate the contribution of the Africa Caribbean Pacific (ACP) phase II fish programme in strengthening fisheries management in their countries. The programme that winds up in November is funded by the European Commission (EC).

The acting head of the fisheries sector for Uganda, Lovelock Wadanya, said the European Commission funded process of developing a regional policy framework for aqua-

culture was in advanced stages. “The comprehensive policy framework will promote aquaculture as a business and encourage the private sector to take the lead,” he added. Wadanya said Uganda wants to use the framework to encourage large scale fish farming by identifying potential private sector players, assist them to access credit or enter into partnership with them to develop the fishing industry which is one of the largest foreign exchange earners for the country. (allAfrica)

ing widely accommodative –and supportive of equities.

Retail sales rose for a fifth consecutive month in August, though the increase was smaller than the market expected. U.S. consumer confidence slipped early this month and inflation pressures remained subdued even after an energy-led increase in wholesale prices last month.

The S&P is nearing resistance at 1700 and will remain range-bound until the Fed

meeting, ongoing U.S.-Russia talks on Syria and a looming fiscal crisis in Washington are resolved, said Jim Paulsen, chief investment officer at Wells Capital Management in Minneapolis. He said “the data coming out is too good to allow (the market) to fall very far,” but there is little clarity to help push it much higher. Trading will be “a little choppy between now and when all this issues are resolved,” he said. (Reuters)

Indonesia’s central bank has raised interest rates for the second time in two weeks as it looks to stem the sharp decline in its currency, the rupiah. It raised its key rate to 7.25 per cent, the highest level in more than four years.

Indonesia’s currency has dipped nearly 18 per cent against the U.S. dollar since May this year as investors pull out of emerging markets, stoking concerns about the

economic impact.

The central bank also cut its growth forecast for the current year. On Thursday, it said that it now expects the economy to grow between 5.5 per cent to 5.9 per cent compared with its earlier projection of a growth between 5.8 per cent to 6.2 per cent.

That will be the lowest pace of growth since the global financial crisis in 2009.

Indonesia, like many other emerging economies, has been

hurt as investors withdrew money in recent weeks. The pull-out has been triggered by growing speculation that the U.S. central bank will start to taper off its key stimulus programme and start raising interest rates sooner than previously thought. The programme, known as quantitative easing, is used by the U.S. central bank to increase the money supply and improve liquidity in the financial system. (BBC News)

Austerity measures have led to street protests as unemployment now tops 26 per cent. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s government is aiming to reduce public spending by 150 billion euros between 2012 and 2014, but rising unemployment and the consequent benefit payments, is making this target difficult to reach.

The bank believes public debt could top 100 per cent of gross domestic product over the next three years, its high-

est level in more than a century, as the government struggles to revive the country’s flagging economy. Rajoy may derive some comfort from other figures showing that the country’s debt-laden banks have been successfully reducing their borrowing from the European Central Bank (ECB) over the year. Spanish banks borrowed 249.3 billion euros from the ECB in August, making it the 12th successive month their borrowing has fallen. (BBC News)

Dubai’s real estate rebound will continue well into next year, according to a report by Fitch Ratings. The ratings agency said the emirate’s prime property sector is set up for a “strong 2014” following a vibrant 2013.

However, it added that there was still some uncertainty for the market including Middle East instability, Dubai’s bid for the World Expo 2020 and the impact of

major new real estate projects that are in the pipeline.

Fitch also said retail rentals and hospitality revenues have been holding up and have shown healthy performance and growth since 2011 to date and are “in a comfortable position” for another good year in 2014.

Its report added: “Additionally, residential prices and demand have shown recoveries in prime locations in Dubai, but secondary loca-

Benefits and perks

A company can pay less in salary if the difference is made up in benefits and perks. Some employees get fixated on salary, but well rounded benefits like access to a gym (or paid gym membership) great health insurance, and the like will draw in great talent as well. You also need to consider that if someone is so focused on money, all it takes is a slightly bigger check elsewhere to encourage them to

leave your firm.

Not just job postings

The best talent is not sitting out on the job boards clicking “Apply” for every job under the sun. There are people doing that, and they’ve been unemployed for 18 months. It is an ineffective strategy for both sides: employers get hundreds of unqualified candidates and candidates get no response from overwhelmed employers.

tions, including new projects will continue to be challenged over the medium term.”

Fitch said the sector’s stable outlook continues to be reliant on the ability of real estate companies to maintain performance in light of the increasing supply and large expansion across all segments. Some estimates suggest that real estate prices in prime areas in Dubai have risen by up to 30 per cent in 2013 to date.

(Arabianbusiness)

As part of attracting top talent, you need to be going where the top talent is. Not the job boards, but social media like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Posting jobs online is a start and will build up a candidate base, but a majority of individuals are not actively looking for work. Most people find their next job through networking, so you want to try to plug into the networks of qualified candidates whenever possible. (Business Dictionary)

CJIA project going ahead – Minister Benn

Transport Minister Robeson Benn on Friday said that the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) Expansion Project will be going ahead as planned.

When asked where the funding will be coming from, he indicated that last year $20 million was approved and advanced by the National Assembly. The minister noted that the project is a valid one since the contractor is on the ground and equipment is already arriving.

The sod was turned in March last for the project that will improve Guyana’s capacity to accommodate larger categories of aircraft, thereby realising its potential as a hub for flights to and from the North and South America and further afield.

Guyana’s main port of entry will boast a runway of a total of 10,800 feet, a new terminal building, eight boarding bridges, elevators, escalators, three dimension-

al x-ray scanners, flight information and security monitoring systems. The length of the current runway precludes larger aircraft from coming to Guyana.

“We want to develop a hub, not only a regional hub for South America and the Caribbean, but also for trans Atlantic flights from Southern Africa and other parts going out to the East,” Minister Benn noted. He also explained that there are a large number of flights from Latin America

flying over Guyana’s territory and the implementation of the expansion presents an opportunity for them to land here and transfer passengers.

“So there’s a big opportunity we’re foregoing if we don’t do this project,” the minister emphasised. Further, the project will enable the effective and efficient handling of passengers and aircraft. On an annual basis, an average 4000 international flights and 600,000 passengers arrive at the CJIA.

These numbers are expected to double in the near future and by the year 2030, triple.

With regard to the relocation of the squatters near the airport, the minister indicated that he met with some of them on Wednesday and another batch two weeks ago, and the management of the CJIA was scheduled to meet the other residents today to convince them of the need for their relocation.

Cabinet clears US$762,600 to buy patrol boats for GDF

Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon on Friday announced that Cabinet has approved several contracts, one of which is for the purchase of pa -

trols boats to the tune of US$762,600 for the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).

At his weekly post-Cabinet media briefing at the Office of the President, Dr Luncheon said Cabinet at

its September 10 meeting gave its no-objection to several contracts in the security, education, agriculture and public works sectors. Below are the contracts Cabinet gave its noobjection.

saturday, september 14, 2013 |

Mind the Gap: Narrowing imbalances, while maintaining growth

Five years on since the crisis, the Group of Twenty (G20) advanced and emerging market economies have showed some progress in reducing their major internal and external imbalances.

