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Issue No. 2233

Monday, August 25, 2014

Page 7

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

Boy, 9, dies after stung by Africanised P2 bees

Banks DIH presents P2 bursaries to successful NGSA students

Surveillance footage in P7 waitress shooting helpful − Police

Blind leading the blind! These young ladies outdid themselves in the many novel events at the Jamzone Summer Break beach lime on Sunday. In this Carl Croker photo, four ladies compete for the top prize in the blind race

Man shot in Black Bush Alberttown Polder man stabbed dies Page 11

…police link victim to Merriman’s Mall robbery

Page 3

to death

Preliminary P9 works on ECD road to be completed by end of year

GECOM says no need to justify extension of Claims and Objections P16 period

2 news

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

Police wrap up probe into NOC sex allegations … file sent to DPP

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rime Chief Leslie James has reported the completion of the close to three-month long investigation into allegations of sexual abuse at the New Opportunity Corps (NOC) located at Onderneeming, Essequibo Coast.

Speaking to Guyana Times on Sunday, James said the investigations have been completed and the files have been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for further advice.

However, the DPP he noted, is seeking some additional information. According to him, this should be made available in a week’s time.

James had told Guyana Times in an earlier inter-

view that the Police had travelled to as far as Berbice to carry out their investigation, which implicates four officials at the juvenile correctional facility. The allegations of abuse had been made by four female teenagers. The young girls were later removed by the Child Care and Protection Agency, which had approached the Police with the complaints.

The allegations of sexual and physical abuse at the institution came to light in May, earlier this year, when four teenage girls alleged that they were being sexually molested by male officials at the institution.

Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Dr Frank Anthony had earlier indi-

cated that his Ministry was making moves to reform its policies to bring much needed regulation at the State’s juvenile detention centre, amid the damning allegations.

He had also announced plans to build separate campuses to prevent both boys and girls sharing the same living quarters and other facilities.

He had disclosed too that the old rules of the correctional facility would have to be changed, so that the incidents, whether true or not, would not recur.

Former students at the institution had also spoken out about the conditions under which they were disciplined. Reports were made

Crime Chief Leslie James

about students being sent to the “quiet room”. Officials at the institution had said the students are sent there for “reflection”.

Guyana Times was informed of students being placed in the “quiet room” for up to one month, when the law stipulates that they can be there just for 24 hours.

The NOC made headlines once again just over five months ago when news of an breakout surfaced. On March 22, four female students reportedly absconded from the institution. Two female staff members made efforts to prevent the girls from leaving, but were unsuccessful. Sometime later, four males also escaped.

Banks DIH presents bursaries to Boy, 9, dies after stung by successful NGSA students

Africanised bees

George McDonald, Co-Managing Director/Marketing Director (centre, back row) and other executives of Banks DIH Limited pose with the 2014 bursary awardees following the presentation ceremony

B

anks DIH Limited presented bursaries to 23 children of employees and shareholders who were successful at 2014 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) during a presentation ceremony on Saturday at Banks DIH Sports Club at Thirst Park.

In a release, the company said the awardees were encouraged to place education as a priority by Mr Carlton Joao, Sales and Marketing Executive who delivered the

feature address. “The positive attitudes you develop today as you approach your high school work will be a part of you in later life, always remember – the right attitude makes you a winner,” he told the recipients.

Mr Joao congratulated the awardees and thanked their parents for supporting them in preparation for the examination.

Communications Manager Troy Peters said that Banks DIH Limited place great

emphasis on awarding students who are successful at the NGSA. “The Company’s commitment over the years is unwavering ,as we offer tangible support to the development of the students,” he said in opening remarks.

Mr George Mc Donald, Co-Managing Director/ Marketing Director made the presentation of awards to the recipients, 10 of whom are children of employees ,while 13 are children of shareholders.

The awardees are: Sasha Ramnauth, Joel Moses, Kelly Gurrick, Yufial Wiltshire, Sidaine Peters, Shemar Bristol, Julius Bacchus, Shay Britton, Brad Reynolds, Sachin Harkishin, Christine Halley, Alec Ramdhan, Bhipasha Challu, Ronald Kendall, Rhea Sahai, Sara Osman, Keyola McQueen, De Andre Manbodh, Arryanna Sankar, Derron Venture, Tyriek Rodney, Danae Hartley and Lisa Joseph.

Dead: Romesh Samaroo

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ine-year-old Romesh Samaroo called “Krish” of Lima Village on the Essequibo Coast on Saturday succumbed to an attack from African bees on Tuesday at the Georgetown Public Hospital.

He was a student of Sparta Primary School.

According to relatives, Samaroo on Tuesday was riding his bicycle through a street at La Belle Alliance when he was attacked by

the bees.

According to relatives, a few boys from the village were playing cricket when the ball went into a bushy area and disturbed the bees.

The relatives say the other boys were also attacked, but they jumped into a nearby trench.

Residents say the vacant lot close to the street has a lot of bushes which are harbouring the bees and despite complaints to regional officials, nothing has been done.

The bushy area where the bees live

NEWS

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monday, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on Monday, August 25 from 05:00h-06:30h The Berbice River Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on Monday, August 25 from 16:35h-18:05h

Black Bush Polder man stabbed to death

BY NAFEEZA YAHYA

WEATHER TODAY Weather: Thundery showers can be expected in the morning hours with heavy rain showers in the early afternoon. Sunny intervals can be expected in the late afternoon with partly cloudy conditions in the evening over coastal regions and near inland locations. Temperatures are expected to range between 25 degrees and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly between 4.47 metres and 5.36 metres per second.

High Tide: 04:15h and 16:33h reaching maximum heights of 2.58 metres and 2.57 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 10:09h and 22:24h reaching minimum heights of 0.63 metre and 0.62 metre respectively.

A

30-year-old truck driver was on Saturday evening stabbed to death following an altercation with some men at a wedding celebration at Johanna North, Black Bush Polder, Region Six. Karan Sukhdeo called “Vishal”, a father of one and of 101 Johanna North, Black Bush Polder was reportedly stabbed seven times about his body around 23:00h.

According to the dead man’s younger brother, Ramesh Sukhdeo, they were standing on the street in front of the house where the celebration was being held.

He related that he left his brother for a few minutes to take a Smalta to his sisterin-law, and on his way back, he heard screams and when he ventured to see what was going on, he saw his brother in a scuffle with four men who were over him.

Ramesh recalled that his brother collapsed and the men stopped hitting him.

He ran towards his brother thinking he was un-

Karan Sukhdeo

conscious, but as he got closer, he saw blood oozing from his body and then he realised that his brother had been stabbed.

The young man in tears, said he tried desperately to get him to respond, but he did not budge.

The sibling said he then ran home and awoke his dad, who came with their car and rushed him to the Mibicuri Hospital where he was pronounced dead on ar-

rival.

The family is unclear about what led to the altercation or the motive for the stabbing. They described Sukhdeo as a friendly person, who had no grievances with anyone. The family members are pleading for justice. “We want whoever did this to face the full length of the law.”

The deceased's wife, Devi Sukhdeo told this publication that she was in the yard at the wedding house when she heard screaming.

The woman related that she ventured outside to see what was going on, only to meet her husband in a crouching position in the side of the drain.

“I didn’t know was he, I don’t know why they kill he; I didn’t want to believe was my husband…. He just left me to go outside and this what happening, what will happen to us now, how me and my son gon live without him… why dem do this to he, he never hurt nobody,” the woman said as she sobbed.

She related that her husband was a caring and hard-

working person who took good care of his family and noted that the incident has left the entire household and community in a state of shock and mourning.

When this newspaper visited the home of the dead man, family, friends and villagers had gathered to offer support and make preparations for the wake. His mother Yuwattie Hardat was weeping inconsolably.

She said “Vishal” was her eldest son and it would be difficult to live without him.

“He just went over there (wedding) little bit and me hear he dead… how can a mother take this,” she said.

Meanwhile, four persons are currently in Police custody assisting with investigations. According to reports, the four men are said to be from the same village and live about a street away from the victim.

Sukhdeo leaves to mourn his wife, a one-year-old son, his parents and brother.

A post-mortem examination is expected to be performed today.

Capsized fuel tanker…

Still no sign of missing crew members

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lmost two weeks after a fuel tanker capsized off the Corentyne Coast, there have been no signs of the two missing crew members as the search continues.

Speaking with Guyana Times on Sunday, acting Harbour Master Michael Tennant said despite the search being carried out every day in the vicinity of the incident, there has not been any sighting of the men.

He noted that while the exercise continues, they have enlisted the owner of the vessel to assist. Tennant explained that there are limited staff at the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD), and as such, they have instructed the owner to conduct daily exercises.

“He also has some responsibilities… so he has been going every day to search the area,” the acting Harbour Master said.

According to him, of recent, there have been many marine accidents across the country, referring to the latest incident on Saturday in the Essequibo River.

As such, the officers there had to be removed.

Tennant noted that the few officers on hand are preoccupied with all of these cases; nevertheless, they are still monitoring the Corentyne Coast incident.

However, he pointed out that if within the next few days there are no further developments, then they may be forced to abandon the search.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Robeson Benn told this newspaper on Thursday last that up to the day before, officials were still at the site.

He said the Ministry has alerts on both the coast and on water to detect the sighting of the two missing members. Motor tanker Swift Dolphin had capsized off the Corentyne Coast in Guyana’s waters on August 12. The vessel, which was sailing to Georgetown from Suriname, capsized around 21:10h about 49 nautical miles at St Andrew’s Point.

The Captain and a crew member went missing.

Two days after the incident, the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) skyvan conducted a reconnaissance of the area.

In addition, the Hampton Rose – a re-supply vessel – was deployed to the area.

Three surveyors, including a Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard officer are onboard the Hampton Rose. Upon their arrival, they marked the wreckage and scoured the area for the missing men. Furthermore, Oldenboff, a bauxite company that operates out of the Berbice River has also dispatched a vessel to join the rescue exercise.

Meanwhile, the two other crew members were rescued by a Venezuelan fishing vessel MV Joanna I that responded to the distress call. The survivors had met with officials from MARAD, the Coast Guard and the GDF.

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guyanatimesgy.com

monDAY, august 25, 2014

Views Editor: Nigel Williams Tel: 225-5128, 231-0397, 226-9921, 226-2102, 223-7230 or 223-7231. Fax: 225-5134 Mailing address: 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

Making Emancipation real T

his paper designated the month of August “Emancipation Month”. While of recent, some have piggy-backed on the American practice of observing “Black History Month” in February, we hold strongly to the view that August is of greater significance to us in Guyana and the Caribbean. “Emancipation” must remain on centre stage, while knowing our history is only a part of that Emancipation.

The Emancipation Proclamation in 1833, we must remember, gave nothing to the then “freed” slaves. Freedom is an inalienable right of all human beings – and this was acknowledged by even the slave owners and the British Government.

To enslave the people of Africa, the slavers declared they were not “fully human” and by the “Christian” religion that followed the flag of conquest, of not possessing a soul.

Slavery was a “favour” to the African slaves, since they now had the “opportunity” to become “human”.

Emancipation, if it was to mean anything, at the least, should have been an opportunity for the Africans to give expression to their humanity. And this was denied. While the planters were given billions of pounds (in today’s currency) for their “loss” – in addition to the bound labour of the “free slaves” for a further four years in an ironically named “Apprenticeship” – the latter received nothing for the hundreds of years of labour they provided to build the foundations of the British Industrial Revolution.

This is one of the bases for the demand for “reparations” in the present and it is why this demand must be nonnegotiable in its premises for justice. But justice was not only denied during the period of slavery – but also afterwards.

We have stressed that the “education” that was offered to the ex-slaves and their descendants was explicitly designed to make them docile and compliant with the new order. They were drilled into “proper behaviour” – which meant to speak softly and carry no stick. That “education” was not designed to give them the “positive” freedom to develop their human potential.

Take the skills that would be needed to run factories to process the products they would reap from their agricultural activities on the plantations they bought. How were they to acquire these if there were no schools excepting those that taught the “3R’s” - Reading, ‘Riting and ‘Rithmetic?

This focus on an “education” that is disassociated from obtaining the wherewithal to earn a living has continued into the present. The only difference was that after severe criticism, the Grammar School model, which emphasised a “classics” training, became the standard.

In a recent editorial, we reiterated the need for our entire education system to refocus and emphasise the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) as a necessary corrective.

While we recognise the seminal role the “village movement” played in the struggle of the ex-slaves to express their humanity, we cannot just preach, as some do, a return to the “village days” as the solution to our real emancipation.

There is to be no “emancipation” in a return to the past.

In this modern world, the technological familiarity and knowledge that is necessary to compete, needs infrastructure, networking and a critical mass that only an urban setting can provide. Thus, while we can “decentralise” to our hearts content, we must insist that the villages become hubs in an interconnected system that replicates the urban landscape of the developed world.

Finally, while there is now an emphasis on “civil society” as the panacea for all that it takes to arrive at that Emancipation, we cannot ignore that ultimately all struggles for freedom are a political struggle. The descendants of slaves – which include all Guyanese in the sense of having a shared culture – must be careful of politicians who do not emphasise the need for emancipation to begin at the personal level.

By constantly blaming “the man” or the “system”, they keep us in mental slavery.

Beauty face-off! Guyana Times’ Photographer Carl Croker could not spare his camera lens on seeing four of the beauties who recently competed in the Jamzone Beauty Pageant

We have met all demands of the Ukrainian side Dear Editor, The endless delays hampering the initial deliveries of the Russian humanitarian relief aid to South-eastern Ukraine have become intolerable. A lorry convoy with many hundreds of tonnes of humanitarian relief aid, urgently needed by the people in these regions, has been standing idle for a week now on the Russian-Ukrainian border.

Over this period, the Russian side has made unprecedented efforts in all areas and at all levels in order to complete the required formalities. We have met all conceivable and inconceivable demands of the Ukrainian side and have submitted to

the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) exhaustive lists of food, drinking water, medications, essential items and diesel generators due to be delivered to Lugansk, where they are urgently needed by women, children and the elderly.

These people are experiencing the horrors of daily artillery attacks and air strikes that have resulted in an increasing number of killed and wounded and destroyed the entire vital infrastructure in the area.

Time and again, we met requests to check and recheck the shipment route, to coordinate procedures for the shipment’s delivery, and

have signed the required documents with the ICRC. We have provided all essential security guarantees and have ensured similar guarantees on the part of the self-defence forces. These guarantees apply to the Russian convoy as well as other humanitarian relief aid being sent to Lugansk by the Kiev authorities.

At the same time, Kiev has delayed granting its formal consent required by the ICRC for several days, while repeatedly inventing new pretexts and stepping up attacks on Lugansk and Donetsk that involve military aircraft and heavy-duty armoured vehicles, targeting residential

areas and other civilian facilities. Over the past few days, the Ukrainian side has been launching ballistic missiles, including the deadly Tochka-U missiles, ever more frequently.

On August 21, the situation appeared to have been resolved when the Ukrainian authorities finally informed the ICRC of their readiness to start clearing humanitarian shipments for prompt delivery to Lugansk. The Ukrainian side officially confirmed its unconditional consent for the convoy to start moving during a phone conversation between the Foreign Affairs Ministers of Russia and Ukraine. continued on page 5

The inhuman, evil face of US enterprise Dear Editor, “The fact is that people, who made out like bandits, shoved money into their own pockets by the bucketfuls, and drove our economy into a crisis, have no apparent shame” – Larry Brown, National Union of Public and General Employees, Ottawa, Canada.

One of my firm convictions is that, whatever activity or enterprise we may engage in, we must never forget that it is people, above all, who matter in the end – human beings like you and I, with blood coursing through our veins, and who with every heartbeat, are struggling to make an honest living in a harsh and uncaring world.

Those who are unmindful of this and who are callous and indifferent to the pains and sufferings they inflict on others, in their selfish quest for wealth and self-aggrandisement, are as good as dead even though still living.

During and in the aftermath of the Great Recession in the USA and elsewhere,

untold suffering and misery were brought to bear upon helpless, innocent and decent people by the ruthless and rapacious acts of multinational corporations and big businesses, which revealed the inhuman and evil face of enterprise.

Corporations are run by people (mostly the super-rich and self-serving) whose overriding concern is profits and not people.

