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Nationwide coverage from the best news team in Guyana guyana-times.com

Issue No. 2855

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Saturday, May 14, 2016

APNU/AFC Councillors support calls for Ramayya’s removal as REO Page 3

17-year-old drowns in Lusignan canal Page 7

Haslington shop owner stabbed to death by brother-in-law

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Corentyne robbery P8 suspects slapped with 10 charges – one was recently pardon by President Granger

Page 11

Professor’s murder

Teenagers admit to P7 heinous crime

Govt proposed concession P16 reduction is ‘anti-investment’ – Jagdeo

Wismar Market vendors feel neglected As the Mayor and City Council continues its raids around the Stabroek Market Square, a number of mobile vendors had their carts and merchandise impounded on Friday. In photo: This vendor stopped in front of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, along Avenue of the Republic in Georgetown, to sell a slice of watermelon but was approached by a City Constabulary Officer, who asked the merchant to push his cart into the compound of City Hall. Inset: the City Constabulary Officer pushing the cart to City Hall along with the vendor (Dexter Ceres photo)

Lazy public servants to receive lazy person’s salary – Granger Page 16

Foreign investors mission in Guyana to explore investment opportunities Page 2

– calls made for new Town Council to P17 intervene

Baby succumbs to burns while receiving treatment P3 overseas

2 news

saturDAY, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

Foreign investors mission in Guyana to explore investment opportunities

By Devina Samaroo

O

ver thirty international companies’ representatives, with a wide range of interests, are currently in Guyana to explore the vast investment opportunities available.

The Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) in conjunction with the newly established Guyana–America Chamber of Commerce Trade and Investment, organised a mission of investors as a part of a wider initiative to foster trade between the two countries.

During an interview with Guyana Times Director of the Caribbean OAA Wesley Kirton explained that the idea is to provide a platform for the investors to discover the various products and services offered in Guyana and to develop networks and channels through which these can be sourced, and to also pave the way for potential investments within local companies.

Harvest Valley, one of the largest food distributors in the United States, is one of the investors on the mission, with

The Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) Mission visited the Queens Atlantic Investment Inc (QAII) Group of Companies, inclusive of the Guyana Times/Evening News/Radio Guyana Inc media outlets where they interacted with staff on their prospects in the country

the intention of finding local producers capable of supplying approximately 2000lbs of pork per week.

In fact, the company is also interested in sourcing other products in bulk quantities from Guyana including seafood, vegetables and fruits.

However, given that local producers currently are without the capacity to meet that

demand, both parties will embark on consultations to determine suitable arrangements.

“Guyana is not in a position to supply 2000lbs of pork per week. However, what we can do, is in consultation with that company, seek to do that over a period of time. We can seek to meet that demand to develop our pig industry to the point where we can sat-

isfy that demand,” Kirton explained.

He said this would require the production of high quality products, reliable delivery, and meeting phytosanitary requirement as well as other measures to ensure the product gains entry into the United State market.

Another company on the mission is looking to enter an arrangement with local coconut water producers.

The company wants to source about 8 40ft containers of frozen coconut water packaged in 5ml plastic bottles per year.

Moves are currently afoot with local interests to determine whether or not Guyana can satisfy that demand, and if not, develop a plan aimed at expanding the local coconut industry.

Representative of the Taiwan Government Phillip Wang, also part of the team, said his visit to Guyana is to basically explore the investment opportunities and to share experiences with the business community that can aid in its further development.

The Caribbean OAA

Director said the discussions are going fairly well, with both sides demonstrating lots of interest in the proposals.

“So by the end of the mission, we hope there are concrete steps outlined to make sure this is a successful mission that will be mutually beneficial to both sides,” he stated.

He explained that OAA will not exactly be involved in the deliberations between the local and foreign companies, however it stands ready to assist in any way it possibly can.

“We are going to bring the horses to the water and then leave them to drink. But if we

can help facilitate any movement that will bring positive results, we will be at the disposal at companies on both ends,” he stated.

Kirton also thanked the Government of Guyana and the local private sector body for facilitating this mission.

Most of the team will be departing today, however other members will be staying to continue negotiations.

It is expected that other representatives will visit soon to follow up on discussions that were started during the duration of their first visit to Guyana.

Commemorative coins, $50 bank note a statement of Guyanese identity – President Granger

President David Granger receives the $50 bank note from Governor of the Bank of Guyana, Dr Gobind Ganga at the Ministry of the Presidency

P

resident David Granger was on Friday presented with two commemorative coins and the new $50 bank note by Bank of Guyana Governor, Dr Gobind Ganga at the Ministry of the Presidency. The coins and the note were produced by the Bank to commemorate Guyana’s 50th Independence Anniversary.

The coins were designed by the Bank of Guyana in collaboration with the two winners of the 50th anniversary celebration logo – Chris Taylor and Compton Babb.

The $5000 coin is struck in silver and plated in gold while the $2000 coin is struck in a metallic alloy and plated in gold. They were struck by the Mint of Norway.

Like the coins, the $50 note too, was inspired by Guyana’s national symbols.

Dr Ganga explained that on the front of the note is printed the 50th independence anniversary celebration logo as well as the peoples of Guyana.

The reverse side of the note has the map of Guyana, which is superimposed on

the flag. It also features the National Motto, a depiction of the forest, the national flower, doves – representing land of the free and peace, and words “sunshine, rain, mountain and sea” from the National Anthem.

President Granger, who is also a numismatist (coin collector), was particularly excited about the commemorative coins and spoke about his own collection, which he said tells the story of the colonisation of Guyana by the Dutch and the British, the country’s engagement with the Eastern Caribbean Currency Board and Independence.

“I feel very happy now that we have a major commemorative occasion we will be able to give to our children and grandchildren something that they could remember this great event by… it generates pride, and a feeling of belonging to the State of Guyana,” the Head of State said.

He also urged the Bank of Guyana to ensure wider distribution and sale of the coins, which at present, are only available at the Bank.

news

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saturDAY, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Saturday, May 14 – 11:30h-13:00h and Sunday, May 15 – 12:30h-14:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Saturday, May 14 – 10:20h-11:50h and Sunday, May 15 – 11:35h-13:05h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY Heavy rainfall can be expected in the morning, while light rain showers with sunny intervals can be expected in the afternoon. Partly cloudy conditions are expected to prevail in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 25 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to East North-easterly between 3.57 metres per second and 5.36 metres per second.

High Tide: 10:39h and 23:27h reaching maximum heights of 2.15 metres and 2.14 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 004:09h and 16:48h reaching minimum heights of 1.12 metres and 1.03 metre respectively.

WEDNESday, May 11, 2016

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APNU/AFC Councillors support calls for Ramayya’s removal as REO

T

he A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Regional Councillors in Berbice have joined the call for embattled Regional Executive Officer (REO) of Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) Dr Veerasammy Ramayya to be removed from his post over his apparent incompetence.

APNU’s lead Councillor at the Regional Democratic Council (RDC), Samuel Fraser, was very vocal when the Council held its May statutory meeting on Thursday and made no hesitation in joining calls for Ramayya to be removed from the position of REO. For several months, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Councillors have been lobbying for the REO to be replaced. A no-confidence motion against Ramayya was even tabled last year at the Council’s statutory meeting and was passed in November with a 16-8 majority vote.

Adding fuel to the fire, Ramayya recently imposed a limit on the amount of fuel to be issued to Regional Vice Chairman, Dennis DeRoop, who also heads the Regional Works Committee.

At Thursday’s meeting, Fraser said “enough is enough” and joined the call for the REO’s removal. The APNU Councillor pointed out that the REO as a public servant should keep his focus on administrative work

APNU’s lead Councillor Samuel Fraser

which he has not been doing.

“The previous REO, I understand used to remain in the office in the afternoon to get his work done and even on weekends. We cannot have our administration on TV discussing politics. The President (David Granger) said that the election period is over. We need the REO to be in his office doing his work... I support all that you have been saying,” Fraser remarked to the Council during the recent statutory meeting.

However, Regional Chairman David Armogan explained to the Council that the utterances from Fraser are meaningless unless he and his collogues take their concerns to the

party. “We can talk here all the time but it don’t mean anything. You have to use the mechanisms that your party has to get action, but I am glad that you raised it,” the Chairman stated.

Meanwhile, PPP Councillor Zaman Hoosain had earlier moved a motion to have the cap on fuel for the Vice Chairman’s vehicle removed. According to the motion, the REO has no authority to regulate the use of or to stop the supply of fuel to the vehicles assigned to the Vice Chairman.

“Be it resolved that the decision of the Regional Executive Officer to stop the supply of fuel to motor vehicle PKK 6310 be rescinded and that fuel be supplied forthwith to the said vehicle.

And be it further resolved that a cap on fuel for vehicle PKK 6310 and the Vice Chairman’s vehicle be removed immediately,” the motion presented to the Council detailed.

When the motion was voted on, it received full support from the PPP and five of the seven coalition Councillors.

Ramayya was not at the meeting at which he should have been the clerk.

Concerns were also raise that Councillors are not being paid their travelling allowances and contractors have been waiting on payments for months. According to Armogan, some of the vouchers have been sitting

Embattled Region Six REO, Dr Veerasammy Ramayya

on the REO’s desk since February to be signed.

Only recently, the Region Two RDC also expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the region’s REO, Rupert Hopkinson.

At the May Regional Democratic Council (RDC) meeting, Councillors from the Government and Opposition sides debated the poor performance of the REO. The RDC expressed dissatisfaction that the REO had sidelined the Accounts Department by having an inexperienced Accounts Clerk in the office of his confidential secretary to examine vouchers, thus creating delays in processing of vouchers.

Baby succumbs to burns while receiving treatment overseas

A

lmost three weeks battling for his life after suffering 50 per cent second and third degree burns to his body, baby Devin Bishoondial, 15 months old, succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment overseas.

In late April, the toddler was admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital Paediatric Surgical Unit after receiving injuries when his elder brother allegedly lit a fire and threw a highly flammable substance into the fire. It was reported that the baby received seriously burns about his face, chest and legs.

Due to the condition of the toddler, The

Saving Hands Emergency Aid (SHEA) Charity along with other organisations made arrangements for him to be taken overseas but after fighting long and hard to survive, his tiny, fragile body could not handle the severity of his injuries.

Guyana Times understands that the toddler died due to complications stemming from fluid build-up in his lungs, and heart failure.

His mother is devastated and is struggling to come to grips with the pain of losing her child.

Preparations are being made for the funeral.

Dead: Devin Bishoondial

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guyana-times.com

saturdAY, may 14, 2016

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

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

Editorial

Ongoing action to tackle domestic violence

O

ver the past few months, this newspaper published a number of reports of women being murdered at the hands of their partners, in most cases ending years of sexual, physical and emotional abuse.

The fact that so many of our women are still being killed or physically harmed underlines the need for all stakeholders to do more to address domestic and other forms of violence being experienced in our communities.

Earlier this week, the gruesome murder of a woman, Bhagwattie Etwaru, 50, of Rose Hall, Corentyne, who was hacked to death allegedly by her reputed husband, in what is regarded as a tragic end of years of abuse and torment, shocked the nation.

The details of this incident, more particularly, the manner in which the woman met her demise is enough to cause the relevant officials and all stakeholders who should be concerned with such matters to reach out and do more to end this scourge.

Based on reports in the media, the man would assault the woman in full view of her children and on several occasions, he even threatened to kill her. One of the woman’s daughters was quoted in the media as saying that she witnessed the man beating her mother several times before.

Neighbours and relatives also had similar stories in relation to the violence meted out to the woman, but inspite of all of this no one saw it fit to take the necessary action once and for all by demanding that the relevant authorities step in.

It very unfortunate in most of these cases, even though many persons are well aware of the situation, it is only after someone is killed that serious thought is given to the matter.

From all indications, it is clear that several layers of support systems which should have served to protect the woman, failed to do so; these include, relatives, neighbours, community and religious leaders, police, and so on.

This of course is yet another example of enough not being done to prevent death of one of our women.

Many would ask why so many women are still being battered despite the fact that so much work has been done and still is being done to address domestic violence.

For example in 2008, the Stamp It Out campaign was launched; in 2009, Breaking The Silence campaign commenced; in 2010, the government passed the Sexual Offences legislation with more emphasis on rape and abuse; and numerous programmes being carried out by various ministries, government departments, religious and civic bodies, and NGOs to address the problem.

Further, the then Human Services Ministry under the PPP/C Administration initiated a number of studies aimed at arriving at the “drivers” of domestic violence with the aim of understanding the male perspective, and looking at the farreaching consequences of the scourge on the country as a whole.

What needs to be done is well known. There have been numerous studies done and numerous recommendations made to address domestic violence. The work has to be ongoing and needs to be tackled from all fronts. For example, as we have said before, the community has a role to play.

Religious organisations and community groups are the eyes and ears of the authorities and they have a duty to report instances of abuse or even when they suspect it is taking place.

Also, the law enforcement aspects are a critical part of the solution. It is no secret that there have been several complaints by victims of abuse and their relatives that some police officers are not carrying out their duties in a manner that they should.

As in the most recent case of Etwaru, the perception is that they treat complaints of abuse in a rather light manner.

That said, there is need for adequate support systems to be put in place to offer long-term assistance to victims of abuse.

Telling women to get out of abusive relationships and providing some counselling on a short-term basis are not enough. What about the long-term financial support for victims and their children. Victims most times worry that they would be worse off financially and otherwise if they go on their own.

Further, the problem will also need to be tackled from the perspective of the abuser, such as providing ongoing counselling and other support aimed at changing behavioural patterns.

This booth, which was one of the highlights at the Expo, is exhibiting products that were all made from local produces. The local exhibitors noted that in observance of the country’s 50th Independence Anniversary celebrations, they intend to market what Guyana has to offer

City Hall’s disregard for vendors Dear Editor, When I pass along the area the Georgetown City Council has the nerve to call “The Parliament View Mall” which should really be called “Parliament View Tent City”, as a mall is a modern, complex of shops representing merchandisers and not rows of tents, I shed a tear for my brothers and sisters who are forced to vend there.

It reminds me of what my history teacher told me about how the captains used to load their boats with slaves with one system called loose packing to deliver slaves whilst the other was called tight packing. Of

course the Parliament Mall is tight packing with two persons made to share a small space with all their goods.

It is the discrimination of the vendors by the Council that bothers me. For friends and relatives of senior administrators of the Council who are vendors, the Council built sturdy weather proof and attractive booths all along Orange Walk and in other areas and housed them there safely. Whilst for vendors who have no pals in the Council, they are accommodated under small flimsy tents and are exposed to the elements.

City Council’s treatment

of the vendors is comparable to George Orwell’s allegorical and dystopian novel called Animal Farm, particularly as it relates to the quote: “all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others”.

Worse than that, the Town Clerk in his continued justification for the brutish removal of the vendors has said that crimes around Stabroek Market have significantly decreased since he removed the vendors. He is quoted as saying crime was high in the area, with the council receiving reports of at least 10 robberies daily outside Demico

House alone and that ever since the area was cleared, there has been no such report.

Further, he is quoted as saying some vendors also conspired with the criminals in the execution of robberies. To make it simple he is saying that some vendors are criminals, a most hurtful and tactless statement that he should be made to withdraw and apologize for.

If the City Constabulary knows who these vendors are then they should arrest and charge them.

Sincerely, Jermain Johnson

Ramjattan should focus on workable crime fighting strategy Dear Editor, The Public Security Minister mentioned that “Crime will not be reduced drastically overnight” and that a lot of things have to be done as per Guyana Chronicle, May 6, 2016.