But greater coordinated policy action is necessary for sustainable and balanced global growth, says a new analysis by the International Monetary Fund. (IMF)

The IMF’s Imbalances and Growth, issued as preparation for the recent G20 Leaders’ Summit in St Petersburg on September 5-6, highlights the need for stronger joint policy action to revive global economic growth, as imbalances become smaller.

The report assesses general trends and individual country situations for nine key economies – China, euro area, France, Germany, India, Japan, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States – identified as having relatively large mediumterm imbalances on the basis of the G20 guidelines.

The analysis was conducted in the context of the G20 framework for strong, sustainable and balanced growth and Mutual Assessment Process (MAP), a biennial exercise launched after the Pittsburgh Summit in 2009 to promote policy cooperation to meet shared growth objectives.

Key imbalances

The indicators used to evaluate key imbalances are public debt and fiscal deficits; private saving and private debt; and the external position, comprising trade balance, net investment income flows, and transfers.

The report – which covers both external and internal imbalances – updates the 2011 Cannes Summit staff analysis on the root causes of imbalances, their economic implications, and policy remedies in seven G20 economies.

That earlier assessment and its lessons have recently been released in a new IMF book, Global Rebalancing: a Roadmap for Economic Recovery

The good news: external imbalances have declined substantially since the crisis – for structural reasons, not just cyclical. In fact, the report finds that the imbalances in major G20 economies have decreased more

than the 2011 projections. While some temporary factors may have played a part, the staff analysis does not expect the imbalances to go back to pre-crisis levels if key policy commitments are met. Fiscal imbalances among the nine members analysed are also slowly improving, although public debt remains too high in many economies in the wake of the crisis.

China’s external surplus, for example, has narrowed markedly between 2008-13, from about 10 per cent to two per cent of GDP, reflecting rebalancing toward internal demand (higher investment).

The IMF projects more modest surpluses for the country over the medium term. The U.S. is also seeing its external and fiscal deficits decreasing from their peaks and they are expected to remain smaller over the medium term.

The IMF analysis also recognises that most of the adjustment – large declines in investment, increases in private saving, and higher government spending to cushion the fall in demand – occurred during the so-called “Great Recession” of 2009.

Part of the adjustment was also healthy in that it corrected a lot of the financial excess that preceded the crisis in 2007-8.

Lacklustre global growth

The not-so-good news: real GDP growth has been rather disappointing.

The outlook for advanced economies is marked down further below earlier trends, given the lasting effects of the crisis. Some of the narrowing of global imbalances has been driven by demand compression in deficit economies, which has hurt growth.

For example, U.S. private saving-investment balances adjusted sharply in the wake of market-led corrections, including the housing bust and tighter bank credit.

Part of the problem, according to the IMF analysis, is that in general, policy adjustment has played only a small role in reducing global imbalances thus far.

“Before the crisis, the global economy has shown the ability to expand rapidly when imbalances were widening and large, and, with the crisis and its aftermath, to

grow much more slowly when imbalances were narrower.

It has yet to pull off stronger growth with smaller imbalances.

Staff’s analysis offers a policy roadmap to achieve that,” noted Hamid Faruqee, division chief in the IMF’s Research Department and one of the lead authors of the report.

Policy roadmap for rebalancing

The report concludes that policy adjustments are needed along two broad dimensions.

First, there is a need for further internal rebalancing. Improving public finances in countries with persistently large budget deficits will help narrow their external deficits too.

The authorities in the U.S. and Japan should strive for substantial consolidation at a measured pace, anchored with credible fiscal roadmaps.

In the United Kingdom, policymakers will need to adjust, while also striking the right balance between concerns about debt sustainability and growth.

In India, where external pressures have recently heightened, the authorities will need to address underlying deficits through fundamental tax and subsidy reform, as well as structural improvements to the economy.

Second, there is a need for further external rebalancing, with policies tailored for key surplus and deficit economies.

On the surplus side, countries will need to carry out structural reforms to durably strengthen internal demand (Germany) or modify its composition (China).

In deficit economies, policymakers should focus on structural reforms designed to improve external competiveness.

These include product market reforms (Spain, France), services sector liberalisation (France, Germany), improving worker skills and banking sector competition (United Kingdom), and removing supply bottlenecks to strengthen exports (India). Further exchange rate adjustment –as discussed in the 2013 Pil ot External Sector Report –would also facilitate rebalancing.

Global food programme reaching over 10 million farmers across 25 countries

Partners in the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP), a multi-donor trust fund established in 2010 to improve food security in the world’s poorest countries on Wednesday announced the allocation of US$254.5 million in grants to eight countries.

The grants will support country-led initiatives to increase agricultural productivity, improve food and nutrition security, and reduce poverty in Burkina Faso, Honduras, Kyrgyz Republic, Mali, Nicaragua, Uganda, Yemen, and Zambia. International food prices

have spiked three times in the last five years.

With the outlook for future food pries uncertain, GAFSP seeks to improve food security and reduce poverty by delivering targeted financing for the agriculture sector in low-income countries. It takes up where emergency and recovery assistance leaves off, targeting transformative and lasting long-term development

“Canada is proud that its investment of more than US$250 million since 2010 has made a significant contribution to the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme’s ef-

forts to secure positive results in developing countries such as increased agricultural productivity, strengthened links between farmers and markets, and enhanced technical capacity of institutions to develop agricultural policies,” said Canadian International Development Minister Christian Paradis.

“Increasing food security is one of Canada’s priority international development themes and we are pleased to be part of this global partnership which promotes sustainable, country-led solutions to strengthen agriculture as a pathway to prosperity.”

Transport Minister Robeson Benn

SUDOKU

You’ll be greatly impacted by the actions of others. Emotions will be close to the surface, and expressing your feelings will help you recognise who is on your side and who isn’t.

By Bernice Bede Osol

(June 21July 22) (Jan. 20Feb. 19) (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

Stick close to home and avoid any interaction with authority figures or agencies that can cause setbacks. Use your intelligence to find loopholes that will help you get what you want.

Make changes to your personal appearance. Feeling good about the way you look will give you the confidence to reach out and to participate. An unusual pursuit will appeal to you.

Research something you want to purchase or pursue. What you find out will help you avoid a mishap that could influence your domestic situation.

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

(July 23Aug. 22) (Feb. 20-March 20)

It’s a good time to tackle pressing business matters. The influence you have on the outcome of a situation that could positively shake things up is far greater than you realise.

(March 21-April 19)

You’ll have trouble making up your mind today. Don’t read too much into a situation that could disrupt your life. You’ll need to readily be able to forgive and forget.

(April 20-May 20)

Keep your mind focused on the big plan, but don’t forget to have some fun. Seek out some close friends and loved ones for a little quality recreation time.

(May 21June 20)

Listen and pay attention to what others say. Get any offers in writing. Stick close to home and do whatever it takes to make your place comfortable and user-friendly.

Travel plans will lift your spirits. Even if you take a short trip or sign up for an evening of fun and games, it will do much to enliven your day.

(Sept. 23Oct. 23)

Don’t overdo it. Generosity will generate a false friendship with someone looking for a handout. Draw the line and be prepared to change your plans when it comes to entertainment and socialising.