If more profits can be generated then these fat-cat executives, who run banks, investment firms, technology, construction, oil, insurance, health care and pharmaceutical companies, have no qualms about shutting down factories, shipping jobs overseas, breaking the backs of unions, paying miserly wages (but with outrageous compensation and bonuses for themselves), turning full-time jobs into part-time positions, snatching health care and other benefits from their employees, and creating a fearbased, intimidating and stul-

tifying working environment.

These are the people who (especially in the USA) can use their billions to influence greedy and corrupt politicians, and thereby, markedly affect the shape and outcomes of policies, legislation, rules and regulations that may impact upon their businesses.

Nowhere is this more shamelessly and obscenely evident than in the area of corporate taxation.

On June 1, 2011, the nonprofit Citizens For Tax Justice (CTJ) revealed that 12 of the USA largest Fortune 500 companies reported US$170 billion in profits during the period of the Great Recession (2008-2010), but that they paid an effective tax rate of -1.5 per cent (yes, negative 1.5 ). The statutory corporate tax rate in the USA is 35 per cent).

Further, the CTJ noted that these 12 companies not only paid zero in taxes for the years 2008-2010, but that they also actually received tax subsidies that added US$62.4

billion to their bottom line.

What these companies are enjoying is symptomatic of the widespread corporate tax avoidance in the USA. This is legalised greed at its worst and makes most wicked the assertion that there is ‘no money’ to fund socially desirable programmes.

Just as recent as October 2013, food assistance benefits for over 45 million Americans were slashed, in the first ever nationwide reduction in benefits under the US Government’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme (SNAP), popularly known as ‘food stamps’.

The cuts total US$11 billion over the next three years and amount on average to a month’s worth of food assistance. This will result in more privation for millions of working people, including the poorest and most vulnerable – children, elderly, unemployed, disabled, and new mothers. continued on page 5

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GFC will not feed the perverse appetites of scandal-mongers Dear Editor, It has become clear that the Kaieteur News has embarked on a campaign geared towards tarnishing the image and credibility of the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) by employing low-level tactics based on rumours, misinformation and slander.

At its press conference held on August 18, GFC effectively responded to several media reports regarding

the operations of the forestry sector, the enforcement of regulations and granting of permits to companies operating in the sector.

The Kaieteur News’ smear campaign and unethical journalistic practices were now exposed as a result of it being made clear that GFC, as mandated by law, was fully enforcing regulations and was not in any way facilitating sinister activities by any company.

We have met all...

On August 20, customs clearance and border control procedures were launched at the Donetsk checkpoint. The same day, however, this process was stopped, with officials citing much more intensive bombardment of Lugansk. In other words, the Ukrainian authorities are bombing the destination and are using this as a pretext to stop the delivery of humanitarian relief aid.

It appears that Kiev had set out to complete its “cleansing” of Lugansk and Donetsk in time for the August 24 Independence Day celebrations. It seems increasingly credible that the incumbent Ukrainian leadership is deliberately delaying the delivery of the humanitarian relief aid until there is nobody left to deliver this aid to. Quite possibly, they hope to achieve this result prior to the planned August 26 meetings in Minsk.

Russia is outraged by the blatant external manipulation of the international experts involved in preparing this operation. An endless succession of contradictory and mutually exclusive signals and messages we have been receiving is a true indication of behind the scenes games for purposes that have nothing to do with accomplishing a set humanitarian objective.

Those who are holding the reins and hampering efforts to save human lives, to mitigate the suffering of sick and wounded people neglect the basic principles of society. We have called on the UN Security Council to promptly declare a humanitarian armistice, but these proposals are being invariably blocked by those who pay lip service to universal human values.

Last time, this happened on August 20, when the United States and some Western members of the Security Council declined to issue a statement in support of a ceasefire during the delivery of humanitarian relief aid to Lugansk by Russian and Ukrainian convoys.

We hereby state once again: all the required security guarantees regarding the passage of the humanitarian convoy have been provided. The ICRC has officially recognised these guarantees.

The delivery routes are known, and they have been checked by an ICRC mission.

The documents have been drawn up.

Recognising that there were no bases for the false reports, the Kaieteur News, now joined by the Stabroek News and Capitol News, have resorted to levelling malicious personal attacks on me, as Commissioner, as well as the hard-working staff of the GFC. I have since had my attorneys dispatch a warning letter to Capitol News advising them to cease further publishing of these grossly

from page 4

The shipments have long been ready for inspection by Ukrainian border guards and customs officers who have been waiting at the Donetsk checkpoint in the Rostov region for a week now. The capitals that display heightened concern for the situation in South-eastern Ukraine are well aware of this. The endless artificial demands and pretexts have become unconscionable.

It is no longer possible to tolerate this lawlessness, outright lies and inability to reach agreements. All pretexts for delaying the delivery of aid to people in the humanitarian disaster zone have been depleted.

The Russian side has decided to act.

Our humanitarian relief convoy is setting out towards Lugansk. Naturally, we are ready to allow ICRC officials to escort the convoy and to take part in distributing aid. We hope that representatives of the Russian Red Cross Society will also be able to take part in this mission.

We are warning against any attempts to thwart this purely humanitarian mission which took a long time to prepare in conditions of complete transparency and cooperation with the Ukrainian side and the ICRC. Those who are ready to continue sacrificing human lives to their own ambitions and geopolitical designs and who are rudely trampling on the norms and principles of international humanitarian law will assume complete responsibility for the possible consequences of provocations against the humanitarian relief convoy.

We are once again calling on the Ukrainian leadership, as well as the United States and the European Union, which are exerting their influence on Kiev, to promptly launch negotiations in southeastern Ukraine and start complying with the accords formalised in the April 17 Geneva Statement by Russia, Ukraine, the US and the EU on stopping the use of force, mitigating the humanitarian situation and immediately launching nationwide dialogue that would involve all Ukrainian regions.

Denis Kopyl Head of the Consular Section Russian Embassy

inaccurate reports and demanding that an apology be forthcoming.

It appears as if the Kaieteur News and Stabroek News are in a breathless race to outdo each other in this mischief journalism campaign.

The GFC has also noted with grave concern the criminal attack on its Company Secretary, damage of property, and the theft of a laptop computer contain-

ing highly confidential information related to the Commission. We see as no coincidence, the criminal attack, which closely followed the well-orchestrated slander campaign being carried out by some sections of the media.

We will not feed nor be baited by the perverse appetite of individuals and organisations masquerading as journalists and responsible media houses by responding

to every absurd and patently incorrect report.

The GFC stands ready to work with all stakeholders in an atmosphere of transparency, professionalism and mutual respect and will continue to engage responsible and fair sections of the media who have no hidden and vindictive agenda.

Regards, James Singh Commissioner of Forests

The inhuman, evil face...

In country after country, corporations (aided and abetted by greedy politicians) are gradually and systematically effecting a redistribution of income from the bottom of society to the top, that is, from the poor people to the obscenely rich elite.

A striking and obscene example of the this greed-infested corporate culture is seen in the USA when in 2013, according to the New York State Comptroller’s office, Wall Street companies handed out US$26.7 billion in bonuses to their 165,200 employees, up 15 per cent over the previous year.

Seen in perspective, this US$26.7 billion that the fat cats on Wall Street pocketed in bonuses is more than twice the paychecks of all the 1,085,000 Americans who work full-time at the current federal minimum wage of US$7.25 per hour. And these bonuses were based on the same high-risk gambles that led to the catastrophic 2008 financial industry meltdown.

Never in all history have gross incompetence and reckless greed been so handsomely rewarded. These outrageous bonuses have to be seen against the background of mass unemployment, rising poverty, and homelessness among the working class.

According to the US National Centre for Law and Economic Justice, in 2012, 46.5 million were living in poverty in the USA. The poverty rate (the per cent of all people in the US who are poor) was 15 per cent for all Americans and 21.8 per cent for children under 18.

It was revealed that one out of seven people in the US is living in poverty and that children represent more than onethird of the people living in

poverty. While the stock market in the USA is booming and banks, hedge funds and private equity firms are raking in tens of billions of dollars, 16.4 million children are living in poverty today, that is, nearly a quarter (22.6 per cent) of the children in the USA. What is most shocking, shameful and disgusting is the financial billionaires who are profiting so immensely from the ‘recovery’ were the very culprits that took down the US economy in the first place by creating and peddling toxic securities that puffed up and then burst the housing bubble.

These financial mercenaries caused eight million workers to lose their jobs in a matter of months and are directly responsible for almost 17 million American children going to bed every night hungry.

What is equally sinister and wicked is that the major corporations have made record profits and profit margins (profits after expenses are covered), while simultaneously laying off workers in record numbers. They have, therefore, wrung huge profits from cutting labour costs to the bare bones.

In other words, they have filled their coffers and lined their pockets at the expense of the pains, tears, and hunger of the working class. These ruthless monsters have no feelings left in them that they cannot see that, by their selfish and avaricious acts, they have snatched bread from the mouths of millions of children as they seek to augment their almost incalculable wealth.

Big companies have been the key drivers in the atrocious and shocking, but ever expanding, inequality in the distribution of wealth and income in the world today. According

from page 4

to the Economist magazine, 95 per cent of the gains from the recovery in the USA have gone to the richest one per cent. For the 99 per cent there has been an undeclared wage freeze: the average wage has increased by only 0.4 per cent.

The Business Insider magazine on April 10, 2013, revealed that the top one per cent of Americans own a staggering 40 per cent of the country’s net worth, while the bottom 80 per cent (eight out of 10 Americans) own only seven per cent of the country’s net worth.

Also, it was noted that the top one per cent owns 50 per cent of the country’s financial assets and that big-company Chief Executive Officers make 380 times as much as their average workers.

In other words, it takes an average worker more than a month to make what the average Chief Executive makes in an hour. Again, these shocking statistics have to be seen against the background of a US News and World Report that stated that, as of July 2014, almost 91 million Americans over 16 years of age aren’t working and that there are 48 million people in the US in low-wage jobs.

Any system that produces this kind of disparity with so much pain, suffering and misery for the overwhelming majority of its people, while the super-rich elite are literally choking in their wealth, is lacking in all human decency and morality, is rotten to its very core, and is bound to fail.

Now more than ever the inhuman and evil face of enterprise is most revealing and glaringly manifest.

Sincerely, Cecil Ramkirath New Jersey, USA

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Page

How does watching television affect performance in school?

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elevision viewing may replace activities that we know help with school performance, such as reading, doing homework, pursuing hobbies, and getting enough sleep.

One research study found that TV’s effects on education were long term. The study found that watching TV as a child affected educational achievement at age 26. Watching more TV in childhood increased chances of dropping out of school and decreased chances of getting a college degree, even after controlling for confounding factors. Watching TV at age four was one factor found to be associated with bullying in grade school.

Can TV influence children’s attitudes toward themselves and others?

Let’s take a look at what children see on TV, and how it can affect their beliefs about race and gender: * Children learn to accept the stereotypes represented on television. After all, they see them over and over. * When non-whites are shown on TV, they tend to be stereotyped. * A review of the research on gender bias shows that the gender-biased and genderstereotyped behaviours and attitudes that children see on television do affect how they see male and female roles in our society. * Television and movies do not often show Asians or Asian Americans, and when they do, they fail to show the diversity in Asian American culture.

Foundation * Thin women are disproportionately represented on TV. The heavier a female character, the more negative comments were made about her. * In 1990’s commercials, white men more often were depicted as strong, while white women were shown as sex objects. African American men more often were portrayed as aggressive and African American women, as inconsequential. * Ads for household items, like cleaning products, usually feature women. * G-rated movies are commonly viewed by younger children – often over and over on DVD, and perceived by parents as safe for little children. However, in these movies, whether live action or animated, males are shown more than females, by three to one, they are not often shown in relationships, and do not solve problems peacefully. * In G-movies, characters of colour are under-represented, and are usually shown as sidekicks, comic relief, or bad guys. Male characters of colour are more aggressive and isolated. * Music videos over-represent black males as aggressors, and white females as victims, compared to actual demographic data.

Can TV affect my child’s health?

Yes, TV is a public health issue in several different ways. First of all, children get lots of information about health from TV, much of it from ads. Ads do not generally give true or balanced information about healthy lifestyles and food choices. The ma-

jority of children who watch health-related commercials believe what the ads say. Second, watching lots of television can lead to childhood obesity and overweight. Finally, TV can promote risky behaviour, such as trying dangerous stunts, substance use and abuse, and irresponsible sexual behaviour.

Children who watch more TV are more likely to be overweight

* University of Michigan researchers found that just being awake and in the room with the TV on more than two hours a day was a risk factor for being overweight at ages three and four-and-a-half. * The effects can carry on into adult weight problems.

Weekend TV viewing in early childhood affects Body Mass Index (BMI), or overweight in adulthood. * University of Michigan researchers and their colleagues who investigated whether diet, physical activity, sedentary behaviour or television viewing predicted Body Mass Index (BMI) among three- to seven-yearold children, found that physical activity and TV viewing are most associated with overweight risk. TV was a bigger factor than diet. Inactivity and TV bec a m e stronger predictors a s the children aged.

* Children who watch TV are more likely to be inactive and tend to snack while watching TV. * Many TV ads encourage unhealthy eating habits.

Two-thirds of the 20,000 TV ads an average child sees each year are for food and most are for high-sugar foods. Afterschool TV ads target children with ads for unhealthy foods and beverages, like fast food and sugary drinks. * All television shows, even educational non-commercial shows, replace physical activity in your child’s life. * While watching TV, the metabolic rate seems to go even lower than during rest. This means that a person would burn fewer calories while watching TV than when just sitting quietly, doing nothing. * The food and beverage industry targets children with their television marketing, which may include commercials, product placement, and character licensing. Most of the products pushed on children are high in total calories, sugars, salt, and fat, and low in nutrients. (www.med.umich.edu)

BY CHRISTINA HAMLETT

C

hildren learn by imitation, a fact that makes it incumbent upon the adults in their lives to be positive role models. In today’s media-saturated environment, however, parental influence is often diminished by the fixation that children have on the glamourous lifestyles of actors, rock stars and athletes. When parents allow celebrities to be their children’s primary role models, the line between fantasy and reality sometimes becomes too blurred for imparting lessons about ethics, character and responsibility.

Passive persuasion

According to Roberta Michnick Golinkoff, author of Einstein Never Used Flashcards, the convenience of TV as an electronic babysitter can diminish the active use of imagination. Instead of making up their own games of pretend and inventing original characters they can play, children absorb, interpret and mimic the images on the screen as a “real” world that is far more exciting and colourful than the one they live in. Likewise, if a favourite celebrity endorses a new toy, breakfast cereal or pair of expensive sneakers, his validation of the item’s worth sometimes carries more weight with a child than a parent’s opinion.

Truth and consequences

The

media’s

ongoing

glamourisation of celebrities behaving badly often seems to make them that much more appealing to impressionable children. No matter how many times a child is told by her parents that certain behaviours are inappropriate, disrespectful or dangerous, the double standard is still pervasive. According to Victor C Strasburger, author of Children, Adolescents, and the Media, a diminished emphasis on the actual consequences of wrongdoing confuses children into believing that whatever bad things celebrities do are excusable and, thus, should apply to them as well. Diane Levin, author of So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualised Childhood and What Parents Can Do to Protect Their Kids, further points out that the emulation of sexy female celebrities runs counter to the physical and emotional development stages of young girls; it puts them at risk of predators.

Self-esteem

When celebrities portray parents on TV sitcoms, children may not make the connection that the stars are only playing roles. Nor do they always understand that the actors may have entirely different personalities when they are off-camera. By comparison, their own parents are likely not as funny, fair, cool or attentive without being intrusive as the stars of a fictional show.

The skewed reality inherent in idolising a TV family that can never be theirs can lead children to depression, rebellion and even a sense of unworthiness. In addition, children and adolescents who realise they will never be as attractive, thin, rich or accomplished as the celebrities they vicariously admire might decide to give up completely instead of embracing their own uniqueness and talents. Feelings of failure can potentially lead to obesity, substance abuse, withdrawal and suicide, says Dorothy Briggs, author of Your Child’s Self-Esteem.

Positive aspects

Not all celebrities have a negative impact on the lives of young fans. There are actors who lend support to charities, athletes who launch after-school programmes and comedians who visit hospitals to cheer up patients.

