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Old Age Pension increase likely in Budget 2017 P11

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

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 2999

Thursday, October 6, 2016

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GDF investigates illegal mapping of Essequibo by Venezuela – Greenidge …several flyovers noticed

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

OIC offers to P13 finance GuyanaSuriname Bridge

Crime reality differs from P13 Ramjattan’s portrayal – Ali

Page 3

Former CANU Divisional Crime Prosecutor found Chief under dead in car close arrest Vreed-en-Hoop fatal accident

Page 10

Page 12

One Laptop Per Teacher launched

1 in custody for Tuschen taxi driver’s murder P17

Page 9

DTL dismisses protesting P9 workers – Union condemns action, other protests follow

Govt hauls in CHEC over US$150M P7 contract woes

President David Granger, Chinese Ambassador Zhang Limin, Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes and special adviser to the Education Minister, Vincent Alexander pose with the first batch of beneficiaries of the One Laptop Per Teacher initiative at the launching at the Cyril Potter College of Education on Wednesday

World Teachers’ Day observances

Education Ministry stymies celebration in local schools – GTU Page 5

…as Guyana expands IT superhighway

– says Chinese contractor “woefully” behind schedule

“25 scandals within 16 months”

Jagdeo’s office prepares ‘dossier’ Page 7

Joe Singh to investigate GNBA misconduct P12 allegations

2 NEWS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

GPSU takes aim at Private Sector’s annual $40B ‘perks’

…says more than enough to pay public servants a liveable wage

T

he Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) has taken umbrage over recent statements emanating from representatives of the local Private Sector, saying that the more than $40 billion it is handed each year in tax waivers and other concessions can be used to pay public servants a liveable wage.

The public servants’ bargaining body was at the time speaking specifically to Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) President Vishnu Doerga’s recent statement regarding Government’s ability to afford to make a higher pay increase to public servants.

The Union has since questioned whether the more than $40 billion in concessions given to the Private Sector annually has in any way motivated Doerga’s seemingly ill-advised statement.

GPSU, in a strongly

GCCI President Vishnu Doerga

worded missive in response to Doerga’s affordability argument, said that members of the Public Sector were currently being held prisoners “of meagre wages and salaries”, and they continued “to be victims of a mundane and miserable existence”.

The bargaining body, which recently rejected the 1 to 10 per cent fi-

nal salary increase proposal made by Government, said Doerga, “in all of his argument as with those of Ministers (Winston) Jordan and (Dominic) Gaskin, no consideration is given to the issue of a living wage, not a level of earnings that support the kind of lavish lifestyle enjoyed by many members of the business class, but earnings that afford a decent living, which properly defined, can be taken to mean enough to afford themselves and their families a reasonable and comfortable level of existence.”

Taking aim at the concessions afforded to the Private Sector annually, the GPSU said, “If there is some validity in the affordability argument to which both Mr Doerga and the mentioned Ministers cling, the question that they must answer (if they dare) has to do with whether the concept of affordability does not apply in equal measure to the vul-

GPSU President Patrick Yarde

nerability of an undermotivated Public Service that continues to keep going by sheer force of will.”

The GPSU said Doerga must also relate affordability to the more than $40 billion in duty-free concessions and remission of taxes which the Government gives to the Private Sector each year.

This, the Union con-

tends, incidentally, “is more than what is required to pay Government employees in and out of uniform, ie, Army, Police, teachers, public servants wages and salaries, etc.”

The GPSU used the occasion to also point out that there was, as well, the issue of Private Sector operatives who do not pay their correct taxes as was mentioned by the Finance Minister.

It has since recommended to Doerga and “those of his private colleagues who share his view a course of action that supports a better paid, better incentivised Public Service… This is in the interest of the Public Sector, the Private Sector and the country as a whole.”

Despite the repeated objections which have since led to a call for conciliation, Government will this month begin to make the 1 to 10 per cent pay increases.

This will mean that public servants will, on their October pay cheques, be receiving their increases for the month, in addition to the amount accumulated retroactive to January 2016.

Minister Jordan made the disclosure recently as he engaged the media corps, and insisted that it was all Government could sustainably afford at the time.

At the time of the announcement of the final offer, Government had sought to emphasise that the proposal for wages and salary increases for public servants had taken into consideration the current socioeconomic environment and the difficulty in agreeing to increases that would entail having to raise additional revenue and the unsustainability of any further addition to its offer with regard to the current and future budgets.

Good Hope parents register corporal punishment concerns

P

A blister in the hand of the Grade Five student

arents who have children attending the Good Hope Primary School in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) are calling on the Education Ministry to thoroughly investigate why children are constantly flogged by a particular teacher at the school.

Parents who spoke with this newspaper said that they believe other disciplinary action could be taken instead of enforcing corporal punishment.

They have noted their concerns, and this complaint was forwarded to the Regional Education Officer, Baramadai Seepersaud.

According to one parent, Anil Singh, his daughter was whipped on her name on Tuesday by her teacher (name withheld) because the school’s compound was not cleaned satisfactorily.

The father said his daughter was whipped by the Grade Five teacher several times previously and she sustained blisters and cuts to her hand. The father related that the child could not attend school on Wednesday because she was in immense pain.

Singh took his daughter to the Headmistress and the

Regional Education Officer to report the issue. He said his child was not the only one whipped and described the action as unfair. Upon enquiries being made, it was revealed that all the Grade Five pupils were whipped Tuesday because the yard was not cleaned. The parent said that he was concerned and it was not the first time his child was complaining about punishment at the school.

Parents are, therefore, calling on the Education Ministry to launch an investigation into the matter as corporal punishment continues to exist in the school system and children are suffering. In the past, parents said they were too scared to speak out, because they were afraid that their children would be victimised.

During a recent interview with the local media, President David Granger noted that Guyana needed to remove all forms of corporal punishment from the school and in the home.

The Education Ministry’s guideline notes that the use of corporal punishment in schools was a last resort, which must be sanctioned by the headteacher.

NEWS

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Thursday, October 6 – 05:00h-06:30h and Friday, October 7 – 08:30h-10:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Thursday, October 6 – 06:50h-08:20h and Friday, October 7 – 07:25h-08:55h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

Weather: Light cloud cover with the chance of light rain showers can be expected in the morning, while sunny weather is expected to prevail in the afternoon. Clear to partly cloudy conditions are expected in the evening.

Temperatures are expected to range between 24 degrees and 31 degrees Celsius.

Winds: Easterly to East North-easterly between 1.34 metres and 3.57 metres.

High Tide: 07:15h and 19:27h reaching maximum heights of 2.46 metres and 2.47 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 00:48h and 13:03h reaching minimum heights of 0.63 metre and 0.81 metre respectively.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2016

LOTTERY NUMBERS A

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GDF investigates illegal mapping of Essequibo by Venezuela – Greenidge …several flyovers reported

T

he Guyana Defence Force (GDF) has begun investigations into whether Venezuela has in recent days been conducting illegal flights over Guyana’s Essequibo territory to which it has resuscitated claims, with a view to creating maps for that country which will include twothirds of Guyana’s territory.

This is according to Foreign Affairs Minister, Vice President Carl Greenidge, who on Wednesday during an interaction with media operatives at the Georgetown Club, called the action “irresponsible and dangerous” on the part of the Venezuelans, if substantiated.

Vice President Greenidge said the matter has already since been communicated to the United Nations Secretary General Ban Kimoon.

According to Greenidge, there are currently unconfirmed reports emanating from our western neighbour that that country has been conducting flights over Guyana’s Essequibo “with a view to completing an atlas of Venezuela which will include two thirds of Guyana”.

Greenidge told the local media that the information has since been passed on to the GDF with a view to investigate and substantiate whether the claims are in fact true.

Conceding the Guyanese military’s shortcomings to undertake such a mission, Vice President Greenidge

Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge updates media operatives on Wednesday evening on the possible illegal flyovers made by Venezuela

said international help has been sought.

He reminded too that as recent as last week, Guyana left with the Secretary General a document which “sets out our concerns about the escalating behaviour of Venezuela and the consequences of some of the steps taken”.

According to Vice President Greenidge, the entire affair is “something we view with the greatest concern”.

He told media operatives Venezuela was reportedly also doing digital mapping of Guyana’s sovereign territory with the aim of getting details for its maps, “but the over flights themselves are illegal in international law”, should the report of them prove true.

The news of the illegal flyover comes on the heels of a condemnatory statement issued by the

Foreign Affairs Ministry in Guyana a day earlier lambasting a statement by the Venezuelan Government on the 117th anniversary of the 1899 Arbitral Award handed down in Paris regarding the border controversy between Guyana and that country.

The missive from the Foreign Affairs Ministry said Venezuela marked the occasion with an insulting statement unworthy of a law-abiding member of the international community.

“Its statement is a reaffirmation of Venezuela’s disrespect for the rule of law among nations. It is a frenzied display of ill temper from forces with whom history has caught up, revealing the tangled web of

falsehoods on which their specious claims to Guyana’s Essequibo were built,” the Ministry’s statement said.

“The Venezuelan statement of October 4, 2016 perpetuates the falsities that have marked its predatory campaign and have continued in relation to Guyana’s maritime space. Its greed for territory has added a new dimension of Guyana’s maritime resources,” it said.

According to the Ministry, “Guyana continues to uphold and respect the Arbitral Award of 1899.

It will defend its validity in the world’s highest courts and expose Venezuela’s sordid efforts to besmirch Guyana’s development agenda.”

Outgoing United Nations Secretary General Ban has pledged to assess the border controversy between Guyana and Venezuela before he leaves office.

During a meeting with Guyana’s President David Granger on the sidelines of the just concluded UN General Assembly, Ban said his assessment would most likely be given in November.

Granger, who accepted the timetable, has committed to providing the Secretary General with any additional information needed to complete the assessment.

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guyana-times.com

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

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

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

Editorial

Democracy redux

O

ctober 5 passed without much fanfare even though it was the 24th anniversary of "free and fair" elections being returned to Guyana. Starting in 1968, the PNC under Forbes Burnham had rigged elections to thwart the democratic will of the Guyanese people and keep his party in power. In the post-WWII period, there had been great expectations raised in the minds of the populace that independence from colonial Britain via democratic elections would augur a life of prosperity and dignity for all Guyanese. It was self-evident to the populace that the wealth of the colony had been "drained" to the "Mother Country" and once that "drain" was staunched, it was assumed standards of living had to rise.

That it did not after 1966 – and in fact the Guyanese economy collapsed – made the demands for "real democracy" even more intense. But very early on, however, it was seen that even "democratic elections" were not as straightforward as was thought. During the lead-up to Independence, British Guiana had the identical method of "democratic elections" as all Britain’s former colonies that would later transition from the "British Empire" to the "Commonwealth", including Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago that received independence four years before Guyana. This was the "first past the post" (FPTP) method that divided a country into "constituencies" from which a Member of Parliament was elected from a field of party or independent candidates. The virtue of this system, still in use in all the Commonwealth countries, is that it takes democracy closer to the people by having them directly electing their MP to represent them.

The Proportional Representation (PR) method, which was introduced in 1964, treated the entire country as one constituency with two claimed virtues. The first was that it allowed small parties to be elected to Parliament since their support in the total electorate was agglomerated and this also helped reduce the strength of the larger parties. Secondly, that the representation of the parties in Parliament would be more reflective of their actual support. But because it had been widely discussed even before the 1964 elections, everyone knew PR was simply an "outcome determinative" manoeuvre to remove the PPP from office. This lessened the legitimacy of the Government.

After 1992, there were changes in the Constitution whereby Guyana now has a "hybrid" electoral system with elements of both FPTP and PR and there have been no recent complaints of "exclusion" by political aspirants.

The PPP governed under "free and fair" elections and while there were claims and counter claims of electoral distortions, these have not delegitimised the results of elections. But questions about the efficacy of "democracy" itself as practised were raised on the question of whether its economic promise can be fulfilled.

The challenge is one that arises in all deeply divided societies: while the Government may have received a majority of the votes, its legitimacy is questioned by a large swathe of the populace that did not vote for it.

Its practices are also scrutinised for "discriminatory" effects, as rewards to party supporters inevitably follow the cleavages in the society. Thus, directly after the 1992 elections, the PNC strenuously raised cries of "ethnic cleansing" in the Public Service.

Matters escalated after the 1997 elections, and riots and other violence forced President Janet Jagan out of office and created a siege mentality in the succeeding PPP regimes. While the PPP wiped off the debt and maintained a healthy growth rate averaging four per cent during its 23 years at the helm, it was not as high as it could have been if the entire society had put their shoulder to the wheel.

The lack of legitimacy in the new government in the eyes of a large section of the society following the polarising 2015 elections, and the economic stagnation should raise the question whether the adversarial form of democracy should not be challenged by a more consensual one.

These youngsters are getting their daily exercise with a late afternoon leisurely bike ride along Mandela Avenue, Ruimveldt

Redoubling efforts to improve teachers’ working conditions Dear Editor, I join organisations and ordinary people the world over to express my profound gratitude to educators who continue to germinate the minds and hearts of youths across the globe.

It is my firm belief that the theme “Valuing teachers, improving their status” which was chosen to celebrate World Teachers Day 2016 is not only appropriate but relevant within the context of our own regional and

local realities.

It points to the need to redouble our efforts to improve the working conditions, welfare and salaries of our hard working teachers. Indeed, over the past 23 years we have achieved quite a lot in the above mentioned areas but the time is ripe for much more to be done and we can ill afford to miss opportunities in this respect.

If we truly care about our teachers, we must end the historic lip service and imme-

diately reengage teachers in order to arrive at a consensus on key areas that will lead to the overall socioeconomic empowerment of our teachers.

As I pay tribute to our teachers here in Guyana, I am reminded of the thought provoking words of Author C S Lewis that “the task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles, but to irrigate deserts.”

It was also author Joyce Meyers who admonished us to believe that “teachers can

change lives with just the right mix of chalk and challenges.”

We love you teachers!

The hands that rock the cradle do not necessarily rule the world but those that mould the minds of our children determine the type of world in which we live and the quality of its future inhabitants.

Sincerely, Irfaan Mohammed Ali PPP/C MP

Appalled at the functioning of Maida/Tarlogie NDC Dear Editor, We are appalled and baffled at the manner in which the business of the Maida/Tarlogie Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) is being conducted at this time and which is destroying development of the NDC. Since April of this year, the NDC’s Chairman has been absent from the statutory meeting along with the Vice Chairman who has been absent since June. This is compounded by the fact that many of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Councillors are also absent which makes it difficult to establish a quorum to conduct the business of the NDC. This has led to only informal discussions taking place. This is a mystery since from our understanding, caucuses are normally held before the NDC statutory. Therefore, it begs the question: Why is this type of purposefully effected negligent behaviour being allowed in an NDC controlled by the PPP? Has the PPP lost control over this NDC? Why is it that these officials are not replaced so that the work of the NDC can go on?

We have also read with interest the fact that NDCs are complaining about the lack of consultation

in the preparation of the Regional Estimates 2017. Our NDC was also not consulted since most of the officials are always absent but I do feel that consultation should have been done with the interested Councillors and the Overseer. There are three projects which we have been begging to be done for years but yet they are not in the 2017 RDC Budget Proposal.

One is a street at Cromarty, next to a school which will not only benefit residents but will grant access to the cemetery which is heavily forested; the next is the excavation of a drainage canal; and the other is a bridge at Corn Reef Cross between Tarlogie and Wellington Park. Why was no consultation done at our NDC? The consequence is that the lack of consultation has allowed corruption to take effect. For instance, when we checked the Regional Estimate, we found that Item 19 – rehabilitation of the heavy-duty bridge at Wellington Park is estimated at $8 million. This bridge only needs a little extension since it is a new bridge and all it needs is a tube, dirt filling and some concrete work which should not cost more than $1 million. We are calling on the

Regional Chairman, the Communities Minister and the Public Infrastructure Minister to investigate this inflated cost.

What is more disturbing is that the Regional Vice Chairman seemed to have taken control over the NDC as its Chairman. He is using the NDC’s tractor to transport diesel to various areas of the region whereas it could have been used to benefit the NDC and its residents. But this is not allowed to happen since the Regional Vice Chairman is also suffocating and obstructing the work of the NDC by not allowing the Chairman of the Works Committee to function. We also feel that all NDCs should be subjected to an audit since many Councillors cannot fully understand what is going on and are easily hoodwinked by those who are more literate and conversant with the workings of the NDC. Yours Sincerely, Esar Chickrie (former Chairman of the NDC/Councillor) Walter Bagot (NDC Councillor) R Matadial (former Chairman of the NDC) Gobin Persaud, resident

NEWS

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

World Teachers’ Day observances

Education Ministry stymies celebration in local schools – GTU

A

s the world celebrated World Teachers’ Day on Wednesday (October 5), Guyanese educators were disallowed from officially taking part in the festivities.

