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Issue No. 3155

THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Friday, March 17, 2017

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GAWU urges PM to get acquainted with misfortunes of affected workers

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WHAT'S INSIDE:

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GO-Invest audit

Loopholes identified now closed – GOInvest Chair

…says Govt promoting policies that will make a bad situation worse

Page MMA2 Claims to Guyana’s territory ADA “expansionist ambition” head – President Granger office Page ...Venezuela says Exxon oil operations in 2 Guyana violate Geneva agreement robbed PSC raises issues of sole sourcing, increased taxes, other concerns with IMF team Page

…says services, oversight of investors have been improved P10

Guyana-Venezuela border controversy

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GRA warns of imposters collecting P10 monies on livestock

2 remanded for 2016 Rose Hall murder P8

Wakapao P13 residents bemoan lack of health services The Private Sector Commission (PSC) met Thursday with the International Monetary Fund Mission team currently in Guyana. The PSC expressed its satisfaction with the Government’s operationalising of the Public Procurement Commission and facilitation of Local Government Elections, which had not been held for many years, but expressed concern over instances of sole sourcing of contracts which have occurred despite the existence of the Procurement Commission

Govt must do more Procurement delays, to encourage exorbitant prices will force investment billion-dollar supplementary – outgoing GCCI …still no system to replace prequalification criteria for reliability President Pharma scandal

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P12 Social cohesion binds ethnic groups together – President

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friDAY, march 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Guyana-Venezuela border controversy

Claims to Guyana’s territory “expansionist ambition” – President Granger ...Venezuela says Exxon oil operations in Guyana violate Geneva agreement

V

enezuelan newspaper El Nacional has published a report detailing that the Energy and Petroleum Commission of the National Assembly of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is convinced that the oil exploration ongoing in Guyana violates the Geneva Agreement of 1966 and Article 10 of The Bolivarian Constitution of Venezuela, “which clearly establishes the Venezuelan territory”.

But in a statement issued to the media on Thursday following publication of the El Nacional article, The Ministry of the Presidency maintains that Guyana has always respected the 1899 Arbitral Tribunal’s Award as being the final settlement of the border controversy, and that President Granger views Venezuela’s claims to

Guyana’s territory as “expansionist ambition”.

The statement further reveals that the Administration of President David Granger has committed to bringing an end to the decades-old border controversy between Guyana and neighbouring Venezuela through judicial intervention, since Venezuela is bent on seeking to prove that it owns part of Guyana, despite the decision handed down by the Arbitral Tribunal.

Rejected

The Energy and Petroleum Commission of Venezuela has rejected the legality of oil operations ongoing in Guyana’s Essequibo region. Venezuela has, for several decades, been claiming Guyana’s territory, although the border issue has been settled since 1899.

According to the El Nacional report, vice-president of the parliamentary body, Deputy for Zulia, Elías Matta, tabled the draft agreement, explaining that, “As stipulated in Article 5 of the Geneva Agreement, no resource can be exploited if there is no agreement between both nations”.

“Deputy Matta said the

Guyana Government carried out the expansion of oil prospecting operations in May 2015, in which ExxonMobil reported a discovery at the Liza-1 well of the Stabroek Block.

“Likewise, on November 17, 2016, the commercialisation of the same was announced, estimating its recoverable resources (at)

between 800 million and 1.4 billion barrels of high quality crude oil belonging to the coastal waters of the Essequibo”, the report noted.

The Venezuelan Parliamentary Commission wants the Venezuelan Government to send this “agreement” to the new UN Good Officer for the Guyana/ Venezuela conflict. The Commission also wants the UN official “to immediately suspend all operations carried out within the maritime area corresponding to the territory in claim until the dispute is resolved.” The UN Good Officer has no such powers, according to local officials familiar with the process.

The border controversy, which was not on Venezuela’s front burner for several years – after being first officially mooted in 1962 – was reignited when US oil giant ExxonMobil began exploratory works in the Stabroek Block offshore the Essequibo. With Guyana on the verge of becoming a lucrative oil-producing nation, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro issued a decree in May 2015, purporting to claim the majority of Guyana’s waters off the Essequibo. The decree was a flagrant violation of international law, and was inconsistent with the principle that all states should respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other states.

In an effort to defend its sovereignty, Guyana

has made it clear to the Venezuelan Government that the Essequibo and the waters offshore belong to Guyana, and has strengthened its push for judicial settlement of the issue, as the Good Offices process had yielded little result.