These are the “unsung hero” aspects of celebrity personalities that make them inspirational and worthy of admiration. If your children choose celebrities as their role models, it’s important to discuss with them the specific traits they like, respect and want to imitate; talk about whether these actually reflect the idol’s true values. (Livestrong)

NEWS

7

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

Govt warns of Surveillance footage stern measures in waitress shooting helpful – Police I

... to recover UG student loans

University of Guyana, Turkeyen Campus

By Alexis Rodney

F

inance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh said that Government is giving UG loan defaulters a little more time to voluntarily make their repayments, before stringent measures are taken to recover outstanding funds.

And although he did not disclose what specific measures will be taken against loan defaulters, Dr Singh reiterated to Guyana Times on Sunday, that students who had accessed government financing to acquire their tertiary education should do the right thing and repay what is owned to the government.

Disclosing that millions of dollars are owed to the University of Guyana Student Loan Agency, Government, through the Finance Ministry had in June of this year, issued a public call for past students who had acquired loans to honour their obligations and make their repayment.

Government had indicated too that it would be seeking avenues to recover that money.

Dr Singh had disclosed that the repayment process by students who had graduated from the country’s premier tertiary institution, and who are now comfortably working in various sectors, has been moving at a slow pace. According to him, just a handful have made repayments. He said the default by pass students is something that Government had recognised; pointing out that cor-

rective action would have to be taken to achieve higher levels of compliance with a higher level of repayment.

The Finance Ministry is solely responsible for the disbursement of funds to the Student Loan Agency of the University of Guyana.

Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh

However, things took a drastic change when earlier this year, the $450 million allocated to the University was cut from the National Budget by members of the Opposition.

That move had seen a dark cloud looming over the institution as its Vice Chancellor Professor Jacob Opadeyi indicated to this publication that the university could not have survived without assistance from the Government. Meanwhile, the Finance Minister said since given the instruction, the Loan Agency of the university has begun accepting loan applications from new and continuing students.

Last week Government announced that after de-

liberating for some time, it had granted approval for the additional funds to the University of Guyana Student Loan Fund which would facilitate the increase in tuition fees.

In July, the university’s Administrative Council adjusted fees applying to both new and continuing students who are pursuing programmes in the faculty of social science and which previously attracted a fee of $127,000. Students are now required to pay an incremental increase beginning with $130,000 in 2014, $145,000 in 2015 and $160,000 in 2016, in addition to the $50,000 Facilities Fee. The new Guyanese students who will be commencing study from September will be required to pay $210,000, inclusive of the Facilities Fee for most programmes.

In 2013, approximately 40 per cent of the student population acquired loans; however with the increase in tuition fees, this figure is expected to skyrocket.

It was explained however, that the loans granted to finance the tuition fees will not include the new Facilities Fee which totals $50,000 per year. The Facilities Fee replaces the Miscellaneous Fee which was historically paid by students outside of the student loan arrangement.

nvestigators have reviewed the surveillance footage captured during the shooting to death of Delicious Chinese Restaurant waitress, Debbie Blackman, 48, of Critchlow Circle, Tucville, Georgetown, on Saturday evening and it has definitely proven helpful.

A rank close to the investigation revealed that the cameras were able to capture the faces of the perpetrators, and as such, they are presently trying to positively identify them by going through their database.

He added that, the two perpetrators from all indications had a well thoughtout plan which was implemented. It is believed that two young men, who are not more than 18 years old, may have been monitoring the restaurant for sometime before they actually planned their attack.

The senior rank also stated that while the relatives are accusing the Chinese national for the death of the woman, there is no evidence that proved that the woman was locked into the area before she was shot.

It was after the Chinese nationals heard the shots, they locked the adjoining door to the back of the establishment, making it impossible for the men to get to them.

Nevertheless, the source explained that the Police are still reviewing the statements taken.

Crime Chief Leslie James when contacted told Guyana Times that no arrests have been made, but the Police are working with a few leads at their disposal.

He also confirmed that the Police are still reviewing the surveillance footage. He also confirmed that the woman was shot twice: once to the neck and the other to her shoulder.

Dead: Debbie Blackman

However, Shelly Ann Beni, the daughter of the dead woman told Guyana Times that she was too devastated to speak to the media on Saturday evening, claiming that she was confused.

She recalled being home on Saturday evening when she received a telephone call from a friend, informing them about the shooting.

Beni said that by the time they arrived at the scene, the Police had already cordoned off the area; thus, they were unable to see their mother. A sister, she added nevertheless had the opportunity to see her mother in the restaurant.

Too graphic “It is too graphic… she said my mother was lying in a pool of blood... she said she only saw one gunshot wound to her neck…”

The grieving daughter related that unfortunately, they did not receive a call from her mother’s employer whom she had served diligently for the past 11 years.

She also recalled that

her mother escaped death in February during another robbery.

“The same door that the Chinese closed on Saturday night was the same door my mothers escape from the bandits,” she cried.

Beni went on to say that Police have not been telling them anything as well, but they remain positive that the perpetrators will be caught. She described her mother as very quiet, jovial and loving.

She was also a hard worker who reported for work at 09:30h in the morning and left at the close of the restaurant, which is around 23:00h in the evening.

The waitress was shot dead during at an attempted robbery at the Delicious Restaurant about 19:15h.

She was shot twice by one of the two robbers who posed as customers.

According to information received, no one else was in the restaurant since a young woman had left seconds prior to the shooting.

According to reports, the two young men walked into the restaurant and ordered a chicken fried rice and waited until it was prepared.

As the woman brought out the food, one of the men pulled out a gun and pointed it at Blackman, who attempted to run. The gunman opened fire, striking the woman to the neck and the shoulder. She subsequently fell to the ground while the men made good their escape on a motorcycle. The woman leaves to mourn her four daughters and one son. Her body was taken to the Lyken’s Funeral Home and is awaiting a post-mortem examination.

8 NEWS

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

Summer Camp held for Enterprise youth Eyew tness T Intertextuality?

he Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry last week collaborated with the Enterprise Youth Development Group, to host a successful annual youth summer camp.

Some 80 young participants attended the fiveday activity which began on August 11. Participants explored and benefited from activities, including Visual Arts and Craft, Physical Recreation and Sports Coaching in various areas such as football and cricket, and interactive discussions on social and health Issues.

The Enterprise Youth Development Group is a registered youth organisation under the Culture, Youth and Sport President's Youth Award initiative and the Volunteer Support Platform (VSP).

The organisation was established by a group of young and ambitious individuals who have a desire to see change in the lives and attitudes of the young people of the village.

The group has successfully hosted a string of events, including free Information Communication Technology (ICT) classes during the summer of last year, numerous clean-up campaigns and youth interaction programmes, along with fundraising activities.

President of the organisation, Samantha Sheoprashad, said the group with its 160 members, continues to benefit from various programmes being implemented within the community.

Speaking about the sum-

I

Enterprise Youth Development Group President Samantha Sheoprashad hands over a certificate to a participant of the five-day summer camp

mer camp which ended in a massive graduation exercise at the Enterprise Primary School on August 15, Sheoprashad said: “Over the past five days, it was truly amazing for my team to lead such a wonderful journey in moulding the lives of our young people in Enterprise. Every moment was filled with energy and excitement.”

She added that the interaction has unearthed a host of talent among the youth in the community and “these talents can be channelled so as to empower these young minds.”

“We, the young peo-

ple of Enterprise Youth Development Group are committed to positive and active change within our community because we demand to see a better Enterprise and the only way we can achieve that is to work together in peace and love,” Sheoprashad said.

The group also conducted its annual graduation and prize-giving ceremony where over 100 prizes in trophies, medals and stationery were donated by the Pennsylvania Women’s Association, along with school textbooks donated

by Qualfon Inc, novels and storybooks from Giftland

OfficeMax and the National Library.

The organisation on Saturday embarked on yet another initiative “Care Nani and Nana”.

“When we speak about our history, we must not just sit and remember and talk about it, but we must give back to those who were instrumental in developing our community to the way it is today,” Sheoprashad said.

The activity saw over 40 elderly persons residing in Enterprise and neighbouring villages such as NonPariel, Enmore and Success, receiving bags filled with pampers and bedding.

...or ganging up?

t’s said that “no man is an island”. We’re all connected and all that. But how?? After all, can you, for instance, dear reader, even tell what goes on in the minds of your “significant other”? Well, we do have language and other social structures and processes that help us have shared meanings. We match our reactions to words used by others.

If a fella suddenly screams at his grandson, “Shut yuh so-and-so mouth...”, the child has no problem understanding that his grandpa’s angry. In addition to being a low-life scum.

That’s basically what used to be called the problem of “inter-subjectivity”...and it still keeps abusive husbands up at night after their spouses have threatened to cut their willies off when they go to sleep. But as folks moved on to writing and referencing to each other’s writings, things began to get a bit easier. This was called “intertextuality”.

For instance, yesterday, the StabberNews editorial quoted a Ralph Ramkarran’s blog approvingly about the PPP/C, race and elections. Then in Ramkarran’s StabberNews column (taken from Ramkarran’s blog – which will be later used as the basis of a “news article”), he writes about the PPP/C, race, class and elections.

After this you’d have to be missing some marbles not to conclude these folks are talking about the same thing.

In this case, that the declining Indian population presents a problem electorally for the PPP/C. Thing is, they never use this kind of analysis for the PNC. Somehow, the fact that the PNC also secures an ethnic vote – in their case the African-Mixed group – is never problematised. For instance, how come the latter group’s inexorable growth in relative and absolute terms is never presented as favouring the PNC? But the related fall in Indian numbers is a “problem” for the PPP/C? And the answer, dear reader, reading between the (intertextual) lines, is that the enemies of the PPP/C have decided that only the PPP/C must be presented as “racial”.

Everybody and their uncle’s party could be getting ethnic support – but that’s unremarked. For instance, Ramkarran says when the AFC under Trotman got African votes in 2006, those were “Middle Class” African votes – so they were reflecting a “class” rather than a “race” position.

And when Indians switched to the AFC under Ramjattan in 2011, these were “lower class” Indian voters. And as we all know, of course, a “class” position is commendable...but a “race” position is reprehensible.

As so to the ineluctable intertextual StabberNewsRamkarran conclusion that the PPP/C is also reprehensible.

...and creating pundits

Quoting other texts, of course, implies that the opinion of the author matters. And if it matters then the people reading the opinion ought to go along with it, no? Hey! That’s why it matters! And this has been (transparent) ploy of the StabberNews in the plot to oust the PPP/C from Government once again.

It offers columns to enemies of the PPP/C – Goolsarran, Jeffrey, Ramkarran, Khemraj, turns their opinions into news articles, and then quotes these “news articles” as “facts” in later stories. If you never knew the meaning of “intertextual bootstrapping” then you now know.

Take this assertion in the Stabber’s Editorial from yesterday: “Mr Ralph Ramkarran, who is undoubtedly in a position to know, has said in his weekly Sunday column that the PPP/C is convinced it can return to a situation where it can regain control of Parliament.”

First of all, why is Ramkarrqn – who left the PPP/C in a hissy-fit over two years ago – “in a position to know”?? If, as he himself has admitted, he’s alienated from everyone in the Ex-Co, what gives him this superior insight into the mindset of the PPP/C? Truth is, every Tom, Dick and Harrilall knows the PPP/C has consistently asserted it’ll win Parliament comes the next elections.

No one needs Ramkarran to tell them that!

9

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

Preliminary works on ECD road Simply theTruth to be completed by end of year Closing UG A

fter missing a June deadline, the completion of preliminary works on the East Coast Demerara Road Expansion Project has now been extended to the end of this year.

This is according to Public Works Ministry Roads and Bridges Department Manager, Ron Rahaman.

Government had undertaken to improve the road along the East Coast by constructing a four-lane road from Better Hope to Annandale.

Additionally, there will be a two-lane upgrade from Buxton to Belfield. In an interview with Guyana Times, Rahaman noted that preliminary works were scheduled to be completed two months ago.

He disclosed the delays were caused by problems with the contractors which include a shortage of aggregates for the concrete.

“We have informed the contractors that if they

N

The concrete drainage and sand fill works at Le Ressouvenir, East Coast Demerara

is also currently working on Lot Five (Triumph to Mon Repos) and works there are 75 per cent done.

Courtney Benn Contracting Services Limited is working on Lot Three and has completed three per cent of the works.

This lot includes LBI and

have experienced difficulties with the utility companies on the East Bank Road Project, there have not been much conflict on East Coast.

Initially, Government had tried to finance the road expansion project, but the funding was not readi-

The current stage of preliminary works at Felicity, Lot Two

want to import the aggregates, we would assist in whatever duty-free concessions, but so far they haven’t imported, only a few other contractors are currently importing the materials,” Rahaman.

The East Coast Road Expansion Project has been divided into seven lots to facilitate the fourlane extension. Lot One was initially awarded to Falcon Transportation and Construction Services; however, the contract was terminated by the Public Works Ministry in 2012 and awarded last year to Dipcon Engineering Services, which is also tasked with works on Lot Two. The two lots, which cover from Better Hope to La Bonne Intention (LBI), were joined into one and preliminary works there are 60 per cent complete. Dipcon

Beterverwagting.

Preliminary works on Lot Four (Beterverwagting to Triumph) is also 30 per cent complete and is being done by Compustruct Engineering Inc. Lot Six covers from Mon Repos to De Endragt and was awarded to Colin Talbot Contracting Services. Works on this lot is near completion. This construction company is also handling works on Lot Seven (De Endragt to Good Hope), and the work there is about 60 per cent complete.

Meanwhile, Rahaman noted that the contract for civil works for the twolane upgrade from Buxton to Belfield has also been awarded for two-lane upgrade.

Additionally, the Roads and Bridges Manager noted that while contractors

ly available; hence, the administration decided to use local funds for preliminary work, that is, the installation of concrete drains and

backfilling.

“We are just doing the drains and the sand-filling, we are not doing anything more… so when we get the loan from the Eximbank of China, then is when we are going to come with the contractor recommended and put in the asphalt and stuff like that,” he stated.

Construction works on the road will be financed by the China Eximbank. This newspaper was told by an official that Government is currently in discussions with the Chinese bank to have the loan granted.

With the Chinese bank expected to finance the road expansion, Government had invited expressions of interest from Chinese companies to bid for the project. At the end of the tender process, four bids were received from companies.

In June last, Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon disclosed that Cabinet granted its no-objection for the contract to be awarded to China Railway First Group for some $US$42.7 million. The Chinese construction company reportedly put in the lowest bid of US$46.994.

ow we have news that the big man at the University of Guyana (UG) was threatening to shut the place down if the Government of Guyana does not drum up the bucks that he must have. As usual, no one is taking responsibility for the decay that has overtaken Turkeyen and has now been allowed to be imported/exported to the Berbice Campus.

The President of Guyana has at least kept one eye on the ball. Students will not be “allowed” to suffer more than necessary and this matter of closure and money is now “actively engaging” the Finance Ministry.

The President blames the Opposition. The Opposition, of course, blames the Government.

The new UG ‘kabaka’ is blaming the Government too, and is holding our young people’s future as ransom.

There is really only one loser here: Guyana. But we have this debate: “Is nah me do it!

Is he do it! Then comes the mature response: “Is nah me do it! Is she do it!” And this is a good example of our political maturity.

I rather admire the Finance Minister’s plain talk. Dr Ashni Singh is reported to have said that this threat to shut down the two campuses is “reckless and irresponsible”. There was a reason why he said this: it is true! At the same time, however, it is not the job of the ViceChancellor to go and demand an explanation from the Opposition parties!

This is not his job. His job is to find innovative ways to bring UG a few steps higher from being the lowest ranked national university in the world (according to the Germanic ranking system). Of course, anyone who is paying attention would know that not one single in-

Professor Daizal Samad

novation has come out of Turkeyen in the last five years! Not one!

On the other hand, there have been numerous socially and financially profitable innovations that have come out of the Berbice Campus from 2008 to 2012. But everyone stood by and supported the moves to bring UGBC down to its knees by making it into a place as rotten as Turkeyen.

Make a good place a bad place. Make a bad place a worse place. This is the apparent logic of those that rule UG. Here is a question to be asked: Who hired this man to be the “Chief Executive Officer” of UG, who is now threatening the future of our young Guyanese? The UG unions are right on the button!

We have gone on and on and on about a university is a business and must be run as such. This part is easy and even a mediocre academic can see what we knew since after WWII. What is not seen, however, is that a university is a business unlike any other business.

UG’s response to its own poverty of standards is to hike tuition! To shut the two campuses is not a solution.

