Guyana Times Daily - December 1, 2015

Kato Secondary School for January opening P13

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

Issue No. 2694

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

PRICE

COP21 in Paris

“We run the risk of missing out on great opportunities” – Jagdeo Page 7

As crime spirals out of control

Elderly woman Bandits hit choked, robbed sleeping Zeeburg family at Bush Lot Page 10

Page 12

Youths awarded for volunteerism Page 13

$80 vat included

WHAT'S INSIDE: Berbice Bridge Tolls

No P16 reduction likely today

Three P7 arrested after gun, ammo bust Man shot during row at Wharf P9 Bandits P12 storm ECD supermarket India P16 represents the call for justice for developing world

GPHC dispatcher’s killing Excellence for Volunteerism: The recipients who were awarded for their volunteerism work by the Department of Culture, Youth and Sport on Monday at its second Annual National Youth Award Ceremony at the National Cultural Centre

Specialty Hospital controversy

Ramjattan claims no conflict of interest

– represented US$200M Page 17 company "for free"

Felix sends GRO's Head "on leave"

Page

3 – dept subverted to facilitate rigging – PPP/C

Hydropower in Guyana

5 sites being assessed – Page Patterson 11

Reputed P8 husband slapped with murder charge

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tuesday, december 1, 2015 | guyanatimesGY.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, December 1 – 09:00h-10:30h and Wednesday, December 2 – 10:30h-12:00h.

The Berbice River Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Tuesday, December 1 – 08:20h-09:50h and Wednesday, December 2 – 09:15h-10:45h.

Felix sends GRO's Head "on leave"

– dept subverted to facilitate rigging – PPP/C

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

Weather: Thundery showers are expected throughout the morning, with heavy rain showers in the afternoon hours. Thundery showers can again be expected in the evening. Temperatures are expected to range between 25 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to East north-easterly between 3.12 metres and 4.92 metres per second.

High Tide: 07:59h and 20:15h reaching maximum heights of 2.32 metres and 2.35 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 13:48h reaching a minimum height of 0.94 metre.

Saturday, November 21, 2015

LOTTERY NUMBERS I

14 17 19 22 23 26 03 Bonus Ball

FREE TICKET

Monday, November 30, 2015

Daily Millions

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

Citizenship Minister Winston Felix

By Devina Samaroo

L

ongstanding Head of the General Register Office (GRO), Greta McDonald was sent on administrative leave in October for allegedly disobeying orders given by the Citizenship Minister Winston Felix.

During an interview with Guyana Times on Monday, Felix confirmed that the public servant was sent on leave; however, he could not say when she was scheduled or if she was scheduled to return.

“That’s not within my purview. I can’t tell you all of that … The part that I know about was that she was sent on leave … I can only speak on what I know … I can’t speak about that … If I know more, I would be in a position to tell you if the information was disclosed to me. So far the information has not been disclosed,” the Minister maintained after being prompted several times on the matter.

“I can’t speak about that,” he repeatedly stated.

The Minister clarified that McDonald was sent on leave, not because of inconsistencies in her performance or capacity, but because she deliberately disobeyed his orders.

“There were some strict instructions given to Mrs McDonald: she raised a proposal with me; I told her that was not the way to deal with it and I suggested to her the way she should deal with it and she still proceeded to act contrary to my instructions.

Now that is eye-pass and I am not going to sit here and encourage that,” the Minister stated.

People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) General Secretary Clement Rohee, during the Party’s weekly press conference on Monday at Freedom House, chastised the Citizenship Minister for “getting rid of a competent woman of worth who did so much to make the GRO comparable in delivery of service with any other civil registry in any other Caricom (Caribbean Community) country”.

According to Rohee, McDonald did a formidable job bringing the GRO, technologically and otherwise, to a level it never achieved until the People’s National Congress (PNC) left office in 1992.

‘Manipulating voters’ list’ On that note, the General Secretary went on to allege that the Citizenship Ministry was created to re-introduce efforts by the PNC to control the birth and death registration processes with a view to manipulating the voters’ list by keeping the names of dead persons on the list of electors and by transferring names of underage persons from the birth register to the preliminary voters’ list.

“Questions have arisen about new internal arrangements that have replaced those that were in place prior to May 11, 2015, and the efficacy and objectives of these new internal arrangements,”

Rohee stated.

Rohee posited that given Felix’s track record at the Guyana Police Force (GPF), particularly during the reign of terror launched by Rondell “Fine Man” Rawlings and his gang, questions have arisen whether Felix could be trusted to head such a sensitive area of data man-

specific issue of worth”.

“He has not yet pinpointed any specific action which is corrupt which tends to support his contention that the Ministry of Citizenship is involved in duplicating birth certificates to rig the Local Government Elections (LGE). Let Mr Rohee produce his evidence to the public and prove his

The General Register Office

agement which could be used to influence the electoral process in favour of the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Administration.

Responding to this, Minister Felix, a former Police Commissioner, stated that “it is quite easy to make allegations … the problem is that the allegations are generalised and that they do not point to a

case. We are open, transparent and we have no such desires which he wants to plant on us,” Felix clarified.

Corruption at GRO Moreover, the former Home Affairs Minister insisted that the GRO, under his stewardship, was never corrupt, and blasted the Citizenship Minister for making such statements. turn to page 7

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

Editorial

Closure for Rodney

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he “Justice for Walter Rodney Group”, comprised of individuals from both local and foreign jurisdictions , has submitted a petition for the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the untimely death of Dr Rodney from a bomb blast on June 13, 1980, to be extended a mere two additional weeks to facilitate the interrogation of three persons.

In addition to the 1000 persons who have signed the petition, a wide swathe of Guyanese, as evidenced in the press and social media, are convinced that a failure to complete the hearings will diminish the thoroughness of the Commission’s report. The remaining witnesses include Cecil ‘Skip’ Roberts, who was Crime Chief of the Guyana Police Force at the time of Rodney’s death; Dr Rupert Roopnaraine, now Education Minister and a close confidante of Dr Rodney; and Major General (rtd) Norman McLean, who served previously as Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) at the time of the killing.

Immediately when the new PNC-led APNU/AFC government took office, President David Granger announced the CoI had to terminate its business without any further extensions to its November 30 deadline. The rationale offered was more money should not be spent after the hundreds of millions already expended. But as was pointed out at the time, the cost of the additional two weeks was going to be infinitesimal compared to what preceded and if it helps bring closure to the inquiry, it would be money well spent.

What has made the refusal of the government extremely controversial is that the individuals to be interviewed might have information that could place culpability on the then ruling party, the People’s National Congress, which had vowed to meet with “sharper steel” Rodney’s challenge to remove them “by any means necessary”.

President Granger, being the leader of the PNC which is the overwhelming largest party in the governing coalition and which in the end calls the shots, is not surprisingly being accused of “heading off the Inquiry at the pass”.

Granger has made several hard decisions about the PNC in the four years since he has been made leader.

These have redounded to the benefit of the party, and has brought it back into office, when most had written it off just five years ago. One decision was to subsume the name of the PNC, which had been made into “mud” ever since 1968 for rigging elections, ruling dictatorially and finally killing its most trenchant critic. This rehabilitation efforts will be undone if the blot of clipping the wings of the CoI before it completes its task to its own satisfaction, remains.

It is the position of this newspaper that the CoI must be given the additional few weeks to be satisfied that it has done the best job to bring closure to this sore that has troubled Guyana’s reputation for thirty-five years. Dr Rodney was no ordinary individual: he represented the idealism of the best and brightest that this country could produce. If we are ever ever to wrench ourselves from the morass in which we have been stuck for over half a century, we must inspire the youths of this country in the present and the future that the sacrifices inevitably demanded of them would not be in vain. Truncating the conclusion of the long-delayed COI into Rodney’s death will not do that, but rather increase their cynicism about what has been described as the “politricks” prevalent in their country.

It is not too late for the government to change its position on the CoI and demonstrate to all Guyanese that it is willing to let the chips fall where it may so that this country can go forward unitedly. This CoI is a “creature” of the President, to quote the late Desmond Hoyte, and he can either kill it – as he has signalled – or resuscitate it as he is being petitioned.

The ball is in his court.

US President Barack Obama visited the scene of the Bataclan theatre attack in Paris, after arriving in the city for the UN climate change summit. Accompanied by French President Francois Hollande and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, he laid a single white rose at the venue where 90 people were killed (BBC photo)

Open letter to the Public Security Minister Dear Minister, I will like to bring to your attention the poor security system in Guyana and the lack of attention in the crime fighting system that is now life threatening to Guyanese. I was robbed at my business premises on 04 November 2015 at around 14:00h by four armed bandits who pretended to be customers and held us at gunpoint. The incident lasted for closely 45 minutes.

A customer who was approaching the store to do some purchases saw what was happening, leave her bicycle and ran to the Mahaicony Police Station to make a report. Several calls were made to the said Mahaicony Police Station and persons were told by a female officer that there was no vehicle or male ranks at the time. Forty-five minutes and no police came to our premises. The four armed bandits made their escaped with my vehicle after demanding the keys.

They drove the car but lost control and ended up in a nearby trench. They es-

caped into the Mahaicony backlands. The Mahaicony residents were able apprehend one of the bandit where he was given a sound trashing moments before Police ranks turned up at the scene.

Nevertheless Minister, my car was pulled out from the trench and handed over and lodged at the Mahaicony Police Station with the battery.

The Mahaicony Community Policing Group and residents still continued that night to hunt and search for the rest of the bandits which was still hiding in the backlands. During that night I was at the Mahaicony Police Station, where I heard the telephone rang, and was answer by the Constable. A resident who made that call saying that a Sliver Blue Car pass by and pick one of the bandit up and making his way out to the upper Berbice and asking for Police back-up and roadblock. Fifteen minutes after then ranks finish signing out for weapons and went out to search where the car made its escaped. I even

made contact to the 911 emergency but to no avail.

Early the following morning police ranks and Members of the Mahaicony Community Policing Group were still searching and hunting for the bandits. The residents decided to set the bushes on fire where the two other bandits were captured and handed over to the police.

A cell phone was recovered at my premises and was handed over to the police. That cell phone has vital information like photograph of the bandits, text messages and even telephone calls. The female rank who had initially told us that no police vehicle was available was allegedly fingered in robbery.

Minister, I am calling on you to launch an investigation into this matter since it is a disgrace to Guyana Police Force. On Monday 9 November 2015 one of the bandits was charged. He was remanded to prison until 18 November 2015 at the Mahaicony Magistrate Court.

On Monday 18 November 2015, I made myself present in court waiting for the case to call and after many hours were then told by an officer that the Magistrate Jacket did not come. This is more than ridiculous in our Court system and as such, I am calling on you Minister, to step into this matter as early as possible.

I stood before the court asking for the release of my car and items that was recovered. Permission was granted by the Magistrate who told the Police rank to take proper photos of the items.

After running to the station several times and getting unnecessary excuse to have the car and phone cards released, I then observed that the battery of the said car was missing from the Mahaicony Police Station where it is inexcusable for the Officers not giving account for it.

Sincerely, Roopnarine Singh

Govt should restore Mahaicony Creek transportation service Dear Editor, We the parents and students of Mahaicony Creek are calling out to the APNU/ AFC Government to restore the transportation service to our children who are going to secondary schools from Mahaicony Creek. It has been over two months now the bus was removed from the area. It was used to transport secondary school children from Wash Clothes, Mahaicony Creek to Mahaicony Road front to

attend secondary schools.

Parents are confronted with the high cost to send their children with private transportation to school.

The cost to send one child to a secondary school a day with private transportation is over $500. We are rice farmers; with the low rice price, we are facing hardship already to maintain our selves and family.

Very soon many parents will not be able to send their children to secondary

schools, if this service is not restored to the students of Mahaicony Creek.

During last year, the PPP/C Government purchased a bus to transport over 47 students going to secondary schools on the coast. Also, parents were forced to spend their personal money to repair the school boat engine that had broken a few weeks ago, so that our children can go to school.

We are also calling on former President Bharrat

Jagdeo to help lobby the government to restore the service to our children, so that they can have access to a decent education.

Education is a tool to remove our people from poverty. We did not have the opportunity to attend school.

We are supplicating this government to give our children that opportunity.

Sita Mohan for Students and Parents

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

Guyanese Americans give thanks to America Dear Editor, From last Thursday through Sunday, Guyanese Americans gave thanks for their presence in the US by participating in the American Thanksgiving festivities. They hosted family reunions and engaged in charitable offerings. Some prepared meals for the homeless and/or donated foods at various pantries.

Guyanese have justifiable reasons to give thanks to America which has been welcoming them since the early days of the PNC dictatorship that began in 1966.

They want to give thanks to the country that has been welcoming them and for the enormous progress they have made in America allowing them to live a relatively high standard of living and sending remittances back home.

Since their arrival in the US, Guyanese have been successful.

They have shared part of their earnings to the poorer sections of American society with generous donations to charitable organisations and shelters. Some volunteer their service to help the poor. And many send money back to Guyana to help families and friends.

They have made Thanksgiving a special type holiday as part of the Guyanese culture by merging a traditional turkey meal with typical Guyanese

cuisine. The thanksgiving dinner normally includes baked or roasted turkey, pumpkin pie, baked sweet yams, corn, cranberry jelly, and salad (including sugar beets) with wine and other hard liquor.

Guyanese normally supplement the meals with their own traditional ethnic dishes including dhal puri, pachounie, phulourie, bara, fried rice, chowmein, and fried channa as snacks.

There is always a plentiful supply of mauby and sorrel for the children and lots of good Guyanese rum for the adults. For desert, there is Black cake, pumkin pie, sweet potato pie, ramalai, gulanjamoon, etc. And it is not unusual for Guyanese to substitute the turkey with or add duck, chicken, ham, mutton, and goat.

Thanksgiving is a historical celebration in the US going back to the 1600s since the early settlement of North America by European pilgrims. It is an annual day of giving thanks for the harvest and the blessings of the past year.

It is a national holiday and is observed on the fourth Thursday of every November with businesses and schools closed in recess for an extended weekend.

The festival normally sets up a state of mind for the Christmas and Hanukah (Jewish) holidays.

Guyanese-Americans see

Thanksgiving as an occasion for family reunion with lunch or dinners. Relatives normally take turn hosting dinner over the four-day period.

All religious denominations observed Thanksgiving Day, including Muslims, Christians and Hindus who used the festival to aid the poor and homeless. Although small in numbers, Guyanese Americans gave a lot during thanksgiving as a means of showing their gratitude for being healthy and away from all of the violence and robberies in Guyana.

Giving is part of the Guyanese culture. They are a freely giving people, and they do not restrict their giving only to their own kind. Many Indo-Guyanese gave generously to the Red Cross and American Cancer Institute in addition to their local mandir, masjid and church. Others sent money to friends and relatives in Guyana. Some baked turkeys and cakes, donating them to homeless shelters in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Feeding the homeless has become an annual ritual for some mandirs. The assistance given by IndoGuyanese helps to ease social problems such as hunger, poverty and homelessness in the city.

Yours sincerely, Vishnu Bisram

Rahaman’s appointment cannot contribute to community development Dear Editor, It is out of concern as a citizen and resident of West Coast Demerara that I share my thoughts on the appointment of Rice Producers Association Action Committee member Jinnah Rahaman as a Community Development Officer within the region.

I would kindly advise Government and persons in authority that whenever making the decision to choose someone for a position in a district they should be qualified or have experience in the area of appointment since doing the contrary would reflect badly on the administration.

Many in Region 3 are of the opinion that Jinnah Rahaman has the knowledge and suitability in the field that he is qualified in such as rice but not in the field of

a Community Development Officer.

Let me make this clear before I proceed: I am not interested in any position, but I am interested in having proper representatives to develop the region and if there are concerns I will highlight such which are the sentiments of many others, thus causing me to pen this letter.

Now, I am of the opinion that the APNU/AFC government does not want to be a failure in any of it endeavours or appointments in developing Guyana and pushing it to its full potential.

But, Rahaman is not known on the West Demerara for any development whatsoever.

He has not contributed or has any experience or can show any project pertaining to tangible development un-

der his belt. I am in receipt of many complaints and persons are annoyed since they do not see Rahaman portfolio as a development officer as meritorious much more qualitative within the sector to boost the region.

If one is to look at the village Rahaman lives in they can judge his ability to develop a community since there is none going on where he resides.

This is a square peg for a round hole, if Rahaman is being rewarded for his support of the government, this should be done in a field that he can offer some development to, and not in a field that he will add nothing substantial.

Rakesh Vishnu Singh, Parika, East Bank Essequibo

Two favourite sportsmen

Dear Editor, During last week, there appeared in the press articles on two of my all-time favourite sportsmen. Both articles caused me to reminisce on the pure joy I got watching them perform.