The said Minister and some of his colleagues whilst in opposition were quick to blame the then Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee for the crime situation during his tenure. If I recall there were repeated calls for his removal on that basis as well.

It is also important to note that while the PPP/C

Administration were criticised on many levels, including crime and perceived corruption, those who were once vocal have now adopted a strange silence. It seems as if they are now burying their heads in the sand like an ostrich. These folks should speak out against this government’s poor management of the country in all areas.

The minister and various law enforcement authorities should not comfort themselves by pointing to reduced crime statistics when there are frequent murders and robberies taking place.

If this continues Guyana

will not be a place where nationals from other countries would want to visit. Saying a lot of things need to be done is just not good enough at this time.

We need to hear of a workable crime fighting plan as the gun amnesty, 2 am curfew, and dog and pony show have all failed miserably.

It is my belief that this administration lacks the knowledge to come up with a workable plan to bring the current crime situation under control.

This is especially disappointing due to the number of key exmilitary and police personnel that currently hold major posi-

tions within it.

My suggestion is that the government of President David Granger look at the theory of ‘Broken Window’ used by the New York Police Department in an effort to reduce crime.

In closing, I wish to urge the Public Security Minister to stop blaming the former administration and focus on formulating a workable crime fighting strategy or risk going down as the worst Home Affairs Minister this country has ever produced.

Yours faithfully Gopaul Singh

guyana-times.com

saturDAY, may 14, 2016

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What message is the Social cohesion cannot President sending? be piecemealed!

Dear Editor, President David Granger has renamed the Ogle airport after Eugene Francis Correia.

Many have questioned his rationale. To date no proper explanation has been given.

One would assume that in naming public buildings that the government would have first developed a policy and perhaps an impartial committee to receive suggestions, to investigate, to hold consultations and to make recommendations on the renaming.

It is obvious that such a process was not followed and hence the controversy.

The renaming of the Ogle airport after EF Correia may not be the best choice.

EF Correia was elected as the representative for Bartica and the Interior as a Member of the National Democratic Party from May to December, 1953. After the British suspended the constitution in December 1953, the PPP was removed and the British established an Interim Legislative Council from 1954 to 1957. EF Correia was nominated as a member of this interim body.

He became a candidate for the PNC, and after the 1961elections once again became an elected legislator from 1961 to 1964. As is known this period of our history is marked by political violence. According to Cheddi Jagan in the West on Trial,

on 10 May, 1963 the police raided Congress Place and discovered, “a great deal of arms, other offensive weapons and ammunition, a number of documents, including assassination plots and plans for extensive military training, acids and chemicals for bomb making.”

One of the documents that was discovered was the infamous X13 plan. It detailed how the following public buildings were attacked and destroyed, these include, Transport and Harbours Department Office – 17 June, 1963, Campbellville Government School – 2 June, 1963, Georgetown Ferry Stelling, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Health, Labour and Housing – 23 June, 1963, Central Housing and Planning, Rice Marketing wharf (attempt) – 24 June, 1963 and the Education Department – 25 June, 1963.

It also listed these places as targets to be dynamited: Metropole Cinema, Robb Street, Rio Cinema, Albouystown, a Laundry at D’Urban & Hardina Streets, the Oil Tanks at Kingston and a Russian or Cuban Ship. To facilitate this campaign of violence, dynamite sticks had to be procured.

In a document produced by the special branch titled, “Research into the PNC terrorist organisation” it had

this to say, that at a meeting on 4 May, 1963, between 4.40 and 5.00 pm, Claude Graham held a meeting at Legionnaires’ Hall, at Fifth & Light Streets. He told those gathered, “the party had five hundred sticks of dynamite, blasting gelatin and safety fuses which were kept in an engine case at CLARKE & MARTIN, BRICKDAM. The explosive was brought from Kwakwani early in May 1963 by William Blair, Member of the Legislative Assembly, and from Stampa Quarry on 8 May, 1963 by Eugene Correia and one Williams who works at Stampa. (Williams is a ‘NEW NATION’ Vendor and once worked at WINIPERU).”

Prime Minister Burnham rewarded him by making him Minister of Communication in the postIndependence government.

President David Granger, a soldier and historian should obviously be aware of these facts.

I am therefore left to wonder what message is he trying to send to the people of Guyana on the eve of these Jubilee celebrations by placing the name of a man who aided and abetted terrorism and destruction of public property on one of our international airports.

Regards Cedric Lord

Dear Editor, The actions to foster social cohesion cannot be piecemealed! We are either in or out! I listened in horror last Wednesday night as I sat in the National Cultural Centre and heard the person doing the welcome make the biggest blunder of the night.

She proceed to welcome all the attendees, then said that it is a year now since we had the change “we all were waiting for”. This she said at the event titled “One”, which was attended by members and constituents of the opposing parties and on the occasion pegged to highlight the inaugural social cohesion Day. Does that young lady not know that 49 per cent of the country did not vote for the change we now have? Why would she presume that only supporters of the current administration were present?

Let me congratulate the organisers and performers of the night’s event. It was obvious that a lot of thought went into the concept of the event.

It is also obvious that the constraint of time negatively affected the outcome. I am of the strong opinion that the planners of many of these national events and activities are not paying enough attention to the equal and needed inclusivity of all the races in Guyana. There seems to be some level of a racial or political scotoma (blind spot), affecting those in the upper

Hamilton Green’s hypocrisy is beyond belief Dear Editor, Every time one reads a letter in the press authored

by Hamilton Green, one is more struck with disbelief at the audacity of this gentleman, with the most recent one being captioned “Hamilton Green wants an end to this exploitation.”

First, in his ramblings he expresses his displeasure at still carrying the name of the European slave master and not that of his noble ancestors. Oh please! If he were indeed that troubled all of his eighty plus years on this earth by his English name, then it would have been quite simple for him to have a deed of change of name effected allowing him to become Mzwaga Dandada or some other name of his “noble ancestors” that he chooses. There was no need for him to propagate the wrong name for generations past.

Second, he draws attention to the horrors of the African Slave trade that was beneficial to some but damaging for centuries. How noble this sounds, but then again his exploitation of the members of the House of Israel among so many others, for so many years, hardly differs when one looks at the servitude he subjected them to.

He then launches into a

long-winded diatribe about the damage being done to our environment, the wanton destruction of our country, pointing the gold leaving Guyana and the extraction of logs.

He then suggests a halt be put to all mining for gold, diamond and timber for an agreed period, particularly, by the overseas so-called investors, who have little concern that our children will inherit an ugly hinterland.

Again very righteous sounding but so very impractical.

Where would he find employment for the hundreds if not thousands of miners and loggers from the interior?

At the Central Housing and Planning Authority where he has already had a lot of

his cohorts employed? Or the plan is for them to join the profusion of bandits already terrorizing Guyana?

He then calls for a full study to come out with a clear policy and strict rules for the exploitation of the country’s precious nonrenewable resources, claiming that the early pork knockers did not assault our rivers and creeks and that they must be turning in their graves seeing the dirty streams, which were once clear clean rivers, creeks and lakes, and that now even reptiles cannot go; fish and trees have been destroyed forever.

But what about the filth and muck that built up in Georgetown during the 21year period that he ruled the

capital city as Mayor?

Did he not owe it to our children and their children to stop the debauching of the Garden City?

Such hypocrisy is beyond belief.

Sincerely, Mark Roopan

echelons of this current administration. I am deliberately being tough on this administration because it is this administration that has established a social cohesion Ministry.

I said in another letter that there are some whose desire is to kill this social cohesion movement. However, until they have the final say, those under the purview of President Granger should do all they can to make an indelible impression both on the supporters and on the haters of nationally unity.

Editor additionally, I could not help but extract for scrutiny, a few excerpts from President Granger’s address to the Parliament. One part that jumped out at me is when the President spoke of the public infrastructure that stretched from Skeldon to Mahaica. He said this, “…A new international airport, at Atkinson Field (now Timehri) [today called the Cheddi Jagan International Airport]”.

Now which is it? Timehri International Airport or Cheddi Jagan International Airport? Or put another way. Is it (now Ogle) [today called the Eugene F Correia International Airport?], or is it the Eugene F Correia International Airport?

I also noticed that President Granger in his sweeping address to the Parliamentary Chambers spoke of the developments that immediately followed our independence (which was mostly dominated by PNC governance) but he said absolutely nothing about the development that followed the PNC rule.

How could we speak of 50 years in such simplistic, selected, pockets of time? Or is it that the President will speak more specifically on these realities come the 26th?

He then said, “The absence of national unity has impaired national development. It has

triggered a continuous trickle of migration. It has led to political and economic fatigue.”

I like this!

However, I think the President needs to go further.

He needs to say why this is so. What caused it? And how we can end it. The President must reveal the perpetrators of Guyana’s ethnic and sociology ills, much like today he is revealing the perpetrators of our financial ills. Audit our history, President Granger, so that we never repeat it. It is said that “He who forgets history is destined to repeat it”.

The President bemoaning our racial tangles after 50 long years provides proof enough that because we fear to deal with the root cause of the problem, we continue to live with its vestures.

Editor, as I read the President’s speech today, it looks as if he has basically outsourced the work of Social Cohesion to the Parliament.

As leader of the Executive Branch, I did not see sufficient vision casting. I did not hear him say what the Executive arm of the country plans to do. Editor, we have come to the one year marker of this new administration, we have also come to the year of our jubilee. Social Cohesion is the President’s baby. He should use this opportunity to do something big.

So far, all the national issues which began partisan have remained partisan. However, as much as the President goes big to pardon women and youth, I think he should go big and do something remarkable in support of his social cohesion baby.

For I honestly believe that actions to foster Social Cohesion cannot be piecemealed. We are either in or out.

Pastor Wendell Jeffrey Practical Christianity Ministries

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saturday, may 14, 2016

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Foundation

Can sleep training be harmful?

BY ELIZABETH HURCHALLA

W

Overview

aking up every couple of hours to tend to a crying baby can feel like torture to many new parents. But is letting your little one cry it out with sleep training a harmless solution that ensures better sleep for parents and baby alike, or is it a sure fire way to damage your relationship with your child?

Some experts say sleep training works. Others suggest the practice is neglectful. Still others say it depends on the child.

One thing is clear: Losing sleep night after night isn’t good for anyone.

Chronic sleep deprivation has been linked to everything from heart disease to obesity. There are also mental-health risks. According to a 2009 study published in “Archives of Women’s Mental Health,” sleep-deprived moms are at greater risk for post-partum depression. Another study from 2011 shows a link between sleep deprivation and marital problems. It’s tough to be a patient, loving, present parent and spouse or partner when you’re exhausted.

Even if you’re willing to sacrifice your own well-being for the sake of your child, sleep deprivation is unhealthy.

What is sleep training?

Paediatric Sleep Specialist Jill Spivack typically recommends teaching a baby who is at least four to six months old to self-soothe by establishing a consistent

guyana-times.com

bedtime routine, making sure the room is quiet and dark and putting the baby to bed sleepy but awake. But babies who are used to being rocked, sung, nursed or otherwise helped to sleep tend not to like it when you stop.

That’s why the most common form of sleep training is sometimes called “cry it

out.”

Although there are many variations on the theme, including just leaving your baby on her own until she stops crying, most experts recommend periodic brief checks on your baby if she starts crying. This is known as the “controlled crying” technique.

Will crying it out harm my baby?

“There are absolutely no studies that have found any such thing,” says Jodi Mindell, PhD, author of Sleeping Through the Night and Associate Director of the Sleep Centre at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “All the studies that have looked at

short-term outcomes have actually found that babies are more securely attached and benefit in multiple ways following sleep training.”

An Australian study published in the journal Paediatrics in 2012 suggested no longer-term issues either. Of babies whose parents reported sleep prob-

lems at seven months, half were sleep trained with controlled crying or camping out (staying in your child’s room while she cries until she falls asleep, moving farther away on successive nights until you’re outside her room), and half were not. Five years later, the researchers followed up with the then six-year-olds and found “behavioural sleep techniques have no marked long-term effects (positive or negative). Parents and health professionals can confidently use these techniques to reduce the shortto medium-term burden of infant sleep problems and maternal depression.”

However, Elizabeth Pantley, author of The No-Cry Sleep

Solution, calls the study flawed: “Thirty-one per cent of the participants dropped out. The parents told the researchers that their babies weren’t negatively affected by sleep training — would they say otherwise?”

In Pantley’s view, “If a baby is left to cry it out at sleep times, he cannot understand why his calls are answered only some of the time. Responding to your child’s cries is one way to build that trust from a young age so that your child knows that when he needs you, you will be there.”

Michael Commons, Harvard University Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, and Patrice Miller, Salem State University psychology professor, have even speculated that the American and Northern European inclination to promote early independence (for example, expecting infants to sleep in a crib in a separate room and leaving them to cry rather than co-sleeping and consoling them anytime they are upset) may contribute to a greater risk of posttraumatic stress disorder later in life. In a paper presented to the Association for the Advancement of Science in Philadelphia in 1998, the pair wrote, “Early stressful practices may produce lasting effects, as the brain is still developing. There may be permanent alterations in stress-related neurotransmitter systems (such as the release of higher levels of cortisol).”(livestrong.com) TO BE CONTINUED

Pros and cons of swaddling your baby

BY HANNAH WICKFORD

S

Overview

waddling infants was commonplace before the 18th century, and the practice is gaining a new following in the United States since swaddling babies has several benefits and very little risk.

Swaddling can also benefit you as a new parent, as handling a calm newborn who sleeps well will help you to stay calm and rested.

Sleep solutions

Swaddling your baby can keep him from making sudden movements and startling himself, thereby promoting sleep. The age at which you should stop swaddling varies by child, but it is generally around the threemonth-old mark. In his book The Happiest Baby on the Block, Dr Harvey Karp explains that although swaddling helps to mimic the confines of the uterus, giving babies a comforting feeling, the womb is a noisy place. He recommends the use of white noise along with swaddling to promote sleep in infants.

Crying calm down

The medical community generally concedes that swaddling your baby can help to calm her and decrease the amount of time that she spends cry-

ing. A study conducted in 2007 by researchers from Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital and the University Medical Centre Ulbrecht monitored 398 babies from birth until three months of age, with one group being swaddled and the other group receiving normal intervention. The study concluded that swaddling does help to calm children and decrease crying only in certain age groups. The swaddled group exhibited significantly less crying between the ages of one week and seven weeks.

Hip dysplasia concerns

Researchers from the Children’s Hospital Boston and the Harvard M e d i c a l School have weighed in on the swaddling debate, acknowledging that it may help your baby sleep better and cry less. They have expressed concern, however, that swaddled infants are at a higher risk of developing hip dysplasia than infants who are not swaddled. Roughly 17 percent of newborns show some signs of dysplasia that usually resolve over time without treatment. Although formal research is lacking with regard to swaddling and the prevalence of dysplasia, it is believed that swaddled babies who had a healthy newborn physical examination may develop hip dysplasia later on, particularly babies in families wit-h a history of dysplasia or who were in the breech position prior to birth.

Decreases SIDS risk

Dr Bradley Thach from the Department of Paediatrics at Washington University reviewed several studies relating to swaddling of infants. He concluded that since infants who are swaddled are unable to crawl in their crib or pull bedding over their heads, they are at a significantly lower risk of accidental suffocation. Always lay your swaddled baby down on his back to decrease the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS.

Heat and circulation

Before swaddling your newborn, be sure you know the proper way to do it.

