Guyana Times Daily

Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyanatimesgy.com

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 2799

Thursday, March 17, 2016

PRICE

Jordan supports salary “top up” for President, other officials Page 3

$80 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE:

No provisions for cybertheft at financial institutions P18

... supports income tax exemptions removal ... tempers public servants' big pay hike expectations

Man found dead in Botanical Gardens

Page 7

APNU forced to drop candidate charged Page with sexual 10 molestation

Lindener guilty of P17 trafficking narcotics

… to be sentenced shortly

Massy opening local mega supermarket today P14

Berbice sugar workers storm estate compound

UG student loans

Page 13

Govt yet to act on recommendations to recover billions

P7

Angry estate workers on Wednesday at Rose Hall Estate Compound, Corentyne blocking the gates after the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) management allegedly tried to punish them for their weekly strikes in solidarity with their counterparts at Wales, West Bank Demerara

Govt hands Joe Singh Fedders Lloyd Page to head 14 Specialty CoI into Hospital contract Page

recent mining pit – construction to begin by mid-year collapse 11

East Coast-East Bank Road Link Project to begin by yearend Page 7 …after US$50M contract inked

PPP accuses Govt of P18 targeting “political prisoners” … writes diplomatic community

2

thursDAY, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

news

3

thursDAY, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Thursday, March 17 – 12:30h-14:00h and Friday, March 18 – 13:30h-15:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Thursday, March 17 – 11:35h-13:05h and Friday, March 18 – 12:50h-14:20h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

Jordan supports salary “top up” for President, other officials

… supports income tax exemptions removal … tempers public servants big pay hike expectations

of over $1.5 million.

There are also several other high-ranking officials who enjoy tax free salaries and emoluments at the expense of the State.

Parika and Supenaam departure times – 05:00h, 11:00h and 16:00h daily.

WEATHER TODAY

No big increases for ordinary folk

Sunny intervals can be expected in the morning while bright sunshine can be expected throughout the afternoon. Partly cloudy skies can be expected in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 25 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to East North-easterly between 4.02 metres and 4.91 metres per second.

High Tide: 11:44h reaching a maximum height of 2.15 metres.

Low Tide: 05:10h and 18:00h reaching minimum heights of 1.16 metres and 1.04 metre.

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

LOTTERY NUMBERS J

06 09 10 12 14 18 16 Bonus Ball

FREE TICKET

Tuesday, March 15, 2016 Daily Millions

11 13 16 24

03

LUCKY 3 2

9

2

Draw De Line 02

05

07 12 15

17 21

DISCLAIMER: WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS IN PUBLICATION. PLEASE CALL THE HOTLINE FOR CONFIRMATION - TEL: 225-8902

F

President David Granger

inance Minister Winston Jordan on Wednesday said he fully supports a “top up” in the already high salaries for President David Granger, Attorney General Basil Williams, Chief Justice (Ag) Yonette Cummings, Chancellor of the Judiciary Carl Singh, among other officials in exchange for the removal of the income tax exemptions that these individuals currently enjoy. The “top up” would allow the President’s “take home” salary to remain the same as it is at present.

Making it clear that this is not the view of the Government, Jordan explained that it creates a rather unfair situation whereby the majority of the population is required to pay

Attorney General Basil Williams

Finance Minister Winston Jordan

income taxes as opposed to a select few who benefit from the immunity.

“My personal view is that no one should be exempted from income tax…

Obviously from somebody who is an economist, we would love to see everybody paying their (income) taxes,” he stated.

“My view is not to cut anybody’s emoluments but my view is that they all should have their incomes topped up and then they begin to pay their taxes because I don’t believe it to be a fair position for some to be paying taxes and other to be not paying taxes when we all would benefit from the same provision of social and other goods the Government would provide,” he posited.

The Minister’s recommendation of a “top up” in salaries for certain highearning officials comes on the heels of the exorbitant pay hike Government awarded shortly after assumption to Executive office.

This move had generated immense public outcry from all sections of society.

Unconfirmed reports from the Ministry of the Presidency suggests that President David Granger currently earns a tax free salary of over $1.8 million per month, after receiving a five per cent salary increase.

The Prime Minister enjoys a tax free salary of $1.7 million monthly.

The Attorney General also enjoy a tax free salary

Meanwhile, Jordan said public servants ought not to get their hopes up high for hefty wage increases.

In fact, he indicated that there is not enough money in the treasury to pay Public Sector workers “exaggerated” increases.

“From the time I came in, I’ve been advising and cautioning as it relates to wage increases and meeting exaggerated demands for wage increases, even in good times, paying exaggerated salaries cause, as you all know, serious short and long-term impacts,” he stated.

He stated that the economy is now finally on a slow path to recovery and therefore Government has to be careful on its spending, as recommended by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

However, he assured that the salary increase, which will be announced before the end of the year, will be “sustainable”.

25-year-old gets 10 years for chopping off man’s hand

A

25-year-old man was on Wednesday jailed for 10 years by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow after he was found guilty of wounding.

Alvin Ragoobar received the sentence after a mixed jury found him not guilty on an attempted murder charge but guilty of wounding with the intent to maim, disfigure or cause grievous bodily harm. The defendant was on trial for attempting to murder Nurant Wilmont in 2007, as well as wounding him and causing grievous bodily harm.

The court heard that on the day in question, an ar-

gument erupted between the defendant’s grandfather and the victim in the defendant’s yard.

After the argument, Ragoobar took his grandfather into the house, and as Wilmont was leaving the yard, he attacked him with a cutlass. The victim received chops to his arm and shoulder, and in an attempt to escape he fell to the ground.

It was further revealed that while Wilmont was on the ground, the defendant fired a chop at him which he tried to deflect from his head using his left arm. As a result of this, the arm was chopped

off. The victim was not in court during the trial as he was murdered while working the interior. His brother informed the court that he was strangled.

The jury delivered a

unanimous not guilty verdict on the attempted murder charge and guilty on the wounding charge. The Judge told the defendant that she hoped he had learned from his mistake.

4

guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, march 17, 2016

Views General Editor: Michael Younge News Hotliine: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544 223-7230,223-7231,231-0544, 225-7761 Marketing: 231-8064 Accounts: 225-6707

Mailing address: Queens Atlantic Investment Estate Industrial Site, Ruimveldt, Georgetown Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

Deepening local government

T

omorrow as we participate in the first Local Government Elections (LGE) in almost a quarter of a century, we have to acknowledge it is simply a first step towards returning "power to the people", which is the quintessence of any democratic order. Mankind invented the State to protect society from the tyranny of the strong but discovered the State itself lends itself to creating tyrants. No wonder one of the early theorists of the State called it "the Leviathan".

In the following half a millennium, the tension between the State and its people resulted in several structures and arrangements in governance to balance this tension. One of the most enduring was the mechanism of democratic elections to chose those who will oversee the State and another was the division of the powers of the State geographically into ever smaller units. The principle of "subsidiarity", in which decision affecting citizens must be made at the lowest practical level of organisation, became accepted. In Guyana, we are fortunate that our people through their own bootstrapping efforts, introduced one of the most enduring units of governance in this country – the village and the Village Council.

While there are those that say the movement of millions of tons of earth by African slaves "humanised" Guyana, one could argue this was achieved with their formation of villages, in which the freed Africans demonstrated that while they might have been treated as chattel for centuries, that experience could not destroy their innate drive to succeed as equals to all. Unlike the case of many Caribbean Islands, the freed slaves of Guyana did not receive much help from the Christian churches which had began to proselytise among them. They built the villages through their own sweat and blood.

It was in these villages that they tried to revive the traditional African practice of the cooperative effort in taking care of the needs of all – Ubuntu. But within an economy and legal structures formed along the lines of individualism, they found the going very hard. But the villagers began to organise themselves along the rules of the new system they found themselves and very soon, there were elected Village Councils to run the affairs of the community. It was the ex-African slaves that first experienced the meaning of democracy in this land.

They organised not only for political representation, through their Village Councils, but for farming and other pursuits designed to make them economically independent.

We know that eventually the brave new world the freed slaves tried to create eventually collapsed. But the question is "why?" One reason was that the cultivation of the abandoned estates that had been purchased to provide a livelihood for the freed slaves from their labour, had been blocked by the authorities at every quarter, especially in irrigation and drainage, in their struggle to make a success of their agricultural endeavours.

The clincher occurred ironically after "independence" when the People’s National Congress (PNC) Government acted to destroy the democratic imperative that had been kept alive at the village level. In 1980, when that Government moved to introduce decentralisation through "Local Government", it deliberately ignored the foundational decentralisation principle of "subsidiarity".

Rather than using the village as the starting unit of organisation, and thus strengthening the inhabitants and their ability to perform local tasks, five to 10 villages were agglomerated into Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDC's) and run by elected officials. Because of the linear structure of Guyanese settlements on the Coast, the organic connections within a village were lost in the NDC's. At this time, most of these entities are severely dysfunctional.

While tomorrow's LGE is a positive development we should now look at the re-development of our villages from a holistic standpoint. And this would have to being by returning village governance to the people who actually live there. In this way we would be paying tribute to our forebears who dreamed of this possibility and also to realise that dream.

As Guyana prepares to join the rest of the world in celebrating Easter, this father was seen on the Kingston foreshore helping his children to raise their kite in the gusty winds off the Atlantic Ocean

Voters divided on free and fair LGE; electorate racially polarised Dear Editor, Voters are divided by political affiliation and or race on whether Friday’s Local Government Elections (LGE) will be free and fair according to the findings of an opinion survey conducted by the North American Caribbean Teachers Association (NACTA). Some half of the electorate lacks confidence in the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to hold a free and fair election and also express doubt whether the declared results will be a true reflection of the will of the electorate.

The findings of the poll show an electorate polarised along racial lines, with the ruling coalition being supported by Africans; the Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) being supported by Indians. The Mixed and Amerindians are more divided (or balanced) in their voting trend.

The findings show the PPP is projected to sweep all the rural Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDC). The goodwill and support the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) co-

alition received from among Indians in last May’s General Elections have virtually evaporated, but the coalition will win all of the NDC seats where Africans make up the majority of the voters. The PPP has not been winning over African support with some of it going to other (African) political organisations.

The findings reveal the ruling coalition will win the urban areas (New Amsterdam and Linden) although in Georgetown, Team Benschop is the most talked about organisation and it could very well upset APNU/AFC winning seats; Team Legacy is also pulling some support though trailing APNU/AFC and Benschop. The PPP is projected to win Corriverton, Rose Hall, and Anna Regina and giving the coalition stiff competition in Lethem and Bartica. Traditional supporters of the coalition are disenchanted and a significant number of them are willing to try independent organisations which may do well in the urban areas, including Linden.

The PPP’s biggest challenge is turnout among its supporters as voter enthusi-

asm among PPP support base is significantly less than that among the APNU/AFC base.

The LGE outcome depends on turnout and house to house effort to bring out voters.

The findings of the poll, conducted by Dr Vishnu Bisram, are based on interviews with some 1230 individuals (43 per cent Indians, 30 per cent Africans, 17 per cent Mixed, nine per cent Amerindians and one per cent others) at random.

The poll’s margin of error is three per cent.

Asked if they think LGE will be free and fair, 47 per cent said yes, 48 per cent said no with five per cent were unsure.

Asked if they plan to vote, just about a third said yes, an increase from a week ago.

Almost two thirds say “no” with about a tenth (among them) saying they could change their mind and vote.

Some half of the voters feel the diplomats of the ABC countries engineered the removal of the PPP Government in last May’s General Election, saying they feel the PPP won the election. Half of the nation also feels Guyana is heading for a return to dictatorial rule

as happened right after the US and UK engineered the removal of the PPP from office in December 1964. A quarter of the eligible voters say they feel there is a need for a new political force away from the dominant parties.

With regards to who should lead the PPP, almost every PPP supporter said Bharrat Jagdeo, followed by Irfaan Ali, Frank Anthony, Anil Nandlall and Priya Manickchand. However, there are reservations on whether Jagdeo can win a general election and whether the next general election will be free and fair. A slight majority feel Ralph Ramkarran can win a general election seeing him as a less polarised figure than other PPPites, and a larger number felt he would have won a majority if he were the PPP Presidential Candidate in 2011 and or 2015.

Asked if they think Ramkarran should rejoin the PPP, 52 per cent said yes with 42 per cent saying no and six per cent unsure or offered no response.

Sincerely, NACTA

Indians had no option but to help save their families

Dear Editor, I agree fully with Dr Baytoram Ramharack that the enemy is within us, as his column of March 16, 2016 concludes.

I believe he has to agree, however, that the fight to reform even the most egregious excesses of a democratically elected government is much different from that of removing an illegal one.

Guyana has been down that road before and there is real fear that we are being returned to that past of PNC racism and terrorism by the Granger Government where all African Guyanese have united and reassembled to give their full support.

In the face of this uni-

ty against their enemy, the Indians, I had good reason to be irked by Dr Ramharack’s praise, and his bestowing them with “moral advantages” over Indians. They are no exemplars of decency and goodness.

Indians were well aware of the ills of the PPP/C Government but how could they have joined the fight against the PPP/C when that fight was an African Guyanese terrorism that was taken not to the Government itself but to ordinary Indian people in villages?

Indians had no option but to help save their families and friends from the African Guyanese terrorism and, as with all their violence

and terrorism of the past, the African Guyanese leadership pretends they did no wrong. They get away it because there are Indians who, because of their insistence about the PPP/C’s wrongs, only see the “moral advantages” of Africans.

Recognising the enemy within cannot ever be tantamount to praising the enemy without.

Deconstructing Jagan and laying blame at the PPP’s feet are all well and good but Dr. Ramharack must use his intelligence and academic training to come up with workable solutions for our predicament.

As bad as the PPP/C Government was, this one

is worse. Every Indian, and every decent African and Amerindian agree with this conclusion.

Indians simply cannot support the APNU/AFC Government and the 11% of Indians who voted for them have returned to the PPP/C. They feel they have no other option. This is our reality.

We expect people like Dr Ramharack to come up with strategies that will push the PPP/C to reform itself for the benefit of its Indian supporters and Guyanese as a whole.

And I do exist, Dr Ramharack. I write therefore I am.

Yours truly, Shanie Jagessar

guyanatimesgy.com

thursDAY, march 17, 2016

Why are the folks at City Hall so unscrupulous?

Dear Editor, It was very disappointing to learn that the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown at the final statutory meeting that this group of Councillors would be involved in, approved a recommendation by the Administration, raising the fees for vendors plying their trade at the Merriman Mall by a whopping 500 per cent.