Vibert Butts (fondly called Derdi) was an extraordinary footballer. During his playing days, in an era when Guyana produced a number of fine players, he was, in my opinion, the best pure striker in the country.

A naturally gifted goal scorer, he was nifty with the ball at his feet and brilliant in the air. His philosophy was to use any means necessary to get the ball in the goal.

Lennox Arthur described a goal Derdi Butts scored for Pele in a match in Linden that typified the man. Labba

Barton dibbled two hapless players and played the ball wide to Terry Nichols.

Terry fired the ball goalwards, and Derdi threw his body over a defender, met the flying ball with a header that produced a stunning goal. Derdi Butts was never afraid to put his body on the line to score a goal. It was indeed with sadness that I read of his incarceration.

Ian Mc Donald shared with us, through the local press, an article by Simon Barnes which was an account of the heroics of Malcolm Marshall during the Headingley test in 1984.

In summary, Marshall had an outstanding match, playing with a thumb broken in two places.

First he unexpectedly came out to bat to allow Larry Gomes to score a cen-

tury, and then proceeded to take 7 for 53 to set up a West Indies win.

I recall watching Marshall playing for the WI against Australia at Bourda. He was over the wicket to the great lefthander Allan Border, and then suddenly noticed something and switched and came in around the wicket. Bowled down! The crowd was ecstatic. Of the great West Indies fast bowlers of that era, Marshall is considered by many the best of them all.

And so it was that I enjoyed some very pleasant memories of Vibert Butts and Malcolm Marshall, two of my favourite sportsmen, one dead, one now incarcerated.

Sincerely, Mark Bender

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By Megan Devine

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f you have a child or teen who misbehaves, the holidays can be a source of infinite stress and anxiety.

Your individual expectations of the holidays can be seriously at odds: you expect to have a nice, shared time with your whole family and maybe attend some larger family gatherings; they expect to get every gift they demand, and they intend to spend their school break staying up late, sleeping in, and playing video games.

The resulting holiday season can be filled with tantrums, obnoxious behaviour, and lots of yelling and screaming.

As an added stress, what is normally behaviour just seen by your own family unit can suddenly be on display for everyone. Sometimes you might even feel like it’s just better for everyone if you skip those family events because you don’t want your own parents or your in-laws to see how out of control things have become.

(No wonder a lot of parents dread the holidays!)

The root of bad behaviour (might not be what you think) Family gatherings and the holidays are times when inappropriate child behaviour is felt most acutely by parents.

But do children really act out more during this time of year?

And if so, what’s going on?

Let’s look at this through something James Lehman talks about in his Total Transformation Program: the idea that children act out when they don’t know how

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Foundation to solve their problems. The holidays can give all of us a lot more problems to solve, (to put it mildly) and maybe that’s why behavioural problems can seem more intense during these months. For example, let’s say your son doesn’t want to go to Grandma’s house for dinner. He’s angry about having to go, and he pitches

wrong to get this toy or that game. But when children don’t know how to handle their problems in appropriate ways, they’ll use every inappropriate “trick” in the book.

One way children try to solve their problems is by being obnoxious. The truth is, obnoxious behaviour often works, in that we give in to what

a fit. There’s a problem (“I’m angry”) and he solves that problem using a tool he hopes might work (yell and stomp so I don’t have to go).

Sometimes it’s the break in routine that sets a child off, or the holiday excitement or expectation, and they simply don’t know how to handle that energy. Or for younger children, there’s anxiety about doing something right or

our children want just to make them stop behaving that way, or go away. After all, children do what works. James Lehman really stresses the idea of “intermittent reinforcement” – that if you sometimes give in to misbehaviour, then that behaviour becomes a tool your children will use again and again, in hopes that this will be one of those time that it works. (Sort of like people who

play the slot machine. If you’re rewarded once every hundred times, it will still convince you to keep trying, because you’re hanging out for that jackpot.

Children treat parents the same way at times.)

Remember that no matter what the issue is, at its core, your child has a problem he is trying to solve: whether that problem is not wanting to spend a holiday dinner with extended family, or having an intense need for that new video game. Does yelling solve the problem? He might think, “If I get mad and throw things, will that keep me from having to go to church with my parents tonight? If it worked once, I’m going to try it again.”

Do you see how that works? James Lehman calls this “anger with an angle”.

Not only do some children use emotional outbursts to solve their anger or irritation, they also train their parents to be extra careful around them, so as not to “set them off”.

In this way, they are trying to solve the problem of anger (or discomfort, or irritation) by getting what they want every single time: eventually, they only have to threaten an outburst to get their way.

Walking on eggshells around your child?

If you find yourself walking on eggshells around your child just to keep things quiet, you’re not alone. Sometimes, you’re just plain tired, and giving in feels like the easiest solution.

Starting right now, though, you can begin to take your power back and stop tiptoeing around your child.

Whatever the problem is, remember that your role as a parent is to help her learn appropriate ways to solve her problems, and to hold her accountable for her behaviour.

Your rules and expectations help her build the skills she needs to be successful in life. Learning to control your temper when things don’t go your way is a huge skill that many people don’t learn as children, and still struggle with as adults. It doesn’t matter if obnoxious behaviour is a oncea-year problem or a constant daily struggle. The reality is that children need to learn how to solve their problems in appropriate ways – all year round.

If your child’s behaviour gets out of control around the holidays, here are some things you might try: Stick with your routine as much as possible. Sometimes just keeping the familiar rhythm of life can help lessen the anxiety that can come with excitement and overstimulation. As much as possible, try to stick to your normal routine.

Be clear about your family’s approach to the holidays: Go over the rules and expectations before you get into a tough situation. This might include how you will handle requests for certain things, what you expect in terms of attendance at family events, etc.

Work in things your child actually wants: Let her know there is time for her interests during the school break, as well. You might even ask your child what their “ideal” holiday would be. Are there places you can compromise? (Excerpt from

empoweringparents.com)

How parents give away their authority

By Rebecca Wolfenden

T

here’s no getting around it…giving consequences and setting limits makes you uncomfortable.

You don’t like to be seen as “the bad guy”. Besides, your partner is a much better disciplinarian – they have no problem enforcing the rules, and the children actually listen to them.

It all works out, right?

Not always – if you consistently wait for your partner to take disciplinary action, you could be teaching your child that you have no authority.

For many parents, enforcing the rules just doesn’t feel good. You may not like confrontation, or you may be worried about negatively affecting your relationship with your child. If your co-parent is naturally more assertive with discipline, it can be easier to let them take the reins. This happened a lot in my family – my mom was famous for saying, “Just wait until your father gets home!”

When only one parent acts as the disciplinarian, your actions say to your child, “I’m not capable of holding you accountable.” You end up giving away your authority.

The same situation can occur when threatening to call a teacher, coach, or other authority figure outside the home. For example, “I’m going to call your teacher if you don’t sit down and do your homework right this minute,” or, “I’m going to call your coach and tell him how you speak to me.”

The parent is using fearbased discipline in each scenario, which might work the first few times, but eventually children start to see through it. Especially if you use the statement as a threat and don’t follow-through.

In many cases, resentment can also build between parents – one parent feels like they have to shoulder the burden of holding the child accountable, or being the “bad guy,” while the other feels like the child doesn’t listen to them.

There’s nothing wrong with waiting until your spouse is home to discuss your next steps. If you need to rely on your partner for something important, James Lehman, child behaviour expert and author of multiple parenting programs, wrote specific, effective phrases in his article, Do You Make This Parenting Mistake? “Wait till Your Father Gets Home!”

Here’s to presenting a united front – you’ll both be stronger for it! (Empoweringparents.com)

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COP21 in Paris

Three arrested after gun, ammo bust

“We run the risk of missing out T on great opportunities” – Jagdeo

BY EDWARD LAYNE

A

s world leaders opened pivotal talks Monday in Paris at the Conference of the Parties 21 (COP21) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Leader of the Opposition and Globallyrecognised Climate Change Advocate Bharrat Jagdeo is optimistic the Paris meeting can produce the long-overdue Globally Binding Agreement.

This agreement is of significant importance to developing countries including Guyana, many of which are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

Jagdeo said he was pleased there seems to be a momentum after the COP15 in Copenhagen back in 2009, where world leaders made ambitious pledges, but many failed to fulfil those pledges.

“We have a great opportunity on Paris to do what we did not do in Copenhagen when the world had expected great things and they had expected a globally binding agreement that would have been the turning point for how we treat carbon-based economies in the world,” Jagdeo said.

He said developing countries want a binding agreement with fixed ambitious targets to achieve the IPCC’s target of a 2-degree rise about pre-industrial levels, but warned that in the absence of a binding agreement the chances of achieving these targets may be diminished.

“What emerges from Paris will either give great hope to a large number of developing countries or be disappointing to them,” he said.

Jagdeo also warned that already there are efforts globally to talk down expectations from Paris, but warned that nations need not engage in that but instead push for the best agreement.

Forest

But Jagdeo was particularly concerned with the preservation of articles in the agreement as well as the decision document which accompanies the agreement, which deals with forest preservation and financing for forest initiatives.

Guyana has been a leading world advocate for Forests to be recognised as one of the key means of reducing global warming since trees absorb significant amounts of carbon monoxide from the atmosphere.

Jagdeo said he was a bit disappointed when the October draft of the agreement was released, but forest was excluded.

However, a subsequent draft included forest and the document before negotiators includes an article on Reducing Emission by Deforestation and Forest

Opposition Leader and Globally-recognised Climate Change Advocate Bharrat Jagdeo

Degradation+ (REDD+) as well as the Warsaw plan, three decisions that were made in 2013 and three other decisions on REDD+ that will emerge from 2015.

“The task before us as negotiators and countries is to ensure that by the time the final agreement comes out we manage to preserve these articles and decisions... there are many people who want to get them out of the document. Our advocacy has to be strong, our representation has to be strong,” he said.

Guyana’s representation

Jagdeo who was named Champion of the Earth in 2009 for his global advocacy against climate change, said while he is confident Guyana’s Negotiator in Paris, Andrew Bishop will fight hard to ensure forest in retained, he will need political support from the Guyana government.

“This bothers me a lot because globally we have lost momentum because we are not clear about this government’s climate policy. This is a government with no climate change strategy, no plans for advocacy at the global level,” Jagdeo said.

Representing Guyana at the climate change conference is Governance Minister Raphael Trotman.

Jagdeo contends that the Minister has a vague understanding of climate change concepts and, therefore, will not significantly contribute to the negotiations during the conference.

“We run the risk of missing out on great opportunities … All we heard is that he will meet the Norwegians… it’s not a joyride to Paris: you have to go there with serious positions… and we have sent Minister Trotman to Paris and he has not made or given us any indication as to what this government’s climate policy is… I believe he might be wandering around the halls in Paris with very little to say,” Jagdeo passionately stated, as he expressed fears of Guyana losing the role it played at the global level regarding climate change issues.

Against that backdrop, the former President was calling on President David Granger to go to Paris to represent Guyana, however, Granger has since expressed his desire to stay home and attend to matters of “national interest”.

He further explained that President Granger’s absence from the conference denied Guyana a voice during the Heads of Government segment on Monday He noted Minister Trotman would get the opportunity to speak later in the negotiations, but the Presidents’ remarks were critical as they set the tone of negotiations.

More than 150 world leaders have converged for the two-week talks, known as COP21 which runs from 30 November to 11 December 2015.

hree persons were taken into police custody on Monday following the discovery of a firearm and several matching rounds.

The discovery was made at a house in Vigilance South, East Coast Demerara.

While reports remain sketchy, Guyana Times understands the gun and ammunition were found during a raid by police.

According to reports, around 10:30h police conducted a search on a house at Vigilance South during which they unearthed an unlicensed .32 Rossi Revolver along with 46 matching rounds of ammunition.

A man and two women have been arrested and are in police custody assisting with the investigations.

Felix sends GRO's...

Minister Felix had recently generally stated that the GRO was easily susceptible to corruption.

However, Rohee insisted that the GRO was not corrupt while he was the Home Affairs Minister.

“That situation [corruption] had virtually disappeared … it was almost nonexistent … the PPP/C left behind a competent and professional staff at the GRO and the Immigration Services Section at the Ministry of Home Affairs,” Rohee stated.

But Minister Felix stated that “Rohee can live in an ivory tower” as acts of corruption “were going on all the time … on different degrees”.

He made it clear that it was a known fact that the GRO was susceptible to corruption and it made no sense denying this.

“You can’t know these things and ignore them; you have to deal with them and part of dealing with them is being open by admitting that the problem exists,” Felix noted.

Further, Minister Felix

from page 3

highlighted that only recently, a certain individual applied for a birth certificate which he wanted within a certain period, but given the rules and regulations, the document could not be issued within his time frame. Consequently, it was reported that a staffer at the GRO demanded $6000 from him to get the document within the desired period.

The Minister related the above situation as he reiterated the fact that corruption at the GRO was still in existence.

8 NEWS

tuesday, december 1, 2015 | guyanatimesGY.com

GPHC dispatcher’s killing

Reputed husband slapped with murder charge T he former paramour of Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) employee Mellisa Skeete, who was stabbed and thrown out of a car, was on Monday slapped with a murder charge.

Allan Sim appeared before Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and was remanded to prison.

The 55-year-old taxi driver, of Lot 860 Paradise Housing Scheme, East Coast Demerara (ECD), was not required to plead to the indictable charge, which stated that on November 23 at Georgetown, he murdered Skeete.

Police Prosecutor Steven Telford told the Court that the accused and the 33-year-old woman were in a common-law relationship and shared a child together. According to Telford, the now dead woman worked at the GPHC as an ambulance dispatcher and on the day in question, the accused picked her up after work about 15:00h in his motorcar, PRR 6801.

Telford also revealed

Murder accused: Allan Sim

that 30 minutes later, the woman was found in the vicinity of Carmichael Street bleeding profusely as a result of several stab wounds about her body. She was picked up by public spirited citizens and rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she succumbed while undergoing emergency treatment.

The Prosecutor told the Court that the man reportedly confessed to the murder, and his car was re-

covered on Saturday. The Police have reported that the passenger seat has been replaced presumably in an attempt to cover up the crime, the Court heard.

In his alleged confession, Sim reportedly told investigators that Skeete attacked him and in selfdefence, he killed her. The man claimed that about two weeks ago, he went to Skeete’s house, but she ran inside and locked the doors upon seeing him since she had a male in the house.

The suspect allegedly told Police in his confession that on the day of the incident, he picked her up from work and informed her that he was ending the relationship. He further claimed the woman got angry and attacked him with a surgical blade which she drew from her bag, but he managed to overpower her, injuring her in the process.

He claimed that the injured woman then opened the door and jumped out of the moving car.

The accused further told investigators that he panicked and drove to the sea-

T

Regan “Grey Boy” Rodrigues

der charge which stated that he executed Crum-Ewing while he was in Diamond, East Bank Demerara. CrumEwing was gunned down on March 10 while encouraging residents of Diamond

New Housing Scheme to vote for the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) at the May 11 General and Regional Elections.

During the PI, the accused denied murdering Crum-Ewing, stating that he did not wish anyone to see him as a murderer and he was being framed. He told the Court that when he was arrested, no one questioned him about the murder, but the Police held him on the basis of an illegal gun that was allegedly found on him. The Court was told during the PI that Rodrigues was caught with a .32 Taurus pistol, which ballistics proved was the weapon used to kill CrumEwing, an ex-soldier.

Rodrigues did not coop-

Droves…

A

Dead: Mellisa Skeete

wall, where he dumped the blade and clothes he was wearing.

Telford requested two weeks to complete the investigation. Sim was subsequently remanded to prison. The case will continue on January 10.

Guyana Times understands the couple were together since 2007, but Skeete reportedly ended the relationship recently because of alleged abuse she faced at Sim’s hands.

Crum-Ewing murder PI complete; decision pending

he Preliminary Inquiry into the death of activist Courtney Crum-Ewing has been completed and the decision as to whether Regan “Grey Boy” Rodrigues will be put on trial for his murder is expected to be announced on January 11.

During the PI, more than 30 statements and evidence were heard from eyewitnesses, Crum-Ewing family members and Police ranks. The PI commenced in October.

A decision was expected to be handed down on Monday, but was postponed as a result of unforeseen circumstances, which were not disclosed to the media.

Rodrigues, 37, of River View, Ruimveldt, a miner, was slapped with the mur-

Eyew tness

erate with Police and was tight-lipped about his alleged involvement in the murder.

During the PI, Rodrigues told the Court that he was approached to kill Mark Benschop, but he had gone to the Police with this information. This was corroborated

by Benschop himself when he disclosed that $3 million was offered to Rodrigues to have him killed. After he would have been eliminated, the next alleged hit was to be on Crum-Ewing, the Court was told.

Benschop had claimed that Rodrigues reported to the Police that he was paid for the two hits; however, contrary to his claims, the Police denied any knowledge of such allegations, the Court was informed.