Wrapping your baby too tightly can cause problems with circulation or cause her to overheat, which can lead to serious medical complications, according to the University of Florida.

Have your midwife or a nurse show you the proper way to swaddle to avoid any health risks. (livestrong.com)

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saturday, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

17-year-old drowns in Lusignan canal

S

unset of Thursday brought great grief to family and friends of Vicky Persaud, 17, whose body was fished out of the Lusignan Canal.

According to reports, the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) student scheduled to sit the examination on Friday, left home Thursday afternoon in the company of a colleague whom he would usually work with on a part-time basis, to dispose of garbage near the ‘line top’ canal in Lusignan.

It is alleged that Persaud fell into the canal when he bent over to wash his hands.

Deaded: Vicky Persaud

Aunt of the now deceased boy, Natasha, said she was

informed that the child was with his part-time employer and son when he fell to his demise.

It is reported that upon realising he was about to fall, Persaud reached for the foot of his employer’s son, in an attempt to save himself.

However, this resulted in the duo falling into the canal.

Natasha relayed that screams for help were heard from the boys, since neither knew how to swim. She said that Persaud’s boss then jumped into the canal in an effort to save his son, but this proved fruitless since he also could not swim.

Villagers were alerted by the cries for assistance and rushed to rescue the trio but by then it was too late for Persaud, whose body had moved from sight.

According to Natasha, the Vigilance Police Station was informed of the incident but they responded some one hour and fifteen minutes later.

She said the excuse given by the officers was that there were no vehicles available for them to travel to the area.

Persaud’s aunt further relayed that when the officers did show up, they refused to conduct a search for

the boy’s body in the canal.

Another hour later and the body of Vicky Persaud was found by residents of the area.

Meanwhile, this incident was described as ‘sad’ by a senior rank of the Vigilance Police Station who declared that for villagers to expect there will always be an available officer at the Police Station, was irrational.

He said further that another unreasonable thought was for persons to think all officers knew how to swim and would put their life at risk for “an already dead person.”

It was reported by Natasha that a post mortem examination was conducted Friday, and the results were that Persaud’s death was caused by head trauma and drowning.

The family of the dead boy indicated that though they are not holding anyone responsible for the young man’s death, they are hoping for investigations to continue in an effort to reveal exactly what occurred in the seconds leading up to Persaud’s death.

Young Vicky Persaud leaves to mourn his parents, brother, 15, and sister, 13.

Professor’s murder

Teenagers admit to heinous crime

H

ours after Guyaneseborn American Professor Perry Mars was found dead in his Prashad Nagar, Georgetown, home, gagged and tied to a chair, the police have arrested six teenagers - four boys and two girls for the gruesome murder.

Upon arrest they were found with a sum of cash, a laptop computer, an I-phone and a play station.

The six youngsters were reportedly arrested in the Campbellville and Sophia areas and have been positively identified by eyewitnesses who saw them on Thursday evening removing suitcases from the now dead man’s home and placing them in a car.

Police have confirmed that none of the teenagers are older than 18. From re-

ports, the now dead man would normally help the same group of teenagers.

They would visit the home and take on jobs of cleaning the yard and washing his vehicles. He also assisted them with food items sometimes.

Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum when contacted told Guyana Times that five of the teenagers including a female have given the police statements that detailed the actual robbery and murder.

He noted that the sixth teen only received stolen items.

Based on reports, the mastermind of the episode is a 17-year-old girl, who frequented the man’s house and who resides in close proximity.

On the day of the incident, she reportedly phoned her boyfriend and informed him that the professor would

Dead: Professor Perry Mars

be at home alone and that it was an opportune time to commit the robbery.

The boyfriend, according to their statement, agreed and picked up a few friends and went to Prashad Nagar. While there, they met with the mastermind

and planned the robbery.

The girl then walked to the man’s house and upon seeing her, he opened the door and let her in. As she entered, she left the door ajar.

The others then entered Mars’ home and attacked him. First they reportedly duct taped his hand and feet and tied him to a chair after which one of them strangled him since he would have seen their faces.

The suspects then collected a sum of cash and other valuables and left the premises.

Professor Mars, 75, of Lot 395 Bissessar Avenue, Prashad Nagar, was discovered by his wife in his study at about 19:00h on the evening. The house was ransacked and several articles and cash were missing.

Guyana Times under-

stands that Mars’ spouse, who works with the Legal Aid Clinic, spent most of Thursday out of town and upon return she made the gruesome discovery. She immediately contacted the police who cordoned off the area and launched an investigation.

The now dead professor studied history at the University of Guyana and

Carelton University in Ottawa, Canada, and went on to work at Africana Studies at Wayne State University, Michigan, USA. He has been also credited with developing an international academic exchange project between Africana Studies, the College of Urban Labor and Metropolitan Affairs, and the University of Guyana.

8 news

saturDAY, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

IN THE COURTS

Corentyne robbery suspects slapped with 10 charges – 1 was recently pardoned by President Granger

T

he two Corentyne cambio robbery suspects appeared before two separate Berbice Magistrates and were slapped with 10 charges.

Curt Batson, 20, and 19-year-old Kelvin Bates, made their first court appearances at the Reliance Magistrate’s Court to answer to six robbery under arms charges, one attempted murder charge, and one charge each for the possession of arms and ammunition and a possession of narcotic for the purpose of trafficking charge.

However, Magistrate Melissa Mettelholzer recused herself from the matter pointing out that the father of one of the Virtual Complainants appeared on a television station in Berbice accusing her of placing one of the two accused on bail because she was probably accepting favours.

Police Prosecutor, Corporal Orin Joseph however did not object to the Magistrate initially reading the charges to the two defendants.

Curt Batson is accused of robbing Parsram Sookraj of $315,000 and two cellular phones valued $19,000. He is also accused of robbing Anil

Recently pardoned prisoner, Kelvin Bates

Sookraj of $500,000. Both robberies are said to have been committed on May 9.

Kelvin Bates also faces similar charges against the defendants.

Both Batson and Bates were not required to plea to the indictable charges.

Batson is also accused of having in his possession 15 grams of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking. It is also alleged that on May 9, he also had in his possession a .23 firearm without being the holder of a valid firearm licence. It is also alleged that he had five matching rounds without being the holder of a valid licence.

He pleaded not guilty to

Curt Batson

the trafficking in narcotics charge.

Batson, who was shackled, remained in the docks as the Magistrate read two other charges to him, which stated that on April 30, while in the company of others and being armed with a handgun at Rose Hall, he robbed Vanisha Shrikisson of $1,000,027, $112,000 worth in phone cards and $130,000 worth in jewellery.

On the same day, it also alleged that he shot and wounded Samuel Fernandez with the intent to commit murder.

Batson was not required to plea to those charges.

Prosecutor Joseph told the court that Fernandez

was still hospitalised and in a critical condition. He said since the alleged incident, Bates has made several threats of bodily harm to Shrikisson. He noted that if granted bail, there is a high chance the defendant might act on those threats.

Joseph also sighted Section 44 of the Ammunition Act, requesting that bail be refused.

He also told the court that Bates had been released on bail on another robbery under arms charge when it is alleged that he committed the three robberies. Both men were refused bail.

Magistrate Mettelholzer said she was sending all of the matters to the Chief Magistrate to be reassigned.

Meanwhile, Bates was also taken to the Whim Magistrate’s Court where we appeared before Magistrate Carolyn Artiga to answer a charge of larceny from the person. He was also refused bail and will have to return to court on May 30.

Divisional Commander, Assistant Commissioner Ian Amsterdam has confirmed Bates was recently pardoned by President David Granger and released from prison.

Alleged purse thief remanded

A

man was on Friday remanded to prison when he appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts charged with larceny.

Anthony Price, 25, denied the charge which alleged that on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at Georgetown he stole a purse valued $5000 which contained US$700, and a cellular phone valued $35,000,

property of the virtual complainant (VC) Camille Brazilo. The accused told the court that he is unemployed.

Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones did not reveal the circumstance surrounding the

charge, however he objected to bail based on the seriousness and prevalence of the offence. Bail was refused and Price was remanded to prison until May 17 when he will return to court.

Eyew tness Dazzling with...

Y

...cow poop statistics

our Eyewitness knows when institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) send down their “experts” to feel the economic pulse of member countries, they come down with standardised forms into which they merely fill in the blanks with info collected down here. So it shouldn’t surprise anyone their announcements sound like the gobbledygook it is.

But you’d think our Government would take the trouble to translate the jargon into language ordinary people could understand, nuh? Well...they do... but like all translators, they have the power to slant the translation whichever way they want. And with Governments, you know what they want is to tell us: things are just hunky dory, thank you! Even though you may be sinking in a bog of economic quicksand. What the heck does “Bank capital adequacy ratios appear comfortable (averaging 23.9 per cent as of December 2015)” mean when you can’t get loans from banks even if you stood on your head on the Cenotaph outside of the Bank of Guyana Building?!

Or some other gems from the latest IMF report on OUR economy that produced the above head scratcher.

Does ANY citizen who actually lives in Guyana really believe our economy will GROW by four per cent this year? We know rice farmers are now getting HALF of the Venezuelan prices for that lost 200,000 tonne rice contract. So there’s no “growth” for the 100,000 or so folks depending on rice for a living. Not to mention they’re planting less acreage in the coming crop.

Then sugar – 23,000 tonnes less were produced in the first crop...and no way in hell the second crop’s gonna be any better. So another 100,000 citizens are sucking wind from a SHRINKAGE in growth. As you ferret through the report summarised by the Government, below their flowing headlines, you find the “growth” actually comes from increased gold production. But that’s from the two new FOREIGN mining companies – and after the Government collects its five per cent royalty, all those profits are siphoned out to the foreign homes of the companies! Where the “growth” for Guyana?

Then another source of growth was from the extra excise taxes the Government slapped on the petroleum imported at the record low prices. So we’re supposed to’ve gotten “growth” because the Government forced us to buy oil at a higher price! While they collected the taxes to pay themselves their 50 per cent pay raises.

And did the Finance Minister really need the IMF “experts” to tell him and his bosses we need to diversify the economy?

Even the sweetie vendor at the street corner knows if, say, mints aren’t selling, she’d better try toffees or something else!

...share manipulation at Ogle Airport

At long last, some of the private operators at Ogle Airport are opposing the hijacking by the Correias of Ogle International Inc (OIA). This is the company that’s just supposed to manage the facility on behalf of the Government that really owns it as part of a Public Private Partnership (PPP). In a recent letter, Annete Arjoon-Martins mentioned the €1.85 million OIA received from the European Development Fund in 2007. This helped in the lengthening of the airport that year.

But back in 1999, the Airport shared in a US$30 million soft loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) – which OIA formed the years later to develop the airport, utilised. That 40-year loan had a 10 year grace period and is still outstanding as a debt of the Guyana Government. As Arjoon-Martins said, there ought to have been an oversight body established but the terms were altered by the Correias to prevent equitable participation by the Government.

When is SARU going to step in to prevent this seizure of a public asset?

...double speak

Let’s see if we have this right. The country need investments. Our banks are awash with cash but locals aren’t investing. And the Government’s gonna remove tax and other inducements for foreign investments.

Pure genius!!

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

news

9

saturday, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

GTT ready to relinquish monopoly – CEO J

ust days after rolling out its 4G service, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GTT Justin Nedd is confident about the impending liberalisation of the local telecommunications sector.

The Head of the local telephone giant sat down with the Guyana Times for an exclusive interview in which he declared GTT’s readiness for the liberalisation.

Nedd pointed out that this will provide a level the playing field for all the players in the sector. “I believe that the sector is already liberalised, though not formally, but once the Bill is passed and assented to law, everybody will have to play by the same rules, report to the same regulator, pay the same taxes and I believe we are ready for that because we have been doing it for decades,” the CEO stated.

After months of consultations, the Telecommunications Bill has been sent to the Attorney General’s Chambers for legal vetting, following which it will be forwarded to Cabinet for final review before being presented to the National Assembly for passage.

Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes has stated she hopes to have the proposed legislation passed before the end of this month.

According to Nedd, GTT is ready to relinquish its monopoly and is looking forward to having discussions with the Government, along with its parent company Atlantic Tele-Network (ATN), on the way forward.

Welcomes competition

Asked about the impending competition following the break of the 20plus year monopoly that the company has over the

Justin Nedd at the launch of the 4G Internet service on Monday last

sector, the Chief Executive Officer posited that GTT has been competing with its main opponent DIGICEL for several years on many fronts and so customers can expect only better things.

“We’ve been competing on providing Internet services, we’ve been competing on mobile services, we’ve been competing on enterprise services, and like I said, we are really doing what we do, preparing, working on our people, our customer care and our services. So in next few months, you will see just a really dizzying array of things that we’ll put out there that are great benefits to the customers,” the CEO said. Nedd further outlined that this is an exciting time for the company and the industry as he mentioned the recent launch of the 4G service and upgraded broadband speeds. Having spent millions of US dollars to install equipment and prepare for this new service, Nedd expressed appreciation to Government, more so, Minister Hughes for taking a bold step in granting the increased spectrum that allows GTT to do more for its customers.

“I’ve gotten several calls and whatsapp messages and texts from customers who are blown away by the speed of the network and what they can do now. So I would say that our customers are

happy with our 4G network and with our pricing as well. We rolled out this network that cost us more than a billion Guyana dollars and the prices (for mobile services) have decreased, so it a huge win for our customers,” the CEO noted.

Speaking about the challenges faced with rolling out this new network, the GTT head pointed out that with any technical deployment, there are hiccups but the company has a team of “core guys and gyals” who work in the Tech Department and in Customer Care as well. Nedd took the op-

portunity to commend his staff for their efforts and sacrifices over the past weeks to ensure that the 4G launch was successful.

On Monday last, the company launched the 4G service giving subscribers internet speeds 30 times faster than before, enabling them to surf, stream and download from the internet at an accelerated pace.

GTT will be giving to its customers three times more data at the same rates which were applied under the 2G service and unused data will be rolled over to the next activated plan.

However, the 4G internet currently only has a span of 85 per cent coverage of Guyana and access is only centred mostly in Georgetown, up to Good Success, East Coast Demerara and all the way to Timehri, East Bank Demerara.

The head of the local telephone giant explained that while the 4G service is limited to these areas, the company is working on having the new network deployed countrywide.

“I don’t want to give exact dates but I would say within a few weeks you will see results. We will be doing announcements all the time, but it’s phased and it’s going to be continually deployed,” he stated.

No slowing down

The CEO further outlined that the company is adequately equipped so that when the 4G service is deployed throughout the country, then it

will not in any way affect the speed of the Internet.

“Our towers are connected via fibreoptic [cables] which is light and it’s blazing fast; and I can say other people’s towers may not be connected with fibre but we are.

We have spent over US$30 million back in 2010 to bring Internet into the country so we have redundant paths of Internet, we have redundant fibre range to our cell sites.

We are really prepared, we are a robust company, we’ve got a good team and we’ve got a team that’s enthusiastic about bringing service to our customers and doing more for our customers,” he remarked.

Responding to rumours that the 4G service is being launched only for Guyana massive 50th Independence anniversary celebrations, Nedd opted only to say that the biggest challenge and heartbreak is giving people something they really love and then taking it back.

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guyanatimesgy.com

saturDAY, may 14, 2016

News

Plans afoot for shuttle system to Region 2 rice farmers still owed address city congestion – M&CC – AFC Councillor says millers are at fault By: Indrawattie Natram

R

ice farmers in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) are currently in the sowing period for the autumn crop, but even as they are doing so, a majority of rice farmers are still owed millions of dollars.