This has been deemed a “backward step” on the part of the Education Ministry

by Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) General Secretary Corretta McDonald, who told Guyana Times on Wednesday that many teachers who were looking forward to the day were now fearful that the observance would be permanently halted in Guyana.

“The Union is quite disappointed that our counterparts at the Ministry don’t see teachers as being valuable to this nation and we are saying that because over the years, we were accustomed to having the conditions where on Teachers’ Day, teachers were allowed a manager’s day where they were able to socialise and reflect on lives they would have impacted over the years and to reenergise themselves,” McDonald posited.

Guyana Times was told that regional education officials were on Tuesday informed that the observance was not to be held as permission was not granted. This decision was handed down despite entities, such as regional offices, expending large portions of public funds already approved and procured to purchase cooking materials and rental of facilities for the

(GTU) General Secretary Corretta McDonald day’s celebration.

“This year, we recognised that no permission was granted for regions to carry through anything for World Teachers’ Day. I know that Regions Three, Four, Five, Six and Ten [would] usually plan activities for their teachers,” the GTU General Secretary stated.

She further explained that no apparent justifications were given for the Ministry’s decision and even suggested that GTU’s efforts in seeking clarification from Acting Chief Education Officer Marcel Hutson proved futile.

“As recent as [Tuesday], headteachers in Georgetown were informed that the day was not granted … we [GTU] see this as a very backward step and they [teachers] are hoping that this is not the death of World Teachers’ Day

celebration in Guyana, where we would have teachers interacting with the each other, whether it’s via sports or cultural activities. We are hoping that this action will not be continued,” she explained.

Meanwhile, former Education Minister Priya Manickchand took to social media to express her disgust at the decision. She posted that the decision was a “slap in the face” to teachers.

“The Minister of Education and other senior officers PAID with taxpayer dollars handsomely to take out full-page ads claiming to celebrate teachers on this World Teachers’ Day. I thought that was nice. But then came the slap in their faces. Historically, teachers would be allowed the day with pre-planned activities across the country… well, not so this year; with the change came some harmful and hurtful changes… It was a normal working day. A slap in their collective face; a message that said ‘get over there, massa said to work’!” the former Minister expressed on Facebook.

Manickchand added, “When words don’t match actions; can’t get their 50 per cent increase; can’t get the respect of early notification of a terrible withdrawal of something that has come to be almost a condition of service.

Can’t get any of the campaign promises fulfilled. Oh what a change!”

Ambassador Ally poses no danger at the moment – Greenidge …to remain on the job as investigations continue

G

uyana’s Ambassador to Kuwait, Dr Shamir Ally remains on the job even as the Foreign Affairs Ministry continues its investigations into financial crimes in the United States for which he was fined, but substantive Minister, Carl Greenidge believes that “there is not a danger in him being on the job at the moment”.

Greenidge made this disclosure on Wednesday evening during an impromptu interaction with members of the media at the Georgetown Club.

Dialogue

According to Greenidge, the Foreign Affairs Ministry continues to have dialogue with Dr Ally, since “we are looking into the matter; we need from him answers on some things and then we will take a decision.”

The Minister, in seeking to explain Government’s hesitancy in sending Dr Ally off the job pending an investigation, said it was taking into account the nature of the infraction which in this particular case was a civil action dating back almost two decades.

“As far as I am concerned, there is not a danger in him being on the job

checking on his background gone through the process twice and these matters didn’t arise.”

Selective information

Guyana Ambassador to Kuwait, Dr Shamir Ally

at the moment,” Greenidge said, even as he confirmed that Government was still awaiting a formal report from the Ambassador, as he explained that “the process is not finished”.

Asked about the fact Dr Ally did in fact suppress the information, the Minister confirmed that during the vetting of Dr Ally for the position of Ambassador, reports were not flagged in the US which essentially point to the fact that he was accused of financial crimes by the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC).

According to Greenidge, “We had in this case in

Dr Insanally appointed Guyana’s Permanent Representative to OAS

D

r Riyad Insanally is Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the Organisation of American States (OAS).

He presented his Letters of Credence on September 30 to OAS Secretary General Luis Almargo at the OAS Headquarters in Washington DC, USA. The career diplomat reaffirmed Guyana’s commitment “to upholding the principles established by the OAS Charter fully cognisant of the virtuous circle we’re all seeking to close – that of democracy, human rights, multi-dimensional security and integral development.”

Dr Insanally was appointed as the Permanent Representative to the OAS

OAS Secretary General Luis Almargo accepting the credentials of Ambassador Riyad Insanally

earlier this year. He previously served as the OAS Representative in Trinidad and Tobago and was also an adviser to the previous OAS Assistant Secretary General.

On September 16, 2016,

Dr Insanally presented his Letters of Credence as Guyana’s Ambassador to the United States of America, to President Barack Obama.

Ambassador Insanally began his diplomatic career in 1990 at the Foreign Affairs Ministry as a Senior Foreign Officer. Dr Insanally also served as Senior Trade Adviser to the Guyana High Commissioner in the United Kingdom, and as consultant at Caricom and other international agencies. The Guyanese scholar is the holder of a PhD in languages from Harvard

University.

SG Almargo told Dr Insanally that his experience made him invaluable to the OAS. “You’re very well prepared for this post and your help will be extremely invaluable,” Almargo said at the simple presentation ceremony.

He did seek to point out that generally, when persons present themselves for vetting for a job, they are essentially selling themselves for the position and forthcoming information could be selective and “of course, one has to ask for an explanation as to why”.

The Minister did concede too that the entire affair has proven to be a learning experience and Government would in the future have to do many things differently.

Minister Greenidge also used the opportunity to defend Dr Ally’s acumen, saying that the appointment was based on his skills and not the fact that he was a key financer of the Alliance For Change (AFC) –the second largest party in the coalition Government.

The Foreign Affairs Minister used the occasion to explain that some of the appointees to diplomatic posts are invariably political types, “in the sense that some of them are required to work with public… they have to be politically attuned.”

Background/skills

Speaking directly to the embattled Ambassador to Kuwait, Greenidge said while he was not seeking to offer a defence, he would make an observation that Dr Ally “does have a background; he does have some skills and those skills are relevant to the job”.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

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guyana-times.com

Foundation

Close to 69 million new teachers needed to reach 2030 education goals

of

Teachers

By Nicholas Kristof

S

uppose your child is about to enter the fourth grade and has been assigned to an excellent teacher.

Then the teacher decides to quit. What should you do?

The correct answer? Panic!

Well, not exactly. But a landmark new research paper underscores that the difference between a strong teacher and a weak teacher lasts a lifetime.

Having a good fourth-grade teacher makes a student 1.25 per cent more likely to go to college, the research suggests, and 1.25 per cent less likely to get pregnant as a teenager. Each of the students will go on as an adult to earn, on average, US$25,000 more over a lifetime — or about US$700,000 in gains for an average size class — all attributable to that ace teacher back in the fourth grade. That’s right: A great teacher is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to each year’s students, just in the extra income they will earn.

The study, by economists at Harvard and Columbia universities, finds that if a great teacher is leaving, parents should hold bake sales or pass the hat around in hopes of collectively offering the teacher as much as a US$100,000 bonus to stay for an extra year. Sure, that’s implausible — but their children would gain a benefit that far exceeds even that sum.

Conversely, a very poor teacher has the same effect as a pupil missing 40 per cent of the school year. We don’t allow that kind of truancy, so it’s not clear why we should put up with such poor teaching. In fact, the study shows that parents should pay a bad teacher US$100,000 to retire (assuming the replacement is of average quality) because a weak teacher holds children back so much.

A faltering education system may be the most important long-term threat to the economy and national well-being.

This latest study should elevate the issue on the national agenda, because it not only underscores the importance of education but also illuminates how we might improve schools.

An essential answer: more good teachers. Or, to put it another way, fewer bad teachers. The obvious policy solution is more pay for good teachers, more dismissals for weak teachers.

One of the paradoxes of the school reform debate is that teachers’ unions have resisted a focus on teacher quality; instead, they emphasise that the home is the foremost influence and that teachers can only do so much.

That’s all true, and (as I’ve often written) we need an array of other antipoverty measures as well, especially early childhood programmes. But the evidence is now overwhelming that even in a grim high-poverty school, some teachers have far more impact on their students than those in the classroom next door. Three consecutive years of data from student tests – the

“value added” between student scores at the beginning and end of each year –reveal a great deal about whether a teacher is working out, the researchers found.

This study, by Raj Chetty and John N Friedman of Harvard University and Jonah E Rockoff of Columbia University, was influential because it involved a huge database of one million students followed from fourth grade to adulthood.

The blog of the Albert Shanker Institute, endowed by the American Federation of Teachers, praised the study as “one of the most dense, important and interesting analyses on this topic in a very long time” – although it cautioned against policy conclusions (of the kind that I’m reaching).

What shone through the study was the variation among teachers. Great teachers not only raised test scores significantly – an effect that mostly faded within a few years – but also left their students with better life outcomes. A great teacher (defined as one better than 84 per cent of peers) for a single year between fourth and eighth grades resulted in students earning almost one per cent more at age 28.

Suppose that the bottom five per cent of teachers could be replaced by teachers of average quality. The three economists found that each student in the classroom would have extra cumulative lifetime earnings of more than US$52,000. That’s more than US$1.4 million in gains for the classroom.

Schools represent a tough-minded business investment in our economic future. And, increasingly, we’re getting solid evidence of what reforms may help: teacher evaluations based on student performance, higher pay and prestige for good teachers, dismissals for weak teachers. (Excerpted from New York Times)

N

ew figures show that close to 69 million new teachers are needed to provide quality universal primary and secondary education by 2030, the deadline of the Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by the UN General Assembly late last year.

In the next 14 years, 24.4 million primary school teachers and 44.4 million secondary school teachers are required, according to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS).

Sub-Saharan Africa faces the largest teacher gap: it will need a total of 17 million primary and secondary teachers by 2030. It is also the region with the fastest growing school-age population. It is already struggling to keep up with demand: more than 70 per cent of the region’s countries face acute shortages of primary school teachers, 90 per cent of them face serious shortages in secondary education, according to UIS data.

A joint message from UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova, ILO Director General Guy Ryder, UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, UNDP Administrator Helen Clark and Education International General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen, stresses the “limitless contributions made by teachers around the world” and highlights the need for urgent action: “Teachers not only help shape the individual futures of millions of children; they also help shape a better world for all. How can we recruit new teachers and attract them to the vital profession of teaching when around the world, so many are undertrained, underpaid and undervalued?”

Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) demands inclusive and equitable quality education for all by 2030.

The needs are urgent, with an estimated 263 million children and youth still out of primary and secondary school globally, according to a recent UIS paper. SDG 4 includes a specific call for more qualified teachers, and more support from the international community for teacher training in developing countries.

“Entire education systems are gearing up for the big push to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 4 by 2030,” says UIS Director, Silvia Montoya. “But education systems are only as good as their teachers. Global progress will depend on whether there even is a teacher, or a classroom in which to teach with a manageable number of children instead 60, 70 or even more pupils.

We also need training, resources and support for teachers to do their job.”

Southern Asia has the second-largest teacher gap, especially at the secondary level. Only 65 per cent of youth across the region are enrolled in secondary education, with the pupil-teacher ratio at 29:1 (2014 estimates) – far higher than the global average of 18:1. Southern Asia needs another 15 million teachers by 2030, the vast majority (11 million) at secondary level.

Other parts of the world face their own grave challenges. War in Syria and Iraq has destroyed large parts of their education systems and has had a severe knockon effect on neighbouring ones trying to cope with an influx of refugee children and youth in need of learning opportunities and teachers. (UNESCO)

NEWS

7

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

Govt hauls in CHEC over US$150M contract woes … says Chinese contractor “woefully” behind schedule

T

he Public Infrastructure Ministry is unhappy with the progress being made by China Harbour Engineering Ltd (CHEC) on the US$150 million Cheddi Jagan International Airport Extension Project and has since decided to haul in the contractor for a meeting to address the unsatisfactory issues.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry on Wednesday, among the concerns to be addressed is the fact that CHEC is still to submit the final construction drawings of the new arrival terminal building.

This complaint has been a recurring problem with the CHEC team which has time and again failed to meet deadlines in submitting critical designs for approval.

The Ministry has also identified among other problems, the keeping of the agreed schedule for the completion of the project and has signalled a proposal which would see the “fast-tracking of the project via simultaneous works to the runway/ new arrival terminal building and renovations of the existing terminal building.”

Additional manpower

The Ministry has proposed to CHEC that works on the new terminal be

Trucks delivering aggregates for the CJIA contractor

Thorne said that the CHEC’s management has already been contacted with the intent to have unsatisfactory areas rectified.

CHEC workers engaged in pile driving recently on the US$150 million CJIA Expansion Project

conducted in parallel with works on the existing building and runway, but said too that it is cognisant that “this proposal will require additional manpower and equipment to achieve the December 2017 deadline.”

Among the other contractual concerns listed by Government with regards to the controversial Chinese contractor – CHEC – is the timely delivery of concrete onsite; the procurement schedule for equipment and the progress of the works on

the generator room and fire pump station.

The Ministry reported Project Manager Carmichael Thorne as saying, “We are progressing but we can do better… There are areas we can improve on and these are areas that the contractor can improve on by upping the efforts.”

CHEC has since been asked to provide supporting documents detailing the designs, plans, schedules and assigned resources before the scheduled meeting.

Negative publicity

CHEC recently found itself on the receiving end of negative local publicity after it was discovered that the Chinese company had inked an agreement with a Surinamese-based company for the supply of some 300,000 tons of stone for the CJIA project, at a price of US$7.5 million.

The news was met with consternation on the part of local suppliers that have since lodged complaints with local representatives, coupled with the increase calls for Government to

have the arrangement renegotiated since preference should be given to local suppliers.

Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin, had also come in for intense flak after he told media operatives that Government was essentially powerless to revoke the contract since it was a private arrangement between CHEC and the Surinamese-based company.

The Public Infrastructure Minister had also come out in defence of the arrangement saying that CHEC had opted for the cheaper alternative in the supply of crushed stones for the project.

President of the Guyana Manufacturing and Services

Association (GMSA) had also come out in support of greater protection for local content in the undertaking of such large projects.

The US$150 million Project has been one of the bug-bears of the current coalition A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Administration ever since it was in Opposition.

It had argued, among others, that the contract was unfavourable to Guyana and was in fact borne in corruption.

After taking office in May last year, it almost immediately halted and renegotiated the project, after which it was restarted with a December 2017 completion date.

8 NEWS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

Father jailed for narco trafficking A

father of two was on Wednesday jailed when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts charged for possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking.

Seon Brammer, a 39-year-old who hails from Eighth Avenue, Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara (EBD) was found guilty of the offence.

The prosecution proved its case

that on May 13, 2016, Brammer had 464 grams of cannabis in his possession for the purpose of trafficking.

According to the prosecution, the drug was concealed under a cushion and plyboards in the house.

The evidence brought against Brammer was deemed sufficient and as such, he was jailed for 48 months by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

Eyew tness

All not quiet...

Seon Brammer

Hadfield St man slapped with illegal gun charges

A

25-year-old labourer, who was taken into custody for questioning into connection with a fatal Rio Nightclub shooting, was on Wednesday charged for illegal possession of a firearm.

Jermaine Marius, of Lot 70 Hadfield Street, Georgetown, was remanded

to prison for illegal possession of two firearms when he appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges, which alleged that on September 30, 2016, he had in his possession a .32 Taurus Pistol as well as a .38 Special re-

volver, while not being a firearm licence holder.

The case will continue on October 26, 2016.

On September 26, Ryan Sergeant, of North Ruimveldt, died of gunshot wounds, following a shooting incident in front of the Nightclub in Queenstown, about 02:30h.

A Police report had

stated that CCTV footage was obtained from the Nightclub and investigators were informed of the possible suspects who were involved in an altercation, prior to rounds being discharged.

Acting on information, the Police arrested Marius and he was found to be in possession of the guns.

Security guard charged Unemployed man charged for unlawful wounding for damaging car

A

security guard attached to Pritipaul Singh Investments was on Wednesday granted bail for damaging private property when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Neville Haynes, 39, of Lot 419 Norton Street, Georgetown, pleaded not guilty to the offence.

The charge alleged that on September 30, 2016 at North East La Penitence, Georgetown, he unlawfully and maliciously damaged motor car PVV 3625, property of Otis Khan, called “Clive”.

Haynes was granted $30,000 bail. He is expected to return to court on October 17, 2016.

T

wenty-one-yearold Chanderpaul Persaud, of Queenstown Village, Essequibo Coast, was on Wednesday granted $30,000 bail for unlawful wounding. He made his first appearance before Magistrate Sunil Scarce at the Anna Regina Magistrate’s Court.

The unemployed man

pleaded guilty with explanation, owing to his explanation, the Magistrate entered a not guilty plea.