…of Canadians

ccording to the Chronic, Canadians are returning in “droves” for next May’s Independence Anniversary bash. Now your Eyewitness isn’t making this up – cross his heart and hope to die! We know the Chronic’s NOT the government’s mouthpiece (they said so)… they’re the mouthpiece of the STATE. And since we don’t have paramountcy of the party (the PNC-led APNU/AFC coalition) over the state no mo’, the information has to be unsullied as the driven snow!

But your humble Eyewitness IS a mite confused. Are these “hordes” returning right now – as we speak, or are they going to be arriving next year, come May 26? We do believe we’re seeing more Canucks in our part of the world now their winter’s kicking in. Canadian winters, after all, are the real McKoy, not the mamby-pamby stuff our New York relatives moan and groan about.

Wouldn’t you want to be in Guyana rather than where if you spit in the open (as we Guyanese quaintly do!) it’ll freeze into a perfect arch of ice before it hits the ground?

Anyhow, it’s not as vicious towards the end of May when spring starts to kick in. So honestly, there’s a bit of a credulity gap when we hear about “droves” coming then - rather than now for our good old Christmas cheer (and ginger beer).

But REALLY! What’s with this “droves” business?

“Droves” is for describing herds of cattle being driven into a pen or corral. Please, Chronic: our Canadian kin might’ve LEFT our native land like droves of scrawny cattle – as great “unwashed masses” – but they’ve since come a long way, baby! The only thing they do in “droves” is when they exit the subways. So let’s be sensitive, eh?

But this Eyewitness has a question for the “state owned” Chronic – since they reported ad nauseum on PM Nagamootoo and several government Ministers (all through pure serendipity from the AFC) flying up to Toronto to “woo” Guyanese Canadian Investors. There were pics of a dinner in which the vino flowed like the Canje and promises of “investments”’ made like sugar cakes. WHERE ARE THE CANADIAN INVESTORS? Are they going to be part of the “hordes” of tourists?

Folks need to know, especially the official greeters. We can’t treat those investors just like the regular cattle in the herd, they’re special. Rather than one glass of mauby – they must have at least two! But seriously fellow journalists at the Chronic - let’s get behind these “droves” of Canadians.

Since you aren’t working for the government but the State – you owe it to the rest of us to help corral all the Canucks we can.

After all, you’re working for ALL of us, no?

…of opinions

Well, well, well. Seems the Fedders Lloyd scam has acted like the proverbial lightning rod to separate the usual suspects when it comes to giving this government a free pass – especially when the PPP’s in the picture. And it’s clear our old Speaker, Ralph Ramkarran’s the only one willing to bend his “principles” like a pretzel to support the travesty of handing the Speciality Hospital contract to Fedders Lloyd.

Now your Eyewitness noticed you, dear reader, with your hand up to signal the PSC also said it was hunky dory to do the dirty. But you know when it comes to making a quick buck - by whatever means necessary - the PSC must be given a free pass, don’t you? Do you expect the Devil to be tried fairly in hell?

Anyhow, the clincher nailing Ramkarran’s hide to the wall, was Ramjattan’s claim that the Public Procurement Commission was the sine qua non (lawyerly, eh?) for awarding contracts.

So where’s the PPC! Ramkarran?

…to culture display

it was a contest of the popular versus the high brow.

Over at the Peg, we had the “pinky out with tea” crowd as the Guyana Prizes for Literature were handed out. And at the Stadium, the duck curry competition.

Guess which drew the droves?!

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

news

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tuesday, december 1, 2015 | guyanatimesGY.com

Jennifer Westford trial:

Essequibo murder/attempted suicide

Prosecutor requests Family to receive counselling, needs case be transferred assistance for burial to High Court

Former Public Service Minister Jennifer Westford

P

olice Prosecutor Bharrat Mangru on Monday submitted an application to Magistrate Fabayo Azore for the matter against former Public Service Minister Jennifer Westford and Chief Personnel Officer Margaret Cummings to be transferred to the High Court.

The Prosecutor made the submission on the grounds that the Magistrates’ Courts’ jurisdiction is limited.

Westford and Cummings were slapped with larceny and forgery charges respectively, in connection with the alleged illegal transfer of eight government vehicles to themselves and friends, which were the property of the Public Service Ministry.

Westford, 42, was slapped with four counts of attempting to commit a felony and was granted bail in the sum of $800,000. The former Minister allegedly tried to have several vehicles, belonging to the Government of Guyana, transferred to four persons. Vehicles bearing registration numbers PJJ 8113 and PKK 8175 were given to Dwayne Walker, vehicle with plate PFF 1780 was given to Delroy Lewis, while several other vehicles are purported to have been transferred to herself and her spouse Gary Beaton, who is a Guyana Defence Force officer.

On 12 November, Attorney Neil Boston had argued that the institution of criminal charges against the Former Minister’s Personal Assistant had breached the amnesty that was reportedly granted to them by Minister of State, Joseph Harmon during a media conference

aired on HPGTV on June 19.

Boston had made claims that Harmon, during the media conference, promised that if the vehicles were returned the two would be granted amnesty. Harmon reportedly said: “They can quietly bring those (state assets) back to the Ministry, in which they came from or to the Office of the President (OP). They can park them outside the gate…”

As such, Boston posited that his clients have complied with this request, and therefore the charges should be dismissed. He also contended that there was enough evidence for the matter to be stayed indefinitely, meaning that the two accused could not be charged for the offence

Margaret Cummings

again in the future.

On Monday Mangru responded to the Attorney’s submissions, stating that “no amnesty was granted by Minister Harmon for the return of state vehicles. While the Magistrates’ Courts has jurisdiction to deal with abuse of process, that jurisdiction is limited to delays and fairness of trial as it relates to executive abuse, which is the complaint of the Defence Attorney.

Abuse of that nature based on the English Authority can only be dealt with by the High Court. Hence, This Court has no jurisdiction to deal with that kind of abuse.”

Given these circumstances, he made an application for the matter to be transferred to the High Court.

The Magistrate has adjourned the matter to January 19, for ruling on the submissions. On that date, it will be decided whether or not the matter will be dismissed or sent to the High Court.

Man shot during row at wharf

A

53-year-old man has been hospitalized for a single gunshot wound to his foot after he was shot during an argument with another man. The incident occurred around 07:20h on Monday at the Meadow Bank Wharf.

Injured is Zhifa Lu. While details surrounding the incident are unavailable, the Public Relations Officer of the Guyana Police Force, Ivelaw Whittaker, said that the man was attacked during an argument.

According to a release from the Police, on Monday morning, Lu was involved in an altercation with a man at the Meadow Bank Wharf during which he was shot to his right foot. The injured man was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was admitted.

The Police are investigating the matter.

Dead: Malini Narine BY: INDRAWATTIE NATRAM

T

he parents, sister, brother and son of slain Malini Narine of Paradise Village in Region Two will be receiving counselling as of today.

Narine was chopped and stabbed to death by her hus-

band, Vishnu Narine, 27, who attempted to take his life by slitting his throat after killing her on Saturday evening.

On Monday, Region 2 Chairman Davanand Ramdatt and Regional Vice Chairman Nandranie Coonjah visited the family of the dead woman. During the visit it was decided that the Regional Administration will provide a counsellor for the family as they are still traumatised over the incident.

Meanwhile, the family is seeking assistance to offset funeral expenses of Malini.

The family related that the dead woman’s father is a fisherman and cannot afford the full expense of a funeral.

An autopsy is to be performed today.

Suspect Vishnu Narine

The dead woman’s husband is still under police guard at the Suddie Public Hospital after he slit his throat following the brutal slaying of his wife.

According to information reaching Guyana Times, Narine had a heated argument with his 25-year-

old wife during which he equipped himself with a cutlass and a knife and dealt several chops and stabs to his spouse about her body.

The young woman sustained multiple injuries to her abdomen and hands.

This publication was informed that Narine was under the influence of alcohol at the time. He was earlier seen drinking in the village.

The incident has shocked the entire region and persons are questioning why family members and/or even neighbours did not report Narine’sabusive tendencies before.

The Police are continuing their investigations. The murder weapons were recovered and taken into evidence.

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guyanatimesgy.com

tuesday, december 1, 2015

News

Bandits hit sleeping Zeeburg family

A

Zeeburg, West Coast Demerara family is traumatised after armed bandits invaded their home early Monday morning.

Speaking with Guyana Times Anita Dindyal of Lot 121 Zeeburg Old Road, said they were asleep when her brother alerted them that bandits were in their home. The woman explained there are three houses in the yard - her brother living at the back with his family, her son at the side with his family, and her home.

Dindyal said that around 04:00h, her brother, a fish vendor, was getting ready to leave home when he saw two strange men in the yard.

“One of them was by the gate and the other one was by my door (which was opened). He didn’t realise what was happening so he ask them what they doing here. Then he saw the one by the gate with a gun and he drop everything and run at the back,” she noted.

The woman said her brother waited in hiding for about five minutes and then he called out to her son, alerting him of what was happening.

She said when her husband was alerted he noticed several of the louvers were removed as well as a wooden bar that was across the window. The door was also opened.

Dindyal added that most of their neighbours are relatives as such her

The window which the bandits removed to gain entry into the house

daughter-in-law began screaming for help.

“Everybody start run out with cutlass and bats and so but the bandits them left already,” she noted.

The woman pointed out that they did not hear anything that would have alerted them that someone was in the house.

She noted that her husband was sleeping alone in the room they broke into, while she was in another room with her 13-year-old daughter.

Dindyal disclosed that the men were

able to get away with three pairs of gold earrings and two gold rings. “It look like they didn’t get to take anything much because only that they gone with… after my brother saw them, they probably get away,” she remarked.

The woman stated she is not sure how many persons were there, noting that her brother only saw two. However, Dindyal went on to say a woman in the area recalled seeing a strange red car in the community on Sunday.

She noted that her brother recalled that the man at the gate was armed and had on a black armless shirt. Further she added that another resident in the community said he saw a red car sometime around 03:30h about two streets from her house.

Dindyal told this newspaper that robberies are frequent in the area and along the West Coast. She noted that only on Sunday around 17:00h bandits attacked an overseas visitor about three streets away from her home.

In addition, she recalled that when they got to the station to make the complaint, they were three sets of people there with complaints of robbery also – from Anna Catherina; Tuschen Housing Scheme, and the Meten–Meer-Zorg Mosque, where several computers were stolen, among other things.

Bobb-Semple’s murder case

State Psychologist stalls trial

T

he decision as to whether or not Ryan BobbSemple will go to trial for the murder of nine-yearold Shaquan Gittens has been

deferred pending testimony from State Psychologist, Dr Bhiro Hari.

Earlier, it was decided that given the mental state of

the murder accused, the decision on his fitness for trial was dependent on the results of a psychological evaluation conducted by Dr Hari.

It was reported that the 23-year-old destitute was seen and evaluated by the Psychologist on three occasions; however, Dr Hari requested additional time to speak to the family of the murder accused as to complete his evaluation. Magistrate Fabayo Azore has scheduled a final date for the Psychologist to present his findings in Court so as to decide whether or not the accused will stand trial.

Bobb-Semple was remanded to prison after he was arraigned with the murder of the child. Bobb-Semple was slapped with the indictable charge which stated that between April 1 and 4, he murdered Gittens at Houston Backlands, Greater Georgetown. Gittens went missing on April 1, after he was last seen flying his kite in the area. His body was discovered several days later in a semi-nude state floating in a canal.

The suspect was arrested after he was reportedly heard calling the child’s name in his sleep. Upon his arrest, he told investigators that he ‘stick up’ the lad on April 1, and took him behind Cane View where he sexually molested him.

While doing so, he reportedly strangled Gittens. After committing the act, he reportedly went to sleep, but only realised the child was dead the following morning. He then had sex with the corpse after which he severed the male reproductive organ from the child’s body and dumped the body in the canal.

Bobb-Semple was taken to the scene where he committed the act where he reportedly showed Police ranks the exact spot and told them how he committed the heinous crime.

Dr Hari is expected to present his findings on January 20, 2016.

Crime and Carnage T

here is a wave of crime as well as an increase of road fatalities across the country. To deny the existence of these social ills is delusional and selfefficacious. If there is ever a similarity of reporting in the four dailies, it is on crime and carnage on the roads.

The horrendous headlines in the dailies suggest Guyana is at war with itself battling internal demons.

What is even more troubling is that Guyana is losing the battle as crime and carnage Dr Lomarsh Roopnarine have engulfed the country, reaching dangerous heights.

Statistics on Police website indicate that crime and road carnage have increased in the past six months precisely when the new regime came into power. Crime has increased by 8 per cent for the period between January 01, 2015 and October 31, 2015. By contrast, crime had increased by 0.2 per cent during the same period in 2014 and 2013. According to US Department of State, the murder rate in Guyana ranges from 15 to 18 per 100,000 which is the fourth highest murder rate in South America and three times higher than the US. Other sources place the murder rate as high as 20 per 100,000 making Guyana one of the most homicidal countries in the world. Guyana has a population of around 750,000.

Similarly, road fatalities have been on the rise. So far, there have been over 100 deaths compared to 146 in 2014.

A disturbing 40 per cent of fatalities are children. Equally disturbing is that these unnecessary fatalities have been on the rise in the month of November, the Road Safety month.

There were about 20 road deaths in November compared to 8, 10 and 6 in August, September and October respectively.

Regrettably, road carnage continues to snuff out the most important resources in our society: human beings. Medical costs are high and so is stress and trauma on families, communities and the economy.

Continuous crime is coterminous with weaknesses in policy and policing which criminals have exploited effectively while road carnage emanates from lawlessness, speeding, driving under the influence, congestion, overcrowded vehicles, recklessness, tailgating, inexperienced driving, shabby police work, among other factors.

The government, of course, is aware of these problems and has launched a series of programmes to tackle carnage as well as calling on the public to exercise caution and care.

This is a right move in the right direction since crime and carnage are not a partisan problem but affect all. This is not about harbouring differences but rather about harnessing differences to provide suggestions to stamp out the twin evils of crime and carnage. While the government and police will shoulder the responsibility for providing safer roads for the general public, citizens must be involved and must play a meaningful role such as reject travelling in overcrowded vehicles. Nonetheless, by the end of the day, the reduction of road fatalities will depend largely on the effectiveness of the traffic department and government.

There is, however, a deeper problem here. Guyana is the third poorest country, after Nicaragua and Haiti, in the Americas. Moreover, these countries are not necessarily failed states but they do display suboptimal characteristics.

Their power grid, namely in the area of national security, is unreliable, susceptible to malfunction and breakdown.

Thirty years ago national security weaknesses might have not mattered to international security. In the post -modern world, international security is unavoidable as the focus is not necessarily on the all powerful, all conquering states but rather on failed states and states that are on the verge of failing.

These states are not able to maintain law and order internally and protect their territory from external threats, whatever that might be (drug trafficking, terrorism, money laundering, gun smuggling, etc). That the US recently gave Guyana huge sums of money is indicative of the aforesaid challenge the political world system is facing.

At the national level, the situation is also ominous.

Political leaders are home-grown and insular and even when they make meaningful contact with the wider world they are still insular because their training, skills, and values are inconsistent with the demands of effective government.

They are patrimonial to party politics but incompetent, a consequence of their limited educational background.

In Guyana, after a period of wait and watch, the private sector has come out in no shallow terms and announced that high rates of crime cannot be pushed under the rug. The current regime, of course, has denied that crime has gotten out of control, pointing to the dip in crime in some areas.

Such an explanation, however, does not exonerate the fact that crime occurs at unacceptable levels.

That crime continues unabated is a reflection of Kemraj Ramjattan’s limited skills in National Security matters. He may have attended one of the best Law Schools in the region and may be a man of substance but so far he has shown that he does not have things done. That said, the most serious challenge this man faces in dealing with crime is: How does he project power –effective policies and procedures - in areas where he is neither physically present nor competent?

He has failed dismally in both areas. It is time for Ramjattan to go. His time is up. (lomarsh.roopnarine@jsums.edu)

tuesday, december 1, 2015

guyanatimesgy.com

11

News

Hydropower in Guyana

5 sites being assessed – Patterson

F

ive out of 67 possible sites are currently being assessed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for development of hydropower in Guyana. According to a report from the Government Information Agency (GINA), the assessment is expected to be completed by May 2016.

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson said the five sites are Kamira, Kumu, Tumatumari, Tiger Hill and Amaila. The government will be using $80 million from the Norway funds set aside for renewable energy development.

“At the end of this process, we will obviously assess them, however we will look to use the $80 million in the most acceptable means of renewable energy… but it

could be any form of largescale renewable energy – which is the understanding that we have so it’s a process which we are going through, and I think it’s a wise way to go forward,” Minister Patterson stated.