At the statutory Regional Democratic Council (RDC) meeting held on May 10, RDC Councillors from both Opposition and Government debated the issue. Taking the floor first on the matter was seasoned AFC politician, Naithram. He told Councillors he is very disturbed about the manner in which rice farmers are being treated by millers and is concerned about the non-payments.

Naithram who is a farmers’ representative and also member of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), said to his knowledge the fourth shipment of paddy was sent to Panama and explained that even as the shipments are sailing, the millers would have received advance monies to pay rice farmers.

He said the question lingers as to why rice farmers are still owed even as government intervenes through the GRDB, ensuring that millers

AFC Councillor Naithram

receive money to pay farmers.

The AFC Councillor also questioned why is the Rice Producers’ Association (RPA) not following up on such matters. He also asked why the Region’s rice cereal factory has not been put into operation, even though so many persons are unemployed.

According to Region Two Chairman Devanand Ramdatt, rice farmers are facing serious challenges within the region and the problem persists where the payments received by millers are not reaching the producers. This he said is a huge deterrent in the industry as well as the region’s struggling economy.

PPP/C Councillor, Dr Ranjeev Singh also asked dur-

ing the discussion why Rice Producers Association (RPA) is not doing meaningful follow-ups. However, RPA representative and also PPP/C Councillor Showkat Ali said the RPA is doing what it can but previously when money was released by GRDB to millers it was written in rice farmers’ names. In that system millers do not have any control over the money and rice farmers were benefiting.

Another PPP/C Councillor Arnold Adams wanted to know from Naithram why he is not staging protests over the non-payments, as he did under the PPP/C Government.

Under the PPP/C Government Naithram staged several protests against the Region Two administration and the GRDB, stating that they were failing rice farmers.

In response, Naithram said he is before the court for protesting and he is presently on a one-year bond to keep the peace.

Region Two Chairman Ramdatt assured the council that a letter will be sent to the Agriculture Minister on the matter. He said it is sad that most emails he send to Agriculture Minister Noel Holder are never answered or no replies given to him.

A

s the struggle continues for minibus and taxi operators to adjust since being relocated, Town Clerk Royston King disclosed to Guyana Times on Thursday, that plans are afoot to implement mechanisms to ease traffic congestion in the city.

According to an earlier interview with King, it was revealed that discussions were

bring people in and take them out.’’

King highlighted that this plan is to create a permanent solution towards the congestion within the city, by preventing the need to park in Georgetown. He however could not specify when and where the terminals will be situated as the idea was still being discussed.

ongoing by Mayor and City Council (M&CC) to begin a ‘shuttle system’ within the city. He said that in the midst of reorganising the transport system, there is hope for the existence of terminals at the outer parts of the city.

“Part of the discussion some time ago, when we were looking at reorganising our transport system, was looking at having terminals on the outskirts of the city and using shuttles or other buses to

“Just to give you an idea, for example, if buses coming down from Diamond, Grove… we can have a terminal at Industrial Site. That’s where they will park. Then you take something (shuttle or another bus) from Industrial Site that would bring you into town to do your shopping, while it takes others out. There will be no parking really, around there (Stabroek Market area).’’

The Town Clerk further highlighted that there was no

intention to increase transportation expenses for individuals through this ‘shuttle system’ enforcement.

King pointed out that this project was not only seen as a better means of transportation but as the opening of many job opportunities for individuals.

Renting of cycles The Town Clerk also added that cycle usage within the city is highly recommended as it serves to reduce the high level of vehicular congestion. King also relayed that the M&CC have discussed the possibility of renting cycles to persons to traverse the city, after the ‘shuttle system’ has been enforced. “We have to encourage more cycling within the city, as that too can help with the congestion. Cause rather than you taking a whole car to come in, you can use a cycle.

The council is looking at that to see whether we can perhaps buy the cycles and rent it at a small fee, and people can use it to go around. So even if you come down to town in the shuttle, you can get a cycle to ride easily.’’

King said that in the plans to “elevate the status of the city and make it way tourist friendly,’’ much more will be done by the M&CC.

Rose Hall man remanded for killing wife

A

man accused of killing his wife because she consumed too much alcohol, on Friday appeared at the Albion Magistrate’s Court charged with murder.

Desmond Gordon, 50, a cane harvester at Albion Sugar Estate was not required to plead to the indictable charge before Magistrate Marisa Mittleholzer.

It is alleged that on May 9 at Hose Hall, Gordon murdered Bhagmattie Etwaru, 50, also of Rose Hall.

During his appearance the accused seemed emotionless when Magistrate Mittleholzer read the charge to him and left the docks with a slight smile on his face.

He was unrepresented and has been remanded to prison with the case scheduled to continue on June 3.

Murder accused Desmond Gordon and decease Bhagmattie Etwaru in happier times

According to reports, Gordon allegedly killed Etwaru, his reputed wife of eight years, following an argument.

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saturDAY, may 14, 2016 | guyanatimesGY.com

Haslington shop owner stabbed Gafoors Houston Complex fire Cause of fire still to be to death by brother-in-law but collapsed a short distance away. He was picked up and taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

When Guyana Times visited the area Friday morning, his house was tightly secured but not far away at his mother’s house, a brother, Maxwell Adams explained that he was at home when he received a phone call from his brother in Cayenne enquiring about the

circumstances surrounding the stabbing incident, he told Guyana Times that the argument stemmed from a statement his now dead brother made during a visit to his sister’s house. Apparently, he noted, his brother-in-law got offended but he is sure that a mere statement could not have triggered his brotherin-law to act that violently.

“There is got to be something else… a statement alone to of-

A

Dead: Terrence Adams

father of eleven was on Thursday evening stabbed several times during an argument with his brother-in-law over undone work at his sister’s home at Haslington, East Coast Demerara. Dead is Terrence “Sleepy” Adams, 53, of Haslington. He was reportedly stabbed three times during a row at his shop at about 20:00h.

Reports are the now dead man visited his sister, who resides in the same area, and was not happy about the condition of the surroundings. He expressed his unhappiness about the conditions to the brother-in-law who became annoyed.

Adams subsequently left his sister’s house and went back to his businessplace but the man turned up there and an argument ensued. It was then the suspect whipped out a knife and dealt the man several blows.

In a bid to escape, the injured man scaled a trench

The shop where the stabbing incident occurred

stabbing incident.

A clueless Maxwell informed the brother that he was not aware and immediately promised to make some enquiries. He then went to his now dead brother’s shop where she saw a group of people and blood on the road.

He was told that his injured brother was taken to the hospital. The aggrieved brother went on to say that he rushed to the hospital where he saw his brother lying dead on a stretcher. From indications, the man would have sustained a stab wound to his right arm, one in the vicinity of his heart and the other to his abdomen.

While he did not know the

fend someone to that extent…

I don’t think so”, the man stated. Nevertheless the suspect he noted, was arrested at the scene and taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital for treatment of a wound to his forehead. He was then taken into police custody.

The brother described the now dead man as a simple individual who worked hard for what he had. He has never been in a police matter nor was he accused on wrong doings. The dead man leaves to mourn his mother, children and five siblings.

Meanwhile, the police confirmed that the suspect is assisting with the investigations.

determined – Deputy Fire Chief

F

ollowing the blaze at the Gafoors Houston Complex on Monday, which destroyed several sections of the shopping complex, the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) investigators are probing several theories as to the cause of the calamitous fire.

Deputy Fire Chief Compton Sparman revealed that contrary to some reports, the Fire Service investigations are still incomplete and they have not yet come to any conclusions. “You have to understand that this was a huge fire, and as such, we are still examining several theories as to the cause,” he told Guyana Times.

He went on to say that the GFS has not yet ruled out any possible causes and as such, he will not specu-

late on the factors that led to the incident.

Meanwhile, plans are already underway to commence reconstruction of the building. According to information received, works will commence immediately after the insurance company has completed its assessment of the damages and losses.

It has been noted that efforts to create temporary working facilities at the complex for some staff are already underway.

Additionally, the company on Wednesday commenced the relocation of workers to its other branches so as to ensure that employees are not direly affected by the fire.

The calamitous fire left over 530 employees with

questions as to whether or not they would have to seek alternative employment but the company’s Executive Chairman, Sattaur Gafoor ,after the meeting with the workers as well as the company’s Board members on Wednesday, came to a decision that the employees, who live within close proximity of the Parika, East Bank Essequibo and Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara branches would be temporarily relocated to those locations.

Gafoor has also announced that those workers who were directly affected by the blaze and those that would not be relocated will be given 50 per cent of their salaries during the period that they would be off the job.

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saturDay, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

NEWS

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saturDay, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

La Grange Fire Station to US Federal Communications Commission delegation visits Guyana begin operations shortly

FCC representatives Deputy Bureau Chief Nese Guendelsberger and Chief Engineer Robert Nelson, along with an official from the Telecommunications Ministry

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team from the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently visited Guyana, briefing Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes on a wide variety of technical topics. The FCC delegation comprised Deputy Bureau Chief Nese Guendelsberger, and Chief Engineer Robert Nelson.

During the meeting, the FCC representatives and Minister Hughes had discussions on areas such as spectrum management and allocation, regulatory best practices, and

telecommunications regulatory policy.

In addition to Minister Hughes, officials from the National Frequency Management Unit, e-Governance Unit, Public Utilities Commission, Guyana Learning Channel Trust, and Guyana Broadcast Board were in attendance.

Minister Hughes and the FCC representatives cited the importance of such capacity building sessions in assisting the government’s efforts to facilitate the development of world class tele-

communications legislation and implementing regulations in order to assist in the development of this growing and vitally important sector of Guyana’s economy. The FCC representatives praised the government’s efforts to modernise telecommunications infrastructure including its recent decision to allow cellular providers to launch 4G service in advance of Guyana’s 50th Independence anniversary celebrations.

Both the FCC and Ministry of Telecommunications pledged to continue cooperation as Guyana advances telecommunications modernisation legislation.

While in Guyana, the FCC officials also had the opportunity to participate in the “Girls in Information Communication Technology” event designed to encourage young women to learn more about information technology.

The FCC representatives highlighted the FCC International Visitors Program and online training as excellent opportunities for young women to become more knowledgeable about, and perhaps pursue careers, in the exciting and constantly changing field of telecommunications.

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he new fire station at La Grange, West Bank Demerara (WBD), is expected to be commissioned shortly. This is according to Deputy Fire Chief Compton Sparman who revealed that while he is unable to disclose the exact date of the commissioning, it is expected to be soon. Earlier this year, Fire Chief Marlon Gentle had announced that the Station would begin operations before the 50th Independence anniversary as at that time the building was close to completion.

Gentle had explained that the Guyana Fire Service was awaiting fire tenders and trucks that would serve that Station. A sum of $18.6 million has been allocated for the construction of the building; however, the cost of the fire tenders has not yet been disclosed. Residents of La Grange and surrounding areas have been continuously expressing concerns over the fact that the area, which is highly populated and surrounded by developing housing schemes, was not equipped with a fire station.

The closest fire station is the Leonora Fire Station located on West Coast Demerara (WCD); however, owing to the distance it cannot effectively manage fires on West Bank Demerara.

As such, on most occasions when

fires occur, the central fire station located in Georgetown responds as it takes a shorter time to arrive in these areas. The Wales Sugar Estate occasionally offers assistance to surrounding areas. The Estate usually deploys a pump on a Canter truck which uses water from surrounding canals and drains to extinguish the fires. Melanie Browne, a resident of La Grange explained that the commissioning of a fire station in the area would provide much relief as well as a sense of security on the occasion of a fire. “When we have fires over here, it takes a long while for the trucks to reach the house and most times when they get here the place almost completely burnt down,” the woman explained. “So we are glad that we are getting a fire station because it is something that we have been waiting for and something that we need,” she stated.

Another resident was quite pessimistic about the announcement as he related that they are constantly being told that the fire station would begin operations “soon” yet to date this is not so. “Man, they always saying that they opening the fire station soon but soon never reach. Since last year abbey hear them seh them fuh start wuk it, yet it still deh close up deh,” Jailall related.

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guyana-times.com

saturday, may 14, 2016

Regional News

Brazil’s interim President holds first Cabinet meeting

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razil’s new interim President, Michel Temer, has held his first official Cabinet meeting, after vowing the new team would try to rescue the country’s plunging economy at a moment of profound political confrontation. Friday’s gathering at the Government headquarters followed a chaotic day that saw the Senate vote to impeach President Dilma Rousseff, suspending her from office and abruptly ousting nearly her entire Government – a move she branded “a coup”. Temer moved quickly to announce his new team, including Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles, who is respected by some for serving as Central Bank chief during the boom years from 2003 to 2010. “Our biggest challenge is to staunch the process of freefall of our economy,” Temer said at a swearing-

Temer (C) has been accused by Rousseff and her supporters of plans to dismantle Government social programmes

in ceremony on Thursday for his 22 Cabinet Ministers.

“First of all, we need to balance our public spending.

The sooner we are able to balance our books, the sooner we’ll be able to restart growth.” He also promised to support the widening investigation into corruption at the state oil company that has already ensnared leading politicians from a variety of parties and even im-

plicated Temer himself – as well as several members of the new Cabinet. His choice of Ministers also raised criticism for its makeup: All its members are middle-aged or elderly white men – a particularly sore point in this majority non-white country.

Six women, including one black, were included in the 39 members of Rousseff’s Cabinet when she began her second term last year. (Excerpt

from Al Jazeera)

7-year-olds ‘using ganja’ in Barbados

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he average age of first use of marijuana in Barbados is seven, a survey conducted by the Criminal Justice Research and Planning Unit (CJRPU) has found.

Director Cheryl Willoughby, who made the revelation, has expressed extreme concern at the findings as well as the extent of

use of the illegal drug.

She said it is time for a stronger effort and a change in approach to tackling the problem by targeting children from a far younger age.

“We have to start at the nursery level when children can understand safe drugs and bad drugs. We have to start with the little cough medicine and so on

and build them up to a stage where they understand that certain drugs are not good for their bodies,” she said.

The revelation came at the opening ceremony of the 11-Plus programme In the Winner’s Circle: Making the Right Choice at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill on Thursday. (Nation News)

Caricom advances relations with Sweden, Netherlands

Caricom Secretary General, Ambassador Irwin Larocque (third from right in back row) and Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Caricom at the 19th Meeting of COFCOR

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aribbean Community (Caricom) Foreign Ministers have put measures in place for closer cooperation with Sweden and The Netherlands even as they seek to place issues impacting the development of Small Island Developing and Low-lying States (SIDS) in the spotlight. The Ministers, at their just concluded 19th Meeting of the Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) in St Vincent and the Grenadines, met their counterparts from the

two European Union (EU) Member States.

Aware of Netherlands’ strategic position as the current President of the EU, COFCOR engaged the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister Bert Koenders on climate change, particularly its impact on SIDS and low lying States. While acknowledging the diplomatic success of COP21, the urgency of operationalisation of the Agreement was stressed. The concerns of the Community over blacklisting by EU Member States,

and the withdrawal of correspondent banking services, both of which had an adverse impact on Caricom States, were also presented to the Minister. Discussions with Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom centred on issues such as climate change, renewable energy, water management, ocean security, citizen security, as well as a proposal by Sweden and the Nordic countries to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding to facilitate cooperation in a range of areas. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

PAHO launches high-level commission on inequality and health in the region

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he Pan American Health Organisation/ World Health Organisation (PAHO/ WHO) has launched a new Commission on Equity and Health Inequalities in the region of the Americas.