Settled

The border dispute between Guyana and Venezuela was settled by an international tribunal in 1899 in an award the parties, including Venezuela, had agreed would be the final settlement.

Since Venezuela began adopting a belligerent attitude towards Guyana, moves have been made by the international community, including the UN Secretary General, to push for a peaceful resolution of the issue.

Fifty years ago, shortly before Guyana’s independence in 1966, the Geneva Agreement was signed with the aim of amicably resolving the controversy, which has arisen because Venezuela contends that the Arbitral Award of 1899 in regard to the frontier between Venezuela and what is now the Cooperative Republic of Guyana is null and void.

The 1966 Geneva Agreement confers on the Secretary General of the United Nations the power to choose the means of settling this controversy from among those that are contemplated in Article 33 of the United Nations Charter.

MMA-ADA head office robbed

MMA-ADA head office in Number 27 Village, Onverwagting was ransacked during the wee hours of Thursday

A

Police investigation is now in full swing after the Mahaica/ Mahaicony/Abary Agriculture Development Association (MMA-ADA) main office in Number 27 Village, Onverwagting (Region Five) was ransacked by bandits during the wee hours of Thursday.

General Manager of the establishment, Aubrey Charles related to the press that the incident reportedly occurred at approximately 00:30h; however,

he explained that he was only made aware around 02:30h.

The General Manager expressed his reluctance to impart any information given the premature stage of the investigation.

This newspaper understands that no one was injured during the robbery.

Details surrounding the stolen articles remain undisclosed.

Efforts made by the media to contact the Divisional Commander proved futile.

news

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friDAY, march 16, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Friday, March 17 – 05:00h-06:30h and Saturday, March 18 – 08:30h-10:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Friday, March 17 – 07:00h-08:30h and Saturday, March 18 – 07:30h-09:00h.

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

WEATHER TODAY Light rain showers with sunny intervals can be expected throughout the day, with sunny weather prevailing in the later afternoon. Clear skies can be expected in the evening with temperatures ranging between 25 degrees and 28 degrees Celsius.

Winds: North-easterly between 4.47 metres and 5.36 metres.

High Tide: 07:10h and 19:33h reaching maximum heights of 2.60 metres and 2.50 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 00:47h and 13:07h reaching minimum heights of 0.66 metre and 0.62 metre respectively.

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Estate closures

GAWU urges PM to get acquainted with misfortunes of affected workers

…says Govt promoting policies that will make a bad situation worse

A

s sugar workers continue to contemplate an uncertain future, their representative body, the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) has taken great objection to Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo’s recent “affirmation” that the sugar industry would not be closed.

On Thursday, the Union suggested that the PM’s comments were inconsistent with moves that Government has undertaken via its reported intention to close operations at Enmore, the Rose Hall factory and to privatise the Skeldon plant.

“The Prime Minister, Mr Nagamootoo, may also want to acquaint himself with the misfortunes that have beset the workers and linked interest groups with the recent closure of Wales Estate in total disregard of the sound advice from the Union,” GAWU stressed.

On Wednesday, the Prime Minister was quoted as saying that he wished the Union had engaged Government in finding solutions to safeguard the sugar industry. However, GAWU sought to remind the senior Government official of engagements that took place on December 31, 2016; and February 3 and February 17, 2017 with Government, led

by Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, GAWU, the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) and the Opposition, People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).

“During those meetings, we provided a submission to the Government containing a number of workable proposals to safeguard the sugar industry without the sad recourse to closure and sellout as is currently being advocated, seemingly, by the Administration,” GAWU pointed out on Thursday.

The Union also reminded that it had called for submissions from the sugar Commission of Inquiry

The sugar industry will not be closed: Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo speaking at the Rose Hall Sugar Estate Martyrs memorial on Wednesday

(CoI) and the parliamentary Economic Services Committee to be made, further suggesting that the Prime Minister was not involved when key decisions were made on the industry.

“It seems that the Prime Minister is out at sea and clearly not au fait with what is taking place. That notwithstanding, we are prepared to engage the Prime Minister and his colleagues to share our ideas and proposals to put the sugar industry on a viable and sustainable path,” GAWU noted.

Workers’ interest

While sharing Government’s view that the industry should be made profitable, the Union says it cannot support any decision which would harm the livelihood of the workers.

“We cannot countenance any proposal which will see estates closed and sold out; that will result in thousands being pushed on to the breadline and many communities adversely affected. It defies logic that a government is promoting profitability while at the same time pushing too many of our people into depravity and suffering,” the Union stressed.

