Guyana Times Daily

THURSdAY, SepTembeR 18, 2014 | gUYAnATimeSgY.com

Accused driver in Letter Kenny fatal accident charged

Twenty-year-old Andrew Johnson was placed on $600,000 bail by Magistrate Rabindranauth Singh when he made his first court appearance at the Whim Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday charged with allegedly causing the death of a teenager at Letter Kenny, Corentyne, Berbice, on Sunday. Johnson of 338 Number 51 Village, Corentyne, was not required to plea to the charge which stated that on September 14, on the Letter Kenny Public Road, he drove motorcar PPP 3080 in a manner dangerous to the public, thereby causing the dead of 18-year-old Rena Devi Singh.

The painter by profession was represented by Attorney Ryan Crawford. In his bail application, the Attorney pleaded with the court, saying that this is his client’s first appearance, and he does not pose a flight-risk since he is willing to submit all necessary documents to the court. Crawford argued that the

law states that a person is innocent until proven guilty and bail is used for a defendant to come to court and not to be used as a punishment. He went to say that his client is willing to restrict himself from driving, surrender all documents and will report to the Police station when necessary.

Andrew Johnson

He noted that his client was never previously arrested and that he is single and lives with his grandmother at Number 51 Village.

The Attorney highlighted that the incident has attracted the attention of the media and political parties, and as such, should not affect his client bail application. He went on to say that most Magistrates have granted bail for offences such as dangerous driving, even highlighting the case of Compton English – a murder accused – who was recently granted bail. Police Prosecutor Phillip Sheriff objected to bail based on the nature and gravity and prevalence of the offence.

However, Magistrate Singh granted bail on the condition that Johnson is suspended from driving all types of motor vehicles, lodges his passport and driver’s license and is to report to the Number 51 Police Station every Friday at 16:00h.

Meanwhile, family mem-

bers of Rena Devi Singh who gathered at the Whim Magistrate’s Court expressed disappointment that Johnson was granted bail. When the decision to grant the defendant bail was announced, there were murmurings of disbelief from family members of the victim. The victim’s father Deonarine Singh was moved to tears and quickly exited the court room. Speaking to media operatives outside the court compound, relatives expressed disbelief at the decision to grant bail saying that the judicial system is unfair. They expressed the need to have an audience with someone high in authority.

A post mortem examination performed on the body of Singh by Pathologist, Dr Vivekanand Bridgemohan at the Skeldon Hospital revealed that Singh died as a result of multiple injuries sustained by the accident. On September 14, the accident sparked protest by resident of Letter Kenny which led to the torching of the vehicle PMM 3080 as they demanded justice for Rena Singh. They also protested the recent spate of fatal accidents on the Corentyne Coast that has the claimed the lives of 20 persons so far for 2014.

The residents also protested over the alleged documentation found in the vehicle with was questionable in nature. Johnson will return to court on October 6.

"Under-5" children deaths down

– new report

Guyana is still some way off in reaching its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of reducing the number of under-five deaths to 20 per every 1000 live births, a new report by the United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation has indicated.

In 1990, Guyana recorded 61 under-five deaths per every 1000 live births and by the year 2000, it had dropped 49. In 2013, it was further reduced to 37. However, the country’s MDG target is 20; which means 20 under-five deaths per every 1000 live births.

The Report 2014 Estimates Developed by the United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation has indicated that substantial global progress has been made in reducing child deaths since 1990.

According to the just released report, the number of under-five deaths worldwide has declined from 12.7 million in 1990 to 6.3 million in 2013. “Since 1990 the global under-five mortality rate has dropped 49 per cent –from 90 (89, 82) deaths per 1000 live births in 1990 to 46 (44, 48) in 2013,” the report stated.

It is said that the global under-five mortality rate is falling faster than at any other time during the past two decades; however more needs to be done. It was explained

that the progress remains insufficient to reach the MDG 4 Goal due to challenges facing Oceania, Sub-Saharan African, Caucasus, Central Asia and Southern Asia nations in their quest to reduce under-five mortality. The MDG 4 Goal calls for the reduction of the under-five mortality rate by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the MDG Goal has already been achieved. In 1990, there were 54 under-five deaths per every 1000 live births; however, in 2013 there were 18 deaths per every 1000 live births. The MDG requires the Latin America and the Caribbean to have the maximum of 18 deaths per every 1000 live births. According to the UN Report, it is critical for regions and countries to put an end to child deaths caused by preventable infectious diseases. “Despite strong advances in fighting childhood diseases, infectious diseases – which are most often diseases of the poor and thus are a marker of equity – remain highly prevalent, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia.

Pneumonia, diarrhoea and malaria remain leading causes of death among children under age five – killing roughly two million in 2013,” the UN Inter-Agency Group explained.

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Govt nixes snap elections

... before No-Confidence Vote

With a NoConfidence Motion against the Donald Ramotar Administration looming, Government has ruled out the possibility of calling snap elections before the motion is taken to the National Assembly for debate and the inevitable hosting of General Elections that is likely to follow.

This was announced by Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon on Wednesday at the post-Cabinet briefing. Dr Luncheon, in essence, told reporters that the ruling party prefers to allow the motion to pass through the National Assembly and defend its political record.

“We are summonsed to a trial by the Parliamentary Opposition, addressing charges that lead to a question of loss of confidence –no confidence – and I don’t believe when you are summonsed to trial of that sort – one, you can say you ain’t turning up! You don’t have a choice, you have to participate and we will be there to defend the track records of this Administration in Parliament and in the rest of Guyana, regionally and internationally,” the HPS exclaimed.

He went on to say that there is no escape clause

for Government, as he dismissed the notion that the Administration will counter the likely outcome of a no-confidence vote by opting to call “some snap elections”.

About a month ago, the minority Opposition party, Alliance For Change (AFC), filed a NoConfidence Motion against Government and it was accepted by Speaker of the National Assembly, Raphael Trotman. The mo-

tion, which also gained the support of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), which holds a 26-seat majority on the Opposition benches, is set to be debated in the National Assembly when it comes out of recess on October 10.

Illogic

Meanwhile, the Cabinet Secretary pointed out that it was not logical to host both the Local Government Elections and General and Regional Elections at the same time. Dr Luncheon noted that the decision of which elections would be held will factor in all sides of the equation into consideration.

“It is Cabinet’s contention that both General Elections and Local Government Elections can-

not be held at the same time and, therefore, the decision on the primary attention to be given on either is essentially the basis for the uncertainty,” Dr Luncheon stated, adding that both the Administration and the political Opposition are well aware of those factors that would provide the information which will allow either side to be more inclined to have Local Government Elections as opposed to General Elections as the primary electoral event in any electoral calendar.

In the meanwhile, the Cabinet Secretary stated the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and other stakeholders seem to be in a state of preparedness for General and Regional Elections as opposed to Local Government Elections, which APNU is pressing for.

On this note, the Cabinet Secretary referred to the letter sent by Opposition Leader David Granger to President Ramotar, giving him an ultimatum

to set a date for Local Government Elections before September 15, or else both local and international actions would follow. The letter was sent to the President on September 9 and he responded seeking clarifications on the contents a few days later. The deadline has passed; no date has been set; and Granger has promised actions will follow.

Dr Luncheon noted that Granger is yet to provide the clarifications the President is seeking on the contents of the letter regarding his position on elections. “Mr Granger has not as yet put pen to paper and attempted a response to the President’s request, but Cabinet did note efforts…displayed prominently in the media and in our communities of character that seems to suggest APNU intends to have its cake and eat it; that on the face, both Local Government Elections they are the champions and they are party with AFC in a no-confidence motion,” he pointed out.

Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon

President Donald Ramotar

Opposition Leader David Granger

Editor: Nigel Williams

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Editorial

Scottish independence

Today, the people of Scotland are participating in a referendum to decide whether they will remain as part of Britain, or become an independent nation. This is a momentous occasion – and not just for the people of Britain and Scotland. Scotland was an independent nation until 1603 when it's King James VI succeeded Elizabeth 1st and became the ruler of a unified Britain as James 1.

The legal union occurred in 1707. What we are therefore witnessing is the possible breakup of a union of two countries lasting more than 300 years.

Britain was always a union of Kingdoms – of Ireland, Wales, England and Scotland. But interestingly, the Scots had always been considered as more "integrated" into the union, than say, the Irish, who fought for, and won, their independence between 1919-1921. It is quite possible that the role of their monarchy in the formation of the union played a not insignificant role in their quietude. The present Queen Elizabeth, descended from James, still occupies her palace in Balmoral in Scotland for a period of every year.

But it is quite clear that the dream of an independent Scottish state had never quite been extinguished. As of yesterday, the polls showed that those who would vote "yes" to independence were in a statistical dead heat with those favouring "no". And even if the "yes" were to be defeated, this would represent a seismic event in British history and which would have severe repercussions at Westminster. The Government there might even fall.

The fact of the matter is that the combined Labour, Conservative and Liberal parties are officially on the side of "no" and yet they are being held off by the partisans of "yes". This means that party loyalty has been dissolved under the heat of Scottish nationalism. And this is what not just the rest of Britain is afraid of, but every country in Europe that is composed on discrete nations. Like the Ukraine, for instance.

But Scotland is not the first and certainly not going to be the last that will attempt and eventually fulfil the dream of "self determination" that is promised under the charter of the United Nations - the nearest mechanism we have resembling a world governance structure.

Unlike most of the other polyglot nations across the globe, however, the European "nations" were ruled as such for hundreds of years. They had all that time to evolve the institutions of the modern state system, the formation of which occurred only 45 years after the union of Scotland and England.

Scotland had not only its own King, but its own Parliament, Judiciary and all the other paraphernalia of statehood. There are those that are stressing the economic choices that the separatists must make, with a country of five million, competing with the comparatively gigantic states such as Germany, France and even the rump Britain, which will still have a population of approximately 58 million.

But if one follows the history of "self determination" quests, economics is very rarely the driving force behind them. Almost invariably, that impetus comes from the desire to be recognised: it is the consequence of the politics of recognition. In these multi-national countries – or in its milder "multi-ethnic" variant – almost invariably the dominant group is quite insensitive to the need of the other groups to be recognised as such in the public sphere.

In Britain, for instance, while it ostentatiously adopted a "multi-ethnic" cultural identity after criticisms summarised by slogans such as "Ain't no black in the Union Jack", it soon became evident that not much more than placebos were being offered to minority cultures and peoples.

Over the years, some the people of Scotland – now almost half of them – were convinced that they were being manipulated by the system rather than being integrated in a manner where they would be equal in the fundamental power relations of the society.

Britain will never be the same again after today.

Government will not put up with illegality

Dear Editor,

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) fully supports the Government’s decision to terminate the contract with Surendra Engineering Company Limited for the construction of the Speciality Hospital.

Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon said that Government’s decision was based on the fact that Surendra submitted a forged bond to cover its exposure on the monies Government paid it for works on the Speciality Hospital Project.

The PPP/C welcomes this move for a number of reasons, but most particularly

because of the strong signal that it sends to contractors and suppliers of goods and services to Government.

The PPP/C Government has said, time and time again, that we are prepared to make the tough decisions against anyone who is found to be engaged in any illicit or fraudulent engagement at Party or Government levels.

Where Surendra’s contract for the Speciality Hospital is concerned, the Government had defended the award, because it was done in an open, fair and transparent manner, but also was very tolerant with the contractor, noting the

challenges which the project encountered with the delivery deadlines.

However, as the evidence was produced that a prerequisite and necessary element of the contract was compromised, the Government moved to deal condignly with the contractor thus, demonstrating the mettle of the PPP/C Government.

The PPP/C Administration has a proud track record of being fair and transparent while operating a rule-based method of procurement. It is for these reasons that it has passed legislation like the Procurement Act and has

established a website dedicated to public procurement.

The PPP/C Administration has enacted the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act and has reformed and strengthened the Audit Department to have the capacity to be an independent watchdog over the operations of the Government.

The action against Surendra was not only the right thing to do, but also sent a strong message that the PPP/C Government will not countenance illegality.

Submitted by PPP/C, Freedom House

Some Caribbean Governments owe Hugh Wooding Law School

Dear Editor,

Reports from St Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago state that a few Caribbean Governments owe the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) the staggering amount of US$5 million. Guyana, fortunately, is not named among the heavy debtors.

Topping the list of defaulters are Grenada, which owes EC$2.7 million, with 61 months outstanding, and Dominica with EC$1.8 million, with 76 months in arrears. Antigua is also among the heavy defaulters with EC$460 million for 108 months. St Lucia owes over

EC$500,000.

The Law School is taking drastic action to cover the outstanding dues and has threatened to withhold the certificates of students who have passed their examinations if their countries do not cover their indebtedness.

However, it is reported that Dominica is negotiating with the HWLS to make partial payment and allow their students to graduate. The HWLS was established in 1973, the same year with the Norman Manley Law School (NMLS) in Jamaica (The Head of the HWLS was Guyanese, Dr Fenton Ramsahoye).

A third law school was set up in the Bahamas about 10 years ago.

Most of Guyana’s top lawyers, including acting Chancellor Carl Singh, Chief Justice (acting) Ian Chang, Attorney General Anil Nandlall, and nearly all the judges are graduates of the HWLS.

Trinidad and Tobago Chief Justice Ivor Archie has blasted the Trinidad and Tobago Government for failure to provide enough funds for the Judiciary.

Speaking at the beginning of the law term in the presence of the country’s Head of State, President

Anthony Carmona, and Head of Government, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Archie said that the Judiciary is in financial woes and should be fixed now.

He stressed that the Judiciary is the legal arm of Government and should handle its own financial affairs. He pointed out that a percentage of the country’s national budget should be allocated to administer justice in the country. He lamented that more money is needed to recruit more judges and administrators.

Submitted by, Oscar Ramjeet

The view from Wrynose Pass in the Lake District as brilliant shafts of sunlight break through early cloud above Little Langdale to announce the first day of autumn (The Guardian)

“Shiv”should

be awarded the Order of Roraima

Dear Editor,

He is known as "The Tiger" because of the seriousness he takes to his batting. Some say he is "like money in the bank" because of his consistency; some feel he is a batting genius.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul is the West Indian batsman who has played the most Test matches –158, as the Windies played their 500th Test match in St Lucia against Bangladesh.

At 40, Chanderpaul blasted 101 not out following up his first innings total of 84 not out, and in the first Test, he scored 85 not out.

Shiv, as he is fondly called, has the world record of batting for 1513 minutes without being dismissed. Although he is dubbed as slow in his batting, he scored a century off 69 deliveries against Australia in 2003 – the third fastest century in Test cricket.