This is just plain wrong, unscrupulous, dishonest, corrupt and ruthless. What is the justification for doing this? Is it because they have put up four metal poles and a few zinc sheets over the heads of the vendors? Or is it because they know that the vendors lack an alternative?

How could the City Council justify waiving tens of millions of dollars in accrued interest owed by mega companies and wealthy business persons while squeezing a small

vendor, who is just selling a few baskets of produce that they grew in their backyards.

Why does the Georgetown municipality need this massive increase? Is it to fund their $200 million per month payroll that these fat cats and their friends and relatives employed at the Council live off of? Or is it to continue to pay the super contractor that they created; more hundreds of millions of dollars to clean a few parts of the City?

What the Government ought to realise is that this reckless action by the Council will only result in the escalation in food prices, as the vendors unable to absorb this draconian increase, will be forced to pass it on to the consumer.

Most unbelievable of all, is the fact that this cruel action was perpetuated by all of the very Councillors who are seek-

ing to be re-elected and to become the next Mayor and Deputy Mayor. I hope this would be a wake-up call to those persons who were considering voting for them. Their only interest is to take advantage of the hardworking small farmers and vendors in order to fill their own pockets.

Shame on them!

The question I would like to ask is how much the ‘Jerk Hut’ outdoor Grill and Restaurant that is situated just opposite – and for which it is common knowledge is closely association with a very senior officer of the Council – is paying?

If we are to compare it to the little stalls, the wholesale vendors are paying $1500 per day for then it should be at least $5000 per day, but of course they won’t.

Sincerely, Debra Gibson

Rudolph McPherson is not employed at M&CC Dear Editor, Please refer to article captioned “Former Georgetown Councillor decries neglect of countryside,” published in the Thursday, March 10, 2016 edition of Guyana Times newspaper, which stated that Mr Rudolph Mc herson was a Councillor at the Georgetown municipal-

ity.

Please be informed that Mr Rudolph McPherson was a former employee of the Council and not a Councillor. The records of the Council shows that Mr Rudolph McPherson entered the employ of the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown on March 15,

1993 as a City Constable and retired on October 30, 2004 as Corporal attached to the City Constabulary Department.

Regards, Debra Lewis Public Relations Office (ag)

5

Let us celebrate Holi in friendship, joy, merriment and love Dear Editor, Holi is a unique and colourful Hindu festival. It is an outdoor festival and an occasion for all irrespective of race, creed or religious beliefs. The significance of Phagwah or Holi is threefold.

Firstly, it commemorates the beginning of the Hindu New Year.

Secondly, it ushers in the season of spring and the third significance of the holi festival is that it depicts the triumph of good over evil.

Holi is described in Sanskrit as vasantutsao or spring festival. It is a time when nature smiles in all her glory and the trees and plants blossom forth into vivid colours, combing the pleasant odour of the flowers and fruits.

The atmosphere is pleasant and refreshing, for it is the festival of spring. As the season approaches, there is feeling of merriment and joy.

There is social happiness as the Hindu community extends greetings to each other, exchange sweet meats and express their feelings in song and dance.

A general feeling of cooperation, love and forgiveness prevails.

From an astrological point of view, the holy festival is quoted in the scriptures – that on the Vasant

Panchmie, most favourable signs of the zodiac reign. This makes it a wonderful and auspicious day to start new projects – spiritual or material.

It is 40 days after the Vasant Panchmie day that the beautiful festival of holi is celebrated.

A more famous episode connected with holy is the encounter between PRAHALAD and his father HIRANKASHYAPU, who was a cruel ruler.

HIRANKASHYPU gained victory over the gods which made him very arrogant.

He forbid his subjects from worshiping GOD and threatened to meet out harsh punishment to anyone who disobeyed him.

So his subjects turned from the worship of GOD to the worship of their king. PRAHALAD was a worshipper of GOD and refused to worship his father.

His resistance angered his father, and it resulted in PRAHALAD being tortured and ill-treated.

The king was bent on crushing his own son, and finally ordered that PRAHALAD be placed on the lap of his aunt HOLIKA, who was blessed with special powers, whereby fire could not burn her.

However, PRAHALAD miraculously escaped, and HOLIKA was burnt to ash-

es.

The pyre that is built and lit on phalgun Purnima reminds us of this and symbolises the triumph of good over evil.

PRAHALAD is an example of a devout and steadfast young Hindu, who received divine protection. His victory over his cruel father is an event which still inspires all those who strongly believe that evil, injustice or adharma in all its names and forms are ultimately destroyed.

Let us celebrate Holi in the true spirit of friendship, joy, merriment and love and exchange greetings with respect and cordiality.

In your celebration, demonstrate the glory and greatness of Hindu dharma. Let noble thoughts and actions be your guide, and the fragrance of holy brighten your life.

May the significance of holi influence and enrich your thoughts and inspire all to contribute to a fair and just system in which their exists not only equality but plenty and abundance for all.

Happy Holi greetings to everyone!

Pandit Surendra Tiwari Patentia Mandir

6

guyanatimesgy.com

thursday, march 17, 2016

Page Foundation Help your 5 areas to let your child child or teenager move face natural consequences toward happy

By Sara Bean, MEd

M

any parents struggle with this concept because they don’t fully understand what constitutes a “natural” consequence. And sometimes parents have difficulty relinquishing control of consequences because they feel they always have to get their child to obey, even if it means getting into a huge blowout.

Natural consequences can best be described as the logical outcome of a decision your child makes. These consequences sometimes come from outside forces such as other adult influences, for example teachers, but may also come from you setting limits on how much you will do for your child.

One of the most notable benefits of letting your child face the natural consequences is you don’t have to come up with them yourself; rather, you’re allowing the chips to “fall where they may”. They also help your child to learn about what happens when he makes various choices on his own. It shows him that rules are here for a reason and going against them is unpleasant.

Poor decisions at school I’ve worked with many parents whose children get into trouble at school for the way they acted, but instead

of letting their child face the music, they try to bail their child out. Parents, remember this: your child’s version of the story is not always the true version of what has happened.

There is much more that goes on every day that teachers see and hear that you don’t know because most of the time it’s harmless and there is no need to tell you. And teachers know that all children make mistakes and accept it as part of growing up. When your child is given a consequence at school, there’s more often than not a very good reason for it.

It’s important

that you let your child face these natural consequences such as missing recess, going to detention, or attending school on Saturday. If you try to get your child out of trouble at school, you undermine the school’s authority and your child gets the message that he doesn’t have to listen to his teachers, and behaviour will

likely worsen.

Personal space at home In most cases, it’s effective to let your child be in control of her own space and her own belongings. If you tell your child that you will only wash the clothes she puts in the laundry each week, but she doesn’t put any in the hamper, the natural consequence is that you won’t wash them.

Another

possibility here is that maybe she’ll have to do her own laundry.

Household chores The most common way for families to handle chores is to provide a small allowance. It works best to break the allowance down

into a payment for each chore.

When children don’t do the chores, they don’t get paid. It’s just like in the real world – if you and I don’t do our work, we don’t get paid either. This can work for any child in grade school. With younger children, you could do a token system or create a single behaviour chart that will allow them to earn a reward every day or two.

Another system I love that works well with children who leaves their things all over the place is the “Saturday Box”. Every night after bed, you pick up whatever your child left lying around the house and put it in the Saturday Box. And, as the name implies, she won’t get it back until Saturday.

If one of those items happens to be her handheld game device for example, then you have a bonus natural consequence: she won’t get to play until Saturday.

And that’s on her, not you, as long as you told her about the Saturday Box ahead of time.

Homework Homework and school projects are another area where your child really needs to take responsibility for

himself and earn his grades.

The natural consequences are plentiful –he may get lectured by the teacher, he may have to stay in from recess to finish it, he may not get to participate in school-sponsored activities that have grade restrictions, and, if it’s very serious, he might even have to repeat the grade or go to summer school. I know this sounds harsh, but think of it this way: You aren’t going to follow your child around to his job when he grows up to make sure he does everything his boss wants him to do, right? That’s why it’s best for your child to learn now what happens when you don’t meet your responsibilities.

(This is not to say that you ignore homework altogether – I will talk about when to step in and how to do it in just a few moments.)

Behaviour in the community We say this all the time here at Empowering Parents: no matter how much you would like to, you can’t control your child’s behaviour outside your home. There may come a day when your child does something rude or obnoxious at a friend’s house; the natural consequence might be that he isn’t allowed over there for a while. Or, your teen might get caught speeding or walking around at night after the city curfew, actions which also have their own natural consequences.

When should you give your child consequences?

A good starting place here is this question: Is this a serious safety concern, or is my child’s poor decision in this situation likely to have longterm negative or unhealthy consequences? If the answer is “yes,” then you are going to want to set some clear standards and hold your child accountable in some way. For example, if your child’s grades are failing, you can establish a daily structure where he has no access to electronics or favourite toys from after school until the work is done.

With every child, it’s helpful for you to talk with him or her about their decisions and the outcomes of those decisions.

Younger children will need you to offer them choices, while elementary aged children and up can make choices more independently, but discussion and coaching with all children is helpful. When you talk, you can discuss your child’s reason for making a decision, what the outcome was, and what he could do differently next time.

This will help him maximise the learning that comes from mistakes and give him the skills to avoid unpleasant consequences in the future – natural or otherwise. (Excerpt from Empoweringparents.com)

productivity Continued

Do you place a high enough value on downtime and sleep?

Ample time for doing nothing – the ‘restful neural processing’ that occurs when we’re daydreaming and dawdling – is essential to self-discovery, learning, and creativity.

Similarly, getting enough sleep is essential to health, energy, and productivity. This is true for adults, but it’s critical to children’s long-term development.

Action: Give yourself permission for downtime and sleep, and encourage your child to experience the same.

Through modelling and active encouragement, help your child welcome downtime as an opportunity for exploration, reflection, consolidation of learning, creativity, and regeneration.

Does your home environment support good coping skills?

Mindful breathing and other coping techniques contribute to self-regulation, which underlies achievement and success in every area of life.

Mindfulness habits increase a person’s ability to concentrate on tests, calm anxieties, and cope with challenging situations.

Although mindfulness is effective for managing attention deficits, anxiety issues, and autism, it’s also powerful for everyone else.

Action: Practice mindfulness techniques, and teach them to your child.

Breathe deeply when you notice yourself stressed, or see signs of anxiety in the people around you. Listen –really listen! – to your children, your environment, and yourself.

Think – and take at least one deep thoughtful breath – before you speak. Help your child acquire these habits, too.

What dominates: criticism and entitlement, or appreciation and gratitude?

People who feel entitled are habitually critical. Nothing is good enough, and they’re focused on the half-emptiness of life. Those who feel grateful, on the other hand, and who express their appreciation, score higher than others on measures of well-being, energy, optimism, empathy, and popularity. Simply put, those with an attitude of gratitude are happier, better liked, and more likely to be successful in every area of their lives than those who feel entitled. (Excerpt from psychologytoday)

news

7

thursDay, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

UG student loans

Man found dead in Govt yet to act on Botanical Gardens recommendations to recover billions

T

hough there are a number of recommendations before them, Cabinet is yet to meet and discuss a way forward to recover the billions of dollars owed by students to the University of Guyana (UG).

This is according to Finance Minister Winston Jordan, who during a news conference on Wednesday, disclosed that Cabinet has not extensively discussed the matter.

“There are a plethora of matters before Cabinet that have wide implications and they cannot be addressed in a couple of hours,” he said, reminding that Cabinet only meets once a week.

He noted that there are several recommendations but declined to elaborate on the proposals.

According to Jordon, Cabinet is yet to comprehensively discuss those recommendations. However, the Minister said Government is considering setting aside time to host special sessions in order to deal with the

matters that keep piling up.

In Budget 2016, Government did not allocate any monies for student loans. According to the Minister, the student loan will continue as a revolving fund.

“Last year, the student’s loan agency had accumulated enough money for the fund to now revolve so the fund is revolving, so there’s no need for Government contribution at this time,” he had stated.

In a 2015 post-Cabinet press briefing, Minister Jordan had announced that the revolving student loan

fund had sufficient cash flow and could stand on its own to facilitate loans for students at the university.

This, he noted, could have been done since its inception in 1994.

When the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change coalition was in Opposition, they had slashed $450 million from the student loan budget that was allocated that year. However, this move was challenged in the High Court by former Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh and was restored by Chief Justice Ian Chang.

East Coast-East Bank Road Link Project to begin by year-end …after US$50M contract inked

Finance Minister Winston Jordan, Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson, Junior Finance Minister Jaipaul Sharma, Indian High Commissioner Venkatachalam Mahalingam and other officials after the signing of the contract

T

he end of the year will see the commencement of construction work on the major East Coast– East Bank Road Link Project, which will be funded by a US$50 million line of credit from the Indian Exim Bank.

On Wednesday, Finance Minister Winston Jordan signed the concessional loan agreement with the Indian Government at the Finance Ministry in the presence of Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson, Junior Finance Minister Jaipaul Sharma, Indian High Commissioner Venkatachalam Mahalingam and other officials.

The loan will cover the first phase of the long-awaited project, which was in the pipeline since the 1970s, according to Minister Patterson.

During the first phase, a four-lane roadway with two lanes fully paved will be developed.

The road will stretch from Ogle on the East Coast of Demerara (ECD) to Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara (EBD).

Before construction gets underway, consultants will have to be retained to finalise the design and complete the documentation – a process which it is estimated will take approximately two to three months.

Once that stage is finalised, the construction contract will be open to Indian companies to bid on.

Patterson explained that since the Project was being funded by India, it was only reasonable that this route be pursued.

However, he noted that opportunities would be available for locals through subcontracts that may be awarded during the construction phase. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.

Meanwhile, Minister Patterson pointed out that there would be tremendous opportunities available once the road-link is completed, including investments in agriculture, housing, and business development.

Moreover, the Finance Minister underscored the exceptional bilateral partnership between the two countries, noting that the Indian Government was one of Guyana’s largest donors.

“At a time when concessionary resources are dwindling and at a time when we have extreme demands for accelerating our development, India has continued to be a reliable partner in development,” he stated.

The Indian High Commissioner, for his part, acknowledged the strong bilateral network between the two nations and pledged to continue down the path of good cordial relations.

Investigators at the scene on Wednesday afternoon

T

he body of an unidentified man was on Wednesday afternoon found under a tree in the Botanical Garden, Georgetown.

According to information received, the body was spotted by passers-by who quickly alerted the Police.

Upon arriving at the scene, the Police cordoned off the area and immediately launched an investigation. Investigators are of the belief that the man who seemed to be his 30s might have taken his own life.

His body was taken to

the Lyken Funeral Home to await identification and a post-mortem examination.

Only last week, 70-yearold Nowattie Doodnauth of Edinburgh Village, East Bank Berbice, was found hanging in her home.