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Do the preparatory work that will make planned alterations to your life or your home easier. Make sure that you involve all necessary parties for maximum harmony.

(Nov. 23Dec. 21)

Progressive action will result in greater productivity. Stand tall and wield opportunities like a pro. Don’t let emotions mess with your mind.

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Dentures provided in 72 hours from as low as $4500. Contact Dr B Stuart, 209B Charlotte Street, Lacytown. Tel: 225-5034

FLOwERS

Available: Fresh long-stemmed roses, fresh dried and silk floral arrangements, gift items, bridal boutiques and wreaths. Nesha’s Flowerland. 78 Church Street (opposite St George’s Cathedral). Tel: 227-3553/225-3315

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Gold Land, excellent investment. Priced to sell, call 682-0365, 6141669 Wine vessel (jue) Shang dynasty, old Chinese painting, old Ming prints, Ming dynasty Chinese painting on bamboo, Qi Baishi orginal painting, rare bowls and pots, all Chinese antiques. Phone: 592-623- 7029

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Psychotherapy available for all types of abnormal behaviors – addictions, emotional, suicidal, anger, relationship and sexual problems. Treatment of stress disorders, depression, fear, low self-esteem, insomnia, trauma, psychosomatic sicknesses, and children's disorders. We also conduct IQ evaluations and behavioral assessments. By appointments only. Clinic hours: 11:00 – 17:00h. Tel: 592-621-0552. Email:healthworldhc@gmail.com

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Are you pouring on pounds? Then call Raul /Carol Wilson: 660-6818, 6415923, 216-3016, 216-3601 for your healthy eating package. Stay healthy and flexible with yoga. Phone: 693-2233

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One business property, Lamaha Street. Phone: 669-3313, 231-4586, 695-4382. Properties for sale. Phone: 642-2116

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Parfaite Harmonie $1M and $1.2M phone: 675-7292

46 houselots in residential area between Charles & Peter Streets, Parika, EBE. Phone: 622-6971/6612289

TravelSpan applies for non-stop service to Guyana, Trinadad

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Kaieteur Falls day tour, US$150. ManausBrazil US$800 Phone: 231-6663

One Honda Cappa (Yellow) ideal for taxi or private use. Leather seats and roof, reverse camera, DVD/TV/ CD player, mag rims. Also Motorola Base Radio with Antennae. HC series; immaculate condition; give away price $1.2M. Call 647-2491. One black scooter for sale, excellent condition. Phone: 602-7277, for information.

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TravelSpan Vacations and Vision Airlines is currently applying to the U.S. Department of Transportation for authorisation to begin non-stop service to Guyana and Trinidad, using a wide-body 767, effective December 2013.

TravelSpan, a leader in the Caribbean travel industry, has been serving these markets for over 18 years and now recognises the need for a new carrier to operate in the market based on the principals of fairness and customer service.

TravelSpan will resume its tradition of using outstanding in-flight customer service representatives for

the comfort of is passengers and flights will be staffed with both Caribbean and American flight attendants.

TravelSpan will be collaborating with Vision Airlines which brings 20 years of aviation expertise, along with a fleet of three 767s, three 737s and several DORNIER 328 aircraft.

TravelSpan also announced today that Rob Binns, former chairman and chief executive officer of Global Aviation whose subsidiaries include North American Airlines and World Airways have joined the company in an advisory role.

Binns holds an MBA in finance from the University

of Kansas and a master’s degree in political behaviour from Essex University in England.

Since 2007, Binns has served on The Carter Centre Board of Councillors, which serves to advance understanding of and support for The Carter Centre and its activities. Members attend quarterly meetings with President Carter and act as informed advocates of The Carter Centre.

The proposed flights –subject to government approval – will depart John F Kennedy International Airport for Guyana on Thursdays and Saturdays and Trinidad on Tuesdays and Fridays with additional flights for the peak season. Schedule and fares will be forth coming subject to governments and U.S. Department of Transportaion for approval.

For up to date information, visit Travelspan. com or follow the company on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. The company local officers can be contacted on telephone numbers 718845-0437 and 592-227-1701 for further information on rates and schedule

Niger delta oil spill victims reject Shell compensation offer

Niger delta communities devastated by giant oil spills from rusting Shell pipelines have unanimously rejected a compensation offer from the company, calling it an insult, and cruel and derisory.

A court in London is now likely to decide how much the Anglo-Dutch firm should pay 11,000 fishermen and others from the Bodo community who lost their livelihoods when the 50-year-old Shell-operated trans-Niger pipeline burst twice within a few months in 2008.

Sources close to the negotiations in Port Harcourt this week suggest Shell offered the communities £30 million, or around £1100

for each person affected. Martyn Day, a partner with the UK law firm Leigh Day who represented those communities, said Shell’s offer was rejected unanimously at a large public meeting in Bodo.

“The amount offered for most claimants equated to two to three years’ net lost earnings whereas the Bodo creek has already been out of action for five years and it may well be another 20-25 before it is up and running properly again.

I was not at all surprised to see the community walk out of the talks once they heard what Shell were offering.”

On Friday the full scale of

the spills could be seen from the air with over 75 square kilometres of mangrove forests, creeks, swamps and channels thick with crude oil.

Estimates of how much oil was spilled ranged from around 4,000 barrels to more than 300,000. Communities this week reported that no cleanup had been done and that water wells were still polluted.

Five years after the spills the creeks and waterways around Bodo have an apocalyptic feel. The air stinks of crude, long slicks of oil drift in and out of the blackened, dying mangrove swamps and a sheen of oil covers the tidal mudflats.

Global food programme reaching...

Including these new allocations, GAFSP has allocated US$912 million to 25 countries and expects to improve the incomes and food security of over 10 million beneficiaries, mainly smallholder farmers and their families. The programme is already having a large impact on the ground. For example, in Sierra Leone, where the agriculture sector contributes 40 per cent to GDP, GAFSP support has already worked to rehabilitate 1300 hectares of inland valley swamps and to increase access to rural financial services including creating 15 financial services association and four community banks.

“GAFSP provides meritbased financing that consistently produces high impact,

sustainable results, focused on smallholder farmers in poor communities,” said U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard.

“It’s no surprise that demand for GAFSP’s targeted assistance remains high, as evidenced by the record number of well-developed programmes received this round. Given the importance of global food security, the United States is proud to support this innovative and successful programme, and we ask that other nations increase their investment in GAFSP.”

GAFSP was established in the wake of the food price crisis to fund long-term solutions that build resilience, put policies in place to help people cope with price volatility, and

help avert future crises.

To date, a total of US$1.3 billion has been pledged to GAFSP by Australia, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Canada, Japan, Ireland, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the U.S., with funds going to countries that have strategic, innovative and credible plans already in place to improve agricultural productivity and food security. The U.S. has issued a funding challenge to match an additional US$1 to GAFSP for every US$2 contributed by other donors up to US$475 million from the U.S. ; in order to maximise the pledge, GAFSP needs to raise an additional US$575 million from other donors.