He has so far scored 11,684 Test runs – the second highest by a West Indian – next to Brian Lara, who has the record of scoring 11,953. If all goes well, “The Tiger" will surpass Lara's record.

Shiv's Test average is the

highest by a West Indian –53.10. He has scored 30 centuries and 65 half centuries in Tests. His highest was 203 not out. He played268 One-Day Internationals and scored 8778 runs at an average of 41.60, scoring 11 centuries and 59 half centuries. He also scored a triple century in a regional match in Jamaica.

He captained the West Indies in 14 Tests and 16 ODIs. He scored more than 20,000 runs in international cricket and in 2008, he was named as Cricketer of the Year by the Wisden Cricketers Almanac and Player of the Year by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

He made his international debut at the age of 19 and partnered Lara in Antigua when the Trinidadian broke Sir Garfield Sobers’ record for the highest Test score at that time.

"Tiger" is a top-class batsman and represented Guyana, Durnham, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Lancashire, Warwickshire, Khulna Royal and Derbyshire.

Myself and wife Mourine met Chanderpaul at the GCC

Ground at a reception when he was selected to represent the Windies. He was a shy and frail-looking teenager.

He was born in a little village on the East Coast of Demerara – the same village where the former President of Guyana, Bharrat Jagdeo; long-serving President of the Guyana Cricket Board, Chetram Singh, and former speedster Colin Croft were born.

He was given some sort of recognition by the Guyana Government – a street in Georgetown was named after him and he was accorded the country's third highest award – the Cacique Crown of Honour (CCH).

I believe he should be awarded the Order of Roraima (OR), the second highest award of Guyana, and Caricom should recognise him with the OCC – Order of the Caribbean Community as they did Lara, Mighty Sparrow and others.

UWI should also consider an honorary doctorate for him as they did for Lara and Sparrow.

Sincerely, Oscar Ramjeet

Indigenous peoples have spiritual attachment to their lands

Dear Editor,

Permit me to respond to a Stabroek news article under the headline, “Miners to challenge Amerindian land extensions – set up fund, legal team for class action suit.’’

Let me educate the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) that the legal ownership rights of Guyana’s indigenous peoples to their lands is an issue that has engaged Guyana’s past Governments for years and continues to engage the current Government.

So it is strange that the GGDMA has now decided to fight against the land rights of Guyana’s indigenous peoples.

The GGDMA must know that one of the conditions for Guyana’s independence on May 26, 1966 was on Amerindian land rights. This condition states that:

“Amerindians be granted legal ownership or rights of occupancy over areas and reservations, or parts thereof, where any tribe or community of Amerindians is now ordinarily resident or settled and other legal rights, such as rights of passage, in respect of any other lands where they now, by tradition or custom, de facto enjoy freedoms and permissions corresponding to rights of that

nature.

“In this context, it is intended that legal ownership shall comprise all rights normally attaching to such ownership’’(report of the 1965 British Guiana Independence Conference, Annex C, paragraph one).

To comply with the above-mentioned legal requirement, an Amerindian Lands Commission (ALC) was established in 1966. This became known as Amerindian Lands Commission Ordinance 1966, which was re-enacted as the Amerindian Lands Commission Act Chapter 59:03.

The ALC, in its report of 1969 which was presented, stated that indigenous communities claimed 43,000 square miles of land, most

of which was rejected on the basis of being “excessive and beyond the ability of residents to develop and administer”.

The ALC recommended that 128 communities receive communal freehold title to 24,000 square miles of land, including mineral rights to a depth of 50 feet. It is important to note that the ALC did not visit all the areas of Guyana occupied by indigenous peoples and as a result, no account was made for a number of communities.

So the process of Amerindian land titling and extensions continue by the Government of Guyana to secure the land rights of its indigenous peoples consistent with international obligations.

The upcoming land-titling, and demarcation and extension project funded by payments received from the Guyana-Norway agreement was a recommendation made by indigenous communities at the 2009 Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) consultations.

The project is, therefore, an LCDS project, which, for nearly four years, the Amerindian peoples have been patiently waiting on.

And for the GGDMA to claim that they will now legally challenge the Amerindian land titling project is totally unjust and unfair to Guyana’s indigenous peoples, who have a spiritual attachment to their lands.

The resignation of Anand Goolsarran

Dear Editor, Following the news that Anand Goolsarran retroactively resigned as President of Transparency International Guyana Institute (TIGI), I could not help think he did so in an act of cowardice, scared to confront the scandal involving his good friend Glenn Lall. It appears Goolsarran prefers to resign than to give an honest condemnation of his friend, his friend’s wife, and Navin Sankar.

There have been numerous letters calling on Mr Goolsarran and the TIGI to call out and condemn the perpetrators of the illegal acts involved in the alleged duty-free concession scandal. Instead of responding to these letters, Goolsarran resigns, retroactively!

So, I once again ask Goolsarran: Is it ok for Glenn Lall to use Sankar’s parents’ remigrant duty-free vehicles as his own? Is it fair to the hardworking taxpayers in Guyana to be cheated by this character?

Mr Goolsarran, you have pegged yourself as the anticorruption police, let’s see you get to work and call out ALL persons engaged in corrupt behaviour!

Yours sincerely, Peter Persaud

Sincerely, Andrea Singh

Shivnarine Chanderpaul

Page Foundation

What new moms should eat while breastfeeding

– choline, calcium, potassium and Vitamin C are among the vital nutrients

BY FRANCES LARGEMAN-ROTH

Whether or not most new moms decide to breastfeed, breastfeeding is a fantastic way for new moms and their babies to bond, and there are plenty of health benefits beyond that. Still, even with all the pros, breastfeeding is quite physically demanding for new moms, so here are some things to keep in mind for those who decide to feed their baby breast milk. This is the advice I share in my book, Feed the Belly: The Pregnant Mom’s Healthy Eating Guide , and that I followed while breastfeed ing both of my children.

The extra calor ic needs during pregnancy are a pretty meagre 300 a day. But when you’re breastfeeding, additional energy needs increase to 500 extra. So if you were eating 2000 calories a day pre-pregnancy, you’ll need 2500 when you’re breastfeeding. It sounds like a lot, but remember, you’re creating a food product several times a day – on demand!

their infants.

Foods to focus on while breastfeeding include fresh fruits, vegetables, calciumrich foods, whole grains and high-quality protein.

To cover your bases, keep taking the prenatal vitamin your doctor prescribed to you. Here’s a breakdown of some of the key nutrient requirements:

Choline: 550 milligrams

up to protect your bones. Your body will keep a consistent amount of calcium in your milk, and if it’s not coming from your food supply, it will be drawn from your bones and teeth – yikes! Dairy foods like milk, cheese, yogurt, kefir and cottage cheese are fabulous sources of calcium, providing about 300 milligrams of calcium per serving. You can also get

intake of zinc-rich foods if you don’t eat meat or seafood. One cup of fortified cereal has 15 milligrams, three ounces of steak provides six milligrams and an eight-ounce yogurt touts two milligrams.

Potassium: 5100 milligrams

It sounds like a huge amount, but potassium is found in lots of foods, especially fruits and vegetables. One banana has nearly 500 milligrams, and a large baked potato has a hefty 1600 milligrams.

Breastfeeding may boost a mom’s health as much as her baby’s

There’s no need for new moms to count every calorie that goes into their mouths, but they should focus on fresh, unprocessed foods as much as possible. And the good news is that the “reserves” moms gain during pregnancy will be put to great use as they deliver a very high-quality food to

en and beef liver, wheat germ, cauliflower and eggs. You’ll get 250 milligrams of choline in two eggs. Make sure to keep the yolk in; that’s where the choline and other important nutrients are found. Wheat germ provides 50 milligrams per 1/4 cup and can easily be sprinkled over oatmeal, yogurt and salads, and added to baked goods like muffins.

Calcium: 1000 milligrams

Your doctor likely encouraged you to eat lots of calcium-rich foods while you were pregnant. Keep it

your go-to sources for this antioxidant. One cup of raw bell pepper will give you 118 milligrams of vitamin C, and the same amount of strawberries provides 89 milligrams. Cooked vegetables can be good sources too: one cup of cooked Brussels sprouts nets you 97 milligrams.

Zinc: 12 milligrams

This important mineral helps keep your immune system going strong. Vegetarian sources of zinc aren’t absorbed by the body as easily as animal sources, so make sure to up your

Most breastfeeding moms find that they are incredibly thirsty all the time. And no wonder – making breast milk requires a lot of H2O! A total of three litres per day is recommended.

Lots of moms find that breastfeeding helps shed the baby weight more quickly, while some breastfeeding moms still struggle to drop those pounds. But hey, burning 500 extra calories a day can’t hurt!

And what about when moms want to get back to their regular workouts? Breastfeeding is totally compatible with exercise! (usnews.com)

BY MEGAN JOHNSON ANd STEVE STERNBERG

Breastfeeding isn’t only good for babies. It can also reduce the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol.

Eleanor Bimla Schwarz believes doctors – and mothers-to-be – are making a big mistake if they think pregnancy and childbirth is a nine-month journey that ends in the delivery room.

The next months are critical too, she says, because that’s when both mother and baby build a foundation for long-term health through breastfeeding. The window of opportunity is small, she says. Once you’ve missed it, there’s nothing you can do.

Schwarz, a Professor of medicine at the University of California at Davis, took the stage at TEDMED 2014 this week in the District of Columbia to call for a transformation in the way doctors and women view breastfeeding.

Doctors have long recog-

nised that breastfeeding benefits babies by building up their immune systems and reducing the risk of allergies and respiratory illness. Mounting evidence suggests that breastfeeding babies also protects mothers by reducing their risk of heart disease – the leading killer of women.

“It’s a powerful message,” says Kristin Carman, Vice President for health policy research at the American Institutes for Research, a non-profit think tank in the District of Columbia. “It’s not just about baby’s health; it’s about your health, too.”

Carman says doctors who tell new mothers they’re likely to reduce their risk of illness by breastfeeding are also more likely to motivate them to come in for postpartum visits to get motherhood off to a healthy start.

“It’s the trifecta, a winwin-win for mother, baby, and doctor,” she says. “That’s why it’s such a powerful concept.” Schwarz proposed the new approach at TEDMED – an annual conference held this year in Washington, DC, and San Francisco that focuses on innovation through technology, entertainment and design.

Schwarz was lead investigator in a study that examined the effect of breast-feeding on heart disease risks in nearly 140,000 women. The women were enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative, a study designed to tease out the influence of family history, lifestyle and countless other factors on a woman’s health risks. Each woman Schwarz studied had at least one healthy baby, and all had passed through their reproductive years. The study, published in 2009, found that the longer that women breastfed, the more they lowered their risk of heart disease.

Women who breast-fed for seven to 12 months reduced other risks, too, including high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol – regardless of race, income, education and other socioeconomic factors.

Schwarz also carried out a study of 2233 women in a managed care plan, showing that women who breastfed their babies for less than one month had a higher risk of diabetes.

(Yahoo! News)

Delegation to meet with FATF reviewing body

AGuyanese delegation will be heading to Florida, in the United States, later this month to discuss the findings of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) reviewing body, the Americas Region Reviewing Group (ARRG), which conducted a targeted review of Guyana’s financial architecture as it relates to its antimoney laundering posture.

According to Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS), Dr Roger Luncheon a local team will be meeting with the ARRG to review Guyana’s response to the body’s submission on the country. He said Cabinet composed the team during its sitting on Tuesday last.

The ARRG has conducted a targeted review of Guyana that was ordered by FATF following the country’s continued failure to obtain the parliamentary Opposition’s support for the enactment of an updated, compliant Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF)/FATF legislation. The report prepared by the ARRG calls for a significant amount of information about the ‘stata quo’ on anti-money laundering and Guyana’s responses to obligations under CFATF/ FATF.

“The focus of the meeting at the end of this month in Florida would be reviewing

Legal Affairs Minister and Attorney General Anil Nandlall is among the

Guyana’s responses to the ARRG submissions and that activity will be definitive, because the ARRG would, armed with the results of that targeted review, submit their findings to the October Plenary of FATF,” he disclosed.

Guyana has been once again invited to this FATF plenary, where, according to Dr Luncheon, a judgement or some conclusion might be provided.

Dr Luncheon pointed out that Government could not have pressed further for the Anti-Money Laundering Bill to be brought up again before the National Assembly ahead of the FATF October Plenary, explaining that this period is when members and Parliament staff

are usually on vacation.

In addition, the Cabinet Secretary pointed out that Presidential Adviser Gail Teixeira has informed Cabinet of failed attempts to get the members of the Opposition to meet at the level of the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC).

“(Teixeira) updated Cabinet on her continued failure to have the parliamentary Opposition members of the Parliamentary Special Select Committee on the amended Anti-Money Laundering Bill meet. Her latest effort for our October 10 meeting of the PSSC has failed,” the HPS explained.

He went on to say that getting the Opposition members on the committee to meet is like “pulling teeth”, adding that the parliamentary opposition is clearly most disinclined to see progress at the level of the PSSC.

The team heading for the US at the end of September comprises Legal Affairs Minister and Attorney General Anil Nandlall; Head of the Financial Intelligence Unit, (FIU) Paul Ghir; FIU Legal Adviser Alisha Williams and Head of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), Assistant Commissioner Sydney James.

BK Int'l still not accepting responsibility for damaged GT&T cables

Amid the growing dispute between BK International and the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GT&T) Company over the disruption of telephone service due to the collapse of a utility pole and damage to phone cables, the contracting firm says it will still not accept responsibility.

But the Public Works Ministry in a statement claimed that the construction firm was not authorised to work in the area where the cables were damaged.

The cables were damaged on the new carriageway of the East Bank Four-Lane Extension, as the telephone company had indicated since May.

The construction company recalled that in a statement issued on May 22, GT&T stated that, “On February 28, GT&T and the Ministry entered into a contract to relocate aerial cables and associated fixtures to a new pole route and to relocate the buried cables”.

The release had further indicated that the company was scheduled “to commence works during the week of May 25”.

In addition, GT&T said it received payment on May 20, for the relocation of all telephone cables and poles that will affect the progress of

works in this area.

BK International is claiming that its crew was working on the new carriageway on the day in question when an old GT&T pole collapsed causing disruption in telephone service to several customers.

In light of this development, the telephone company planted of a new pole in the center of the carriageway which has directly halted the project in the area. Bridge works cannot continue since access from the northern side is now blocked, BK International stated.