According to the prosecution’s case, on September 28, 2016 at Queenstown, Essequibo Coast, he unlawfully and maliciously wounded Davon Washington.

The case will continue on October 19.

Rio fatal shooting

Former drug lord’s bodyguard remains in custody

T

he ex-body guard of a popular convicted drug lord remains in custody as Police continue their investigation into the fatal shooting of 19-yearold Ryan Anthony Sergeant at the Rio Night Club on Monday last.

A source close to investigations revealed that the Police had applied to the High Court for an extension to further detain the Queenstown resident and this was granted.

However, that extension comes to an end today; and as such, the case file is expected to be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on the way forward. The man in

custody was seen leaving the night club with a firearm in his hand and he remains tight lipped.

On the other hand, during initial investigations, one of the men who was arrested with two illegal firearms at a house in Hadfield Street, Georgetown, on Monday, was placed before the court and remanded to prison. The female who was arrested during that operation was released.

Sergeant, 19, of Lot 2530 Layton Street, North Ruimveldt, Georgetown, was shot and killed while another teenager remains in a critical state at the Georgetown Public Hospital.

The injured

Dead: Ryan Sergeant

teen is Jeffrey Ferrel of North Ruimveldt Housing Scheme, Georgetown.

Sergeant was shot once to the jaw during an exchange of gunfire, which started in the night club and ended outside.

Jeffrey Ferrel, of North Ruimveldt, was also shot and injured during the gun battle. After the shoot-

ing, the now dead man was picked up by his ‘gang members’ and dropped off at the Woodlands Hospital. It was reported that Ferrel, who is now hospitalised, was involved in an altercation with one of the suspects who in turn left the club with another friend and a female companion.

Further reports stated that after the trio left, they were followed by Ferrel and the now dead man and the argument resumed.

During the argument, the suspect whipped out a gun and discharged several rounds, hitting Ferrel to the neck and shoulder.

Attempting to rescue his shot friend, Sergeant was shot to the jaw. The suspects then fled the scene.

It was during the review of the surveillance footage, the three suspects were positively identified.

S

...on the western front

urprise! Surprise! The Venezuelans have rejected Guyana’s request to the departing UN Secretary General (SG) that their manufactured border controversy with us be moved from his “Good Offices” where it has languished for decades - to the World Court.

All the “Good Offices” required was the SG appoint a person that both sides agreed to who would then act as an intermediary between them. The last person to fill the position was Professor Norman Girvan, who passed away a couple of years ago.

And since the Venezuelans know they have no realistic chance of opening up an Arbitral Award that was “signed, sealed and delivered” by international players that involved the US, Russia and the UK, all they want is for their claim to be a Sword of Damocles to be hanging over our heads. And that we’ll so want to develop our resource-rich Essequibo, we’ll agree to “joint development” which they’d proposed to President Hoyte when he went visiting.

As your Eyewitness had pointed out, since the 1966 Geneva Agreement stipulated that BOTH sides have to agree to the method of resolving the controversy - enumerated in the UN “dispute resolution” mechanisms which include both “good offices” and a “judicial decision” - this means Venezuela has a veto on any suggested change. They will NEVER go the route of a judicial settlement - since in every border settlement before that body with similar facts, they’ve gone along with the old decision.

And let’s be clear about this - while Guyana has never agreed for there to be a replaying of the substantive facts of the case - even if that were to be opened up, the World Court will go our way. If for nothing else, any other decision would open up such a Pandora’s Box of border claims across the world, it would mean at the very minimum, the end of the UN!!! Not to mention the certain beginning of WWIII! So what do we do? Well, our Foreign Ministry just came out with a booklet summarising our case with the label “The New Conquistadors”. We should’ve elaborated as to who were the “Old Conquistadors”: how they revelled in killing and raping and looting and burning the peoples of the Americas. Conquistador Velasquez killed hundreds of thousands so that by the mid-sixteenth century, there were only a few thousand native people in Cuba.

We should do exactly what Burnham did - isolate Venezuela, especially in the “progressive” countries where it still has some social capital.

As your Eyewitness said, we should’ve been at the NSM meeting last month. With our booklet!

...at City Hall

All you have to do is slow down while you’re passing City Hall and you’ll hear the low murmurs of the plotters raiding the City Treasury as if THEY’RE the New Conquistadors!!

Seems they learnt some tricks of the Conquistadors’ Trade of extracting booty when they visited Mexico (Cortez!) and Peru (Pizzaro) to “check out” those Parking Meters.

Shall we count the ways they’ve pillaged the Treasury?

The vendors from Bourda Green whose plots were given to a chosen few - including blood relatives? The “forgiving” of the rates and taxes of some notorious “big ones”? The steady stream of first class trips of the Gang of Four as they join the jet setters? The doling out of contracts to their favoured few - that is those with deep pockets? And this is what we can see!!

The latest depredation is the revelation that Mayor Chase-Green has a son on the payroll of her favoured City Hall contractor. Her explanation? Her son has to work!!

And wasn’t it Columbus’ son who loosed Velasquez on Cuba?!! Look out for that contractors’ bills!!

...at UG

And to cap off yesterday’s Eye-opener on our new VC at UG, we just learnt he spent US$30,000 for fourteen staffers to do some fund raising in the Big Apple - and collected US$8000!!

Wow! New economics?

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

9 One Laptop Per Teacher launched NEWS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

…as Guyana expands IT superhighway

P

resident David Granger on Wednesday launched the One Laptop Per Teacher’s Project at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE), coinciding with World’s Teacher Day celebrations.

Some 168 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) students, as well as first year teachers of CPCE were the initial beneficiaries of the pilot project, which is a rebranded initiative of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) One Laptop Per Family Project.

During the launching ceremony at the teacher’s training college, President Granger underscored the importance of this initiative in paving Guyana’s pathway to the digital world.

“I do not see informa-

President David Granger and Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes pose with the first batch of beneficiaries of the One Laptop Per Teacher initiative

tion technology as a luxury, as an option. It is a necessity and any Government that wants an educated population has to look upon information technology as an obligation and not an option…

Information Communication Technology (ICT) education,

as I said, is no longer optional. It is obligatory, it is mandatory. Citizens of the 21st century must be trained in ICT whatever their career, every child and every teacher must be schooled in Computer Science and it must be mandatory at this

DTL dismisses protesting workers — Union condemns action, other protests to follow

F

ollowing the impasse of negotiations between Demerara Timbers Limited (DTL) and Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) over a pay rise dispute that has led to protests, eight workers attached to DTL were on Tuesday dismissed, a move which has been condemned by the Union.

According to GAWU, the decision the company has taken, prompted the majority of the DTL workforce at its Mabura Hill, Region 10 (Upper DemeraraBerbice) operations to engage in industrial action on Wednesday.

GAWU through a media release noted that after the workers took part in protesting outside DTL’s Head Office on Monday, with some other employees, eight workers of the DTL, who are members of GAWU, were on Tuesday handed dismissal letters.

“Our Union recalls this is the first time in history that an entity, private or public, has taken such a decision of such an incredulous nature,” the Union noted, adding that it can be seen as “yet another anti-worker and anti-Union act” that is a “flagrant violation of Section 8 of the Termination of Employment and Severance Pay Act” which prohibits the dismissal of workers for their participation in industrial action.

According to the Union, the company’s high-handed and “ominous act” represents a decision which must be roundly condemned by all right-thinking Guyanese. “It is a clear attempt to intimidate the workers and use extra-legal measures to deny workers their just claims for pay increase. GAWU calls on the Government and more so, the Ministry of Social Protection, to ensure that the Company observes the laws, conventions and

A section of the protesting workers on Monday

norms of our country and that the dismissed workers are reinstated in their jobs forthwith,” the Union explained.

It was earlier this week that calls were being made for the Labour Department of the Social Protection Ministry to take legal actions against DTL over the labour violations.

Disgruntled workers along with its Union representative staged a picketing exercise on Monday outside of the company’s headquarters in Kingston, Georgetown, in an attempt to compel management to adhere to their demands for pay increases.

GAWU General Secretary, Seepaul Narine, who was present at the protest, told Guyana Times that the timber company must be prosecuted by Government over its continued disrespect to Guyanese employees.

“What we believe needs to be done now is the Ministry needs to prosecute them because they are in clear violation of the law and not only violating the law to the detriment of the employees but a flagrant disrespect to the Ministry. I don’t think that the Ministry should continue to accept such a situation,” he had stated.

A handful of workers had journeyed from Mabura

Hill in Region 10 to call on the DTL company to engage with its Union to conclude its 2015 pay increase negotiations and commence talks for 2016.

The workers called for the removal of the company’s General Manager Martin Ting whom they said has done absolutely nothing to protect the interest of employees. They are calling on the company to return to the bargaining table and favourably resolve the matter.

They also expressed that they were committed to continue protest actions until their demands are met and concerns addressed.

GAWU had noted that though a few meetings were held, the company remains unwilling to divulge its financial statements for scrutiny by stakeholders.

Bilateral negotiations between the Union and the company reached a stalemate on November 17, 2015 after the company did not approve any pay rise but offered a Christmas bonus of $5000 to each worker. DTL informed that its financial state precluded it from offering a pay rise. Following the impasse, the dispute was next subjected to conciliatory services by the Social Protection Ministry, through the Department of Labour.

college,” he stated.

Guyana has already progressed in this regard since students and teachers from the CPCE’s Tain Campus joined the event through Government’s Internet network.

In fact, the President in-

Chinese Ambassador Zhang Limin presenting a First Form Queen's College student with a laptop, while Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes looks on

teracted with the gathering there via microphone and digital screens.

Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes, in her remarks disclosed that

over the last three weeks, more than 100 education institutions were connected to the Government’s fibreoptic network.

CONTINUE ON PAGE 12

10

guyana-times.com

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

News Poor NGSA Maths results, a matter of “grave national importance” – Cabinet

Vreed-en-Hoop fatal accident

Divisional Crime Chief under close arrest T A

Superintendent of Police stationed in D Division (West Coast Demerara) has been arrested following the fatal accident at Vreed-en-Hoop, which claimed the life of a 65-year-old woman.

Anmarie Deonarine, of Lot 144 New Road, Vreeden-Hoop, WCD, was killed sometime around 11:30h on Tuesday by motor vehicle PRR 4446, which was being driven by the Divisional Crime Chief.

In a statement issued on Tuesday evening, the Police said that a breathalyser test was conducted on the senior officer by the Traffic Chief himself and no trace of blood alcohol was recorded.

However, acting Divisional Commander, Leslie James, told Guyana Times on Wednesday that the senior officer involved in the incident has stepped down from duties to “facilitate an impartial investigation.”

According to reports, the elderly woman was heading to a relative’s house a short distance away when she was hit by the vehicle which was heading in the western direction.

entire incident, confirming that the vehicle was indeed speeding before coming into contact with the woman.

The pedal cyclist explained that he was riding towards the East when he observed the speeding car hitting the woman, and then dragging her about 20

nior officer exited the vehicle and stopped a Police car that was passing the same time and they rushed with the injured woman to the West Demerara Regional Hospital.

The man, who also assisted in transporting the woman to the hospital, ex-

Dead: Anmarie Deonarine

Deonarine’s eldest daughter, Geeta, related to this newspaper that she was told that her mother was walking on the road when a speeding car struck her. Geeta denied claims reportedly made by the driver that her mother was walking onto the road when she was struck.

“She was in the corner because when we go to the hospital, we find dried grass in her head. If she was in the middle of the road, how did she get grass in her head,” she explained.

Meanwhile, Guyana Times spoke with an elderly villager who witnessed the

The senior Police Officer was driving this vehicle when he struck the elderly woman

feet before she was released from under the car.

“After the car pull she down and drive ‘way with she, it throw she off by the pave and continue driving onto the road and then stop a little further up the road,” the man recalled.

He continued that the se-

plained that Deonarine was breathing when they picked her up but she succumbed on the way to the medical facility.

The mother of three was described as a very loving and cheerful person who would go out of her way to assist anyone in need.

2 remain in custody for CI murder

A

s investigations continue into the murder of Bibi Keneiz, whose semi-nude body was found in her Ball Field Street, Cornelia Ida, West Coast Demerara home, two persons remain in custody. D Division (West Demerara) Commander, Leslie James told Guyana Times that the two men were arrested hours after the woman’s body was discovered.

At the time of the discovery, the woman’s skirt was pulled to her chest and she

was not wearing any underwear which left investigators to believe that she was brutally raped before her life was snuffed out. Her body was reportedly found in a hammock in her shack.

However, James added that a post-mortem examination, which was conducted, proved that the woman died as a result of multiple stab wounds to the body.

Keneiz, 65, was found just after midday on Monday by her son, who went to drop off food at her home.

Upon entering the house, he reportedly saw his mother’s lifeless body in the hammock and raised an alarm.

The woman was last seen on Sunday afternoon at the seawall. Guyana Times understands that the woman was reportedly raped two years ago and although the suspect was arrested, he was never charged.

Last September, a mother of seven was brutally raped and murdered along the Vreed-en-Hoop Jetty Area, West Bank Demerara.

Megon Jones Cox, 68, of Lot 14 Stanleytown, West Bank Demerara, whose tongue was also severed from her mouth, was found on July 22, 2015 in an unconscious state and was taken to West Demerara Regional Hospital.

Due to the severity of the injuries she sustained, Jones Cox was referred to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she subsequently succumbed on July 25. One man was arrested and charged for the murder.

he Government is concerned at the declining results in Mathematics, especially as was evident in the results of the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) and as such, the issue has now engaged the attention of Cabinet, the Ministry of the Presidency said in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement said that Cabinet, during its Tuesday meeting, “deliberated as a matter of extreme urgency and grave national importance, [on] the unsatisfactory results in Mathematics nationwide” at the 2016 Grade Six exam.

“Cabinet considers this situation one of national urgency requiring its focused attention and commitment to finding adequate and appropriate solutions in the shortest possible time,” the statement added.

It said that as part of a plan for short and mediumterm measures, Cabinet called on the Education Ministry and its technical advisers to identify all appropriate steps needed to remedy this situation.

“Those steps would include remedial training of teachers, better and more varied text books, more teaching aids and better use of technology in the delivery of education,” it said.

The Ministry of the Presidency statement added that for many, Guyana has consistently failed to achieve acceptable pass rates in Mathematics, an important core subject and the previous approach to addressing this issue was “inadequate”.

This year, the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) conducted NGSA for the first time and, according to the Government, the basis of assessment

Education Minister, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine

used by CXC was radically different from what was used previously by the Education Ministry, with an increased focus on reasoning and a decreased emphasis on retention.

“The new method to testing as implemented by CXC has exposed even more the weakness of the previous approach to education adopted by the Ministry of Education in previous years,” the Ministry said.

Guyana, like almost every other Caribbean country, continues to struggle in the area of Mathematics, with the likewise dismal results of the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) exam, administered by CXC. As a matter of fact, Guyana’s pass rate at the 2016 CSEC Examinations declined from 45.07 per cent in 2015 to 38.37 per cent this year, after about three years of improvements.

Overall, the region’s performance in Mathematics saw a 13 per cent decrease.

Candidates recorded a 44 per cent pass rate in Maths this year as opposed to a 57 per cent in 2015, according to CXC Registrar Glenroy Cumberbatch.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

guyana-times.com

11

News

School curriculum to be updated – Hutson …outlines vision for education sector

G By: Lorraine Ince-Carvalhal

Never too late to follow your dream

T

he poignant quote that “it is always too early to decide that it is too late” provides great food for thought, especially when applied to the question of whether we are ever too old to follow our dreams, fall in love, or try something new.

Most of us can think back to a time we had strong ideas of what we wanted out of life; be that a modest projection of a steady career or a family, or a bigger, more extravagant dream of becoming a movie star, running away with the circus or inventing the cure for cancer. These dreams or aspirations were formulated from somewhere deep inside us for specific reasons and are the ones which never seem to leave our hearts, despite how hard we work to talk ourselves out of them. They are often a part of ourselves that never cease yearning to exist, the yearning may fade but it never completely dies.

Days in the past may have been spent daydreaming of what we will do when we are older/wiser/have more money; those days never seem to come so we carry on with our lives, avoiding following our hearts in case we fail/make too many sacrifices/are too busy. Someday never comes and our dreams never make it past being just that – dreams.

If you are one of the fortunate and have realised your dream, you are to be congratulated, but if you are one of the many who eventually changed all the excuses along the way to ‘it’s too late’, maybe it is time to think that over and reconsider.

As we grow and change, so do our needs, priorities and motivations. Maybe we see ourselves as being more realistic in what we can achieve; perhaps we settle for less than we once reached for. During the course of our lives the balance constantly shifts, circumstances limit us and we can find ourselves looking back and wondering where the time has gone.

It is easy to tell ourselves that our chance has passed.