VEHiCLES FOR SALE

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A Travel Span aircraft

Sreesanth gets life ban for IPL fixing

India and Rajasthan Royals fast bowler Sreesanth has been handed a life ban by the BCCI for his involvement in spot-fixing in IPL 2013. His Royals teammate and Mumbai spinner Ankeet Chavan was also banned for life, following the board’s disciplinary committee meeting in Delhi on Friday.

Amit Singh, the Gujarat cricketer-turned-bookie, got a five-year ban, while Saurashtra and Royals seamer Siddharth Trivedi was suspended for a year for not reporting an approach among other things. Twenty-one-year-old Harmeet Singh, who was part of India’s Under-19 World Cup winning team in 2012 and had a similar charge against him as Trivedi, has been cleared of wrongdoing due to a lack of evidence against him.

There has been no ruling as yet on offspinner Ajit Chandila, the third Royals player who was arrested in May, since he is yet to be questioned

by Ravi Sawani, who led the BCCI’s probe into the matter and whose report formed the basis for the board’s actions. Save for a few days when Chandila was out on bail due to a death in the family, he has been in police or judicial custody since his arrest on May 16, meaning Sawani could not speak to him. However, he was granted bail on September 9, so his case should come up soon.

Sreesanth and Chavan were out on bail since June 11.

While Trivedi is banned from playing any BCCI-

organised cricket, the other three are banned from playing any such cricket or in any way being associated with activities of the Indian board or its affiliates. The penalties were decided upon by the disciplinary committee, comprising board president N Srinivasan and vice-presidents Arun Jaitley and Niranjan Shah. The ban means Trivedi will have to be replaced in Royals’ squad for the Champions League T20, which begins on September 21. Sreesanth tweeted soon after the news of his ban

broke, saying he found it “surprising”. “Been tracking the news channels... Me getting a life ban??!! Very surprising,” he said. The tweet was deleted soon after.

The Sawani report had recommended bans ranging from five years to life for the four players it found guilty on multiple accounts, including “match-fixing” and “seeking or offering a bribe as a reward for match-fixing”, the Indian Express reported earlier in the day.

Despite Sreesanth’s “surprise”, a BCCI insider revealed the committee was unanimous in handing him a life ban, with the intention of sending out a message. Amit Singh, the source said, benefitted from the fact that he wasn’t involved in IPL 2013 as a player. “Moreover, even though he has introduced players to bookies, it has been established that he hasn’t played any direct part in fixing. However, since he is a registered player with BCCI, he falls

in the ambit of the BCCI ACSU code. As a result, five years was sought to be a suitable punishment,” the source said.

However, the committee overruled Sawani’s guilty ruling on Harmeet Singh, its sole divergence from the recommendations. Harmeet was given benefit of doubt. Since he was coerced into a solitary meeting, reported it to the Rajasthan Royals team management and ACSU immediately after Chandila’s arrest and then co-operated with the police, it was felt it would be too harsh to spoil a youngster’s career.

The disciplinary committee’s task was made relatively easy by the tough tone of the final report, which said none of the players were naive to the propositions of manipulation.

“There is no specific mitigating factor that would require any mercy while sanctioning the aforesaid guilty players,” Sawani said in the report. “Sreesanth

has played a number of international games and was part of the Indian national team which won the inaugural T20 World Cup, 2007 and ICC Cricket World Cup in 2011. He has received the ICC ACSU education programme on many occasions. In any case all the three players of Rajasthan Royals who are now being accused and found guilty by the under-signed received the ICC Education Programme just prior to the beginning of the IPL-6 season i.e. on April 5, 2013. The programme was delivered to the entire Rajasthan Royals team by Mr Arrie De Bear, regional security manager of the ICC ACSU.

“Obviously, the anticorruption education given to the three players had no impact on the conduct. Therefore, the three players deserve no leniency whatsoever.”

The players, minus Chandila, were summoned by the board to present their case in the disciplinary committee meeting in Delhi. (Cricinfo)

Harare promises thrilling final day

This Test has been played with pay strife and load shedding as the sightscreens, but Zimbabwe were five wickets short of lifting that gloom momentarily.

Misbah-ul-Haq stood between them and only their fifth Test win against teams other than Bangladesh, their first since 2001. It seemed they had given up a significant bit of their advantage as they lost their last six wickets for 78 and as the Pakistan openers attacked them for quick early runs, but Tendai Chatara and Prosper Utseya pulled Pakistan back with timely strikes.

Pakistan themselves were chasing a bit of a landmark: a win here will be their third-highest successful chase, and their first of a 200-run target in close to last 10 years. Having fallen behind over the first three days, Pakistan tried the classical big-team trick: bowl tight and let the opposition batsmen make the mistake, and try to demoralise them when they bowl.

The first part worked well. Rahat Ali led a bowling unit that aimed for the cracks as opposed to trying anything spectacular. The scoring stalled with in-andout fields in place. Three of

the six Zimbabweans to be dismissed on Friday fell to poor shots. But when Pakistan’s batsmen tried to dominate the bowlers, though, they couldn’t keep it up for long enough. Chatara struck the first blows with wickets of Mohammad Hafeez and Azhar Ali, and Utseya accounted for the dangerous Khurram Manzoor for 54, and Asad Shafiq. That batting freely would be difficult was evident for the morning ses-

sion. Rahat and Abdur Rehman began with the simple plan of landing the ball near the crack that runs down the middle of the pitch. The ball would jag either side after hitting the crack, and a wicket always looked around the corner. Rahat first got Vusi Sibanda, who batted at No. 6 because he was unwell on the third day.

The pressure - the two bowled the first 12.4 overs of the day for just 25 runswas palpable. When Saeed

Ajmal came on to bowl, Malcolm Waller saw release in a short and wide ball, but failed to keep it down and gave point the catch. Junaid Khan, the other change, hit the crack even more regularly. Once when he did, the ball moved away from Elton Chigumbura, beating his outside edge. From a similar area, the next ball didn’t move, but the muscle memory had already drawn Chigumbura across, and the edge was taken.

The chaos continued after lunch when Brendan Taylor ended his fighting innings with a limp drive at a full and wide delivery. The lead hadn’t yet reached 250. Richmond Mutumbani now began to attack, scoring 21 off the 25 balls he faced after Taylor got out. Those crucial runs added, he got a leading edge to Ajmal, followed shortly by a flailing pull from Tendai Chatara.