The Public Works Ministry's statement said the area in which the cable was damaged was not assigned by the consultants of the project for works to be executed.

In addition, the Public Works Ministry said it will will continue consultations with the Consultant, Contractor and GT&T with respect to the timely removal of the cable which is also contingent on financing approvals.

Earlier in the day, GT&T had refuted claims made by the construction company, describing them as “unethical”.

GT&T said that the claims by BK International are direct attempts to deliberately misrepresent the facts surrounding the damage of GT&T cable infrastructure on Tuesday.

The company is accusing BK International of uprooting a structurally sound pole in the area of contention, hence damaging buried cable infrastructure in the process. As a result of the damage, the company is contending that the damaged cables were exposed hence the pole has to be replaced almost immediately. It is also contending that the location of Tuesday’s cable damage is entirely outside of the area where GT&T and the Public Works Ministry have agreed that GT&T will carry out contract works at this point in time.

GT&T said it had informed the competent authority, the Works Services Group of the Public Works Ministry, of the circumstances surrounding the cable damage and they are also aware that the Group made contact with the contractor.

The company reiterated that their counterpart in Government road construction activities is the Public Works Ministry and not any individual contractor.

“Therefore, while the telephone company remains ready and willing to collaborate with all road construction contractors, their preference is to continue to work through the Ministry, rather than trade accusations with any contractor via the media.”

team heading for the critical meeting

Budget preparations moving apace – Finance Minister

Although there is a high possibility that snap elections will be called, Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh is conducting business as usual. On Thursdays he disclosed that preparations for Budget 2015 are moving apace.

In fact, the Finance Ministry has already issued the budget call circular in accordance with the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act of 2003, even as its technical officers consult with Ministries and Departments.

In keeping with an established tradition, it is the intention of Dr Singh to have “one-on-one” consultation with key stakeholder groups, including

the Private Sector and organised labour in an effort to receive the benefit of their inputs.

“The Finance Minister indicated that the policy imperative against which

Budget 2015 is being crafted is continued growth and accelerated development across Guyana, pointing out that over the years successive budgets presented by the PPP/C Government have enabled the Guyanese economy to achieve greater resilience, with eight years of uninterrupted growth since 2006, at a time when the rest of the global economy was reeling in crisis,” a press statement issued by the Finance Ministry stated.

The Finance Minister strongly believes that the budgets of the past under the PPP/C (People’s Progressive Party/Civic) Governments have resulted in significant improvement in the quality of life

enjoyed by “all Guyanese”, in the areas of education, public healthcare, housing and water, road and even bridges.

Despite the moves by the Opposition-dominated National Assembly to disapprove $37.5 billion from the 2014 Budget, Dr Singh said the budget is being implemented at a satisfactory pace, positing that a number of initiatives that were announced are already at the advanced stage of implementation.

Budget 2014 was presented to the National Assembly on March 24, 2014 and was Guyana’s largest ever at $220 billion.

Human Services Ministry appeals for support to end child abuse

The Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security is appealing for public support to prevent child abuse as it prepares to observe Child Protection Week 2014 in Guyana during September 21st and 27th, under the theme “Partnering with Communities to Prevent Child Abuse”.

During this week of heightened activities, it is Government’s objective to create awareness about the importance of the prevention of child abuse to ensure that Guyana’s children are protected, and

their rights are not violated. Child Protection Week is observed in more than 120 countries around the world, but at different times of the year under different themes.

In Guyana, Child Protection Week is used to encourage individuals, local communities and groups; including Faith Based Organisations, to take action to ensure that children’s rights are not violated, and that they live in communities free from harm and abuse. These efforts are aimed at preventing and reducing child abuse and neglect

in our society, by instilling the core principle that “child protection is everyone’s business”.

The ministry is cognizant of the fact that child protection cannot be accomplished by any single entity; it requires the commitment and collaboration of all within our society to work to ensure the safety and positive development of our children.

To this end, many activities are planned for the observance of this week to engage persons at the community level, to increase their awareness of the plight of abused chil-

dren, and to highlight areas of continued partnership with all stakeholders.

The main event will be the annual Rally on “Breaking the silence on child sexual abuse”, and this activity will be held on Thursday, September 24, 2014 from 16:30 hours at the National Park. Join us this week and be part of the drive to end child abuse which impacts the social and economic fabric of our country. Let’s partner and prevent Child Abuse! Report all cases of child abuse or neglect to the hotline on 227-0979.

Miner remanded on larceny charge

A25-year-old miner was on Wednesday refused bail on two counts of larceny from a person.

Akeem Goodluck, of Lot 9 Bamboo Drive, Meadow Brook Gardens, Georgetown, appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Magistrate Ann McLennan and pleaded not guilty to both charges.

It is alleged, firstly, that on September 14 at Barr Street, Kitty, Georgetown, he stole from Marissa Narine one BlackBerry cellular phone valued $40,000.

The other charge stated that on the same day at the Kitty Public Road, he stole from Keisha Paul one Samsung cellular phone valued $24,000.

Police Prosecutor Dinero Jones successfully opposed bail based on the prevalence and the nature of the offence as well as the fact that the defendant had allegedly committed two separate offences on the same day and, as such, he may not return for trial.

The unrepresented man was remanded to prison. His case will be called again on September 24.

52-year-old accused of threatening spouse on bail

A52-year-old resident of Linden, Region 10, was on Wednesday granted bail and placed on a bond after denying a threatening language charge that was laid against him.

Glenton Alicock appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Magistrate Ann McLennan

and pleaded not guilty.

The charge read that on August 28 at Central Amelia’s Ward, Linden, Alicock made use of threatening language to the Virtual Complainant (VC), Carmain Rodericks.

Police Prosecutor Dinero Jones told the court that the duo are reputed husband and wife and had

a misunderstanding over a cellphone, during which he threatened to beat her.

The VC told the court that Alicock had committed the act several times and she was completely “fed up”. She requested that he give her the vehicle of which she claims ownership and her children’s clothing.

Magistrate McLennan granted the defendant $20,000 bail and placed him on a bond to keep the peace. While on the bond, he must stay 15 feet away from Rodericks until the commencement of the trial slated for Friday, at the Vreed-en-Hoop Magistrate’s Courts.

Eyew tness

IYard fowl...

...politicians

n a letter to the press today, an unnamed interlocutor took Clarissa Riehl to task for daring to criticise the leader of the PNC, David Granger, who was recently rigged into office. All the poor woman said was that Mr Granger was “aloof” as a leader. “Not so!!” screamed the-one-who-would-not-be-named (by himself/herself). Henceforth, to be referred to as “TOWWNBN”.

TOWWNBN, however, did not elaborate on Granger’s acceptability or amiability or approachability or conviviality or sociability or whatever other words signify the opposite of “aloof” to counter Ms Riehl’s contention. This Eyewitness must confess that he’s not personally familiar with Granger, so all he can go by is the image he projects in and to the public. And “aloof” has to be one of the kinder words that describe Granger!! “Tight-assed” might more be what most persons use.

We would have to say too that Ms Riehl is not just made acquainted with Granger. The lady served as an officer for quite some years under him in the Guyana Defence Force and surely she had time to make a considered judgment about the fella – even before he took control of Congress Place. But sadly, TOWWNBN descended – as these nameless, cowardly types always do – to an ad hominem attack on the lady.

But in the attack, he betrayed the mindset of the top leadership echelon of the PNC when it comes to ordinary members – the ones at the grassroots. Referring to Riehl’s support of Aubrey Norton for the PNC’s Presidential Candidacy, TOWWNBN called the grassroots’ activist of 40 years standing, a “yard fowl”.

As if to justify his insult, he referred to Norton “drinking rum” – much as Hoyte had done when he’d dismissed Norton as the General Secretary of the PNC. The “yard fowl” was Hoyte’s “creature” with whom the big man announced he could do as he pleased! Folks like Hoyte and Granger presumably drink brandy like the Founder Leader and this elevates yard fowls to “peacock” status.

And this has always been one of the contradictions of the PNC – a middle-class League of Coloured Peoples’ elite totally contemptuous of the African masses that form the bulk of their membership. Who can respect “yard fowls”?? And this is what explains why Granger can rig the leadership elections and be confident he can get away with it.

He’s counting on the prejudices of those who support him to reject not just Norton but all those who came from Linden as “yard fowls”.

...opposition to development

Mouth open and story jump out. The “Donkey Cart” Economist Khemraj had jumped ship from AFC to APNU. He’d followed in the footsteps of the other Khemraj – the AFC’s Ramjattan, who’d also jumped ship in his time –from the PPP/C. But the Donkey Cart fella had shown even more ideological dexterity – or was it just out and out political opportunism – by hopscotching from the PPP/C to ROAR to AFC, then APNU?

Anyhow, the hopscotcher – who’s been singing hosannas to Granger like crazy – in the course of taking on the Natural Resource Minister’s argument that the lack of cheap energy is a major deterrent to local valueadded investment – blurted out quite a mouthful: “I know a few who opposed the Amaila Falls project, not because of its technical weaknesses as given above, but because a perceived East Indian Government must never succeed.”

Well...well...well!!! We know that DC Khemraj has most recently been in bed with the AFC and APNU. The question, of course, is who’re the ones who so hate East Indians, they would spite Guyana’s developmental face?? ... prayer service

This Eyewitness suspects that only divine intervention may save City Hall. But was that really the purpose of the “prayer service” Mayor Green convened?? Doesn’t the presence of APNU’s Bulkan and Amna Ally et al…suggest it’s the opening salvo of Granger’s “action”??

Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh

Health Ministry cagey on Chikungunya spread

... outbreak attracting Cabinet’s attention

The Ministry of Health has been very guarded on giving information of the spread of the Chikungunya virus.

Although acknowledging that 90 cases have been confirmed, the ministry has been unwilling to disclose to this newspaper the breakdown of the cases region-byregion. Investigations carried out by Guyana Times found that regions across the country are crying out for help as hundreds of health institutions are flocked daily with patients manifesting symptoms of the virus.

Bindrabhan Bisnauth, told this newspaper that there have so far been 11 confirmed cases of the virus there. Investigations further revealed that close to 130 suspected cases have also been found.

Green Jah, Green Ham need help wid dem action

After all is said and done, Green Jah suppose to be a man of action. After all, men from de Harmy does be action men. That is because, after all, Harmy men does get a lotta action in and outta de Harmy.

In Region One, the ministry would not disclose how many cases have been confirmed, but this newspaper found out that there have been seven suspected cases. Over in Region Two, officials said there are no reported cases of the virus in that region. In Region Three, Guyana Times again the ministry is tight-lipped on confirmed cases, but this newspaper learnt that there are over 300 suspected cases.

While this publication could not obtain the offi-

cial statistics on the confirmed cases in Region Four, based on information coming out of health centres and private health institutions, around 700 suspected cases have been recorded. Chairman of Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice),

Health officials in Region Six (East Berbice/ Corentyne) have put the number of suspected cases at over 400, although information on confirmed cases has not been forthcoming. The first Chikungunya case in Guyana was found in Berbice. Guyana Times was unable to gather any official information on Chikungunya in Regions Seven, Eight and Nine although reports claim that there have been a few suspected cases in those areas.

Health officials from Region 10 told Guyana Times that there have been only four confirmed cases of the virus, and this publication has discovered that some 100 suspected cases have

been reported. Government, through the Health Ministry, said it has been seeking to alleviate the spread of the virus in Guyana.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary, Dr Roger Lunchoen told a news conference on Wednesday that the outbreak of chikungunya across Guyana, mainly coastal areas, continues to attract the focus of Cabinet. He explained to the media today, during his weekly post-Cabinet press briefing, that Health Minister Dr. Bheri Ramsaran has been briefing Cabinet on what he described as the “notional increase” of reported cases, which can only be confirmed by specialised testing.

“The clinical diagnosis must be supported by those sophisticated tests before the diagnoses, is enshrined”.

Dr. Luncheon explained that on the basis of clinical

After all, Green Jah indeed had some action outta de Harmy and near to de Prison in 1980. After all, that was quite a lotta action under Green Jah when Rodney was by the Prison and another Harmy man give he some ting to hold.

After all, Green Jah had to continue he own action to send de Harmy man to another Guyana. Was a whole lotta action to bring he back to this Guyana, but de problem was that Green Jah by then was hidin from de action.

De other problem is that, after all dem years, when every body thought that Green Jah woulda turn up at de Rodney CoI and talk bout de Rodney action, he seh he ain’t want that kinda action.

So Greeh Jah end up hidin from that action too. And to this day, he still hidin from that action. Some body seh he friken that de action gon turn againt he. But one woulda thought that as a old (in every sense of de word) Harmy man, he woulda still want a piece of de action.

But de other day, he announce a totally different kinda action. And to get that action goin, he had to team up wid he old (in every sense of de word) pardna in action, Green Ham. De problem is that by he own admission, Green Ham ain’t even able wid Sooba action.

So Green Ham end up callin a prayer service to help he wid he action. But when he turn up (wid every ting turn down), that is when de GT people realise is whah kinda action he want.

Ting-a-ling-a-ling…friend tell friend…mattie tell mattie! In de end, even de other Green complain that no matter how hard she pray, she couldn’ta get Green Ham into any kinda hard action!

symptomatology the diseases that present similarly to chikungunya, the incidences have been noticeably, increasing.

Dr. Luncheon, himself a highly trained medical practitioner, added that in the absence of the sophisticated testing, it is difficult to ascertain the true extent of cases and this must be taken into consideration.

“Usually what would happen is an awareness campaign, the fogging that is taking place, all of that contributes to a heightened knowledge and awareness, so as soon as your back hurt you a little bit, everybody run and holler, is chikungunya, as soon as your foot hurt you a little bit, chikungunya. Therefore, the complaints just mushroom and we have to take that into consideration”.

He said the bottom line

is that test results have not gotten a surge, in the way in which the symptomatic cases have. He opined that it was his belief that the sampling and testing being conducted to ascertain the incidence of the diseases has not kept up with that surge.

“If you have 50% increase in symptomatic cases, clinical cases and that is associated with 50% increase in cases for testing then you, on the basis of the results, say something. But if you are not sending cases for testing, commensurate with the increases of clinical cases, then what could you say?”

The Ministry of Health has embarked on a comprehensive spraying and fogging exercise, and awareness campaign, all of which are aimed at combating the spread of the mosquito borne disease.

Health Minister Dr Bheri Ramsaran

Cabinet Secretary, Dr Roger Lunchoen

Section of Georgetown Ferry Stelling collapses

Acoconut vendor operating in the Stabroek Market narrowly escaped death when a section of the decrepit Georgetown Ferry Stelling collapsed on Wednesday morning, destroying several stalls in the process.