It is “reckless and irresponsible”. Thank you for the straight talk, Dr Singh. Now can we act??

10

guyanatimesgy.com

monday, august 25, 2014

News

A young contestant from Trinidad at the International Quranic Qaseeda Competition in Guyana

Scenes from International One man happiness is Quranic another man sadness Qaseeda S Competition

President of the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) Fazil Feroze, Housing and Water Minister Irfaan Ali, and Brother Gulzarr at the Competition

The winner of the Qaseeda competition – Brother Amarali from Suriname

A section of the audience

ome people mind don’t ever be at ease or at peace wid dem self. Dem always worryin bout some ting. Or complainin bout some ting. Usually, it does be bout some ting that dem can’t ever get. No matter how hard dem try.

Right now one newspaper man tryin hard to get another man wood and he gon never get it. He so desperate that he even go in de bush fuh it and he still ain’t get it. That kinda desperation does lead to a lotta tings which people seein every day.

Others does be obsessed bout other people. Usually, it does be bout some body that dem can never become, but wanna become like dem. Plus some people does tek other people happiness and mek it dem own sadness. And that is wheh de problem does start.

Old people seh that is how dem does start to burn and pine away inside. And a lotta people does pine away in GT. One of dem is Lalloo who had wanna become a lawyer. He even study to become a lawyer.

Then he tell people he pass he exam to become a lawyer.

But no matter whah he do, no body ain’t tekkin he fuh a lawyer.

He even offer to do tings fuh free as a lawyer and still no body want he fuh a lawyer.

Another one is de Nagga Man, who is also a lawyer, but who had wanna become Prezzie, and still wanna become Prezzie.

Nagga wait till Cheddi gone, then tell lie pun Cheddi, till he get kick out from Cheddi party. Cheddi woulda kick he out he self if only he had tell de lie when Cheddi was around.

When Nagga get kick out, he decide to join Rum Jhaat tinkin that he gon soon become Prezzi. Nagga even trot over to de Trot man tinkin that he gon get some help to become Prezzi.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie!

De problem wid that move was that all three of dem wanna become Prezzi at de same time.

guyanatimesgy.com

mondAY, august 25, 2014

11

News

Times Notebook Guyana’s CXC Maths results – an improving landscape

A

Guyanese student again is in contention for the top 2014 CXC student in Caricom. Guyana has been in this position every year for more than a decade and Guyanese students have won the top student award and other CXC awards more times than any country in the Region in the last 10 years.

The 2014 results showed that Guyana achieved its best Mathematics results since CXC began. At about 39 per cent, this was by far the best CXC Mathematics results Guyana has collectively attained. These CXC Mathematics results are encouraging and signal that we can overcome the demon of low Mathematics pass rates that have plagued Guyana and Caricom for our entire history.

But in a year when Guyana achieved our best Mathematics results, the blazing headlines for some media houses and the

cry of the critics was that more than 50 per cent of Guyanese students failed Mathematics. While the headlines were true, they failed to tell the real story of progress and to truthfully place the 2014 Mathematics results in its correct and appropriate perspective.

For most of the early CXC years, Guyana struggled in the squalor of below 10 per cent passes in Mathematics. By the 1990s, Guyana’s pass rates in Mathematics were stuck at below 20 per cent.

Improvement

As dismal as this was, the 1990s showed a marked improvement and the baseline of below 10 per centof the 1980s was improved to near 20 per cent. As the country entered the last decade of the 20th century, the PPP/C Government invested heavily in a herculean effort to get Guyana moving beyond 20 per cent

pass rate for Mathematics.

While Guyana still has vast room for improvement, the CXC 2014 results affirm the need for the Government of Guyana’s (GoG) investment in education. In 2014, the GoG investment of $32 billion equals a per capita education investment of more than US$200. In 1991, Guyana’s per capita investment in education was merely US$7 per capita.

Bythe beginning of 2000, we began to detect a turn around and reached 25 per cent for the first time in 2004 and 30 per cent for the first time in 2005. Clearly, a new baseline was being established with pass rates surpassing 20 per cent and even reaching 30 per cent during the first five years of the new century.

Since 2005, Guyanese Mathematics pass rates have surpassed 30 per cent six out of 10 times, barely dropping below 30 per cent in the other four years. In

2014, we nearly reached 40 per cent, showing that in each decade we are changing the baseline upwards.

These are still pass rates below what we expect from our students, but we must acknowledge the upward trajectory and the possibility that Guyana is now ready to be counted near the top of CXC Mathematics achievements in Caricom.

From below 10 per centMathematics pass rates, we have moved upward to pass rates near 40 per cent.

Clearly the next hurdle is to attain pass rates of 50 per cent by 2020. The track record of new higher mileposts on this journey is a story to be told and one that we cautiously celebrate.

For most of the 1990s, the overall pass rate for Mathematics in Caricom countries were in the 20 to 30 per cent pass rate range also. The further truth is that until this year overall CXC Mathematics

pass ratein Caricomnever reached 40 per cent. This is the first year that Caricom’s CXC Mathematics pass rate exceeded 40 per cent.

Guyana is not far away.

Mathematics, in fact, has plagued most countries in the world and Guyana has, at least, demonstrated that it is not stuck in a quagmire of total failure as we were in the 1970s and 1980s.

Resolve

Guyana and other Caricom countries in 2014 showed that they’ve always had faith and understanding in who WE could be if YOU would just put your foot down and stand with me. Your resolve is too easily shaken. Maybe one day youll fight for something and someone greater than yourself... be it yours children or even me if im lucky.

Demon of Mathematics failure is not inevitable.

Let us recognise that

progress is being made and not blur the truth of steady improvement with headlines that seek to portray a continuation of the total failure that characterise our CXC Mathematics record of the 1970s and 1980s.

From our vantage point the Mathematics landscape is improving. The challenge before Guyana now is to ensure that we stay on course with further improvement in Mathematics. We acknowledge that progress has been painfully slow. We wish it would be faster and that Guyana’s Mathematics pass rate reach 50 per cent in this decade.

It is possible and Guyana’s track record since 1990 demonstrates that the 50 per cent pass rate for Mathematics would probably be reached before 2020.

Readers are invited to send their comments by email or Facebook to times. notebook@gmail.com.

Man shot in Alberttown dies … Police link victim to Merriman’s Mall robbery

The scene outside the Alberttown shop where Lindo was shot

BY BHISHAM MOHAMED

D

exter Lindo, 26, of 208 Shell Road, Kitty, Georgetown, who was shot three times to the body on Saturday at the corner of Light and Fifth Streets, Alberttown, has succumbed to his injuries at the Dr Balwant Singh Hospital a few hours after he was admitted.

Initial reports suggested that he was shot in a failed execution bid, but the Police have confirmed that he was involved in a robbery at the Merriman’s mall minutes prior to the shooting incident.

Police investigations re-

vealed that about 13:15h on the day in question, Lindo and an accomplice, both armed with hand guns, entered the Wayne Beverage Paradise stall located at the Merriman’s Mall, Bourda, with the intention of committing a felony.

As they entered the businessplace, the proprietress detected something was amiss and raised an alarm, which led to a licensed firearm holder responding to her calls.

The two men reportedly ran out of the business establishment and entered a waiting motor car being driven by a third person, but instead of retreating, the li-

censed firearm holder followed the car and caught up with it at Light and Fifth Streets, Alberttown.

There, the firearm holder confronted Lindo, who had exited the getaway car and entered a shop in the area. As he entered the shop, he reportedly pulled out a firearm and there was an exchange of gunshots, resulting in him being shot to the abdomen.

An injured Lindo managed to escape on foot, but an unlicensed .32 Beretta Pistol with four rounds that he was carrying were recovered at the scene and handed over to the Police. Lindo was subsequently taken to the

Dr Balwant Singh Hospital where he was admitted. The Police after receiving information about his whereabouts went to the medical facility where he was being kept under guard until he passed away later in the day. The other two men escaped, but a man-hunt has been launched. The vehicle which was used by the perpetrators has been detained by the Police as the investigations continue.

At the home of the dead young man, his family was not pleased with the way he was killed, claiming that Lindo was never a bandit or involved in any criminal activities.

The young man, according to his father, Andrew Duesbury, was a businessman who rents cars. The father, who resides in Kara Kara, Linden, said he got the news of this son’s death about 01:30h and rushed to the city. As he arrived, he met with Police ranks and from all indications, they were clueless.

He was subsequently told that his son was shot in his back. Two visible gunshot wounds were seen, but it was reported that he was shot three times. The angry father slammed members of the Guyana Police Force on the way they investigated the matter, explaining that

his son was at the popular liming spot with his friends when he was shot. Duesbury said the shooting stemmed from a parking issue sometime back.

He added too, with reference to the robbery mentioned by the Police, that it had occurred about three

arm.

The grieving father said he was made to understand that the owner of the gun whose name was given as “Bai Bai”, went to the Alberttown Police Station and told the Police that he was the one who shot Lindo after he would have commit-

A Policeman speaks to the shopkeeper about the shooting

weeks ago, but on Saturday a suspicious car was seen in front of the business place; hence, the owners felt that the occupants were there to commit another robbery.

He is also holding out that his son was shot by someone other than the owner of the licensed fire-

ted a robbery. Relatives of the dead man are urging the relevant authorities to look into the matter. They are calling for the investigators to find the person who actually pulled the trigger. Lindo leaves to mourn his parents, three sisters and his fiancée.

12 NEWS

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

Jamzone patrons breach barricades to touch Alkaline O

verzealous and unruly fans Saturday night breached barricades at the Guyana National Stadium to have a touch of Jamaican Dancehall singer, Alkaline, at the Jamzone Summer Break Regional Night.

Headlining the show, the Jamaican emerged from backstage amid dazzling lights and was given a grand welcome on stage by Fusion’s lead deejay, Gully Ras. With heavy smoke on stage, the young artiste appeared with a white towel on his head, a black teeshirt and a pair of black and white soft pants that was worn below his buttocks.

al admission from the VIP were breached by screaming fans who were desperate to touch the singer.

Quick reaction by the Police however, prevented any tragedy. Even the artiste called on his fans to desist from any violent behaviour. He continued his performance backed by members of the Heatwaves Band for another 20 minutes, dishing out hits known mostly by the youngsters.

As he continued, the barriers were once again broken and the VIP area was invaded. This time, Police and private security could not have controlled the audience. No one was hurt.

Meanwhile, known

then the powerhouse of the band, Jackie Hanover, took charge with some seductive dance moves, leaving patrons to believe that they were in an exotic club.

Her dancers did all the right moves and the performance was the talk of the night.

Also performing at the show was Carib Soca Monarch, Kwasi “Ace” Edmundson, who sang his signature tunes “Stupid Question”, “In The industry” and others.

“Wickedee” Malcolm Perriera on the other hand

was as lewd as usual with his provocative songs that left certain sections of the crowd uncomfortable.

Another performer who pleased some sections of the audience was Lil Million.

He too was a bit lewd, but sang a few of his hit songs and had the audience a little hyped. Lady “T” as well as Ernesta Nelson also graced the stage for about two minutes each. The show ended with a crowdpleasing performance from the young Jamaican artiste, who delivered as promised.

Alkaline performing one of his hits

Bunji Garlin and Fay Ann Lyons

Jamaican artiste, Alkaline serenading one of his many fans

Members of the Heatwaves Band doing a piece at the Guyana National Stadium

His neck was draped with several pieces of gold jewellery.

On seeing him, the crowd exploded, especially the young members. The dancehall singer was accompanied by two dancers who added some excitement to his performance. However, a few minutes into the performance, the barricades that separated the gener-

for his soca vibes in the Caribbean and farther afield, Bunji Garlin proved to be the best freestyle singer when he unleashed his talent before the massive crowd at the Guyana National Stadium in the wee hours of Sunday morning.

The singer, who became popular after winning Trinidad and Tobago’s Soca

Monarch title a few times, dished out an unforgettable performance when he took to the stage about 01:30h.

With more than an hour presentation between him and his wife, Fay Ann Lyons, they had certain sections of the audience moving to the vibes, while some sections remained unmoved until he started with his freestyle performance which left the crowd

in amusement.

His talent was tremendous when it comes to freestyle. He sang practically about everything around him, even about the Royal Castle girls who were busy serving customers.

The duo also dished out hits to please everyone, including hits from yesteryear to present which comprised old reggaes that had the older folks rocking away. Their performance made way for the headlining act, Jamaica's youngest dancehall artistes dubbed the “the next Vybz Kartel”.

However, the 14th Edition of the Jamzone Summer Break’s Regional Night had a delayed start, but with performances from the regional artistes, it was worth the wait.

The show started with the Heatwaves Band with its lead acts Calvin Burnette, Roger B and Tenecia De Freitas. They were successful in putting the crowd in the right mood;

Jackie Hanover performing one of her pieces at the Guyana National Stadium

NEWS

13

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

Troy Resources eyes mid next year to unveil US$87M mine ... makes $1.1B in equipment purchase from local firm million dollar mine in the West Omai region before the middle of 2015. Once completed, the Mine will employ approximately 300 persons including contractors.

The Australian exploration and mining company will be developing an area west of Omai with the anticipation of raking in an annual production of 90,000 ounces of gold over a seven-year period. Production, however, in the first 12 months is projected at 102,000 ounces of

augurs well for the country in terms of foreign exchange earnings, our GDP, our employment- generation capabilities,� said an optimistic Williams. Troy Resources Limited has been in operation since 1987. However, it was during the period 19982004 that it operated the Conishman Gold Mine in Australia and the Bulchina Gold Mine (1999-2004). In 2006, it expanded operations to South America, operating gold mines in Brazil

gold, with production commencing between December 2014 to February 2015.

The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission had said previously that this project

and Argentina. After acquiring Azimuth Resources (West Omai Project) in 2013, it moved to purchase the ball mill for the Karouni Project in November 2013.

Prime Minister, Samuel Hinds and Natural Resources and the Environment Minister, Robert Persaud, pose with officials of Troy Resources at the handing over of the new equipment

T

roy Resources is looking at starting up its mining operations here mid -next year even as it made a $1.1B purchase of equipment from a local firm.

On Saturday, the Australia-based mining company received over $1.1 billion of equipment for the Karouni Project, Cuyuni, Region Seven (Cuyuni Mazaruni) project. This purchase represents the single largest purchase ever of Doosan equipment in Latin America or the Caribbean, the gold- mining firm said in a statement. The equipment purchased from local company, Farm Supplies

Limited, is in keeping with Troy Resources commitment to purchase equipment, services and supplies, when available locally. This, the company noted, is to ensure that, beyond its commitment to develop a world- class mine and invest in Guyana, the spin- off from its investment is multiplied through additional local purchases .

In addition to delivery of the equipment, Farm Supplies Limited will also provide training for its Guyanese operators and technicians, in the use and maintenance of the new equipment. The equipment handed over include 12

Doosan DA40 Trucks and 3 Doosan DX 500 Excavators.

The Karouni Project is into intense preparations for the construction phase with works to be carried out for the installation of the ball mill, mine operations, employees’ housing and other critical infrastructural works. CEO of Troy Resources, Ken Nilsson, explained that the Karouni Project must also be seen as an investment in Guyana, not only via taxes and royalties, but in terms of contributing to employment, purchases and infrastructural development. The company, he explained, wants to en-

Some of the new equipment

sure that both their shareholders and local interests are satisfied, thereby ensuring a win-win situation.

Troy Resources Guyana Inc. is expected to complete the construction of its US 87

turn to page 17

14

guyanatimesgy.com

monDAY, august 25, 2014

News

Manning's decision to blank Weight restrictions on Linden/ national award “unfortunate” Lethem Road effective Tuesday T – TT Prime Minister he Public Works Ministry has announced that effective Tuesday, owners of heavyduty trucks – single, double and triple axles – will be allowed to carry loads of approximately only 15 tonnes

P

rime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has described as “unfortunate” the decision of former Prime Minister Patrick Manning not to accept the country’s highest national award.

Prime Minister Persad Bissessar said Thursday that she had nominated Manning and another former Prime Minister Basdeo Panday, for the Order of Trinidad and Tobago in recognition of their contribution to the socio-economic development of the twin island republic which celebrates its 52nd anniversary of political independence from Britain on August 31.