That too many people rely on us being exactly as we are now.

That it is too late to change, to follow a childhood dream, to take a risk. Generally, the underlying reason is fear. It can be the biggest stumbling block. Fear of; taking a chance, of failing, of what others will think or say, of changing. The real question is what do you have to lose? If it is only your pride, surely it is worth the risk?

Depending upon the nature of your dream – it must be physically achievable; there is no reason why you should continue to believe it is too late. Maybe adjustments are necessary to suit your age, lifestyle and circumstances but if you’ve always dreamed of hearing your song on the radio, and you have the talent for that to be a possibility, then go for it. If you always wanted to travel the world but finances have prevented it, start small, make a plan, take the first step and start your journey. There are usually so many ways we can meet challenges if we set our minds to it. Stop making excuses and find solutions.

We are all too well aware that tomorrow is not promised to us, and have probably witnessed the fragility of life in many untimely instances. Surely that is reason enough to follow our dreams and stop thinking it is too late before it actually is. Age should not be a deterrent. Most of our dreams are not hampered by physical capabilities and being older means you carry life experience with you as a great advantage. Being older means we have probably already lived our lives in accordance with responsibilities and expectations. Now, perhaps, is the time to use some of our energy for our own fulfilment.

If you can never seem to let go of that one dream that has been close to your heart for a while now, perhaps it is time you went for it? Even if it doesn’t work out as you hoped, you would have gained the knowledge that you are where you are because your capabilities have you there and not because of some missed opportunity or restrictive responsibility. Do not go on wondering what if? Make sure that you get to look back on your life knowing you tried, knowing you were strong enough to risk it and being fulfilled that you followed your own path.

uyana’s outdated school curriculum is currently under review and will eventually be updated to reflect the various changes in modern society.

Acting Chief Education Officer Marcel Hutson made this disclosure during an interview with media operatives on Wednesday at the launch of the One Laptop Per Teacher initiative at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE).

“Currently, we are revising our curriculum in the core subjects in particular and we have been receiving support and funding from the World Bank,” he stated.

Hutson explained that the school system needed a curriculum that was aligned with the advancements made internationally, regionally as well as locally if it intended to produce students who would contribute pertinently to the growth and development of society.

“You know, every five years a curriculum should

Acting CEO Marcel Hutson

be reviewed, because what normally happens is that situations change in society and situations change in the world, and if we are going to produce rounded students who are relevant, then we need to keep abreast with what is happening. Basically, that is what the revision is all about,” he explained.

The acting CEO admitted that the delivery of quality education in Guyana was not a simple task, but he pledged his and the Education

Ministry’s commitment to getting the work done.

He said Government intended to ensure there was a better teacher’s training programme so the country’s educators would be able to effectively disseminate information to students, particularly in the areas of English and Mathematics.

Hutson also underscored the need to incorporate information and communication technology in the teaching structures across the country.

He also said the Ministry was examining the prospects of introducing counsellors in schools as was requested by several Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) as a means of helping students to cope with social and domestic issues in an effort to reduce the high instances of social ills plaguing the country.

Hutson noted too that the Ministry would be promoting Parent-Teachers’ Associations (PTAs).

“Because if we are going to be effective, then the role

of parents and the role of the wider community are critical in terms of how we go forward in education,” he said.

Hutson recently assumed the post of CEO (acting) following Government’s decision to not renew the contract of his predecessor, Olato Sam. Sam has served the sector for the past eight years, five of them as CEO. Education Minister, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine had explained that the decision to terminate Sam’s employment was to ensure the Ministry’s policies were properly executed.

“It’s not a shift in policy; it’s a reinforcement of policy …. It’s just that we want to ensure that the CEO is, in fact, carrying out policy directions of the Ministry. There were some areas where we had complaints from teachers and that kind of thing… they were credible enough for one to question whether or not this is the right person for the job,” he had explained.

Old Age Pension increase likely in Budget 2017

S

enior citizens are likely to soon benefit from an Old Age Pension of $20,000, as Social Protection Minister Volda Lawrence hinted at the possibility of such an increase in the upcoming budget.

Lawrence, during the launch of the Month of the Elderly at the Umana Yana on Wednesday, emphasised that Government remained committed to raising the pension to a favourable amount.

“We have begun to fulfil our promise of providing you with pension of $20,000 and we are just shy of meeting that mandate by $1800. And as you and I and so many of us in this beautiful land of ours continue to pray and ask God to shower his blessings on this country, on our leadership, on our people, we will see what the Lord will provide for us come December when the Minister of Finance (Winston Jordan) lays the budget in the National Assembly,” she declared to a room full of hopeful eyes.

Last year, the Old Age Pension was increased to $18,200; however, the water and electricity subsidies were removed.

Moreover, the Minister also said that Government intended to introduce a programme to encourage families against placing their elderly relatives in caregiving institutions.

She opined that grandmothers and grandfathers ought to be in the home rather than an institution.

“In 2017, we will be looking at a programme whereby we can give assistance to your children and grandchildren by providing caregivers for those boys and girls who really need it, so they can remain in the home and give that support and continue to teach the young ones the way of the Lord that they can grow up

to be young men and women strong in their faith and will be able to take the mantle of this country and continue to

lead it into prosperity,” she stated.

Meanwhile, President David Granger noted that

Some of the pensioners at the Umana Yana at the launch of the Month of the Elderly

Government has an important role to play in ensuring this vulnerable group of people are protected.

“We are committed to observing International Day of Older Persons by ensuring that your needs are met… social protection has to be extended to the most vulnerable population,” he noted.

The group of senior citizens in attendance at the launch came all the way from Linden in Region 10 (Upper Demerara- Berbice).

In observation of this month, they were treated to lunch and taken on a mini tour of Georgetown.

12 NEWS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

“25 scandals within 16 months”

Jagdeo’s office prepares dossier

T

he A Partnership for National Unity/ Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, led by President David Granger was elected to office just over 16 months now and the political Opposition People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) has concluded that the coalition Government has already been embroiled in more questionable practices than the PPP/C which ruled Guyana for 23 years.

The Office of the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, on Wednesday said it has been diligently monitoring the APNU/AFC Government’s use of public funds and the levels of transparency and accountability; issuing an eightpage ‘dossier’ on 25 “scandals” of the Government over the past 16 months.

“The APNU/AFC Government has been exposed with more scandals and corruptions in 16 months than successive PPP/C Administrations were accused of in 23 years,” Jagdeo’s office said, adding that between June 2015 and August 2016, 14 months of the coalition Government, some 16 “scandals” were uncovered.

But Jagdeo’s office said that the month of August 2016 “took the cake”with the exposure of the Sussex Street Drug Bond deal, the BK International and Government of Guyana’s $1 billion “out-of-court” settle-

President David Granger

ment and the issuance of two fuel licences to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Water Inc, Dr Richard Van West-Charles.

Among the other “scandals” highlighted by Jagdeo’s Office are the questions which still linger over the inauguration of President David Granger, the alleged removal of eight containers of steel

by BK International from the Public Health Ministry compound, the dismissal of close to 2000 Amerindian Community Service Officers (CSO), the appointment of 33 foreign honorary advisors, as well as a number of Presidential and Ministerial advisors.

The Opposition also listed the selection of a disqualified company to complete the Specialty Hospital, leading to an abandonment of the project.

“The first act of the Government was to give themselves enormous sal-

ary increases between 50100 per cent of what the former Government Ministers received. This was quietly done in September 2015 and the parliamentary Opposition had to wage a struggle in Parliament to bring a motion to reverse this. When the motivon was finally heard in December, it was defeated by the Government’s one seat majority,” Jagdeo’s Office said.

It also highlighted the D’Urban Park Development project, pardoning of convicted felons, the US$16 million settlement with Surinamese company, RUDISA, the Georgetown “Clean-up Campaign” and debt write-offs for Demerara Distillers Limited and other businesses by the Guyana Revenue Authority and the Mayor and City Council, as well as the controversial Georgetown parking meter contract.

The PPP said that for September 2016, there were four new scandals.

The coalition APNU/ AFC campaigned on a platform of accountability and transparency and to bring and to deep-rooted corruption in public offices.

In April 2016, the US Department of State said that corruption continued to be among the leading human rights problems facing Guyana.

“There remained a widespread public perception of corruption involving officials at all levels, includ-

Joe Singh to investigate GNBA misconduct allegations

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon handing over the Terms of Reference (ToRs) to Major General (Retired) Joe Singh Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

ing the Police and the judiciary,” the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2015, released by the Department, said, adding that there were very low prosecution of public officials found to be corrupt.

The Transparency Institute of Guyana Inc (TIGI) had concluded that there was facilitating and proliferating of corruption in the country, pointing to a number of questionable appointments by the Government, conflict of interest involving at least one Minister and interference in the work of some autonomous agencies like the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).

However, President Granger had distanced his Government from any corruption, stating that critics should look at the Private Sector where corruption is rampant.

T

he Terms of Reference (ToRs) for the investigations into the allegations of corruption and misconduct made by Kenwin Charles against members of the Guyana National Broadcasting Association (GNBA) Board were on Wednesday handed over to Major General (Retired) Joe Singh, MMS, by Minister of State, Joseph Harmon at his office at the Ministry of the Presidency.

Major General Singh will conduct an inquiry into the allegations, and is expected to submit his report to the Prime Minister of Guyana by October 31, 2016.

Minister Harmon, in a brief statement, said that President David Granger had requested that the inquiry be conducted. “[The President] is very confident that you’ll be able to discharge your responsibilities,” Minister Harmon told Major General Singh after having provided him with the instruments of his appointment. Minister Harmon also assured him of his full support throughout the course of the investigations.

In an invited comment, Major General Singh said

that he would work closely with the Legal Adviser from the Ministry of the Presidency, Geeta Chandan Edmond to ensure emphasis is placed on the gathering of detailed information so that a report could be completed and handed over to President Granger and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo in a timely manner. “[We are going] to work closely with the Legal Adviser to map out a timetable and a sequence of events, identify those persons who are pertinent in terms of receiving information from them, whether written or oral… and during that process asking the relevant questions to ensure that we can come up with the determination based on what the report is designed to do,” Major General Singh said.

In mid-September, Charles had alleged that GNBA Directors Anthony Vieira and Victor Insanally attempted to ostensibly force him out of business.

Both Directors have since threatened legal action against the entity’s Chairman, Leonard Craig for publicly making a statement on the issue.

Former CANU Prosecutor found dead in car

F

ormer Prosecutor for the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU), Oswald Massiah, was on Wednesday found dead in his parked car at the Parika Stelling, East Bank Essequibo.

It is believed that Massiah, who resides on the Essequibo Coast, suffered cardiac arrest while waiting to board the ferry to return home. The Police have since confirmed that there were no marks of violence about his body that would suggest foul play was

involved.

Reports are that the wellrespected Prosecutor was ill for quite some time and had to visit the hospital on a regular basis. He recently retired after serving as Prosecutor for the drug enforcement agency.

Before joining CANU, Massiah worked with the Guyana Police Force and elevated himself to one of the leading Prosecutors in the Force.

Head of CANU, James Singh, when contacted, told Guyana Times that Massiah’s

death was a shock to the entire drug enforcement body.

Singh explained that he met Massiah when he took up the position of head of the agency and they have always shared a cordial relationship.

He reflected that Massiah was a jovial, professional and very knowledgeable Prosecutor who was on top of his game at all times. He expressed condolences to the immediate family members of the now dead man, while noting that Massiah will be missed.

One Laptop Per Teacher

She noted that Government intends to expand this programme to ensure all of Guyana is digitally connected.

“Today’s official launch of the One Laptop Per Teacher’s programme gives our teachers an important tool to work with and is a vital component of Government’s all-encompassing programme to raise the national level of digital literacy and to improve Internet connectivity, and most importantly, it is a means to introduce Internet access to our unserved hinterland and interior locations,” she explained.

The laptops were procured with assistance from the Chinese Government.

The first batch of laptops will be distributed to teachers at the CPCE’s Turkeyen and Tain campuses and the top performers at the National Grade Six Assessment.

Subsequently, a national distribution of laptops to teachers will commence in the later part of this year.

Meanwhile, the children who received laptops are Nathan Gangadeen of North Georgetown Primary, Tianna Budhram of Windsor Forest Primary, Tarico Henry

FROM PAGE 9

of Green Acres Primary, Wallyndee Roberts of Mae’s Schools, Mark Sharma of Mae’s Schools and Celine Farinha of Peters Hall Primary.

The teachers who received their laptops are Serena Samwaru of Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), Golda Griffith of Region Nine (Upper Takatu-Upper Essequibo), Rinson Rose of Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice), Welsey Apple of Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) and Yaavendra Ramsaroop of Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam).

13 OIC offers to finance Guyana-Suriname Bridge NEWS

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

OIC Secretary General Iyad Ameen Madani (R) meeting with Foreign Minister Niermala Badrising (L) and President Desi Bouterse during his recent visit to Suriname

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he Organisation of Islamic Corporation (OIC) has said that it was willing to finance the construction of a bridge across the Corentyne River to link Guyana and Suriname as part of the efforts to enhance regional economic and physical integration, following a meeting between the OIC Secretary General, Iyad Ameen Madani and his delegation and officials from both Guyana and Suriname last

week, the Foreign Affairs Ministry of Suriname has reported.

According to online news site, Caribbean News Now, the project fall’s undver the rubric and vision of the Arab League and the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and would support and promote regional integration and economic development, which Madani termed “a triangular relationship between the OIC, Guyana and Suriname”.

The OIC will also work with UNASUR in this effort, he said.

According to Suriname’s Foreign Minister, Niermala Badrising, the OIC and its financial arm, the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is in favour of the execution of major infrastructure projects in South America; one of them being the bridging of the Corentyne River between Guyana and Suriname, a project that has been discussed between leaders of the two countries.

Badrising, who has been working closely with the OIC and the IDB, said in a statement that a bridge over the Corentyne River linking the two countries “could become a reality if the countries involved are in agreement and if the project is feasible. It is one of the opportunities that we have to utilise OIC funds, and the project will complement UNASUR's regional integration vision."

The previous People’s Progressive Party/Civic Administration of Guyana had agreed to partner with Suriname to seek finance

The existing roll-on, roll-off ferry that crosses the Corentyne River between Suriname and Guyana

from China to bridge the Corentyne River. However, there has since been no movement on the project. In 2012, the two countries had also to approach the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) to fund the project.

It is not known if the project was discussed when Madani met the Foreign Affairs Minister of Guyana, Carl Greenidge, in Georgetown.

In Paramaribo, Madani, in a meeting with the press, stated categorically that “We are not a religious organisation, and the OIC hails Suriname as an example of a multicultural country where different ethnicities and religions peacefully coexist.”

Madani stressed that the OIC is not interested in the internal affairs of Suriname; it is not looking to cause conflicts in Suriname or in the

region.

“Suriname and Guyana’s membership in the group should be used to its fullest so as to contribute to regional integration and economic development,” he emphasised.

Madani said that he is happy that Suriname is active in the OIC, unlike other countries who are not seizing the opportunities.

Guyana is not an active member of the OIC.

Crime reality differs from Ramjattan's portrayal – Ali P eople’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament, Irfaan Ali, has posited that the crime reality of what is happening in the country is different from the picture that Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan is portraying.

In a statement on Wednesday, Ali, who is the Opposition’s geographical representative for Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara), strongly condemned the killing of taxi driver Rolun “Vishal” Jodmie, of Tuschen Housing Scheme, East Bank Essequibo, saying that the 24-year-old is the most recent victim of the crime wave sweeping the country.

According to the Opposition parliamentarian, the young man’s life was taken from him while he was striving to provide for his family.

“It is clear to us that the crime wave knows no boundary, and is not tempered by the fear of the law. The most recent statistics released by the Guyana Police Force show a decrease in crime; yet the daily news tell of a different reality. Numbers on a paper is of little use to the family who now mourns their relative. Their reality is different,” he pointed out.

Ali continued that these atrocities inflicted on the poor and working class citizens must be stopped, adding that a clear message needs to be sent and an unequivocal stand taken – that criminals have no place in society.

Furthermore, the Member of Parliament outlined that citizens look expectantly to the Public Security Minister for direction and relief, noting that while the Guyana Police

Guyana remains safe and that we feel secure. It is in the hands of the Government to see that this happens,” Ali remarked.

As there continues to be public outcry about the country’s crime wave, the Police Force is holding out that there is no crime “crisis”. In fact, only last Friday acting Commissioner of Police David

Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan

Minister

Force must be commended for their efforts thus far, it is evident that much more needs to be done and better strategies need to be implemented.

To this end, Ali posited that the first step is for the Public Security Minster to acknowledge that the country is facing a crisis, one which calls for a unified strategy and one which needs to be acknowledged in the first instance.

“We need to stop hiding from the reality as this will not change it. Guyanese citizens cannot continue to live in fear,” Ali stated.