According to reports reaching Guyana Times, the incident occurred at around

05:10h. This publication was told that a vendor was lying in a stall at the back of the Stabroek Market when he heard a loud rattling. Upon enquiring, the man realised that the upper section of the wharf including the roof was collapsing; it was then that he ran for “cover”. “If that man dint move, he would a see he death hey today, be-

cause one of the de beans bore through de stall dat he de lying in,” said Debbie Sertima.

But this was just the beginning. At around 11:00h, another vendor who was playing the “detective,” escaped severe injury when an old rusted zinc sheet fell from the roof in her path. According to reports, the

Six Tiger Bay families get help from Food For The Poor

Anumber of food and household items were distributed to six families from the Tiger Bay community, Georgetown, by Food For The Poor (FFTP) on Wednesday.

Speaking to this publication, Chief Executive Officer of FFTP Ken Vincent highlighted the reason for the initiative, saying that the area is one where most of its residents live below the poverty line and his organisation will try its utmost best to support families, especially single parents.

Also speaking to Guyana Times was community leader Treslyn Rosan who emphasised the importance of the donations to the families who received it.

She noted that Government needs to pay more attention to residents in the area and believes that most of the person’s who reside in the community can have their plight described as “poverty at its worst

state”, since most of the residents are single parents.

Rosan stated that she took a tour around the community and was shocked to discover that many of the households were without basic amenities, some even without a bed.

This she added prompted her to write an article which caught the attention of the FFTP CEO. After a visit to the community, Vincent decided that the organisation would support six of the most needy families.

The recipients of the items also expressed their gratitude to FFTP for remembering them in their time of need.

“I am more than happy that Food For The Poor took the time out and made this donation to us, life in this community is not easy especially as a single parent and I wish more organisations could see this and also help us’’ one woman told this publication.

woman was standing below sections of the dilapidated structure when the zinc sheet fell, causing injury to her right arm.

Although openly ventilating her frustration about Government’s failure to rehabilitate the wharf, the woman refused to speak directly to the press, fearing that she would be victimised by the authorities.

After conducting inspections, the City’s Acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba made a decision to close the wharf, until repairs are done.

She told Guyana Times that she has been in consultation with the Local Government and the Public Works Ministries for a second assessment to be conducted. She explained that the City Engineer had in-

spected the area before but required a second opinion to determine the magnitude of work to be done. Sooba posited that the rehabilitation works would be executed in partnership with the two ministries.

Persons are being advised to desist from using the dilapidated section of the wharf which usually houses fish vendors.

Tiger Bay residents benefiting from Food For The Poor's donation

The section of the Stabroek Market wharf that collapsed on Wednesday

A disaster waiting to happening

Sattaur says will not be bullied by Glenn Lall

Commissioner

General of the Guyana Revenue Authority, Khurshid Sattaur says he will not be bullied as he continues his fight against corruption and again rubbishes reports in the Kaieteur News that sought to malign him.

Sattaur is being targeted by Publisher of Kaieteur News Glenn Lall, after he ordered the seizure of two Lexus luxury vehicles which were allegedly brought into the country through fraudulent means via the Government-run Remigrant Scheme. Lall has since applied to the High Court seeking an order for the vehicles to be returned. The case is still pending.

Speaking with Guyana Times on Tuesday, the Commissioner General

pointed out that while there was never any “bad blood” between him and Lall, this has seemingly changed. He said also that the same “delusions towards other senior Government officials of the current Administration that would appear to have seized the owner of the newspaper that makes him feel a sense of grandeur would also appear to have been aroused in him after his two luxury vehicles were seized by the GRA.”

Only recently, two tax evasion scams in which Lall and associates were implicated came to the fore after being reported on. In the ensuing investigations, two Lexus L570 vehicles primarily driven by Lall and his wife, Bhena Lall, were seized. Lall has since claimed that the move by the GRA to seize the vehicles as part of its investigations were simply to embarrass him.

Sattaur has also been allegedly threatened by Lall who vowed to use his newspaper to “expose” him. But, Sattaur said, “Ever since these two matters involving Lall were reported on and investigations mounted, it is like the Kaieteur News has constantly been attacking me. Am I wrong for mounting investigation into these alleged tax atrocities? Am I wrong for doing what I am supposed to? Why is he (Lall)

attacking me… I am not scared of Glenn Lall or Kaieteur News.”

The Commissioner General added that while he will be the subject of continuous criticism from sections of the media and society, he will not be discouraged or coerced into calling off the investigation. Sattaur also highlighted his frustration with what he described as libellous and spiteful information that the Kaieteur News has

published in the last few weeks. The Commissioner General said it was as a direct “assault on my character, on my officer, an assault on me”.

In several of the Kaieteur News “Dem Boys Seh” commentaries, Sattaur was referred to in derogatory terms. The GRA Head believes

that the “scurrilous articles concerning him are gross fabrication, serves as a threat as if to say to me that if I dare to investigate the owner of the newspaper for major tax frauds, he would obtain information from his sources within the GRA and distort the information in such a way to malign, embarrass, shame and degrade this office. The recent publications are definitely concocted to serve this narrow self-interest,” Sattaur said.

Besides, he said, these acts are designed to intimidate him and deter him from carrying out his mandate. Asked if he was considering legal action against Kaieteur News, Sattaur said: “It is something that I am considering; they’re attacking my character and trying to put me to shame so it is something that I will have to sit with my legal advisors and discuss thoroughly.”

Only recently, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament (MP) Joseph Harmon claimed that “the GRA boss is simply using his position as an instrument of fear”.

Harmon contended that the reporting of issues surrounding Lall was an attempt by Sattaur to muzzle the local publisher. But, Sattaur, in a recent interview with

Guyana Times, denied these allegations. In fact, Sattaur contended that Harmon’s accusations seem to suggest that he is “living in the past, reminiscent of the days when the Customs

Administration operated at the whims and fancies of certain people and vehicles were released as bicycles”.

He noted that the Opposition is condemning corruption from one corner of its mouth and from the other, seemingly instigating it.

“If I do the work of my office and investigate the issues, I’m condemned. If I don’t do it and just lay back, I am condemned… so it's like this – I’m damned if I do, and damned if I don’t,” Sattaur said. He pointed out that Lall has accused the GRA of accepting his valuables subsequent to lodging a deposit of in excess of $2 million, after Customs would have held on to his deposit for a protracted period.

Home of US-based Guyanese burglarised

AUS-based Guyanese is counting his losses after his property at Waterloo Street, Georgetown, was burglarised about two Tuesdays ago by two men suspected to be family members.

Jagdeo Persaud, of Lot 187 Waterloo Street, has estimated his losses at over $1 million.

According to information received, the alleged burglars carted off a quantity of home furnishing items, including utensils and television sets. In an interview with Guyana Times on Wednesday, the aggrieved victim stated that after he received the news of his house being broken into, he immediately booked a flight and travelled to Guyana. He has since replaced the door locks and installed other security gadgets.

Upon his arrival in Guyana, Persaud said he conducted an inventory of the items missing from his home and reported the matter to the Brickdam Police Station, but to date, he claims the Police are dragging their feet on the issue.

Persaud is sure that his cousin and another relative are responsible for committing the act, and as such, has indicated his suspicions to the Police, who he claims have failed to question the men in connection with the incident.

He was reportedly told that since the men reside in Parika, investigating rank will have to forward a complaint to the Parika Police Station in order to make the arrest. “I went to

the Parika Police Station and they claimed that they went to the homes of the two men and no one was there… they apparently went once and that was it”.

He said that prior to the incident, the two men who live in the US travelled to Guyana to attend the funeral service of a relative. Persaud believes that it was during this time the men used the opportunity to burgularise his home.

The elderly man claimed the items removed were bought to furnish his home, so as to make his life comfortable when he remigrates a few years from now.

He said that the robbery might have stemmed from a family dispute among siblings. The man added that after his mother passed, the house was left to him, but this caused some jealousy among his siblings and cousins who thought that the property should have been equally divided.

From all indications, a sister of his who lives overseas might have also plotted with the men to commit the act, since she expressed little sympathy towards him when he related the matter to her. From her reaction, it is Persaud’s belief that she might have known about the robbery. He is holding out that he is the sole owner of the property and as such, will not be intimidated.

With just a few days left before he returns to the United States, he is calling on the Police to investigate the matter thoroughly and hopefully, he can get some sort of justice.

GRA Commissioner General Khurshid Sattaur

Kaieteur News

Publisher Glenn Lall

APNU MP Joseph Harmon

Scotiabank partnering with Guyana Book Foundation for Education Month

Scotiabank, through its Bright Future Programme, recently teamed up with the Guyana Book Foundation (GBF) to donate books to two East Coast Demerara schools in observance of Education Month 2014.

In a release, Scotiabank said it presented over 150 books to the Beterverwagting/Quamina and Lusignan Primary Schools in a simple ceremony at the Bank’s Robb Street branch, in support of the GBF’s Education Month book donation drive that targets 65 nursery, prima-

ry and secondary schools in Region Four (DemeraraMahaica).

Over the years, the book donation drive has been an ongoing project for the GBF in keeping with its main goal to improve children’s literacy across Guyana. GBF’s donation drive this year will ensure that children continue to have access to high-quality, interesting books with engaging stories which will encourage them to read outside of their required texts. It will also help strengthen the schools’ library stock.

Since 2012, the GBF

Moray House captures

essence of wedding, what it means to be Guyanese

Capturing the essence of a wedding and the essence of what it is to be Guyanese was the theme of a talk by two local photographers hosted by Moray House Trust on Tuesday evening.

Fidal Bassier is not a typical wedding photographer. He explained that he is always looking for the unusual, off guard moment: a bride having her make up done, or waiting to get out of a car. Often there are no people in the picture - just the rings on a prayer book or an exquisite bouquet.

Nikhil Ramkarran presented photographs focused on the streets and markets of downtown Georgetown and the people doing business there: a market vendor, a bus driver, a tout, or a man simply standing by a wall, umbrella in hand.

Ramkarran said he was attempting to capture not only the individuality of the people but also their essential "Guyanese-ness".

A lively discussion ensued after the slide shows with some technical questions about cameras and the ethics of photo-shopping. Ramkarran mentioned that this year he has taken many photographs with his phone camera.

There was also a conversation on subject matter in the context of class and the appropriate approach to strangers who may not always feel comfortable being in front of the lens.

The event was one of several Moray House Trust is organising as part of its mission to foster national pride in Guyana's diverse heritage and to enable all forms of artistic expression.

has been engaging corporate Guyana to assist with the donation drive. The Book Foundation collaborated with Scotiabank in 2013 for sponsorship of book distributions to nursery schools in Region Eight

during Education Month and Amerindian Heritage Month, both commemorated in the month of September.

The release added that Scotiabank is committed to supporting the communities

in which they work through their global philanthropic programme, Scotiabank Bright Future. Recognised as a leader internationally and among Canadian corporations for its charitable donations and philanthrop-

ic activities, Scotiabank has provided, on average, approximately Cdn$45 million annually to community causes around the world, over each of the last five years.

The Scotiabank Bright Future Programme is the Bank’s global philanthropic programme, which brings together all of the Bank’s charitable, social and community efforts and employee volunteer activities under one banner. Through the Bright Future Programme, the Bank’s charitable efforts are aimed at being relevant and responsive to the needs of each community at a grassroots level and providing support across the fields of health, arts, education, social services, sport and the environment. In the Caribbean, Latin and Central America, the programme focuses primarily on children and children’s causes.

A Scotiabank representative hands over the items to students

Regional

France hails Haiti’s firm determination to fight corruption

Ahigh-ranking French diplomat in Haiti has acknowledged that current Haitian authorities have a firm determination to fight corruption, but warned that the fight against the plague will be a long-haul battle which the Caribbean country should win to attract investments.

French acting Chargé d’Affaires in Haiti, Dominique Delpuech, who arrived in Port-au-Prince in September 2011, recognised that the Government of President Michel Martelly and Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe has shown a strong commitment to fighting corruption.

“All I have seen, since I’ve been in Haiti, is that there is a firm determination on the part of Haitian authorities to combat corruption,” Delpuech told the Haitian-Caribbean News Network (HCNN), in a weekend interview.

“It is important – for the straightening of the country, for the faith, particularly, in the possibility to invest in the country – that the challenge of fighting corruption be picked up by Haitian authorities,” said Delpuech.

“It is not a battle that can be won in

a day. It’s a long-haul battle,” warned the French diplomat.

Martelly, who took office in May 2011, solemnly signed into law, about four months ago, an anti-corruption bill that provides for tougher punitive measures against those involved with

corruption in the public administration or in the private sector.

“(Fighting corruption) is fundamental in the implementation of any policy aimed at attracting foreign investments,” Delpuech stated. (Excerpt from Caribbean News Now)

The Bahamas Parliament passes controversial Gaming Bill

Following several days of heated debate, a controversial Gaming Bill was passed in The Bahamas House of Assembly on Monday with 25 'yes' votes and seven no votes.

The bill maintains the provision that prohibits people ordinarily resident in The Bahamas from gambling in casinos. However,

it does contain a provision that would allow the minister with responsibility for gaming to override that discriminatory element.

The bill will lead to the regulation of the web shop industry. Prime Minister Perry Christie said in the House of Assembly on Monday the country is expected to benefit from mil-

lions of dollars in additional revenue once the regularisation process is complete.

Despite previous projections that web shop taxes would generate US$12 million annually, Christie said the Government stands to collect more than twice that amount.

However, he noted that the new projections are based on unverified information received from the majority of the web shop operators.

“The economic impact from these comprehensive gaming measures will be considerable and will stimulate economic growth for the public benefit as well as enhance Government revenues and fiscal policies,” Christie said.

According to the Prime Minister, the Government is projected to collect US$25 million in penalties, back business licence fees, and application fees payable during the transition period.

(Excerpt from Caribbean News Now)

Colombia responds to international market demand for construction materials

The construction materials industry in Colombia has responded to the needs of international markets as it offers quality, value-added logistics and trade advantages. The Expocamacol Fair 2014 was proof of this, as Colombian exporters responded to the specific demands of 24 countries of which 13 were from the Caribbean Region.

The business conference organised by Proexport Colombia

in Medellin left US$169.6 million in business expectations. Among the most popular products demanded in the fair were tiles, metal panels, glass, ceramic flooring, nails, doors, windows, furniture and architectural woodwork.