Chatara was much more effective when it came to bowling. The Pakistan openers had somewhat rattled the Zimbabwe bowlers a bit as they began to

walk at them and drive prodigiously. By the end of the seventh over, they had reached 29. Only one of those 29 was run. Taylor then called on Chatara. Hafeez continued to walk down the wicket. His premeditation consumed him. First he pulled a ball he should have been cutting. If this one fell short of midon, the next early walk down the wicket resulted in a leading edge that was swallowed by mid-on. It was followed up by a beauty to Azhar, a length ball that held its line in front of off, squaring the batsman up and hitting the off stump. (Cricinfo)

SCOREBOARD

Zimbabwe 2nd innings

T Mawoyo lbw b Abdur Rehman 58

P Utseya c Asad Shafiq b Rahat Ali 5

H Masakadza lbw b Rahat Ali 44

T Panyangara c Azhar Ali b Abdur Rehman 0

B Taylor* c Azhar Ali b Rahat Ali 27

V Sibanda c †Adnan Akmal

b Rahat Ali 10

M Waller c Khurram Manzoor

b Saeed Ajmal 3

E Chigumbura c †Adnan Akmal

b Junaid Khan 3

R Mutumbami† c Abdur Rehman

b Saeed Ajmal 29

T Chatara c †Adnan Akmal

b Rahat Ali 1

B Vitori not out 0

Extras: (b3, lb11, w5) 19

Total: (all out, 89.5 overs) 199

Fall of wickets: 1-13, 2-117, 3-121, 4-121, 5-136, 6-149, 7-156, 8-177, 9-199, 10-199 Bowling:

19-637-1,

5,

Abdur Rehman 24-5-40-2 Pakistan 2nd innings Khurram Manzoor c Waller b Utseya 54 Mohammad Hafeez c Vitori b Chatara 16 Azhar Ali b Chatara 0 Younis Khan b Vitori 29

Misbah-ul-Haq*

The Zimbabwe players celebrate a wicket

Sreesanth Ankeet Chavan

Furyk hits 59 to equal PGA Tour record

Jim Furyk shot 59 to equal the record for the lowest 18-hole score in PGA Tour history in round two of the BMW Championship in Illinois.

The 43-year-old American becomes only the sixth player to card a sub60 round after 11 birdies, an eagle and a bogey.

Furyk’s score of 12 under at the par-71 Conway Farms course gave him a share of the lead at 11 under with last year’s FedEx Cup winner Brandt Snedeker (68).

“It’s absolutely the best round of golf I’ve ever played,” Furyk said.

“It will sink in later and I’ll have to calm down and realise I’m in contention for the golf tournament.”

Furyk’s previous best round is a 62, which he has achieved five times in his career.

The eight-time Ryder Cup star joins Al Geiberger, Chip Beck, David Duval, Paul Goydos and Stuart Appleby as the only players to shoot 59 on the PGA Tour.

No player on the European Tour has ever achieved the feat, although 16 players have shot 60.

Furyk set up his round with a stunning outward nine of 28, eight under par, which included an eagle at the 15th where he holed out from 115 yards.

Further birdies at the second, third, and fourth raised hopes of a possible first 58 but he made his only mistake of the day with a three-putt bogey at the fifth.

However, he immediately recovered by sinking an 11-foot birdie putt at the seventh.

Furyk, who was a surprise omission from the US team for next month’s Presidents Cup, escaped a tricky lie under the lip of a

greenside bunker for a par five at the eighth.

Needing to birdie his final hole, the tricky par-four ninth, to break 60, Furyk split the fairway off the tee and struck a superb wedge from 103 yards to three feet before he calmly rolled in the putt.

“It definitely played some tricks with my head on the way in,” he added.

Former Masters champion Zach Johnson was three two shots off the lead at eight under after a secondround 70, while Tiger Woods lost ground after being penalised two strokes at the first.

The 14-time major champion’s ball was seen on TV to have moved as he removed some loose impediments behind his ball and video footage was reviewed as he completed his round.

Slugger White, the PGA Tour’s vice president of rules and competition, advised Woods not to sign his card until he had seen the video himself and the American’s six was turned into an eight for a 72 and four under.

“I told him not to turn it in until I talked to him, and he looked at it, and clearly felt like the ball just oscillated,” said White. “It’s pretty

clear that the ball did move.”

England’s Brian Davis led the British challenge on three under after a 67, one shot ahead of compatriot Luke Donald (70).

Another Englishman Lee Westwood looked less troubled by the back and neck problems that blighted his first round as he improved from an 80 to a 73 to end 11 over.

Defending champion Rory McIlroy, 24, was unable to gain any significant ground, though, as he finished only one shot better off than his first-round 78.

The Northern Irishman, who is without a win since the World Tour Championship in November last year, reached halfway at 13 over and in last place after a round that included six bogeys, one double bogey and two birdies.

The BMW Championship is the third leg of four in the FedEx Cup end-of-season play-off series.

There is no halfway cut but only the top 30 players in the standings will qualify for next week’s Tour Championship in Atlanta, where the FedEx Cup winner will claim the $10m (£6.3m) prize. (BBC Sport)

Bennett has high expectations

BENGALURU, India –West Indies A-Team head coach Junior Bennett said he has confidence in the players on the tour of India and wants to see them play above expectations.

Bennett said he was heartened by the performances from his side during their home series against Sri Lanka-A in June, but he wants to see improvement from the players, starting with the first One-day match against India-A on Sunday at the Chinnaswamy Stadium here.

“This is a very important series for us,” said Bennett. “They are a number of young players that needed an opportunity to show their skills and now they have got it.

“They need now to grab that opportunity and if we can stick to the basics and play consistently, I think we can be competitive, so we are all looking forward to it.”

He added: “We will make the most of the time available to us and try to prepare as well as we can for the first match on Sunday.

“I always like to start a tournament positively and this should help us to set the tone for the rest of the matches.”

There is an incentive for the players on the A-Team – with the senior team set to tour India next month, outstanding performances could easily be rewarded with a return ticket to the south Asian nation.

Kieran Powell, one of the players looking to formalise his place in the senior side, has been handed the reins of captaincy and Bennett had high hopes for the left-handed opener from Nevis.

“It will be my first time working with him as a captain, but he’s a good, young player and he’s been given a good opportunity to be captain, so he will have to do his best,” said Bennett.

“I think this is a good move because we should be trying to blood someone for the future. We do not know what will happen five or eight years from now, so I think ‘Pow Pow’ is intelligent enough and knows the game and we will see what happens here.”

India, NZ tour a tough duo – Gibson

BRIDGET o WN , Barbados - ottis Gibson, the West Indies head coach, believes the impromptu India series will be the most stern test for his team’s progress since their T20 World Cup title in Sri Lanka.

Gibson admitted that he was eager for the India Tests after many pundits failed to rate the West Indies Test victories over Zimbabwe and Bangladesh as noteworthy.

“If you look at the last six Tests we played, we won them. It’s been good progress but I know people aren’t considering them as big wins,” Gibson said.

“Against India however, we can really gauge the progress. I’d never discount wins against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh though because they are upcoming and tal-

ented but India will be an immense challenge and we’re looking forward to it.”

He alluded to Chris Gayle as a key factor for the upcoming series as he feels

the team is stronger, especially with players like Sunil Narine garnering more experience. The IPL has also bred familiarity for his players on India pitches, which

he hoped would boost their chances.

“We were in India a couple of years ago and played good cricket, but didn’t win. Now the team dynamic is different, and with Gayle back, we’ll give a tougher run.

“Then, against New Zealand, we’ll be looking to move to number five in the Test rankings as that’s our aim. I want to put some distance between us and them but they gave England a tough time in the Tests, so it won’t be easy. India into New Zealand is a tough duo to tour.”

Gibson stated that while they weren’t expecting the India series, he was confident they would be sufficiently prepared with a fitness testing at month’s end and a small training camp prior to departure in october.

With New Zealand looming after and a January return home for his charges, Gibson did add that rest was needed, as well as family downtime, for his players.