Government is also working with the Government of Brazil and other interested stakeholders in seeking additional funding for the hydro power/renewable energy project. “We are moving ahead, and we working through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, continuing discussions with them.

There are other individuals who have MoUs. I think Kumu falls, there is a company that has an MoU with us and it remains to develop that falls, Tumatumari, MocoMoco - we are going out for an expression of interest

Tumatumari Falls

to resuscitate the MocoMoco hydro falls so we haven’t excluded any project. It’s always a question of time and cost,” the Minister explained.

Renewable energy has been identified as a growth industry and Guyana has

an abundance of wind, sun and water. Harnessing their potential would be a game changer for Guyana as it is believed the country has enough capacity to not only satisfy its own energy demands, but to sell excess to its neighbours.

Only recently, mounting pressures from the Norwegian government on the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) administration and a threat to withdraw critical financing led to government’s decision to bring to the front burner the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project (AFHP).

The Norwegian government, under the Low Carbon Development Strategy had committed US$80 million for the project.

However upon assumption to office in May 2015, the Granger-led administration had made clear its intention to abandon the project.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan during the 2015 National Budget

Debates had declared that to proceed with the project would be “a downright act of criminal deception” and vowed his government would “abandon the project.”

However the minister was forced to take back his words as the Norwegian government reportedly threatened to take back the US$80 million that was committed to the project.

Finance Minister Jordan recently said government ‘never abandoned’ the Amaila Falls Project.

According to sources, the APNU+AFC administration met with Norwegian officials who made it clear that country was keen on funding a clean and renewable energy project in Guyana and touted the AFHP as a viable option.

Lack of transparency

Govt’s move to borrow from ExxonMobil reeks of corruption – Jagdeo

BY EDWARD LAYNE

T

he recent disclosure by the A Partnership for National Unity+ Alliance For Change (APNU +AFC) administration that it wants to borrow billions of dollars from US Oil and gas ExxonMobil exploring for oil here, could very well be intended for corrupt purposes.

This was the view expressed by Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo, who said government’s rush to borrow oil proceeds, which have not yet materialised, over taking loans from Multilateral Financial Institutions, like the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB), may be to avoid transparency and accountability requirements.

Last week, Governance Minister Raphael Trotman revealed that the government was looking to borrow from ExxonMobil, the company currently engaged in oil exploration in the Stabroek Bloc, Offshore Guyana.

“The objective of this is, do not ask for money from the IDB, do not use that access or the others because when you use money from the IDB you have to do a feasibility study, you have to get IDB’s approval for the use of the money. If they get $2 billion from ExxonMobil it will come into the treasury, then they will not have to go through any of the transparency requirements for using multilateral money; they will then do like what they are doing with the hospital (Specialty Hospital) now, you can handpick contractors, you can do whatever you want you don’t need to go to tender because there is no multilateral of bi-

lateral oversight and I suspect that they are so anxious to get their hands on money of that nature,” Jagdeo told a news conference at the weekend.

Jagdeo also issued a stern warning to ExxonMobil not to engage in such underhand deals with the Granger-led government, which he said is looking to borrow against future receivables, when those have not even been developed.

“You don’t even know if they will materialise, it’s not like we have producing oil fields there,” Jagdeo posited.

He issued an urgent call for the government to sign onto the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative, a global Standard to promote open and accountable management of natural resources, adding his party wants full transparency.

“This is why around the world there has been an enhanced transparency surrounding oil and oil proceeds and the companies and we have had many cases where large sums of monies have been paid off to the government official in oil producing states to get better deals for the producers and others. We hope we will avoid this in Guyana, but you are not going to avoid it by doing this. This is a huge issue for us, it’s a transparency issue,” he reasoned.

Jagdeo warned that if the current APNU/AFC administration agrees to a loan, Guyana will be in “ExxonMobil’s pocket” and will not be able to negotiate with the company on an even footing.

“We are not sure what will happen in the future as

yet. Assuming they borrow $2 billion from ExxonMobil and that project does not materialise. What happens then?” Jagdeo questioned, asking what will be the interest rate at which they will borrow.

Jagdeo slammed the current administration for spending what it does not have – move is reminiscent of People’s National Congress (PNC) philosophies – spend what you don’t have, borrow to repay it and leave Guyanese taxpayers with a debt to service.

Lack of transparency

Since assuming office in May 2015, there has been significant public outrage over the lack of transparency and accountability on the part of the Granger Administration, with regards to its handling of the public purse.

The first occasion which led many to question the transparency and accountability of the government was its refusal to disclose how much if any, state funds were spent on the extravagant inauguration of President Granger and his cabinet on May 16, 2015, at the National Stadium, Providence, East Bank Demerara.

This controversial matter has even led to government ministers issuing contradictory statements on whether or not any state funds were spent, with Junior Education Minister Nicolette Henry had claimed that no state funds were used while Trotman said $1 million was expended.

The government was taken to task over the man-

ner in which contractors were being awarded for the city clean up.

Jagdeo had alleged that the city clean-up is a slush fund where monies were being siphoned for the coalition’s Local Government elections campaign.

Then there was the move

by the administration to handpick Fedders Lloyd to build the Specialty Hospital here without any public tendering.

It is important to note that Fedders Lloyd, a client of Public Security Minister Kehmraj Ramjattan, was disqualified by the techni-

cal evaluation team when it submitted two bid prices for the project.

There have also been calls for the government to come clean on all spending since it took office on May 16, 2015, but none of them were ever answered.

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CJIA runway extension

Elderly woman choked, robbed Timehri North residents to be relocated at Bush Lot

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63-year-old grandmother of Bush Lot, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) was left traumatised after she was terrorised during a robbery in the wee hours of Sunday.

Juliet Banwarie called “Doreen” is said to be still trying to come to grips with what took place early Sunday morning, but expressed her gratitude to God and her neighbours for her survival. She described her attack as horrific.

According to reports, Banwarie was attacked and robbed Sunday morning around 03:40h. During the attack, the woman was choked and robbed of $8000 cash.

Relating her ordeal, the grandmother said she was awakened by a loud noise that morning and the sound was continuous, hence she alerted neighbours. The still shaken woman recalled observing one of the louver windows was broken and a lone unmasked man was coming through it.

Subsequently, Banwarie said, the man began choking her. “He choke meh, trying to kill meh. I said ‘Ow God!’ and

he still choking … my neighbours hear and come, by then he escape,” the elderly woman recounted.

After she was rescued, the elderly woman was taken to the Suddie Public Hospital where she was treated and sent away. The grandmother said she was presently recuperating from the entire ordeal and she did not want to repeat the horrific episode. She is hoping that the Police can provide justice and prevent a recurrence.

The Police were informed about the attack and immediately visited the scene. Fingerprints were taken and a 48-yearold suspect was arrested.

The suspect has since confessed to stealing from the elderly woman and begged her to settle the manner out of court, stating that he was sorry. He is expected to appear before the courts shortly.

Of recent, the crime rates in Region Two have been escalating with many businessmen getting robbed and elderly women being raped. Many times Police do not have sufficient evidence and as such, the suspects walk free.

– no need for mass relocation, says Patterson

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s Government forge ahead with plans to upgrade the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson is holding true to promises that there will be no need for any mass removal of residents from Timehri North, stating that only those in the pathway of the extended runway will be relocated.

This was related to residents during a meeting with Minister Patterson when he visited the area on Sunday to discuss the community and the planned airport expansion project.

The Public Infrastructure Minister held two meetings with residents of the community. In the first meeting, he met with those residents directly affected by the airport expansion, while, in the second meeting, he met with the general Timehri North community.

Patterson explained that as part of the extension of CJIA’s runway, some 19 households in Timehri North would be relocated, since they were in the direct path of the proposed site.

During the first session, the 19 affected households

Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson addressing residents of Timehri North on Sunday

were able to speak directly with Minister Patterson and voice some of their concerns on the matter. The Minister explained that the mass movement of everyone out of the area would “not be necessary”. Instead, he said, the homes directly in the path of the runway extension would be relocated within the same community.

While he noted that the expansion heralded development for Guyana, the Public Infrastructure Minister stressed that it should not severely upturn the lives of Guyanese. He added that persons who would have dedicated their lives to the Timehri North community should not have to suffer.

The affected residents will be relocated some

200 metres to the west of their current location.

Construction works on the identified plot of land have already begun with a scheduled completion date of 2016. The developed area will be equipped with roads and utilities such as electricity and water while the homes will become the property of the residents.

Calmed

“This is the right thing to do,” Minister Patterson said. “If you move someone from his home, you have to ensure that you give something back. In a few years, these will be prime properties. Right now, you might be in this situation and think yourself unlucky, but in a few years that feeling

will change,” he stressed to the residents.

In return, a number of residents expressed gratitude and shared that their nerves were calmed, since there were threats by the previous Administration that the entire community would be removed.

Meanwhile, during the second session with the Timehri North residents, the Public Infrastructure Minister interacted with the residents and shared plans underway for the community. Among these plans were the regularisation of the community; inclusion of standpipes for improved water access; and the rehabilitation of the main road. He said too that there would be improved infrastructure such as roads, water supply, and electricity.

However, the Minister outlined that while the Public Infrastructure Ministry would be working towards bettering the community, the residents must also do the same. He reminded them that the ultimate aim was to see the community become registered and he, therefore, urged them to keep an eye out for squatters.

“I’m not saying that the community cannot grow, but I’m saying it must not be a Wild West,” Patterson pointed out.

Body found behind Marriott identified

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he body that was found at the Kingston seawall on Friday, behind the Marriott Hotel, has been identified as Leon Glasgow of Bare Root, East Coast Demerara.

Around 14:00h on Friday, staff at the hotel no-

ticed the body and alerted police. The body was transported to the Lyken Funeral Parlour, where it was identified by relatives on Monday.

The now dead man was said to have a history of mental illness and was being treated.

Meanwhile, reports surrounding the incident remain sketchy but investigators believed the body was still fresh when it was retrieved.

It was believed that the man had died recently so foul play was not ruled out.

Bandits storm ECD supermarket

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hree armed men carried out a brazen daylight robbery on Sunday at an East Coast Demerara supermarket.

The Odie Supermarket, Lot 3 Mon Repos Railway Embankment, is operated

by Chinese nationals, one of whom was in the business place along with her staff and customers, when the men attacked. The incident occurred sometime around 15:00h.

According to information reaching Guyana Times the businesswoman was at the cash register tending to a customer when two armed men barged in.

The third accomplice was already in the supermarket since he posed as a customer and bought a phone and cigarettes minutes before.

A staff related that af-

ter buying the items, the man went further into the supermarket and was seen on his phone, supposedly informing his accomplices to attack. At the time, there were three staff and four customers along with the businesswoman in the store.

The men held up the proprietor at gunpoint asking her to hand over all the money. One of them even jumped over the counter and disconnected the computer. The woman begged the men not to harm her after one of them said they should kill her.

The staff member further stated the bandits then turned their attention to the customers and other staff, ordering them to hand over their cell phones. This newspaper

was told that the staff hid their phones after realising the men were taking everybody’s phone however they were not spared since they men took away the cash they had in their possession.

The bandits managed to take a quantity of cash from the register and a cell phone from one of the customers before escaping in a waiting car. That customer decided to give chase after the men but was forced to stop after the men discharged a round in his direction.

Persons in the area vented their concern about the brazenness of the bandits, pointing out that despite the business place laden with surveillance cameras they still carried out the act.

news

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tuesday, december 1, 2015 | guyanatimesGY.com

Youths awarded Kato Secondary School for January opening for volunteerism T

hirty-six youths were awarded for their work in volunteerism by the Department of Culture, Youth and Sport on Monday when it hosted its second Annual National Youth Award Ceremony at the National Cultural Centre.

The event was conceptualised to recognise the accomplishments of outstanding youths from across the 10 Administrative Regions of Guyana. These young persons were nominated by community members, Regional Executive Officers; youth-led organisations; Government and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).

In her keynote address, Minister within the Education Ministry Nicolette Henry expressed her great pleasure to be given the privilege of presenting the National Youth Award for 2015.

“The National Youth Award recognises the achievements and commitments of young Guyanese,” she emphasised.

She stated that the National Youth Awards recognised individuals, schools and organisations that were making a difference at both the regional and national levels through voluntary services in the areas

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Kato Secondary School complex

A section of the audience at the National Youth Awards

of health, education, sports, advocacy and drama.

The nominees were recognised across 11 award categories including service to schools, media, youth work, health and the environment.

Minister Henry stated that the Administration believed that it should not be prescribing for young people what they could do. “You are more than capable of forging your own paths, making your own decisions and we respect that, so we are partnering with you and providing the tools for you to make your own choices. We are doing this by providing more funding for schools and opening up access to more educational opportunities which will assist in building a stronger economy to assist the job markets for young

Region 10 seeking to revamp agriculture

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ead of the Region 10 Agriculture Committee, Douglas Gittens believes that there should be a “total revamp of agriculture” in the Region.

Speaking with Guyana Times, Gittens said that given the fact that the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 has been operating without an agricultural budget for a number of years, it was time for a revamp.

According to him, the time has come for the Region to have an organised system in place to make it more agriculturally viable. He noted too that the Region deserved an annual budgetary allocation which the RDC was presently working on to have put in place.

“What we have realised over the years, and this is my fourth year here, we have realised that not much is being done in the area of agricultural development... we want to have a budget in place every single year from now on to deal with this issue ... this Region needs a total revamp of agriculture for it to be sustainable – a complete renewal of everything,” Gittens said.

Also speaking on the issue on Monday, Region 10 Chairman Renis Morian said there was need for an effective agricultural programme, complete with an agency head to guide such a

programme, more so stressing that 85 per cent of the Region’s food come from outside.

He said Region 10, through its Council, would be seeking funding for agriculture come next year as part of the Government’s programme. Morian said since Finance Minister Winston Jordan noted in the budget speech that agricultural production had to move from the lowlands to the highlands on account of the effects of climate change, Region 10 would be seeking to take advantage of the opportunity.

He added, however, that people in the Region were still to come to the realisation that agriculture was a job and understand its importance.

“Some persons are looking to do commercial agriculture part-time and it’s really a full-time job,” the Regional Chairman stressed.

Morian said that while a complete programme may not be set this year given the length of time, come next year several advancements in agriculture were expected to be put in place.

Only recently, several farmers in the Region voiced concerns via this newspaper over the lack of attention displayed by the authorities in promoting agriculture and paying attention to their issues.

Guyanese. We are also committed to leading you with a sustainable future.”

Among those who received awards were Roshini Boodhoo, who received an Award of Excellence; Shontelle Celat of Youth Media Guyana for speaking out on domestic violence; Dr Jason Ramkarran for his volunteer work in health and Trayon Massy, a youth entrepreneur.

he new Kato Secondary School has been completed, and will be opened to facilitate students next year.

Located in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), the Kato Secondary School was specially built to reduce the distance students traverse to access secondary education.

Its dormitories will cater for students from remote communities in the region.

The School is currently being furnished. Chief Education Officer Olato Sam indicated to the Government Information Agency (GINA) that the related human resources were ensuring that this was taken care of in

time for 2016, along with other elements.

The Kato Secondary School was initially estimated to cost $780 million, but the final tally could be about $1 billion.

For the Kato Secondary School to be self-sustaining, resources such as solar energy and agricultural projects are being considered, Sam pointed out.

Solar energy will be a boost for students while studying for their exams, completing assignments, and of course, provide electricity for all classrooms.

Implementation of agricultural projects in the school will supply food for students

living at the dormitories.

Ongoing is the filling of vacancies for various positions: Principal (Headmistress/ Headmaster); Senior Master/Mistress; Heads of Departments and Assistant Mistresses/Masters to teach Social Studies, Mathematics, English and Science among other subjects.

The School has an adjoining administrative block, teachers’ quarters, kitchen and sanitary facilities. Apart from the dozen classrooms, the school will boast computer and science laboratories, and industrial arts, home economics, visual arts and agriculture departments.

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tuesday, december 1, 2015

Regional

Stakes high for Caribbean at Trinidad Opposition climate change conference leadership campaigns

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s the highly anticipated climate change conference began Monday in Paris, the Caribbean Community (Caricom) lead head on climate change and sustainable development issued a grave warning.

St Lucia’s Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony says that “unless we can get the countries that are the major emitters of greenhouse gases to commit to more ambitious reductions, the Caribbean will be confronted with more extreme storms and hurricanes, more frequent and prolonged droughts, dangerous sea-level rise that will wash away roads, homes, hotels, and ports in every island; greater food insecurity and more acidic oceans that will kill our corals, damage our fish stock and negatively impact our tourism industries.”

Heads of State and Government, Ministers responsible for the environment, Ministers of Foreign Affairs,

Warning: St Lucia’s Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony says that unless we can get the countries that are the major emitters of greenhouse gases to commit to more ambitious reductions, the Caribbean will face serious and potentially deadly consequences

scientists and other stakeholders are coming together in Paris for the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) to negotiate a new global climate change agreement.