The gruesome discovery was made by the woman’s son-in-law when he went to check on her.

It was reported that the woman was found hanging over her bed which is located under a step in the two-storey house. It is believed that the mother of

six wrapped part of her bed sheet around her neck before tying the other end to the step.

She was found in a standing position with her feet firmly on the bed.

Reports are the woman had attempted to take her own life twice in the past.

Over the past weeks, several persons have taken their own lives.

This scourge has promoted various organisations to hold anti-suicide walks and seminars with the aim addressing the epidemic.

8 news

thursDAY, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

Eyew tness

La Penitence resident slapped with Economic aggravated robbery charge

A

David Larose

La Penitence, Georgetown man was on Wednesday slapped with an aggravated robbery charge when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

David Larose, 19, of Lot 20 Independence Boulevard, La Penitence, Georgetown, pleaded not guilty to the charge when it was read to him.

It is alleged that on March 9, 2016, at

Albouystown, Georgetown, while using personal violence, he robbed Andre Rogers of a motorcycle, CF 1322, valued $400,000, and two cell phones valued $8000, all property of Rogers.

According to the prosecution, the Virtual Complainant (VC) and the defendant are known to each other and on the day in question, the defendant assaulted the VC and took away the motorcycle.

The motorcycle was recovered after it was tak-

en to the VC by the person who had bought it from the defendant.

As a result of the robbery, the VC sustained severe injuries to his head and had to be rushed to the Dental School for surgery.

Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones unsuccessfully objected to bail.

Bail was granted in the sum of $175,000 and the defendant was ordered not to go within 50 feet of the VC until the completion of the trial. The case will continue on April 7.

Preliminary Inquiry into footballer’s death continues

D

ellon “Nasty Man” Henry appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan as the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the death of footballer Dexter Griffith continues.

Keshawn Griffith, the brother of the deceased, along with three Police witnesses gave evidence on Wednesday. Those who gave evidence were Detective Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Simeon Reid, who is the head of the Fraud Squad at the Criminal Investigation Department, Eve Leary; Detective Sergeant Suraboo who is stationed at the Criminal Investigations Department

(CID), Brickdam Police Station; and Corporal Eastman.

The witnesses testified in relation to the murder and were later cross examined by defence Counsel Adrian Thompson.

Following the testimonies, Police Prosecutor, Sergeant Neville informed the court that the prosecution had two remaining witnesses before it closes its case.

Henry first appeared in court on October 8, 2015, slapped with the murder of Griffith who was gunned down on September 29, 2015, at East Ruimveldt, Georgetown. He was also charged for unlawful possession of a .38 revolver with six matching rounds of am-

Deceased: Dexter Griffith

munition.

The court heard that on the day in question at around 19:30h, Griffith was sitting in front of his house at Back Circle, East Ruimveldt, when the ac-

cused reportedly walked up to him with a gun and shot him.

It was reported that after being shot, Griffith attempted to escape but collapsed in a drain a short distance from the scene. The accused reportedly escaped on a cycle while Griffith was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Reports are that the accused was picked up by Police on October 4, 2015 for questioning in connection with the murder, but denied the allegations. He was subsequently placed in an identification parade where he was positively identified and later taken into custody. The PI will continue on March 21.

Man remanded to prison on possession charge

A

n Albouystown, Georgetown man was on Wednesday remanded to prison when he appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the

Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts charged with unlawful possession of a firearm.

Adam Mohammed of Lot 22 Calender Street, Albouystown, pleaded not

guilty to the charge which stated that on March 12, 2016, at North East La Penitence, Georgetown, he was found with a .22 pistol while not being the legal holder of a firearm licence.

Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones successfully objected to bail and the defendant was remanded to prison.

The case will continue on April 7, 2016.

realities...

T

...in TT’s steel industry

rinidad’s our WI industrial power, such as it is.

Using their platform of cheap petroleum and gas fortuitously lying under their seabed, they moved from the light manufacturing base inherited at independence into industrial products. Urea and methanol from gas were easy transitions since the raw materials were already there.

Steel was a bit of a stretch but with electricity as cheap as it was – and this being a major cost in steel production – TT plunged into the business that pretty much defined “modern” industrial nations. But not long after, the government-owned company Iscott ran into difficulties and went belly up. It was taken over in 1989 by an ambitious Indian steel maker, Mittal – which renamed it “Iscott” – and was on course to creating the largest steel-making company in the world. This became a reality when the French steel maker Ancelor was taken over to form – “Ancelor-Mittal”. Trinidad was now part of the global players in steel.

But Trinidad’s discovering there are downsides to playing in the big leagues. One of them being, if you aren’t blessed with a large domestic market, you’re stuck with the vagaries of the world market for hocking your product. It’s like the situation with our rice. The 600,000 tonnes we export just can’t be absorbed – much less eaten!! – by even our rice-loving populace... so we’re at the mercy of what the rest of the rice-importing countries need. And that’s why if we didn’t have the El Niño drought to moan about, we’d have been crying about a price crisis later this year.

So back to Trinidad and her steel. With the rest of the world struggling with an economic downturn that’s finally caught up with China, the building and construction boom – to which steel is critical – has crashed. And with even China and its vast domestic markets stuck with excess stock of steel, you can imagine what happens to free lancers like Arcelor-Mittal.

They start shutting down their plants – that’s what.

And high-cost-producers like Ispatt in TT go first. Faced with the downturn, the company started laying off workers since last December. The steel Union took the company to court, which then slapped a fine on the former who then said if that’s the game being played, they’re willing to sell the company to the Government for $1!! Or walking away.

The Union’s still making noises. To no avail. And no wonder, since it’s about non-starters like them taking over the plant!!

Here in Guyana, those who have ears to hear in our bauxite industry better start hearing!!

...and British aid

Last year, British PM Cameron visited its most ancient ex-colonies – the WI, of course – on which its industrial revolution and subsequent modernity and prosperity were built. He provoked a storm of protest when – in Jamaica of all places! – he said there’s no way “reparations” were gonna be accepted by Britain. But that he was offering about US$450 million as aid – especially for infrastructural projects – to the Caribbean as a whole, including Guyana.

Your Eyewitness will only note that unlike the Jamaican Government, our powers that be were mum on the reparations rebuff. They did say the most militant fellas surviving the Middle Passage ended up in Jamaica!!

In Guyana, some worthies immediately pointed out the need for funding the proposed new, concrete Demerara Harbour Bridge. Which could be funded from the British aid.

So with the situation on the already stressed out old, floating bridge quite dread, they propose we submit a voucher to the Brits for the bridge?

Who says we can’t have the bridge AND Reparations?

...and glass ceilings for women journalists

The Chronic signed up a refreshing new journalist, Akola Thompson, who asked, “Where are the female oped columnists?”

They’re over at GTimes!! Take a look at Anna Correia and Ryhaan Shah.

Readers are invited to send their comments by email to eye@guyanatimesgy.com

news

9

thursday, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

PYARG Executive St Ignatius schools benefit from more bicycles, shoes Officer pays courtesy call on President Granger

Chief Education Officer in the Education Ministry, Olato Sam; First Lady Sandra Granger; Social Cohesion Minister Amna Ally and other officials stand with the beneficiaries who proudly display their bikes at the St Ignatius Primary School

F

irst Lady Sandra Granger and Social Cohesion Minister Amna Ally on Tuesday presented 30 more bicycles and over 200 pairs of shoes to the students of the St Ignatius Primary and Secondary Schools, in fulfilment of a promise made to them to provide these items to help

From left: Habitat for Humanity Chairman, Dr Astell Collins; President David Granger and President’s Youth Award Republic of Guyana (PYARG) Executive Officer Allister Collins

E

xecutive Officer of the President’s Youth Award Republic of Guyana (PYARG) Programme, Allister Collins and his brother, Chairman of the Habitat for Humanity, Dr Astell Collins, paid a courtesy call on President David Granger at the Ministry of the Presidency on Tuesday.

During the meeting, the goals and developmental objectives of the PYARG were discussed, and President Granger assured the brothers that his

office would facilitate future meetings to ensure that the group’s mandate was fully established and achieved.

In an invited comment after the meeting, Collins said the long-overdue meeting was successful.

“I am very happy that he [President Granger] listened to the concerns we have. I wanted to hear from him about the future of the PYARG Programme, so I am very happy to hear his heart …about the future of the programme,” he said.

Guyana-Norway partnership making significant strides

G

uyana and Norway have been actively engaged in the strengthening of the agreement between the two countries to support Guyana’s low carbon and green growth focus.

This Administration, having welcomed the first delegation from Norway in January 2016, has reaffirmed its commitment to the partnership’s continuity and growth, a position that was echoed by the Ambassador of Norway to Brazil and Guyana, Aud Marit Wiig when she visited the country.

A number of developments have since fortified the connection between the two countries with the cordial exchange of letters between the new Ministers of Norway and Guyana, as Norway has undergone some internal ministerial changes at its Ministry of Climate and Environment, and Guyana has formally re-established the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Among those exchanges has been the shared assessment of consultant companies to conduct a financial model review of the topical Amaila Falls Project, which has been the subject of much debate in both countries.

A decision was recent-

ly made to utilise Norway’s largest consultancy firm Norconsult for this review.

With more than 50 years of international experience in power generation and energy supply engineering, the Ministry of Finance and Cabinet considered it the best option for an objective re-assessment. This decision follows up on one taken by the countries in Paris, France, in December 2015 to conduct a review of the project’s current financial model, which the Government believes could shackle many generations of Guyanese to debt.

While this process develops, the Governments of Guyana and Norway are preparing for a visit in April by a Norwegian delegation comprising members of the Ministry of Climate and Environment and Norway’s Development Agency (NORAD).

The visit is expected to deepen the partnership and collaboration to complete outstanding deliverables of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that the new Government inherited. The Guyana team is actively preparing for this eagerly anticipated visit and all stakeholders will be engaged throughout this process. (GINA)

facilitate their regular attendance at school.

“We were in this Region (Region Nine) and we distributed 52 bicycles and when we were here, we had promised the primary school and some of the students of the secondary school that they [would] benefit from shoes.

Today, we are here to keep

that promise. This present Government is a government which delivers on promises.

As soon as we received the shoes, First Lady Sandra Granger said that we had promised you and we must return to fulfil that promise,” Minister Ally said in her address to the students at the school in the Upper Takutu-

Upper Essequibo region.

So far, more than 3000 pairs of shoes have been distributed by the First Lady and Minister Ally to various regions across the country.

The aim is to ensure that approximately 30,000 students in the hinterland regions are able to benefit from the programme.

10

guyanatimesgy.com

thursdAY, march 17, 2016

News

APNU forced to drop candidate charged with sexual molestation

A

fter mounting pressure from the public and other stakeholders, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coali-

tion has withdrawn its support from embattled Local Government Elections candidate Winston Harding, who has faced multiple charges of child molestation.

The candidate, who was never convicted for the alleged sexual offences, was listed as the party’s prospective representative for Georgetown’s Constituency 13 (East and

People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Marlyn Kennedy had earlier in the day expressed disappointment over the candidacy of Harding and questioned the leadership direction of the coalition.

“Their leadership is not professional as far as I see because you lead by example... I don’t think he (Harding) should be allowed

West Ruimveldt) in Friday’s polls.

The party in a release late Wednesday evening explained that as a result of the alleged behaviour of

Embattled Local Government Elections candidate Winston Harding

Harding and the pattern of accusations over the years, his candidature cannot be supported. The coalition also posited that the party is “firmly against all forms of abuse especially the abuse of women, children and the elderly.”

“The Partnership takes seriously all allegations of abuse that are made against its members and supporters.

In our 2015 manifesto, we clearly state and affirm that the Domestic Violence Act and the Sexual Offences Act must at all times be enforced without compromise or exception… APNU is cognisant of the fact that Mr Harding has not been convicted of any offence, but the gravity and nature of the accusations cannot be ignored or condoned,” the release added.

The coalition’s withdrawal of the embattled candidate was earlier on Wednesday hinted by People’s National Congress Reform General Secretary Oscar Clarke who when contacted told this publication that while Harding’s name was already listed on the ballot, he could still be disclaimed.

“Mr Harding’s name is already on the ballot but we can disclaim him but that doesn’t take his name off the ballot. GECOM would be able to tell if anything can be done at this stage, elections is Friday, he is a constituency candidate which means the only thing the party can do is to disclaim him… my position is whether he wins or not, we could decide that we’re not going to put him in,” expressed Clarke.

When the General Secretary was questioned as to if the party would issue its decision after the election, he stated that he “suspects so” but reiterated that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) is the authority body which would have been able to pronounce at this late stage.

“You would have to ask GECOM what could be done at this stage but my understanding is, he is already on the ballot, if people decided to vote for him then the party could take a decision even if he’s elected to take him off,” stressed the PNCR General Secretary.

Constituency 14 (South Ruimveldt Park/Ruimveldt Industrial Estate) candidate for the main Opposition

Social Protection Minister Volda Lawrence

to run for the candidacy if he has consistency in this matter, if somebody in that capacity that has that kind of character is running for a candidate, it doesn’t show good,” Kennedy had earlier posited.

Team Benschop for Mayor lead candidate Mark Benschop spoke on the issue also and said that while the matter was one for the coalition, persons with such allegations should not be allowed to be part of the elections process.

“That’s a matter for the APNU/AFC coalition, GECOM and the electorate to decide; however, we do believe that individuals such as Harding should have been pulled in for fitness by the party a long time ago… now that the relevant Minister is saying that it is a private matter, that is of grave concern to all Guyanese, it is not a private matter. She is there to protect the interest of children and we cannot have a candidate who is being accused of molesting a child be part of this system,” expressed Benschop.

He had also observed that voters will “make a decision that is right for their constituency.” According to media reports, Harding was first charged for molesting an eight-year old in 1999.

The man’s sister, Sharon Harding told Stabroek News that she was the relative who informed the court of her brother’s previous charges.

Social Protection Minister Volda Lawrence reportedly “cautioned” Sharon Harding over her brother’s campaign material being relabelled with a “Child Molester” slogan. Guyana Times was unsuccessful in garnering a response from the woman who supposedly has spent years trying to attain “justice” for those who have accused the man. Efforts to contact the Social Protection Minister on Wednesday also proved futile.

thursDAY, march 17, 2016

guyanatimesgy.com

11

News

Joe Singh to head CoI into Top Cop orders recent mining pit collapse probe into 10-year-

M

ajor General (retired) Joe Singh has been tasked with the responsibility of conducting an inquiry into the recent mining fatality at Mahdia, Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni).

This newspaper was told that the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) will be making arrangements for the probe to commence by the end of the week.