“Whatever differences we may share politically the award sought to honour Mr Manning for

H

Former Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning

his decades of service as a Parliamentarian. It was meant to be a gesture of magnanimity and a moment to reach beyond the issues that divide us to acknowledge Mr Manning’s many national contributions.”

But in a statement, Manning, 68, the long-

est serving legislator here, who served as head of government on two occasions said the primary reason for declining the award was based “firmly in my principled stance to not accept any Trinidad and Tobago awards while serving as an MP. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

Management Services (EMS) officials implement an urgent plan to clear the drainage system in the area.

E l s e w h e r e , Providenciales airport workers were forced to take up brooms and sweep the water out of the new airport terminal, which is 90 per cent complete. The new open design appears to be incapable of handling the type of downpour that usually occurs from tropical depressions and storms that pass annually.

The terminal’s new roof

system faced its first test this weekend and the design and construction appear to have failed to cope with the conditions.

Sunday’s American Airlines flight from Miami was cancelled due to the storm.

Cristobal is expected to produce rainfall totals of four to eight inches over the Turks and Caicos Islands, as well as the South-eastern and central Bahamas through Tuesday, with isolated amounts around 12 inches possible. (Excerpt from

Caribbean News Now)

Mentally ill man slits 2-yearold’s throat in Jamaica

T

he pain etched on their faces as tears rolled down their cheeks was enough to tell how the parents of two-yearold Jayheim Cooper felt.

With their only child killed on Thursday night, Calvin Cooper and Kerina Peart were too grief-stricken to speak when the Jamaica Observer caught up with them on Friday.

In fact, the mother of the young child had not been taken for medical attention. The child’s grandmother also cried openly, not only reeling from the shock of losing her grandchild, but having witnessed the murder in her own yard, and being unable to do anything to help the child who brought laughter to the family.

Baby Jayheim was allegedly killed by a man whom people have said is mentally challenged, in a community located a few miles out of St Ann’s Bay. Reports are that the baby was in his yard playing when the man

hicles such as mini-buses, canters and pickups. An advisory will be issued when the weight restriction is lifted. The Ministry apologises for any inconvenience caused,” the release concluded.

Group on drive to get stationery for hinterland students

Turks and Caicos hit by heavy flooding eavy rains from the weekend passage of Tropical Storm Cristobal caused widespread flooding in Providenciales, the most populated of the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Floodwater engulfed the entire downtown area, including the main roads.

Access to Government offices was impacted by the floods. Members of the public and Government workers will be forced to step out in ankle deep water this morning unless the rain subsides and Engineering

along the Linden/Lethem Road.

The Ministry in a release said, currently, critical areas along the access road are being fixed.

“The road is passable for small and medium-sized ve-

Baby Jayheim as a happy boy, the way the community knew him, enjoying mangoes

entered, grabbed him and slashed his throat. This happened shortly after the supposed same mentally-ill man allegedly attacked and cut the throat of Logan Simpson with a knife in another section of the community.

He then allegedly raced up to Cooper’s residence where he used the same knife to slash the throat of the child, who was pronounced dead at hospital.

“The baby was in the garage because that’s where he plays all the time. She (child’s grandmother) saw the person coming but it is somebody that we know,” Stacy-Ann Cooper, an aunt of the child, said. She said that the man slashed the child’s throat and ran.

He was later caught, tied and beaten by residents before being rescued by the Police. (Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

T

he Georgetown Hub will be holding this year’s HeadStart!

Stationery Drive which seeks to provide over 600 students in Regions 1, 8 & 9 with stationery supplies for the 2014-2015 academic year.

This year’s HeadStart!

Stationery Drive will target students in Regions 1, 8 & 9 with stationery supplies for the 2014-2015 academic year. The Georgetown Hub will once again leverage support from members of the general public and the business community of Guyana and around the world to support young students in Guyana’s hinterland communities.

In a release, the group said this micro project was birthed after recognising the need in these hinterland regions due to their socio-economic and geographical limitations. This year’s project, championed by Georgetown Shaper, Hubert Forrester, will be creating stationery

packages for both nursery and primary students and delivering these supplies in time for the resumption of school in September.

The hub said it has already received “remarkable responses” both from the local private sector and from individuals and businesses across the globe. In addition to donations of supplies, monetary contributions have also been made and will make a notable difference in the lives of these hinterland students, the group stated. Donations (both supplies and monetary) can be made at the California Stucco Building on Sheriff and Bonasika Sts. Section K Campbelville, Georgetown (Tel#s 225-5253; 662-9931).

The Georgetown Hub provided back- to-school supplies last year to over 400 young students in Matthew’s Ridge, Kurupukari, and Cashew Island through its HeadStart! Stationery Drive project. This was made possible by the generous dona-

tions of individuals, organisations and businesses both in and out of Guyana. The Global Shapers Community is a worldwide network of more than 350 city-based Hubs developed and led by promising young leaders between the ages of 20 and 30, who want to build on their achievements and entrepreneurial drive to make a positive contribution to their communities.

Together, they embody the “community of the future”, bringing together empowered youth in a community that is diverse, decentralized, and digitally hyper connected. The Global Shapers Community is an initiative of the World Economic Forum and is independent, neutral, non-political and not for profit.

The Georgetown Hub will once again leverage support from members of the general public and the business community of Guyana and around the world to support young students in Guyana’s hinterland communities.

Brazil prisoners decapitated in Cascavel jail riot

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olice in Brazil say rioters in a jail in the southern city of Cascavel have killed four fellow inmates and injured several others. Two of the victims were decapitated and others were pushed from the roof of the building, two of whom died, they said.

At least 700 prisoners are reported to be involved in the uprising, which began on Sunday morning. The prisoners are said to be unhappy about how the prison is run, as well as about food

and hygiene there.

Local media showed prisoners beating men held with ropes around their necks on the roof of one of the buildings.

The rioting prisoners have their faces covered with improvised balaclavas.

The leaders of the rebellion are holding at least two prison agents hostage.

“They are using the severed head of one of the prisoners to inflict psychological torture on one of the hostages,” said Jairo Ferreira, law-

yer for the prison agents’ union.

“There are scenes of terror inside the jail now,” he told local newspaper Gazeta do Povo. Negotiations are under way to put an end to the uprising, which has led to the destruction of most of the penitentiary, according to O Globo newspaper.

Brazil has the world’s fourth largest prison population, with half a million inmates in facilities meant to hold 300,000. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Jamaica drought: Help for schools in affected areas

P

rime Minister Portia Simpson Miller has instructed that action be taken to help schools cope as the dry spell continues to affect the country.

With the countdown now on to the start of the new academic year, a meeting will held with several Government Ministries, and a plan of action will be outlined early next week.

Water Minister, Robert Pickersgill, says schools in parishes experiencing se-

vere drought could be could be impacted and as a result the ministry will also focus on hospitals and infirmaries in areas adversely affected by the reduction in rainfall.

The National Water Commission (NWC) in collaboration with the Local Government Ministry will be supplying water to schools in affected areas.

The NWC has already assisted some schools in the Corporate Area, that are experiencing challenges with

their supply, by providing water tanks.

Pickersgill has urged school administrators to place importance on establishing catchment and storage facilities.

“I am encouraging all schools to establish additional facilities for storage, so that in the absence of regular supplies, water may be supplied to them and stored.

After all, we are all aware that ‘water is life’,” he said.

(Excerpt from Antigua Observer)

guyanatimesgy.com

monDAY, august 25, 2014

Around the world

Islamic State fighters seize Syria airbase

F

ighters from Islamic State (IS) have taken control of a key Syrian Government airbase, activists say.

The Tabqa airbase was the last remaining stronghold of Bashar al-Assad’s government in Raqqa province.

State TV confirmed that Government forces had “evacuated” the airbase.

Days of fighting there have reportedly killed hundreds on both sides.

More than 191,000 people have now been killed in the three-year-old Syrian conflict up to April, the UN says.

IS, formerly known as Isis, has expanded its reach into large parts of eastern Syria and northern Iraq in recent months.

The US has launched limited airstrikes against the group in Iraq but has not targeted them in Syria.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UKbased activist group with

Some residents of Tabqa and IS militants celebrated the news of the base’s capture

opposition ties, said clashes around the airbase were ongoing, but added that the base was under IS control.

Hundreds of soldiers and IS fighters had died in the past few days’ fighting around the base, the

15

Observatory said.

Syrian state television confirmed that Government troops had lost control of the base.

“After heavy fighting by the forces defending the Tabqa airbase, our forces

implemented a regrouping operation after the evacuation of the airbase,” it said.

Government forces were conducting airstrikes on the base after the troops evacuated, it reported. (BBC News)

China slams “aggressive” jet claim A

Chinese fighter jet made several “dangerous” and “unprofessional” passes at a US Navy plane this week -- coming as close as 20 feet at one point -- in what the White House called a “deeply concerning provocation”.

The incident occurred Tuesday in international air space in the South China Sea about 135 miles east of the Chinese island of Hainan, the Pentagon said on Friday.

Rear Admiral John Kirby, the Defense Department spokesman, described a flamboyant approach by what he called an armed Chinese fighter jet that three times crossed beneath the Navy Poseidon patrol aircraft with “only 100 feet of separation”.

“The Chinese jet also passed the nose of the P-8 at 90 degrees with its belly towards the P-8 Poseidon, we believe to make a point of showing its weapons load,”

he said.

It then “flew directly under and alongside the P-8, bringing their wing tips to within 20 feet, and then conducted a roll... over the P-8, passing within 45 feet,” Kirby added.

Sounding exasperated, he called the maneuvers by the Chinese jet “pretty aggressive, very unprofessional”.

Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said it was “obviously a deeply concerning provocation and we have communicated directly to the Chinese Government our objection to this type of action”.

Rhodes said the US has encouraged “constructive military-to-military ties with China” and “this type of action ... violates the spirit of that engagement.”

China slammed US accusations, calling them “totally groundless” and saying its jet was within safe distance.

(Excerpt from CNN)

35 Nigerian Police Ukraine rebels parade seized troops missing after attack P ro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine have marched dozens of captured Government soldiers through the city of Donetsk.

The incident came as Ukraine said it would spend US$3 billion (£1.8 billion) on re-equipping the

army to fight the rebels.

President Petro Poroshenko made the announcement ahead of a military parade to mark Independence Day in Kiev.

More than 2000 people have died in recent months in fighting between Government forces and the separatists.

Some 330,000 have fled their homes because of the unrest in eastern Ukraine.

The violence erupted when pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions declared independence from Kiev, after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in March.

On Sunday, the rebels force-marched Ukrainians soldiers through the centre of Donetsk.

Crowds lined the streets chanting “fascists” as the dishevelled-looking prisoners walked by. Some people threw bottles at the captives, Reuters news agency reports. (Excerpt from BBC News)

India’s Kerala to ban alcohol sales A man weeps at a meeting in Borno State in April called over previous abductions by insurgents (file photo)

T

hirty-five Nigerian Policemen are missing following an insurgent attack Saturday on a Police training school in one of the most volatile parts of the African nation, police said.

A search-and-rescue effort has been launched after the third attack this month on the Gwoza Training camp in Borno State, according to a statement posted online by the Nigeria Police Force.

It was not immediately clear whether anyone had claimed responsibility.

Afterward, the Force’s Inspector General Suleiman Abba ordered that security be tightened around all Police facilities in the country.

It is not known what happened to the missing officers, though the Police Force statement did say there is a “very promising prospect of

locating them.”

“While enjoining all citizens to remain calm and join hands with the security forces in the collective fight against insurgency, the IGP restates his determination to work closely with other security agencies to stem the tide of terrorism in the country,” added the Police in their statement out of Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

Nigeria has been beset by violence for some time, particularly in the northeastern states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

Much of it has blamed on the Islamist militant group Boko Haram -- whose name means “Western education is sin” in the local Hausa language. The group has bombed schools, churches and mosques; kidnapped women and children; and assassinated politicians and religious leaders alike. (CNN)

A

uthorities in the southern Indian state of Kerala have outlined plans to ban the sale and consumption of alcohol to tackle the state’s drink problem.

The first phase of the ban would see more than 700 bars and as well as some shops selling alcohol shut down, with more alcohol-free days introduced.

The Government aims to enforce total prohibition in 10 years.

The Government plans to enforce total prohibition in 10 years

Kerala has India’s highest per capita alcohol con-

sumption at more than eight litres per person yearly.

Doctors and activists have highlighted rising alcohol abuse, blaming it for many road accidents and even marital breakdown.

They say hospitals and rehabilitation centres are packed with patients suffering from alcohol-related diseases.

Chief Minister Oomnen Chandy said the Congressled Government planned to make Kerala “liquor free” with a series of proposed measures in the coming months. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Prisoners beheaded in Brazil jail riot T

hree prisoners have been beheaded and at least five other people injured in a riot that erupted in a southern Brazilian prison, authorities said.

Inmates of the prison in the city of Cascavel took at least two agents and several other inmates hostage in the unrest, said military Police Captain Ricardo Pinto on

Sunday.

He said negotiations for better conditions in the prison were still under way 12 hours later.

Prisoners set some objects on fire and were using metal poles to cause damage to the 928-bed prison that housed more than 1000 inmates at the time.

Authorities initially re-

ported that two men were decapitated, but later learned of a third prisoner who was killed the same way. The three men were not identified.

The revolt began before sunrise when a prison guard was captured during breakfast, Pinto said.

Dozens of the prisoners climbed onto the building’s rooftop, with their faces cov-

ered with white fabric.

Local media images showed at least 30 rebellious inmates shouting while they beat men held with ropes around their necks, or whose hands were tied behind them.

The rioting inmates waved banners emblazoned with the initials ‘PCC’ for a criminal prison gang formed in the 1990s. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

16 NEWS

monDAY, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

GECOM says no need to justify extension of Claims and Objections period

Walk held to raise awareness on Non-Communicable diseases

… APNU wants reasons

W

hile it has been confirmed that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has taken steps to extend its Claims and Objections period by seven days, the main Opposition party, the A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) has said that it wants clear reasons for the extension.

But GECOM’s newly appointed Deputy Chief Elections Officer (DCEO) Vishnu Persaud said there was no need for GECOM to give a reason for granting the extension of the Claims and Objections period as was requested by the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C).

Speaking to Guyana Times on Saturday, APNU Leader, Brigadier David Granger said that he saw no reason for the extension.

Granger explained that

he was satisfied with the period of time that was previously given to conduct Claims and Objections .

“There is no justification, we do not know what is the reason,” he said.

Persaud explained to Guyana Times that “one of the major parties, the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic requested an extension on the basis that there are a lot of people out there that have to be transferred,

D

Participants of the walk led by the Health Ministry’s Wellness Warriors

APNU Leader, Brigadier David Granger

among other things… the Commissioners of GECOM decided to grant that extension.” However, Persaud maintained that the seven-

day extension will in no way affect the process.

The PPP/C had written GECOM requesting that the period assigned for Claims, that is, August 4-24, be extended by seven days.

The party said in a statement that it is convinced that an extension at this critical time is necessary to ensure most, if not all, eligible Guyanese are on the list and not disenfranchised whenever elections are called.

“Already we have seen the AFC [Alliance For Change] submission of a ‘no-confidence motion' on the Government, coupled with the APNU public support and only recently, the Speaker of the National Assembly has thrown his weight behind them with justification that the Government is undermining the work of Parliament.”

The party said it has received valuable information from extensive fieldwork countrywide which proves there are many persons who are still to effect transfer of their particulars from one list to another, especially in new housing schemes.

“Time and again, the party had engaged GECOM to conduct mobile registration in these schemes as well as hinterland and riverain communities; even though some amount of work was been done to this effect, the PPP/C remains dissatisfied with GECOM’s poor PR [public relations] to notify residents of mobile units; poor selection of convenient days and times to residents and meagre time spent in hinterland and riverain communities,” the statement read.

ozens of persons joined a health walk on Saturday to heighten awareness of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and their prevention.

The walk commenced at Fifth Street Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara and ended at the University of Guyana tarmac (UG).

The event was coordinated by the Health Ministry and its Wellness Warriors, and saw participation from UG, Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and members of the health fraternity. University of Guyana (UG) Registrar Vincent Alexander said for a while the Health Ministry has been focusing on raising awareness on NCDs, when in fact a lot of persons suffer from them. He urged that persons educate themselves on the causes of such diseases so as to prevent them.