Caricom negotiators have been working assiduously in several meetings leading up to the Paris conference, which will run until December 11, to emphasise that temperature increase below two degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels is still inadequate for protecting ecosystems in Small Island and Low-Lying Developing States, (SIDS) from the adverse impact of climate change.

They will continue this advocacy in Paris to advance the position that the goal for average long-term global temperature increase should be no more than 1.5 degrees, a level necessary for the mere survival of SIDS. (Excerpt from

Caribbean360.com)

Guatemala prison Drought drives hungry fight turns deadly hippos into Colombian town

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uatemalan prison officials say the number of people killed in a fight between inmates has risen to 16.

Police have not yet been able to retake control of the prison in the town of Escuintla, about 60 kilometres (37 miles) south of the capital, Guatemala City.

Officials said they would wait for reinforcements before entering the jail as the security forces were currently outnumbered four-to-one by the rioters.

The jail is notorious for overcrowding and violence.

More than 3000 prisoners are held at the jail, which was built to house just 600.

About 2300 inmates are currently engaged in a stand-off with 500 members of the security forces, Deputy Interior Minister Elmer Sosa said.

The Minister confirmed

that some of the inmates had guns.

Sosa said that there were conflicting theories as to what had triggered the violence.

He said there were reports that convicted gang members had clashed with inmates without any gang affiliation after visiting hours on Sunday. Local media are reporting that the inmates may be holding a number of visitors hostage.

But Sosa said another possibility was that inmates had turned violent after guards had foiled an attempted prison break.

Earlier this year, guards scuppered another escape attempt when they discovered a tunnel underneath the prison.

The exact number of people injured in Sunday’s fight is not yet known, emergency workers at the scene said.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

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iologists in Colombia say a drought has forced two hippopotamuses into a town in search of food.

The animals are descendants of a group imported in the 1980s by the notorious drug baron Pablo Escobar for his private zoo near the town of Puerto Triunfo in Antioquia province.

They’ve been seen grazing in fields with cattle and wandering through the town near the city of Medellin.

Local children have been warned to keep away from the animals.

The biologists say they are waiting for specialist dart guns to sedate the hippos so they can move them.

Over the years the population of hippos at the Escobar ranch, Hacienda Napoles, has increased and some have escaped.

Escobar smuggled in elephants, giraffes and other exotic animals for his zoo.

Among them were four hippos – three females and one male.

When the ranch was confiscated in the early 1990s, most of the animals were dispersed to zoos around the country but the hippos stayed in their lakes and have multiplied to more than 60.

Correspondents say they have thrived in the tropical Colombian climate, its waterways and rich vegetation.

There have been sightings of them far from the Escobar estate, which has fallen into disrepair since the drugs lord was killed in a shootout in 1993.

There have been years of debate about what to do with the hippos and discussions about whether they should be culled. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Venezuela arrests 3 for killing of Opposition candidate

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uthorities arrested three people on Monday suspected in the murder of an Opposition Leader that shook Venezuela and drew international condemnation in the run-up to this weekend’s election for a new legislature.

Opposition Leaders blamed last week’s shooting of Luis Diaz, 44, a candidate for the Democratic Action party in central Guarico state, on the ruling Socialists.

But President Nicolás Maduro’s Government has furiously denied that.

Officials say Diaz was a well-known criminal caught in a gang dispute linked to unions in Guarico, whose death was being manipulated to discredit the Socialist Party.

The Prosecutor General’s Office named three men, aged between 22 and 28, whom it said were arrested on Monday morning in the town of Altagracia de Orituco where Diaz was killed at a rally.

“The three men will be accused in coming hours for their presumed link to Luis Manuel Diaz’s death,” the office

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro (centre) greets supporters as he arrives to a campaign rally with pro-Government candidates for the upcoming parliamentary elections in Caracas, November 30, 2015

said, without giving further details.

Diaz’s murder has heightened Venezuelans’ fears of volatility around Sunday’s vote for a new National Assembly, which polls show the Opposition could win for the first time in 16 years in the South American OPEC member.

Venezuela’s economic crisis, including the world’s highest inflation and widespread shortages from eggs to

electronics, has battered the popularity of Maduro, who won election in 2013 after the death of his far more popular predecessor Hugo Chavez.

Though various polls show the Opposition Democratic Unity coalition ahead on nationwide voting tendencies and anti-Maduro leaders are confident, electoral district geography and superior campaign resources favour the ruling party. (Excerpt from Reuters)

turn nasty

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s predicted by former Minister Vasant Bharath, one of three contenders for the leadership of the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago, the campaigning has turned nasty and, according to local media, internecine conflict is threatening to break up the party in the run-up to the internal elections.

Bharath said earlier this month that, based on previous campaigns, he suspected the election will get nasty.

“I don’t hold out much hope that it’s going to be very clean,” he said.

With just days to go before the party elects its leader on December 5, one would-be deputy leader was reportedly threatened for taking sides against incumbent political leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

According to the Trinidad Guardian, former Sports Minister Brent Sancho aligned himself with challenger Bharath’s Team

Reconnect and was immediately “threatened with exposure” by Persad-Bissessar’s team.

Sancho apparently quickly withdrew his candidacy and left the country.

A Team Reconnect insider confirmed that Sancho made an application to be on Bharath’s slate in the capacity of deputy political leader. He confirmed also that Sancho left the country and indicated that he would return only after the December 5 election.

Persad-Bissessar has denied any involvement in the alleged threat against Sancho.

Bharath has accused the third contender for the party leadership, Dr Roodal Moonilal, of “clutching at straws” in an attempt to undermine his campaign.

“I think he (Moonilal) sees that he does not have the support he believed he would have and as the party founder said, he is irrelevant,” Bharath said. (Excerpt from

Caribbean News Now)

Viral video spurs outrage over harassment in Costa Rica

Several anti-sexual harassment demonstrations have been held in Costa Rica in recent months [Lindsay Fendt/Al Jazeera]

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woman in a dress walks down a crowded pavement, while a man behind her casually angles his mobile phone to film up her skirt.

In all likelihood, similar acts have played out before on the streets of San Jose, Costa Rica’s capital, but it is the first time that the whole country has watched it on video.

Gerardo Cruz, the 22-year-old Costa Rican who captured the scene on his own mobile phone camera, continued recording as he confronted the man about his actions.

The video went viral and Cruz became an instant celebrity, but his new-found fame came at a price. On his way to a television interview about his video, Cruz was stabbed by unknown assailants and remains in hospital.

Police have not been able to confirm whether or not

the video was the motive for the stabbing, but Cruz has become a champion in the eyes of the public nonetheless. Activists throughout Costa Rica now use Gerardo Cruz’s name as a rallying cry as a national movement against street harassment gets under way.

“This incident has definitely put an often ignored type of violence women experience on the public agenda,” Ana Gabriela Gonzalez, a representative of Costa Rica’s National Institute for Women, told Al Jazeera.

“It’s important that people begin to recognise that street harassment isn’t wanted, that it generates fear and insecurity for women,” Gonzalez said.

Costa Ricans are now joining the growing number of groups throughout Latin America that are pushing back against street harassment and machismo culture.

(Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

tuesday, december 1, 2015

guyanatimesgy.com

15

Around the world

With climate at ‘breaking point’, Putin: Turkey shot down jet to protect leaders urge breakthrough in Paris ISIL oil supply W R

orld leaders launched an ambitious attempt on Monday to hold back rising temperatures, with the United States and China leading calls for the climate summit in Paris to mark a decisive turn in the fight against global warming.

In a series of opening addresses to the United Nations talks, Heads of State and Government exhorted each other to find common cause in two weeks of bargaining to steer the global economy away from its dependence on fossil fuels.

French President Francois Hollande said the world was at a “breaking point”.

The leaders arrived in Paris with high expectations and armed with promises to act. After decades of struggling negotiations and the failure of a summit in Copenhagen six years ago, some form of agreement – likely to be the strongest global climate pact yet – appears all but assured by mid-December.

World leaders launched an ambitious attempt on Monday to hold back rising temperatures

“What should give us hope that this is a turning point, that this is the moment we finally determined we would save our planet, is the fact that our nations share a sense of urgency about this challenge and a growing realisation that

it is within our power to do something about it,” said US President Barack Obama, one of the first leaders to speak at the summit.

The leaders gathered in a vast conference centre at Le Bourget airfield. In all, 195 countries are part of the un-

wieldy negotiating process, with a variety of leadership styles and ideologies that has made consensus elusive in the past.

Key issues, notably how to divide the global bill to pay for a shift to renewable energy, are still contentious.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

ussian President Vladimir Putin has accused Ankara of shooting down a Russian warplane to protect supplies of oil from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group to Turkey.

“We have every reason to think that the decision to shoot down our plane was dictated by the desire to protect the oil supply lines to Turkish territory,” Putin said during a news conference on Monday on the fringes of UN climate talks near Paris.

“We have received additional information which unfortunately confirms that this oil, produced in areas controlled by [ISIL] and other terrorist organisations, is transported on an industrial scale to Turkey.”

Putin’s strongly worded statement came hours after Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu again refused to apologise for the

downing of the plane near the Syrian border last Tuesday.

Moscow and Ankara have been at loggerheads over last Tuesday’s incident when Turkish jets shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border.

Turkish authorities claim the Russian jet crossed into Turkey’s airspace prior to being shot down, while Russian authorities vehemently deny those claims.

Turkey has released a number of recordings which it claims prove that the warplane was warned repeatedly prior to being shot down.

Turkey has been backed by its allies NATO and the United States, with the US State Department reiterating on Monday that its data “corroborated” Turkey’s version of events.

But Russia has hit back hard, slapping Turkey with a series of sanctions over the weekend. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Trial over Freddie Gray death begins US scientists urge ban on human genetic modification J

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ome prominent scientists in the United States have called for a moratorium or ban on the genetic modification of children and future generations, after major developments in genetic engineering and synthetic biology, which, they say, could potentially have irreversible and monumental effects on humanity.

The Centre for Genetics and Society (CGS), a key USbased organisation that encourages “responsible and effective” uses of biomedical technologies, issued a statement pushing for the moratorium on Monday.

The release of the statement, endorsed by more than 150 advocates and scholars, came a day before the US National Academies of Sciences and Medicine holds the International Summit on Human Gene Editing in Washington DC. On Monday, the CGS also published a report in collaboration with Friends of the Earth, an international environmental group, on the po-

Some scientists say the harmful effects of genetically modifying children could outweigh the positive impact [EPA]

tential dangers of technology that could alter the DNA of humans and animals, and modify entire ecosystems.

Some scientists advocate for the use of genetic modification as a way of preventing a range of diseases, but they have been met with stiff opposition from many of their peers.

Pete Shanks, a CGS consulting researcher and author on human genetic engineering, said: “Genetic modification of children was recently

the stuff of science fiction...

But now, with new technology, the fantasy could become reality. Once the process begins, there will be no going back. This is a line we must not cross.”

Earlier this year, researchers at Sun Yat-sen University in China reportedly used gene editing techniques to alter human embryos for the first time in history. Although the embryos were “non-viable”, it was an unprecedented development. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

ury selection has begun in the first trial over the death of Freddie Gray, a Baltimore man whose death in Police custody set off days of protests.

Officer William Porter is charged with manslaughter, accused of failing to give medical help to Gray despite complaints and warning signs.

Gray sustained a severe spinal cord injury while riding in a Police van and died a week later.

The case became a lightning rod in the US movement against Police brutality.

Porter is one of six Police Officers charged over Gray’s death. They will be tried separately and prosecutors hope to use Porter as a witness in the other trials.

The case has already shaken Baltimore. After the riots, some Police union offi-

William Porter faces charges of manslaughter, assault, reckless endangerment and misconduct in office

cials said the Gray case made officers “hesitant” to stop crime.

In a media campaign, Police officials publically criticised the Mayor and the City Council, saying the force lacked their support.

City Police Commissioner

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ters on Sunday, according to the Centre of Study for the Promotion of Peace, Democracy and Human Rights.

Four Congolese soldiers and at least 14 rebels were killed in the clashes, while seven civilians were hacked to death with machetes when a hospital was attacked, according to the UN DRC mission spokesperson Felix Basse.

The casualties included one UN peacekeeper, said the Army which, in collaboration

with the UN forces, has resumed its operation against the ADF that was launched in December 2014.

The rebels “attacked our positions at Eringeti and we repelled them all night”, said Lieutenant Mak Hazukay, a Congolese Army Spokesperson in the region.

The rebels have been active in the forested region since being driven out of their homeland in 1995. (Excerpt from

Reuters)

(Excerpt from BBC News)

India’s economic growth picks up to 7.4%

Dozens killed in DR Congo rebel attack t least 25 people have been killed – including seven civilians hacked to death – in an overnight attack by the Ugandan rebels in an eastern town of the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the Congolese Army.

Clashes broke out in Eringeti, 55 kilometres north of the regional hub of Beni, when the rebels, known as Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), attacked a military headquar-

Anthony Batts has been fired and the once-popular Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake has agreed not to run for election in the ensuing fallout.

The city recently surpassed 300 murders within a year for the first time since 1999.

India’s growth has recently been outpacing China, which is growing at a rate of 6.9 per cent according to the latest figures.

I

ndia’s economy grew at an annual rate of 7.4 per cent between July and September, official figures show, picking up from the seven per cent rate of growth in the previous quarter.

Higher domestic demand and manufacturing activity fuelled the pace, taking the rate of growth above that of China.

India’s Central Bank is meeting to set the level of interest rates today.

Last month it cut rates by half a percentage point to 6.75 per cent.

India’s economy has benefited from a fall in commodity prices, which have made imports of heavily bought-in goods such as fuel and gold less expensive.

India’s growth has recently been outpacing China, which is growing at a rate of 6.9 per cent according to the latest figures.

But although headline growth appears buoyant in India, the way the statistics are complied has changed recently, making comparisons difficult.

In parts of the country a drought has damaged agricultural output and farm wages for the second year running.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

16 news

tuesday, december 1, 2015| guyanatimesGY.com

Berbice Bridge Tolls

No reduction likely today G

uyanese, particularly Berbicians using the Berbice River Bridge will have to wait a little longer for government’s promised December 1 deadline for the reduction of tolls as the agreement between the Bridge Company and the Administration is yet to be finalised.

The most recent update Guyana Times was given was that while the bridge company had agreed to accepting government’s proposed $40 million subsidy, Cabinet still needed to decide on some additional terms the bridge company needed to be addressed.

Cabinet did agree to those terms, but when asked for a comment on Monday, Junior Minister within the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Annette Ferguson said she could not give an update on the issue.

On Sunday, Chief

Executive Officer (CEO) of the Bridge Company, Omodat Samaroo told Guyana Times the BBCI has not yet received a response from government with respect to the toll reduction.

Dr Surendra Persaud, BBCI’s board rep, giving some information about the proposal explained that the agreement covers multiple aspects of the relationship between the BBCI and the administration.

“Our proposal deals with the subsidy and other aspects of the relationship of the Bridge Company and the Government, reduced into a legal framework… while it is open to be amended, Government still has to perform due diligence by ensuring they agree with the clauses of the proposal,” Dr Persaud had said recently.

While the BBCI has already accepted Government’s

BBCI CEO Omadat Samaroo

$40 million subvention towards the reduction of the toll, Governance Minister Raphael Trotman had said Cabinet was considering some additional considerations submitted by the company.

Trotman is, however, very optimistic that a favourable

decision will be arrived at by Cabinet with respect to the additional aspects raised by BBCI. Additionally, government is also yet to address the issue of the $500 million bond principal that has to be paid to financiers at the end of 2015.

Back in August, the BBCI had rejected government’s offer of financial subsidies to cover loss of tolls that would result from the government’s election promise being fulfilled, on the grounds that its shareholders were not consulted on the matter.

During its first Budget Presentation, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition had announced that effective September 1, it was reducing the bridge toll from $2200 to $1900 for passenger cars and buses, along with a 10 per cent reduction for oth-

er classes of vehicles. It was explained that the Bridge Company would not lose, as the losses created by the reduction would be borne by government. However, the BBCI insisted its current financial position was impeding the implementation of the reduction. The company had said it continuously pointed out to the administration that the subsidy being offered to facilitate the reduction was insufficient to offset its debts.

Consequently, it requested that government extend the concession period from 21 to 50 years or increase the bridge tolls by 55 per cent before it implemented the new fare structure. But government refused.

In an attempt to gain majority control of the Bridge Company in order to fulfil the promise of implementing toll reductions, Prime Minister/ First Vice President Moses

Nagamootoo had announced that Cabinet has instructed the Finance Minister to buy out the shares the Demerara Distillers Limited has in the Bridge Company. DDL currently holds some 10 per cent of the shares.