Trentan Sebastian, 19, a pitman, died after the mining pit in which he was working collapsed on Tuesday.

Major General (retired) Joe Singh

area of trees, when one of the walls of the pit caved in and pinned the teenager underneath loose soil.

He was subsequently pulled out and rushed to the Mahdia Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival. The GGMC stated that the mining operation was operating without the requisite approval and, as such, was halted.

“It was also reported that the dredge was operating on property without permission and for which an order to cease work (CWO) was issued,” the GGMC stated.

The site of a 2015 mining accident

Reports are that about 15:30h on Monday last, Sebastian and four other

miners were washing the walls of the mine while other miners were clearing the

The Commission said the accident came at a time when as recent as mid-Feb-

Minister Ally commissions Providence Primary canteen

Social Cohesion Minister Amna Ally and CGX Energy Inc Co-Chairman, Dr Suresh Narine help a student from the Providence Primary School to unveil a plaque at the commissioning ceremony of the school’s new canteen while other officials look on

S

ocial Cohesion Minister Amna Ally on Wednesday commissioned a spanking new canteen for the students of the Providence Primary School.

The canteen was built and furnished by Dr Suresh Narine, co-Chairman of CGX Energy Incorporated, who is also a past student of the school.

Minister Ally, in brief comments, said that the canteen has been built to provide comfort, not just to

the students, but the vendors and other stakeholders as well.

She also encouraged the students, parents and teachers to use the facility to interact and strengthen friendships and build new relationships, all leading to a more cohesive environment. She urged them to take care of the facility.

In his remarks, Dr Narine said that the canteen was just one of the many initiatives that the company

has undertaken through its corporate social responsibility programme. Already, CGX Energy Incorporated has donated a computer lab and a reading room to the school.

Head of the ParentTeachers Association (PTA), Anola Braithwaite expressed gratitude for the canteen, noting that it would go a long way in bringing some comfort and order for the students and vendors alike.

ruary, it conducted a Mines Safety Compliance Tour in the Potaro and Konawaruk areas, where several CWOs were issued owing to unsafe operations in the Mahdia Redhole, Whitehole and St Elizabeth areas.

Meanwhile, it was reported that from 2012 to 2015, 62 miners, particularly young men, lost their lives after several pit collapses.

These accidents were said to have been caused by negligence, especially with regard to safe mining practices, including shortcuts taken by workers, who sometimes treasured their finds over their own lives.

old’s detention

I

n light of reports that surfaced in the local media that a 10-yearold boy was held in the lockups at the Springlands Police Station, Police Commissioner Seelall Persaud has ordered that a probe be launched into the incident with immediate effect.

It was reported that the mother of the child told media operatives that her son was held by her neighbours and taken to the Springlands Police Station, after it was alleged that he had stolen a

few items.

Guyana Times understands that the child later appeared in the chambers of the Springlands Court, where Magistrate Rabindranauth Singh advised the Prosecutor that he was too young to be prosecuted; hence, the matter was dismissed.

The matter was brought to the attention of the hierarchy of the Police Force; hence, the Police Office of Professional Responsibility was directed to investigate the matter.

12

thursday, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

13 Berbice sugar workers storm estate compound E news

thursDAY, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

state workers have lashed back at management of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) which tried to punish them for their weekly strikes, held in solidarity with their counterparts at Wales, West Bank Demerara.

The workers protested at Providence, East Bank Berbice (EBB), and later stormed into the Rose Hall Estate compound, on the Corentyne. This was in retaliation to management’s alleged refusal to allow them to work because they have been supporting a call to rescind on the decision to close the Wales Sugar Estate.

No cane was burnt on Saturday, Sunday or Monday resulting in harvesters not being required to work for three days; despite there being ripe canes in the field.

This situation caused the

Close to 200 workers protested at Providence, East Bank Berbice on Wednesday

workers to downed tools in protest action on Wednesday.

General Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU’s) Berbice Regional Supervisor, Harvey Tambron, who met with the workers at Providence, said management has pushed the workers over the edge and they are now demanding answers as to why they were unable to work since Saturday.

“All the other estates,

they burn cane, workers are working. They are cutting cane, the factory is grinding, Saturday, Sunday, Monday; Tuesday is their day to be on strike because that was called by the General Council. I spoke with the Estate Manager this morning [Wednesday] and he made it clear… ‘We are not going to prepare work for the harvesters as long as the Union is calling a one-day strike,” Tambron related to

Deadly prison riot

Inmate denies plot to burn down Camp Street Prison

A

s the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the recent unrests at the Georgetown Prison continues, inmate Michael Lewis returned to the stand on Wednesday to be further cross-examined during which he was asked and resolutely denied knowledge of any plot by prisoners to burn the Camp Street facility.

He was at the time be-

According to Lewis, he has never seen any ice picks, knives, sharpened tooth brushes, marijuana or cellphones in the possession of his fellow inmates. In fact, he claimed that the only time he saw any cellphones in the penitentiary was when prison wardens used their phones.

“Only time I saw cellphone is when the senior officer came to search the location,

occurring. He noted too that when the contraband items were taken away during the search on March 2, “you could see it in their (prisoners’) face that they felt a way”.

On the other hand, Kesney told the Commission that without their cellphones, the prisoners would “plug out”, meaning get angry. “Anything could happen (when a man plug out). When a man get

Prisoner Michael Lewis under cross-examination on Wednesday

ing questioned by Attorney Dexter Todd, who joined the Commission the said day representing deceased prisoner Delroy Williams and injured inmate Marcellus Verbeke.

The three-member Commission was established

by President David Granger to probe the incident which occurred on March 3, and the two following days, at the Georgetown Prison that led to the death of 17 inmates.

The Attorney asked the prisoner whether before the March 3 incident, if he knew of any plots to burn the prison down, to which Lewis responded saying “No Sir”. The 39-year-old murder accused further denied having any knowledge of plans by prisoners to start a fire in the prison.

Moreover, while under cross-examination by Attorney Selwyn Pieters, who is representing the Guyana Prison Service and the Guyana Police Force, the inmate claimed that he never saw any contraband items within the Georgetown prison during his near two-year incarceration.

them would come with cellphone on them,” he said.

The witness maintained this position despite being grilled by the Canadian-based Attorney on the matter.

Further questioned about the 19 cellphones found during the March 2, search, which is believed to have sparked the unrests, Lewis pointed out that he cannot comment about that since he was never shown the items. “When the prison (officers) carried out a search, they never showed no prisoner what they found,” he related.

However, Lewis testimony contradicts evidence given by two previous witnesses. Prisoners Dwayne Lewis and Errol Kesney told the Commission last week that they would see other inmates with cellphones, marijuana and even weapons.

In fact, Dwayne had stated that cellphones provide some level of “comfort” to prisoners during their incarceration, adding that it would make the prison administration calm thus preventing events such as the recent unrests from

flashes, he could trip out pon any person,” he remarked.

Meanwhile, day five of the Commission of Inquiry kicked off with President of the Guyana Bar Association (GBA) Christopher Ram, making an application for several documents from the Prison Service.

Chairman of the proceedings, Justice James Patterson adjourned his ruling on the application to next Monday.

On that day, he is expected to hear submissions on the request before handing down his decision.

Also on Wednesday’s date, Attorney Todd was granted full participatory rights in the Inquiry. He requested to have “standing in the matters where it touches matters that would concern the two main persons”.

Justice Patterson granted the application, allowing the attorney access to all documentation of the Commission “with the sole purpose of assisting the Commission to fairly deal with matters to which the commission has been formed”.

this newspaper.

After being informed about the decision taken by management at Providence, the workers demanded a meeting with the estate management and went the seven miles to Rose Hall.

When they got there, the workers pushed past security and walked into the compound demanding a senior manager meet with them.

The Estate Manager had slipped out moments before they arrived.

After waiting for close to half an hour, the angry workers moved to the gate to hold all vehicles in the compound hostage.

The Human Resource Manager Adesh Singh was sent out to meet the angry cane harvesters. He told them the Estate Manager was willing to meet with a five-man representative team. The workers did not agree to that, saying that the

flock stays together. They also told Singh that the proposal put forward by management was disrespectful.

“I don’t know where this is going, the workers are upset because they have loans to pay, they have bills to pay, they have their children to send to school, they have to feed their family. You can’t be offering them three and four days work. This is their reaction and the Union stands firm with them,” Tambron told Guyana Times.

GAWU says the workers from ‘C’ Gang will be joins by other gangs tomorrow as they demand the management face them and explain why they are being denied work.

14 NEWS

thursday, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

Govt hands Fedders Lloyd Specialty Hospital contract – construction to begin by mid-year

G

overnment will soon be negotiating a contract with Indian firm Fedders Lloyd for the construction of the controversial Specialty Hospital in Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara (ECD).

This is despite the mountain of concerns raised by a multitude of persons regarding the sole-sourcing of a company disqualified by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board to undertake the construction of the multimillion-dollar project.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan, during a press conference on Wednesday, disclosed that the project was moving at a rapid pace, with consultants currently putting the documentation together ahead of

An artist's impression of the Specialty Hospital project

the first phase of construction which is expected to begin by midyear.

Jordan said Fedders Lloyd already modified the design for the facility, taking into account the work that was already done by the previous contractor, Surendra Engineering.

He assured that the project would cost no more than the remaining US$13 million (of an initial $18 million) line of credit provided by the Indian Exim Bank.

In 2012, the hospital

contract was awarded to Surendra Engineering to design and construct the facility.

Its services were subsequently terminated owing to several contractual breaches.

The matter was taken to the High Court and compensation was accordingly awarded to the Government.

During that initial bidding process, Fedders Lloyd was disqualified, but the company’s legal representative Khemraj Ramjattan

(now Vice President and Public Security Minister) had argued against that verdict.

Despite this, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition, even while in Opposition, contended that Fedders Lloyd was wronged.

Shortly after assumption to office, the Government signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the disqualified company to undertake the construction, citing that it would be more economical and less time-consuming than going through the transparent process of retendering.

The Government’s decision to hand the contract to the company was made despite a public outcry over the manner in which the award was handled and concerns about the lack of transparency and accountability surrounding the entire transaction.

Massy opening local mega supermarket today

M

assy stores, a regional supermarket chain, will today be opening the doors of its first supermarket in Guyana. The supermarket chain, which currently has 45 locations in the Caribbean, including Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and St Lucia, will be opening its first store in Guyana at Amazonia Mall, East Bank Demerara (EBD).

Country Manager of Massy Guyana Deo Persaud explained that the branch features 16,000 square feet of retail space and will be the largest supermarket in Guyana. “The store’s international design, which incorporates wide aisles to comfortably accommodate shoppers, and automated instore price checkers, is also complemented by extensive parking facilities to enhance the overall shopping experience,” he related. Persaud further explained that the Massy Group has been operating in Guyana for the past 48 years, and has been offering a wide range of services.

“Our model has been primarily business to business, as we have been operating in the industrial and LPG gases, automotive and industrial equipment, distribution, security services and Information Technology industries locally. Now we

Country Manager of Massy Guyana Deo Persaud

are really moving into a new space, operating in retail and serving a wider customer base which is a new and exciting business for us.

We have the opportunity to work closely with local suppliers and local producers so that our customers can find a wide variety of high quality, local items in one location,” the Manager stated.

It was revealed that the location will feature a wide range of high quality products including fresh produce, chilled and frozen meat, prepared foods, a wide variety local and foreign food, and general merchandise items.

“Additionally, the Massy Stores Supermarket will of-

fer a number of convenient, value-added services including a deli and bakery, butcher and fresh fish counters, an in-store pharmacy, ATM machines, MoneyGram and SurePay points of service,” a representative explained.

Meanwhile, Senior Vice President and Executive Chairman of the Retail Line of Business for the Massy Group, Thomas Patin related that the company is excited to open its doors in Guyana, as the market offers immense opportunities.

“We believe that being in the Guyana market gives us an opportunity to be more authentically Caribbean as we bring on board 120 Guyanese associates to create something new for this market. This is about bringing a new shopping experience to Guyanese consumers and sharing our best practices and best models across Caribbean territories,” he stated, adding that the construction of the second Guyana branch is already underway.

“We have continued to incorporate best practices in the construction of our second store, already in progress, at the East Coast Movie Towne complex which is scheduled to open in 2017,” the company Executive disclosed.

15

thursday, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

16

thursday, march 17, 2016

guyanatimesgy.com

Shelly Nohar: Helping Guyanese to shop, ship and save

W

ith her sight firmly set on taking her online shopping and shipping business Target Shipping global, Shelly Nohar is the epitome of modern woman, brimming with confidence and self belief.

The businesswoman, wife and mother of a darling oneyear-old boy who enjoys cooking except roti (she laughs), when asked how she juggles it all, said: “Shoe heels reduced by one inch, hair in ponytail, two-minute showers, handbag aka survival kit on my shoulder, cell phone two feet away – Everything gets done because I enjoy every moment of it.”

Nohar, a Canal Number Two, West Bank Demerara native, started her business over three years ago because she wanted the freedom of her own time and knew she could do it. Her company, which aims

Shelly Nohar

to help Guyanese shop, ship and save, ships cargo by air and sea from hubs in New York, Florida and Canada; clears and delivers the packages to customers. According to the entrepreneur, there are three flights every week, so there are no unnecessary delays, and

consolidation and repacking so customers enjoy some savings (rates are based on the weight of packages, a handling fee and customs duties). Bulky/ heavy packages and barrels are shipped by sea. The company also has several payment and pick-up locations: at New Amsterdam, Berbice; Canal Number Two; Parika and Bartica in Essequibo, but its main office is at 5 Avenue of the Republic and Robb Street, Georgetown (above Church’s Chicken). Payments can be made using GTT Mobile Money, bank deposits, Western Union, Moneygram or cash.

Nohar is proud of saving her customers time and money, and plans to soon expand her company into the export business. “My ultimate definition of success is knowing other people have benefited from things I have done.”

Stressing that the

most important trait for entrepreneurs is persistence, the former St Rose’s High student said, “If you do not go after what you want, you’ll never get it.” She advises those persons who are thinking of starting a business to “stop thinking about it and just do it. Make a plan, get necessary help and be prepared to do some hard work to grow it. It’s yours so the hard work will be worth it”.

Buoyed by the life stories of other successful people and her mentor Lester Hutson (business owner and nutritionist), Nohar is resolutely working towards her goals. “I’m growing every day so that I can keep on doing it.”

Contact: 231-2990 or 6231400 I target_shipping@ yahoo.com I facebook.com/ targetshipping

Global exposure and education needed for Caribbean competitiveness, says tourism leader

T

pacity as President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), a Private-Sector led organisation made up of 32 national hotel and tourism associations representing more than 1000 hotels and tourism-related businesses throughout the Caribbean.