People need to take wellness seriously, to prevent these diseases, and pay particular attention to their dietary preferences. “Work needs to be done to make the society conscious of adopting a healthy lifestyle to deal with issues of obesity, high alcohol consumption levels, smoking etc,” Alexander stated.

Health Minister, Dr Bheri Ramsaran, said the university will have the opportunity to shine in the strategic partnership of raising awareness of NCDs. He said in September,

Guyana will be celebrating Caribbean Wellness Day for an entire week during which, Clarissa Etienne, PAHO’s Director will be in attendance. He said today’s walk is one of the activities leading to the week-long celebrations.

On September 12, Minister Ramsaran said the National Presidential Commission on NCDs will be launched as well as the

be done to prevent NCDs. He added that the university is partnering with the Confucius Institute to bring a professor of Chinese medicine onto the campus. Also, the university is looking into ensuring that all students are medically tested before they enter the campus.

He however, stated that the purpose for the medical tests is just to make the university aware of each stu-

UG’s Vice chancellor, Dr Jacob Opadeyi among the participants

Wellness Warriors with preliminary emphasis being placed on young people in schools, UG and other places. Vice Chancellor of the University, Dr Jacob Opadeyi, said the activity was a very important one and there is a lot that can

dent’s medical status, but the findings will not hinder a student’s admission to the university. Further, well qualified lecturers from PAHO will assist in teaching at the university’s health science faculty, Dr Opadeyi said.

Major regional confab on drugs for September T

he Permanent Council of the Organisation of American States (OAS) last week approved the invitations of more than 500 international organisations and civil society organisations to the Special General Assembly on drugs to be held in Guatemala on September 19, while at the same time agreed to convene the Fourth Meeting of National Authorities on Trafficking in Persons, to be held in Brasilia in December.

At a regular meeting held at the headquarters of the hemispheric in-

stitution in Washington, DC, the Council approved the report of the General Secretariat for invitations to the 46 Special Session of the General Assembly to be held in Guatemala City on September 19. Among the invited organisations, there are Inter-American regional or sub-regional governmental entities or agencies; specialised agencies related to the United Nations and other international organisations; and civil society organisations registered with the OAS. The Council also agreed to convene the Fourth Meeting

of National Authorities on Trafficking in Persons to be held in Brasilia, Brazil, on December 4 and 5, 2014. The Council approved to install the Working Group of the Committee on Hemispheric Security to prepare this Meeting of National Authorities.

The Council took note of the conclusion of the categorisation of mandates of the organisation, as well the updating of the database of mandates, which includes those adopted by the recent General Assembly held in June in Asuncion, and the elimination of those obso-

lete and duplicates. The report was submitted by the Chairman of the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs (CAAP) and Permanent Representative of Chile, Juan Pablo Lira. The Council also approved the proposal of the President of the CAAP for this Committee to continue the process of prioritisation of mandates, in close consultation with the other committees of the Permanent Council and the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI).

During the same meeting, the Council approved

the report on the activities of the Office of the Inspector General for the period from January 1 to June 30, 2014 and agreed to implement the recommendations contained in the report.

At the beginning of the session, at the request of the President of the Council, the Permanent Representative of St Lucia, Sonia Johnny, a minute of silence was held for the recent passings of Brazilian presidential candidate Eduardo Campos and Santa Lucia Judge Suzie D ‘Auvergne.

Several delegations also expressed their condolences

on the passings of Mexican diplomat Antonio de Icaza, father of the Director of the OAS Department for Electoral Cooperation and Observation, Gerardo de Icaza; and the former President of the Peruvian Congress Henry Pease García.

Representatives from Colombia, United States, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago (on behalf of Caricom), Paraguay, Chile, El Salvador, Peru, Argentina, Brazil, The Dominican Republic, Haiti, Venezuela and St Lucia, took the floor during today’s meeting.

NEWS

17

Monday, august 25, 2014 | guyanatimesGY.com

On average…

Community One murder is committed partnerships every 18 days in Berbice S

– Police B Division

Berbice ranks engaging a member of the public during a community walk about

P

olice B Division (Regions Five and Six) has reported that during the period January 1 to July 31, murders and robberies increased while reports of break and enter and larceny declined when compared to the corresponding period last year.

There were 12 murders in Berbice, three more than those recorded for the same period in 2013. This represents a 33 per cent increase, which indicates that on an average so far for the year, one murder is committed every 18 days.

Meanwhile, there were five robberies in the division for the first seven months of the year, which is two more that the corresponding period last year, representing a 67 per cent increase. Robberies under arms where firearms were used also increased in the division with 32 being recorded this year as of July 31.

This is compared with 19 for the corresponding period last year, representing a 67 per cent increase.

The B Division said this type of robbery is commit-

ted on a weekly basis while robberies under arms where other instruments were used, showed an 11 per cent increase, moving from 18 between January and July in 2013 to 20 for the corresponding period this year.

However, robberies with violence reduced by 67 per cent for the corresponding period last year, moving from 12 to four.

Robberies with aggravation increased by two, moving from one to three when compared to the period January 1 and July 31, 2013.

Larceny from the person was reduced by 71 per cent so far this year. For the first seven months last year, 25 cases of rape were reported in Berbice; however, for the same period this year, 11 have been recorded.

There has also been a decline in burglary with 12 cases recorded between January 1 and July 31 this year, compared to 22 for the same period last year.

According to Police B Division, there have been 124 cases of break and en-

Troy Resources eyes...

The Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) and the Scoping Study on the Karouni Project was released in January 2014 before the release of the PEA Technical Report in March.The scoping study had revealed that a total of 633,000 ounces of gold can be recovered from three of its holdings at West Omai over a seven-year mine life. The results of the preliminary study, including the production targets, are based on indicated mineral resources (being 45 per

cent of the production target) and inferred mineral resources (being 55 per cent of the production target).

The company had reported that the study considered a combination of two open- cut pits – namely, Smarts and Hicks – and one underground mine, Smarts Underground, feeding a conventional carbonin-leach (CIL) gold plant with a nominal capacity of 750,000 tonnes per annum (tpa). The sources in terms of contained gold were: Smarts Open Cut (45

ter and larceny between January 1 and July 31 this year.

This figure however, represents an eight per cent decrease over the corresponding period last year when 135 cases were reported.

Good Police work

B Division Commander, Assistant Commissioner Brian Joseph commenting on the decrease in break and enter and larceny, said it was a result of good Police work, praising the work of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the support of the public.

“We get a lot of information from members of the public,” the Assistant Commissioner said, pointing out that the relationship has improved significantly following several community outreach programmes.

Referring to the troubled Corentyne area, where residents earlier this year staged several picketing exercises voicing their concerns over the Police’s inability to adequately protect them, Commander Joseph

said the division has beefed up security there.

Meanwhile, in the Number Three Sub-Division (West Berbice), there has been an overall 68 per cent decrease in serious crimes.

East Canje was reportedly a crime hot spot but serious crimes in that community have been reduced significantly.

According to Joseph, the marked decrease is due mainly to the arrest and prosecution of several persons. In April, Deodat Seecharran called “Popcorn” was shot and killed in East Canje.

Officer-in-charge of Crime B Division, Assistant Superintendent Pierce Paul, said many of those who have been involved in criminal activity were from East Canje.

He explained that shortly after Popcorn and two others were shot in their buttocks during December 2012, there was a reduction in serious crimes in Berbice, resulting in the figures for the first seven months of 2013 being lower than normal.

From page 13

per cent), Hicks Open Cut (15 per cent), and Smarts Underground (40 per cent).

The Smarts pit is expected to produce 2,175,000 tonnes of plant feed at 4.5 grams per tonne gold (4.5g/t) with a mining strip ratio of 9.9:1; be mined to a depth of 140 metre, and produce 287,421 ounces of gold. The Hicks pit is expected to produce 1,300,000 tonnes of plant feed at 2.4g/t; have a mining strip ratio of 5.5:1; be mined to a maximum depth of 90 metres, and produce 92,334 ounces of gold.

Once in operation, it is expected to provide tertiary scholarships for a minimum of six full-time students at the University of Guyana in disciplines of Geology, Civil Engineering/Surveying and Environmental Management.

Troy Resources Guyana will also be working closely with the Guyana Mining School and Training Centre Inc to facilitate specialist mining, mineral processing and trades training programmes for new entrants to the mining industry.

adly in today’s society, people do not want to work together. It is, however, very important to work with other community organisations and businesses, because there are lots of benefits in doing so.

For example, a group can learn some tips for social responsibility and make connections with other people who have access to other community leaders and resources as well. When business and community groups Narine Dat Sookram work together, it does foster a much healthier society which creates the possibility of strengthening local support for community work.

There are many businesses these days who are very much interested in partnerships, because they want to generally give back and in some cases they want to be publicly seen to be doing so.

Keep in mind that when businesses engage in community partnerships, they enjoy many positive effects as well. For example, it makes employees and employers feel good about the fact that it does allow them to stay in touch with issues outside their own area of knowledge.

In fact, when a business invests in a community organisation, it also gets recognition by the wider community and this investment helps build an ethical business reputation. For many employees, they see this as a bonus to work for such an employer, because the flow-on effects to employees are also a positive experience. It also helps to promote and motivate workers so that they could gain more knowledge and skills outside their regular job descriptions.

Many community organisations themselves are equally interested in partnering with other businesses, because there is that chance of financial gain. On the other hand though, partnerships can offer a lot more.

For example, many businesses can offer time, resources and expertise.The key here is that a community group must know exactly whether they want national or local support and the kind of business they want to attract.

No surprises here, but the community organisation also needs to understand and know what they can offer a business as well, before making any approach to any of the potential partners. It is probably best to seek companies that have a common interest in the cause the community organisation supports.

Both the business and community organisation can begin to develop partnerships by being clear to each other as to why they want to build a relationship and what they hope to achieve as well.

It’s important for the two organisations to have some common ground, because by not having that, it can harm both parties. It would not make sense to have an alcohol-producing company sponsor an event for youths.

The partnership should provide mutual benefits, and these benefits need to extend to all members. That is why it is important to consult with the members of both the business and the community group as well about the type of organisation they would like to support.

Once members and employees are informed from the start, it will help to increase their morale and they will be more likely to support the project.

It definitely takes a lot of time and commitment to establish a business-community relationship.

It’s just like any marital relationship – both persons should be committed and should not do anything that may hurt the other person.

For questions, comments or feedback, email mcnarine@rogers.com.

18

guyanatimesgy.com

monDAY, august 25, 2014

archie

By Bernice Bede Osol

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19) You may have to take a small detour today. If your target remains the same, consider alternate ways to reach your destination. Seek the advice of someone who is knowledgeable in your field.

dilbert

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19) Every investment involves an element of risk.

Make sure you don’t overextend your budget on a foolish get-rich-quick scheme. Focus on self-improvements that will add to your current marketability.

Calvin and Hobbes

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Your eagerness will be disconcerting to someone you live or work with.

If you don’t want to risk a parting of the ways, rethink your strategy.

Being a team player will pay off.

Peanuts

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

SUDOKU

Compromise and sharing will make this day a success. You can get ahead if you make others realise what your goals are and how you intend to reach them.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Consider what you can do to improve your confidence. If a personal change will help, try to initiate it quickly. Looking to the future and planning where you want to go will be beneficial.

CANCER (June 21July 22) There are many people in your corner. Listen to their concerns and value the opinions you are offered. You don’t have to move forward all by yourself.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22) Focus on improving your cash flow. Go over your investment portfolio and see if any changes need to be made.

Professional advancement is likely if you are conscientious.

VIRGO (Aug. 23Sept. 22) A day that starts full of promise may end up being less than satisfactory.

A rash decision could turn out badly. Be mindful of the deals you are offered.

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23) You may be sent on a wild goose chase. Make sure to do your homework. Unless you get agreements in writing, you could end up with less than you bargained for.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24Nov. 22) Broaden your horizons, and acquaint yourself with clubs or groups in your area. You will discover that you share a passion with someone you encounter at an event.

Wednesday's solution GEMINI (May 21June 20)

SAGITTARIUS

Steer clear of any sort of altercation. You may feel your energy waning as the day progresses.

Take it upon yourself to get necessary things done early.

Channel your energy into completing tasks and honoring your responsibilities. The longer you procrastinate, the more stressed you will feel. Get moving.

(Nov. 23Dec. 21)

19 Five youth players taking part in Balotelli set to make an impact Regional Basketball Academy with Liverpool monDAY, august 25, 2014

guyanatimesGY.com

Mario Balotelli

M

Three of the players along with Director of YBG Chris Bowman (extreme left sitting) and Director of Sport Neil Kumar (centre sitting) pose at a courtesy call

T

he Youth Basketball Guyana (YBG) in collaboration with the National Sports Commission was able to afford five top junior players a place in a Regional Sports Academy Basketball Camp that bounced off on Saturday in Suriname.

The five players are Stanton Rose, Timothy

Thompson, Damair Gladstone, Nathan Saul and Travis Belgrave.

Former national player and now youth coach Lugard Mohan will accompany the youth to the camp in an effort to blend their skills with those at the camp.

All five of the players represented Guyana at the recently concluded Inter

Guiana Games (IGG) and will now have an opportunity to learn from a Suriname system that proved too much for the Guyanese ballers at the IGG. Meanwhile the camp will run until August 29, as the players are expected to return to Guyana two days after the camp’s conclusion.

ario Balotelli will make an immediate impact at Liverpool, according to Kevin Kilbane.

The former Manchester City striker, 24, is set to complete a £16m move to the Anfield club from AC Milan on Monday.

“Mario is an impact player, will make a difference straight away and might be what Liverpool need,” said ex-Everton winger Kilbane.

Fellow Match of the Day 2 Extra pundit Shay Given agrees. He thinks Balotelli will thrive under boss Brendan Rodgers.

The Italy international will not sign in time to face his former employers in Monday night’s Premier League match at the Etihad Stadium.

Balotelli, who is expected to sign a deal worth close to £120,000-a-week, had a colourful two-and-ahalf years with City, a spell which was punctuated with flashes of brilliance and episodes of indiscipline.

Liverpool have sought assurances from Balotelli about his commitment and off-field behaviour and exCity keeper Given, currently with Aston Villa, thinks Rodgers is the man to bring

out the best in him.

“Balotelli is in his mid-20s,” said the former Republic of Ireland keeper. “The penny is going to drop that he needs to grow up and focus on football. I think Brendan Rodgers is a great manager and will sort him out.”

Given thinks tabloid tales of Balotelli’s alleged indiscretions are exaggerated.

“A lot of stuff you read about Mario is pie in sky, or firework in the sky,” he said.

“I was with him at City.

He is just a big kid, he does silly things in the changing room, and winds people up. He’s not always done things by book.

“But at £16m he is a snip. He is an Italian international striker and I think it is a great deal. “ If [Manchester United target Angel] Di Maria is £60m, then £16m is a bargain.”

Kilbane also believes Rodgers will bring out the best in Balotelli.

“The amount of dysfunctional kids Brendan Rodgers had to nurture when at Chelsea,” he said. “There were question marks over Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling when they went in at Liverpool and look where they are now.” (BBC Sport)

West Indies in strong position Man Utd rough start to ahead of third ODI

W

est Indies were in frenzy towards the end of the second ODI, having sunk Bangladesh from a seemingly stable position to a sudden rout. They had bowled them out for less than 70 once before, but the high a team gets after engineering a collapse must rank alongside a bowler getting a hattrick or a batsman scoring more than 30 runs in an over.

It is not just Sunil Narine’s variety that has made West Indies’ bowling attack look threatening.

Jason Holder and Kemar Roach have alternated between roles as new-ball enforcers and holding bowlers. They haven’t used too much pace but bounce has been ever-present, alongside change of pace.

West Indies would now want a similar performance from the batsmen who performed more than adequately in the last two games, but looked rusty for long periods. Chris Gayle and Darren Bravo have fifties under their belt but captain Dwayne Bravo has stressed he wants them to make full use of a good start.

Kirk Edwards and Lendl Simmons have struggled, but Denesh Ramdin and

West Indies celebrate another wicke

Kieron Pollard have compensated with their good form lower in the order.

West Indies’ strength lies in their big-hitting allrounders and, with the addition of Andre Russell for the third match, they will look to bolster the middle

and lower order at the relatively small Warner Park.

Pollard on song could be brutal on the Bangladesh bowlers who have so far held their own in the first two games.