GAWU also urged the Prime Minister to look at proposals it had put forward during the consultation process, to avoid what it

GAWU General Secretary Seepaul Narine

said were “harsh repercussions” of the proposals that the Administration and the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) made.

“Already, we have learnt from workers that cane planting has ceased at Rose Hall and East Demerara Estates indicating that those estates are being prepared for closure. Our Union has already written GuySuCo to seek a meeting to discuss this move and looks forward to an early engagement. GAWU holds strongly that the industry can be turned around and become profitable as we outlined in our position of February 17, 2017,” an official statement from the Union added.

It was at the commemorative ceremony of the 104th anniversary of the Rose Hall Sugar Estate Martyrs that the Prime Minister made the declaration that the sugar industry would not be closed. According to the Government Information Agency (GINA), Nagamootoo related that while sugar estates are closing down very rapidly, Guyana has to ensure that GuySuCo does not come out of sugar.

“We cannot give up the effort to transform the industry, to modernise [the] sugar industry…the sugar industry would not be closed. I do not see this ever happening in my lifetime,” the PM was quoted as saying.

It was earlier this year

that it was disclosed that the Albion, Uitvlugt and Blairmont Estates would continue functioning. This followed high-level sugar consultations at the end of December 2016 when Government, through dialogue with stakeholders, had first stated its intention to shut down two estates and privatise the Skeldon plant.

Documents that Government tendered revealed that there would be divestment of Skeldon. In fact, Agriculture Minister Noel Holder told Guyana Times in early March that Government wanted Skeldon out of its remit.

“What we know is we have to get rid of Skeldon – Skeldon is a hole that we can’t come out of,” Holder had told this newspaper.

Closures

But in response to the decisions, GAWU voiced heavy criticisms against the coalition Government for moving forward with plans to close estates.

GAWU General Secretary Seepaul Narine had even questioned whether the Government had any vision for the country.

“We don’t agree with it and we had made our presentation to the Government, explaining why we don’t agree…the people running this country don’t have any vision for the people who they govern over because they have not done any social impact studies,” Narine had strongly stated.

Over the years, Government has given significant budgetary allocations to the cash-strapped sugar industry. In fact, when word spread that Wales Estate would cease sugar operations, after Guyana Times broke the story, the Government cited cost as the main factor for closure. However, hundreds of sugar workers, their families and surrounding communities have been affected and some are still awaiting severance packages after declining to be transferred to the Uitvlugt Estate.

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friDAY, march 17, 2017

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

Not too late for impact assessments

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ith the imminent closure of more sugar estates in Guyana, the issue of the plight of sugar workers has been dominating the news over the past few weeks. Everyone knows that no matter how the authorities try to spin the issue, the resulting impact on individuals and communities would be quite significant and perhaps will take years before they can fully recover.

From all indications, the Government seems bent on moving forward with its plans to close more of the estates and is moving to finalise its options with regard to the future of the sugar industry. Minister of State Joseph Harmon had told the media that Government is in the process of examining proposals with respect to diversification. However, very little to this date was mentioned about how the Administration intends to deal with the communities that would be affected due to the large number of persons who will be out of employment.

It is also quite unfortunate that in spite of the daily protests by sugar workers across the country calling for the Administration to look into their concerns, officials have basically turned a blind eye and are operating as if they are unconcerned. For example, the Wales workers’ contention is that they cannot be compelled to travel to the Uitvlugt Estate on the West Coast of Demerara, some 22 miles from Wales, hence some of them opted for a severance package.

While the authorities are claiming that workers received their payments, some workers are claiming otherwise. They had taken their protest over non-payment of severance packages which were promised since December 2016 to the President’s office, but very little was, or is, being done to engage them on the issue.

To begin with, we believe that the situation would not have escalated to this level had the Government and Guyana Sugar Corporation’s (GuySuCo) management been more honest and open from the inception. After all, this is peoples’ livelihoods that would be affected and they deserve to be fully engaged on what matters to them. Policymakers cannot just make decisions at the top and proceed with implementing those decisions without taking into consideration how peoples’ lives would be impacted.

More importantly, we support the view of many commentators and analysts that no informed decision can be made on the sugar industry without any proper and detailed impact assessments being carried out. At one of its stakeholder consultation meetings some time ago, Government officials indicated that no social or economic assessments were done before, particularly ahead of its decision to close the Wales Sugar Factory, to ascertain the implications.