“The interest for Colombian products indicates that internationalisation is a vital way for the expansion of national industry. Every buyer we brought to the fair represents an opportuni-

ty for the country’s businesses to grow through exports, exchange of knowledge and suitability of the products according to their demands and requirements,” said Maria Claudia Lacouture, President of Proexport Colombia.

Proexport has identified a general map of opportunities that goes from Canada to Chile, in projects such as shopping centres and homes, where buyers require final products. (Excerpt from Caribbean News Now)

Seven Police dead in Colombia ambush

At least seven Police officers were killed and seven wounded when gunmen from the FARC rebel group ambushed their convoy in remote North-western Colombia, officials said.

“This is a cowardly attack that deserves condemnation by all Colombians,”

President Juan Manuel Santos said during a speech in which he attributed the violence to the FARC and Colombia’s “Clan Usuga” criminal gang.

Colombia is the scene of a 50-year-old conflict between the Government and leftist rebels that has at times also drawn in drug traffickers and right-wing paramilitary groups.

“I have given instruction to all the heads of our military forces, reinforcing the need to continue the offensive against these organisations,” Santos said.

Violence has continued in Colombia even though the Government is holding peace talks with the FARC, the largest guerrilla group, and has announced preliminary talks with the second-largest group, the National Liberation Army (ELN). (Excerpt from Yahoo! News)

The area where the attack occurred, the Northwestern region of Uraba, has been a haven for armed groups since the 1960s because of its mountainous terrain, tropical forests and remote location along the Panama border.

Brazil’s Silva hits back at rumours, recalls hungry youth

In an emotional new television ad, Brazilian presidential candidate Marina Silva hit back at rumours that she would do away with popular social welfare programmes if elected, citing her own youth growing up poor and hungry in the Amazon rainforest.

The ad, which ran late Tuesday, went viral on social media and could swing some momentum back in Silva’s favour after recent polls showed her support sagging as she battles to unseat leftist President Dilma

Rousseff in Brazil’s October 5 election.

Silva, an environmentalist running on a pro-market platform, lashed out at what she described as Rousseff’s recent negative campaigning and denied that she would halt the popular decade-old “Bolsa Familia” programme, which pays a monthly stipend to poor families.

“I know what it’s like to be hungry,” Silva said. “All my mother had (to feed) eight children was an egg and a little bit of flour and

salt.” Choking back tears, Silva recalled how her parents often went more than a day without eating but disguised their hunger so as not to worry their children.

“Whoever lived through that experience will never do away with ‘Bolsa Familia’,” Silva thundered. “That’s not rhetoric. That’s my life.” The ad was mentioned on the front page of some newspapers on Wednesday and appeared to strike a nerve in a country where more than half of households earn less than US$1000 a month. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Jamaica on US drug list

Jamaica has been listed as one of 22 major drug-producing and transit countries by US President Barack Obama, according to information released by the US Department of State.

However, National Security Minister Peter Bunting did not appear overly worried about the listing as he said Jamaica has been included in that category for some time now.

“... From memory, Jamaica has been on that list every year since I became spokesman on national security in 2008,” Bunting replied to the Jamaica Observer, via text messaging, from a Cabinet retreat, on Tuesday.

A media note from the State Department said, that under the Foreign Relations Authorisation Act, the President is required to notify Congress of those countries he determines to be major illicit drug-produc-

In a report in June, the Department of State cited money laundering in Jamaica as primarily related to proceeds from illegal narcotics and financial scams, and was largely controlled by organised criminal gangs

ing countries or major drugtransit countries that “significantly affect the United States” every year.

A country’s presence on the list does not necessarily reflect its counter-narcotics efforts or its level of cooperation with the United States on illicit drug control. The Department of State said the designation can reflect a combination of geographic, commercial, and economic factors ethat allow drugs to be produced and/or trafficked through a country. Jamaica and four other Caribbean countries – Belize, The Bahamas, The Dominican Republic, and Haiti – are among 22 named by Obama. (Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Haitian President Michel Martelly (left) with French President François Hollande

Prime Minister Perry Christie (right) greets Bishop Simeon Hall in the House of Assembly on Monday. Hall is a proponent of web shop regulation. MPs passed the controversial Gaming Bill later in the day

Chinese President Xi Jinping begins India visit

China’s President Xi Jinping has begun his first official visit to India, with a focus on improving trade ties and resolving the decades-old dispute over border areas.

China is one of India’s

top trading partners and the Asian neighbours are the world’s most populous countries. The two countries disagree over the demarcation of several Himalayan border areas and fought a brief war in 1962.

Tensions over the issue still flare up from time to time. Beijing and Delhi have held numerous rounds of border talks, but all have been unsuccessful so far.

Xi’s visit comes amid unconfirmed reports in the Indian media of a new faceoff on the border. The reports said that Indian troops had spotted their Chinese counterparts trying to construct a temporary road into the Indian territory across the Line of Actual Control (the de facto boundary) in the Ladakh region.

Ties between the two countries have received a boost under the new Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has pledged to revitalise the economy and deepen ties with China during his term of office.

In July, the two leaders met on the sidelines of the sixth Brics summit in Brazil and stressed the need to boost bilateral relations. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Ebola could wreck W Africa economies, warns

World Bank

The Ebola outbreak could have a catastrophic impact on the economies of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the World Bank says. The organisation says the economic impact of the virus could “grow eightfold” in the “already fragile states”.

However, it says the cost can be limited if the epidemic – and the accompanying fear – is contained by a fast global response. Ebola has killed 2461 people in West Africa – the largest ever outbreak.

Earlier on Wednesday, US President Barack Obama called the latest outbreak “a threat to global security”, as he announced a larger US role in fighting the virus.

Around the world

US airstrikes boost Islamic State, more hostages possible – FBI

Support for Islamic State increased after US airstrikes began in Iraq and the militant group may take more hostages to try to force concessions from Washington, the FBI Director told Congress on Wednesday.

Islamic State is “committed to instilling fear and attracting recruits” and to drawing public attention, as shown through its use of social media and in videos it released of the beheadings of American journalists James Foley and Steven

Sotloff, said FBI Director James Comey.

“ISIL’s widespread use of social media and growing online support intensified following the commencement of US airstrikes in Iraq,” Comey, using an acronym for the group, said in prepared testimony for a congressional hearing on threats to the US homeland.

Islamic State and other outfits “may continue to try to capture American hostages in an attempt to force the US Government and people into making concessions

that would only strengthen ISIL and further its terrorist operations,” Comey said.

Islamic State draws an estimated US$1 million per day from black market oil sales, smuggling, robberies, and ransom payments for hostages, according to Matt Olsen, Director of the National Counterterrorism Centre.

The United States and United Kingdom, unlike some European nations, do not pay ransom for the release of hostages. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Syrian bombardment kills dozens’ in Homs

At least 48 people have been killed in Syrian Government air bombardment around a town in the central province of Homs, a monitoring group says.

Two days of air strikes left women, children and men including rebels among the dead, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors developments in Syria through a network of sources.

Nearly a dozen fight-

ers and multiple rebel commanders were also reported killed in the bombardment, which targeted Talbiseh, a town in the North of Homs and on the country’s main North-South highway.

The death toll from the bombardment, which took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, was expected to rise because dozens of people including children were in critical condition, the Observatory said.

The group said rebels in

Talbiseh had shelled regime positions around the nearby rebel-held town of Umm Sharshuh as fighting raged around it.

The towns are among a number that the rebels still hold in Homs province.

In May, Syrian rebels had abandoned their last stronghold in the heart of Homs city, which had been a centre of the revolt against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

The measures announced included ordering 3000 US troops to the region and building new healthcare facilities. The announcement came as UN officials described the outbreak as a health crisis “unparalleled in modern times”.

tinued to spread.

The World Bank’s analysis said billions of dollars could be drained from West African countries by the end of next year if the virus con-

Under the worst-case scenario, the global development lender predicted that economic growth next year could be reduced by 2.3 percentage points in Guinea and 8.9 percentage points in Sierra Leone. (Excerpt from BBC News)

World holds breath, mostly hoping Scots vote against independence

The world is holding its breath but mostly hoping Scotland will vote “No” to independence from Britain in Thursday’s referendum.

For reasons of self-interest and geopolitics, major powers from Beijing to Washington and Moscow to New Delhi are quietly praying the United Kingdom holds together and does not create a contagious precedent of state fragmentation in unstable times.

Among London’s European Union partners, Germany has said openly it would prefer Britain to stay together while other countries, notably Spain, Belgium and Italy, are hoping the Scottish vote does not create or exacerbate problems for their own national cohesion. Russia and China, often at loggerheads with Britain in the United Nations Security Council, have strong domestic grounds to

avoid wishing for the old imperial nation’s discomfiture, since both are keen to stifle separatism at home.

Almost the only groups around the globe rooting for Scottish sovereignty are peoples without a separate state of their own, from Catalans in Spain to Kashmiris in India and Kurds scattered across Turkey, Iraq and Iran, many of whom yearn for self-determination. (Excerpt from Reuters)

President Xi Jinping began his India visit from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state Gujarat

Residents of the Liberian capital, Monrovia, watch health workers remove the body of an Ebola victim

Govt says free transportation only for two weeks

Cabinet Secretary, Dr Roger Luncheon said the free public transportation offered to residents living in villages on the outskirts of Georgetown is set for a two-week trial before a more definite decision is made on its continuation.

The service was officially launched on Monday by Public Works and Transportation Minister Robeson Benn, who told reporters present that Government was seeking to ease the financial exploitation experienced by commuters.

He had explained that commuters have been expressing concerns over the exploitation, particularly over demands for an increase in fares by minibus operators after hours.

According to Dr Luncheon, minibus operators and owners have thrown down the gauntlet to the Government. “Unilaterally, they have introduced fare increases in Georgetown. Those fare increases have been rejected out of hand by the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, and commuters

Commuters will for the next two weeks, at least initially, enjoy the free transportation service

have been urged not to pay the increases,” he said at his post-Cabinet press briefing on Wednesday.

Consequently, he said commuters who have refused to pay the increase have essentially flocked and taken up residence at the bus parks. It is because of this that

Government has decided to intervene by providing free transportation service along the East and West Coast and East and West Bank of Demerara.

Luncheon said that engagements have been held with the organisation representing the inter-

USAID pleased with progress of LEAD Project so far

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the International Republican Institute (IRI) said they are pleased with the progress made so far with the implementation of the USAID Leadership Education and Democracy (LEAD) Project.

“It is our collective view that as implementation goes forward, the USAID LEAD programme will be able to achieve its objectives and will assist Guyanese institutions in advancing their responsibilities for strengthening the country’s democracy and improving its governance”, Guyana Times was told in a statement from the embassy.

The implementation process of the LEAD Project is being undertaken in active partnership with a variety of national institutions, including the National Assembly, the Guyana Elections Commission, the Women and Gender Equality Commission, various youth organisations and civil society, and has already begun holding consultations with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that are interested in providing information on civic education and Local Government Elections.

Just last week, the first set of consultations for municipalities began with the Rose Hall Town Council. IRI’s Resident Country Director and the Chief of Party for the USAID Lead Programme Glen Bradbury was quite pleased with the public interest and attendance at the Rose Hall meeting.

He was particularly impressed by the level of positive feedback he received and interaction with the audience. Participants were exposed to information on local government and the importance of participating in elections when they are held, the

statement said.

The Town Halls are public forums. They provide information on the structure of local government in Guyana, the responsibilities of local governments; and the procedures through which Local Government Elections are conducted. The statement relayed that the information used during the town hall meetings are taken from publications obtained from the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

The Guyana Association of Women Lawyers has also concluded a draft booklet entitled “Local Government and You”. That booklet, it has been reported, will be made available to the general public and its contents are also based on informa-

17 and Rosignol on Saturday, September 20.

The USAID LEAD programme’s consultations and interactions with Guyanese youth organisations are proceeding well. The embassy has reported that some youth LEAD programme activities have already taken place. They include a capacity building workshop with the Guyana National Youth Council; and a special episode of the popular “This Week in Parliament” TV programme which was devoted to issues that impact and are of importance to Guyanese youth.

It stated too that discussions continue with stakeholders, including senior administrative staff. In relation to the National Assembly

Chief of Party for the USAID Lead Programme Glen Bradbury

tion obtained from GECOM. The LEAD programme has used the information in the booklet to create a handout focusing on the more salient points covered in both the booklet and the Town Halls, including a guide to the local government voting process.

The programme is currently finalising the schedule of dates for the Local Government Town Hall meetings that are to be held throughout Guyana. The next two meetings scheduled for September include New Amsterdam which was held on Wednesday, September

component of the USAID LEAD programme, the US Embassy said the IRI and USAID are confident that the LEAD programme will be used to enhance internal Assembly structures and contribute to building capacity of administrative staff and elected representatives.

After months of stalemate, the Governments of Guyana and the United States were finally able to come to a resolution on the LEAD Project, putting to rest the concerns of Government over the project’s initial design and implementation.

est of minibus operators.

“A report tendered to Cabinet by Minister Irfaan Ali… the golden yardstick – Minister Ali pointed out that $1000 per gallon for fuel has not been breached and it was the Ministry’s contention that therein the basis for increases did not exist. The cost of fuel remained $1000 per gallon. As was said reasoning with the operators, owners and representatives is an activity of little benefit.”

Luncheon added that Cabinet, in discussing the next move, has agreed that over the next two weeks, continued discussions with representatives of minibus operators will be conducted so that it could decide on whether or not the service will continue. “Continued discussions with representatives of operators, a review of the situation as it affects the commuters; the compilation of those reports would allow Cabinet to decide on the continuation of this programme. In essence, would the provision of free transportation continue? We would have to consider the reports of the two weeks compilation of

this initiative”.

The fleet of 10 44-seater buses is not intended to stifle the livelihood of minibus operators plying the Demerara routes, but Public Works Minister Benn said Government had become weary of the complaints levelled against the operators.

He noted that Government is seeking to prevent a situation where commuters are forced to suffer as a result of one-sided actions by the minibus operators.

Minister Benn reiterated Government had taken a decision that it would not support an increase in fares if the price of diesel or gasoline did not exceed $1000. “I do not believe that situation has arisen. Some people have taken it upon themselves and are forcing people to pay higher fares, but we will not encourage it. We are prepared to sit down and have discussions with operators with respect to this problem, but we will not have unilateral position for the public in respect to this situation,” Benn stressed.

Ministry announces “closed season” for Seabob fishing

The Fisheries Department of the Agriculture Ministry said it has implemented a closed season for the Guyana’s seabob (shrimp).