The Commission will lead the Review of Equity and Health Inequalities in the Americas, the first large-scale effort to gather evidence on health inequities in the Americas. Both the Commission and review are part of a partnership between PAHO/WHO’s secretariat and member countries and the Institute of Health

Equity at University College London (UCL).

The Commission will be chaired by Sir Michael Marmot, Director of the UCL Institute of Health Equity and former chair of WHO’s global Commission on Social Determinants of Health. It will bring together more than a dozen leading international experts on health policy and social determinants of health.

“PAHO has commissioned the Review of Equity and Health Inequalities in the Americas to address one broad and pervasive problem: factors that should not

determine health outcomes are, in fact, deciding them for an enormous number of people,” said PAHO/WHO Director Carissa Etienne.

“Characteristics such as gender, ethnicity, legal and socioeconomic status are among the greatest risk factors for ill health, injury and mortality across the Americas.” The Commission will investigate how these factors influence health in the Americas and will make concrete recommendations for action to address them with an eye to reducing or eliminating the health equity gaps they produce. (Excerpt

from Caribbean360)

Venezuela looters target chicken, flour amid worsening shortages

M

obs in Venezuela have stolen flour, chicken and even underwear this week as looting increases across the crisis-hit OPEC nation where many basic products have run short. Many people now get up in the dead of night to spend hours in long lines in front of supermarkets. But as more end up empty-handed and black mar ket prices soar, plundering is rising in Venezuela, already one of the world’s most violent countries. There is no official data, but rights group Venezuelan Observatory for Social Conflict reported 107 episodes of looting or attempted looting in the first quarter. Videos of crowds breaking into shops, swarming onto trucks or fighting

over products frequently make the rounds on social media, though footage is often hard to confirm. In one

President Nicolás Maduro

of the latest incidents, several hundred people looted a truck carrying kitchen rolls, salt and shampoo after it crashed and some of its

load tumbled out in volatile Tachira state on Thursday, according to a local official and witnesses. Fifteen people were injured, including six security officials trying to restrain the crowd, said local civil protection official Luis Castrillon. Such scenes are adding to an increasingly dire panorama in the South American oil exporter, where inflation is the highest in the world, the economy has been shrinking since early 2014, and there are frequent power and water cuts. President Nicolás Maduro blames the crisis on the fall in global oil prices, a drought that has hit hydroelectric power generation and an “economic war” by right-wing businessmen and politicians. (Excerpt from Reuters)

saturDAY, may 14, 2016

guyana-times.com

15

Around the World

Russia will act to neutralise Indian doctors raise IVF concerns US missile shield threat: Putin after woman in her 70s gives birth

Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) chairs a meeting with members of the Security Council at the Bocharov Ruchei state residence in Sochi, Russia, May 13

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ballistic missile defense shield which the United States has activated in Europe is a step to a new arms race, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, vowing to adjust budget spending to neutralize “emerging threats” to Russia.

The United States switched on the $800 million missile shield at a Soviet-era base in Romania

on Thursday saying it was a defense against missiles from Iran and so-called rogue states.

But, speaking to top defense and military industry officials, Putin said the system was aimed at blunting Russia’s nuclear arsenal. “This is not a defense system. This is part of US nuclear strategic potential brought onto a periphery. In this case, Eastern

Europe is such periphery,” Putin said.

“Until now, those taking such decisions have lived in calm, fairly well-off and in safety. Now, as these elements of ballistic missile defense are deployed, we are forced to think how to neutralize emerging threats to the Russian Federation,” he said.

Coupled with deployment in the Mediterranean of US ships carrying Aegis missiles and other missile shield elements in Poland, the site in Romania was “yet another step to rock international security and start a new arms race”, he said.

Russia would not be drawn into this race. But it would continue re-arming its army and navy and spend the approved funds in a way that would “uphold the current strategic balance of forces,” he said.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddin killed in Syria

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Badreddine, 55, was one of the highest ranking officials in the group

op Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine was killed in an Israeli strike in Syria this week, the Lebanese Shia group has said. “He took part in most of the operations of the Islamic resistance since 1982,” Hezbollah said in a statement on Friday, announcing his death and describing him as a “great jihadi leader”.

Badreddine, 55, was one of the highest ranking officials in the group, and believed by the US government to be responsible for Hezbollah’s military

operations in Syria, where it is fighting alongside Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

He was killed on Tuesday night, the statement said, adding that the attack targeted one of Hezbollah’s bases near Damascus airport, the group’s nerve-centre in the Syrian capital.

On Friday, thousands of Hezbollah supporters carried the coffin of Badreddine, draped in a Hezbollah flag, during his funeral procession in a southern suburb of Beirut. The group said it was working to “define the nature

of the explosion and its cause, and whether it was the result of an air strike, or missile [attack] or artillery”.

Mustafa Badreddine replaced his brother-in-law Imad Mughniyah after the Hezbollah commander was killed in a car bombing in Damascus in 2008.

Israel officially denied being behind Mughniyah’s killing, but Israeli media reported at the time that the Hezbollah commander had been a target of Israeli assassination attempts since the 1990s. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Uganda: Museveni rival Kizza Besigye charged with treason

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ganda’s main Opposition Leader Kizza Besigye has been charged with treason. Besigye was the main challenger to President Yoweri Museveni in the country’s recent general election, which Museveni won by a landslide.

He insists he was the rightful winner of the polls, but Uganda’s top court upheld the official result.

“We have been informed by Police today [Friday] that Besigye ap-

peared in court in Moroto and was charged with treason,” said his lawyer Erias Lukwago. Besigye was arrested on Wednesday in downtown Kampala and flown to Moroto, where he has been in custody ever since.

It follows a series of arrests of the opposition leader during the election campaign.

Meanwhile, Museveni was sworn in on Thursday for his fifth elective term, extending his 30-year rule of Uganda. Foreign ob-

servers said the poll had been marred by fear and intimidation.

In a BBC interview, Museveni rejected allegations of vote rigging, and accused Mr Besigye of planning to incite violence.

Museveni, a key ally of the West in the campaign against militant Islamists in the region, seized power in 1986 and is credited with restoring stability to Uganda. However, critics say he has become increasingly authoritarian. (Excerpt from BBC News)

D

octors in India have raised concerns about IVF treatment in the country, after a couple in their 70s had their first child after 46 years of marriage. Daljinder Kaur, who does not have a birth certificate but is thought be in her 70s, gave birth to a boy last month after two years of fertility treatment using donor eggs at a clinic in the northern state of Haryana.

There is no legal age restriction for couples who want to have IVF treatment in India, but the state-funded Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) advises against implanting embryos in women over 50.

Dr Kamini Rao, a leading Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, said “Doctors can’t do [IVF treatment] at the expense of a child. It gives false hope to other couples, who will spend their own money on this very expensive procedure. Who ben-

Daljinder Kaur and her husband Mohinder Singh Gill with their son, Arman Singh

efits from this apart from the doctor?”

Others have urged the government to take action to prevent more older women becoming pregnant. “The whole world is looking at India and saying we can’t regulate ourselves,” says Dr Narendra Malhotra, head

of the Indian Society for Assisted Reproduction.

“We put forward guidelines for ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology) clinics seven years ago.

No government has taken them seriously, and a bill has been pending for seven years. (Excerpt from The Guardian)

Apple invests in Chinese Uber rival Didi Chuxing

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pple has invested US$1 billion (£693 million) in Didi Chuxing, the car-hailing app that has a greater market share than US rival Uber in China.

Tim Cook, Chief Executive, said that the move would help Apple to better understand the Chinese market.

Didi Chuxing, previously known as Didi Kuaidi, said it represented the single largest investment in its history. The firm said it provided more than 11 million rides a day and claimed

to have 87 per cent of the Chinese market share.

The company is also backed by Chinese internet giants Tencent and Alibaba.

US rival Uber has been struggling to break into the Chinese market despite having won Chinese search engine Baidu as an investor.

In February Uber admitted it was losing more than US$1 billion a year in China, spending huge sums to subsidise discounted rides. Cook said he saw many opportunities for Apple and Didi Chuxing to collaborate in the future.

He also stressed the deal was a chance to learn more about China as Apple’s second-biggest market.

Apple’s ambitions in China has recently hit roadblocks with Chinese regulators shutting down the company’s online book and movie services to implement strict rules governing what can be published online.

The move was widely seen as a blow to Apple, which is keen to ensure its products are popular and sell well in China, because it is the second-biggest market for its products. (Excerpt from

BBC News)

16 news

SATURDAY, may 14 , 2016 | guyana-times.com

Govt proposed concession reduction Small businesses optimistic is ‘anti-investment’ – Jagdeo GuyExpo 2016

about impact of expansion

The “Guyanese Women Mean Business” booth at the expo

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ith the renewed focus of GuyExpo being business expansion and enterprise, a number of small businesses came out to participate in this year’s exposition to market their products and services.

Taking a walk through the booths in the GuyExpo compound, it was evident that small businesses participated in the exposition, looking for the opportunity to expand their brands and gain customer support.

Enthusiastic customers, in response, flocked the booths of those businesses, eager to support what was being offered. They were in for a treat as a wide range of unique services and products were on display, ranging from edibles, fashion, craft, furniture and cosmetics.

These were additionally being sold to the customers at low prices that would fit the budget of anyone present at the expo.

When Guyana Times caught up with some of the small business owners on Friday, they all expressed optimism about the impact of the expo on the growth of their enterprises.

One of the exhibitors, Zailoon Barrow, who along with her husband are the owners of “Dis is de Place” – a jewellery haven that specialises in using recycled object to produce creative pieces – explained how the expo thus far has impacted her business.

The booth displayed a selection of items which were created by individuals, who then submitted their pieces to be exhibited. Barrow said that they came up with the idea as part of their gesture of giving persons a chance to have their creative pieces recognised on a larger scale.

Pointing out one of the necklaces on exhibition, she explained that it was made solely from paper which had been disposed of by one of her clients who used it to create a “masterpiece”. Commenting on the customer based response, Barrow said that thus far it has been overwhelming since many persons are drawn to the originality of the pieces being showcased.

“People are interested in local and we want people to know that local is good, we can go a long way by promoting our local stuff”.

Meanwhile, one of the representatives from “Guyanese Women Mean Business”, Kamela Bradford, said that the aim of their booth is to showcase what the women of Guyana are capable of producing.

She explained that the products on display, ranging from candies and oils, were all created by women from across the 10 administrative regions, who decided to collectively display their items in one booth.

Bradford noted that the products were all made locally.

Being it their first year at the expo, the woman said that they have been received with enthusiasm but they are an-

a high customer turnout thus far at the expo, as most are eager to have a taste of ‘real Guyanese produce.’

Visiting this booth, there was an expansive variety of fruits that have been dried and packaged, ready to be consumed as a take away snack.

One of the representatives from the business explained that the fruits have been processed and dried at their production site in Parika, East Bank Essequibo. He explained that these are perfect for persons who are trying to lead a more healthy lifestyle and are trying to reduce their cholesterol levels.

All the owners who spoke with this publication gave the ‘thumbs up’ to Government for initiating the expo with the spotlight on promoting business in Guyana.

Meanwhile, patrons at the expo expressed their contentment with the products and services that are being offered by the small businesses. They also elaborated on the prices that these items were being sold at.

Maureen Smith, an elderly woman, who was at the time viewing the craft on display told Guyana Times that she is surprised at the level of creativity of these individuals since it is not brought out in the spotlight.

“I never expected things

I

n light of President David Granger’s recent statement on reducing concessions to foreign investors in order to create a level playing field for local investors, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has stated that such a move is “anti-investment”.

In a brief statement to the media Friday, the former Guyanese President pointed out that it is absurd that the Head of State would make such a comment especially at a time when the country is currently hosting its premier trading exposition – GuyExpo, a forum conceived and designed to attract investment both locally and overseas.

Jagdeo posited that the move is “most counterproductive and anti-investment”.

He said, “The President views the investment regime, which is currently in place intending to attract direct foreign investments, as too generous and promised that his Government will reduce these concessions.”

According to the Opposition Leader, this latest pronouncement joins a long list of anti-private sector measures recently initiated by the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU/ AFC) Administration.

He highlighted that prominent among these measures is the political contamination of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). Jagdeo explained that “sweet-heart” deals are being offered to

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

those who have been identified as making “political investments”, thereby removing a leveled playing field for their competitors.

He also mentioned the fact that policies are being formulated and implemented without any studies and understanding of the technical nature of the issues, for example, the announcement of policies regarding high levels of remission without an appreciation of related incentive regime.

On the other hand, Leader of the Opposition on Thursday welcomed investors here to participate in the country’s trade fair and encouraged them to make greater investments. He highlighted the importance of private investments, both local and foreign to the Guyanese economy and for job creation.

Jagdeo further assured potential investors that their investments will receive the highest form of

legal protection and constitutional guarantee.

It is known that Guyana, like many other countries, offers concessions to attract foreign investors. However, during a special edition of this week’s televised programme – The Public Interest, President Granger indicated that he will adjust the amount of concessions offered to foreigners in order to create a level playing field for both foreign and local investors: “We want to ensure that foreigners are not given concessions and waivers and rebates, to which other people are not entitled. In fact, we want to reduce the amount of these concessions so that we become more competitive.”

The president’s comments comes some two weeks after local businessman and Chairman of MCG Investments (Giftland Mall), Roy Beepat, called on government to provide a level playing field for all investors in Guyana, a call which the Private Sector Commission (PSC) has long been making.

“In fairness to our investment and parity between local investment and international enterprises such as these, it is important that a level playing field, I would find it abhorrent if it is a case that multibillion international companies should be treated with preferential treatment and unfair trading advantages over local companies,” Beepat said in a letter to the media.

Lazy public servants to receive lazy person’s salary – Granger

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“Dis is de Place” booth at the Expo

ticipating a greater customer turnout in the remaining days.

Another of the exhibitors from “Naked skin soaps” which produces soaps form local products including ginger and coffee said that the response for the past two nights had been admirable.

“We make local, natural soaps with natural coconut oil and then infuse it with different plants, herbs and spices that have great benefit for your skin.”

She added that since the opening night of the expo, customers have been enquiring about their products via telephone, which she is optimistic will boost the company 100 per cent. She is also hoping that this will strengthen the business’s link with other companies.

With a farmland that produces local fruits, nuts and provisions in Guyana, the “Gobin’s farm and kitchen” is one of the businesses that saw

like these; it is nice to see what people in Guyana can do. We need to expose them more.”

She added that more emphasis is being placed on these smaller businesses since their products are a display or their originality and stands as a display of what Guyanese are capable of creating.

Though a lower turnout on the second night than the previous years, business seemed to be ‘booming’ at the GuyExpo 2016, and there is anticipation of a greater impact not only on the expansion of both large and small businesses, but also an evident boost in Guyana’s tourism sector.

Both avenues had been anticipated by the Government when the event was launched in March of this year, with the spotlight on “50 years: Guyana Means Business.

Promoting Enterprise, Driving Productivity.”

resident David Granger on Friday warned persons working in the public sector against developing traits and practices that could prevent them from rising to the challenge and performing exceptionally, maintaining that “if they want to be lazy, they will get a lazy person’s remuneration.”

It was after the Head of State received the long awaited final report of the investigation into the public service at the Ministry of the Presidency (MoP), that he made the comments. He referred to the inquiry as a “landmark study”.

The three-member panel headed by Professor Harold Lutchman was charged with investigating, reporting on, and making recommendations on the role, functions, recruitment process, remuneration and conditions of service for public servants.