The shadow Business Minister furthered that the current upsurge in violent

Irfaan Ali

crimes will undoubtedly affect the economy. In fact, he stated that already many businesses have closed their doors after suffering again and again at the hands of criminals, specifically mentioning that the businesses in Region Three have been hard hit in the past months.

He concluded that by all indications the country’s leaders are failing, thus calling on Government to act as they have sworn to do.

“The entire county is suffering. The national response and the anti-crime campaign clearly falls short and clearly needs to be reassessed.

It is in all of our interest as Guyanese to ensure that

Ramnarine disclosed that there has been a 19 per cent decline in serious crimes during the comparative period of January 1 to September 23.

This, he noted, was as a result of an 11 per cent decrease in murder, that is, 99 cases so far this year compared to 111 recorded last year for same period.

As it relates to robberies,

robbery with firearms saw a 10 per cent decrease with 528 cases this year against 584 last year; there was a 19 per cent reduction in robberies in which other instruments were used with 225 cases this year against 277 last year; while robbery with violence recorded a 20 per cent decrease with 76 cases against 97 last year.

14

guyana-times.com

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

News

Hurricane Matthew kills at least 17, takes aim at Bahamas, US

H

urricane Matthew, the fiercest Caribbean storm in almost a decade, powered toward The Bahamas and Florida’s eastern coast early on Wednesday after battering Haiti and Cuba with torrential rains and killing at least 17 people.

The hurricane, which the United Nations said created the worst humanitarian crisis to hit struggling Haiti since a devastating 2010 earthquake, whipped Cuba and Haiti with 140 mile-per-hour (230 kph) winds on Tuesday, pummelling towns, farmland and resorts.

In the United States, millions of people were urged to evacuate the South-eastern coast and Florida Governor Rick Scott warned residents to prepare for a possible direct hit that could be catastrophic.

Hundreds of thousands of people had been evacu-

A man clears debris after Hurricane Matthew in Les Cayes, Haiti, October 5, 2016

ated from the path of the Matthew, which caused severe flooding and killed four people in the Dominican Republic as well as at least 13 in Haiti, the two countries that share the island of Hispaniola.

The storm carved a path of devastation through western Haiti, destroying houses, dumping boats and debris on coastal roads and heavily flooding residential areas.

Matthew was a Category

Four hurricane through Tuesday but was downgraded to Category Three early on Wednesday, the Miamibased National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said.

The eye of the storm was about 105 miles (169 km) south of Long Island in The Bahamas on Wednesday morning and it was expected to be very near the East coast of Florida by this evening, the NHC said. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Barbados’ Agriculture Ministry pushing products from primary crops

T

he Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and Water Resource Management Ministry in Barbados is currently working to develop industries around primary crops such as cassava, breadfruit, coconuts and tomatoes.

Chief Agricultural Officer, Lennox Chandler noted that the Ministry has already embarked on a number of initiatives, which will see a number of “value added products” being developed from these crops.

His comments came on Tuesday during a training workshop on tomato product development, which was held by the Agriculture Ministry.

The Chief Agricultural Officer also revealed that about two weeks ago, the Ministry held a big meeting to discuss the matter of developing a coconut industry for Barbados. Chandler pointed out that predictions are that there will be a shortage of coconuts, not

Chief Agricultural Officer, Lennox Chandler (right), as he addressed workshop participants at the start of the Agriculture Ministry’s training workshop on tomato product development.

Accompanying him is Michael James, Senior Agricultural Officer

only in Barbados, but globally, as the demand for coconuts and its by-products continue to increase.

Chandler stressed that coconut oil is now seen as a “cure for all” product, whereas, in the past it did not hold the interest of many. There is also a demand now for dry coconuts, not only the fresh water from the coconuts, he said.

Another initiative the Agriculture Ministry will be embarking on, is a project called PROPEL, which is being conducted with the aid of the World University Service of Canada, to grow white potatoes in Barbados.

Chandler explained that the aim will be to identify those varieties that are best suited to the Barbadian environment. (Excerpt from Nation News)

Hurricane Matthew: Struggle to reach worst-hit parts of Haiti R escue workers in Haiti are struggling to reach parts of the country cut off by the most powerful Caribbean hurricane in nearly a decade.

The destruction wrought by Hurricane Matthew has forced Haiti's presidential election, due to take place at the weekend, to be postponed, officials say.

Thousands have been displaced and at least five have died in the country.

The US state of Florida is bracing for the storm's arrival late on Thursday.

The storm is currently over the Bahamas, where all air and sea traffic has been halted and people were urged to move to higher ground. Matthew battered a remote area of

Parts of southern Haiti have suffered severe flooding

Haiti – one of the world's poorest countries, with many residents living in flimsy housing in floodprone areas – with winds of up to 230km/h (145mph) on Tuesday.

Officials said they were not yet in a position to gauge the true extent of the damage - particularly in the Grand Anse area on the southern tip of the is-

land, which was directly in the storm's path.

A key bridge has been destroyed, roads are impassable and phone communications are down, officials said. Mourad Wahba, the UN special representative for Haiti, said at least 10,000 people were in shelters and hospitals were overflowing. (Excerpt from BBC News)

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

guyana-times.com

15

Around the World

António Guterres to be next 1 in 10 children has “monkey-like” immune UN Secretary General

A

ntónio Guterres, the former Portuguese Prime Minister, will be the next UN Secretary General, after the Security Council agreed he should replace Ban Ki-moon at the beginning of next year.

In a rare show of unity, all 15 ambassadors from the Security Council emerged from the sixth in a series of straw polls to announce that they had agreed on Guterres, who was UN High Commissioner for refugees for a decade, and that they would confirm the choice in a formal vote today.

“Today after our sixth straw poll we have a clear favourite and his name is António Guterres,” the

Antonio Guterres will be the next UN chief

Russian UN ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, told reporters with his 14 council colleagues standing behind him.

“We have decided to go to a formal vote tomor-

Russia suspends nuclear agreement, ends uranium research pact with US

R

ussia further curtailed its cooperation with the United States (US) in nuclear energy on Wednesday, suspending a research agreement and terminating one on uranium conversion, two days after the Kremlin shelved a plutonium pact with Washington.

The Russian Government said that as counter-measures to the US sanctions imposed on Russia over Ukraine, it was putting aside a nuclear and energyrelated research pact with the United States.

It also said it was terminating for the same reasons an agreement between its nuclear corporation Rosatom and the US Department of Energy on feasibility studies into conversion of Russian research reactors to low-enriched uranium.

On Monday, President Vladimir Putin suspended a treaty with Washington on cleaning up weapons grade plutonium, signaling he is willing to use nuclear disarmament as a new bargaining chip in disputes with the United States over Ukraine and Syria.

“The regular renewal of sanctions against Russia, which include the suspension of Russian-American cooperation in the field of nuclear energy demands the adoption of countermeasures against the US side,” the Russian government said on its website.

In Washington, a State Department spokesman said the United States had not received an official notification from Russia although he had seen media reports of the suspension of the research agreement.

row morning [today] at 10 o’clock, and we hope it can be done by acclamation.”

The abrupt end to the UN leadership race came as a surprise. Many observers had expected the selec-

tion process to go on late into October as the major powers struggled to promote their favourite candidates. And some thought that Russia, currently holding the presidency of the Security Council, would block Guterres, as Moscow had said it wanted an eastern European in the top UN job.

Guterres’s margin of victory was decisive. He won 13 votes in his support and two abstentions, with no one voting against him. The secondplace candidate, the Slovak Miroslav Laj?ák, had seven votes in support and six against him – two of them vetoes from permanent council members. (Excerpt from The

Guardian)

World donors pledge US$15B for Afghanistan

W

orld powers attending EU talks in Brussels have pledged billions of dollars to fund Afghanistan until 2020, amid fresh calls for the revival of a peace process in the war-ravaged country after more than 40 years of conflict.

With the Government in Kabul facing a resurgent Taliban 15 years after US forces helped to oust the group from power, more than 70 government representatives met with Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani to promise further financial support.

The EU is leading the effort, partly with the aim of slowing Afghan migrant flows into Europe.

As well as funding,

the EU focused on getting stalled peace negotiations back on track by bringing together regional players at a dinner on Tuesday night.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini announced that the 28-nation bloc would pledge US$1.5 billion a year, adding that she expected “similar levels of engagement from our partners”.

Nearly 70 per cent of Afghanistan’s annual income is dependent upon international donors, and about 42 per cent of those funds goes to defence.

The US and the EU currently each provide about a third of all international aid to Afghanistan, with Japan the next largest donor. (Excerpt

system that stops them developing AIDS

A

new British study suggests that 10 per cent of children have a “monkey-like” immune system that prevents them from developing AIDS. The research, which was published in Science Translational Medicine, found that the children’s immune systems were “keeping calm,” which stopped them being wiped out.

An untreated HIV infection will kill 60 per cent of children within two-and-ahalf years, but the equivalent infection in monkeys – Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV) is not fatal.

BBC News reports that researchers analySed the blood of 170 children from South Africa who had HIV, had never had antiretroviral therapy and had not developed AIDS. Tests showed they had tens of thousands of human

immunodeficiency viruses in every millilitre of their blood. This would normally send their immune system into overdrive, trying to fight the infection, or simply make them seriously ill, but neither had happened.

HIV kills white blood cells – the warriors of the immune system – and when the body’s defences go into overdrive, even more of them can be killed by chronic levels of inflammation.

Scientists see striking similarities between the way the 10 percent of children cope with the virus and the way more than 40 non-human primate species cope with SIV. Professor Goulder believes these findings in children could ultimately help rebalance the immune system in all HIV patients.

(Excerpt from Caribbean360)

Ethiopia-Djibouti electric railway line opens

from Al Jazeera)

(Excerpt from Reuters)

At least 2 dead as building collapses in Indian city of Bengaluru

A

t least two people were killed and several more were trapped after an incomplete five-storey building collapsed in India’s technology hub of Bengaluru on Wednesday, officials said.

The residential building, which had been under construction for several months, was located in the city’s Bellandur neighbourhood, home to upscale apartment blocks, hostels and offices of technology companies.

The area, which surrounds a lake of the same name and flanks a major ring road, has experienced a construction boom in recent years. Rescue officials at the scene said a security guard working at an adjacent building had been killed and that three construction workers remained trapped late on Wednesday.

A Police Inspector later told Reuters by telephone that a 24-year-old construction worker had also been killed.

It was not clear whether he was one of

Police and rescue workers look for survivors in the rubble at the site of a collapsed under construction building in Bengaluru, India, October 5, 2016

the three trapped workers.

At least four people had been pulled from under the debris. One of the men rescued, who gave his name as Bishnu, said he was a tiler from the West Bengal region. He said he was working

on the fourth floor when the building collapsed sideways.

Rescue crews worked into the night amid the debris, much of which remained surrounded by bamboo scaffolding. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Travelling at 120km/h, the new service cuts the journey time down from three days by road to about 12 hours

E

thiopia and Djibouti have launched the first fully electrified cross-border railway line in Africa. It links Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, to the Red Sea port of Djibouti – a stretch of more than 750km (466 miles).

Travelling at 120km/h, the new service cuts the journey time down from three days by road to about 12 hours.

The US$3.4 billion (£2.7 billion) project was built with the help of funding from a Chinese bank and will have Chinese staff. The track runs parallel to the abandoned Ethio-Djibouti railway, built more than 100 years ago.

The passenger trains – which will run each way daily – are to start in three months’ time and ticket prices will be announced nearer the time.

‘It will transform my business’ Getachew Betru, Chief Executive of Ethiopia Railways, says it will be much cheaper and more reliable than travelling to Djibouti by road.

“In Ethiopia currently if you want to bring your container from Hong Kong to Djibouti it will take you maybe two, three weeks.

But it will take you more than that to take it from Djibouti to Addis Ababa. It will now take us one day or more,” he said.

At the opening ceremony on Wednesday, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said that the rail line would be a boost to the economy. “It will provide huge benefits to the industrial parks and modern farms that will be built in the future,” he said. (Excerpt

from BBC News)

16

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

guyanatimesgy.com

Vegetable heavy: Kitaka Craig

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here are very few youths who choose farming as a way of life. However, one exception is Kitaka Craig, the proprietor of CV Farms, for whom hydroponics is a way of life. Craig enjoys travelling and after returning from the United States of America (USA) in 2009, he opted to start his own business and to this day he has not regretted that decision.

At the time, many of his

fresh vegetables are produced day to day as automated water sprinklers play a significant role in the lives of the vegetables grown at CV Farms. The prices of the vegetables may fluctuate based on the prices in the market.

Craig often works alone and whenever necessary employs the help of an expert who specialises in

T

packaging. He noted that one of the best perks of being an entrepreneur is being able to work with himself. Craig hopes to expand his business frontier both locally and

internationally. His current location came as a result of the availability of land.

Some of the challenges encountered in the beginning were pest and water problems.

The Small Business Bureau (SBB) has had a significant impact on his business development through the provision of training as well as the facilitation of financial assistance for the construction of a shadehouse at CV Farms. Craig noted that growing vegetables via hydroponics has been a good venture thus far and encourages budding entrepreneurs, “to keep trying even when faced with challenges”. Contact: 6161500.

Market statistics Cambio Rates

Gold Prices – Guyana Gold Board

Bank of Guyana Cur

Buying

Calculated at 94% purity, September 28, 2016 Selling

GBP

$262.05

$265.38

CAN

$155.91

$157.72

USD

$205.98

$208.44

$ 231.07

$234.03

EURO

O

Wednesday, hitting their highest since June, after the fifth unexpected weekly drawdown in US crude inventories added to support of hopes that major producers will agree to cut output next month.

The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude stockpiles fell three million barrels last week, opposite of forecasts of analysts polled by Reuters for a build of 2.6 million barrels.

Since the beginning of September, US crude stocks have plunged 26 million barrels, but inventories remain at their highest in this century, EIA data showed.

PIRA Energy Group, an

the glut that brought crude prices crashing from above US$100 a barrel over two years ago will be gone by the second quarter of 2017. It also believes OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia is trying to sustain prices at US$50-$60.

Oil has rallied 13 per cent over the past six sessions after the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced plans to limit output, its first in eight years, when it gathers for its policy meeting in Vienna in November.

Brent crude settled up 99 cents, or two per cent, at US$51.86 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) closed up US$1.14, or 2.3 per cent, at US$49.83. (Reuters)

IMF says global debt tops US$152T, urges some to spend more

friends who resided in the USA were involved in hydroponics and from this the idea of trying this technique as a business venture in Guyana began. He currently grows specific amounts of produce

which includes lettuce, tomatoes, sweet peppers, basil and mint leaves for a specific number of clients and supplies hotels and restaurants directly. Luscious,

Go vegetable heavy. Reverse the psychology of your plate by making meat the side dish and vegetables the main course. – Chef Bobby Flay

Facebook launches Oil up 2% to June highs Marketplace after another US crude draw for local buying il prices settled up influential New York-based about two per cent on consultancy, said it expected and selling

Business News

USD

$1274.00

Gross

$246,194

Net

$228,961

Indicators as on October 6, 2016 Indicators

US$ per barrel

Crude Oil

$50.87

Price

USD

Rough Rice

$220.60/ton

London Sugar

$595.50/ton

Live Spot Gold

Change %

-0.04 Change %

-0.35 0.00 USD Per Ounce

Bid/Ask

$1268.90

$1269.90

Low/High

$1262.00

$1277.80

Change

+2.40

+0.19%

Business Concept – Tax Liability Debt to a government incurred by a taxpayer as accrued or assessed taxes. Tax liability is shown as a short-term liability in financial statements, and takes precedence over all other liabilities.

(BusinessDictionary)

he world is swimming in a record US$152 trillion in debt, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday, even as the institution encourages some countries to spend more to boost flagging growth if they can afford it.

Global debt, both public and private, reached 225 per cent of global economic output last year, up from about 200 per cent in 2002, the IMF said in its new Fiscal Monitor report.

The IMF said about two thirds of the 2015 total, or about US$100 billion, is

owed by Private Sector borrowers, and noted that rapid increases in private debt often lead to financial crises.

While debt profiles vary by country, the report said that the sheer size of the debt could set the stage for an unprecedented private deleveraging that could thwart a still-fragile economic recovery.

"Excessive private debt is a major headwind against the global recovery and a risk to financial stability," IMF Fiscal Affairs Director Vitor Gaspar told a news conference. "Financial recessions are longer and

F

acebook Inc launched Marketplace to allow people to buy and sell items locally as the social media network tries new ways to keep users engaged.

The feature will appear as a "shop" icon at the bottom of the Facebook app and will allow users to list or search for items on sale in their neighbourhood.

The company will not facilitate the payment or delivery of items and will not take a cut from any transactions, Facebook said.