This 2014 closure was ratified by Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy in keeping with protocols previously established between the Seabob Industry and the Ministry. The timeframe approved is September 8 to October 26; both dates inclusive, the Ministry said in a statement. The closed session is supported by the Guyana Association of Trawler Owners and Seafood Processors (GATOSP).

In this regard, all Seabob fishing vessels were advised to dock from midnight on September 7 and will remain in port until midnight October 26. Closed seasons are specified time periods where no fishing is permitted for a particular fishery and has been an ongoing activity for several years in Guyana.

Its implementation is closely monitored by the Fisheries Department on an annual basis. According to the Ministry, such an intervention is not only limited to Guyana but has fast become a global practice aimed at allowing various fisheries to multiply or replenish, thus ensuring growth and sustainability.

The Seabob fishery in Guyana has been well known over the years for generating foreign exchange earnings and revenue through exports regionally and to markets in North America and Europe. The major industrial stakeholders include Pritipaul Singh Investment, Noble House Seafoods, BEV Processors, Guyana Quality Seafoods and Fisheries Department.

The Ministry said Seabob data submitted by these com-

panies are used to conduct annual stock assessments at the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), Annual Scientific Workshop. As much as 17 member states participate annually at these meetings of which Guyana has been one of the more frequent attendees.

It is important to note that attendance at these meeting support frequent stock assessments of an identified fish stock and it is a pivotal prerequisite to the country achieving Marine Steward Counsel Certification (MSC) for a particular fish stock.

Measures are currently being put in place for the seabob fishery to be assessed

Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy

to achieve this certification shortly. MSC certification basically signifies that harvesting and management of a particular fisheries resource is being done in a sustainable manner which in turn allows for access into global markets for sale of produce.

The seabob stock was last assessed in June, 2013, where it was deemed fully utilised but not over fished. As a result of this, a proposed Harvest Control Rule (HCR) (considered as best

practices in fisheries management) was drafted following deliberations with the consultant, GATOSP and Fisheries Department. Considerations were given to fisher earnings, political acceptability and the level of precaution required.

It was noted that any proposed HCR would undergo further evaluation through future stock assessments, which it was hoped would include improvements on the 2013 assessment.

However, it is not anticipated that this would dramatically change any results. An overall days-at-sea limit was proposed; 87 licences each with an allocated 225 days at sea.

The proposed rule was evaluated in June 2014 by members of the Continental Shelf Fisheries Working Group (CSWG) which comprises representatives from Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

The group endorsed the rule on the basis that was considered to be consistent with attaining maximum sustainable yield (MSY) and maintaining the stock above the limit reference point. This limit was acceptable to the industry, because it would not limit current fishing activity as long as indicators remained high, and would allow the fishery to take advantage of strong recruitments.

The stock is currently in a good condition which was indicated by the attainment of favourable catch rates by fishers. Despite these achievements, the current fishing effort employed is lower than the maximum limit stipulated in the HCR which augers well for sustainability. The Minister has also approved the closure of the prawn fishery for the same period.

Granger must decide which election he wants – AG

Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall on Wednesday joined the President in dismissing Opposition Leader David Granger’s ultimatum on hosting Local Government Elections, saying it was nothing but a “political gimmick”.

Granger had written to the President threatening legal and legitimate local and international action if Local Government polls were not called before September 15.

With no action yet evident from Granger two days after the deadline passed, Minister Nandlall said, “I don’t take Mr Granger’s ultimatum seriously; I regard it as a political gimmick”, during an interview with the Guyana Times

He added, “Mr Granger knows that he cannot express support for the NoConfidence Motion laid over to the Clerk [of Parliament] by the Alliance For Change (AFC) and indicate that he will support the motion and at the same time, give an ultimatum for the holding of Local Government Elections.”

If the No-Confidence Motion is successfully debated and passed in the National Assembly, the Parliament would be dissolved and General and Regional Elections would

be called within 90 days by President Donald Ramotar. As a result, it would be impossible to call Local Government Elections within the same timeframe.

The Legal Affairs Minister said the President had written the Opposition Leader seeking clarification on the matter, but, to date, a response has not been forthcoming.

“In any event, it is unreasonable, if not impossible, for GECOM to prepare itself for both elections in a given year. So the Leader of the Opposition must tell the Nation which one of the elections he wants – Local or General?” Nandlall said. “His position is patently confusing.”

No moral authority

Turning his attention to City Mayor Hamilton Green, who has accused Government for reintroducing the concept of dictatorship through its imposition of acting Town Clerk Carol Sooba on the City Council, the Attorney General said that Green should be reminded of the Municipal and District Council Act, which gives the Local Government and Regional Development Minister powers to appoint a Town Clerk.

According to Nandlall, Green should be one of the last persons on “Planet

President Donald Ramotar

Earth” to speak about dictatorship, given his background. “He was part of a Government that kept itself in power and imposed itself on the Guyanese people by rigging the elections for 28 years. That is a fact that no one can sensibly dispute.”

On Tuesday, supporters of the People’s National Congress Reform and A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), led by several of their top leaders, created a ruckus outside City Hall as they attempted to go inside to hold a so-called prayer service. Guyana Times was told that Tuesday’s event was part of Granger’s threats to mobilise local and international action. Co-Chair of the APNU, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine, on Monday

Horse cart operator, Police officers injured in West Dem collision

An afternoon collision on the East Bank of Essequibo (EBE) has left a horse cart operator and three Policemen injured. The accident occured around 16:00h on Tuesday at Fisherdam, Zeelugt Public Road, EBE.

Guyana Times understands the horse cart operator, Dellon Lawrence, suffered the – serious injury with a broken limb while the Police officers involved sustained minor injuries. According to information reaching this newspaper, Lawrence, 27, of

De Kinderen Village, West Coast Demerara (WCD), was operating his cart heading East along the public road in the vicinity of Zeelugt.

He was behind a minibus which made a sudden stop on the road, causing him to swerve suddenly in an effort to avoid colliding with the bus.

This manoeuvre caused the operator to drift into the opposite lane, resulting in him colliding head on with a prison van that was heading to the Parika Stelling. Witnesses claimed that the van was reportedly speeding in an

disclosed that as far as he was aware, his party is set to take action as promised if Government failed to set a date for the polls. “There will be some manifestation, some manifestation of some kind,” he said.

City Hall

However, asked whether the ruckus at City Hall was part of Granger’s “plan of action”, APNU’s Chief Whip, Amna Ally, had answered in the negative, but pointed out that while some actions would be taken, it “would be left solely on the residents and citizens of this country”.

Similarly, Granger also denied that he has commenced his plan of “local and international action”, since his ultimatum was ignored by the President. Granger on Tuesday afternoon pointed out that “consultations” were currently being held on the way forward. Copies of the letter that Granger sent to the President were forwarded to the National Front Alliance, the Working People’s Alliance, and the Justice for All Party – the other political parties within APNU. Additionally, the letter was sent to some members of the diplomatic community.

When asked where he was going to be looking for international support and if he had any countries earmarked, Granger responded that he was “mobilising support” from countries in the West, with specific

mention of North America, the United Kingdom and the Caribbean.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the controversy continued, with City Mayor Green accusing the Government of using the acting Town Clerk to invoke national unrest.

The allegations were levied against the Donald Ramotar Administration on

in full to Sooba, Green wasted no time in bashing her over statements made regarding the safety of the Municipality during the day’s confrontation between the City Constabulary and supports of the APNU.

“That is suggesting that somebody here has a few screws loose.” These comments were made one

City Hall, Georgetown

Wednesday during a press conference at the Mayor and City Council. “As one who has lived through the 50s, what I see happening today is the return of the terrible days of dictatorship…,” Mayor Green opined. According to him, the Government is using Sooba to undermine local democracy as it rolls out its plan to dictate the people of Guyana through a process of “manipulation.”

Turning his attention

day after A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) supporters defied the orders of the City Constabulary and stormed in the Council’s Compound. According to the Mayor, the supporters simply wanted to attend a prayer service that was being held by the APNU. But Sooba made it known on Tuesday that she would not allow the Mayor and his supporting Councillors to misuse the resources at City Hall.

Three held for Matthews Ridge murder

Three men are being interrogated at the Matthews Ridge Police Station in connection with the murder of 32-year-old Samantha Ashby of whose nude body was found on Tuesday.

The following night, she reportedly told a friend that she was going to get cigarettes but never returned.

effort to catch the ferry to transport prisoners back to the Mazaruni Prison after their court sessions.

There were three officers in the van; two in front and one at the back; however, none of them were seriously injured. They were treated for minor injuries and sent away. Meanwhile, the cart operator has been admitted a patient at the Leonora Cottage Hospital after he sustained a broken left shin bone.

Following the collision, the horse and the cart came to a halt at the corner of the road.

Investigators are working on the theory that the mother of one might have been raped, beaten and strangled by a group of men with whom she was last seen with. Based on investigations the woman might have gone out to look for “sex work” in order to raise money so that her fiancé could have travelled to Matthews Ridge to be with her. Madonna Welcome, sister of the dead woman told the Guyana Times that the night before her sister went out, her fiancé contacted her and requested money so that he can travel out from where he was. At that point in time, Ashby did not have all the cash but was heard telling him that she will get the money before the week was over.

Welcome related that the last time her sister was seen alive was on Monday evening with two guys who have subsequently disappeared. The two guys, she noted would normally be seen in the area. “I thought that she knew them and they were just taking a few drinks”.

On the other hand, she recalled that Ashby was pregnant and could not drink hence she thought that she was just ‘liming’. Welcome explained that her sister spent some time with her mother before coming to Matthews Ridge.

The grieving sister told the Guyana Times that her sister was a “Hustler” but she met a guy and settled down. “I feel so nice that she became pregnant… I know this would change her live around and stop hustle to make ends meet”, the sister cried.

Welcome also refuted

claims that a bottle was inserted in her sister. She said when she got the news and rushed to the scene, the police were already there. Her sister’s body was exposed and the detectives were conducting their investigations. A post mortem is yet to be conducted. Ashby, of Pakera, Matthews Ridge, was found around 11:00h on Tuesday by a group of schoolchildren who were passing in a clump of bushes at Matthews Ridge, North West District (NWD). Guyana Times was made to understand that the woman’s body bore marks of violence and her feet had abrasions.

Her eyes were “black” and “blue” and her face, swollen. There were bloodstains on her body and her knees were badly bruised. A post-mortem examination is expected to be performed today. She leaves to mourn her 15 year-old son, mother and seven siblings.

The Police van after colliding head on with the horse cart

Inter-County 4-day bowls off today

By Rajiv Bisnauth

The Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) senior inter-county, fourday competition bowls off today and will form part of the preparations for the upcoming West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) franchise four-day competition.

This year, the GCB has included a GCB Developmental Squad, increasing the number of teams to four.

The four-day competition is of utmost importance to the GCB where the board will be allowed to retain and contract ten players who will form part of the Guyana franchise team for the regional four-day competition.

The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has implemented a new structure for regional first-class crick-

et which will see the six regional sides being able to select players from across the region and further overseas.

The franchises, to be owned and operated by the six traditional cricketing territories, will in Year One see 15 players being contracted, with 10 being nationals of the country in which the team is located, and the other five to be selected from a draft of regional players.

Year Two will see a relinquishing of the player quotas, thus allowing the franchises to select their preferred 15 players.

The move was part of the process of professionalising the regional first class tournament and was also highlighted in the Pybus report.

In the Pybus report, WICB director of cricket Richard Pybus outlined a

Demerara Bank donates sport gear to NOC

Demerara Bank Limited Essequibo Branch on Wednesday donated a quantity of sporting gear to the New Opportunity Corps (NOC) at Onderneeming.

structure which would see a player draft being held for regional first class cricket.

“The draft allows West Indies cricket to level the playing field in resourcing franchise-type teams, affording all the TB’s (territorial boards) the opportunity to broaden and deepen their squads,” the report stated.

The regional season will start in November and will have four-day cricket played in a home and away format, paving the way for a minimum of 10 games in the tournament.

The four-day tournament will then break in January to make way for the Super 50 limited-overs tournament. The four-day competition will resume thereafter and culminate in March.

Meanwhile, in the first round, the 50-over champions Berbice, will clash with

Demerara at GCC, while Essequibo will meet the GCB Development Squad at DCC.

The second round will begin on September 24 when Essequibo take on Berbice at DCC, and the GCB Development Squad go up against Demerara at the Everest Cricket Club ground.

The third round will get underway on September 30 as the GCB Development Squad will do battle with Berbice at the Wales Community Centre ground, and Demerara and Essequibo will meet at GCC

The squads are as follow:

Demerara: Trevon Griffith, Rajendra Chandrika, Shemroy Barrington, Christopher Barnwell (Vice-captain), Raj Nanan, Zaheer Mohamed, Amir Khan, Rodolph

Knights, Paul Wintz, Seon Daniels, Vishal Singh (Captain), Gavin Moriah, Joseph Perry, and Robin Bacchus. The Coach is Garvin Nedd and the Manager is Clive Grimmond.

Berbice: Kandasammy Surujnarine, Seon Hetmyer, Narsingh Deonarine (Captain), Devon Clements, Royston Crandon, Jonathan Foo, Anthony Bramble, Jason Sinclair, Veerasammy Permaul (Vice-captain), Steven Latcha, Gudakesh Motie, Romario Shepherd, Raun Johnson, and Keon Joseph. The Coach is Hubern Evans and the Manager is Albert Smith.

Essequibo: Anthony Adams (Captain), Ricardo Adams (Vice-captain), Royan Fredricks, Kevon Boodie, Royston Alkins, Heimchand Persaud, Parmesh Parsotam,

Tulsieram Premnauth, Shivindra Heimraj, Keon Davis, Brian Herbert, Mark Gonsalves, Mark Tryll, and Ricardo Peters. The Coach is Vibert Johnson and the Manager is Leroy Hall. GCB Development Squad: Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Chanderpaul Hemraj, Shimron Hetmyer, Kemo Paul, Sheraz Ramcharran, Akshay Homraj, David Latchaya, Damion Waldron, Steven Sankar, Daniel Basdeo, Nial Smith, Keon Morris, Steven Jacobs (Captain), Kemol Savory, Yatesh Dhanpaul, Brian Sattuar, Balchand Baldeo, Renaldo Ali Mohamed. The Coach is Adrian Amsterdam, Assistant Coaches are Julian Moore and Michael Hyles, and the Manager is David Black.