There was, however, no need for the government to go down this route since the two Directors of Queens Atlantic Investment Inc (QAII) and NEW GPC INC had resigned, giving the government and the institutions it controlled such as the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), a majority vote on the board of directors. It could have then voted as the government saw fit.

While the decision was made to subsidise the Bridge, any change in the Concession Agreement and the Toll Order which is made by government requires the approval of the trustee and shareholders.

Guyana Prize for Literature winners read work to public

O

ne day after winning the top prizes in their respective categories, the Guyana Prize for Literature and Caribbean Awards 2014 winners read their winning pieces to the public.

The reading was held at the National Library Conference Room. Each writer selected special poems from their collection and short stories that were read to the intimate gathering.

Before and after the reading session, attendees were treated to a grand display of works by the winners as well as other Guyanese writers.

The winners of the 2014 Guyana Prize for Literature were announced during a cer-

emony on Sunday night at the Pegasus Hotel, Kingston.

Renowned Guyanese author and poet David Dabydeen copped the Best Book of Fiction award for his entry ‘Johnson’s Dictionary’, making him a fivetime winner of the Guyana Prize awards.

Meanwhile, Harold Bascom was awarded both the Guyana Prize and the Guyana Caribbean Prize for his play ‘Desperate for Relevance’ in the Best Book of Drama category.

A section of the audience at the public reading on Monday at the National Library

United Kingdom-based poet, Maggie Harris, won the Best Book of Poetry award for her collection titled ‘Sixty Years of Loving’, a birthdate present to herself upon her 60th.

On the other hand, the second youngest awardees of the Guyana Prize for Literature, Subraj Singh, 23, secured the top prize in the category of Best First Book of Fiction for his work `Rebelle and other stories’.

In addition, Stanley

Niamatali walked away with the award for Best First Book of Poetry for his compilation ‘The Hinterlands’.

On the other hand, among the other winners in the Caribbean Awards section were: Trinidadian Barbara Jenkins who won the Best Book of Fiction for `Transit Wagon’ and Jamaican Edward Baugh for his compilation ‘Black Sand’ in the Best Book of Poetry category.

India represents the call for justice for developing world

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi

I

ndia on Monday asked the rich nations to mind their carbon footprints and provide space for the poor and developing countries to grow economically.

The country also reminded the developed nations of their responsibilities to cut emission in big ways and guarantee finance and technology to support developing countries.

“The prosperous still have a strong carbon footprint but the world’s billions at the bottom of the development ladder are seeking space to grow,” said India Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing the world leaders on the opening day of the climate summit in Paris.

Referring to India, which needs economic growth to re-

duce poverty and ensure energy access to millions of its citizens, PM Modi said: “Democratic India must grow rapidly to meet the aspirations of 1.25 billion people, 300 million of whom are without access to energy”.

His remark assumes significance in view of depleting carbon space due to its overuse by the rich nations post1850.

It is scientifically estimated by the UN’s IPCC that the world can emit only about 2900 billion tonnes (giga tonne or Gt) of carbon dioxide from pre-industrialisation level till 2100 to stay below 2 degree Celsius global warming. But the world has already emitted 1900 Gt of carbon dioxide till 2011, leaving only

1000 Gt of carbon space for the developing countries who still need to grow and thereby need to emit.

After aggregating INDCs of all countries, it is estimated that the world will emit 748.2 Gt out of remaining 1000 Gt of carbon dioxide by 2030. It means the aggregate INDCs will finish 75 per cent of the carbon budget by 2030.

So, the aggregate INDCs will not leave enough carbon space for poor/developing countries to grow beyond 2030.

In this context, the Prime Minister’s demand for carbon space for poor and developing countries sounds quite logical when these countries have to eradicate poverty.

The Prime Minister said: “We hope advanced nations will assume ambitious targets and pursue them as they have the most room for impact”.

About India’s expectation from the climate deal, he said: “The principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities must remain the bedrock of our collective enterprise... We look to the developed countries to mobilise US$100 billion annually by 2020 for mitigation and adaptation”.

Closing his statement, he said: “We will succeed if we have the wisdom to craft a collective partnership that balances responsibilities and capabilities”. (Times of India)

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tuesday, december 1, 2015 | guyanatimesGY.com

Specialty Hospital controversy

Ramjattan claims no conflict of interest – represented US$200M company "for free" Timely

The Specialty Hospital

By Devina Samaroo

F

iring back at his critics, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan has responded to the multitude of condemnation pouring out to him over the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Government and Fedders Lloyd Ltd for the undertaking of the construction of the Specialty Hospital.

During an exclusive interview with Guyana Times on Monday, the Minister claimed that he has “no affiliation” with the company and for that reason, he believed that there was absolutely no conflict of interest involved and so there was no need to retender.

“I do not affiliate with the company, there is no conflict of interest…,” Ramjattan stated, dismissing suspicions that there was something amiss in the signing of the MoU. He ex-

plained that prior to the initial bidding process, he had no affiliation with Fedders Lloyd and the company only came to him for representation after “wrongfully” losing the contract to Surendra Engineering.

“I am not the company’s lawyer … they came to me as an anti-corruption crusader because they felt they were cheated … they never paid me,” he stated, noting that he only took up the case because he strongly believed the matter reeked of corruption and needed to be exposed.

Contrary to reports that Fedders Lloyd was disqualified owing to administrative deficiencies in its tender documents, Ramjattan is claiming that the evaluation report states clearly that the company is still eligible.

Ramjattan argued that the contracting of Surendra Engineering did not make sense, because the company had never undertaken a project of this nature previous-

ly whereas Fedders Lloyd had on several occasions.

He explained too that the only reason Fedders Lloyd did not win the contract was because of the offer it made to provide a 23 per cent discount on the original price without including it in the actual bid of US$22.96 million. It is on this basis he decided to advocate for the firm, which he believed was wronged by the previous Administration. He noted also that he would have never advocated for the company if it was disqualified.

Asked why Fedders Lloyd, if it felt it was cheated, did not take the matter to court, Ramjattan explained that the company deemed court proceedings as useless. He explained that the company “realised that nothing would have changed the mind of the PPP/C [People’s Progressive Party/Civic] Government” and therefore, decided to expose the matter in a different forum.

The Minister further explained that retendering the contract would be too time-consuming and the Government needed to act quickly.

“There are times when expediency of the matter must be required,” he stated, making reference to the hiring of Anand Goolsarran and Christopher Ram to conduct the forensic audits without going through the procurement process.

Ramjattan contended that even if the company was disqualified, he was positive that it would have won the contract if it had been retendered as the company met all the stipulated requirements. Again, he emphasised that the only reason Fedders Lloyd lost the contract to Surendra Engineering was because of its ‘discount offer’.

The Minister then asserted that there was nothing illegal in the hiring of Fedders Lloyd, as the Procurement Act Chapter 42:05 states: “If the supplier or contractor whose tender has been accepted fails to sign a written contract, if required to do so, or fails to provide any required security for the performance of the contract, the appropriate board shall refer the matter to the Evaluation Committee to determine which of the remaining tenders is the second lowest evaluated tender based on the evaluation criteria outlined in the bid documents subject to its right, in accordance with Section 40 (1), to reject all remaining tenders.”

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan

Lack of transparency

The criticisms are mounting over the lack of transparency surrounding the new arrangements for the construction of the controversial Specialty Hospital.

Transparency Institute of Guyana President Calvin Bernard, former Auditor General Anand Goolsarran, political commentators Dr Henry Jeffrey and Ramon Gaskin along with PPP/C Executive Members have all condemned the move by Government, insisting that there was a clear conflict of interest and issued calls for a retendering process.

“They are supposed to open this matter for tendering process and they are supposed to allow other people an opportunity…

Ramjattan is a senior member of the Cabinet and he is in a position of kind of a conflict of interest and, therefore, they (Government) have to be even more transparent…,” Dr Jeffrey stated.

“It now looks like an inside job that the Minister

probably arranged for these people (company) to get this thing (project); it looks like that in the eyes of the public … It sounds like a corrupt transaction…,” Gaskin expressed.

Additionally, Opposition Leader and former President Bharrat Jagdeo insisted that Fedders Lloyd was disqualified and even if it was not, it would still be wrong to contract the company to conduct an evaluation of the works completed thus far on the Specialty Hospital project.

“Imagine the previous contractor did some work … we don’t know the cost of the work they did … the right thing to do, the only thing you can do as a Government, the transparent thing to do, was to hire an independent company to evaluate how much work was done … the remaining works that need to be done and then go out to tender,” he reasoned.

Jagdeo explained, “So if US$2 million of the US$4 million was spent on the project and Fedders Lloyd came and say they assess it to half a million, then the country gets duped US$1.5 million because there is no independent evaluation.”

Further, PPP/C Executive Member and Attorney-atLaw Anil Nandlall pointed out that when Surendra Engineering won the contract, that procurement process was brought to an end and Fedders Lloyd’s bid was never evaluated because it was disqualified at a preliminary stage. (devinas@guyanatimesgy. com)

Development banks vow to confront Duo remanded for climate change Zorg robbery

T

he heads of the world’s largest development banks pledged on Monday to work together to substantially increase climate investments and ensure that development programmes going forward consider climate risks and opportunities.

In a joint statement released at the 21st Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the African Development Bank (AfDB); Asian Development Bank (ADB); European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD); European Investment Bank (EIB); Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the World Bank Group (WBG) announced their intention to further mobilise public and private finance to help countries reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change.

In the joint statement, the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) pledged to “consider climate change across our strategies, programmes, and operations to deliver more sustainable results, with a particular focus on the poor and most vulnerable”. It noted that the six

institutions had already delivered US$100 billion for climate action in developing and emerging countries in the four years since starting to track

climate financing in 2011.

The statement followed on commitments in recent weeks by the MDBs to increased financing for cli-

mate change mitigation and adaptation over the next few years.

The statement further noted that the MDBs pledged to increase climate finance and to support the outcomes of the Paris conference through 2020. “Each of our organisations has set goals for increasing its climate finance and for leveraging finance from other sources... These pledges support the US$100 billion a year commitment by 2020 for climate action in developing countries.”

Around 180 countries have now submitted their national plans, the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to the UNFCCC, laying out plans to tackle climate change and to reduce emissions.

The MDBs also expressed support for the voluntary Principles for Mainstreaming Climate Action within Financial Institutions, along with 17 other multilateral, bilateral, national and commercial finance institutions, and committed to “measure the impact of our work in partnership with others, including the International Development Finance Club”.

T

wo men were on Monday remanded to prison after they appeared at the Charity Magistrate’s Court to answer to a joint charge of armed robbery.

Carlos Petri, 21, of Maria Lodge and Chatish Singh, 22, of Onderneeming Sand Pit, Region Two, made their first court appearance before Magistrate Sunil Scarce, who read the indictable charge against them.

According the particulars of the case, at about 20:00h on 25 November, the duo approached Mohamed Fizool and robbed him of his jewellery. One of the accused was unmasked while the other was armed with a handgun.

At the time of the robbery, the businessman was in front of his business.

After robbing Fizool, the accused fired four shots, one of which hit the businessman to his left foot. The man has since been hospitalised.

During court proceedings

Monday, the duo was represented by Attorney Haimraj Ramkumar, who pleaded for his clients to be released on bail, given the fact they have permanent places of abode and are willing to report to the police on weekends.

Bail was however objected to by the Police Prosecutor on grounds the victim is still hospitalised, a weapon was used in the commission of the crime, and the prevalence of the offense.

Magistrate Scarce refused bail nad set the matter for December 17.

Meanwhile, Fizool remains in the Suddie Public Hospital where he said he is still experiencing immense pain in his left foot.

Fizool along with villager Fareeda Khan were sitting outside of his restaurant when the suspects came up and demanded his jewellery.

During the scuffle Fizool three shot were fired and the fourth hit the businessman.

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guyanatimesgy.com

Tuesday, DECember 1, 2015

ARCHIE

Travel will provide you with adventure as well as (March 21- cultural and spiritual knowlApril 19) edge. Social gatherings will help you connect with unique individuals. Don’t hesitate to make a positive move.

ARIES

Don’t let stubbornness TAURUS stand between you and your (April 20- dreams. Let bygones be byMay 20) gones and choose to approach whatever comes your way with optimism.

dilbert

You won’t be able to please GEMINI (May 21- everyone, and the more you June 20) say, the harder it will be to please anyone. Keep your thoughts to yourself and go about your business. It’s time to focus on self-improvement.

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Peanuts

Heated arguments will lead to unwanted changes. A drastic reaction will not make you happy or solve any of your problems. Emotional manipulation will only make matters worse.

Your approach to emotionLEO al matters will impress some(July 23one who can influence your Aug. 22) reputation, status or position.

A practical outlook and a concise plan will separate you from the competition.

Calvin and Hobbes

Problems will surface if VIRGO you deal with institutions (Aug. 23or travel to unfamiliar placSept. 22) es. Put off meetings or interviews until you are positive you can make a good impression. Preparation is key.

Do your best to improve LIBRA (Sept. 23- your life, relationships and Oct. 23) prospects. Your ability to see situations clearly will help you find balance and good, equitable solutions.

SUDOKU

Your mental agility and SCORPIO desire to do things different(Oct. 24ly will encourage creative enNov. 22) deavours. Take measures that will ensure positive change at home and work. Romance is favoured and on the rise.

You may crave excitement SAGITTARIUS and adventure, but travelling (Nov. 23or getting involved in a debate Dec. 21) will turn out to be more than you bargained for. Delays and problems with authoritative individuals can be expected.

solution for Last Published Puzzle

CAPRICORN Added responsibilities (Dec. 22- regarding the elderly or ill Jan. 19) can be expected. Balance your time wisely and include someone you love to avoid complaints of neglect.

AQUARIUS

Tension will cause confrontations with someone you (Jan. 20have to deal with daily. Use Feb. 19) your savvy communication skills and get to the root of the problem in order to find a workable solution.

A one-sided relationship PISCES (Feb. 20- will set you back emotionally March 20) and financially. Don’t share private information or let anyone put demands on you that aren’t warranted. Concentrate on creative endeavours.

tuesday, december 1, 2015

19

Australia have weaknesses WICB offers we can exploit – Holder support to suspended I Narine t is just the start of December and already the most exciting part of Australia’s home Test summer is done. At least, such is the popular thinking among Australian cricket fans.

November brought New Zealand, a team capable of providing a stern test of Steven Smith’s men. It also brought the novelty of a day-night Test with a pink ball. December brings a West Indies team whose only away Test wins since 2007 have been against Bangladesh.

Cricket Australia knows that Boxing Day and New Year’s Tests against West Indies will be far from the draw cards of the Ashes or Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and they have hence backloaded the season with limited-overs matches against India. It is against this backdrop that captain Jason Holder and his teammates have tiptoed into the country almost unnoticed, preparing for a tour match in Brisbane starting on Wednesday.

Holder knows the task ahead of him is immense.

Even with home advantage earlier this year, West Indies could not avoid a 0-2 loss to Australia. But things have changed since then. Holder has replaced Denesh Ramdin as captain, Smith has succeeded Michael Clarke in charge of Australia, and West Indies will also not have to face the retired Mitchell Johnson or the injured Mitchell Starc.

Holder hopes those changes to Australia’s personnel will help his side.

“We don’t come with just some belief, we come with a lot of belief,” Holder told reporters in Brisbane on Monday. “If we don’t believe, there’s no point being here. We have to play aggressive cricket, we have to play smart cricket. The Australians are the No.2ranked side in the world.

They will come at us pretty hard, as we saw in the Caribbean. “[In the Australia-New Zealand series] We saw weaknesses where we can exploit. There’s some new faces, mixed with some guys who have been in rich veins of form. It’s important that we put some pressure on their middle order.

“If we get early wickets with the new ball, we can

Spinner Devendra Bishoo and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin are key men in the West Indies set-up

get guys like Shaun Marsh, guys who are trying to make their way back into this side, put them under some pressure to score. Once we can do that it should be a relatively competitive series.

They have some in-form batsmen, David Warner and Steve Smith, so it’s just important that we put some pressure on their middle order.”

To do so, Holder has a simple plan: move the ball.

Swing it, seam it, and test the techniques of Australia’s batsmen. The first Test is in Hobart, where cloudy overhead conditions can sometimes help swing bowlers, but it is also often a good pitch on which to bat. Holder watched with interest as Australia piled on the runs on flatter decks in Brisbane and Perth before struggling in Adelaide.

“Not only do we have the pace, we have bowlers with the skill to extract movement,” Holder said. “I saw in the first two Test matches there were some pretty flat pitches and the ball didn’t do much. The Australian batsmen and the New Zealand batsmen were able to capitalise.

“One of the crucial things in this series will be to extract some movement. I saw what movement did in this last Test match with New Zealand and Australia, with both sides being a bit at fault and being caught out.