The new service will be rolled out in the United States, the UK, Australia and New Zealand for iPhone and Android users over the next few days, the company said in a blog post, adding that the feature will be available on the desktop version in the coming months.

More than 450 million people already visit Facebook groups that have items to buy and sell each month, the company said.

Last year, Facebook said it was testing several ad features that allow users to shop directly through its app, an effort to move further into e-commerce. (Reuters) deeper than normal recessions."

While the United States has de-leveraged since the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the report cited the buildup of private debt in China and Brazil as a significant concern, fuelled in part by a long era of low interest rates. (Reuters)

Investors’ Guide

Energy, bank stocks lead Wall Street higher

S

tocks on Wall Street rose Wednesday led by the energy sector as oil prices rallied and as financials gained on the increasing likelihood of an interest rate hike after strong economic data.

Activity in the US services sector hit an 11-month high in September, an encouraging sign for economic growth that may nudge the Federal Reserve toward an interest rate increase before the year ends.

Banks, seen benefiting from an eventual rate hike, gained two per cent as a group – the most for any day in two months.

“We’re taking a little victory lap today after the surprisingly good economic data,” said Kim Forrest, senior equity research analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh.

She said expectations are rising for a pickup in corporate earnings and “there are good signs in the economy”.

Traders priced in a near 65 per cent chance of a Fed rate hike in December after the services data, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool. The chances had dipped earlier in the day after data

showed the US Private Sector added slightly fewer jobs than expected last month.

The higher chance of a Fed rate hike hurt rate-sensitive sectors like real estate, which fell 1.9 per cent.

“Looks as if we may have a rate increase some time in 2016 or early 2017,” Forrest said. “The recent rise in the 10-year yield tells you that if you’ve been buying some dividend-paying stocks for yield alone, you may be in trouble.”

The yield on the benchmark Treasury note US10YT=RR touched 1.73 per cent after having dipped under 1.54 per cent on Friday.

The energy sector of the S&P 500 Y added 1.4 per cent as both Brent LCOc1 and US crude CLc1 oil rose to multimonth highs after data showed a bigger-than-expected draw in US inventories.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 112.58 points, or 0.62 per cent, to 18,281.03, the S&P 500 gained 9.24 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 2159.73 and the Nasdaq Composite added 26.36 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 5316.02.

Just over seven billion

shares changed hands in US exchanges, compared with the 7.2 billion daily average over the last 20 sessions.

Twitter rose 5.7 per cent to US$24.87 after the Wall Street Journal reported it was expected to field bids this week.

Shares of Booz Allen Hamilton fell 3.8 per cent to US$30.31 after news broke that an NSA contractor who worked for Booz Allen was arrested in August and charged with stealing highly classified information.

Booze Allen is the consulting firm that employed Edward Snowden when he revealed the collection of metadata by the NSA in 2013.

Salesforce dropped 5.8 per cent to US$68.42 after a Mizuho analyst raised concerns over the company’s eventual bid for Twitter.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.55-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.19-to-1 ratio favoured advancers.

The S&P 500 posted 24 new 52-week highs and five new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 117 new highs and 20 new lows. (Reuters)

NEWS

17

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 | GUYANA-TIMES.COM

1 in custody for taxi Carnegie launches Craft Showroom driver’s murder

P

olice in D Division (West Coast Demerara-East Bank Essequibo) have arrested one person in connection with the murder of the 24-year-old taxi driver who was robbed and killed at the back of the Tuschen Housing Scheme, East Bank Essequibo.

The body of Rolun Jodmie, called “Vishal”, a hire car driver of Tuschen Housing Scheme, was found with a gunshot wound to his chest in an area of the village called Black Water, around 19:00h on Tuesday.

Reports revealed that the young man, who operates at the head of the scheme, was hired by two men to go into the community. He was later found in his car covered in blood.

Investigators are working on the theory that the man was killed during a robbery since several of his belongings were missing.

Acting Divisional Commander Leslie James confirmed with Guyana Times on Wednesday that the Police have arrested one person. He explained that the suspect was turned in to custody after he was observed by other hire car drivers behaving suspiciously and making certain enquiries about the now dead man.

This newspaper was told that some time after 19:00h, one of the hire car operators had a drop-off at

Slain: Taxi driver Rolun Jodmie

the back of the Scheme and was turning around when he noticed Jodmie’s vehicle with the lights on. The man drove up to the vehicle and after seeing the young man’s bloodied body, he alerted nearby residents before heading to the Police Outpost to report the matter.

Speaking with this newspaper, Jodmie’s widow, Tarmattie Kumar explained that she and her now dead husband have been staying at her parent’s house for the past week, since their two-year-old son was sick.

She recalled last seeing her husband on Tuesday around 14:00h before he left to go wash his car. The young woman added that around 19:00h, a neighbour from Tuschen called and informed her that he had been shot.

“When we reach, they telling we don’t touch the

car but when I look, he was in the driving seat and he head hang for front and he had blood on his shirt,” the young woman recalled.

Kumar said when the Police arrived and examined her husband’s body, they found a pulse and he was rushed to the Leonora Cottage Hospital but died on the way there.

The traumatised woman further related to this newspaper that her husband’s wedding ring, a chain, cell phone and his earnings from the day were all missing from the vehicle.

Meanwhile, Jodmie’s distraught mother, Bibi Waheeda Isaacs indicated that she last saw her son on Sunday. The woman related that she was at her Parika home when her daughter informed her of the shooting.

“Meh hurry and take a taxi to go Tuschen, but when meh deh going in, the ambulance coming out and meh daughter call back and say that he dead, Vishal dead. So meh turn ‘round and go hospital and when meh reach, meh see he lie down – dead,” the grieving woman stated.

Jodmie leaves to mourn his wife, two-year-old son, mother and siblings along with other relatives and friends.

Meanwhile, the suspect remains in custody assisting with the investigation.

Unlicensed river vessels at Bartica to be grounded T he Maritime Administration D e p a r t m e n t (MARAD) plans to establish a permanent presence in Bartica to tackle the operations of unlicensed river vessels.

Acting Harbour Master Michael Tennant said that uncertified boat operators and unlicensed vessels operating in the Mazaruni and Essequibo channels were unacceptable and unlawful. According to Tennant, office space was acquired in Bartica which will enable the Department to enforce safe and authorised river practices. In the interim, personnel from MARAD will be working every day to identify and report unlicensed operators.

“We have Captain David Mittholtzer up here and I’ve instructed him to intensify the efforts of MARAD to ensure that persons operating vessels in the waterways, once he knows them and recognise them, to let them know to have their vessels certified; if not, we’ll have to stop them from operating,” Tennant is quoted by the Government Information

Acting Harbour Master Michael Tennant

Agency (GINA) as saying.

Tennant pointed out that if operators fail to license their vessels, they could be charged and placed before the court.

The fine for operating an unlicensed vessel for commercial activities is $1 million and $400,000 for uncertified captains.

Further, the acting Harbour Master pointed out that persons must

be trained before being licensed. The training entails being taken out on the vessel by a knowledgeable senior person who would assess the trainee. Classes are being conducted by Captain Mittholtzer who would send an application for the operators’ licence to MARAD. Following that, a recommendation would be made by the Regional Officer and the vessel would be examined. Only after all checks would have been made and passed, then the vessel and operator would be licensed.

Additionally, random inspections would be undertaken of licensed vessels and operators’ licences revoked if the requirements were not met or upheld, Tennant said.

MARAD, a department of the Public Infrastructure Ministry, is responsible for regulating and monitoring the operation of all vessels on the waterways of Guyana. The Department operates in accordance with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) rules, and was established and regulated in 2003 under the 1997 Merchant Shipping Act.

T

Some of the crafters of the items displayed in the showroom

he Carnegie School of Home Economics, Craft Production and Design Division on Wednesday officially launched their Craft Showroom with the aim of displaying the talent and art of its students.

Set up at the Carnegie School located on Durban and High Streets, Werken-Rust, Georgetown, and with theme “Your success is in your hands” the colourful room display was one of awe.

On display were many impeccable craft pieces designed not only by the students, but also by the teachers at the institution.

With a toast, the showroom was officially opened to the public.

Speaking at the opening, Assistant Chief Education Officer, Leslyn Charles, noted that the opening of the showroom is a milestone, as the last time such a platform was introduced dates back to 1994.

She highlighted that the philosophy of the Carnegie School of Home Economics is that the developing of

and those pursuing craft as a commercial interest,” she explained.

After her address, the

Carnegie Trade School.

The school was founded by a Scotsman Andrew Carnegie through the Trade

A display of straw craft made by students of the institution

first showroom was opened and toured by attendees of the function.

The students were placed in the limelight as

Centres for Women of New York, and the main purpose at that time was to have persons who were not academically inclined, trained

Officials toast after which the showroom was opened

craft skills and techniques will enhance the contributions of the individuals to the craft industry at both a national and internal level.

“At this institution, we are honoured to be a small but a significant part of the larger movement. It allows us to play an integral role in making training available for early school leavers

they explained and gave details of the pieces on display.

The Carnegie School of Home Economics, as it is now known, was essentially birthed in the 19th century when several institutions were set up to educate the younger generation, primarily women. It was formerly known as the

in various skills and disciplines.

The institution provides a one-year training programme that targets youth ages 15 and over.

The skill training institution attracts predominantly young females from a wide cross section of Guyana but also now attract a number of males.

18

guyana-times.com

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

ARCHIE

ARIES

Discipline, drive and fear-

(March 21- less communication of your April 19) wants and needs will lead

to victory. Learn from experience in order to have clear sailing from start to finish.

Don’t waste time; start TAURUS making personal improve(April 20- ments, learning and keeping May 20) up with trends. If you keep your ears open, you will broaden your awareness and insight.

Romance is encouraged.

DILBERT

Share any grievance you GEMINI are harboring. Keep in mind (May 21that you are likely to face critJune 20) icism as well, but in the end a compromise will lead to a better relationship.

Change things up a bit.

CANCER Sign up for a hobby or creative (June 21- endeavor that will spark your July 22) imagination and bring about positive personal change.

Share something special with a loved one.

PEANUTS

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Networking functions will position you for advancement.

Being receptive to change and able to handle spur-of-themoment developments will prove that you are capable of becoming a leader.

Uncertainty will surVIRGO face if you let your emotions (Aug. 23- take charge when dealing Sept. 22) with partnerships or issues of faith. Give everyone the right to think and do as they please.

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Strength, courage, comLIBRA mon sense and discipline will (Sept. 23be your keys to success. Don’t Oct. 23) let anyone dismantle what you are trying to achieve. Follow your heart and your dreams.

WORD GAME

SUDOKU

Use your imagination and SCORPIO make your surroundings more (Oct. 24comfortable and convenient. If Nov. 22) you are happy with your space and lifestyle, you’ll encourage others to feel good as well.

Set your sights on someSAGITTARIUS thing you want to do and head (Nov. 23- in that direction. Making alDec. 21) terations to your lifestyle will make your day. Express your feelings and embrace change.

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

RULES OF THE GAME: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” is not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed. To contact Word Game creator Kathleen Saxe, write to Word Game, Kathleen Saxe, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

Copyright 2015, Distributed by Universal Uclick for UFS

Stick to your own devices.

CAPRICORN Take care of personal busi(Dec. 22- ness and chores. Someone Jan. 19) will take advantage of you if you are gullible. Don’t accommodate anyone who is demanding or acting pretentious.

Don’t worry about othAQUARIUS ers’ words or actions. Size up (Jan. 20your situation and act on your Feb. 19) own behalf. If you bring about change, you won’t be disappointed in the results.

PISCES Problems while traveling (Feb. 20- or dealing with partners or March 20) mentors will develop. Take your time and address any weakness in your plans that could put you in a compromising position.

thursdAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016

D

Miller 100 clinches 372 chase & series

avid Miller’s third ODI hundred helped David Miller lofts on South Africa down the ground on pull off the his way to his 69-ball second-highcentury est chase of all time and seal the series against Australia with two matches to spare. Miller has chosen not to play his domestic cricket at the Durban-based Dolphins this summer but thrilled his former home crowd during the highest successful chase at Kingsmead with a heroic knock that will become the stuff of legend.

In the 31st over, with Miller on 26 and South Africa needing to score at more than eight runs an over, he tweaked a groin muscle running between the wickets. At the start of the next over, South Africa lost their fifth wicket and their last specialist batsmen when JP Duminy holed out. They were 217 for 5 and victory was 155 runs away. But Miller dug deep and along with another local lad, Andile Phehlukwayo, with whom he put on 107 off 70 balls for the seventh-wicket, took South Africa home.

Miller’s innings completely overshadowed Australia’s efforts.

David Warner and Steven Smith notched up a century each to build on an

opening stand of 110 in 13 overs. Australia plundered 71 runs off the last five overs to post what they would have thought was a match-winning score. The truth is that they should have put on more.

Australia went quiet in the middle period and managed just 67 runs between the 14th and 28th over, at a rate of under five.

Imran Tahir controlled the squeeze but was assisted by Dwaine Pretorius, Phehlukwayo and Duminy, who all understood that pace off the ball would be the most effective. Australia’s inexperienced attack, which has been their Achilles heel throughout the tour, could not copy that.

Mitchell Marsh was their most economical bowler while the spinners, Adam

Zampa and T r a v i s Head, conceded 83 r u n s Andile Phehlukwayo in 10 reverse-swept the winning runs that also gave South Africa the series

overs between them. That was less than Dale Steyn, who leaked 96 runs to hold the unenviable record of the most expensive effort by a South African bowler in ODIs. But Steyn won’t South Africa innings (target: mind after the 372 runs from 50 overs) batsmen bludQ de Kock† c Worrall b geoned Tremain 70 t h e

SCOREBOARD Australia innings (50 overs maximum) DA Warner c Duminy b Imran Tahir 117 AJ Finch c Rabada b Imran Tahir 53 SPD Smith* b Steyn 108 GJ Bailey c du Plessis b Phehlukwayo 28 MR Marsh c Miller b Steyn 2 TM Head c & b Rabada 35 MS Wade† not out 17 Extras (lb-3, w-8) 11 Total (6 wickets; 50 overs) 371 Did not bat: JW Hastings, A Zampa, CP Tremain, DJ Worrall Fall of wickets 1-110 (Finch, 13.1 ov), 2-234 (Warner, 34.5 ov), 3-280 (Bailey, 40.5 ov), 4-300 (Marsh, 44.2 ov), 5-325 (Smith, 46.2 ov), 6-371 (Head, 49.6 ov) Bowling: DW Steyn 10-0-962 (w-1), K Rabada 10-0-861 (w-4), D Pretorius 6-0-420, Imran Tahir 10-0-54-2, AL Phehlukwayo 8-0-58-1 (w-3), JP 0 Duminy 6-0-32-

HM Amla lbw b Hastings 45 F du Plessis* c Warner b Hea d 33 RR Rossouw lbw b Zampa 18 JP Duminy c Finch b Hastings 20 DA Miller not out 118 D Pretorius c Warner b Mar sh 15 AL Phehlukwayo not out 42 Extras (lb-3, w-8) 11 Total (6 wickets; 49.2 overs)372 Did not bat: DW Steyn, K Rabada, Imran Tahir Fall of wickets 1-66 (Amla, 8.3 ov), 2-140 (du Plessis, 17.2 ov), 3-164 (de Kock, 20.5 ov), 4-179 (Rossouw, 23.4 ov), 5-217 (Duminy, 31.1 ov), 6-265 (Pretorius, 37.4 ov) Bowling: CP Tremain 10-0-65-1 (w-2), DJ Worrall 9-0-78-0 (w2), JW Hastings 10-0-79-2 (w1), MR Marsh 10-0-61-1 (w-2), A Zampa 7.2-1-55-1 (w-1), TM Head 3-0-31-1

Australia captain Steven Smith cashed in with a wonderful ton of his own

bowlers’ blues away.

South Africa’s chase was set up by Hashim Amla, who underlined his return to the side with a quickfire 45 that included nine fours in a rare display of power-hitting from the master of finesse, and Quinton de Kock, who topped up on his Wanderers hundred with 70 off 49 balls. But they lost 3 for 39 when Faf du Plessis, de Kock and Rilee Rossouw were dismissed in the space of 39 balls and although they had kept up with the required run rate, it seemed Australia had taken control.

Duminy and Miller saw off three boundary-less overs and the match seemed to be drifting to the inevitable but then Miller changed his tone.

He took 15 runs off Zampa, including a six and two fours - a flat sweep over midwicket for six and fours on either side down the ground - to hint that South Africa were still in the hunt.

Three more boundary-less overs followed and then Duminy was dismissed and responsibility fell on Miller. He survived a review in the 34th over, on 40, when Matthew Wade was convinced Miller had edged John Hastings behind but Snicko did not agree. That gave Miller the rare opportunity to spend a lengthy period of time in the middle and made full use of it, despite his injury.