The Commission was also expected to determine measures to improve the efficiency of the public service. It was also expected to have a detailed examination of how salaries and wages are determined and allocated. The CoI commenced in September 2015 and came to an end in January of this year. The other Commissioners were Sandra Jones and Samuel

President David Granger receives the CoI report from Professor Harold Lutchman who headed the investigation into the public service

Goolsarran.

President Granger said that those in the Public Sector need to become aware of the importance of their roles to the people they serve, noting that any laid back attitude will attract a matching pay.

“Many people expect that there is going to be some bonanza. I hope they will discover that the bonanza will come from their own efforts.

The bonanza will come when they work hard and do better than the next person. If they

work hard they will be rewarded for their hard work.

This is what people in every area of endeavour must learn, that actual output is related to input,” the Head of State remarked.

Zooming in on three critical areas on which public servants are being judged, President Granger noted impartiality and social responsibility, education, and experience. continued on page 17

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news

saturDAY, may 14, 2016 | guyana-times.com

Harmon threatens to Wismar Market vendors feel neglected sue Kaieteur News over – calls made for new Town Council to intervene maligning articles

By Utamu Belle

Minister of State Joseph Harmon

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he privately owned Kaieteur News may soon be sued for libel, reportedly spewed against Minister of State Joseph Harmon in 13 articles it published, if it news outlet does not issue a prominent apology, retract all the articles and fork out $1 million each for the 13 articles, the proceeds of which will be donated to charity.

Harmon, through his Attorney Roysdale Forde on Thursday sent a letter to the publication with its demands, citing among them that the $13 million will be donated to the Veterans’ Foundation.

The details of the letter sent by Forde stated that persons reading the newspaper would most certainly conclude that Harmon had knowingly engaged in shady dealings; is unfit to hold Ministerial Office and the Office of the Secretary of the Defence Board; unfit to

be Member of Parliament and unfit to hold any other public office. He said that readers would think that Harmon is corrupt, oppressive and dishonest.

Forde said Harmon has since informed him that the articles published by Kaieteur News are “untrue, false, malicious, and deliberately misleading.”

Forde said he was instructed to demand that Kaieteur News remove all “defamatory” publications from the online archives.

Harmon also wants Kaieteur News to publish an unconditional retraction of the “insinuations, allegations and contents of the said publications with equal prominence.”

Further, Harmon wants an “unqualified apology for any harm and/or hurt that the publications may have caused.

He is demanding that this be done in 24 hours.

Forde warned that if Kaieteur News does not comply he is authorised to “institute legal proceedings forthwith.”

Meanwhile, Editor-inChief of Kaieteur News Adam Harris has spoken on the issue saying they will not be paying the demand of $13 million, but his company “might” be inclined to offer an apology and issue a retraction.

Kaieteur News hailed down brimstone and fire on Harmon consecutively for several weeks in April, first-

V

Kaieteur News publisher, Glenn lall

ly when the paper reported that Harmon “intervened” in the operations of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) to recover monies from logging company Bai Shan Lin on taxes owed.

Following that, a few days later the newspaper published that the Minister had “secretly” appointed businessman Brian B K Tiwari as his business advisor and was accompanying him on a trip to China. The Minister was roasted by the newspaper for his actions which Harmon has since deemed as legitimate.

Harmon had said his meeting with the Chinese companies’ representatives coincided with his visit to China on official government business in March and that his appointment of Tiwari was “honorific.” He also provided an explanation for his actions as it pertained to the GRA.

endors of the Wismar Market, in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) are slowly abandoning their stalls, and according to those who have remained, this may be due to the fact that years of complaints and campaigns for improvement have yielded “no results”.

Stallholders have over the years voiced concerns, stating that they have been neglected by the “cash strapped” Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC), while pointing to the fact that the Council has failed to adequately provide for and maintain the necessary facilities. Speaking with Guyana Times on Thursday, some market vendors vented their frustration, noting that they have not yet met with the newly elected M&TC to discuss issues which have been plaguing them for years. Even more disappointing, they indicated, is the fact that the Council recently held a consultation with vendors of the Mackenzie market in which numerous issues were brought to the fore, however they were not included.

The many woes which range from improper lighting, lack of electricity to some stalls, badly leaking roofs, improper access to water and lack of adequate market for their produce are not new. Just recent-

Police in C Division host community outreach on East Coast

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he Police in C Division (East Coast Demerara), under the command of Divisional Commander Marlon Chapman are continuing with their Community Outreach Interventions under the Police Force’s Social Crime Prevention Programmes.

The Social Crime Prevention Programme focuses on empowering of youths to develop skills and moral values so they may become productive and meaningful contributors to society and enhance police community relations.

In keeping with this initiative, ranks of C Division along with residents of the community conducted an

Police ranks distributed school supplies at Bare Root, East Coast Demerara

environmental cleanup of the Buxton Post Office compound in April.

In addition, a youth group was established at Bare Root, ECD, and a twoweek day-camp was held at the Sophia Community Centre. The objectives of the camp included teaching life

skills, developing interpersonal skills, building selfesteem and instilling discipline and moral values.

During the camp, the youths were engaged in activities that included spiritual devotion, craftwork, skills training, educational talks and games. Also,

Lazy public servants will get...

He stressed the need for a cadre of public officers who must discharge their duties without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.

“Any concerns about ethnicity, party affiliation, neighbourhood or family should be erased from professional performance,” the Head of State asserted.

He noted that the country cannot function without an efficient public service, which he said, is meant to ensure that the State is well governed.

“The politicians will be elected and they will leave, but the public service remains and is responsible for conti-

nuity. It is responsible for the maintenance of standards. It is responsible for the enforcement of the laws of the country. Any country that is going to be lawless is going to come to grief… if we are to be lawful we have to have a professional public service,” the President said.

Soon after taking Office, President Granger met with senior public servants at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre (ACCC) where he spoke of his Administration’s plan to ensure that the public service is one that is professional and “unbribable”.

Professor Lutchman, in a

from page 16

brief comment, spoke highly of his colleague Commissioners, whose areas of expertise and qualifications were relevant to the issues which the Commission was mandated to examine. He also informed that the Commission received support and submissions from a number of persons and organisations both locally and abroad.

The report will be deliberated on at the level of the Cabinet after which it will be presented to the Speaker of the National Assembly to be tabled in the House. It will also be shared with the unions.

the pavilion at the Buxton Community Centre ground was rehabilitated as well as a quantity of school supplies were distributed to children in Bare Root.

Finally, as part of the Police Force’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) Programme several lectures were done at several Police Youth Clubs.

The Community Outreach Interventions in the Police Division have not only seen a new image of the Guyana Police Force, but have also led to improved public trust and cooperation, especially in the fight against crime.

ly, stallholders complained of not “doing any business” and stressed that if a minibus park is located in the vicinity of the market it may assist in garnering sales.

As a matter of fact, the construction of such a park was promised to vendors years ago under the previous Council, however this never materialised. Presently, there are no minibuses plying the Wismar Market route and the average shopper would be taken in the vicinity of the Mackenzie Market.

A stallholder explained that they would have formed a Committee which is trying to develop and showcase aspects of the market in relation to what it has to offer, however there has been little improvement.

“Last year Christmas we fight and we fight and nobody recognised us,” the woman noted.

Seventy-five-year-old Mrs Fields, who has been vending in the market for years, related that she tries her best to make a living by selling items which she receives from overseas, but stressed that certain avenues need to be made available to vendors. She marvelled that some vendors have abandoned their stalls due to frustration and the fact that they are unable to make a sustainable living.

Others, who have opted to remain, she indicated, would leave earlier than usual after securing their stalls for the day on many occasions.

She said sometimes she too would leave her stall and return after some time.

“The market is supposed

to be closed at eight o’clock the latest and if you take a good look, by an earlier time, everybody does be out of this market. There’s a lot of things happening here that is not right. It’s wrong. I had to put up my lights because I’m at the back here and I can be robbed. Everybody is just fed up and disgusted, so they close their shop and go home early. Business is not doing,” she quipped.

“The lighting is bad, the water system stinks,” as she pointed to the abandoned fish and greens stalls located at the back of the market as she noted that although it was “well made” to facilitate vendors, it remains unoccupied.

“People come and say ok, we’re getting this and that and they’re going to fight for this and that, but all you see is their back. Various people come and ask us our opinion and so on and nothing ain’t doing. They don’t do nothing,” Mrs Fields vented.

Another vendor also complained of flooding due to the inclement weather as she noted that she tries to stay away from the stall on rainy days. The woman said since people rarely shop at the market, some vendors are unable to garner enough money to pay their electricity bills and as such, remain without electricity when it is cut off.

A stallholder said she recalled a conversation with the Linden Mayor and related that they had traded ideas on moving forward, however she said the Council’s team is yet to officially visit and consult with the market vendors.

18

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saturday, may 14, 2016

ARCHIE

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dilbert

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Money matters will take top LIBRA (Sept. 23- priority. Handle your affairs personally. Take note of any inOct. 23) formation offered from a reliable source. It’s time to make changes to ensure your financial security.

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saturDAY, may 14, 2016

19

Stoinis stars as Kings XI crush Mumbai M

a r c u s Stoinis grabbed four wickets as Kings XI Punjab’s bowling attack made use of a slow, grippy Visakhapatnam pitch with occasional low bounce to restrict Mumbai Indians to 124. Left with a target they could get to by sticking to cricketing shots, Kings XI coasted to a seven-wicket win with three overs remaining, courtesy half-centuries from M Vijay and Wriddhiman Saha.

The slowness and lowness of the pitch, allied to the discipline of Kings XI’s bowlers, made it hard for Mumbai’s batsmen to time the ball through gaps.

Having to rely on muscle rather than pace onto the bat, they struck eight sixes and only five fours.

Kings XI hit five fours in the Powerplay. Conditions may have eased out a touch for the side batting second, but the bigger difference was the bowling - Mumbai’s quicks, particularly Mitchell McClenaghan, gave away a number of freebies.

McClenaghan was often too short to M Vijay, and offered him ample width as well, while Tim Southee overpitched to Wriddhiman Saha, who drove sweetly between extra cover and midoff.

Where Mumbai had ended their Powerplay on 21 for 2 - the lowest six-over score of the season - Kings XI ended theirs on 32 for 1. Not a

line wasn’t a high-percentage option, and Rohit was bowled when he got one to keep low in the ninth over.

Nitish Rana showed why he is rated highly in this format, with three cleanly struck sixes, but only scored seven runs off the other 25 balls he faced. He was Stoinis’ first victim, nicking a wide, full off cutter.

Mumbai’s run rate was less than five an over when the 15th over began, and they had lost Jos Buttler as well, holing out when he was through a lofted drive too soon off Stoinis. Kieron Pollard and Krunal Pandya Marcus Stoinis took 4 for 15 - his career-best figures in T20s

massive difference, but significant given they knew they were chasing 125.

Mumbai needed wickets, and a half-chance - perhaps only a quarter-chance - evaporated in the seventh over when Harbhajan Singh found turn and bounce to leave Vijay yards out of his crease. But the ball beat Jos Buttler as well, spinning a long way to the wicketkeeper’s left, and sped away for four byes.

Harbhajan tested the batsmen with turn and clever changes of pace, but that was never going to translate into a collapse given the batsmen weren’t going to take undue risks against him. That approach also exposed Krunal Pandya’s limitations as a spin bowler, and Saha and Vijay milked him easily, working him around

and punishing the loose balls ruthlessly.

Saha fell soon after both batsmen had reached their half-centuries, dragging a slower bouncer from McClenaghan onto his stumps, and Glenn Maxwell chipped one to mid-on in the same over, but by then Kings XI only needed seven to win.

The team batting first had won both the previous matches at this venue and Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai captain, chose to bat, expecting the pitch to get “slower and slower”. Rohit clipped the first ball of the match for four, as Sandeep Sharma drifted an inswinger too close to his pads, but there would be precious few hit-me balls from Kings XI’s new-ball bowlers thereafter.

The two Sharmas -

Mohit and Sandeep - and Stoinis bowled stump to stump, taking the pace off the ball, while the spinners bowled just short of a good length, denying the batsmen hits down the ground.

KC Cariappa bowled legbreaks to the right-handers, offbreaks to the left-handers, and spun both varieties sharply.

The ball kept sticking in the pitch, and Mumbai struggled to put the ball away, with a couple of wickets tempering the amount of risk they could take in the early overs. Unmukt Chand chipped Mohit Sharma to mid-on in the second over, and Sandeep swung one through Ambati Rayudu’s gate in the third.

Given the inconsistent bounce, sweeping Axar Patel’s stump-to-stump

hit the spinners for four sixes in two overs to hint at a revival, but Stoinis dismissed both in the 17th, with Pollard another casualty of hitting across one that bounced less than expected.

Mohit and Sandeep have bowled splendidly at the death through the tournament, and they were under far less pressure now than usual, with Mumbai already seven down. Only 20 came off the last three overs, with Mumbai losing two more, and Kings XI knew they only needed to bat sensibly to keep their season alive, just about. (ESPNcricinfo)

SCOREBOARD Mumbai Indians innings (20 overs maximum) RG Sharma* b Patel 15 UBT Chand c Gurkeerat Singh b Sharma 0 AT Rayudu b Sandeep Sharma 0 N Rana c †Saha b Stoinis 25 JC Buttler† c Gurkeerat Singh b Stoinis 9 KA Pollard b Stoinis 27 KH Pandya c Patel b Stoinis 19 Harbhajan Singh not out 14 TG Southee c Gurkeerat Singh b Sharma 1 MJ McClenaghan c Miller b Sandeep Sharma 4 JJ Bumrah not out 2 Extras: (lb-6, w-2) 8 Total (9 wickets; 20 overs) 124 Fall of wickets: 1-7 (Chand, 1.6 ov), 2-8 (Rayudu, 2.5 ov), 3-36 (Sharma, 8.5 ov), 4-47 (Rana, 10.4 ov), 5-61 (Buttler, 13.3 ov), 6-103 (Pandya, 16.4 ov), 7-103 (Pollard, 16.5 ov),

8-104 (Southee, 17.2 ov), 9-114 (McClenaghan, 18.3 ov) Bowling: Sandeep Sharma 4-0-11-2, MM Sharma 4-026-2 (w-1), AR Patel 4-0-301, MP Stoinis 4-0-15-4, KC Cariappa 4-0-36-0 (w-1) Kings XI Punjab innings (target: 125 runs from 20 overs) M Vijay* not out 54 HM Amla lbw b Southee 0 WP Saha† b McClenaghan 56 GJ Maxwell c Pollard b McClenaghan 0 Gurkeerat Singh not out 6 Extras (b-4, lb-3, w-4) 11 Total (3 wickets; 17 overs) 127 Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Amla, 0.6 ov), 2-117 (Saha, 15.4 ov), 3-118 (Maxwell, 15.5 ov) Bowling: TG Southee 4-0-221 (w-1), MJ McClenaghan 3-024-2 (w-2), KH Pandya 4-0-320, JJ Bumrah 2-0-13-0 (w-1), Harbhajan Singh 4-0-29-0

Rahul Dravid, Jayawardene join ICC cricket committee

F

ormer India captain Rahul Dravid and exSri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardena have been appointed to the ICC Cricket Committee, adding even more cricketing experience to the list of eminent people already on the committee.