Well known for her commitment to staff training at Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain, Troubetzkoy is highlighting the value of education. “We are committed to the development of our Region’s and industry’s most important re-

source – our people.”

She is especially keen to develop closer ties with hospitality training institutions in Europe “to establish an ongoing dialogue and collaboration aimed at further developing the skills of our people and enhancing service standards in the Caribbean region”.

“Specifically, we would be interested in looking at formalising internship opportunities for European students and for Caribbean nationals through a vacancy portal to help them connect with prospective em-

Market statistics Cur

Buying

Gold Prices – Guyana Gold Board Selling

Fixed as at March 16, 2016 Calculated at 94% purity

U.S.

$1233.10

$155.85

Gross

$238,105

Net

$221,438

GBP

$290.21

$293.87

CAN

$153.77

USD

$205.98

$208.44

EURO

$ 228.25

$231.18

An entrepreneur takes calculated risks

Risk-adverse people don’t make very good entrepreneurs – but neither do extremely reckless people who leap first and look later. Real entrepreneurs evaluate their potential risks. They also know how to minimise the risks they need to take through hard work, dedication, and strategic planning.

When a risk goes bad, an entrepreneur doesn’t waste a lot of time looking for someone to blame. Instead a true entrepreneur analyses what went wrong, learns from it, and moves on.

Karolin Troubetzkoy

ployers in the Caribbean Region after graduation.

Likewise, we are interested in opening up similar new opportunities for our Caribbean nationals who pursue hospitality degrees.” (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

Frankfurt and London seal US$30B trading tieup to counter US threat

D

eutsche Boerse AG and London Stock Exchange Group Plc agreed to combine in a US$30 billion deal to create a European trading powerhouse better able to compete with US rivals encroaching on their turf.

But the deal, which marks a third attempt to link the Frankfurt and London exchanges, may prompt a takeover war after New York Stock Exchange owner Intercontinental Exchange said it may bid for the British group.

Nearly 16 years after Deutsche Boerse first tried to take over LSE, the exchanges said last month they were discussing an all-share merger, which they confirmed

on Wednesday would give Deutsche Boerse shareholders 54.4 per cent and LSE investors 45.6 per cent of a new company.

This offers a unique opportunity for Frankfurt which has always played second fiddle to London as a global financial centre, something recognised by the German government which said it would welcome the deal if it strengthened Frankfurt.

If it goes ahead, the combination would create the world’s biggest exchange by revenue, forecast at 4.7 billion euros this year from stock, bond and derivatives trading, indices, market data, and clearing and settlement. (Reuters)

Investors' guide

Cambio Rates Bank of Guyana

A

An entrepreneur is a problem solver

n entrepreneur looks at a problem and knows it’s an opportunity. That’s not a cliché talking. A problem is literally an opportunity to get paid if you can be the one to solve it. Successful entrepreneurs make their name identifying problems without solutions, and providing those solutions. Every good product solves some sort of problem. Even video games solve a problem – they provide a way for people to unwind after a stressful day and fulfil a fantasy.

If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, your natural response to any given problem should always be to ask yourself how you can solve that problem. Not who is to blame, not how that problem came to be – just how the problem can be solved. Problem-solving becomes a habit. As you become alert to problems with no solutions, you become alert to new ways to create, grow, develop, and innovate new products. If you can marry this alertness to calculated action you will develop the instincts that you need to be an outstanding entrepreneur.

(Businessdictionary)

Business News

he executive director of St Lucia’s internationally renowned twin resorts of Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain is promoting the value of hospitality and management training at one of the world’s largest tourism industry gatherings, ITB Berlin.

In addition to her role at the two resorts, which regularly appear on lists of the world’s leading hotels, Karolin Troubetzkoy, who originally hails from Germany, is also attending the huge tourism industry show in her ca-

Top traits of successful entrepreneurs

Indicators as on March 16, 2016 Indicators

US$ per barrel

Crude Oil

$36.34

Price

USD

Rough Rice

$10.440/cwt

London Sugar

$443.25/ton

Live Spot Gold

Change %

-2.31 Change %

-0.10 +1.08 USD Per Once

Bid/Ask

$1258.40

Low/High

$1225.70

$1264.60

-3.70

-0.29%

Change

$1259.40

Business Concept – Electronic Commerce (E-Commerce) Business conducted through the use of computers, telephones, fax machines, barcode readers, credit cards, Automated Teller Machines (ATM) or other electronic appliances (whether or not using the Internet) without the exchange of paper-based documents. It includes activities such as procurement, order entry, transaction processing, payment, authentication and non-repudiation, inventory control, order fulfillment, and customer support. When a buyer pays with a bank card swiped through a magnetic-stripe-reader, he or she is participating in e-commerce. (Business Dictionary)

Wall St closes at 2016 high as Fed signals fewer rate hikes

T

he S&P 500 closed at its highest level of the year on Wednesday after the US Federal Reserve left interest rates untouched and signalled fewer rate hikes in coming months.

The Fed indicated moderate US economic growth and “strong job gains” would allow it to tighten policy this year with fresh projections showing policymakers expected two quarter-point hikes by the year’s end, half the number seen in December.

But the US central bank noted the United States continues to face risks from an uncertain global economy.

Because of that uncertainty, “the committee judged it prudent to maintain the current policy stance at this meeting,” Fed Chair Janet Yellen said.

The decision to keep rates

steady was in line with analyst predictions, but the Fed’s tone was surprising to some.

“Most folks were looking for a slightly hawkish statement and they did not deliver in that,” said Tom Porcelli, RBC Capital Markets chief U.S. economist. “It was balanced at best and probably even slightly dovish.”

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 74.23 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 17,325.76, the S&P 500 had gained 11.29 points, or 0.56 per cent, to 2,027.22 and the Nasdaq Composite had added 35.30 points, or 0.75 per cent, to 4,763.97.

The CBOE volatility index, a gauge of what equity investors are willing to pay for protection against a drop on the S&P 500, closed at its lowest since early December.

Eight of the 10 major S&P sectors closed higher.

Materials were up the most at 1.74 per cent. Healthcare and financial stocks lagged.

The S&P energy sector rose 1.6 percent as US oil prices jumped almost six percent after major producers firmed up plans to discuss an output freeze and US crude stockpiles grew less than expected.

About 7.6 billion shares changed hands on US exchanges, below the 8.1 billion average over the last 20 sessions.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 2462 to 590, for a 4.17-to-1 ratio on the upside; on the Nasdaq, 1675 issues rose and 1084 fell for a 1.55-to-1 ratio favouring advancers.

The S&P 500 posted 36 new 52-week highs and five new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 38 new highs and 62 new lows. (Reuters)

17

news

thursday, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

The Race to LGE 2016

Businessman hoping to improve infrastructure of constituency

F

or businessman Ashmeed Hassan, the fast approaching Local Government Elections is providing him with an opportunity to ensure that his constituency is given the attention and Government intervention that it needs.

Hassan is contesting under the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) for Constituency Four which comprises of Newtown, Lamaha Gardens, Section K Campbellville, Bell Air Park and the greater Campbellville area.

Speaking with Guyana Times, Hassan related that these communities face a number of issues which negatively affect them on a daily basis; all of which he is hoping to rectify if elected as a Councillor. “Firstly, like most communities, we have the issue of poor drainage. The issue of drainage has not arisen due to the lack of drainage channels but the poor maintenance of the ones we have available,” he explained. He related that while there are a number of drainage channels in the constituency, they are in poor condition and as such, they do not effectively serve their purpose as most of them are overgrown with vegetation or clogged due to the build-up of mud banks.

“We also have an issue where we do not have access to proper lighting for the community as there are few street lights. The ones that we do have belong to private citizens,” he related. He stated that if elected, he would be appealing to the relevant authorities for the installation of street lights, and he would also provide solutions to the issue of paying for the electricity used by the lights.

He continued to explain the difficulties faced by the communities, revealing that the areas are seeing an increase in the presence of criminal elements. “We have

school. And for those that continue, I will ensure that the relevant actions are taken to rectify the situation,” Hassan stated.

Ashmeed Hassan

a lot of abandoned lots and buildings in the area now, and these are serving as a haven for thieves and junkies. This poses a threat to community members as their safety and security is now at risk,” he posited. He explained that he plans to lobby for the deployment of Police patrols to the area on a daily basis. “I would not suggest plain clothes Police but officers in uniform. This would deter these criminal elements from carrying out illicit and criminal activities,” he stated.

The businessman also revealed that the residents of these communities, most of which are residential areas, have been voicing their complaints about noise nuisance. “We noticed that these push card music vendors have been frequenting the area and have been inconveniencing the residents and causing them discomfort. The volume causes car alarms to activate and have caused residents to become irritated,” Hassan related.

He revealed that he would be calling on the Police to clamp down on these offenders, and to penalise them.

Finally, he disclosed that there has been an increase in truancy in the communities. “I will be partnering with the relevant authorities to ensure that these children are attending

Lindener guilty of trafficking narcotics

… to be sentenced shortly

A

Lindener who appeared before Magistrate Clive Nurse at the Linden Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday was found guilty of trafficking in narcotics.

The defendant, Wade Mentore, a miner who hails from Lot 4 Rainbow City, Mackenzie, Linden, was charged with having 460 grams of cannabis sativa in his possession on September 18, 2014, at Mabura Hill, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice). He will be sentenced on May 5.

Mentore was previously granted bail after being charged for the offence.

Representing the defen-

dant was Attorney Gordon Gilhuys who asked that the court take into consideration the fact that the father of four had been unrepresented during the course of his trial.

He asked further that the court exercise discretion in sentencing the defendant, since he has a wife and two children who are dependent on him. After listening to the defence put forward by the Attorney, Magistrate Nurse ordered a probation report and instructed that the defendant report for probation.

The case will be called again on May 5.

The man explained that he and his fellow Party candidates are the only contestants with a manifesto, and one that is

aimed at improving the communities.

“I encourage residents to vote for me as I have been living here for over

two decades and I am well aware of the issues faced by residents. I will do my utmost best to serve my community,” he declared.

18 news

thursday, march 17, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

Cybercrime Bill consultations

No provisions for cybertheft at financial institutions

A

s the Legal Affairs Ministry hosted another stakeholders consultation on the Draft Cybercrime Bill 2016, it was revealed that the piece of legislation does not contain any provisions for cyber theft from financial institutions such as banks.

The Bill, which is already published in the official gazette but is yet to be debated in the National Assembly, seeks to introduce a series of cybercrime offences and penalties – an area where Guyana has been lagging behind.

Wednesday’s consultation session ran for about two hours during which stakeholders made queries, raised concerns and even made recommendations on the drafted legislation. Among the concerns outlined was the need for regulations to be established that would protect customers of financial institutions in the event of cyber theft, whereby customers’ monies are stolen.

In addressing this matter, parliamentary Counsel Vonetta Atwell-Singh, explained that even though no clause was included in the Bill, this particular scenario was considered during the drafting of the legisla-

A section of the gathering at the consultation session on the Cybercrime Bill 2016

tion. She noted that the policies used in the United States were considered.

“For example, if a credit card fraud is committed and money is lost (in the US), the bank will investigate and they will repay some of it. But we have not inserted a clause in this legislation to look at that,” Atwell-Singh stated.

Nevertheless, the parliamentary Counsel, invited submissions on the matter, noting that it could be further examined.

Another concern highlighted by stakeholders was the lack of provisions for victims of identity theft.

Stakeholders were more so concerned about what procedures are in place to monitor whether such institutions take adequate steps or follow necessary procedures to protect customers. It was also

pointed out that institutions in possession of customers’ personal information should be liable to penalties if that data is leaked as a result of hacking.

On the other hand, journalist Enrico Woolford questioned whether the draft legislation, specifically the section of persons violating the rights of others via the Internet, covers the work of the media. He explained that media operatives would often access personal information on individuals via computerbased communication sources and disseminate it to the public.

Under the section titled ‘Harassment utilising a computer system’ it states that “a person who intentionally or recklessly: (a) uses a computer to disseminate any information, statement or image;

and (b) exposes the private affairs of another person, subjecting that person to public ridicule, contempt, hatred or embarrassment”. The prescribed penalty for this offence is a maximum fine of $5 million and/or three years imprisonment on summary conviction, and $10 million five and/or five years imprisonment.

Woolford, an Executive member of the Guyana Press Association (GPA), asked if the media exposes the private affairs of another person that leads to negative outcomes mentioned in the legislation, whether media operatives would be subject to face the penalties. He noted that this is particularly important since there is no press freedom legislation to protect the local media fraternity, in except for the constitutional

right to freedom of expression.

In response, Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams, pointed out in such cases criminal liability plays a key factor. He added that even in civil libel matters, justification of the fact must be established. The Minister noted that issue of malice will also have to be taken into consideration.

“If someone publishes an article about you, your defence is whether it’s true; or justification appears as a matter of public interest… There must be a clear substantive of the facts and a clear criticism of the substantive facts,” he posited.

The second round of consultation saw the attendance of members of diplomatic corps, members of the legal fraternity, parliamentary staffers, officials of the State Asset Recovery Unit (SARU), the Guyana Revenue Authority’s (GRA) Legal Department and the Guyana Office for Investment (GOInvest).

Addressing the gathering, Minister Williams pointed out that while technology has changed every facet of human lives for the better, it has, however, led to the emergence of cybercrime.

“The creation of cybercrime legislation is the first step in our battle against cybercrimes. The legislation is essential to criminalise cybercrimes and provide for the investigative and procedural measures that could enable law enforcement to prosecute offenders,” he stated.

On the other hand, US Chargé d’ Affaires Bryan Hunt outlined that the piece of legislation under consultation will address many of today’s greatest cybersecurity threats such as identity theft, cyberbullying, and child pornography.

The US Diplomat pledged his Government’s support to Guyana in efforts to enhance its cybersecurity, noting that if left unattended, these scourges can undermines the social fabric of the nation.

Meanwhile, Country Representative of the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) explained that even though Guyana’s Internet penetration is at a mere 37 per cent, it does not lessen its risked against cyber threats.

In fact, she noted that a recent United Nations (UN) report reveals that some 80 per cent of the Latin America and the Caribbean regions are not protected against cybercrimes.

PPP accuses Govt of targeting Executive, Judiciary meet to discuss reducing judicial backlog “political prisoners” … writes diplomatic community

T

he People’s Progressive Party (PPP) has taken its outrage to the ears of the diplomatic community in Guyana, seeking to gain support against what it said was the violation of human rights, following the arrest of two of its supporters recently.

The party said the move signifies the re-emergence of “political prisoners” under the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Coalition Government.