Miller pulled with power and timed the ball well. Even when he lost Pretorius to a leading edge, after a stand of 48 in 6.3 overs, he found the perfect partner in Phehlukwayo, who should have been dismissed from his first ball. Chris Tremain appealed for a caught behind but umpire Adrian Holdstock did not hear the edge. Australia had used their review so could not refer it upstairs but if they had been able to, replays showed Phehlukwayo would have been out. If he felt guilty, it did not show. His response was to flick Mitchell Marsh off his pads to allow South Africa to enter the last 10 overs needing 88 runs to win.

On 71 off 54 balls, Miller was the man in charge and ushered Phehlukwayo through strike rotation while scoring boundaries seemingly at will.

When Australia decided to pitch it up, Miller got underneath f u l l de-

19

Fury could lose licence after cocaine use admittance

Tyson Fury has not fought since beating Wladimir Klitschko in November 2015

W

orld heavyweight champion Tyson Fury could lose his licence after he revealed he was taking cocaine to help him deal with depression.

The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) is meeting on 12 October, when it will look at Fury’s admission.

BBBofC general secretary Robert Smith said cocaine use is against the law and “will be dealt with accordingly”.

IBF world champion Anthony Joshua backed Fury to return to the ring while Tony Bellew said Fury “needs help”.

Fury, 28, claimed he had retired on Monday before retracting the comment three hours later.

The BBBofC meeting has not been called exclusively for Fury’s case, but Smith said the body “can’t ignore the law of the land”.

BBC Sport has contacted the WBO and WBA - the two organisations with which Fury holds heavyweight titles - but is yet to receive a response.

The WBO and WBA can strip Fury of the title, declare the titles vacant, or he can vacate them.

Smith said: “We deal with the licence, so in theory, if we were to suspend him they would have no choice but to strip him because he can’t de-

fend them, can he?

“You can’t just take a man’s licence away without taking the proper procedures, if we decide that’s the right thing to do.”

The BBBofC stripped Ricky Hatton of his licence after drug use allegations in 2010. The former two-weight world champion has reportedly sent a text to Fury “asking him to give me a ring if he needs me”.

IBF would strip the license

Fury - undefeated in 25 professional fights - has not fought since November 2015 when he inflicted a first defeat on Wladimir Klitschko in more than 11 years, winning the WBA, IBF and WBO belts.

He was stripped of the IBF belt within two weeks as he could not face mandatory challenger Vyacheslav Glazkov. A rematch with Klitschko for the WBA and WBO titles has twice been postponed. British fighter Joshua now holds the IBF title, but the body’s president Daryl Peoples said the BBBofC should strip Fury of his licence “so he could focus on getting himself better”. Manchester-born Fury also faces a UK Anti-Doping hearing in November after traces of a banned substance were allegedly found in a urine sample in June. (BBC Sport)

liveries and swung hard. He reached his hundred off 69 balls when he whacked a short-of-a-length delivery behind square on the leg side but the best was yet to come.

As the 47th over came to an end, Miller sent Daniel Worrall on to the grandstand roof and out of the ground with the biggest of his six sixes.

South Africa needed 24 runs of the last three overs, 17 off the last two and thanks to Phehlulwayo’s ten in the penultimate over, just three off the final over.

Phehlukwayo hit the winning runs, with four balls remaining, to leave Australia stunned.

After Warner’s eighth hundred - and fourth in 2016 alone, which makes this year his most successful in the format - and Smith’s shifting gears to go from 16 off 31 balls to a hundred off 104 balls, they would have thought they had done enough. But, on batsmen-friendly surfaces throughout the country, South Africa have showed that enough is a relative concept. In so doing, they won their first bilateral series against Australia since 2009 and their first ODI in five meetings against Australia at Kingsmead, dating back 2000. (ESPNcricinfo)

20

GUYANA-TIMES.COM

thursday, october 6, 2016

Guyanese golfers score big at Suriname Open ― Webster, Bissessar, Sukhram outstanding

13 of the 15-member Guyana contingent at the Suriname Republic Bank Golf Invitational Tournament, October 2016. From left: Alfred Mentore, Dr Philbert London, Patanjalee Persaud, Lakeram Ramsundar, Troy Cadogan, Kalyan Tiwari, Mike Gayadin, John Tracey, Deanand Bissessar, Patrick Prashad and Parmanand Persaud. Sitting are Shanella Webster and Christine Sukhram

G

uyanese golfers had an impressive outing in neighbouring Suriname at the weekend at the Suriname Republic Bank Open Invitational Golf Tournament.

Among the victors from Guyana were 2015 Digicel Guyana Open champion Shanella Webster and rookie Deanand ‘Deno’

Bissessar, who was on his inaugural trip to the event.

While Veteran female golfer Christine Sukhram finished second in one of the many categories.

Webster took the Ladies’ first or ‘A’ Flight by storm, in the just concluded event which was held at the Golf club Paramaribo Course, Paramaribo.

Jaguars Franchise League

West Demerara looking for big win against Essequibo

C

oach of the West Demerara Franchise Omar Hussain says his team is looking to win big against Essequibo in their final match of the Jaguars Franchise League.

Currently the west side team is in second place on the points table and have an outside chance of winning the title if they win by a mammoth margin and if tournament leaders Lower Corentyne lose big to West Berbice or if rain washes out the all Berbice affair.

Nevertheless the coach urged his players to continue along the path they have taken for most of their matches in this tournament, that is, a positive path.

In six matches West Demerara managed three wins and played to two draws after losing their first match to East Coast. They are the only team to top Lower Corentyne after winning first innings in round six at the Tuschen ground.

Judging from their performance in previous matches Hussain is optimistic of an outright victory against Essequibo and a possible chance of winning the title once there are any major blunders on the Leaders behalf.

He believes all the department of his team is intact and is strong enough to fulfill his expectation. “Our bowling has been great, with Romario Shepherd and Raymond Reifer doing an excellent job with the new ball as well as teenage spinner Richie Looknauth while

Omar Hussain

Tagenarine Chanderpaul, skipper Ashkaya Persaud and Reifer have been excellent with the bat along with Travis Persaud, who has chipped in.”

Analyzing from the way Essequibo has played, especially in the last round where they batted strongly to shut out East Coast from coming close to achieving a victory, it would not be a walk in the park for West Demerara. However, due to the difference in the pitch at Tuschen Ground where the match is scheduled to be played, Hussain said his side holds the upper hand and will aim to finish strong.

East Coast, currently in third position also will be looking to finish well after a successful run in most of the tournament. If Lower Corentyne demolish West Berbice then it will be a photo finish for second position between West Demerara and East Coast.

All final round matches of the Jaguars Franchise League are set to begin on Friday October 7.

She created history by becoming the first Guyanese lady to win the A Flight. Webster sealed the deal after several attempts which saw her finishing third in 2015 in the Ladies ‘B’ Flight when she produced a fantastic play to come up to third from eighth position on the first day, nine points behind

the winner of that Flight, Hanka Wolterstorff.

With smiles, Shanella (h/cap 17, points 69,) elatedly explained that she kept her cool and sought to play every hole on its own merit, undisturbed by the good or poor play of the competitors in the field.

Meanwhile, past Guyana Open lady champion for some eight consecutive years, v e t e r a n , Sukhram (h/ cap 9, points 66), added to the Guyanese performance by coming second in the A Flight. Christine also won the Best Gross in the female category.

There were more to come from the Guyanese contingent as Bissessar won in his field. The lone

Guyanese in the ‘C’ Flight, Bissessar (h/cap 26, points 65) brought first in that Flight. Meanwhile, Kalyan Tiwari and Christine Sukhram recorded the Longest Drive on day one in the male and female categories respectively, while Alfred Mentore recorded the Nearest to The Pin and Shanella Webster the Longest Drive on day two.

In addition, Dr. Philbert London, (h/cap 24, points 66,) placed fourth in the Men’s ‘B’ Flight, dropping there because, according to him, sympathizing with an older player who had lost his ball, he lost focus and concentration at that hole, enough to drop two or three points into fourth.

The Suriname Open

Golf Tournament was played under the Stableford System over two days.

Golfers’ total scores were taken from 36 holes to determine their final placement, however, individual day prizes were awarded for the Longest Drive and Nearest to The Pin performances.

Participating countries this year were Australia, Curacao, French Guiana, Guyana and host Suriname.

In the Ladies category there were two flights. The first Flight of eight golfers with handicaps ranging between15–21, along with Christine (h/cap 9).

The second Flight of seven golfers with handicaps 24–33. In the Men’s category, there were three flights; 28 golfers in the first or ‘A’ Flight were of handicaps 4–15; 17 in the second or ‘B’ Flight of handicaps 14-25; and 12 in the third or ‘C’ Flight of handicaps 26–30.

2nd Annual Nasir Memorial 5/5 Cricket Tournament on Sunday

T

he Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club, M.S will be hosting the 2nd annual Naeem Nasir Memorial 5/5 Cricket tournament on Sunday with support from long official sponsor, Bakewell. Nasir, the founder of Bakewell died a few years ago and is hailed as one of the main reasons why the RHTY&SC, M.S is widely considered as Guyana’s leading Youth and Sports organisation.

Secretary/CEO of the Club, Hilbert Foster hailed the late Bakewell CEO as a true friend and noted that his company since 2000 has invested millions of dollars into the club’s numerous programmes.

The 5/5 Cricket tournament he stated was part of the RHTY&SC, M.S efforts to keep Nasir’s memory alive and to pay tribute to an outstanding Guyanese icon and role model. The 5/5 tournament would bowl off at 9am at the Area ‘H’ Ground with twelve teams involved. Among the teams expected to take part in the tournaments are Rose Hall Town Bakewell, Rose Hall Estate, Fyrish, Toopoo Rising Star, Bush Lot United, Young and Restless, Good Bananen and Belvedere United.

Teams would be allotted twenty minutes to bowl their five overs while only two fielders would be allowed out of the 30 yards circle for the first over. A maximum of five fielders

Bakewell Berbice Supervisor Andre Sukwa hands over the sponsorship cheque to Chanderpaul Govindan of the RHTY&SC

would be allowed out of the circle for the last four overs.

All teams are expected to report to the Area ‘H’ Ground by 8:30h with two red cricket balls.

Umpires for the tournament would be provided by the Berbice Cricket Umpires Association.

A prize package of over $100,000.00 would be given to the top teams and Player of the Finals.

The energetic Secretary/ CEO stated that with the Berbice Cricket Board been injected in the High Court, Berbice Cricket is at the crossroad and unless something is done shortly, the situation would get worse.

The RHTY&SC, M.S he

stated would be organising a series of tournaments at the Under 15, Under 17, Under 19, Female, Second and First Division levels in a major effort to make sure that cricket is kept alive in the ancient county.

The long serving cricket official stated that when the RHTY&SC was founded in 1990, they were over 130 cricket clubs in the ancient county but today there are less than quarter of that amount due to the sickening state of Berbice, Guyana and West Indies Cricket. He warned that unless the stakeholders of Guyana’s Cricket learn to work for the betterment of the game and the younger generation, the game would die a natural death.

Bakewell has been sponsoring the Under 17 and Second Division teams of the RHTY&SC since 2000 and is the co-sponsor of over 20 other activities including the Annual Award Ceremony, Annual Youth review Magazine, Christmas Village, Mother and Father of the Year Programme, Annual Cricket Award and Christmas Senior Citizens hampers among others.

Foster expressed gratitude to Bakewell CEO Rajindranauth Ganga and the widow of the late Naeem Nasir, Annetta Nasir for their continued confidence in the RHTY&SC. He pledged that the tournament would be properly executed.

21

YELLOW

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Rudi Webster

R

West Indies team seems to be in a state of confusion – Dr Webster

ecently, Dwayne Bravo described the West Indies team in Dubai as a lost group. Bravo said, “I was there in Dubai and basically the players were lost, the management was lost, everything just looked like we were school kids again, and the team meetings had no sort of positive inputs or anything like that.”

Bravo claimed that the untimely sacking of coach Phil Simmons, who had the full support of the team, disturbed the entire momentum (motivation) of the squad. Surprise, surprise! The team in Dubai cannot be coached from an office in the Caribbean.

The West Indies team seems to be in a state of confusion. It is executing the basic skills poorly and has experienced a breakdown in leadership, teamwork, self-worth, self-discipline, and selfmotivation. This is serious stuff because these ingredients form the platform on which good performance is built.

In professional sport one can never overestimate the importance of selfdiscipline and self-motivation. The level of a player’s performance depends largely on the depth of his motivation and selfdiscipline. In fact, experts in performance now claim that at the highest levels of sport the correlation between self-discipline/ motivation and performance is twice as large as the correlation between ability and performance.

The Pygmalion principle is something that president Cameron and other leaders in the WICB should try to understand.

When a leader shares his vision and expectations with team members, communicates freely with them, clarifies their roles and responsibilities, and empowers them to feel like worthwhile and valuable people, he creates an awareness of purpose, a feeling of importance and a sense of belonging. Team members then bring passion and commitment with them especially when they believe that they can truly make a difference to the performance of the team. And when the leader correctly

directs and focuses those energies, he satisfies a major requirement for success.

Unfortunately, Cameron and his leadership team have done an awful job in these vital areas and cannot in any way be proud of their performance.

In war, no one has as yet found how to administer or manage people into battle.

They must be motivated to fight. The same is true in sport. In cricket, the battle is fought with balls and bats but it is the spirit and motivation of the man who leads and the players who follow that take the team to victory. The greatest leader in the world will never win a campaign unless he understands and motivates the people he has to lead. I am not sure that the director of cricket understands the culture and the psyche of the Caribbean people. And he does not seem to know how to motivate and empower his coaches and players. This I believe is a cause of his erratic behaviour and mediocre performance. The sacking of Simmons is a case in point.

The Board claimed that one of the reasons for the sacking of the coach was a difference in culture between the director/ WICB and Simmons. But the board’s culture is a losing culture that needs to be challenged and changed. The board cannot continue to support and propagate that culture and expect the fortunes of WI cricket to change.

WI players must take full responsibility for their performance on and off the field but they will not be able to give their best if they continue to operate in the hostile and toxic environment that currently exists.

This begs the question, for whose convenience and benefit is West Indies cricket designed? Is it designed to serve the players and coaches, or is it structured to satisfy the needs of the president, board members and the director of cricket in order to perpetuate their power to control and dictate? Democratic boards are designed to serve, support and empower rather than to direct, control and dictate.

As long as Cameron is in charge, the board

will stick to its rigid ways and continue to resist change. It will work in a nonlearning environment that stifles growth, innovation, development and good performance.

Teamwork and team spirit seem to be at an all-time low. But what type of teamwork is needed to improve the fortunes of WI cricket?

In American football, the head coach is the king. He has great power and usually calls the shots. His counterpart in WI cricket is the director of cricket. The main priority of the team is the implementation of the coach’s plan. Conformity is the name of the game and dissent and individuality are not encouraged or tolerated. Leadership and coaching have an inflexible and autocratic flavour.

In cricket, performance is built around the individual, so there is more emphasis on individual effort, style, motivation, and achievement. Motivation of the individual and management of his assets and weaknesses are top priorities. Having one rule for all can be counterproductive. Good presidents and cricket directors are smart enough to tolerate and accommodate internal differences and individual needs while focusing on the common goal. They value diversity and interdependence.

Teams run into trouble when the team plays one game and the administrators play a different game. For example, when a cricket director manages his team like an American football coach most things revolve around him and his plan rather than around his coaches and players. His need for control and conformity and his dislike of any kind of dissent invariably stifle individual talent and creativity and interfere with team dynamics and performance.

It is not too late for the director of cricket to change his ways. But will he be allowed to do so? He must stop behaving like an American football coach and start to play the same game that his team is playing, the game of cricket.

T&T haven’t dropped Soca Warriors tag, but aren’t using it either

T

he Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) has denied reports of an official name change for its national team from Soca Warriors to Red Army.

The refutation comes as a result of the prolonged legal battle between the association and sports broadcaster Selwyn Melville regarding the use of the Soca Warriors trademark. In the latest installment of the battle between the two the TTFA were recently served a pre-action protocol letter, which ordered a ban on use of the trademark in overseas markets.

In recent press releases the TTFA has used the term Red Army to refer to the team and there was a section at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo during the September 2 FIFA World Cup qualifier between TT and Guatemala.

TTFA president David John-Williams, Trinidad and Tobago national football team is popularly called Soca Warriors however, insisted there was no directive en that directive. If somebody chooses to use that name, given to change the name.

“I am not aware of that,” John-Williams told the T&T it’s okay. But the Board has given no (directive) to use the name Red Army,” he added. John Williams did go Newsday.

“We have given no (instruction) to use the words Red on to admit that the team was not using the name Soca Army in any of our press releases. The Board has not giv- Warriors either, but did not elaborate on the issue. (Sportsmax)

22

W

Another whitewash

thursday, october 6, 2016

GUYANA-TIMES.COM

est Indies dismal run in the United Arab Emirates continued on Wednesday with a heavy 136-run loss to Pakistan in the third and final match of the One Day International (ODI) Series.