At a simple presentation ceremony hosted at the institution, Branch Manager Anna Abraham, said that it is the Bank’s mandate to give back socially to the various communities within the areas it operates. She said that both indoor and outdoor sporting and game gear such as dominoes, scrabble, checkers, tennis balls, racquets, net balls, footballs and other items were donated.

Accepting the items was NOC’s Sport Coordinator Mark Dover, who said that the equipment came at an opportune time. He said the institution is presently holding its annual sport competitions and the children would benefit.

− final hurdle for local players ahead of WICB franchise tourney

Tagenarine Chanderpaul

Vishal Singh

Kevon Boodie

Shimron Hetmyer

Anthony Adams Narsingh Deonarine

The NOC received a donation of sport gear from Demerara Bank Limited. In photo with students of the institution are Branch Manager Anna Abraham and Sport Coordinator Mark Dover

ASK-G does Guyana proud at Caribbean Championship

ASK-G (YMCA) returned to Guyana with a total of fifty medals after competing in the 1KD Caribbean Karate Championships in Trinidad and Tobago recently.

Twenty-four (24) karatekas from the ASK-G YMCA Dojo came up against the best from several Caribbean countries, including hosts Trinidad. They competed in the team and individual Kata, Kumite, Embu and Bunkai. Of the 50 medals won, 16 were gold, 24 were silver and 10 were bronze.

In the adult male category, both Patrick Cheeks and Keith Beaton lost in the second round of the individual Kumite in close encounters that could have gone either way.

The trio of Patrick Cheeks, Keith Beaton and Roger Peroune won silver medals in the team Kumite and Shane Rahaman replaced Beaton in the trio to win silver in team Kata.

They lost to Barbados in the team Kumite and Trinidad in the team Kata.

In the individual male adult Kata, Roger Peroune placed third with point one of a point separating first and second and second and third respectively.

In the Individual Male 17-19 category, Shane Rahaman won bronze med-

als in both the Kumite and Kata events. In the Female Individual Adult Kumite, reinging champion Nathalie Gibson of Guyana lost in the final to Adanna Moore of Grenada, a title she has held for the past four years.

The Female 17-19 Individual Kata saw Kristina Cheeks and Lakeisha Pearson securing first and second respectively for Guyana. Lakeisha

created history by being the first female karateka of the ASK-G from Linden to secure a medal at this level of competition.

Guyana’s Kemo Cornelius, Shane Wilkinson and Nixon Cheeks easily captured gold in the Boys 14-16 Team Kata, which they repeated in Team Bunkai and Team Enbu. Cornelius then won gold in the Individual Kata and

Nixon Cheeks got gold in the Individual Kumite. This made them the most decorated athletes from Guyana, having both won four gold medals each.

The 14-16 Female category saw Leah Shariff, Kelly-Ann Fortune and Theresa Sampat winning gold in the Team Kata. They placed second in the Team Bunkai with Leah placing third in the

JFIS Second Division Hockey League...

Individual Kumite. Theresa Sampat then won gold in the Individual Kumite (1113 category) with Kelly-Ann Fortune placing second.

ASK-G's Medharishi Ramdhani teamed up with GKC’s Aubrey Bettencourt and Kenrick Cheeks to win silver in the Team Embu and Bronze in Team Kata and Team Bunkai in the Masters division. Medharishi also won bronze in Individual Kata Masters division.

The other outstanding performances were in the Male 8-10 age group with Daniel Jailall, Aryan Singh and Jordan Fae Kong winning silver in both team Kata and Bunkai. Guyana is now preparing for the World Championship scheduled to be held in Toronto, Canada, in 2015.

Hikers edge All Greys 4-3 in thrilling final

After a long delay due to the unavailability of grounds, the Guyana Hockey Board (GHB) managed to stage the final match of the 2013 John Fernandes Insurance Services (JFIS) Limited’s Second Division League.

On Monday last, points leaders All Greys faced second place Hikers in a winner-take-all final match.

The two sides had crossed swords in the first round of competition, which ended in a stalemate, and it would now come down to the wire in a fitting final match of competition to determine who wears the crown as 2013 Second Division champions.

As was predicted, the All Greys, featuring aging stars of yesteryear, sat back in defence and absorbed an onslaught of attacking manoeuvres from the youthful Western Union Hikers in the opening minutes of play.

With the All Greys seemingly playing the ropea-dope made famous by boxer Mohamed Ali, the Hikers appeared to run out of ideas and seemed vulnerable to the occasional All Greys’ counterattacks. It was a

battle of attrition as a draw would see All Greys capturing the trophy and the Hikers seemed less and less likely to penetrate the tight All Greys defence marshalled by former national full back, Ivor Thompson.

After 24 minutes of pressure from the Hikers however, the All Greys defence finally cracked as a loose rebound fell into the path of Aroydy Branford, who smashed his shot into the high right hand corner of the goal.

The All Greys seemed to emerge with renewed enthusiasm in the second half of play and enjoyed a greater share of possession than they did in the first. After seven minutes of play in the second half, All Greys Captain would breathe new life into the game with an accurate penalty corner strike in the near post to draw the score level at 1-1.

Aroydy Branford, who produced an MVP type performance on the evening, received a pass high on the right side of the All Greys goal area in the 46th minute and swiftly dodged left before slipping the ball past the advancing goalkeeper Rawl Davson who, up

to that point, was having a stellar performance himself. With the Hikers enjoying a 2-1 lead, former national captain Alan Fernandes scored possibly the goal of

the match as he eluded several defenders and finished with a diving reverse stick effort to draw the score level at 2-2.

Despite another well placed goal from Gavin

Hope for All Greys, the top class performance from Branford would see him register two more goals in the dying minutes to pull of the Hikers victory. The defending champi-

The ASK-G representatives proudly display their medals

ons Western Union Hikers retained the trophy and Kerensa Fernandes was on hand to make a presentation of the shield to the victors in the ceremony that followed the final match.

Kerensa Fernandes, representing JFIS, presents the shield to members of the victorious Hikers team after their win on Monday

ECCB/ H Nauth and Sons T20 Championship bowls off on September 21

Cricket on the East Coast Demerara is about to get a major boost with the launch of the East Coast Cricket Board/H. Nauth and Sons Construction Company T20 Championship.

The tournament bowls off on September 21 with twelve matches at six separate venues on the East Coast of Demerara.

The exciting development was announced on Wednesday by President of the ECCB, Bissoondyal Singh.

H. Nauth and Sons Construction, a leading Construction company in Guyana is investing a substantive amount in the tournament as the company underscored its commitment to expand the positive impact of cricket on the East Coast Demerara corridor by partnering with the ECCB.

According the ECCB President, the tournament will be played strictly in accordance with the T/20 rules and regulations of the ECCB and will be on a knock-out basis.

Singh outlined that the preliminary rounds will be played with red balls and white uniforms while the final will be played with white balls and coloured uniforms.

Two matches will be played on each ground, with the first set to commence at 10:00 hrs, while the second game will start at 13:00 hrs.

Clubs fielding two teams are not allowed to inter-

change players and each club must declare to the ECCB Competitions Committee on or before Friday September 19, a list of fourteen (14) players who will be representing the club.

The finalist with the highest run rate in the preliminary rounds will be hosting the final. The first prize will be one hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) and a trophy.

For further information, clubs can contact Chairman of the Competitions Committee Raymond Barton on telephone numbers 2201636 or 626-0223.

First round fixture

Upper East Coast Zone

Mahaica Sports Club VS Perserverance at Helena 1-2 Ground at 10:00Hrs Umpires are: Mukesh Persaud and Guyanand Sukou Helena 1-2 VS Unity

at Helena 1-2 Ground at 13:30Hrs Umpires are: Mukesh Persaud and Guyanand Sukou

Dundee VS Bravados at Strathavon Ground at 10:00Hrs Umpires are Charles Gibbons and Cyril Singh

Strathavon VS Avish Auto Sales at Strathavon Ground at 13:30Hrs Umpires are Charles Gibbons and Cyril Singh

Lower East Coast Zone

Enterprise (B) VS Golden Grove at Enterprise Community Centre at 10:00

Hrs Umpire Gavin D’Aguiar

Enterprise (A) VS Lusignan (A) at Enterprise Community Centre at 13:30

Hrs Umpire Gavin D’Aguiar

Plaisance VS Lusignan (B) at Buxton Community Centre at 10:00 Hrs Umpires

Anandjit and Dhanraj

Buxton (B) VS Mon Repos (B) at Buxton Community Centre at 13:30 HRS Umpires

Anandjit and Dhanraj

Better Hope (B) VS Lions XI at Better Hope Community Centre at 10:00 HRS Umpire Kenlyn Baker

Better Hope (A) VS Buxton (A) at Better Hope Community Centre at 13:30 HRS Umpire Kenlyn Baker

Ogle (Blue) VS Mon Repos (A) at Ogle Community Centre at 10:00 HRS Umpire

Robert Adonis and Validam Ripney

Ogle (Red) VS La Bonne Intention at Ogle Community Centre at 13:30 HRS Umpire

Robert Adonis and Validam Ripney

Committee finalised to oversee Albion Floodlights

First Vice-President of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) Anil Beharry will head a six-man committee, which will oversee the business of the recently installed floodlights at the historic Albion Sports Complex.

Republic Bank, Rosignol Branch Manager Imran Saccoor was appointed ViceChairman and will also function in the capacity of Secretary and Public Relation Officer.

Deputy Regional Executive Officer, Region Six Imran Ally will serve as the Assistant Secretary, while Human Resource Manager, Guysuco, Albion Estate Vemen Walter is the committee’s Treasurer. Development Officer, Guysuco, Albion Estate Pawan Baldeo is the Assistant Treasurer and Region Six Sports Officer Omesh Srikishun will serve as the Organising Secretary. Forms related to the terms and conditions, fees and others details for the uses of the lights are available from members of the committee.

The committee will like to inform the public that they only have control of the lights and not the cricket ground. It means then that for any event, prior approval must be sought from Albion Estate for the use of the ground.

In an invited comment, Chairman Anil Beharry congratulated his team and thanked the Regional Chairman and Sport Minister for the thrust and faith they have shown in the committee to run such an expensive and

Super Kings v Knight Riders, CLT20 2014, Hyderabad…

historic facility in the county of Berbice.

He added that his team is a group of hard working, committed and capable persons and assured the Government of Guyana that the lights will be run like a professional business and will sustain itself financially.

The ground, described as the ‘Mecca of Cricket’, locally has contributed to the honing of several renowned batsmen saw the erection of six towers with 17 luminaries on

each pole, totalling 102 -1500 watts bulbs being powered by the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Inc.

The lights were mounted by Musco Sports Lighting of Iowa, USA; the same company that had installed the lights at the Guyana National Stadium.

The Albion ground has been the venue for first class cricket matches with five OneDay International games being played from 1977 and 1985.

Russell, ten Doeschate stun Super Kings

High drama, it seems, can never be too far from a Kolkata Knight Riders batting effort.

Ten overs into the 158run chase against Chennai Super Kings, it seemed as if the Knight Riders of the infamous batting meltdowns had shown up to play. The absence of Robin Uthappa and Jacques Kallis left plenty of volatility to go around. Within a period of 16 balls between the third and the fifth overs, Knight Riders lurched haplessly from 9-0 to 9-2 and then 21-4. Ashish Nehra took three of those wickets, including two off two in the third over. Soon, Suryakumar Yadav was gone and Knight Riders were 51-5.

And then Ryan ten Doeschate and Andre Russell pulled off a heist. Knight Riders went into the last 10 overs needing 98 runs; they won with an over to spare.

The scorecard will show the pair added 80 runs in 45 balls but the numbers fall short of describing the brutality with which ten Doeschate and Russell accumulated the runs. Russell, in particular, has played a

few innings like these for Jamaica Tallawahs in the Caribbean Premier League and it was his charge in the 11th over from Ravindra Jadeja that signalled the

change in the game. Russell smacked two sixes and a four in a 17-run over to temper the required run-rate and give Knight Riders room to breathe.

Thereon, the pair did not allow the Super Kings bowlers to pile on the pressure. Dwayne Bravo bowled a couple of quiet overs but the batsmen controlled the runrate well, taking 18 off the 16th over to drag the equation down to a winnable 32 off 24. The game was decidedly in Knight Riders' hands and although they lost two wickets towards the end, there was little Super Kings could do to wrest the advantage back.

Where Russell's fifty was all power - he finished with a strike rate of 232ten Doeschate was calmer, turning the strike repeatedly but finding the boundary at the right moment in an over. He continued in the same vein after Russell fell, and brought up his fifty with a six in the final over of the match.

Earlier, the experience of MS Dhoni and Bravo lifted Super Kings to 157 after the side had threatened to fall into a rut against Knight Riders' spin attack. The pair changed gears effortlessly to rack up 70 in the last seven overs, after the spin trio of Piyush Chawla, Sunil Narine and Yusuf Pathan

SCOREBOARD

MK

YK

RN ten Doeschate not out 51 SA Yadav

1

PP Chawla 4-0-26-2 (1-w), SP Narine 4-0-9-1 (1-w), YK Pathan 3-0-16-1, AD Russell 1-0-12-0 Kolkata Knight Riders innings (target: 158 runs from 20 overs)

MS Bisla† c Ashwin b Nehra 2

had nullified a brisk start from Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum. A couple of close calls also went Knight Riders' way, specially the dismissals of McCullum, Suresh Raina and Faf du Plessis. McCullum was given out lbw to Pathan although a replay showed that the ball had missed his pad and hit his hand. Raina was given out lbw to Narine even as replays were uncertain over whether it was a no-ball. Du Plessis was given out stumped off Chawla as replays showed that his foot was marginally in the air when Manvinder Bisla whipped the bails off. (Cricinfo)

G Gambhir* c Bravo b Nehra 6

Pandey c Sharma b Nehra 0

Pathan c du Plessis b Sharma

Kiran Nauth, proprietor of H Nauth and Sons Construction Company

One of the newly installed flood lights at the Albion Sports Complex

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Selman leads WI Women rout of NZ

West Indies Women defeated New Zealand Women by eight wickets in the third One-Day International of the four-match series at Warner Park on Wednesday.

The victory, which was set up by Shakera Selman’s five-wicket haul, ensured the West Indies remain unbeaten in the series, now leading 3-0.

Selman’s 5-15, along with Anisa Mohamed’s 3-11, combined to shot out the White Ferns for an embarrassing 69 in 32.2 overs. Rachel Priest made 19 and Maddie Green 14 in a disappointing batting effort.