It’s important our bowlers look to do something with the ball.”

Equally, the West Indies batsmen must find a way to counter Australia’s bowlers in their own conditions.

On Tuesday morning, they will find out which bowl-

ers have been picked for the first Test in Hobart, with James Pattinson likely to be in the squad alongside Peter Siddle and Josh Hazlewood, although Hazlewood may be rested at some point in the series.

In the series in the Caribbean earlier this year, no West Indies batsman managed to score a century and Holder himself topped their run list with 116, despite batting at No.8. It is six years since West Indies have visited Australia for Tests and their entire top

six has changed in that time, meaning plenty of learning ahead for the batsmen in these three Tests, although Marlon Samuels has played Tests in Australia previously.

“It’s one of the biggest challenges,” Holder said.

“They’re a very good side playing at home, it’s just important that we learn as quickly as possible and not be intimidated by their bowlers, just be confident.

If we make improvements then I’ll be quite happy at the end of the series.” (Cricinfo)

Sunil Narine

S

unil Narine will receive the full support of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), following his suspension from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect.

The suspension followed the announcement from the International Cricket Council, the sport’s world governing body, that an independent assessment has found the bowling action of Narine to be illegal.

“It will be a blow to Sunil to have failed the ICC biomechanics assessment of his action and be suspended from bowling,” said WICB Director of Cricket Richard Pybus.

“We will be offering our support to Sunil as he does the remedial work on his bowling action. I know the time and effort he has put in to do this work previously and I am sure this will just deepen his resolve to come back a better bowler.”

Narine was reported after the third One-day International on the tour of Sri Lanka earlier this month. (windiescricket)

Top riders honoured by GCN I

n a truly relaxing atmosphere on Sunday night at the Latino Bar on Hadfield Street, Guyana Cycling News (GCN), a Facebook forum, honoured the country’s top riders for 2015 at what is expected to become an annual award ceremony.

Leading cyclists in the Senior, Junior and Veteran categories were presented with trophies and cash prizes in recognition of their achievements during the calendar year.

After the formal proceedings were over, the riders interacted with special invitees and the media, as they reflected on the cycling season, its high and lows, and their expectations for 2016.

After the tabulation of points for the season, Team Gillette Evolution’s Orville Hinds emerged as the leading Senior rider, while Jamal John of Team Coco’s was the top Junior and Junior Niles the leading Veteran rider.

The leading cyclists of 2015 pose with their accolades

Hinds finished the season with 203 points, 22 more than Alanzo Greaves of Roraima Bikers Club.

Reigning Tour of Guyana Five-Stage champion Raul Leal of Team Gillette Evolution finished in third spot on 161 points, followed by Evolution’s Michael Anthony on 149 and Team Coco’s Hamzah Eastman on

148.

In the Junior division, Jamal John of Team Coco’s was the runaway winner with 190 points, followed Raphael Leung of WS United on 100 points. No other rider managed to accumulate 100 points, as Andrew Hicks of Trojan scored 93.

In the Veterans category, Junior Niles of Team Coco’s

amassed a whopping 176 points, followed by Jaikaran Sookhai of Carlton Wheelers way behind in second spot on 65 points. Ian Jackson of Flying Stars finished third on 52.

The top five in the Senior division, and the leading three in the Junior and Veteran categories were given awards.

20

guyanatimesGY.com

tuesday, december 1, 2015

Caribbean Development Boxing…

Barbados boxers emerge overall champions P

ugilists from the Flying Fish island of Barbados copped the overall title of champions when the Caribbean Development Goodwill tournament concluded on Sunday night at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.

At the conclusion of the four-day championship, which attracted over 90 boxers from 13 countries, the Bajans were adjudged champions, as they dominated the Women’s division, and made the final of most of the other categories.

On the individual side, Trinidad and Tobago’s Aaron Hassett was voted best boxer of the tournament. He defeated Jamaica’s Nico Yeyo in the final of the Men’s Elite Welterweight division.

Yeyo had won his two previous bouts and was almost sure to have been named best boxer, but he was denied this opportunity by Hassett. Below are the summarised results from Sunday’s final night.

In the Novices category, Guyana’s Stephan Andrews scored a Technical Knockout win over Trinidad and Tobago’s Mike Inniss at one minute, 58 seconds in the first round.

In the Bantamweight final, Nankumar Singh of Guyana secured a unanimous points decision win over Jamal Skeeple of Antigua and Barbuda in the lightweight division. Klaus

Kimberley Gittens of Barbados collects the female best boxer trophy of the Caribbean Development Goodwill tournament, which concluded on Sunday night at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall

Daniel of Guyana also won by the same route against Trinidad and Tobago’s Kyleron Ruiz in their Light Welterweight contest.

Keyon King of Guyana forced the referee to stop his Welterweight contest against Antigua and Barbuda’s Lance Robinson in the second round; Charles Cox of Barbados came out with a unanimous points decision win over Guyana’s Dwayne July, and Colin Martin of Guyana was too strong for Senthil Kumar of Antigua and Barbuda, the referee stopping the fight at one minute, 54 second in round three.

In the Elite category, Tefon Green opened

Guyana’s account on a winning note with a split decision victory over Trinidad and Tobago’s Anthony Joseph in their Flyweight contest; Kesny Joseph of French Guiana defeated Guyana’s Clairmont Gibson by a unanimous decision in their Bantamweight bout; Ricardo Carter of Jamaica defeated Guyana’s Joel Williamson by a split decision in their Lightweight contest; Jean Paul Cooper of Trinidad and Tobago scored a points decision win against Guyana’s Jason Phillips in the Light Welterweight final; Jonathan Hanson of Jamaica got a split decision victory over Guyana’s Dennis Thomas in their

Middleweight contest; Desmond Amsterdam of Guyana beat St Lucia’s Marvin Anthony on points in the Light Heavyweight final; Jason Barker of Guyana secured a walkover victory over Brendon Dennis of Trinidad and Tobago in the Heavyweight final; and Nigel Paul of Trinidad and Tobago scored a first round TKO win against Guyana’s Eon Fraser in the Super Heavyweight final.

Meanwhile, President of the Guyana Boxing Association, Steve Ninvalle, hailed the tournament as a success.

“It has allowed us a chance to recognise some of our deficiencies, it accentuated the positives that we may have as a country and as a region and it has given us the opportunity to attempt to eliminate whatever negatives in the order of techniques that may be hampering the sport,” he pointed out.

Ninvalle added, “I think that coming away from this tournament the region is a bit more excited about what happens in the sport of boxing and it tells us Guyana as a nation exactly what we have to do in order to get our guys back there. There is a lot of work that has to be done, that has been on exhibition throughout this tournament and basically it means that the shoulder has to be put to the wheel.”

Guyana beat Antigua 73-56 in game 2 – 4-match series to continue on Wednesday at CASH

By Treiston Joseph

T

he Guyana national basketball squad trounced Antigua for the second game running in the four-game series that continued on Sunday at the Burnham Hard Court.

After an easy 76-42 win last Thursday in Linden, Guyana cruised to victory with a 73-56 result at the Georgetown based outdoor facility.

Guyana came out firing early in the game to open a quick ten-point advantage in the first quarter, before a solid run by the Antiguans closed the game to just five points late in the first quarter.

However, Guyana expert inside play, coupled with their consistent shots from the three-point line, allowed the home team to pull away by the half with a 3521 lead that they never relinquished.

Travis Burnett was the

Part of the action during Guyana’s win over Antigua at the Burnham Hard Court

game’s leading scorer with 19 points as he continually got into the teeth of the defence for some smooth floaters and tough finishes. Jermaine Slater was the next best scorer for Guyana with 10 points.

Marlon Charles led the way for the visitors with 17

points, while Kareem Meade had 11 points in the loss.

Meanwhile, in the opening game, Ravens topped the Pacesetters in Under-23 action with a 57-53 win.

Nathan Saul had game-high 16 points, while Jahleel Duke and Quincy DeSantos scored 10 points each in the

win.

Scoring for the losing side came from Carlos Edwards with 15 points and Sebastian Luke with 14.

Action in the series will continue on Wednesday with the third game at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall from 19:00h.

WBC champion Wilder wants to fight Fury A merican WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder wants to unify the division by fighting new WBA, IBF and WBO champion Tyson Fury.

Briton Fury, 27, stunned the sport by beating Wladimir Klitschko on Saturday - ending the Ukrainian's nine-year undefeated reign.

Immediately after the bout 30-year-old Wilder - who is due to fight in January - tweeted he was "coming" for Fury.

"I want that fight to happen as soon as possible," Wilder said.

He told BBC Radio 5 live on Monday: "I've got to fight someone in January and after that fight I would love to have a unification bout and guess what, I wouldn't mind coming to the UK for that one.

shall we?

"Wladimir Klitschko was the number one in the division. Probably the poundfor-pound king, whatever that means. So why would I be bothered about a novice like Wilder?

"He's a basketball player who took up boxing a couple of years ago. I'm a true natural fighter."

Wilder described Saturday's fight as the most boring in heavyweight history and said he would show Fury "no remorse" if they face each other in the ring.

The 30-year-old, who won bronze as an amateur at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, is undefeated in 35 fights, winning 34 by knock-out.

He has a scheduled title defence on January 16, 2016 in New York, with the opponent not yet announced.

"You can't take nothing away from Tyson, a win is

Deontay Wilder is undefeated in 35 professional fights - 34 won by knockout

"No matter where it might be, I want to be the undisputed champion of the world."

Wilder said his WBC belt is the "crown jewel" of boxing and is the "most famous, most respected" title, but insisted: "We haven't had an undisputed champion in I can't remember how long - and I want to be the first name to bring the belts back together and heavyweight boxing back to its full potential.

"Next year is going to be a great year for me, regardless. Everything is falling in our plan, our time and our planning for what we want to do."

Following his unanimous points victory in Dusseldorf, Germany, Manchester boxer Fury ruled out fighting "fraud" David Haye, who twice pulled out of bouts between the two.

British current WBC International and Commonwealth heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, 26, said an all-British fight with Fury would happen "next year or the year after."

Klitschko, 39, said straight after the fight that he would trigger a rematch clause, but could still decide to retire instead.

And when asked about fighting Wilder, Fury responded: "Why do we need to mention Deontay Wilder?

Let's laugh at his name,

a win," said Wilder. "There was a lot of dancing going on, I guess it was a dance competition rather than a fight.

"When somebody tunes in to look at a world title fight that is not what they expect to see, they look to see a fight and somebody get beat up for the title."

Talking about his style, Wilder added: "I'm going to try to disfigure you so bad that your kinfolks won't recognise you at the end of the fight. I don't hate you, but I want to destroy you and your career."

In his first news conference since becoming world heavyweight champion, Fury compared his "masterclass" performance to a "mongoose in a cobra's nest, taking all the eggs home".

He called the Klitschko camp "cheats" - saying he avoided drinking water for fear of sabotage, dismissed questions about being a role model and described the sport's biggest names as "just bare bums in the shower".

His trainer and uncle Peter Fury compared Saturday's stunning victory to Muhammad Ali's 1964 victory over Sonny Liston, saying there were the "brains of Britain" for out-thinking Klitschko. He then demanded journalists give "the eighth wonder of the world" a standing ovation and a bow. (BBC Sport)

sports

YELLOW PAGES

Pakistan v England, 3rd T20, Sharjah…

tuesday, december 1, 2015

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England clinch whitewash in Super Over

T

he T20 series had already been won by England but the third match, dead rubber or not, was memorable and went to a Super Over in Sharjah.

England, who had never experienced such a thing, sneaked it from the penultimate ball after a pinpoint over from Chris Jordan restricted Pakistan to just three. A game that effectively did not matter mattered enormously. And cricket is all the better for that.

Pakistan must have felt they would win the match in real time. With two runs needed from two balls, and

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England did well to control a Pakistan revival during the run-chase

England innings (20 overs maximum) JJ Roy lbw b Aamer Yamin 0 JM Vince c Umar Akmal b Sohail Tanvir 46 JE Root b Shahid Afridi 32 MM Ali c & b Shahid Afridi 0 EJG Morgan* b Shoaib Malik 15 JC Buttler† run out (†Mohammad Rizwan) 2 SW Billings c Umar Akmal b Anwar Ali 7 CR Woakes c Umar Akmal b Sohail Tanvir 37 DJ Willey not out 3 CJ Jordan not out 0 12 Extras: (lb-4, w-8) Total: (8 wickets; 20 overs) 154 Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Roy, 0.1 ov), 2-48 (Root, 5.5 ov), 3-48 (Ali, 5.6 ov), 4-68 (Morgan, 9.1 ov), 5-75 (Buttler, 10.3 ov), 6-86 (Billings, 12.3 ov), 7-146 (Woakes, 19.1 ov), 8-152 (Vince, 19.5 ov) Bowling: Aamer Yamin 2-0-121, Sohail Tanvir 4-0-36-2 (2-w), Mohammad Irfan 4-0-40-0 (1w), Shahid Afridi 4-0-19-2 (1w), Anwar Ali 4-0-35-1 (1-w), Shoaib Malik 2-0-8-1 (2-w)

Pakistan innings (target: 155 runs from 20 overs) Ahmed Shehzad b Willey 4 Rafatullah Mohmand lbw b Willey 0 Mohammad Hafeez run out 1 (Vince/Morgan) Shoaib Malik c Billings b Woakes 75 Mohammad Rizwan† c & b Rashid 24 4 Umar Akmal c Jordan b Ali Shahid Afridi* b Willey 29 Sohail Tanvir not out 10 Anwar Ali not out 0 Extras: (b-1, lb-1, w-5) 7 Total: (7 wickets; 20 overs) 154 Fall of wickets: 1-5 (Ahmed Shehzad, 0.5 ov), 2-9 (Mohammad Hafeez, 0.6 ov), 3-11 (Rafatullah Mohmand, 2.2 ov), 4-50 (Mohammad Rizwan, 8.1 ov), 5-65 (Umar Akmal, 11.1 ov), 6-128 (Shahid Afridi, 17.3 ov), 7-153 (Shoaib Malik, 19.5 ov) Bowling: DJ Willey 4-0-36-3 (4-w), CR Woakes 4-0-26-1, CJ Jordan 4-0-39-0, AU Rashid 4-029-1, MM Ali 4-0-22-1 (1-w)

a rendition of "Long Live Pakistan" having blared supportively mid-over from the PA system, the highest T20 score of Shoaib Malik's career - 75 from 54 balls - came to grief when Chris Woakes had him caught at long-on. The last ball, to Sohail Tanvir, flew for a bye as he just beat Jos Buttler's throw to the bowler's end.

So Super Over it was.

Many would have questioned England's decision to entrust it to Jordan, hardly a regular and far from the most trustworthy bowler on view.

The combination of Shahid Afridi and Umar Akmal, by contrast, would have been met with universal approval.

But Jordan restricted them to three runs, an over of full length into the pads rounded off when he bowled Akmal around his legs.

Unless England lost two wickets, it was as good as over. Pakistan, correctly, opted for Afridi against Buttler and Eoin Morgan, memories of his spell of 2-19 still fresh.

There was no shot of note, but Anwar Ali failed to gather and run out Buttler, as he risked a second run to the bowler's end from the penultimate ball, and England

crept home.

England therefore completed a 3-0 clean sweep in the series. They have two more T20s to South Africa in February, but they will go to the World T20 in India in March (assuming the organisers ever get round to announcing the dates) in a positive state of mind and few would have anticipated this sense of feelgood for England in any form of limited-overs cricket after their World Cup horrors in Australia earlier in the year. Pakistan, not for the first time, will just hope to catch a fair wind. For all their problems, but who is to say after their part in this thrilling encounter that they will not do just that?

England's victory looked improbable at 86-6, but a stand of 60 in seven overs between James Vince and Woakes enabled them to escape to 154-8. Pakistan, in reply, needed 90 from 54 balls when they lost their fifth wicket, at which point some uninhibited hitting against the spinners by Malik and Afridi, the latter perhaps playing for Pakistan in the UAE for the last time, threatened to turn the tables. (Cricinfo)

Cricketer Cairns cleared of perjury

F

ormer New Zealand cricketer Chris Cairns has been cleared of perjury and perverting the course of justice.

Cairns, 45, was accused at Southwark Crown Court of falsely declaring under oath during a 2012 libel case that he had “never, ever cheated at cricket”.

During that libel case he had successfully sued Indian Premier League chairman Lalit Modi for accusing him on Twitter of match-fixing.

Speaking outside court, the retired all-rounder said it had been “hell”.

His former adviser, barrister Andrew Fitch-Holland, 50, from Manchester, was also cleared of perverting the course of justice.

Cairns is considered one of New Zealand’s greatest ever all-rounders, having played 62 Tests for his country between 1989 and 2004.