Once again it was 21 year old talented right handed batsman Babar Azam, who charged his team into a commanding position at the half way mark. His 117 runs from 106 deliveries guided the ‘host’ to 308-6 at the end of their 50 overs.

Azam shared a 147-run second wicket stand with his skipper Azhar Ali (101), who broke the shackles of poor performances in the first two matches to register a century becoming the only Pakistani player to score three ODI hundreds as captain.

Meanwhile, Azam became the third Pakistan player - and eighth overall to score three consecutive ODI centuries. Finishing with the most runs in the T20 series, Azam also topped the batting in the ODIs with 360 runs at an average of 120. He was definitely a nightmare for the Caribbean side.

However, besides Azam and Ali’s brilliance, Pakistan middle and lower order lacked momentum to the latter part of the innings. Thus they fell short by some 40 runs to the end of their innings.

Although Pakistan innings stumbled at the end it was still better than the disastrous West Indies innings that followed. It looked scratchy from the start and lacked momentum until they were eventually shattered for a paltry score.

By the end of the 30th over, West Indies had soaked up 112 dot balls - as many as Pakistan had faced in their entire innings - and were wallowing in the gloom of impending defeat with the score 119 for 5. Their limp effort continued thereafter as the match drifted towards its inevitable conclusion.

On a flat pitch that became slower and more sluggish over time, the best time for batting was at the very start. Having won the toss, Pakistan batted first - for the third time in a row - and made the most of the good conditions early on, racing along to 36 off the first four overs. Opening bowlers Azarri Joseph and Shannon Gabriel clocked up speeds in excess of 140 kph - Gabriel hit the late 140s several times - but could not quite find the control to match. Sharjeel Khan was Babar Azam (right) and Azhar Ali added 147 for the characteristically strong square of the wicket, while Azhar second wicket showed nice touch, flicking through midwicket, driving down Malik 32 Pakistan innings (50 the ground and playing a commanding cut past backward overs maximum) 22 E Lewis b Sohail Khan square.

Azhar Ali* b Holder 101 DM Bravo c †Sarfraz Ahmed b The introduction of Kraigg Brathwaite and Jason Holder Wahab Riaz 17 Sharjeel Khan c Joseph b slowed the tempo of Pakistan’s innings somewhat, before Benn 38 MN Samuelsrun out Sunil Narine and Sulieman Benn helped West Indies regain 13 117 (Mohammad Rizwan) Babar Azam b Pollard a greater measure of control, stifling the batsmen with their D Ramdin† run out (Hasan Ali/ Shoaib Malik c †Ramdin b 37 Narine 5 Mohammad Rizwan) lack of pace and disciplined lines. Benn was rewarded in his 24 KA Pollard c Shoaib Malik b Sarfraz Ahmed† not out second over when Sharjeel lost patience and hit a well-flightMohammad Nawaz 11 Mohammad Rizwan ed delivery straight to Joseph at long-on.

26 JO Holder* b Imad Wasim b Joseph

lbw 4 With the spinners continuing to exert the squeeze, Azhar Imad Wasim c Bravo b Joseph 4 SP Narine st †Sarfraz Ahmed b and Azam meandered along, bringing up the team’s 100 in 0 Mohammad Nawaz not out 4 Mohammad Nawaz the 20th over. But as the partnership got going, the runs beSJ Benn c Sohail Khan (lb-7, w-3, nb-1) 11 Extras gan to flow again. Once Azam was set, he found the gaps with 0 Total (6 wickets; 50 overs) 308 b Mohammad Nawaz increasing ease. Azhar used the sweep and slog-sweep with c Shoaib Malik b AS Joseph Did not bat: Sohail Khan, great effectiveness against Benn. Pakistan’s second 100 runs Wahab Riaz 2 Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali came off just 83 balls.

ST Gabriel not out

1 Fall of wickets: 1-85 (Sharjeel 11 It was Holder who ended their partnership when Azhar, Khan, 14.1 ov), 2-232 (Azhar Ali, Extras (b-1, lb-4, w-6) 172 38.2 ov), 3-239 (Shoaib Malik, Total (all out; 44 overs) batting on 101, played a tired heave across the line of a slower 39.4 ov), 4-280 (Babar Azam, Fall of wickets 1-45 (Lewis, ball that clipped the top of off stump. Shoaib Malik was dis45.6 ov), 5-285 (Mohammad 9.2 ov), 2-75 (Brathwaite, missed by Narine next over as West Indies began to pull things back for the second time in the innings, just when Pakistan Rizwan, 46.4 ov), 6-303 (Imad 17.4 ov), 3-87 (Bravo, 20.6 would have wanted to push on. Azam picked up ones and twos as he approached his century, but, with only three wickets Wasim, 48.6 ov) ov), 4-93 (Samuels, 22.2 ov), down, Pakistan would have wanted rather more than that.

Bowling: AS Joseph 8-0-62-2 5-117 (Pollard, 29.1 ov), 6-159 (w-1), ST Gabriel 5-0-37-0 (nb- (Holder, 39.2 ov), 7-161 (Narine, Azam departed off the last ball of the 46th over, looking to paddle-sweep a yorker-length ball from Kieron Pollard, only to 1), KC Brathwaite 4-0-22-0, 40.2 ov), 8-161 (Benn, 40.6 ov), find his leg stump disturbed. Pakistan were 280 for 4 with four overs remaining. They added another 28, but the late charge JO Holder 10-0-63-1 (w-2), SP 9-170 (Joseph, 43.1 ov), 10-172 towards which they had been building never actually materialised.

Narine 10-0-47-1, SJ Benn 10-0- (Ramdin, 43.6 ov) It didn’t need to. West Indies’ openers, Lewis and Kraigg Brathwaite, started steadily, putting on 45 off 56 balls before 51-1, KA Pollard 3-0-19-1 Bowling: Imad Wasim 8-0-29Evin Lewis, on ODI debut, was bowled around his legs by Sohail Khan. That partnership turned out to be the biggest of West 1, Sohail Khan 7-0-34-1 (w-3), Hasan Ali 6-1-13-0, Shoaib Malik Indies’ innings, as wickets fell regularly thereafter. A 42-run sixth-wicket partnership between Holder and Denesh Ramdin West Indies innings (target: 6-0-23-1 (w-1), Mohammad 309 runs from 50 overs) was the only other stand of substance, but it came after the match was all but lost. Once Imad Wasim broke that stand, the Nawaz 9-0-40-3 (w-1), Wahab KC Brathwaite lbw b Shoaib end came quickly, with the last five wickets falling for the addition of just 13 runs.

Riaz 8- 0-28-2 (w-1) West Indies now move to prepare for the Test series, with a warm up match against a Pakistan select XI starting Friday.

– Azam’s 3rd ton floors Windies

SCOREBOARD

GMR&SC President gives thumbs up to successful drag racing season - shifts focus to CMRC meet

Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMR&SC) President Raj Boodhoo

L

ast Sunday’s “Drag Warz 2” brought the curtains down on what the Guyana Motor Racing &Sports Club (GMR&SC) President Raj Boodhoo hails as a successful drag racing season and now the focus for the club will be the hosting of the final leg of the Caribbean Motor Racing Championships (CMRC) on November 13 at the South Dakota Circuit, Timehri.

When Guyana Times Sport spoke to Boodhoo he explained that “Sunday’s drag racing meet was successful, it helped build the hype for the highly anticipated November meet.”

The final drag race meet saw the likes of Sean Persaud

being crowned the champion of the eight-second category thrilling the thousands in attendance while driving a powerful Toyota Caldina.

Persaud picked up from where Nazurdeen Mohammed left off as he had he had the town talking with the excitement his Nissan GTR brought.

Quizzed on his view on the level of attendance to watch the quarter-mile dash the President revealed that it was a “very good turnout” and has air marked a target of 20,000 fans for the November meet.

Guyana, who are defending champion have struggled this season and are sitting on third on the points table with leaders Trinidad and Tobago having an sizable lead but Boodhoo is still optimistic that Guyana can produce a good showing on home turf.

As such the President disclosed that close to 150 competitors are expected to arrive for the meet and they will be making improvements to the club house and making other necessary seating arrange-

ments for fans.

Though the script in who will be the champion drivers seems to be written already, the motor cycle category is still open, as the Vieira’s clan will be going head to head to ride off with the title. Currently, Mathew leads the points standings but if former champion Stephen wins all of his three races he will be able to regain a title he has won four times in the past. However, Elliot, though mathematically cannot defend his title, he will be hoping to have his own fun by claiming race-day champion driver. In the coming weeks, the GMR&SC is expected to roll out various plans to increase the attendance at what is the biggest race event on their calendar of events. The South Dakota, which is referred to as the ‘Mecca of motor racing in the Caribbean’ usually attracts in excess of 20,000 spectators for the final leg of the annual CMRC and this year the numbers are expected to increase significantly.

guyana-times.com

THURsday, october 6, 2016

Scotiabank Men’s Caribbean Cup....

Golden Jaguars need to rise to challenge – Shabazz

By Akeem Greene

T

he National Football team, the Golden Jaguars are in round three of the Scotiabank Men’s Caribbean Cup, and if they progress, a historic achievement will occur as they will qualifying for the prestigious Gold Cup for the first time ever.

The first two hurdles the team must leap are that of nemesis Suriname and the formidable Jamaica Reggae Boyz and according to Head Coach, Jamaal Shabazz, the team must rise to the challenge.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday evening at the team’s final practice session at the Leonora stadium before departure to Suriname today, the coach firmly stated the team must overcome the challenges presented.

“We want to look with courage and confidence going into the game against Suriname and try to get the result we want; we have to accept the situation and do the best for our country, it’s not ideal but its good when you are able to face challenges and overcome them.”

Shabazz added “While we are not satisfied that we got the best preparation, we have come to understand that life is full of challenges and in football when you get the squad together and the players are united and motivated to play, challenges die a natural death.”

On Saturday, the Jaguars play Suriname at the Andre Kamperveen Stadium (Paramaribo) from 16:30h and in the last four encounters between Guyana and Suriname; the Guyanese have triumphed thrice while drawing once.

Commenting on the composition for the squad for the match, the coach explained that it is a good mixture of youth and experience and more so, they choose players who had previous knowledge of playing against the opponents.

“We have a good blend of youth and experience; the fact that we playing to world class opponents, Suriname has been a long time now, a worthy opponents for Guyana and Jamaica is considered the top team in

Golden Jaguars Head Coach Jamaal Shabazz

Caribbean football; the surprise pick may be Anthony Abrams, he is 37 but he has played a lot in Suriname so he is a horse for that cause, Quincy Adams, Walter Moore have

also h a d e x p e r i ence playing there”, the head coach explained.

He further stated that “We chose a squad for this trip that we feel are quite capable of getting us a result that we desire, it is a difficult time and we need a crew that could weather the storm”.

Some new additions to the squad are USA based winger Cash London who plays for Cal Poly San Luis in California, goalkeeper Andrew Nestor who plays for St. Francis in Brooklyn New York and Anani Mohammed who recently signed with Mexican

Second Division team Atalante; Kai McKenzie Lyle, a 6ft 5 goalkeeper who plays for Barnett in the English Division Two and USA born midfielder Warren Creavalle who plays for the Philadelphia Union in the MLS. After playing the Dutch on Saturday, the attention will be turned to the Reggae Boyz on Tuesday for clash at Leonora but the coach says the focus is on Suriname for the moment.

“It’s all about the attitude we bring to the task now, we want to take it one step at a time, Suriname is team we have to play now and we are focused on that and we want to go in with the right mental approach and right level of enthusiasm; we are up for the task” the confident Shabazz disclosed.

The full squad reads: Goalkeepers – Kai McKenzie Lyle, Andrew Nestor, Alex Murray Defenders – Jake Newton, Samuel Cox, Quincy Adams, Walter ‘Boyd’ Moore, Adrian Butters, Colin Nelson, Anani Mohammed Midfielders – Dwight Peters, Cash London, Trayon Bobb, Christopher Nurse, Brandon Beresford, Warren Creavalle, Daniel Wilson, Kevin Beaton Forwards – Anthony ‘Awo’ Abrams, Vurlon Mills, Marcel Barrington, Pernel Schultz. (akeemg@ guyanatimesgy.com)

23

Wolf Challenge Cup

High-voltage Regal Masters out Floodlights ― quarter-finals set for DCC on Sunday

T

he excitement in softball cricket continued last Sunday at the Malteenoes Cricket Club ground, Thomas Lands with five matches in two categories.

In the Masters match, Regal Masters led by an unbroken 109-run partnership for the fifth wicket snatched victory from the jaws of defeat against Floodlights.

Set 183 to win from 20 overs, Regal were reduced to 74/4 in the 10th over before achieving victory with six wickets in hand and one over to spare.

Opener Mahesh Chunilall carried his bat for 54 which included six maximums but it was Eric Thomas who took the attack to Floodlights. Thomas blasted eight towering sixes in a batting exhibition that left everyone breathless as he finished on 66 not out. Raymond Harper made 20 (2x6; 1x4) while Wayne Jones snatched 2/51 from his four overs.

When Floodlights batted,

Eric Thomas

Jones top scored with an unbeaten 68 (6x6; 3x4) and added 105 runs for the third wicket with Ramesh Narine who made 61 (3x6; 4x4) while Uniss Yusuf contributed 20. Faleem Mohamed with 4/52 and David Harper 2/30 were the wicket takers to set up the exciting match which ended Floodlights participation in the tournament.

The top four teams will now contest the semi-finals which are set for the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) ground this Sunday.

On Pitch number One at 10:00h Wellman will take

on Wolf Warriors Masters while on Pitch number Two also at 10:00h Regal Masters and Fisherman Masters go at each other for a place in the semi-finals.

The afternoon fixtures will bring together Parika Defenders and HS Masters on Pitch number One at 13:00h and Superior Woods and Albion Masters will battle on Pitch number Two. In action in the female category also on Sunday, Trophy Stall Angels completed a clean sweep after beating Wellwoman and Enterprise Divas while Blue Divas and 4R Lioness recorded one win.

Trophy Stall Angels, Wellwoman, 4R Lioness and Blue Divas have all booked their semi-final spots and will get back into action on Sunday October 23 at DCC when the semi-finals and final will be played.

The Open segment of the competition is also at the knock out stage and will culminate at DCC also on October 23.

Bel-Air Rubis, Trophy Stall fuelling U-13 cricket

Ramesh Sunich (left) handing over the winning trophy to Anil Persaud in the presence of two Under-13 players and Guyana Floodlights Softball Cricket Association representative Anil Beharry

A

t a simple but significant launching ceremony held last Friday evening at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) Ground, Queenstown, Georgetown, Bel-Air Rubis Service Station and the Trophy Stall, Bourda Market have jointly injected sponsorship into a much needed under 13 cricket competition for teams on the East Coast Demerara. Teams or clubs from Georgetown and other areas are also encouraged to participate.

The tournament will give exposure to the younger cricketers and is open to any team from any part of the country. Teams interested in participation may indicate their interest to tournament organizers Mohamed Ashmul Ali and Anil Persaud as soon as possible by call-

ing 222-0189, 652-5896 or 624-6098. The championship which will commence shortly will be of two innings duration with an upper limit of 30 overs in the first innings.

The second innings will be unlimited. The organizers and sponsors decided on this regulation so as to make sure that there is at least a first innings result.

Speaking on behalf of the sponsors, Ramesh Sunich of Trophy Stall, Bourda Market, said that he is delighted to be part sponsor of this tournament and commended his co-sponsor Lalta Gainda of Bel Air Rubis for the initiative. He further stated that for West Indies cricket to turn around their fortunes, it has to start from the grass root level and he hopes that this tournament will unearth

some Ramnaresh Sarwans, Shivnarine Chanderpauls, Lance Gibbs and Clive Lloyds among many other outstanding cricketers produced by Guyana.

Speaking on behalf of the East Coast Cricket Committee, Anil Persaud thanked the sponsors for coming onboard and for showing interest in the young and upcoming cricketers.

The tournament which will be organized by Mohamed Ashmul Ali and Anil Persaud is fully endorsed by the Guyana Cricket Board and will play under the guidance of the East Coast Cricket Committee.

Only players born during or after the year 2004 will be eligible.

thursday, october 6, 2016

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

Pg 22

Another whitewash – Azam’s 3rd ton floors Windies

Pakistan climb ahead of West Indies to number eight in the ODI rankings after the whitewash

Scotiabank Men’s Caribbean Cup....

Golden Jaguars need to rise to challenge – Shabazz

Pg 23

Final touches! Members of the Golden Jaguars engaged in their final practice session at the National Track and Field Facility at Leonora on Wednesday

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