The visiting team’s bowlers have fought harder than their batsmen in the series. On a small ground, the bowlers will have a tougher time, compounding the problems of a struggling battling line-up that hit a new low in the second ODI. So far only Anamul Haque and Tamim Iqbal have given hope of scoring a few runs. The plan to use Imrul Kayes and Shamsur Rahman at Nos. 3 and 4 may now be shelved while Mushfiqur Rahim is also due for some runs. Nasir Hossain has looked uncomfortable at the crease and Mahmudullah’s bowling may help him get another chance despite failures with the bat.

The situation can only lead one to think West Indies will have a cakewalk on Monday. However, Bangladesh have some of the most emotional supporters in the world, who would be expecting a response of some sort from the team after the Grenada debacle.

(Cricinfo.com)

season continues

Sunderland celebrates goal

M

anchester United’s stuttering start to life under manager Louis van Gaal continued with a 1-1 Premier League draw at Sunderland.

Things looked rosy for the Reds when Juan Mata pounced on Antonio Valencia’s deflected cross to give them the lead from close range.

But poor marking allowed Jack Rodwell - making his home debut - to head in Seb Larsson’s corner after half an hour.

To add to United’s troubles, Ashley Young was booked for diving.

The winger, criticised for going down too easily by former manager Sir Alex Ferguson, went down in the area following an innocuous challenge from ex-United defender Wes Brown, and referee Martin Atkinson had no

hesitation in reaching for his pocket.

Before the match, Van Gaal said United would need a “miracle” to win the Premier League, and there was further evidence on Sunday to add weight to his gloomy prediction following last weekend’s 2-1 home defeat by Swansea City.

The Dutchman, who took over in the summer, persisted with a 3-4-1-2 formation and, while his side look bright going forward, they remained fragile at the back.

Angel Di Maria, the Real Madrid winger, is expected to arrive before the transfer window closes on 1 September for a British record fee, but Van Gaal may well seek further reinforcements.

Mata’s 17th-minute strike failed to settle the visitors and their nervy backline was giv-

en a warning when Connor Wickham turned on a throw in yards of space and shot wide.

United were exposed moments later when Rodwell, whose opportunities were limited at Manchester City before his summer move to the Stadium of Light, beat Valencia at the near post to power a header past David De Gea. United defender Chris Smalling departed with a hamstring injury to add to an injury list that now features eight first-team players.

In a second half high on energy but low on quality, Wickham volleyed at youngster Tyler Blackett, who will have been relieved to see the ball rebound past De Gea’s near post.

Sunderland goalkeeper Vito Mannone had to be quick off his line to deny Young, who had been booked, as both sides pressed for a winner in a tense finale.

The Black Cats have not beaten United in a Premier League match at home since 1997 but there were several positives for manager Gus Poyet after a vibrant performance.

Winger Will Buckley, signed from Brighton in the summer, was a constant menace, while Rodwell’s goal was a welcome reward for 63 minutes’ action following his unsuccessful spell at Etihad Stadium. (BBC Sport)

20

monDAY, August 25, 2014

guyanatimesGY.com

Bangladesh offspinner reported for suspect bowling action

S

ohag Gazi, the Bangladesh offspinner, has been reported for a suspect bowling action following the second ODI against West Indies in St George’s.

The match officials’ report, according to an ICC release, “cited concerns regarding Gazi’s bowling action for all deliveries”. He will need to undergo testing within 21 days, as per ICC regulations.

The BCB is currently looking at options for ICCaccredited testing facilities as the team is in the West Indies, which doesn’t have one. The board is trying to manage his appearances in

Sohag Gazi

the current series, which has an ODI, a T20 and two Tests remaining.

Gazi, who has played ten Test matches, 19 ODIs and nine T20s since his international debut in 2012, was reported once, two years ago, by an umpire in a tournament in Bangalore where he was playing for Bangladesh A. Gazi is the fifth bowler - and the fifth offspinner to have been reported for a suspect action over the past few months. Zimbabwe’s Prosper Utseya, Sri Lanka’s Sachithra Senanayake, New Zealand’s Kane Williamson and Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal are the others. (Cricinfo)

Murray confident ahead of US open

A

ndy Murray says he is in his best physical condition since he won Wimbledon as he prepares to try and win a second US Open title.

The Briton will take on Dutchman Robin Haase in the first round on Monday.

Murray, 27, has not won a tournament since he had back surgery last September.

“I got a great training block in Miami done, so physically I’m where I

“I feel like I’m playing well. This week has been very good preparation. I’m happy and I feel ready to start the tournament.”

The Scot - who will begin his quest for the title on the Louis Armstrong court at approximately 18:00 BST - has won two of his three previous matches against Haase, including a victory from two sets down at Flushing Meadows in 2011.

“It was a tricky match, windy conditions that day

Andy Murray

would want to be,” he said.

“My body is pain-free. I feel ready.”

Murray’s Wimbledon title defence ended in the quarter-finals in July, and he then fell at the same stage in Toronto and Cincinnati.

Despite his failure to win a title in 2014, he has reached two quarter-finals and a semi-final at the three Grand Slams.

“I have been playing well the last few weeks,” he said.

“I lost to guys who had won the events, and had quite big opportunities in both those matches.

and very up and down,” said Murray. “It wasn’t a particularly clean match, but I found a way to get through.”

Haase, 27, has struggled with a right knee injury in recent years and lost heavily to Murray at the Australian Open in 2013, but he feels more optimistic in New York despite a tough draw.

“Last year at the Australian Open I was like, ‘OK, I can go home,’” said the world number 70. “I was just in a bad period of my career where I had no confidence.

“Although I haven’t won

a lot [this year], I’m confident that I can make it a good match and I believe I can win.”

Murray confirmed on Saturday that he is close to signing a deal with coach Amelie Mauresmo that will see the Frenchwoman travel with him for 25 weeks of the year.

Haase said he is not likely to follow the Scot’s example and work with a female coach.

“For me I wouldn’t, because I think you need to understand how the game works. I think that women’s tennis and men’s tennis are such different games that it’s, I think, tough to understand,” he said.

“Maybe I’m wrong but that’s just a feeling I have.”

Murray’s fellow Briton Johanna Konta will play her first-round match against Israel’s Shahar Peer at around 18:00 BST. The first night session begins with Maria Sharapova against fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko at 00:00 BST on Tuesday, followed by Novak Djokovic against Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman. (BBC.com)

Man Utd to pay high price for Di Maria

M

anchester United will have to pay a British record transfer fee to sign winger Angel Di Maria from Real Madrid.

Real coach Carlo Ancelotti revealed Di Maria, 26, said goodbye to his team-mates ahead of an impending move.

United have been quoted £75m for the Argentine, though they do not expect the final figure to be so high.

However, senior club sources say the fee will “definitely” eclipse the £50m Chelsea paid Liverpool for striker Fernando Torres in 2011.

The Red Devils last

broke the British transfer record when they paid Leeds £29.1m for Rio Ferdinand in 2002.

“Di Maria has not trained with us today and he came in to say goodbye to the players and people at the club,” said Ancelotti on Sunday.

“There is nothing official yet but it is being sorted out. The decision is his and the club has done what it could to keep him here.”

United boss Louis van Gaal is a known admirer of Di Maria, who would become the club’s fourth summer signing.

The Old Trafford club have already bought leftback Luke Shaw, midfield-

er Ander Herrera and Di Maria’s Argentina teammate Marcos Rojo for a combined £72m.

Di Maria was named on the 10-man shortlist for the Fifa player of the tournament at this summer’s World Cup, though he injured a thigh in the quarter-final win over Belgium.

He joined Real from Benfica for £36m in 2010, and won La Liga in 2012 and the Champions League last season.

“Personally I don’t like it,” said former Real president Ramon Calderon.

“Normally a club who owns the very good players don’t like to sell them.” (BBC Sport)

Barcelona records opening win behind Messi’s brilliance

Messi fires one in at goal during the game (BBC Sport photo)

L

ionel Messi scored twice as 10-man Barcelona eased to an opening day win over Elche in Luis Enrique’s first La Liga match in charge.

Debutant Munir and Andres Iniesta hit the bar for the hosts before Messi drilled in low from an angle.

Seconds later Javier Mascherano was sent off for a professional foul on Garry Rodrigues, but Munir doubled the lead with a chip soon after the break.

Messi slotted in his second after beating three defenders.

The Argentine was on the losing side in the World Cup final against Germany in July but, despite only playing one pre-season friendly, looked refreshed and ready to play a key role in a new-look Barca’s title assault.

Former Barcelona midfielder Enrique replaced Tata Martino as manager in the summer, after the Argentine presided over the club’s first season without a major tro-

phy since 2007-08.

Enrique has been busy in the transfer market, including signing Luis Suarez from Liverpool, although the Uruguayan is not available after being banned for four months for biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup. The new manager has also brought in Ivan Rakitic from Sevilla for £18m and Thomas Vermaelen from Arsenal for £15m in an attempt to freshen up the squad while Barca’s Fifa-imposed transfer ban was still suspended.

Enrique handed debuts to Rakitic, goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, centre-back Jeremy Mathieu and young attackers Munir and Rafinha.

Forward Munir, 18, a graduate from Barcelona B, almost made an explosive introduction as he fired a fierce shot against the upright after a neat turn on 20 minutes, before Andres Iniesta’s 20-yard strike followed suit.

For all their problems,

Barcelona would have defended their league title last season with a win over Atletico Madrid in the last match of the campaign.

And it was their established star, Messi, who broke the deadlock three minutes before the break, driving into the Elche box before shooting low into the far corner.

What looked like being a routine victory though was complicated a minute later as Mascherano was caught out by a long ball and, after cynically hauling down Garry Rodrigues, shown a straight red card.

The impressive Munir ensured the numerical disadvantage was not to prove too problematic, flicking Rakitic’s pass over goalkeper Tyton a minute into the second half.

Elche only escaped relegation by a point last season and were left helpless as Messi waltzed past three defenders before sliding the ball into the corner of the net from the edge of the area. (BBC Sport)

Love to Cavaliers deal official K

evin Love is finally teaming up with LeBron James.

The Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers completed a delayed blockbuster trade Saturday that’s been talked about for months and on hold for 30 days. Love, arguably the game’s best power forward, is headed from Minnesota to Cleveland, where he will join James and instantly make the Cavs an NBA title favorite.

The Timberwolves are getting No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins and former top pick Anthony Bennett from Cleveland, veteran forward Thaddeus Young from Philadelphia and a $6.3 million trade exception.

The 76ers get a 2015 first-round draft choice, guard Alexey Shved and forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute from Minnesota.

A rarely used NBA rule forced the teams to wait to complete the trade until 30 days after Wiggins signed his rookie contract.

It’s official now, and Cleveland, which hasn’t had a major pro sports championship since 1964, is poised to make a run at ending the

From left LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving set to form Cleveland’s big three

drought.

“Kevin joining the Cavaliers represents a very special and unique opportunity for our team,” Cavs general manager David Griffin said in a release. “At only 25, Kevin has already firmly established himself as one of the NBA’s elite players and his talent, versatility and fit are major parts of our team’s vision for success.”

The Cavs and Timberwolves have been discussing a trade involving Love for months, long before James decided to leave Miami and come back home to Ohio. The deal dragged on through the summer, first because of Cleveland’s

unwillingness to include Wiggins in any package, and then due to the 30-day provision.

That bit of fine print in the collective bargaining agreement triggered an agonizing wait in both cities, more so in championshipstarved Cleveland where generations of fans have longed for the Cavs, Indians or Browns to win it all.

Now the league’s best player has another superstar as a running mate.

Add in All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving and James again finds himself the ringleader of a star-studded trio after leaving Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade behind with the Heat. (Espn.com)

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The riders at the start of the race

By Andrew Carmichael

J

uban Crawford of Trojan Cycle Club continued his dominance in Berbice cycling when he peddled away with the ART Sawmill Enterprise 40-miler on Sunday in Berbice.

Crawford made easy work of a small field to finish the ease with ease.

He was part of a pack of four that broke away from the group early in the race.

The pack of Crawford, Sean Israel, Dennis Charles and Syborne Fernandez were soon in a sprint for the first print prize which Crawford took.

At that point he continued his sprint while the others eased off.

Meanwhile Audrel Ross and Sammy Mootoo followed the three and were trailed by Troy Gibbions and Brian Harris.

Four of the pre-race fa-

vorites all from the Flying Ace Cycle Club (FACC) lagged behind and had followers of the race wondering what was their plan but Kurt LaRose, Andrea Green, Ray Millington and Andrew Ross seem to have no plans.

Crawford continued on his own and kept it that way until the end.

Israel finished a distance second while Fernandez finished some distance behind.

Harris reached the finish line as a loner to occupy the fourth spot.

Charles sprinted in ahead of Gibson to cop the fifth position.

The loan female to participate was Mercia Dick while the lone juvenile to take part was David Sampson.

Crawford rode away with all four sprint point prizes.

During the presen-

tation ceremony organized and Coach of the FACC Randolph Roberts noted that several business persons in the community sponsored the event including ART Sawmilling Enterprise Homline Furnishing, Tripple ‘S’ Taxi, Arokium Funeral Home and Senior Superintendent of Police Marlon Chapman.

He noted that the riders will have an opportunity to prove their worth in the next two weeks when another similar event will be held.

That however he suggested should be used for the big Benjamin’s 75th birthday race which will attract riders from across the country. “There will be many more races promoted by the Flying Ace Cycle Club before year end.”

Roberts said while urging riders to be more competitive in upcoming events.

Armitstead wins Women’s Road World Cup title B ritain’s Lizzie Armitstead secured the UCI Women’s Road World Cup for the first time with one race remaining.

The 25-year-old Commonwealth champion finished eighth in the Open de Suede Vargarda in Sweden, two places ahead of nearest rival Emma Johnson.

“I am relieved and happy. I didn’t expect to win the overall World Cup today already,” Armitstead said.

Chantal Blaak of the Netherlands won the 132km race in cold and damp conditions in Vargarda, western

Lizzie Armitstead Sweden.

Elena Cecchini took the leader’s jersey for best young rider this year. The Italian champion came in 11th, which was enough to secure the overall win.

The last World Cup race is the GP Plouay on Saturday, 30 August where the sprints jersey will be decided. Rabo-Liv’s Iris Slappendel leads with 20 points. (BBC Sport)

22

monDAY, august 25, 2014

guyanatimesGY.com

GABF responds to LABA

T

he Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) responded to the Linden Amateur Basketball Association’s (LABA) statement that they never received any official documentation of the suspension of Linden basketball players Shane Webster and Dwayne Roberts.

LABA who will host the Victory Valley Royals eight team tournament later this month cited that the sanctions the GABF handed to both Webster and Roberts was never officially noted to them and as such have disregarded the sanctions making the players eligible for the tournament.

However, in an email from president of the GABF Nigel Hinds on Sunday evening, Hinds highlighted that on Sunday July 27, an official notification was sent to the secretary of LABA Joseph Chapman.

Hinds also went onto relate via the email that all decisions that were made to suspend and fine the players were made based on the manager’s report from the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) championships.

In addition Hinds also noted that to have the players play in the tournament will not mean well for

Nigel Hinds

the game of basketball in Guyana.

“I understand the pressure LABA is under to have a positive relationship with the clubs affiliated to LABA; however, embracing extreme time preference at the expense of discipline and adherence to policy is very counterproductive.

“The players suspended and fined refused to return the GABF uniforms when requested by Manager Junior Hercules. The players acknowledged they had the uniforms in their possession and kept the uniforms

at the time.” Hinds noted via the email.

Meanwhile Hinds noted that “So far we have received uniforms from: Ray Victor, Shelroy Thomas, Akeem Kanhai and a partial return by Ryan Stephany.

Shelroy Thomas also paid the fine. In addition, management of DC Jammers have conveyed to me that they have received uniforms from Gordon Klaiber and Keron McKenzie – these will be shipped to me shortly.”

(Treiston Joseph)

Bolts ends season early

O

lympic 100m champion Usain Bolt has brought his 2014 season to a premature end, organisers of the Diamond League have confirmed.

The Jamaican world record holder - who ran 9.98 seconds indoors in Poland on Saturday - will not compete in Thursday’s final event in Zurich.

The decision was made by the 28-year-old’s coach, Glen Mills.

Bolt, who has run only three races this season, won gold with Jamaica’s 4x100m relay team at the Commonwealth Games.