“It’s a challenge. We were preparing for New Zealand and now everything gets fast-forwarded for the India series. It just sprung up and the guys will spend a long time away from home. We have to get the balance right, but we’re preparing to get the cricket aspects right first. I’d like my players to have their family time, so we’ll sort this out.”

Gibson also warned that the T20 laurels needed to be put to bed for the time being to focus on the other formats.

“Test cricket is getting exciting. We can’t forget about the T20 World

Cup defense but we need to park it for now as it’s a little bit away. We’ll defend that because we believe we have the best T20 players in the world. once we keep the same core and mentality from the last World Cup, we’ll repeat in Bangladesh.” He was more critical of their oDI performances and added that the selectors were moving closer to formulating a core 15 for the 2015 World Cup in Australia.

“We know our oDI team is hit and miss at the moment so we, and the selectors, are concerned. We’ve changed leaders and we have time to prep for 2015. In the next six to twelve months, we’ll assess and have a core unit. We have world-class players for various situations so we’ll see how it goes.”

(First Published On Cricinfo)

Jim Furyk

Ottis Gibson

Junior Bennett goes through wicket-keeping drills with Jahmar Hamilton

Australia keen to continue progress

This series has been reduced to a threematch contest following the abandonment at Edgbaston, so England now face, in Eoin Morgan’s words, a “semi-final and a final” in the remaining two matches if they are to win this series from today.

Winning is the stated aim for England despite their experimental squad and, given the shortened nature of the series, winning is perhaps all they can expect to take from it because there is now little opportunity to have a look at the players they called up. Michael Carberry won’t want to be judged on just three innings and Morgan said he will retain his place as opener for the rest of this series.

Likewise, England would like Steven Finn to get some more game time to gauge where his bowling is ahead of the winter Ashes tour; Finn perhaps feels that he needs a solid performance to nail down a place as backup bowler in the Test squad. Jamie Overton and Chris Jordan will now probably get one chance at best to announce their arrival in international cricket and none of the batsmen now need a rest so the opportunity for Luke Wright to return is slim.

What cricket there has been in this series, Australia have played by far the best

Michael Clarke

of it and they will be eager to get back on the park again and continue their progress. They have been motivated, sharp in all departments and desperately keen to take something away from what has been a tough tour. The form of George Bailey at Old Trafford suggested Michael Clarke might find some support and Mitchell Johnson has been back to his terrifying best, suggesting he could become a fine bowler in all forms of the game again.

Steven Finn can’t make up his mind whether he’s a high class international bowler or not. He has all the attributes to do so but there has been a sense of him being dragged from pil-

lar to post by England and Middlesex. A change of run up and back again; in and out of the Test side; none of it can have helped Finn’s confidence but if he can rediscover the form that tore through New Zealand in the ODI series back in February, we could be talking about Finn as England’s next superstar again.

Aaron Finch showed what a blistering player he can be in the Twenty20 at the Ageas Bowl. He followed that up with a battering of Scotland and is primed to show he can produce regularly in ODIs. He endured a lean series against West Indies in February but is now clearly striking the ball at his best. (Cricinfo)

Nadal and Djokovic win Davis Cup matches

US Open champion Rafael Nadal continued his fine form as he crushed Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-0 6-0 6-4 to give Spain a 2-0 lead over Ukraine in their Davis Cup World Group play-off.

Nadal, 27, triumphed at Flushing Meadows with victory over Novak Djokovic just four days earlier.

“I am here to try to help the team,” said Nadal, who is also set to play in Saturday’s doubles.

Serbia’s Djokovic was also in action, beating Canada’s Vasek Pospisil.

Djokovic’s 6-2 6-0 6-4

victory in front of a partisan home crowd in Belgrade gave his nation a 1-0 advantage in their semi-final match, before Milos Raonic beat Janko Tipsarevic 5-7 6-3 3-6 6-3 10-8 to level the tie.

The Czech Republic lead Argentina 2-0 in the other semi-final after victories for Radek Stepanek and Tomas Berdych over Juan Monaco and Leonardo Mayer respectively.

Spain, champions three times in the past five years, must win their tie to remain in the elite World Group and avoid dropping into one of

Ramnarine’s bid to be TTCB president receives timely boost

PORT-OF-SPAIN,

Trinidad - Well known cricket administrator Dinanath Ramnarine’s bid to become the next president of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) has received a timely boost.

Ramnarine, a former President of the West Indies Players Association (WIPA), was elected as a club representative after the National League of the TTCB held their election. Ramnarine along

with Daren Ganga, both former West Indies cricketers, were among six people voted in as club representatives.

Ramnarine is throwing his hat into the ring to become the next president of the TTCB at the annual general elections on October 29. Ganga, his running mate, was also selected along with former national cricketer Andre Lawrence and Giles Antoine, Clint Pamphile and Anil Kamal.

ZC targets 2014 tri-series with Australia, South Africa

Zimbabwe Cricket is reportedly exploring the possibility of a tri-series against South Africa and Australia in 2014. ZC managing director Wilfred Mukondiwa also hinted at a four-day matches against Ireland next year, in the IndependentSport. Sri Lanka’s scheduled tour of Zimbabwe later this year, meanwhile, is very unlikely to go ahead, with the newspaper reporting that the two boards have agreed to postpone the tour on Zimbabwe Cricket’s request.

“We have proposed a triangular series with South Africa and Australia next year after the World T20, which will be played in Bangladesh,” Mukondiwa said. “We are exploring that option so that it’s more competitive and lucrative. The World T20 and the visit by the two nations are the ma-

the regional second-tier zone divisions.

With team-mate Fernando Verdasco having recovered from a set down to beat world number 40 Alexandr Dolgopolov, Nadal can win the tie if he and Marc Lopez beat Vladyslav Manafov and Denys Molchanov in Saturday’s doubles.

“Once I have made the effort to come here, to play the doubles is only a small extra effort,” added Nadal.

“Hopefully we can finish the match tomorrow and then I can rest on Sunday.”

jor events for us next year.”

The Future Tours Programme for 2014 has Australia visiting Zimbabwe for a three-match ODI series in July, with South Africa following soon after for a full tour featuring the same number of one-day games, in addition to two Tests and a Twenty20 spread over July and August. ZC are hoping to replace the two ODIs series with a tri-series.

Mukondiwa added there could be a “possibility” of hosting Ireland for four-day matches. “It is one of the programmes that have been proposed for Full Members, to engage Associate members. So Ireland is one of them and, depending on the schedule, playing them is a possibility.

“We played them a couple of years ago and we would be happy to engage them again, but it all depends on the cal-

endar as to where we can slot that in.”

Zimbabwe had enjoyed relative success series during Ireland’s visit in 2010, winning the one-day series 2-1 and drawing the only four-day game.

ZC is looking at “more lucrative” options as it has been beset by financial problems. Delays to players’ salaries almost jeopardised the series against Pakistan, and Sri Lanka Cricket had confirmed the Zimbabwe board wrote to it, asking to postpone its team’s tour - hosting Sri Lanka would further hit Zimbabwe’s already depleted finances.