The issue at hand was the recent arrest of journalist and TV Talk Show Host Kwame McCoy, and Jason Abdulla, journalist; both members of the PPP. According to the Party, it will be taking the necessary steps to highlight and condemn the “dangerous development” which it said represents a violation of the basic human rights of the two individuals and a retrogression of our democracy.

“The People’s Progressive Party would like to draw to the attention of the diplomatic community the reintroduction of political prisoners in Guyana under the David Granger-lead Administration.”

It recalled that Abdulla and McCoy were arrested by the Police on February 15 and February 17 respectively, without ready access to their lawyer and family, while being subjected to physical and psychological abuse until the Party publicly exposed this violation to the media.

Jason Abdulla “Mr Abdulla in particular was beaten while in Police custody to sign a confession statement which content he was unfamiliar. Eventually on the repeated insistence of his lawyer, he was taken to the hospital and when the doctor confirmed injuries to his feet, Assistant Superintendent of Police Mitchell Ceasar instructed his ranks to have the doctor rewrite the medical report”, the content of the letter stated.

According to the party, the two men were being shuttled around to various Police locations in order to prevent them from accessing the constitutional rights available to persons in Police custody.

“After over 144 hours of incarceration they were both charged with a common assault incident which allegedly occurred since May 2010.

During their incarceration, they were both informed that the Police was also investigating them for the murder of Courtney Crum-Ewing which occurred before the elections of May 2015”.

The Party explained that McCoy, a practicing journalist was Head of the Press and Publicity Unit of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration. He is also an elected member to the Central Committee of the PPP, the second highest body of the Party. “Mr McCoy currently works as the Executive Assistant to the Leader of the Opposition of Guyana.

Mr Abdulla, also a journalist, was a senior officer in the Government Information Agency and the Press and Publicity Unit of the PPP/C Administration and now an employee of Freedom Radio, Guyana.”

It noted that the PPP is deeply concerned over the Government of Guyana’s violation of its human rights obligations, under both domestic and international law as they continue to harass two journalists who were made political prisoners and now face a trump-up charge of common assault.

The party is therefore seeking the attention of the international community to these “disturbing occurrences where the Granger-lead Administration in its haste to execute its political persecution is reintroducing the conditions for political prisoner.”

P

rime Minister Moses Nagamootoo on Wednesday led a ministerial delegation to a meeting requested by President David Granger with executives of the Judicial Service Commission.

The meeting surrounded ways on addressing the backlog of cases, the recent fiery riot at the Georgetown Camp Street Prison and the consequential actions that could be taken to address it.

The fire, which erupted on March 3, left 17 inmates dead and several others, including prison officers injured.

Among the numerous complaints raised by prisoners was the lengthy delay of their cases to be called before the court.

The Prime Minister, speaking with the media briefly, said the meeting was quite fruitful. He said many changes will be had in the ensuing days ahead.

“The meeting was to deal with the overcrowding in the prisons and to be able to agree with the judiciary on a number of initiatives that the judiciary has proposed geared at easing the overcrowding and dealing with persons on remand and fast forwarding their trials. There was a wide ranging discussion all aimed at getting trials speedily and clear the congestion in the prison,” he told journalists outside the

Court of Appeal where the more than two-hour long meeting was held.

Chancellor of the Judiciary, Justice Carl Singh said the meeting was able to identify ways in which the work of the court could impact the situation and circumstances and how prison operations could be affected by what is done in the court.

The Judiciary has always been faced with an enormous backlog of cases; a problem that recently appointed acting Chief Justice Yonette Cummings Edwards said she will be tackling.

Last year, the Chancellor, during an interview with Guyana Times, said that backlog of cases was not unique to Guyana, but was an issue which presents itself in judiciaries across the world.

Similar sentiments were expressed by University of London Law Professor Jenny Hamilton who stated that the challenges which arise as a result of having to deal with a backlog of cases in the judiciary and a relatively slow justice system are not unique to Guyana or the wider Caribbean.

“I think this is an issue that is not peculiar to Guyana. It affects just about every other country in the world. In the United Kingdom, there are similar issues about access to

justice, the speed of the courts and there was a very influential reforms programme which commenced in the UK to address these,” Hamilton said.

But the acting Chancellor pointed out that Guyana has made significant inroads over the years as it relates to the rate of hearings and disposal, especially for criminal matters. He noted that judges work at a level pace according to their performance and capabilities but some display greater capacity to complete cases in record time than others. The backlog of criminal cases number hundreds.

On the other hand, the Chancellor outlined that the backlog of civil cases stands somewhere around 3000 to 4000.

The early morning unrest at the Georgetown claimed the lives of 17 prisoners – one of whom died at the Georgetown Public Hospital while the other bodies were recovered among debris in the jailhouse. Authorities believe the prisoners died as a result of suffocation from inhaling thick smoke.

The Camp Street Prison was built to accommodate 600 prisoners however to date close to 1000 inmates are being housed. There were 68 prisoners in the Capital A Division, the area where the fire started.

thurSDAY, march 17, 2016

19

FIFA files for compensation in US as victim of corruption G

lobal football body FIFA has applied to United States authorities for tens of millions of dollars compensation from ex-officials indicted there and recognised that executive committee members had in the past sold their votes in World Cup hosting contests.

FIFA announced on Wednesday it was also seeking repayment of salaries and a full audit of a former top official it says has continued to live an “extravagant lifestyle” while on bail from a New York Court.

The Swiss-based body, its global administration shaken by graft charges and tales of lavish spending that toppled its former head, said its U.S. lawyers had filed a restitution request on Tuesday with federal prosecutors in New York.

In the document and an accompanying letter published by FIFA, it demanded return of salaries and payment of compensation for damage to its brand, business interests and reputation.

“The defendants grossly abused their positions of trust to enrich themselves...(and have) deeply tarnished the FIFA brand

president, prominently as plaintiff and victim.

FIFA is also asking U.S. officials for an audit of the assets of Jeffrey Webb, a former president of CONCACAF, which governs football in North and Central America and the Caribbean.

FIFA THE VICTIM

FIFA’s sign outside their headquarters in Switzerland

and impaired FIFA’s ability to use its resources for positive actions throughout the world,” the document said.

It listed several cases of alleged wrongdoing, including the race to host the 2010 World Cup, won by South Africa, which had already been detailed by U.S. authorities in December.

It said that former executive committee members Chuck Blazer, Jack Warner, plus other individuals, engineered a $10 million (£7.1 million) payoff in exchange for executive committee votes.

Warner, who is fighting extradition from Trinidad and Tobago after being indicted in the U.S., had pre-

viously accepted a bribe to vote for Morocco in the 1998 World Cup hosting race, won by France, the report said.

“It is now apparent that multiple members of FIFA’s Executive Committee abused their positions and sold their votes on multiple occasions,” the report said.

However, it did not mention the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments which were awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively, a decision which has sparked a criminal investigation by Swiss authorities.

Ex-officials who have pleaded guilty have already agreed to pay more than $190 million in forfeiture,

Barca’s terrific trio down Arsenal to reach last 8

B

arcelona’s dynamic attacking trio of Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi were too strong for Arsenal as all three scored in a 3-1 victory on Wednesday that sent the Spanish side into the Champions League quarter-finals 5-1 on aggregate.

Brazil’s Neymar opened the scoring in the first half as the home side dominated the early play, but Arsenal’s Mohamed Elneny curled in an excellent finish to spark life into the visitors after the break.

Suarez, however, launched himself into the air to meet a Dani Alves cross and send a superb volley into the top corner to deflate the English side, who have now been knocked out of the tournament in the last 16 for six successive seasons.

The mercurial Messi rounded off the scoring with a trademark chipped finish two minutes from time as the defending champions extended their recordbreaking unbeaten run to 38 matches in all competitions.

“We know we need to

attack and defend at the same level if we want to win,” Barcelona coach Luis Enrique told reporters. The La Liga leaders remained on course for a second successive treble and their coach is not concerned about who they face in the last eight of Europe’s most prestigious club competition.

“The only team I want to keep away from us is Barca and I think we have no chances to meet them,” he joked.

The defeat will increase the pressure on Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, whose side are 11 points adrift of leaders Leicester City in the Premier League and exited the FA Cup last weekend.

“We had our chances, but we couldn’t take them,” Wenger said. “But we have to say well done to Barcelona. They have two or three players who transfer normal life into art.”

Barcelona served notice of their intent when Arsenal keeper David Ospina was forced into a superb save

to deny Messi, but the reprieve was short-lived as the hosts took the lead through Neymar’s side-footed finish after 18 minutes.

Arsenal had lost possession playing out from the back before Suarez angled a perfectly-weighted pass into the path of Neymar to slide the ball past Ospina.

Former Barcelona forward Alexis Sanchez fluffed the visitors’ best chance when he headed wide, but Arsenal continued to press and levelled six minutes into the second half when Elneny bent a sweet finish into the top corner from 20 metres.

Just when it looked like Arsenal might spring a surprise, however, Suarez’s acrobatics finished the tie before Messi burst into the box and lifted the ball calmly into the net to cap another superb individual display.

“We knew they were going to go and take the game to us,” Suarez said.

“In the end we proved we are strong here and made home advantage count.”

(Reuters Sport)

according to U.S. authorities.

“These funds should be used to compensate the victims of the defendants’ crimes, particularly FIFA and its member associations and confederations,” FIFA said.

The very future of FIFA has been put in question by the scandal, with some demanding its abolition and replacement. The move for recompense casts FIFA for the first time, under its new

FIFA lawyers wrote in a letter to U.S. prosecutors that Webb, who is charged in alleged bribery schemes, was living an “extravagant lifestyle” that included an expensive, casino-themed birthday party for his wife since his release on bond.

A lawyer for Webb declined to comment on the party, which was the subject of a report last month by the Cayman News Service. Webb is from the Cayman Islands.

“FIFA as the world governing body of football wants that money back and we are determined to get it no matter how long it takes,” said FIFA’s recently-elected president Gianni Infantino in a statement.

“These dollars were meant to build football fields, not mansions and pools; to buy football kits, not jewellery and cars; and to fund youth player and coach development, not to underwrite lavish lifestyles for football and sports marketing executives.”

In all, 42 sports officials, executives and corporate entities have been charged in the United States under U.S. bribery and money laundering laws. The defendants include former members of FIFA’s all-powerful executive committee and former heads of national and continental governing bodies.

FIFA’s ethics committee banned Blatter for six years, and last month FIFA elected Infantino and enacted changes to its governance structure in an attempt to stamp out corruption.

FIFA also said it had incurred substantial legal costs and was entitled to restitution for its attorney fees and similar costs that directly flowed from the investigations. (Reuters Sport)

20

guyanatimesGY.com

thurSDAY, march 17, 2016

Batsmen fire Pakistan Gayle force crushes England to 55-run victory ICC T20 World Cup...

C

P

Mohammad Hafeez celebrates his half-century as Shahid Afridi looks on (AFP photo)

akistan’s batting lineup, which had misfired frequently in recent matches, finally came together in their first match of the World T20 2016 to overpower Bangladesh by 55 runs. Fifties from Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Hafeez, and Shahid Afridi’s 19-ball 49 propelled Pakistan to 201 for 5, a total which proved too steep for a side that had beaten them in their last two T20I encounters. This was only the second time Pakistan scored more than 200 in a T20 international, and the previous instance - in April 2008 - was also against Bangladesh.

Pakistan opted to bat first and, right from the start, kept their foot on the gas. They took 18 runs in three separate overs and failed to hit a four or a six in only two overs in their innings - the 9th and 14th - bowled by Shakib Al Hasan and Sabbir Rahman.

Pakistan’s opening pair of Shehzad and Sharjeel Khan was the fourth the side have tried out in T20Is this year, and Sharjeel set the tone, smashing two sixes and a four off Al-Amin Hossain in the second over.

Sharjeel fell in the next over to Arafat Sunny but Hafeez walked in and found his groove immediately, with a straight six down the ground off his second ball.

Shehzad, who had struck a serene cover drive off Taskin Ahmed in the first over, then pushed the same bowler through midwicket, before pasting Sunny over extracover. His first three fours were pleasing shots, even as Hafeez blasted boundaries down the ground.

By the end of the Powerplay, Hafeez and Shehzad had similar scores before the latter pulled away and raced to his fifty off 35 balls. Shehzad fell in the 14th over, pulling Sabbir to the deep midwicket fielder for 52 off 39 balls with eight fours. His wicket ended a 95-run, second-wicket partnership that, through a combination of big hits and clever strike rotation, did not let the Bangladesh field-

ers relax.

Afridi promoted himself to No 4 to take advantage of the start. After Hafeez had reached his fifty in the 15th over, bowled by Mashrafe Mortaza, Afridi smacked two fours and a six off consecutive balls to produce an 18run over. The pair took another 18 runs off Al-Amin’s next over, with Hafeez striking two fours and Afridi a straight six.

Hafeez fell for 64 off 42 balls, immediately after striking his seventh four.

He was caught brilliantly by Soumya Sarkar at the deep midwicket boundary. The fielder grabbed the ball close to the boundary rope; the momentum took him over the line so he lobbed the ball in the air, came back on to the field and completed the catch. The agile effort was the only solace for Bangladesh in the first innings.

Afridi unfurled the big shots in the overs that followed, including a four and a six off Shakib in the penultimate over. He went into the last over on 49 off 18 balls, on the brink of the record for the fastest fifty by a Pakistan batsman in T20Is,

but he holed out to the deep square leg fielder and, in the process, also missed his first T20I half-century since June 2012.

Sarkar’s joy from that smart catch was shortlived as Mohammad Amir uprooted his off stump on the third ball of their chase. Sabbir Rahman, who started off with a sweetly timed four past point, made sure, however, that Bangladesh didn’t fall off quickly. He struck fours off Amir and Wahab Riaz through the off side, but fell in the final Powerplay over, bowled by an Afridi delivery that came on with the arm.

Tamim had sent the first ball of that Afridi over for a six into the stands beyond midwicket and in the next over, he lifted Malik over extra-cover for another six.