“Usain’s body has delivered tremendous performances over the last years,” said Diamond League Final meet director Patrick Magyar. “But it is a body and not a machine.

from back page

Treacle then made her move to a roar from the several thousands in attendance and was challenged by Ellieis Vision as Appealing Harvest continued to lead into the final turn.

On the home stretch Swing Esay took charge as Appealing Harvest started to fade to the back.

Down the home stretch they came Treacle and Ellieis Vision. Pre-race favorite Treacle then stormed out while Jack In My Style and Swing Esay started to build up powerful strides.

In fading light C.P. Got Even was lurking and jockey Drepaul was waiting for the right moment to go.

C.P. Got Even with every powerful stride went pass all the animals and neck to neck with the champion Treacle.

And then it happened with the final fifty meters to go C.P. Got Even took the lead, hushed sections of the crowd and crossed the finish pole one and a half lengths ahead of Treacle to take the Guyana Cup and $4M. With still big money up for grabs Princess She Is Not made her last big strides to get home half a length ahead of Ellieis Vision.

The second prize was worth $2M with $1M going to Princess She Is Not from the

Usain Bolt

“If an athlete of that level and his coach feel more rest is needed, we are certainly not going to question this and fully support this decision.”

Bolt only ran his first 100m of the year in an exhibition race on Rio de

Janeiro’s Copacabana beach on August 17. He posted a time of 10.6 seconds before turning out in Warsaw on Saturday.

His last competitive individual appearance at the 100m came in Brussels last year. (BBC.com)

W

Kvitova

ATP Winston-Salem Open 3-6 7-6 7-5.

World number four Kvitova is seeded third for the final major of the sea-

son at Flushing Meadow starting on Monday. She plays Kristina Mladenovic of France in the first round.

(BBC Sport)

C.P. Got even with jockey Paul Delph celebrating win at the Guyana Cup horse race meet

Sheriff Racing stables while Ellieis Vision from the Kris Jagdeo Stables carried away $500,000.

Jockey Paul Delph received the Pat ElCock Trophy for winning the feature race.

Delph was also judged champion jockey at the end of the one day eight event meet.

Meanwhile Unsettled of the Ishan Bacchus Racing Stable won the three year old for West Indian and Guyana bread animals’ race and received the Poonai Tickaram Memorial Trophy and $2M. The two year old for West Indian bread horses’ race was won by Storm Bird of the Ishan Bacchus Racing Stable.

The win was worth $1.5M. Other winners were Right TO Rule in the E and lower class race, I Will Get Another in the ‘I’ and lower class race, Devil Woman in the two year old Guyana bread race, Demasucs Dream in the G1 and lower and Affinity which took the J and lower race.

The event was witnessed by President Donald Ramotar.

More than $25 M in prize money was paid out to winners during the one day horse race meet.

The event was sponsored

by Jumbo Jet in collaboration with the Port Mourant Turf Club..

Rosberg might face punishment after colliding with Hamilton

N

Kvitova wins US Open warm up match imbledon champion Petra Kvitova warmed up for the US Open with a 6-4 6-2 win over Magdalena Rybarikova in the final of the WTA Connecticut Open.

Kvitova picked up her second title at New Haven in three years despite it being only her third tournament since winning Wimbledon in July.

“I think I played a really solid game ahead of next week,” she said.

Meanwhile fellow Czech Lukas Rosol beat Poland’s Jerzy Janowic to win the

C.P. Got Even conquers Treacle to Win Guyana Cup

ico Rosberg could face punishment from Formula 1 bosses after Lewis Hamilton said the German admitted to deliberately colliding with him.

Hamilton said that in a Mercedes meeting reviewing their clash on lap two of Sunday’s Belgian GP, Rosberg “basically said he did it on purpose”.

Causing a collision is an offence under F1’s sporting regulations.

Had the information come to light before the result was finalised, the stewards would have investigated.

An FIA spokesman said the result had been declared official, adding: “So for us, it’s over.”

The FIA has the power to re-open a case and reconvene the stewards of a meeting if further evidence comes to light, as it now has following Hamilton’s remarks and Mercedes’ admission that they were a “broadly accurate” reflection of the meeting.

Hamilton and Rosberg touched on lap two. Rosberg’s front wing hit Hamilton’s left rear tyre, giving Hamilton a puncture that ultimately caused his retirement.

Rosberg recovered from a damaged front wing to finish second.

After a meeting with Rosberg and Mercedes bosses Toto Wolff and Paddy Lowe, Hamilton said: “He said he could have avoided it but he didn’t want to. He basically said, ‘I did it to prove a point.’”

However, Wolff said Rosberg’s remarks had been

misinterpreted.

Wolff said: “Nico felt he needed to hold his line. He needed to make a point and for Lewis it was clearly not him who needed to be aware of Nico. “(Rosberg) didn’t give in.

He thought it was for Lewis to leave him space and that Lewis didn’t leave him space.

“So they agreed to disagree in a very heated discussion among ourselves, but it wasn’t deliberately crashing. That is nonsense.

“It was deliberately taking into account that if Lewis moves or would open then it could end up in a crash.”

Wolff said Rosberg was to blame and indicated that Mercedes could take internal disciplinary action.

The Frenchman, in contrast to his dictatorial predecessor Max Mosley, has tended to take a non-confrontational approach to disciplinary issues in F1 since becoming president in 2009.

But if Todt takes further action with so much information in the public domain, some will feel it sets a dangerous precedent.

The FIA would then have to establish whether Rosberg did admit to deliberately hitting Hamilton - on which the accounts of Hamilton and Wolff are now at odds - and, if not, whether choosing not to give way when being so far behind was in effect causing an accident.

A senior figure in F1 with knowledge of the stewards’ process described the clash as “a little incident with fairly

profound consequences”.

The stewards judged the clash between Hamilton and Rosberg on lap two of the race as a ‘racing incident’ and decided to take no further action.

But the senior figure added that had the FIA known of Rosberg’s remarks before the meeting was declared over, “the stewards might have hauled him up and said we need to reinvestigate it because we need to look at it in a completely different way”.

The German now has a 29-point advantage over Hamilton with seven races remaining and a maximum of 200 points available as a result of the decision to award double points at the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi.

Rosberg has issued a statement since the Mercedes meeting, but did not make a reference to his remarks.

He said he “regretted that Lewis and myself touched but I see it as a racing incident”.

Rosberg added: “I was quicker at the time and there was an opportunity, so I gave it a go around the outside as the inside was blocked.

“I didn’t see any risk in overtaking, or trying to overtake, so why should I not try?

The opportunity was there even without DRS because I was so much quicker, so I gave it a go.

“Inside was not possible, so I tried around the outside.

Should I have waited? That is very hypothetical. Who knows what happens afterwards?

“The opportunity was there and, for me, it wasn’t a risky situation.” (BBC Sport)

monDAY, august 25, 2014

guyanatimesGY.com

23

Cricket fans continue to support Amazon Warriors’ challenge of CPL final C

ricket fans worldwide are continuing to support the Guyana Amazon Warriors’ challenge of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) final which was played against the Barbados Tridents in St Kitts and Nevis on August 16.

Immediately after the decision was announced, the Amazon Warriors had mounted a challenge to the outcome of the game, which was controversially awarded to the Tridents under the DuckworthLewis system.

This renewed wave of support by fans seems to have come in the wake of a decision by CPL’s Cricket Tournament Committee (CTC), despite substantial evidence to the contrary, that there is no “good reason” to reverse the result or declare the final a nullity.

However, both the CTC and the CPL said they do not object to the matter being referred to the International Cricket Council (ICC), the game’s world governing body, for a ruling that is “definitive, transparent and expeditious” – words that appear to suggest the decision was arrived at with a great degree of doubt.

A petition website has been launched in support of the Amazon Warriors’ challenge, currently with more than 2000 supporters and growing, and social media continues to be replete with rage at the way in which the game ended, while at the same time calling on the CPL management to overturn the decision.

A CPL statement issued Sunday said the CTC effectively ruled that the result of the rain-affected final stands, although there has been mounting pressure from a number of cricket fans worldwide, well respected analysts and commentators of the game, and a number of sport organisations.

The statement said after receiving and considering the formal complaint made by the Amazon

Dwayne Smith survives an LBW appeal that television replays showed should have been given out

Warriors, it referred the Match Report to the CTC for a decision.

The CTC claimed that the Match Referee properly applied the rules regarding the time allotted for the match, and alluded to paragraph 6.2 of Section 3A of the CPL Tournament Rules, which deals with match results.

This “expressly precludes a team from objecting to the result of a match on the ground of any decision made by any Umpire or the Match Referee”, the statement said.

The Match Referee’s report indicated an enquiry by CPL Chief Executive Officer Damien O’Donohoe and Member of the CTC Charles Wilkin, QC, if the full match could be played without re-

Yaw wins 400 metres B final at Youth Olympics

sort to the Duckworth-Lewis rules.

“To this, the consent of both captains was required and that was not forthcoming. Hence, they were informed that, according to the Playing Conditions, they did not have the authority to make such a ruling,” the statement added.

Chairman of the CTC is PJ Patterson, former Prime Minister of Jamaica. Other Committee members include Zorol Barthley, Walter H Scott and Conde Riley.

The Amazon Warriors decided to contest the outcome following a review of the sequence of unexplained events that took place during the game. During the Tridents innings, there were two rain interruptions, while the Amazon Warriors innings was interrupted

by rain at 15.5 overs, with the score at 107 runs for 4 wickets.

After the rain interruption, the covers were removed, mopping up took place, and the stumps were back in position, with the field and pitch ready for play to resume. This entire process was conducted under the supervision of the Fourth Umpire, who also indicated the restart of the game.

Both Match Umpires then went on the field when the stumps were up and subsequently went back off the field without communicating anything to the Amazon Warriors on the position of the game.

It was clear at that stage that the umpires did not know the new Duckworth/Lewis calculations, which caused a further delay of more than 30 minutes within the stipulated match time, while the conditions clearly appeared fit for play to resume.

Radio and television commentators were totally befuddled by the decision and were clearly not being kept informed on progress as the delays dragged on inexplicably, even after the rain had ceased and the stumps were in place.

At this point, an enquiry was made by the Amazon Warriors Team Manager with regard to the restart of the game. He was told that information will be provided in two minutes. After approximately 10 minutes, with no information forthcoming, the Team Manager again approached the umpires and was told that the game will restart at 20:40h (8:40 p.m.) with the full quota of overs to be bowled.

At that stage, CPL even went on to update the fans via social media that the game will continue in full. This update can be viewed on www.facebook.com/CarnivalT20.

The Match Umpires later said they were consulting with the CPL Technical Committee, which is strange in cricket, since the sole decision makers are the Umpires and the Match Referee.

At this stage, the Tridents Captain and Coach were called and advised about the restart of the game at 20:40h (8:40 p.m.), and both of them objected to the decision. Further consultations took place between the Umpires, the Match Referee and the CPL Technical committee, causing even more delays, at a time when the rain had ceased and stumps were still in place.

After a few minutes, the Amazon Warriors were suddenly informed by the Match Referee that the match was ended and Tridents was declared winners based on the Duckworth/Lewis calculations.

The Amazon Warriors had raised with CPL officials the issue of the appointment of Umpires and Match Officials for the semifinals and final of the tournament. Another key conflicting matter was the fact that based on the Match Referee’s Game Breakdown Report, the second innings of the match should have been completed by 19:52h (7:52 p.m.).

But when the rain came and stopped play at 19:54h (7:54 p.m.), only 15.5 overs were completed. This slow over rate by the Tridents this was never dealt with by the umpires nor any of the officials in their deliberations. It also appears not to have been considered by the CTC. The Playing Conditions stipulate an over rate of 15 overs per hour (or four minutes per over).

Immediately after the game, the Amazon Warriors wrote CPL specifically with regard to the decision taken and said they intended to vigorously pursue a review of the outcome, with a view to making the match null and void, or a no-result.

With the announcement of the CPL’s decision, cricket fans worldwide are now calling even more on the Amazon Warriors to continue its pursuit all the way to the ICC, or to mount a legal challenge if necessary.

6 new karatekas graded in New Amsterdam

T

alented 400 metres athlete Jason Yaw ran away with the boy’s 400 metres B final on Saturday evening at the Youth Olympics being held in Nanjing, China.

While Yaw can celebrate a win in the final after clocking a fast time of 47.47s to finish ahead of Australia’s Michael Mullet 47.84s and Kashief King of Trinidad and Tobago 47.94s, the 6’4” sprinter might be a bit upset that he did not produce such a time in his heat that would have made the 400 metres A final.

Yaw clocked a slow 49.41s in heat compared to his B final time of 47.47s which was vastly improved from his heat time.

However, the vast improvement can possibly be attributed to the fact that Yaw was able to acclimatize to the conditions better

New students after their grading exercises in Berbice

H Jason Yaw

by the time of his B final on Saturday evening which resulted in the faster time.

The win also means that yaw can at least salvage a rating as the ninth best youth 400 metres athlete in the world in spite of having a faster time than some of the A final sprinters.

ead of the Guyana Karate College (GKC) has graded six Berbicians making it the first time in two decades that Berbice Karatekas have been graded at the beginners’ level.

GKC Chief Instructor of the Association do Shotokan Karate - Guyana 6th Dan black belt Sensei Amir Khouri did the grading in New Amsterdam on Sunday.

The simple grading exercise was conducted in the presence of parents and

guardians of the karatekas and saw, the small group display a competitive level of sparring skills and kata (karate form).

Speaking with this publication Sensei Khouri noted that the group had missed the major grading exercise held on August 1st in Georgetown.

The exercise on Sunday he noted was to ensure that all karatekas are graded.

“Although they are only six in number, they do play a major role in the develop-

ment of karate-do and we see it necessary to ensure that they are all promoted to a higher rank.”

“Berbice is a remote community and the IKD wants to promote the discipline art of fighting by encouraging youngsters to work at their own pace of the ancient art but, we have developed modern strategies in conducting training sessions and practical examinations.”

Training sessions in New Amsterdam are conducted on Tuesdays and Wednesdays

at the Trinity Street Dojo

by Clinton Moriah between the hours of 4:30 - 6:00 PM, while Hazrat Ali conducts sessions on Tuesdays and on weekends at the Albion Community Center during the same hours. Interested persons can contact Clinton Moriah on cell phone number - 668-4297.

The next major grading exercise will be conducted in November at the YMCA Hall, Woolford Avenue, Georgetown.

(Andrew Carmichael)

monday, august 25, 2014

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

TOP SCORES

C.P. Got Even conquers Treacle to Win Guyana Cup

By Andrew Carmichael

T

he aged horse C.P. Got Even from the Poonai Racing Stable with Jockey Paul Delph mounted on the mare stormed passed a star studded field to cross the finish pole first and take the Guyana Cup 2014 feature event for horses classes C and lower.

With revenge in minds of jockeys, two time defending champion Treacle was under pressure from the starting gates with $4M 1,800 meters away. The animals were off in an even brake with Appealing Harvest from the Jumbo Jet Racing Stable taking an early lead as the star studded field of horses went pass the main stand for the first time.

Swing Esay got into an early gallop as they got into the first turn but Appealing Harvest stepped merrily in front moving six lengths away then Ellieis Vision took up the mantle and gave chase.

Jack in My Style moved up with Ellieis Vision and the rest of the field in close order.

Around the second turn, the champion animal; Treacle was nowhere to be seen but Appealing Harvest led and Ellieis Vision lead while the others followed neck-andneck with five furlongs to go.

Poonai Racing Stable recives the winning trophy from the Guyana Cup organziers

continued on page 22

Cricket fans T continue to support Amazon Warriors’ challenge of CPL final

Bolts clocks sub10 in final race

Page 23

riple Olympic and world champion Usain Bolt dipped below 10 seconds for the first time this year, recording 9.98 seconds in Poland to set an unofficial world best for an indoor 100m.

It was only the 28-yearold’s second individual 100m of the season after a foot injury disrupted his year.

He made his competitive return at the Commonwealth Games, guiding Jamaica to 4x100m relay gold.

The world record holder will next compete on Thursday in Zurich.

Bolt, who was running at the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial meeting, will line up against Britons Adam

Usain Bolt

Gemili and James Dasaolu at the Diamond League in Switzerland. (BBC Sport) Editor’s note Bolt will not compete in

Zurich on Thursday after his coach Glen Mills decided to pull the 100 and 200 metres world record holder out of the meet.

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