Last month, SLC had approached the boards of West Indies, New Zealand, Australia and England to fill the void in Sri Lanka’s calendar should the Zimbabwe tour be postponed. (Cricinfo)

Qatar chief rejects calls to move World Cup 2022 finals

The head of the Qatar 2022 World Cup has rejected calls for the tournament to be awarded to another country.

Governing body Fifa is expected to move the tournament to winter to avoid Qatar’s high summer temperatures.

And Football Association chairman Greg Dyke said the tournament might have to move location if a suitable time to play in Qatar could not be agreed.

But Hassan al-Thawadi insists there is “no reason” why Qatar should not host the event as planned in 2022.

“We’ve worked very, very hard to ensure we’re within the rules of the bidding, within the rules of the hosting agreement,” he told BBC Sport.

“At the same time we’re delivering on all the promises that we’ve made. We’re working very hard to deliver it. The commitment is there.

“[Qatar] is the right place, the Middle East is the right place, We are representing the Middle East, it

is a Middle Eastern World Cup. The Middle East deserves to host a major tournament.”

FIFA president Sepp Blatter is determined to switch the 2022 World Cup to the winter as summer temperatures can reach 50C in the Middle Eastern country.

Blatter, 77, has admitted the governing body may have made a “mistake” in awarding the tournament to Qatar in the summer.

“A summer World Cup is what we bid for. It’s the original plan, and we are going for it and we are moving ahead with it,” said AlThawadi, who is Secretary General of the Qatar 2022 Organising Committee.

“I’d like to assure everybody that it is not an impossibility to host the World Cup in the Qatar in the summer.

“It will be an amazing World Cup whether it is in June July or November December or May or January February at any moment in time we are ready to hostwe are ready to host this at any time.”

FA chairman Dyke told the BBC in August that a summer World Cup in Qatar, who defeated rival bids from South Korea, Japan, Australia and the United States in December 2010, would be “impossible”. The Premier League has taken an opposing stance, with chief executive Richard Scudamore insisting the tournament should go ahead in the summer.

However, Europe’s leading clubs have said they are “open” to the possibility of a winter World Cup in Qatar in 2022.

Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, chairman of the European Club Association (ECA) believes it is “probably” better to switch the finals to winter.

The ECA is an independent body representing the interests of Europe’s leading clubs. Ten English clubs are members - Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Fulham, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle and Tottenham. (BBC Sport)

Novak Djokovic

Rafael Nadal

Dinanath Ramnarine

DeSinco Trading 11-race cycling meet on

today

The 13th DeSinco

Trading 11-race cycle programme will pedal off this morning from 09:00h around the inner circuit of the National Park.

Linden’s Marlon “Fishy” Williams will defend his title in the feature 35-lap School Boys and Invitational race, having won the event last year in one hour, 14 minutes, 59 seconds (01h: 14m: 59s).

Akeem Wilkinson had won the Juveniles 10-lap event, while Junior Niles and Alfie Soonaram are the defending champions of the Veterans Under-50 and 1214 Boys and Girls races respectively.

Other events carded for the day include the Veterans’ Over-50 and 60, Mountain bike, BMX Open, 6-9, 9-12 and 12-14 years.

The day’s activities are

being coordinated by national cycling coach, Hassan Mohamed.

The company, located on Sheriff and John Streets, is sponsoring the event through its Degree line of

deodorants, and as was the case with previous years, Degree representatives will be on hand to assist in the presentation of prizes at the conclusion of the races.

Second GSCL 12/12 championship bowls off today

The second Georgetown Softball Cricket League Incorporated’s (GSCL) 12/12 championships will bowl off today at the Everest Cricket Club ground at 10:00h.

Twelve teams, including defending champions Memorex, were placed into four groups and will contest the preliminary rounds of the tournament on a roundrobin basis, with the top two teams advancing to the quarter-final, set for next Saturday. The semi-final and final will be played the following day.

Memorex, who were drawn in Group D alongside R1 and Universal DVD Titans, will sit out the first round as the other teams do battle. Memorex will play later in the day.

Trophy Stall, Regal XI and East Coast All Star

are in Group A, with Regal XI drawing the bye; Speed Boat, Better Hope and Recharge are the teams competing out of Group B, with Recharge earning

the bye and Invaders, Wolf Warriors and Romaine XI battling it out of Group C, with Romaine XI drawing the first round bye.

At the end of the tournament the winner will receive $600,000 and a trophy, with the second place team collecting $200,000 and a trophy.

Apart from the two top teams receiving cash incentives, the man-of-the-series will receive one three-piece living room suite, the best batsman and bowler will each walk away with $5000 and a trophy and the manof-the-match in the final, $10,000 and a trophy.

Director of Sport within the National Sports Commission (NSC) Neil Kumar is expected to deliver the opening remarks, before the action bowls off with two group matches.

After being suspended for months due to the prolonged rainy season, the Universal DVD Club first division T20 cricket competition, organised by the Berbice Cricket Board, will this weekend in Berbice.

Today’s Group A fixture will see Rose Hall Town Gizmos & Gadgets playing Police and D’Eward at Rose Hall at 09:00h and 13:30h respectively while Blairmont Community Centre host Karibee Rice Port Mourant from 13:30h.

In Group B, West

Berbice clash with Bermine at Bush Lot from 09:00h and at 13:30h Bush Lot United Rising Star will play Skeldon Community Centre at Bush Lot and Edinburgh host Upper Corentyne.

Sunday’s Group A games will have Edinburgh hosting West Berbice and Skeldon Community Centre at 09:00h and 13:30h respectively.

In the Group B matches D’Edward will host Police and Port Mourant Karibee Rice at 09:00h and 13:30h respectively.

Ramdeen guides Young Warriors to final, play Albion on September 22

Afighting half-century from Kevin Ramdeen guided Young Warriors Universal DVD Cricket Club to the final of the inaugural Berbice River Bridge Company first division 50-over cricket competition last Sunday in Berbice.

Ramdeen stroked 66 off 50 balls, inclusive of four fours and four sixes, as his team edged Karibee Rice Port Mourant by one-wicket. The result means Young Warriors Universal DVD Cricket Club will face Albion Community Centre in the final scheduled for September 22 at the Cumberland ground.

Chasing 244 for victory, the eventual winners reached 249 for 9 in 48.4 overs. Ramdeen received support from Shimron Hetmyer, who made a quick-

fire 42 off 24 balls, Lindon Austin (23), Khemraj Sumair (20) and Kassim Khan (15 not out).

Bowling for Karibee Rice Port Mourant, Devendra

Thakurdeen, Manoj Looknauth and Yudendra Harrinarine all claimed two wickets apiece.

Earlier, Andrew Lyght Jr (78) featured in a 111-run third wicket partnership with Joshua Ramsammy (43) to validate the decision to bat first. Lyght Jr smashed four fours and a similar amount of sixes in his 52-ball innings. Lower order batsman Manoj Looknauth supported with 35 while Yudendra Harrinarine and Gregory Crandon made 17 runs apiece.

Bowling for Young Warriors, Kassim Khan took 3 for 38, left arm spinner Karamchand Ramnarine, 2 for 41, off-spinner Hubern Evans, 2 for 42, and Ramdeen, 2 for 50, to cap a satisfying outing both with the bat and ball.