His third attempt at clearing the boundary, however, ended up as a simple catch to Imad Wasim at midwicket. Tamim has been Bangladesh’s best batsman in the tournament so far and his dismissal for a 20-ball 24 snuffed out most of Bangladesh’s hopes of chasing 202. (Cricinfo)

SCOREBOARD Pakistan innings Sharjeel Khan b Arafat Sunny 18 Ahmed Shehzad c Mahmudullah b Sabbir Rahman 52 Mohammad Hafeez c Soumya Sarkar b Arafat Sunny 64 Shahid Afridi* c Mahmudullah b Taskin Ahmed 49 Umar Akmal c Shakib Al Hasan b Taskin Ahmed 0 Shoaib Malik not out 15 Imad Wasim not out 0 Extras (lb 1, w 1, nb 1) 3 Total (5 wickets; 20 overs) 201 Did not bat: Sarfraz Ahmed†, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Irfan Fall of wickets: 1-26, 2-121, 3-163, 4-175, 5-198 Bowling: Taskin Ahmed 4-032-2, Al-Amin Hossain 3-0-43-0, Arafat Sunny 4-0-34-2, Shakib Al Hasan 4-0-39-0, Mashrafe Mortaza 3-0-41-0, Sabbir Rahman 2-0-11-1

Bangladesh innings Tamim Iqbal c Imad Wasim b Shahid Afridi 24 Soumya Sarkar b Mohammad Amir 0 Sabbir Rahman b Shahid Afridi 25 50 Shakib Al Hasan not out Mahmudullah c Sharjeel Khan b Imad Wasim 4 Mushfiqur Rahim† c †Sarfraz Ahmed b Mohammad Amir 18 Mohammad Mithun c Mohammad Amir b Mohammad Irfan 2 Mashrafe Mortaza* not out 15 Extras (lb 4, w 4) 8 Total (6 wickets; 20 overs) 146 Did not bat: Al-Amin Hossain, Arafat Sunny, Taskin Ahmed Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-44, 3-58, 4-71, 5-110, 6-117 Bowling: Mohammad Amir 4-027-2, Mohammad Irfan 4-0-301, Wahab Riaz 4-0-31-0, Shahid Afridi 4-0-27-2, Shoaib Malik 2-0-14-0, Imad Wasim 2-0-131.

hris Gayle, at 36, knows that he could be playing his last World Twenty20 and, judging by the manner in which he pulverised England at the Wankhede, he intends to go out in style. England’s bowlers began the night fretting about the dew, and ended it drenched to the skin by the sight of Gayle raining sixes into the sky.

Nobody has hit as many sixes in a World T20 innings as the 11 that Gayle dispatched in Mumbai, breaking his own record of 10 against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2007 - his only previous T20I hundred.

Seven flew down the ground, the other four further along the leg-side arc and apart from a leap from Joe Root in a failed attempt to intercept the one that brought up his 50, all England’s fielders could do was watch.

Gayle’s sauntering savagery presented West Indies with a six-wicket win with 11 balls to spare. He started his celebration a few runs early, bringing out an airpunching routine on reaching his hundred to send the crowd into raptures. From 47 balls, it was the fastest ever at a World T20 and third-fastest overall.

Brendon McCullum, freshly retired, began the night as the leading six-hitter in T20Is. By the end of it, Gayle had passed him by a considerable distance. His involvement in Australia’s Big Bash had been tarnished by criticism for his manner in on-field interviews: perhaps he had retribution in mind.

England, having set a par score of 182 for the Wankhede, will conclude it was just one of those nights, but their bowling line-up looked flaky in the final stages of a bilateral series in South Africa and they had little answer to Gayle. Moeen Ali was in the eye of the storm, conceding 33 from 14 balls, including three sixes in a row, all of them in his favourite area down the ground, two of them on the full.

India, the tournament favourites, had already been toppled on a dry pitch in Nagpur by an unsung trio of New Zealand spinners.

No country has won the World T20 more than once, but it will be West Indies who will have the sharpest sense after this victory that they have the wherewithal to take the trophy a second time.

The night was wet enough for the authorities to decide that play should be held up midway through West Indies’ innings to allow machinery to dry the outfield and ensure an even contest, an uncommon intervention. At 85 for 2, West Indies were well in control and, having won the toss, would have been happy with as much dew on the outfield as they could get, but Gayle made such a debate an irrel-

Chris Gayle shakes hands with England players after his match-winning ton (Getty Images)

evance.

The first warning for England of trouble ahead came when Ben Stokes struggled to cope with the dew in his first over. England had more towels available than the average swimming pool, but Stokes conceded three fours and a free hit to Marlon Samuels in an over characterised by a full toss and a misfield. What dampness the dew wasn’t causing, the nerves were.

Gayle watched all this contentedly from the nonstriker’s end, his eye already in after despatching two half-volleys for 10 in Reece Topley’s opening over.

He faced only six balls in the first 32, but as destructive batsmen go, he likes to take a long, lingering look, and from what he could tell things were going extremely well.

Samuels holed out against Adil Rashid at longon, his 37 from 27 having given West Indies the edge.

It was time for Gayle to stir in the form of two successive sixes off Rashid, the first of them an 89 metre blow down the ground and into the top tier.

Others were less successful. Denesh Ramdin scratched and scraped to no effect and, although Reece Topley’s back-of-the-hand slower ball against Dwayne Bravo arrived as a thighhigh full toss, he planted it into the hands of deep midwicket. Andre Russell stayed

with Gayle as he claimed the contest in emphatic style.

The Wankhede was expected to hearten the quicks and the pitch was green, but it proved deceptive as there was no seam movement of note, a fact illustrated by Bravo, one of many seasoned West Indies campaigners, who set the tone with an opening over comprising six slower balls.

The most important slower ball belonged to Russell, who caused Root to hack to mid-off, ending a vervefilled 48 from 36 balls. The most striking was Bravo’s who left Stokes floundering blindly, lbw in the final over.

The last time Stokes played West Indies in T20, he famously punched a dressing room locker in frustration, broke his wrist and missed 2014 World T20 as a result and the dismissal must have been irksome enough for England’s coaching staff to consider turning the changing room into a padded cell before his return.

England’s side could show only 23 international appearances in India, with seven playing their first international in the country.

The experience rested with West Indies, a team of old stagers, battle hardened in T20 leagues around the globe, and recognising this might be their last chance to follow up the World T20 prize they won in Sri Lanka four years ago. (Cricinfo)

SCOREBOARD England innings JJ Roy c Badree b Russell 15 AD Hales b Benn 28 JE Root c Taylor b Russell 48 JC Buttler† c Brathwaite b Bravo 30 EJG Morgan* not out 27 BA Stokes lbw b Bravo 15 MM Ali run out (sub [JO Holder]/†Ramdin) 7 Extras (b 1, lb 1, w 10) 12 Total (6 wickets; 20 overs) 182 Did not bat: CJ Jordan, AU Rashid, DJ Willey, RJW Topley Fall of wickets: 1-37, 2-92, 3-114, 4-152, 5-175, 6-182 Bowling: JE Taylor 3-0-300, S Badree 4-0-34-0, AD Russell 4-0-36-2, DJ Bravo 4-0-41-2, SJ Benn 3-0-231, CR Brathwaite 2-0-16-0

West Indies innings 0 J Charles c Ali b Willey CH Gayle not out 100 MN Samuels c Willey b Rashid 37 D Ramdin† c Rashid b Ali 12 DJ Bravo c Hales b Topley 2 AD Russell not out 16 Extras (lb 4, w 10, nb 2) 16 Total (4 wickets; 18.1 overs) 183 Did not bat: DJG Sammy*, CR Brathwaite, S Badree, JE Taylor, SJ Benn Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-57, 3-103, 4-113 Bowling: DJ Willey 3-0-33-1, RJW Topley 2.1-0-22-1, CJ Jordan 4-0-24-0, BA Stokes 3-0-42-0, AU Rashid 2-0-20-1, MM Ali 4-0-38-1.

21

YELLOW PAGES

Milo U-20 School Football Tournament…

thurSDAY, MARCH 17, 2016

CAR RENTALS Need a car to rent? Then call 611-1018 for the best cars at great prices.

Progressive Auto Rental: Cars from $4000 and up. Tel: 219-3900, 643-5122

dentistry Dentures provided in 72 hours from as low as $4500. Contact Dr B Stuart, 209B Charlotte St, Lacytown.

Tel: 225-5034

Driving School Shalom Enterprise Driving School 2 Croal Street, Stabroek. You can obtain an International Drivers Permit Covering 131 Countries. Tel: 2273869, 644-7052, 659-3381

health

Healthworld Clinic – Providing professional psychological therapy for all mental and behavioral health problems. Call (592)-690-1824 Mondays-Saturdays 9am-3pm.

Email; healthworldhc@gmail.com

lAND FOR SALE Formerly Globe Cinema, Corner lot, Church and Waterloo Street Size 125 ft x 133 ft Tel: 610-2234 One land 100/50 at Good Hope Housing Scheme, East Coast Demerara for sale. Priced six million dollars. For more information, kindly call 623-0156 or 695-3150 (serious inquires only)

property for sale

EDUCATION Music 2016!! Register - learn to play the recorder, drums, guitar, keyboard, saxophone, violin, steel pan and train your voice at Foundation 7 Music School. Call 225-1151/657-8404

FOR SALE

GOOD HOPE, OGLE AND ANNA CATHERINA. CONTACT: 673-5546, 222-3066, 682-7257, 679-0987 Bargain! One 3-bedroom wooden building in Georgetown. Solid greenheart beams, columns & boards. $1.3M Negotiable. Call 227-4285

services Clean Garden Earth. Also excavating, grading and leveling done. Call 627-9977 Road to Belwasa and A Dip at the Sangam, Indentureship Novels at Austin’s Book Store and at Lachmansingh Drug Store. Tel: 226-5053.

For sale by lot: Lot (1): 2 bath tubs, bathroom fittings and fixtures & toilet set; shower fittings - $150,000 and Lot (2): 1 Dell desktop computer & HP scanner - $25,000. Call 225-2676 or 601-5285.

One 6 inch dredge, one 4-cylinder MWM, one 3-cylinder MWM engine in working condition with all other complete equipment in good working condition. 679-3655 PLANT SALE 25 7-FEET PALMS, 15 ROSES, 20 SAFARI PALMS, CONTACT: 673-5546, 222-3066, 682-7257, 6790987

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

immigration Immigration & Visa Services We handle all Canadian, USA and UK immigration and visa matters. Self sponsorships, holiday/ visitor’s visas, work permits, students visas, family, class, immigration forms, embassy enquiries, appeals for refused cases, US green card lottery, business class waivers, pardons, etc.

Get your visa approved. High success rate. Balwant Persaud & Associates.

Certified Immigration Consultants, 68 Sixth Street, Alberttown, Georgetown (Between Cummings & Lights Sts) Tel: 225-1540, 622-8308, 655-3105.

Email: balwantpersaud@yahoo.ca

KEY CUTTing Professional Key Shop, 125 Carmichael Street, Georgetown.

Phone: 225-3923, mobile: 621-3249.

We cut any type of key, service and repair all types of locks. Get your extra key today. optician

Da Silva’s Optical. For Your Eyes Only, Look Better See Better. Phillip A Da Silva OD, Shannon L Da Silva OD, Natalie Da Silva OD. 248 South Road, Bourda. Phone: 227-3529, Linden: 444-6376, Corriverton: 339-3536, Meten-Meer-Zorg: 275-0322, Grand Cayman Islands: (345) 943-1515 for the perfect trendy touch.

(660CC); MERCEDES BENZ C200 KOMPRESSOR; COROLLA AE100 WAGON; TOYOTA HIACE MINIBUS RZ; PITBULL-STYLE FREEZER VAN; LAND CRUISER (FULLY LOADED); MAZDA PROCEED 4WD EXTRA-CAB PICK-UP; TOYOTA HILUX 4WD EXTRA CAB PICKUPS - 3RZ, 5L, 3L SOLID DEFFERNTIAL; MITSUBISHI CANTER TRUCKS 4 TONS FREEZER; 3 TONS OPEN TRAY; 2 TONS 4WD; NISSAN ATLAS 2 TONS OPEN TRAY TRUCK. PRE-ORDER YOUR UNITS EARLY AND GET THE BEST PRICES. FULL AFTER SALES SERVICES AND FINANCING AVAILABLE. DEO MARAJ AUTO SALES, 2 CHIMNEY ROAD, CHATEAU MARGOT, ECD. 624-0762, 220-5177.

A NAME AND SERVICE YOU CAN TRUST

WANTED Help Wanted. Fast growing food importers seeking experience salesperson with driving license, vehicle and police clearance. Tel 231-8529 SALESGIRLS WITH EXPERIENCE PLEASE BRING WRITTEN APPLICATION AND CV TO TRISTAR ELECTRICAL BRASSONIC Bldg.

(MAIN ENTRANCE 42 WATER ST. G/ Town. 231-7101 Vacancy exists for one fulltime Pharmacist to work on the West Coast of Demerara in Metenmeerzorg. Telephone #: 2750733

House plans & estimates, weeding of grass and spraying done within 48hrs. Call: 216-0671; 622-0267; 692-8464

spirituality Surinamese spiritualist. Resolving all problems. Money, love, blockage etc.

Call 223-6834/600-7719.

Chase rout South Ruimveldt 6-0 to reach final

Lodge edge Queen’s College

By Treiston Joseph

C

ontrasting victories for Lodge Secondary and Chase Academy allowed both teams to advance to the final of the Milo Under-20 School Football Tournament after their respective semifinal matches on Wednesday at the Ministry of Education ground.

With the two teams advancing to the final it now means that either team will stake claim to winning the coveted title more than once with Chase having a chance to go back-to-back while Lodge will be separated by a year should they win the final.

However, Lodge got past Queen’s College in their semifinal by a 1-0 margin in a game that was physical and saw both teams playing rough-nose defence.

Lodge, however, squandered a few goals right in front of goal but was able to slot in one in the 60th minute through a strike by

Shemar Smith

Shemar Smith that ricocheted off the left post and into the back of the net.

After the goal, Lodge parked the bus, playing some compact defence to close out the game despite giving up a few threatening chances to Queen’s near the end of the match.

Meanwhile, Chase had a field day against South Ruiimveldt as the well-oiled defending champs turned

the match into target practice.

A brilliant display of passing not just on the ground but also through the air made it evident who the better side was and probably even declared Chase as the favourites to win the title.

Chase simply outplayed South Ruimveldt in every department on the pitch and the action started with a through ball down the middle as Keith Caines simply tapped the ball into the left side of the goal in the third minute of the match.

Ryan Hackett, Kelsen Benjamin and Josiah Chalres would go onto score individual goals in the 34th, 40th and 45th minutes respectively to end the first half ahead 4-nil.

Ralph Parris then put the finishing touches on the match with consecutive goals in the 60th and 63rd minutes.

The final of the tournament will be played on Saturday at the same venue.

Match-winner Gayle motivated by request from Benn

Suriname’s Astrology, Palmist and Hindustani Spiritual Healer, solve all purpose problems, 100% confidential guaranteed. Phone: 602-8997 HEPHZIBAH MINISTRIES 24 hrs Prayer Line 322-5081, 322-5738, 322-5788, 337-4510, 337-4259, 337-3070, 3375103. For healing, deliverance, financial difficulties, marriage issues call now. Jesus Cares.