The West Indies batters ensured the outstanding work of the bowlers was not undone, as they raced to victory at 74-2 in 17.2 overs. Stafanie Taylor 23 not

out and Deandra Dottin 21 not out were at the crease when victory was achieved. (Cricinfo)

SCOREBOARD

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Gale charged with racist abuse after 'Kolpak' outburst

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Ycaptain Andrew Gale has become the first county cricketer to be accused of a racism offence after he was charged on Wednesday by the ECB for a confrontation with Ashwell Prince in the Roses match which included a rejoinder to return to his own country, followed by a disparaging use of the term "Kolpak".

ESPNcricinfo revealed that the Kolpak term was part of the issue under investigation by the ECB hours after Gale was barred from collecting the Championship trophy on Yorkshire's behalf following their clinching of the title with victory against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge.

Now the Daily Telegraph has confirmed that the ECB intends to press ahead with the charge in defiance of Yorkshire's fury that their captain's reputation has been tainted.

The ECB's charge will be that Gale used abusive language with racist connotations when the case the governing body laid itself is heard by its own disciplinary committee.

Yorkshire are assembling a legal team to contest the charge, which has left relationships between the

county and the ECB - historically, often shaky - at their lowest levels for years and soured celebrations of their first Championship title for 13 years

The hearing could take place next week with Gale anticipating a Level 3 charge.

Gale's outburst came against Prince, Lancashire's South African batsman, who qualifies to play domestic cricket by virtue of the Kolpak rule, on the third evening of the Roses match on September 3.

Gale had become increasingly incensed at OId Trafford by Prince's sledging and timewasting as Yorkshire pushed for victory. As tempers flared, Prince told Gale to get back to his fielding position, Gale's rejoinder to Prince was that he should get back to his own country and included a reference to Prince's Kolpak status. There was a dose of bad language on both sides.

The umpires brought a Level 2 charge and Gale was suspended for two matches but the ECB was not satisfied that the affair had been sternly enough dealt with.

Prince's immediate onfield gesticulations indicated that he viewed the outburst as having racist

overtones, and as a Cape Coloured South African immersed in South Africa's apartheid history, his response was perhaps not altogether surprising.

Yorkshire will contend that there is no country, nor racial origin for Kolpaksit is simply a descriptive term for those from many countries who are playing in county cricket because of reciprocal EU trade agreements.

The ECB itself has lobbied hard against Kolpak registrations, with some success, and some senior officials have not always referred to their presence in county cricket in a decorous manner. They, though, are not on trial.

The ECB, led by the chairman Giles Clarke, is adamant that its task is to uphold behavioural standards in the game and no right-thinking person would question that removing the scourge of racism from cricket is a noble aim. Whether Gale's outburst can be fairly regarded in that vein, and whether this is an appropriate occasion on which to make a stand on such a sensitive and important issue, will now be fought out by the lawyers. (Cricinfo)

orkshire's

Andrew Gale (second from left) had to watch the presentation from the dressing room

GSSF receives steel donation for upcoming tournament

With the Guyana Sport Shooting Federation (GSSF) set to host the first steel challenge match; the GSSF received a donation of grade steel targets and stands from Doc.com Pharmacy on Wednesday.

At the handing over ceremony, GSSF Assistant Secretary/Treasurer Ryan McKinnon related the importance of following the rules of the game are.

“We at the GSSF will continue to strictly follow guidelines set out by our affiliate bodies and provide the relevant safety training to all our members so that our matches will be at the

highest international standard.

Our match officials have international certification and experience in administering such competitions,” McKinnon stated.

Managing Director of Doc.com, Pravesh Harry noted, “I’m pleased to support the GSSF and the role they play in promoting competitive shooting both locally and internationally. I will continue to help them whenever I can in their ventures.”

Meanwhile Ken Muffler’s on the East Coast of Demerara will facilitate the fabrication of the targets and various target stands.

Vidushi Persaud,

President of the GSSF highlighted that the new format of shooting is sure to bring excitement to the fans.

Steel Challenge matches are fun for both competitors and spectators. This shooting sport and its rules are easy to understand, fast shooting, reactive targets sounding the hits and the time is the score.

“By maintaining consistent challenges from year to year, the competition lends itself to the notion of setting – and breaking – speed records, which greatly adds to the excitement for all.”

The event will be hosted at the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Timehri Ranges.

Bravo fined for verbally offending Bangladesh batsmen

Dfound guilty of a Level 1 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct for verbally offending the opposition batsmen during

the fourth and final day's play in the second Test against Bangladesh in St Lucia.

Bravo was found to have breached Article 2.1.8 of the code, which relates to

Letter to the Sport Editor RHTY&SC at wits end with omission of Ivan

Dear Editor, The Management of the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC) would like to express its disappointment at the treatment of Rajiv Ivan by the Senior Selection Committee of the Berbice Cricket Board. Mr. Ivan, who recently represented Guyana two years ago was left out of the Berbice one-day team for the first two matches, but was belatedly included. To make matters worse, he has now been overlooked for selection on the Berbice 4-day Inter-county team.

The RHTY&SC, as is well known, has always placed the interest of Berbice cricket above its own and that is why year after year we have worked beyond the call of duty to make sure that Berbice cricket receives the highest percentage of cricket sponsorship in Guyana and we sometimes look after the interest of Berbice more than we do our own.

The RHTY&SC has never used this to gain selection of its players and never will because we strongly believe that selection should

be based on merit.

Mr Ivan’s performance at the Berbice first division level over the last three years has been outstanding and has a better record than most of those selected over the year. He stays at home and performs, while others leave for greener pastures.

Only recently, he led the RHT Gizmos and Gadgets to its 10th Busta Cup with a Man-of-the-Finals performance and was named our runner-up Cricketer-of-theYear. His non-selection is based on the attitude of several selectors who seem to have a personal problem

with him.

The sad part of all this is that these same selectors are among the non-performers in Berbice cricket.

The RHTY&SC is also concerned that Jason Sinclair, one of the top performers in Berbice cricket over the last six years, had to carry ‘drinks’ for all four matches in the one-day tournament.

We stand behind our players and hope that they would be recognised for their outstanding performances. Ivan deserves to be in the Berbice 4-day team and we hope this injustice would be corrected. In closing, I would like to issue an appeal to all cricket officials in Guyana to serve cricket to the best of their abilities and to look after the interest of all players and not only the players from their club. Ivan, based on performances, deserves a place in the Berbice team and the Management of the RHTY&SC demands that this injustice be corrected.

Submitted by, RHTY&SC

Persaud confident ahead of race meets

"…Where the facts of the alleged incident are not adequately or clearly covered by any of the above offences, conduct that either : (a) is contrary to the spirit of the game; or (b) brings the game into disrepute."

An ICC release stated that Bravo had been warned on several occasions not to approach and verbally offend the opposition batsmen and repeatedly failed to heed the umpires' instructions.

Bravo disputed the offence and a formal hearing was then conducted by match referee Roshan Mahanama, with the charge having initially been brought by onfield umpires Steve Davis, Richard Illingworth, third umpire Marais Erasmus and fourth umpire Peter Nero. Mahanama found Bravo guilty and issued a fine of 30% of his match fee.

"The umpires felt that the player's behaviour brought the game into disrepute and he was reminded of his responsibilities to extend respect at all times to both his opponent and to match officials," Mahanama said. (Cricinfo)

Local racer Danny Persaud is confident ahead of the upcoming Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMRSC) September 28 Meet scheduled for the South Dakota Circuit.

Persaud who is second on the points table of the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship behind fellow Guyanese Krisitan Jeffrey related that it is because of the extended support from his family and the thrill of racing on home soil that has his motor going.

Unlike many of the cars, in the competition, Persaud’s Mazda Miata lacks horse pow-

er but has been a “reliable” machine for the category four racer.

“The car has been performing well, we have been able to get it to remain reliable throughout the season and while we may be at a disadvantage. In terms of horsepower, our reliability has been the real key for us and we hope to continue to use it to our advantage for the remainder of the season,” Persaud stated.

After, the two first place finishes in Trinidad and Tobago that was highly impressive, Persaud related that while he was not affected by the bumpy track, he has more

belief in his ability ahead of the September 28 meet that he is using for the final leg of the Caribbean tournament set for November right here in Guyana.

Persaud who believes the motor racing sport is growing to rival much more established sports such as Cricket and Football in Guyana, shared that attendance at the November edition of the Caribbean leg wil be unmatched.

Meanwhile the speedster thanked Banks DIH and Buy Me Auto Sales for always being his sponsors as a racer.

Rajiv Ivan

From left: Ryan McKinnon, Michael Blake, Vidushi Persaud, Kevin Jaikaran of Ken’s Mufflers and Pravesh Hary from Doc.com Pharmacy

arren Bravo, the West Indies batsman, has been

An ICC release stated that Darren Bravo had been warned on several occasions not to approach and verbally offend the opposition batsmen

Danny Persaud and his Mazda car

Commander-in-Chief bowls first ball to start off Joint Services cricket tournament

President Donald Ramotar bowled the ceremonial first-ball to mark the start of a Joint Services cricket match yesterday, at the Eve Leary Police Sports Ground.

The match, which was the final round of a tournament between the Guyana Defence Force and the Guyana Police Force which was also

postponed for various reasons since 2011, saw the army ranks taking home the winning trophy in the 40-over format of the game.

The president met members of each team before the start of the eagerly anticipated event and wished them luck, before bowling the first ball, a spin delivery.

The tournament will

Hutson defines “development”

Many persons might be critical of the way in which the President of the Athletics Association of Guyana (AAG) leads the association.

While many might believe that things should be done a particular way, the proven fact is; you cannot please every one person.

Hutson, who has come to blows by a number of persons highlighted in a recent telephone interview with Guyana Times Sport what his development of a sport should be about, “development is not about what it is about,” Hutson emphatically stated.

In light of a letter written by a member of the AAG, downgrading Hutson’s leadership, Hutson replied, “There is a code of ethics of the IAAF that limits me from responding to missives from members of the association for which disciplinary actions can be handed down,” Hutson noted.

However, Hutson did pose a few questions, “there are eight high per -

formance centres spread throughout the world can you imagine having ten in Guyana situated in each region? It took Guyana 48 years to have a track when will that be accomplished? Can you imagine somebody within the AAG never attending three AAG events?,” Hutson questioned.

Further, the AAG president noted that AAG was able to garner the sponsorship of Nike for a couple of their International engagements noting that “these are the things people should be reporting about”.

Hutson also revealed that because of his administration’s ability to send more than their quota of athletes to meets that the IAAF supplies tickets for, the IAAF has indicated its interest in spending half the money on projects that “does not” entail prize money.

Meanwhile Huston ended by stating, “I would really and truly like to see the day we can sit and be proud of our athletes without tearing each other apart.”

switch to a 20/20 format for the future and a new trophy will be up for grabs, since the winning team today kept the trophy from what was billed as “grudge match”.

The tournament is one of a series of activities intended to foster camaraderie between the joint services and build

a friendship amongst ranks, according to the Government Information Agency (GINA).

A GDF rank faces the first ball bowled by Commander-in-Chief Donald Ramotar

President Donald Ramotar bowling the first ball to start the finals of the GDF versus Police Officers Cricket Competition

VChanderpaul has returned to the top three of the ICC Ranking for Test batsmen following his outstanding performance against Bangladesh in the second Test in St Lucia, which finished on Tuesday.

Prolific Chanderpaul moves to number 3

PPP/C, GCC congratulate Johnson on Test debut

The People Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) have offered congratulations to West Indies newest Test player, Leon Johnson.

Johnson became the 300th player to represent the West Indies in Test cricket, making 66 and 41 in the second Test, which the Caribbean side won by 296 runs to seal a 2-0 series victory over Bangladesh.

The PPP/C in a statement said it is extremely proud of Johnson and firmly believes his call-up was just a matter of time, as he has over the years, demonstrated his prolific batting ability.

“The PPP/C therefore urges young Johnson to continue to execute his mandate with discipline, patience and commitment, three very essential ele-

ments in sports. We believe with the right attitude, as is evident in Johnson, coupled with his talent, his stay in the West Indies will be a long one. The PPP/C therefore urges all Guyanese to rally around this young man who will definitely do us all proud. Play on Leon Johnson! Guyana is with you!” the statement read.

GCC, Johnson’s domestic club in Guyana, was equally elated by his elevation to the highest level of the game.

“Johnson, at 27 years old, has come through the club’s training programme from an early age and has been the First Division captain at the club for several years. The Georgetown Cricket Club is extremely proud of Leon Johnson and we believe that now given the chance will prove what we at the club have always known. With his com-

mitment and natural talent for the game, Johnson will surely become a truly first class West Indies cricketer,” the club said in a release.

President of GCC, Lionel Jaikaran, said, "Leon is following in the footsteps of previous GCC players; Chanderpaul, Sarwan, Hooper, King, McGarrell, Bacchus and Kalicharan to name a few who have represented the oldest club in the Caribbean at the highest pinnacle of West Indian cricket. The executives, members and staff of the Georgetown Cricket Club wish Johnson all the best in his cricketing career.”

Johnson’s solid performance in his maiden Test match should guarantee him a spot on the West Indies team for the much tougher series against hosts India next month.

The Guyanese scored 84 not out and 101 not out, his 30th career century, to end the series as the second highest run-getter with 270 runs.

As a result, he jumped two places and has leapfrogged David Warner of Australia and Angelo Mathews of Sri Lanka into third position.

The batting table is headed by Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka, who leads South Africa’s AB de Villiers by 27 ratings points.

During the series, Chanderpaul became the second batsman - with a minimum qualification of three innings and 200-plus runs - to remain unbeaten in a Test series. He scored 270 runs from three innings without being dismissed. South Africa’s Jacques Kallis was the first batsman to achieve the feat.

Chanderpaul's batting average against Bangladesh is now a staggering 145.9, which is the highest for any batsman with at least 10 innings against a single country.

Since 2012, the left-hander’s batting average against the Asian nation is a mammoth 624, with innings of 201*, 1, 150*, 85*, 84* and 101*.

Chanderpaul also became the 11th batsman to score 30 Test hundreds. Among left-handed batsmen, only two others have more centuries - Sangakkara with 37 and West Indian Brian Lara with 34.

The former captain, who has played a West Indian record of 158 Test matches, moved to 11, 684 career runs, just 269 runs away from eclipsing Lara’s West Indian record of 11, 953.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul kisses the turf after scoring his 30th Test ton on Tuesday last

eteran West Indies batsman Shivnarine

Leon Johnson celebrates his halfcentury on Test debut