With entries topping the 60-horse mark, the principals of the Bush Lot United Turf Club (BLUTC) have continue to put systems in place for the club’s horse race meet, scheduled for Sunday at the club’s entity at Sea View Park, Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice.

An impressive sevenrace programme has been put together with all the big names set to be on show for what is expected to be a competitive day of racing. Organisers have also added a substantial amount of cash and other attractions to the day’s activities, totaling over $7 million.

The feature race will be for horses classified C and Lower and will run a mile for $1.2 million.

Other events billed for

the day are the E and Lower for $600,000 over a distance of one mile, the Three-yearold race for animals bred and born in Guyana and the West Indies for $500,000,

Two-year-old Guyana and West Indies bred horses, also $500,000, the race for the G3 and Lower for $400,000, the I and Lower for $200,000 and the J, K and L Class for $150,000.

Registration for the meet will close on September 23. Interested horse owners can make contact with Sukhdeo on telephone numbers 2320558 or 672-0810 or president R Jagit on 232-0231. Race time is 12:30h. Meanwhile, according to coordinator Lakeram Sukhdeo, repair works to the fence and pavilion have been completed.

Sukhdeo indicated that apart from the races, an after race party will be stage with the popular 71 Sound System as well as attractions will be put in place for children. (Rajiv Bisnauth)

Bale to make Real Madrid debut today – Ancelotti

World-record signing Gareth Bale will make his debut for Real Madrid against Villarreal today, coach Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed.

The 24-year-old joined Real from Tottenham for £85.3 million on 1 September but has not played a full match yet this season because of a foot injury. He managed 32 minutes in Wales’ 3-0 defeat by Serbia on Tuesday.

“Bale will travel and will play. I’m not sure if he will start or come off from the bench,” said Ancelotti.

The Italian also confirmed in a media confer-

ence on Friday that he plans to play Bale as a right-sided attacker. “Bale came here without having a normal pre-season, but his condition is not bad,” added the ex-Chelsea manager. “He has no injuries, he is excited and very motivated.

“He’s arrived full of enthusiasm and he is very happy to be at the team he wanted to join. He is a humble player who likes to be with his team-mates. He fits in well with the squad.”

On Thursday, Bale said he hoped to be fit enough to start at Villarreal as visitors Real look to stretch their

100% winning start in La Liga to a fourth match.

“Obviously [after signing] I went straight away on international duty, which probably wasn’t the best, but I’ve been back in the last two days now,” he added.

“The boys have been very nice to me and made me settle quickly and it’s just an honour to be here.

“I feel good. I’ve been training with Wales. I’ve had two good sessions [at Madrid on Wednesday].

“I’m a bit behind everybody else physically but hopefully I can catch up as soon as possible.”

Bale’s price tag meant he overtook new teammate Cristiano Ronaldo as the world’s most expensive footballer. The Portuguese joined Real for £80m from Manchester United in 2009. Of meeting Ronaldo, Bale said: “It was amazing. He’s a nice guy, he made me feel welcome just like everybody else did. “I’m just looking forward to getting on the pitch and doing well.”

Real, who have won their first three league matches, visit Turkish side Galatasaray in the Champions League on Tuesday. (BBC Sport)

Kevin Ramdeen

Neil Kumar

Hassan Mohamed Marlon Williams

Lakeram Sukhdeo

GFF expresses promises to complete FIFA Goal Project

FIFA will continue to support the Guyana Goal Project according to its Development Officer Howard McIntosh during a press conference on Friday at the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) headquarters in Campbellville.

“The performance in relation to the goal programme, which was a programme put together as far back as 1999 by FIFA with some specific objectives that is to get each of the 209 associations to first and foremost

have a head office and second a technical centre.

“In the case of Guyana we have had a goal project that has been around for that amount of time, unfortunately in the Caribbean that has been the performance record, very poor,” McIntosh noted at the press conference.

He added: “What I can say a number of discussions have been held (on the goal project) emphasising the seriousness of the project, emphasising FIFA’s commitment to the project and

the GFF in turn have expressed their commitment to the project but one thing I think can be said confidently is that something will be happening on the goal project within the next couple of months.

“That particular project has a serious level of commitment; the funds have been committed to the project. So there is no question of the funds being committed, it’s just a question now of how we move it along, and based on the discussions

with the goal project committee thus far they (GFF) are serious about getting it done,” McIntosh noted.

Guyana was among the first set of countries to be identified for the for the Goal Project initiative in 1999. However, in 2013 the GFF, which no longer has Colin Klass at its helm, has not yet completed the first phase of the project although other Caribbean countries have completed three phases.

McIntosh, who admitted to receiving reports of

IGG trials on today at Eve Leary

The Inter-Guiana Games (IGG) trials will be on today from 11:00h at the Police Sports Club ground, Eve Leary, and should attract some of Guyana’s best high school athletes.

The trials are being held to select the track and field team for Guyana’s participation at the IGG games in Suriname from October 17.

Carifta 200m bronze medalist Tirana Mitchell, along with Carifta 400m bronze medalist should be competing for a spot on the team and should easily make the

final cut, due to their dominance at the junior level. However, while Mitchell will be one of the athletes to watch, Alita Moore is expected to dominate the female sprints since she is the athlete in top form over the last year.

Tevin Garraway, who has been missing from the junior sprint spotlight lately, is expected to make a return to the track. And while reports state that the dominant 100m athlete is close to 100 percent fitness after his hamstring strain that has plagued him since last

November, he is definitely the one to watch heading into the 100m.

Yaw, on the other hand, will more than likely rule the 400m event and will have a statement to make in the 200m. There will be a strong challenge from Kevin Abbensetts and Garraway.

Carifta gold medalist in the 1500m, Cassey George, is expected to win both the 800m and 1500m but will face a challenge from Carifta bronze medalist in the 1500m, Andrea Foster.

It is also understood that George has been suffering

from some nagging hip injuries lately and might enter into one event, depending on how the athlete feels on the day, according to anonymous club officials in Linden.

Also, scheduled to make a return to the track, after being out of the spotlight in recent months, is the talented Jevina Sampson. While it might be difficult for the talented sprinter to get back on top in the shorter sprints, she should be able to place in the 400m, an event she won at the IGG in 2011 in Suriname. (Treiston Joseph)

the goal project from the previous GFF administration, revealed that thus far out of the US$400,000 that was initially allocated only US120,000 was used to date.

“I need to make something clear so there is no misunderstanding, funds expended on the goal project do not come to the federation, those monies are not spent through the federation because sometimes people hear about US$500,000 and US$400,000 and think that the GFF has 900,000,

that is not correct.

“Any money spent on the goal project and the special project are spent directly with the contractor and the consultant all the contracts are directly with the contractor and the consultant on the recommendation and management by the GFF but monies never come into the GFF,” McIntosh noted.

Meanwhile Guyana will be primed for a US$500,000 special project funding in aid to develop smaller projects in various aspect of the sport.

& 158-5 (Manzoor 54, Chatara 2-29, Usteya 2-40) need another

Howard McIntosh (fourth from left) sits with GFF president Christopher Matthias (third from left) and other GFF officials

Alita Moore Cassey George Tirana Mitchell

Jason Yaw