Ifa Temple – Are you having serious problems and urgently need spiritual help? Call 621-0552 now. Email: anew-life@live.com SICKNESS, EVIL, SPIRIT, RELATIONSHIP, IMPOTENT, REUNITE, LOVERS, PREGNANCY, JOBS, BUSINESS, BLOCKAGE ETC. 612-1975, 683 5228

services Repairs and Spares, Air Conditioning, Car AC, Washers, Stoves. Call Nick: 683-1312, 627-3206

TO let

A

Chris Gayle One 2-Bedroom Apartment in Kitty.

Fully grilled. Contact: 621-4620 Leonora New Housing Scheme, W.C.D. Garage, Kitchen & Shower.

Tel: 675-5998/268-2277.

NO CHILDREN. Working Persons Only

taxi services GR Taxi, 24 hours. Phone: 225-7878, 219-5000 or 227-2100

VEHICLES FOR SALE For Sale: One Massey Ferguson Tractor (175) & Trailer. Call 255-0343 1 TOYOTA IPSUM (7-SEATER) IN EXCELLENT WORKING CONDITION WITH MUSIC (5800 W): CONTACT 653-1003 JUST ARRIVED: TOP QUALITY RECONDITIONED VEHICLES; TOYOTA NOAH; TOYOTA VOXY; TOYOTA IST (NEW SHAPE); SUZUKI SWIFT; DAIHATSU MOVE

Classified Ads $5+VAT per word Call: 226-9921

pep talk from Sulieman Benn gave Chris Gayle the spark to seal victory over England in West Indies’ World Twenty20 opener.

Chris Gayle revealed a request to entertain from Sulieman Benn served as the motivation for his extraordinary 47-ball hundred as West Indies eased to a six-wicket win over England in the World Twenty20.

Having been set 183 to win at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Gayle produced another masterful batting display, smashing 11 sixes en route to the fastest hundred in World T20 history.

Gayle’s effort saw him surpass Brendon McCullum’s record of 91 sixes in T20 internationals by taking his tally to 98 as the Windies wrapped

up the victory with 11 balls to spare.

“The preparation has been really good, and this was a good wicket to bat on, chasing a decent total,” Gayle said.

“It was a fantastic innings and I’m really happy to have finished the game, I didn’t leave it for anyone.

“Sulieman Benn said to me I had to go out and entertain him, that gave me that spark as well - I need to entertain my team-mate and he’s my drinking partner as well.

“It was always good to bat second. A target of 183 we always had a chance of chasing that down. We didn’t panic. Now we’re on to the next one, Sri Lanka in Bangalore, my home town [in the Indian Premier League], I’m looking forward to that.”

Explaining his exuberant celebration upon reaching three figures, Gayle added: “The celebration is all about DJ [Dwayne] Bravo’s song ‘Champion’.

“That is going to be our anthem at the World Cup, we have to keep pressing that.

We built the song together, we got to dance together as well.”

Captain Darren Sammy was quick to laud Gayle’s stunning showing, telling Sky Sports: “It’s always a joy to watch Chris Gayle - the universe boss, as he renamed himself from world boss. He’s an incredible player, it was great to watch in the dugout.

“I thought England batted well but we were happy to chase down 182. We thought at one time we would be chasing 220, but they never really accelerated.” (Digicel Sportsmax)

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

thurSDAY, march 17, 2016

GTTA endorses newly 2016 Memorex Under-17, 2-innings cricket…

Action bowls off this weekend elected LTTC throughout Berbice

T Some of the LTTC members and the President of the GTTA, Godfrey Munroe (third from left) at the meeting on Monday

T

he Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) endorses newly formulated Linden Table Tennis Steering Committee (LTTC) as an affiliated zonal member of the GTTA. The executive committee of the GTTA has been actively engaging, supporting and providing direction to the plans, work, activities and members of this committee as part of its plans for the decentralization of the sport, according to a press release.

On Monday the GTTA President, Godfrey Munroe visited the Linden to meet with the newly formulated committee to listen to the plans and ideas of the LTTC and to outline the plans, projects and mandates of the GTTA. The duly elected members as endorsed by the executive

committee of the GTTA are as follows; Howard James Chairman LTTC (ITTF level one Coach), Victor Wright Vice Chairman ( Businessman), Shavin Greene General Secretary (Teacher ITTF level one coach), Maurice Cummings Treasurer and Paul Jones Assistant Secretary Treasurer.

The committee’s mandate which falls under the supervision of the GTTA will be responsible for the promotion, development, coordination of the game in Linden.

During the meeting, the committee has set out some key initiatives as part of its plans/mandate to develop the sport in Linden, these include the hosting of a Novice School’s teams and Individual Table Tennis Championships at

the McKenzie High School Auditorium.

Long Term Projection

As part of the long term projection the committee has identified the McKenzie High Schools auditorium as a central area where they can host six tables which would facilitate training of youngster in after schools and weekend type programmes so as to provide an active area/ space where the sport can be played.

The committee also has set out as part of its plans the hosting of regional and national tournaments, the hosting of a skills challenge, and identification of new areas across the length and breadth of Linden among other key initiatives so as to have the sport being more actively played, the release noted.

he 2016 Memorex Under-17, twoinnings Cricket Competition, organised by the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) for teams in the Ancient County gets started this weekend with first and second round matches.

Twenty three (23) teams from Weldaad on the West Coast Berbice to No. 72 Cut and Load in the Upper Corentyne area are participating in this year’s competition as such the preliminaries will be played in five (5) geographical zones in order to ease travelling costs for the teams.

Performances in this competition will be taken into consideration by the Berbice Cricket Board selectors for the selection of the Berbice squad for the Under-17 Inter-county competition which is reportedly fixed for early next month and as such on players who are born on or after 1st September, 1999 will be participating.

On Saturday, the first round matches in Zone A (West Berbice) will see Blairmont Community Centre A vs Achievers at Blairmont; Bush Lot New Generation vs Weldaad at Bush Lot; Bush Lot United vs Blairmont Community Centre B at Lovely Lass.

In Zone B (East Bank/ New Amsterdam/Canje), East Bank vs Tucber Park at Edinburgh; Sisters vs Young Warriors at Sisters.

In Zone C (Lower Corentyne), Albion Community Centre vs Chesney/United Warrior at Albion; Rose Hall Town Bakewell B vs Toopoo Rising Star at Area “H”; Rose Hall Town Bakewell A vs Tamarind Root at Hampshire.

Zone D (Lower/Central Corentyne), Port Mourant vs Rose Hall Town Metro Females at Port Mourant and Whim National vs Mibicuri Strikers at Whim; Big Star drew a bye.

On Sunday, the second round fixtures wil begin and the Zone A matches will be Achievers vs Weldaad at Lovely Lass; Bush Lot New

Generation vs Blairmont Community Centre B at Bush Lot and Blairmont Community Centre A vs Bush Lot United at Blairmont For Zone C, Albion Community Centre will play Rose Hall Town Bakewell B at Albion; Rose Hall Town Bakewell A vs Chesney/ United Warriors at Area “H” and Toopoo Rising Star vs Tamarind Root at Toopoo.

In Zone D, Mibicuri Strikers vs Big Star at Mibicuri; Port Mourant vs Whim National at Port Mourant, while Rose Hall Town Metro Female drew a bye.

The Upper Corentyne zone (Zone E) is scheduled to start next week. All matches are scheduled to start at 10.30 hours each day.

Kraft Toucan Industries Junior Skill level tournament…

Action serves off with big wins

T

he Guyana Squash Association (GSA) in collaboration with its corporate sponsor Digicel is commenced its first junior tournament of 2016 with action in the Kraft Toucan Industries Junior Skill level tournament on Tuesday evening at the Georgetown

Club courts.

Three categories kicked off the night’s action with players looking dominant in their respective wins.

Louis da Silva defeated Rayden Persaud in category ‘H’ action with straight set win of 11/4, 11/2.

Category ‘E’ action

same James Mekdeci looking dominant with a straight set win over Nathan Rahaman at 11/6 and 11/5. Mohyryan Baksh also defeated Georgiana Fernandes in three sets while Kamir Khan defeated Haley Carpenter in straight sets.

Category ‘C’ was the toughest category of the night’s action with players battling hard for their wins as all games went to three sets.

Demetrius De Abrue defeated Dominic Collins 11/8, 11/7, 15/13, Gianni Carpenter defeated Michael Alphonso 11/3, 12/10, 11/7 and Ethan Jonas defeated Lucas Jonas 15/13,11/4,11/4 to conclude the nights action in category ‘C’.

Matches continue today at the said venue from 18:00h.

Canadian U-19 team visit Port Mourant Cricket Club

T

he Qarsa Tranzac Cricket Academy from Toronto is on a tour of Guyana and will be engaging the Port Mourant Cricket Club in a feature under-19 match today at the club’s ground starting at 09:30h.

The game will be a 40

and over affair, and it is in the interest of developing and molding cricket at the Port Mourant cricket club for young and upcoming players.

The Port Mourant Cricket Team Reads: Veramootoo Senwasane, Emmanuel Seecharran,

Daniel Samaroo, Kameshwar Chaterpaul, Kevin Latif, Vivekanand Jagjit, Sarwan Chatterpaul, Ezekiel Kempadoo, Antonio Kempadoo, Mahindra Nandu, Cheddi Budhoo, Sudesh Ghamandi, Vickash Ramayya, And Nickolas Seenarine.

guyanatimesGY.com

thurSDAY, march 17, 2016

23

GSSF meets with Minister Nicolette Henry N

ewly elected board members of the Guyana Sport Shooting Federation (GSSF) paid a courtesy call on Nicolette Henry, Minister within the Ministry of Education, Department of Culture, Youth and Sport on Thursday at the Ministry’s headquarters on Main Street.

Present at the visit, were the President of the GSSF, Vidushi Persaud, Secretary Steve Ninvalle, Steel Challenge Chairman Dr Pravesh Harry, Archery Chairman Nicholas Hing and Internal Auditor Jagmohan Bassoo.

The group discussed their plans for the future and gave an update as to the various shooting disci-

plines thus far.

They reported on affiliations, stating that the GSSF is affiliated to international bodies such as the Steel Challenge Shooting Association, the Amateur Trapshooting Association and the World Archery Federation.

The Minister expressed her commitment to working with the federation and posited that she also looks forward to GSSF’s continued involvement in the NSC ‘50 Shades of Games’.

The GSSF recently hosted a Practical Pistol Match showcasing Practical Shooting and this weekend, will be adding another discipline to NSC’s 50 Shades of Games when the Federation in collaboration with the National Sports

BCB/Memorex U-19, 2-innings cricket…

Tucber Park through to final

T

Trevon Caesar

ucber Park Cricket Club is through to the final of the Memorex Under-19, two-innings Cricket Competition in Berbice after defeating their arch-nemesis Albion Community Centre by six wickets in their semi-final encounter recently.

Choosing to take first strike, Guyana Under-17 batsman Adrian Sukhwa and Tyrone Pooramauth gave them a start of 21 but with pacer John Cameron removing both of them for 10 and 16 respectively, pacer Lookpaul Sahadeo bowled Berbice Under-17 batsman Matthew Hardyal for four with the score at 33-3.

Two Berbice Under-17 batsmen Ritesh Omroa and Joshua Harrichand then put on 28 for the fourth wicket and after Harrichand went for eight, Umroa and Josiah Dhanai made things look good for Albion by taking the score to 107-4.

However things deteriorated badly for Albion with the next six wickets falling for just four runs as Berbice left arm spinner Joel Seitaram did most of the damage by picking up five quick wickets to see Albion 113 all out with Umroa making 47. Bowling for Tucber, Seitaram took 5-16, Berbice Under-17 legspinner Dion Sinclair 2-18 and John Cameron 2-14.

When Tucber Park replied, they lost an early wicket with only four on the

board but the other opening batsman Trevon Caesar and Guyana Under-17 batsman put on 93 for the second wicket before Deonarine fell for 54 (two fours).

Caesar continued and added another 39 for the third wicket with Seitaram after which Caesar went for a crucial 50 (two fours).

Seitaram soon was caught for 41 and the score on 157.

Berbice Under-15 batsmen Garfield Benjamin went for four with the score at 1695 with Tucber Park only having a lead of 56 over the dangerous Albion.

Former Berbice Under-15 batsmen Kyle Michael (31) and Sahadeo (14) did well to add another valuable 32 for the sixth but with Karran Arjpaul and Guyana Under-15 spinner Kelvin Umroa picking up the last five wickets for just 13 runs, Tucber Park fell for 214 in their first innings. Albion’s Arjpaul took 4-46, Dhanai 3-42 and Umroa 2-35.

Facing a deficit of 101 runs with about five hours of play left, Albion came out in their second innings intent on pulling off a comefrom-behind victory as they have done in the past.

With Sukhwa leading the way with all guns ablaze, Albion went on to reach 1715 in just 33-Overs, leaving Tucber Park the tantalizing target of 70 to win. Sukhwa made a hard hitting 92 (11 fours, one six) before he was run out.

Tucber Park in their victory chase, again lost an early wicket without a run on the board to Arjpaul but Caesar and Deonarine put on a valuable 34 before Deonarine fell to Arjpaul for 13. After that Caesar and Seitaram took Tucber within sight of victory by putting 29 more for the third wicket before Arjpaul struck again, removing Seitaram for 28 at 63-3. They eventually reached 70-3 with Caesar still there on 30 not out and Dion Sinclair six not out.

Arjpaul ended with 3-31.

From right: Nicholas Hing, Vidushi Persaud, Nicolette Henry, Trevor Bassoo, Steve Ninvalle and Pravesh Harry

Commission will be hosting an Indoor Target Archery Competition.

Minister Henry further indicated she is excited to work with the GSSF in pro-

moting and developing the various Sport Shooting disciplines especially the po-

tential with Archery going into the hinterland areas of Guyana.

thurSDAY, march 17, 2016

Sports is no longer our game, it’s our business

ICC T20 World Cup...

Gayle force crushes England Pg 20

Chris Gayle muscles a shot through the on side (Getty Images)

Milo U-20 School Football Tournament…

Chase rout South Ruimveldt 6-0 to reach final Lodge edge Queen’s College Pg 21

Action between Chase Academy and South Ruimveldt

GUYANA TIMES - www.guyanatimesgy.com, email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, News Hotliine: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544, 223-7230,223-7231,231-0544, 225-7761 Marketing: 231-8064 Accounts: 225-6707 SALES AND MARKETING - sales@guyanatimesgy.com - PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY GUYANA TIMES INC.