Dravid and Jayawardena have played 1,161 international matches between them from 1996 to 2015, and each has been appointed for a three-year term. They will attend their first meeting at Lord’s on 31 May and 1 June, three weeks before the ICC Annual Conference takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Dravid, along with former Australia off-spinner and ex-Chief Executive of Federation of International Cricketers’ Association (FICA), Tim May, have been elected by the current Test

captains as current player representatives, replacing former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara, who has completed his final three-year term, and Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, who has completed his threeyear term. Jayawardena has been appointed as a past player representative and takes over from former Australia captain Mark Taylor, who has also completed his final three-year term.

Richard Kettleborough, three-time ICC Umpire of the Year, has been appointed as umpires’ representative in the committee and replaces Steve Davis, who retired last year.

Meanwhile, Anil Kumble has been re-appointed as the Chairman of the ICC Cricket Committee for a three-year term. The former India captain was appointed as the

Chair in 2012 and will now continue to head the group until 2018.

ICC General Manager Cricket, Geoff Allardice, who also administers the ICC Cricket Committee meeting, said: “I want to thank Mark Taylor, Kumar Sangakkara, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and Steve Davis for their significant contribution to this committee.

“I welcome Rahul Dravid, Mahela Jayawardena, Tim May and Richard Kettleborough, and I am confident that these highly credentialed individuals will carry on the good work of their predecessors to make the sport even more competitive and attractive.”

The ICC Cricket Committee is representative of all stakeholders in the modern game, including players, umpires and the media. It is empow-

Mahela Jayawardena and Rahul Dravid will add even more cricketing experience to the list of eminent people already on the committee

ered to make recommendations on cricket playing is-

sues to the Chief Executives’ Committee (CEC) and, if the

matter is a policy matter, the ICC Board for approval.

20

guyana-times.com

SATURDAY, may 14, 2016

Thunder earn Vince and Ball earn Warriors conference England Test calls final showdown T

O

KC Thunder wrap up 4-2 series against San Antonio Spurs The Oklahoma City Thunder completed a stunning series win over the San Antonio Spurs to reach the NBA Western Conference finals courtesy of a 113-99 victory in game six.

Not many people had given the Thunder a chance against the Spurs, who finished 12 games clear of Oklahoma City in second position during the regular season in the west.

But led by Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, the Thunder - who missed the play-offs last season - defied the odds to earn a 4-2 series victory and a showdown with reigning champions the Golden State Warriors for a place in the NBA Finals. The Thunder back in the conference final for the first time since losing to the Spurs in 2013-14

Thunder up! Russell Westbrook (left) and Kevin Durant combined for 65 points Game 6 to see Thunder through to the Western Conference finals

- were in control throughout, limiting San Antonio to just 31 points at half-time.

San Antonio responded with consecutive 34-point quarters following the main interval but Oklahoma City were not to be denied.

Westbrook posted another double-double, finishing with 28 points and 12

assists, while Durant topscored with 37 points.

Steven Adams also had back-to-back double-doubles via 15 points and 11 rebounds. Kawhi Leonard’s 22 points led the Spurs.

Veteran Tim Duncan had 19 points in what could have been his last NBA game.

(Sportsmax)

Djokovic’s ‘extra gear’ too much for Nadal

W

orld number one Novak Djokovic was delighted to pick up priceless momentum for the French open by beating Rafael Nadal in Rome.

Novak Djokovic believes his ability to find an “extra gear” was key to his defeat of Rafael Nadal at the Internazionali d’Italia.

World number one Djokovic beat the ‘King of Clay’ Nadal 7-5 7-6 (7-4) in the Rome quarter-finals on Friday, though the straightsets nature of victory belied a thrilling, well-matched contest.

Djokovic had to fight back from breaks down to win, extending his winning run over the Spaniard to seven matches, and an incredible 15 sets.

The win gives Djokovic serious momentum ahead of his latest attempt at a first French Open title, and the Serbian hopes his big-game prowess will stand him in good stead.

“Towards the end of both sets I managed to find an extra gear, to play with a lit-

tle bit more purpose, and come up with some aggressive play,” he said after defeating Nadal.

“I didn’t take the initiative first, I wanted to be more aggressive. But that’s easier said than done.

World number one Novak Djokovic beat the ‘King of Clay’ Rafael Nadal 7-5 7-6 (74) in the Rome quarter-finals

“Winning against Nadal is the ultimate challenge on clay courts and one of the toughest challenges we have in sport.

“I have to be very pleased

with the way I handled myself in the big moments today. I won against one of my biggest rivals on his preferred surface.

“We must not forget he’s in form. He won MonteCarlo and Barcelona and has played well the past couple of weeks.”

Nadal was happy to overcome a slight blip at the Madrid Masters to get back to what he believes is his best tennis in the Italian capital.

“I think I’m playing well in the clay court season, except my last two matches in Madrid,” said Nadal.

“Today I was there mentally, hitting good shots. I was very close this afternoon, and that’s positive.

“Obviously, when you feel you’re so close to taking both sets and you exit the tournament you can’t be 100 per cent happy.

“But overall I’ve competed at the highest level against the best player in the world. That gives me confidence that I’m ready for other things.” (Sportsmax)

Barbadian Estwick replaces Sir Curtly as Windies bowling coach

S

t. John’s, ANTIGUA – Roderick Estwick will join the technical team for the West Indies for the upcoming 2016 TriNation one-day international series. Estwick is the bowling coach for the Barbados Pride Franchise, replaces bowling consultant, Sir Curtly Ambrose.

Estwick has to his credit national coach of the year in Barbados in 2005

and 2011. He was head coach for the Barbados under 19 team which won three titles between 2000 and 2004. Additionally, he toured extensively with the West Indies Under-19 on tours in and out of the region and has participated in the High Performance Centre programme.

Estwick played first class cricket for Barbados, Transvaal and West Indies

“A” between 1983 – 1990.

Estwick will join the squad for the upcoming camp which will start on Thursday May 19.

Sir Curtly was with the senior men’s team for the last three years and toured extensively. His last assignment was with the winning men’s World T20 team this year in India.

he Hampshire batsman James Vince and Nottinghamshire seamer Jake Ball have been handed their maiden Test call-ups for England’s opening match of the season against Sri Lanka at Headingley.

Nick Compton has been retained at No. 3 despite a slow start to the season for Middlesex while Alex Hales will remain Alastair Cook’s opening partner.

Vince is set to slot in at No. 5 following James Taylor’s enforced retirement with a heart condition. He had been widely tipped for a place in the squad, with the debate between whether it would be at first-wicket down or in the middle order.

“It’s something I’ve been aiming for since I was a little k id really,” Vince said.

“Definitely when I was growing up, playing for England in a Test was still the number one. “I’ve had the experience of the T20s in Dubai against Pakistan, when it was a good feeling being able to contribute to the team. Being in the World T20 squad was a great experience as well although obviously I would have liked to have played more of a part.

“Since then I’ve turned my attention to Hampshire and trying to have a good start to the season. It’s only the last week when I started to notice stuff in the press.

But to get the call, it took a while to sink in.”

He has started the season solidly for Hampshire with 275 runs at 39.28 including a century against a strong Yorkshire attack at Headingley which was watched by national selector James Whitaker. But he has also impressed the England management when around the one-day and T20

squads. He was Man of the Series in the T20s against Pakistan late last year.

Ball, meanwhile, has yet to be capped at any level by England and has been rewarded for being the standout pace bowler in early season with 19 wickets at 21.15. He will provide the extra pace-bowling option and while unlikely to make the final XI may yet have a chance of forcing his way past Steven Finn, who missed the final Test in South Africa due to injury, into the team.

He has enjoyed a rapid

James Vince rise after a solid 2015 season and strong Lions programme in the winter. He pushes out Chris Woakes, who played in England’s previous Test at Centurion, while injuries to Mark Wood and Mark Footitt have also opened up the opportunity.

Most debate around the squad centred on who would join Cook in the top three.

In the end, it will be the same names who played in South Africa. Both Hales and Compton, however, will need strong series against Sri Lanka to be assured of retaining their places when Pakistan arrive.

Hales has been the more

convincing of the duo this season following his extended break, having spent useful time in the middle against Yorkshire and Middlesex.

Compton has managed just 100 runs at 20.00 in four matches but it was only four Tests ago, in Durban, that he enjoyed an excellent outing to help set-up England’s victory.

Of Compton’s 13 Tests only two have so far come at home, both against New Zealand in 2013, and it was his performance in the Headingley match of that series which persuaded the selectors to make a change for the Ashes that followed.

“Both Jake Ball and James Vince thoroughly deserve their opportunity having performed well with the England Lions and starting the season in good form with their respective counties,” Whitaker said.

“Building on his success with the Lions in the winter, Jake has impressed with the ball and shown excellent control and skill in the opening matches of the County Championship. If selected, we are confident he will perform very well at international level.

“James has been a consistent performer for Hampshire and England Lions over the past few years.

He is already well regarded by the England coaches in the short format and now has the opportunity to showcase his skills at Test level.”

England’s squad for Headingley Test Alastair Cook (capt), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Stuart Broad, Nick Compton, Steven Finn, Alex Hales, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, James Vince. (ESPNcricinfo)

Sri Lanka batting woes in England continue

S

ri Lankans 318 for 8 (Shanaka 91*, Mendis 65) v Leicestershire Sri Lanka put in another poor batting performance on day one against Leicestershire before being rescued by an unbeaten 91 from Dasun Shanaka.

The tourists, who were bowled out for 245 by Essex last weekend, collapsed from 101-2 to 192-8 at Grace Road.

But uncapped Shanaka shared an unbroken stand of 122 with Rangana Herath (28 not out) to take Sri Lanka to 318-8.

The first of three Tests against England begins at Headingley on Thursday.

Sri Lanka, who conceded a first-innings deficit of 158 in the draw with Essex, were again troubled by a Leicestershire side showing nine changes from their previous first-class match against Northamptonshire.

With Test captain

Kaushal Silva made 38 on the opening morning, Leicestershire v Sri Lankans, Tour match

Angelo Mathews rested, his stand-in Dinesh Chandimal won the toss but they immediately lost Dimuth Karunaratne, who was bowled by Atif Sheikh on the fourth delivery of the match.

Kaushal Silva (38) and Kusal Mendis (65) steadied the ship, but 21-year-old Rob Sayer dismissed them both as the Sri Lanka collapse began.

The middle order showed little resistance and when Jigar Naik had Dushmantha Chameera caught behind just after tea, the tourists looked in danger of being bowled out for less than 200.

However, Shanaka went on the offensive, hitting nine fours and three sixes in his 115-ball stay and will resume on Saturday looking for a fourth first-class hundred. (BBC Sport)

21

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GABF announces U-16 coaches for CBC Championship

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resident of the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF), Nigel Hinds recently stated in a press release that youth basketball is extremely important to Guyana basketball development and the GABF will prepare and help to direct and develop youths using basketball as a vehicle.

GABF identified Lugard Mohan as the head coach for the U16 Young Men and Mr. Abdullah 'Zico' Hamid as the head coach for the U16 Young Women as Guyana prepares for the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) U16 Championships scheduled to be hosted in Guyana from July 2 - 17, 2016.

The other coaches identified for inclusion in the coaching panel to prepare the National U16 teams are Ann Gordon, Mark Agard, Kevin Joseph, Kirk Fraser, Junior Hercules, Kevin Bonnett, Wayne Hinds, Willon Cameron, Julian Haynes and Dane Kendall.

Guyana is set to hold a national qualifier as is a prerequisite by International Basketball Federation (FIBA) in determining the best male and female 3x3 teams to represent Guyana

Saint Maarten, Trinidad & Tobago, British Virgin Island, Barbados, Grenada, St Lucia, Aruba, St Vincent, Antigua and Curacao

Lugard Mohan

after September 2016 in an International Antilles 3x3 Tournament, with all airfare, accommodation and meals being funded by FIBA. The minimum requirement for the local qualifier is registration and participation of 15 teams each for both male and female.

Guyana will be taking part in the U17 category for both male and females. Mr. Junior Andrew Hercules recently attended the FIBA Sponsored Workshop in Puerto Rico at the FIBA Americas headquarters, on the 6th to 8th of May as Guyana’s appointed coordinator. The workshop was attended by eleven countries; Guyana,

The workshop exposed coordinators to the requirements and tools necessary for the execution of our tournaments in preparation for International Lesser Antilles 3X3 Tournament.

Mr. Hercules was exposed to the web based platform which will be used in scheduling and reporting on the national qualifier. All players will be required to register and confirm their registration on 3X3planet. com. Each registered, recorded and summated game will add ranking points to Guyana. To assist Guyana in preparation for the national qualifier, FIBA Americas has provided 10 official 3x3 basketballs. FIBA has also committed to providing the winning teams with an all expense trip to the Lesser Antilles International Tournament.

The coaches are expected to benefit from U.S.A. based Coaching Consultant, Mr. Larry Davis who will be in Guyana to share his expertise with the coaches.

Golden Jubilee cricket set for Sunday at NCC T

he Golden Jubilee workplace tape-ball cricket competition will be played tomorrow, Sunday May 15 at the National Culture Centre Tarmac, Hadfield Street Lodge.

The competition is for workplace cricket teams who will challenge each other in six-overs per side matches beginning from 09:00 Hrs. Trophies will be awarded to

the wining team, losing finalist, the tournament’s most valuable player, the player with the most runs in the final and the bowler with the most wickets in the final.

All trophies and medals are donated by Ramesh Sunich of the Trophy stall in Bourda Market.

To date, eight teams are fully registered for the competition which is still open

to more work place teams.

To participate, call 672-6179, 613-0844 or 66-5857 before 9:00 Hrs tomorrow.

This Golden Jubilee competition which promises to be very competitive and exciting is coordinated by James “Uprising” Lewis who said that he is expecting a full day of action and a high level of play in the professional manner.

African board's managing director, Ali Bacher, and a series of meetings between the players, the WICB and the West Indies Players' Association in London to finally reach an accord. Lara was put in charge of the team again andSouth Africa whitewashed them. Only two of the five Tests went into the final day.

If West Indies thought returning home would bring them better luck, a world-beating Australian side bowled them out for 167 and 51 at Lara's home ground at Port-of-Spain in Trinidad. It was amid such tumult that Lara turned to Cozier.

"We shared a very important moment in my career, which for me was a turning point. It happened after returning from South Africa in 1999 after a 5-0 drubbing and a first-Test loss to Australia. I sought out the advice of Tony as I believed him to be the one person

who had the first-hand experience to comment on where we were going wrong and what we could have done to arrest the painstaking slide," Lara told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. "That conversation played a pivotal role in our winning the next two Test matches and drawing the series against the then best team in the world, Australia."

"Tony was a living history book, who had the unique ability to bring to contemporary cricket commentary a deep sense of strategy and analysis, as well as decades of watching history upfront," Lara said. "He had lived it, he had worked it and he had absorbed it. That added a layer to his broadcasting, journalism and commentary that will be hard for anyone to match.

"His commentary was so descriptive, vivid, energetic and engaging, I could have visualised each ball, each over! (ESPNcricinfo)

‘Cozier was a living history book’ L

ara credits Cozier's advice at 'turning point' in career The death of Tony Cozier has been considered a loss cricket will mourn for a long time. Countless tributes have surfaced in the two days since his death due to illness in Barbados.

Former West Indies captain Brian Lara, a legend of the game, also paid tribute, explaining how Cozier gave invaluable advice during a tough time in his career.