He captained the national one-day side on a number of occasions, and also played for Nottinghamshire before a spell in India.

In 2010, Modi’s tweet accused Cairns of match-

fixing while captain of the Chandigarh Lions in the now-defunct Indian Cricket League in 2008.

Two years later, Cairns won damages of $130,000 (£90,000) in England’s first Twitter libel trial.

However, the prosecution at Southwark Crown Court claimed he had lied when he promised during the libel trial that he had never cheated.

He was also accused of perverting the course of justice by inducing fellow New Zealand cricketer Lou Vincent to give a false witness statement in a Skype call.

Speaking after the verdict, Cairns, from Auckland, said: “It’s not a victory as such because in a case like this, I really don’t think there are any winners. It’s been hell for everybody involved.

“I think reputationally I’m completely scorched, burned completely, but it hasn’t stopped me and it won’t stop me.”

Asked if he would work in the sport again, he replied, “No, no, no”, adding: “It’s my

Chris Cairns

choice. I think it would be quite a hard environment to go back into. There has been a lot of damage done and I think that’s unfortunate.”

Vincent told the court Cairns had approached him to suggest he deliberately play badly for Chandigarh Lions and said he had helped to fix matches under “direct orders” from Cairns.

Brendon McCullum, the current New Zealand cap-

tain, also gave evidence against Cairns, accusing him of twice asking him to fix matches - the first time in Kolkata, India, the second in Worcester.

Cairns acknowledged both meetings had taken place, but said there was nothing sinister about them and McCullum’s version of events was wrong.

He told the jury there was “no truth” to allegations he had tried to persuade his team-mate Vincent to join him in cheating, and was “shocked” that McCullum could accuse him of trying to recruit him to fix results.

He said he had discussed “spot-fixing” - where a player corruptly influences a specific element of a match, such as the number of no-balls - with McCullum and explained spread-betting to him because match-fixing was “topical” in India at the time.

But Cairns said there was “minimal” time spent discussing match-fixing, and it was “completely wrong” to suggest spread-betting was equivalent to match-fixing.

(BBC Sport)

22

guyanatimesGY.com

tuesday, december 1, 2015

DMW International Indoor Hockey Festival...

The 6ix, Pizza Hut GCC and Hikers are category champions cal side, produced one of his trademark drag flick goals with a diving finish to keep his team within striking distance in the 24th minute.

Bickram Kandola however, restored the three-goal margin for The 6ix by catching the GCC defense nap-

performance in the Women’s final to deliver a 10-0 beating of the Old Fort Shooting Stars. The experienced side, boasting several national players, controlled the game and dominated possession from start to end earning them their fifth trophy in

Bell scored three of the Hikers’ five goals, while Devin Munroe and Robert Fernandes scored the other two. Kevin Adams was the lone goal scorer for Carib.

A number of individual incentive prizes were presented at the closing cer-

Men’s champions! The 6ix with Best goalkeeper Pradeep Koonar (front) and MVP Jewan Bath (third right) pose with DDL Marketing Representative, Maria Munroe

T

he final curtain fell on another successful Diamond Mineral Water International Indoor Hockey Festival on Sunday evening, leaving a competition that saw many repeat winners and the usual spirit of great rivalry and camaraderie among competitors.

The 6ix Men’s team from Canada emerged successful in the Men’s division by reversing their pool round loss against Bounty GCC with a stellar 5-1 victory in the final. The Pizza Hut GCC women absolutely dominated the Ladies division with a final record of 10 unanswered goals against the

Old Fort Shooting Stars, while the Hikers made it four years in a row for the Carib Veteran’s division trophy by cruising to a comfortable 5-1 win over Carib Hockey Club.

Although the final score ended solidly in favour of the Canadian side, The 6ix, the high tempo of the match and the skills of both sides drew rapt attention and loud applause from the crowd throughout the battle.

The teams appeared evenly matched in the opening minutes of the game, which saw fine goalkeeping from both goalkeeper,

MVP Pradeep Koonar for The 6ix, and GCC’s Gregory Garroway.

As the crowd waited in anticipation for someone to break the deadlock, that task fell to Canada’s Jonathan Roberts in the 12th minute as he turned a half chance into a goal with perfect control and accuracy.

The diminutive Satnam Dosanjh would play the game of his life as he followed Roberts with a field goal on either side of half time with clinical finishing. GCC’s Kevin Spencer, who had been having a solid tournament for the lo-

Vets champions! The Hickers with best goalkeeper, Sheldon Corlette (third right)

ping with his quick free hit and shot to take the score to 4-1.

As GCC poured all players forward in an effort to turn the match, young Jugraj Kalkat found himself free in the scoring circle and with only the goalkeeper to beat made it a 5-1 victory for the Canadians.

The Pizza Hut GCC Ladies put in a supreme

the competition’s 11 years.

Ashley DeGroot led the charge with a hat-trick; Sonia Jardine and Kerensa Fernandes scored doubles, while Aliyah Gordon, Rebecca Xavier and Shebiki Baptiste each scored one for the victors.

The Veteran’s final saw the Hikers cruising to their fourth title in a row.

Jerazeno “Skillaxe”

emony of the event to the following recipients: Most promising female- Mary Ann Murray; Most promising male- Omar Hopkinson; Most Valuable Players(Men) Jeewan Bath, (Women) Sonia Jardine, (Vets) Kern Ramsammy; Best Goalkeeper- (Men) Pradeep Koonar, (Women) Sarafina Phillips, (Vets) Sheldon Corlette.

GOA launches Education Support Grant for young athletes

T

he Education Ministry’s Department of Culture, Youth and Sport has been working with its partners to fasttrack the integration of more sporting activities into the school system. This step was taken one step closer with the launch of the Education Support Grant by the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA).

This initiative is a three-year project that is supporting 10 school-aged athletes from a range of sport disciplines. This grant is performance based (sport and academic) and will be released to the recipients at the end of each school term.

Additionally, in each year, another batch of 10 athletes will be added to the programme. The sum of US$5,000 was raised for this project.

This year’s awardees are Delroy Elcock (boxing), Priyanna Ramdhani (badminton), Tariq Saunders (table tennis), Jonathan Copeland (athletics), Macaela Harding (squash/ hockey), Kenisha Phillip (athletics), Afruica Gentle (tennis), Kenita Mahaica (swimming), Selenas Jackman (table tennis) and Antonio Brandt (athletics).

The GOA was able to secure this support through engagements with long distance runner, Paolo Natali. In his remarks, Natali explained that the project is one that seeks to assist young athletes to obtain the training items they need and trav-

Minister within the Ministry of Education, Nicolette Henry (seated third left), GOA President K.A. Juman Yassin (third right) and other GOA officials with the students/athletes

el arrangements to international competitions. He expressed confidence in the Guyanese athletes securing medals at the 2020 Olympics.

Aside from the launch of this timely project, the GOA also presented certificates to 20 sport administrators, who took part in the 17th Sport Administrators

Course. The GOA received 29 applications, but 20 persons were able to complete the course.

There were three A’s, six B’s, four C’s, four D’s and 3 F’s. In his remarks, the President of the GOA, K.A. Juman Yassin noted that it is the hope of the association that the next course graduation will be held in their new

building at Liliendaal in 2016.

He went on to state the importance of athletes and coaches to stay away from doping. He called on the athletes to be aware of their diets and the substances they can and cannot consume.

Yassin recalled that at a recent cycle race a random drug test exercise was conducted. He com-

mended Dr Karen Pilgrim and her team for staging that exercise.

While touching on the scholarship programme, Yassin indicated the need for Guyanese athletes and coaches to be full-time so that the country can achieve that elusive Olympic gold medal. In this regard, there is a need for the necessary resources to be made available for them.

He also recognised the impact of the integration of sport and education. Yassin pointed out that the Wiltshire’s family children have been excelling in both areas, hence the integration of sport and education is welcomed.

In her remarks, the Minister within the Ministry of Education, Nicolette Henry, expressed the belief that the sport administrators training is of paramount importance to the acceleration of sport in Guyana. She urged the participants to stay in contact with each other so that they can make a difference in the sport together.

With regards to the scholarship programme, Minister Henry stated that she is impressed and inspired by this step. She also highlighted the importance of working with partners to move sport development forward. As such, the government is pleased to work with the GOA. Although the scholarship may seem small, Minister Henry noted that it will help the athletes to dream bigger.

guyanatimesGY.com

tuesday, december 1, 2015

Stag Elite League…

Slingerz FC crowned Genesis champs T

he West Demerarabased Slingerz FC stormed back in style on Sunday evening to win the Genesis phase of the Stag Elite League at the Leonora Stadium, West Coast Demerara.

After taking an early lead, Slingerz FC conceded back-to-back goals, as Alpha United surged ahead.

However, Slingerz FC equalised in the second half, before stealing the game with a goal in the first minute of added-on time.

Julian Wade opened the scoring for Slingerz FC as early as the fourth minute, before a Daniel Wilson double in the 23rd and 47th minutes pushed Alpha United ahead. Wade would

Devon Millington

then level the scores in the 74th minute, before Devon Millington found the back

of the nets in injury time to seal the victory for the men in orange and black.

The club became $4 million richer for the win, while Alpha United had to settle for half that amount.

Earlier, Pele FC, through an Omallo Williams 58th minute strike, needled Fruta Conquerors in the third place playoff.

Pele FC pocketed $1 million, while Fruta Conquerors took home $500,000. The Genesis phase of the League was contested among eight clubs; the others were Monedderlust, Georgetown Cricket Club, Buxton United and Guyana Defence Force.

The next stage of the League- the Finale- will commence in early 2016.

Stag Elite League…

“It has resuscitated football in Guyana” – Bolton

By Avenash Ramzan

T

echnical Director of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), Claude Bolton, the architect of the Stag Elite League believes the recently concluded Genesis phase of Guyana’s first professional League has accomplished what had been set out by stakeholders earlier this year.

“As the architect of the Stag Elite League, I must say that it has accomplished all that it was intended to accomplish in this initial phase of its operation and more,” Bolton emphatically stated on Monday.

The Genesis phase concluded on Sunday night at the Leonora Stadium with the West Demerara-based Slingerz FC outplaying Georgetown’s Alpha United 3-2 in the final. Earlier, Pele FC needled Fruta Conquerors 1-0 in the third place playoff.

“It [the Elite League] has resuscitated football in Guyana,” Bolton noted, adding that, “It kept football playing over an extended period of time, which enables both players and coaches to develop and ply their trade. It placed the on field game at the forefront of the minds of the football fraternity and the sporting public.”

Bolton pointed out that League provided an avenue for players like Gregory “Jackie Chan” Richardson of Pele FC, Vurlon Mills of Slingerz FC and a host of talented others to showcase

Claude Bolton

their skills, thereby inspiring young players to strive for a greater love of and a higher level of commitment to the game.

“It proved that that the GFF and all of its members are quite capable of working together to a better end. It demonstrates our ability to facilitate our beautiful game as a business. It has begun to construct a bridge between corporate Guyana and the sport itself. It recognised and highlighted the value that all stakeholders have in this game,” the TD outlined.

Bolton added, “Proudly, the Elite League has become a spark that will bring recognition to football as a tool of social development. From the generous support of the government of Guyana, the local vendors, the announcements at our events by other sporting organisations, the fans, the custodians that prepare the

venues, the clubs’ willingness to work diligently, our own management team, to the ball boy crews at every game, our “community” is better for having embraced this venture and the promise of “Football for all.”

The football administrator further highlighted that there were challenges along the way, and the learning curve was steep.

“However, this is the ideal moment to highlight that, whether it was scheduling, administration, registration, venue set-up, corporate agreements, funding, or any other hurdle placed in front of us, the Normalisation Committee, the GFF staff, and the management team were always committed to finding solutions by working collectively and openly with the eight Elite League clubs for one common goal,” Bolton explained.

He added, “This experience can only better serve us as we prepare for the challenges of the League Finale. So even in this way, the league has served as a tool for the GFF to become better at the administration of football.”

The participating teams in the Stag Elite League were Alpha United, Buxton FC, Pele FC, Slingerz FC, Fruta Conquerors FC, Monedderlust FC, Georgetown Football Club and the Guyana Defence Force.

The teams played home and away matches over two rounds, before advancing to the playoff round.

23

P&P Practical Pistol Match set for this weekend

Subrena Ishmile (left) of P&P Insurance Brokers and Consultants Limited hands over sponsorship funds to GSSF President, Vidushi Persaud, in the presence of GSSF Board Member, Dr Pravesh Harry

L

ocal practical shooters will participate in a Practical Pistol Match, which has been exclusively sponsored by P&P Insurance Brokers and Consultants Limited and hosted by the Guyana Sport Shooting Federation (GSSF).

This much anticipated competition will be held at the Guyana Defence Force’s Timehri Ranges this weekend. President of the Federation, Vidushi Persaud, said the match will usher in the festive Christmas season and hopefully brings lots of cheer to the members and local pistol aces as they compete in the final competition for the GSSF’s calendar year.

Competitors will be separated into two divisions based on their firearm set-up: Production Division (for out of the factory firearms) and Standard Division (where some add-ons and higher end aftermarket parts are allowed.)

She went on to note that local Regional Director for IPSC, Harold Hopkinson, has been instrumental in encouraging local shooters and the attendance of a number of practical shooters of Guyana will be facilitated to test their ability to balance the three elements of practical shooting: Speed, Power and Accuracy.

Built around safety, the sport simultaneously measures the ability of the competitor to shoot rapidly and accurately with a full powered gun in a fun, fair, and competitive environment. Match Director, Ryan McKinnon, noted with sponsorship from P&P Insurance Brokers and Consultants Limited, excellent prizes for the top three overall shooters in each division will be made available.

He also indicated that the stages for the match were designed to be dynamic and free style, in that there is no set arrangement of the targets, thus the shooter will have to

choose his/her order of engagement as targets become visible.

Safety for all will come first and will be monitored by several experienced range officials and ranks of the Guyana Police Force.

At the small ceremony at P&P Insurance Brokers and Consultants Limited’s office located at Lot 35 North and King Streets, Georgetown, Persaud, in accepting the kind sponsorship, conveyed thanks to the Chief Executive Officer, Bishwa Panday, who unhesitatingly came on board to support the sport shooting fraternity.

She commended him for his support of various sporting disciplines in Guyana and thanked him for helping to promote sport shooting. For more information on the Guyana Sport Shooting Federation, interested persons can visit the website www.GuyanaSportShooting. com

CONCACAF Olympic Qualifiers…

Lady Jags to face Canada on February 11 in Texas

G

uyana’s senior national Women’s team, the Lady Jags, will play on February 11, 2016, at the BBVA Compass Stadium in Texas, in the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifier tournament.

The Guyanese were placed in Group B of the tournament, along with Trinidad and Tobago and Guatemala, while world champions United States of America head the ‘Group of Death’, that also includes rivals Mexico, Puerto Rico and Costa Rica.

By virtue of defeating Jamaica 2-1 last Friday in the twin-island republic, the Lady Jags would have qualified for their second CONACACF tournament, making them the country’s most successful football programme, given the fact that the Men’s national team, the Golden Jaguars, are yet to play in a major confederation championship.

“If there’s such a thing as a good draw, this would be it,” explained an excit-

ed.

Mark Rodrigues

ed Mark Rodrigues, who attended the draw, which was held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Doral, Miami.

“I’m really excited that we got such a group and that we’re going to be playing Canada in our first game.

It’s a game that we always wanted and we’ll also get a chance to play Trinidad because we also always wanted to play them again, but I’m satisfied with what we’ve got and now it’s time to focus on the task ahead,” Lady Jags Head Coach stat-

It will be only the second meeting between Guyana and Canada with the first being at the 2010 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Looking ahead, Rodrigues said that he had spoken to U.S. Women’s Head Coach Jill Ellis for a possible friendly against them before the qualifiers.

“She (Ellis) said that she’ll look into it and see if we could have that game between now and February; even if it’s their U-20 girls.

I’m actually looking to see if we could play any of the teams in the opposite group.”

World Cup champion U.S.A. will face Costa Rica to open the eight-team CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament.

The United States girls have won the past three tournaments that determine the Olympic representatives from CONCACAF, and went on to win the gold medal in the last three Olympics.

The top two finishers earn Olympic berths.

tuesday, december 1, 2015

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

Stag Elite League…

Slingerz FC crowned Genesis champs Pg 23

The Slingerz FC players in a joyous mood after copping the title on Sunday evening at Leonora

Australia has The 6ix, Pizza Hut GCC and weaknesses Hikers are category champions we can exploit – Holder

DMW International Indoor Hockey Festival...

Pg 19

Pg 22

Women’s champions! Pizza Hut GCC with MVP Sonia Jardine (third right, back row) share a moment with DDL Marketing Representative, Maria Munroe

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Jason Holder: “We don’t come with just some belief; we come with a lot of belief.”