In 1998-99, West Indies were dismantled on a tour to South Africa; a tour which may not have gone ahead in the first place after Lara, captain at the time, and some of his players traveled to the UK instead of South Africa to protest against the allowances they were being paid and their unease with security arrangements. The WICB, in response, fired Lara and vice-captain Carl Hooper, and it needed an intervention from the South

22

GUYANA-TIMES.COM

saturDAY, may 14, 2016

All set for Guyana invades South Independence Dakota for “King of Dragz” 3-stage road race

A

ll systems are in place for this weekend’s gruelling 34th annual Independence ThreeStage cycling meet, set to span the counties of Berbice and Demerara.

Close to 50 riders are booked to face the starting line at Corriverton this morning when the event gets underway.

Stage one will see the riders pedaling off from the Corriverton Police Station heading to New Amsterdam, from 07:30h today, while stage two will commences at 14:00h and will span the Rosignol, West Berbice to Carifesta Avenue, Georgetown route.

The final stage will take place tomorrow from Kara Kara, Linden, to Homestretch Avenue, beginning at 08:00h.

Team Gillette Evolution’s top wheelsman Orville Hinds is the defending champion, having won last year’s event in a time of six hours, 52 minutes, 26 seconds (06h: 52m: 26s). Teammates Michael

Orville Hinds

Anthony and Raul Leal finished second and third respectively, ensuring a Team Gillette Evolution clean sweep.

Given the team’s outstanding performances over the past year and the clear

chemistry that exists among the members, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if one of the men in ‘white and black’ emerges champion again.

Strategic riding has been the hallmark of the Ansa McAl-sponsored team, and once they continue in that vein, then they would be hard to beat.

However, the other teams would be cognisant of the need to evolve and no doubt they would be coming with tricks of their own to topple Team Gillette Evolution.

Interestingly enough, several top local riders, including Geron Williams, Raynauth Jeffrey, Hamzah Eastman, Stephano Husbands, Jamal John, Andre Abdool and Christopher Holder, are currently on overseas engagement and would not participate.

Additionally, top local cyclist Alanzo Greaves will also miss the two-day race, since he is currently serving a one year doping suspension.

G

The Nissan GTR that will be representing Guyana

uyana will look to defend home territory against Suriname this Sunday at the Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMR&SC) Golden Jubilee “King of Dragz” race event at the South Dakota Circuit, Timehri. A large contingent of Surinamese participants is expected to invade the land of many waters with the GMR&SC already confirming over twenty registrants from the Dutch speaking nation.

Guyana’s faith will rest on the wheels of the per-

formances of Mohammed Enterprise 2 Nissan GTR’s, Toyota Supra, Mitsubishi Evolution, Mazda RX7 and other cars to defend its homeland.

Some of the Surinamese and their machines that will lead the challenge are the Lester Choy – Chevrolet Nova, Jean Paul Jose - Ford Cobra Jet, Ashton Ceyaren – Toyota Chaser, Ruben – Acura Integra, Prakash Latchman – Toyota Supra, Jeff Dong – Nissan Silvia, Vijai – Mitsubishi Evolution 5, Navin Biharie – Nissan

350Z and the Namchand’s Mazda RX7’s.

Upcoming Guyanese racing stars Rondell and Peter Daby as well as other local drivers are expected to present a good showing of themselves with the GMR&SC fine tuning preparations for participation at the Caribbean Motor Racing Championships (CMRC).

The opening round of the CMRC is slated for JAMWEST in Jamaica on May 22 with the final leg scheduled for November in at the South Dakota Circuit in Guyana.

For tomorrow’s “King of Dragz” the GMR&SC will be using the Time Bracket Elimination system and the same drag strip that was used for last drag race meet that was held at the South Dakota Circuit.

Admission for adults is $1,000; children, 12 years and older $500 while vehicles and children under 12 years old will be admitted free. The action gets going at 9:00 Hrs Participants are strongly urged to be on time to ensure the smooth flow of the event.

Kallis in charge 17-year-old Golden L

egendary retired South African allrounder Jacques Kallis is now the head coach of the Trinbago Knight Riders team that would compete in this year’s Hero CPL T20 tournament.

Kallis was part of the winning Red Steel team last year, playing as a marquee player under the captaincy of Dwayne Bravo and head coach Simon Helmot.

The Australian Helmot has been made the assistant coach of the team, as Kallis takes charge. Former West Indies wicketkeeper David Williams was in the T&T Red Steel set up as assistant coach but he has

now replaced by Helmot.

The new management of the Trinbago Knight Riders Red Chillies Entertainment has however decided to stick with Colin Borde as operations manager of the franchise. Borde has a very good record as manager, having served at the West Indies ‘A’ team and T&T levels with success.

Kallis, was recently hired by the Kolkata Knight Riders as their head coach. He succeeded Trevor Bayliss, who took over as England coach in June.

Kallis, who has been with the franchise since 2011, was the team's batting consultant in IPL 2015.

Although the T&T Red Steel is the defending CPL champion, there will be several changes to the team following the draft in February when many of the players from the winning squad were overlooked. In addition, some of the T&T Red Steel players will be involved in the Test series against India, which clashes with the CPL. The 2016 CPL starts in July and will end on August 7. The venue for the finals is yet to be determined as organisers continue negotiations with three nations.

A decision is expected to be announced within the next week.

RHTY&SC saddened at passing of Cozier T he management and members of the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC), M.S would like to extend their deepest sadness over the death of legendary cricket journalist, Tony Cozier.

Cozier was not only a Caribbean icon but the voice of West Indies Cricket, the club said in a statement.

“West Indies cricket, in its correct stage cannot afford to lose such a stalwart, whose contribution to the game in the Caribbean would never be forgotten,” it added.

The statement continued, “Cricket to some is a passion, but to Tony Cozier it was life and with his sudden death, the West Indies has lost an honest, hardworking and

highly knowledgeable servant of the game. We shall all miss his legendary voice, his commitment to West Indies Cricket in good and bad times and his honesty in his commentary and articles.”

The commentary box in the Caribbean would never be the same, the club pointed out, “as most listeners always looked forward to Tony Cozier and for most of us, his voice would always remain in our ears.”

The RHTY&SC further stated, “Long before the advent of television, it was legends like Cozier, Joseph ‘Reds’ Perriera, Henry Bolfied, Brian Johnson and Fred Truman who teased our imagination over the radio.”

The statement conclud-

ed, “For the passionate cricket readers, the Sunday Stabroek News would not be the same again as we all looked forward to his weekly articles which were well researched, to the point and quite passionate about the future of West Indies Cricket.

It is the sincere hope of the RHTY&SC, M.S that all of the administrators of West Indies cricket can unite as one and to work for the betterment of the game as an everlasting tribute to this outstanding West Indies icon.”

Meanwhile, the RHTY&SC, M.S would honour the late Tony Cozier, a hero to most of its members in a special way later this year.

Jaguar ready to roar

C

urtez Kellman is currently in the Guyana Golden Jaguars training camp ahead of the national side’s big clash against Canada's Olympic team this Sunday, May 15 at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence.

Kellman, at 17 years old, is the baby of the team and is eager to showcase his skills on the international scene.

The former St Mary’s High student is a brilliant young central midfielder that Georgetown Football Club (GFC) has nurtured who has been playing in the first team since joining the club in 2014.

The humble Georgetown youth, expressed his delight at being called up to the National team; “This has always been a dream for me; to be selected on the National Team, it has been a great moment for me to make my family and my club [GFC] proud, and I am full of joy.”

Kellman executes comfortably in a number of different positions, systems and formations while playing for GFC where he has started in over 20 games in the Stag Elite League Genesis and Finale segments combined.

Kellman has also scored some important free kicks for GFC and made numerous key tackles in the middle of the park. His series of impressive performances undoubtedly led to him being called up to the National Side.

Coach of GFC, Faizal Khan expressed his admi-

Curtez Kellman taking part in the Golden Jaguars training session

ration for Kellman’s workrate on and off the field.

Khan praised Kellman as a “young, hard working, humble footballer who rarely misses a single minute of training. A great example of how a young Guyanese footballer should conduct himself in order to have a chance of making a life out of pro football in the future.”

Kellman’s family and friends all sent their well wishes and congratulations to the player. Khan gave his support to his star player saying he is extremely happy to see the GFC home grown philosophy continuing to bear fruit.

“Congrats to Curtez fly your club and country’s flags high our youth! We are proud!”

Sunday’s main event will be preceded by a preliminary showdown between the Digicel’s Inter-Secondary School Football Competition Champion Christiansburg/ Wismar Secondary as they take on the Milo Secondary School Under-20 champion, Chase Academy at 16:00hrs.

Players from both sides will be looking to impress on the grand stage as they also seek to don national colours one day.

The feature game will see the Golden Jaguars battle Canada’s Olympic team in a much anticipated game set to kick off at 19:00hrs.

This exciting double header forms part of the calendar of events for our nation’s Independence jubilee celebrations this month.

guyana-times.com

saturDAY, may 14, 2016

23

Dover pleased with Conditions could Jaguars’ preparation give Jags advantage against Canada for Canada clash

By Akeem Greene

A

ssistant Coach of the Golden Jaguars Wayne Dover has expressed some amount of pleasure in the level of preparation the team has undergone for their International Friendly match against Canada on Sunday at the National Stadium, Providence.

In an invited comment on Friday, Dover said, “We had four to five days with the local players mixed with a few young foreign players; we have seen little bit of good cohesion in the squad in terms of their understanding of the pattern and defensive organisation and I think it augers well for the game on Sunday”.

To some extent, preparation would have been hampered by rain over the last days but being able to have access to the facility at Providence would have been extremely beneficial and

Wayne Dover

when combined with the fact that the full squad is in the country we can say that we are ready.

“Today [Friday], is the very first day we have gotten to see the full squad in preparation, using a whole field and we saw a few things that if we had earlier seen in the earlier sessions, we could have worked extensively on but never-

theless we maximise on the time we have and we are a bit satisfied on the session this morning”, the assistant coach explained.

When Guyana Times Sport visited the team, they were engaged in rigorous practice routines in the steaming heat of the morning, which was a bit unusual since it is bar far more tiring on the player and more so, their match is at night On this aspect, Dover said, “The sun is a factor but at the end of the day, we train at a time that the ground was available for us, the fact that these players have been playing football through the season and we all know the rules that in place where players availability is concerned for international football”.

The clash promises to be a good test for the locally based players against a team that is currently ranked 92 on FIFA world rankings as opposed to Guyana at 132.

Golyn & Sons 10/10 Softball...

BY AKEEM GREENE

T

he intense heat combined with the unaccustomed playing surface could play more out of favour of Canada’s Olympic Football team as they engage Guyana’s National Team, the Golden Jaguars tomorrow the National Stadium, Providence.

Canada based Golden Jaguars player, Daniel Whyte explained that the Jaguars have a major home field advantage against the North Americans.

“You have to adapt, it’s obviously a bit hotter but I adapted since I came before but that will be a challenge for the Canadians and that could give us the advantage,” Whyte said in an interview with Guyana Times Sport on Friday.

Whyte, who plays for Sigma FC in League One in Ontario, revealed that the visiting Canadians are a talented bunch that plays professional soccer in Canada.

“They are a bunch of United Soccer League (USL) players, which is a division

Daniel Whyte

just under the Major League Soccer (MLS), so they are ready; they have been playing a lot of games, so it will be good competition and I can’t wait to play them,” Whyte said.

He further revealed that Head Coach, Jamaal Shabaaz has been using some of these insights into the style of play by the Canadians.

He said “Canadian football really developed, so they like to play the possession game or direct, but it all depends on the coach but (Jamaal) Shabaaz and I

discussed some of the areas that I know of and also give him some information regarding the opposition.”

Whyte played for the Golden Jags last year with the Under-23 team against St Lucia in Grenada and also for the under-23s at Olympic qualifiers.

The centre-back said that his usual role was that of right-back, as only after producing some good performances in the central position, that the coach made it more of a permanent position for him.

“I play centre-back but I usually play right-back but last year when I played for the under-23s, Coach Shabaaz put me as Centreback and he liked what I did, so now that is my more main role,” said Whyte.

The 21-year old is excited about playing for the National team, since his father is Guyanese and he has high expectations of the match as Guyana seeks a much celebrated win. (akeemg@guyanatimesgy.com)

Amazon Warriors, Mighty Lions in winners’ row

T

he latest round in the Golyn and Sons 10/10 softball cricket tournament organised by the Guyana Softball League (GSL) and sponsored by Trophy Stall and Miss Love Trading saw some scintillating cricket in all departments.

Unstoppable pounded Prem XI into submission by 10 wickets

and Recardo Mc Allister 23 not out (3x6s) confirmed that Unstoppable XI were unstoppable.

Ruimzeight XI got back into winning ways by defeating Superbet XI by 10 wickets

Superbet XI batted first and scored 56-6 in 10 overs with Chaitram Nauth, 21 anchoring the innings.

Ruimzeight XI replied with 59-0 in 6.2 overs to clinch victory. Dukraj Singh clobbered 28 not out (4x6s) off 13 balls and with Support from Indar Dhukie 24 (3x6s) that saw their team through.

Prem XI took first strike and rattled up a challenging 70 all out in 10 overs with Premendra Arjune looking in good touch being the only one to offer some resistance with 18 (2x6s) off 20 balls. He was going at a good run rate but seemed Amazon Warriors shocked to lose concentration and was caught on Marachs XI by 6 wickets the long off boundary going for another The over confident Marachs XI big shot. took first strike and scored 96-6 in 10 Asif Mustapha with 4-14 rattled the overs with Feroze Rahaman taking batting. Unstoppable, knowing that bat2-9 in 2 overs and Irfan Hack 2-14 in ting is their strength then chased beau2 overs. In reply Amazon Warriors XI tifully to reach 76 without loss. Lincoln reached 98-4 in 7.3 overs for a clinical Leander who looked solid and positive run chase and victory by six wickets. in his stroke play capped a good all round Arjune Ajmal started to play shots match performance with a blistering Captain of West Siderz Furniture Store Yogendra Singh (left) to all parts with 56 (3x4s;6x6s) off 44 not out laced with 3 sixes and 3 fours and Power XI Captain Ravi Laldeo before their match 23 balls to put them back on track

with the lower half being guided by Skipper Imran Hack with 13.

Mighty Lions XI defeated West Siderz Furniture Store

West Siderz Furniture Store won the toss and struggled to a paltry 46 all out in 6.1 overs with Yogendra Singh scoring 14 (2x6s) off 20 balls. Doodnauth Seechan 4-10 did most of the damage with the ball.

In their turn, Mighty Lion XI replied with 51-5 in 5.1 overs Manoj Persaud blazing away to a top score of 21 (3x6s) to achieve victory for his team. Abid Haniff took 3-11 off 2 overs.

West Siderz Furniture Store defeated Power XI in a thriller

Power XI won the toss and batted scoring a challenging 122-5 in 10 overs with Gershom Sookmangal scoring 39 (1x4; 4x6s) off 29 balls and Ravi Laldeo 26 (3x6s). Anil Singh with 2-5 was the best West Siderz Furniture Store bowler.

In the run chase, West Siderz Furniture Store reached 124-6 in 8.5 overs with Robin Singh making 39 (5x6s) and Anil Singh 20 (3x6s). Jai Chakravarti took 2-12 off 2 overs

saturdAY, May 14, 2016

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

Dover pleased with Jaguars’ preparation for Canada clash

Pg 23 Tactics! Dover and some of the players engaged in a discussion on various tactics during practice (Akeem Greene Photo)

All set for Guyana invades Independence South Dakota for 3-stage road race “King of Dragz”

Pg 22 All eyes will be on Team Gillette Evolution throughout the three stages

Pg 22 The Chevrolet Nova to be driven by Surinamese Lester Choy will create excitement at the South Dakota Circuit

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