One is therefore forced to ask how can the Administration move ahead with such a policy without taking into account how it will affect thousands of families, hundreds of communities and businesses and the national economy as a whole.

Just a few days ago, economist Sasenarine Singh pointed out that the premise upon which such a decision was taken was “totally non-transparent” and lacked “a comprehensive understanding of the social impact on rural Guyana”. He explained that if the intention was to reduce the drag on the fiscal performance of the economy, then the first thing any skillful policymaker would have done was conduct a fullblown Socioeconomic Impact Assessment (SIA) on different options available to Government.

On his part, Agriculture Minister Noel Holder had explained that due to time constraints and the need to resolve the operating expenses at GuySuCo, Government could not conduct a social and economic impact assessment before closing estates. He had said that an impact assessment would take between nine months to a year to be completed and Government and the economy could not afford to maintain the system and the bailouts.

We urge the Government to focus on developing a plan of action to have these assessments completed and to engage industry stakeholders, especially the workers’ union to come up with a solution that would see their interests being foremost. It is still not too late.

Youths in Region 3 were exposed to a range of information on a number of available careers in Guyana, on Thursday, as the Education Department of Region Three in partnership with the Guidance and Counselling Unit held its first career fair at the Leonora Technical and Vocational Centre under the theme “Predict your future by creating it.”

Freddie inaccurate on Rhyaan, Dev and Swami

Dear Editor, Freddie Kissoon’s inaccuracies in his writings know no bounds. He attacks Indians without justification. In his latest attack on Indian intellectuals, he made several assertions without an iota of evidence. And his poorly written essay is replete with factual errors. One cannot help but laugh at Freddie’s ignorance and lack of scholarly depth in analyzing socio-economic and politico phenomenon.

Freddie stated: “Guyana will explode if people like (the dynamic) Ravi Dev and Ryhaan Shah are not confronted (sic)”. He is right – the intensity of their brilliance will cause the society to explode in search of an understanding and workable solution to the serious social problems facing the nation.

Indian scholars like Shah, Dev and others are commemorating the centenary of the passing of legislation marking the end of indentureship. Freddie describes them as possessing a belief in ethnic superiority, but he offers no evidence to support this false assertion. It is a figment of Freddie’s imagination, and that is his style of writing – attack without evidence. Dev, Shah, I and other Indian scholars and community leaders believe in absolute equality for all – that is

in the literature, and is consistently and repeatedly stated in our prolific writings; which are based on facts, not innuendoes, which characterize Freddie’s writings.

We want all ethnic groups to have an equal space.

What is wrong with Dev telling Indians to protect their gains (made since indentureship) as a people, especially now that they are under assault by the state? When African leaders tell their supporters to protect their rights, Freddie does not describe them as racial supremacists, because he is fearful of them; but when Indians assert their rights, Freddie attacks these Indians. Burnham, Hoyte, Reid, Green, Hinds, Kwayana, Ogunseye and Eric Phillips told their supporters to protect their gains made since slavery. Granger, at last year’s emancipation observances, told Africans to protect their gains. So what is wrong if Dev and Shah similarly advise Indians?

Freddie wrote: “Black leaders did not urge Black Guyanese to do what Dev is instilling in Indians to do”.

Which planet has Freddie been living in? How does he explain what happened at Agricola and Buxton on numerous occasions; and in December 1997, January 1998, March 2001, etc at the

court house, Regent Street, at the Presidential Secretariat, etc.? How does Freddie describe the ranting of some African leaders against Indians?

Freddie is also inaccurate on media ownership. He claims Bharrat Jagdeo is an owner of Guyana Times, but the paper’s masthead or company registrar has no such listing.

Freddie dumped his miasmic writings on His Holiness, Swami Aksharananda – holder of one of the highest spiritual titles (lexicography) in Hinduism. Freddie’s lack of knowledge of Hinduism is profound. Freddie described SVN as a “huge Hindu school owned and operated by a Hindu priest, Aksharananda”.

Firstly, Aksharananda-ji is not a priest; he is a swami. There is a difference between a priest (pandit, not priest) and a swami (who performs seva and is higher than a pandit in devotion to the lord. Scholars don’t call the Pope a priest. Freddie disrespects Swami because Swami is an intellectual and a scholar, and Freddie is not.

Swami has a doctorate, and Freddie does not. SVN is owned by the community, not Swami-ji. Aksharananda-ji administers the school for the community and the board.

Freddie claims 96% of the

economy is in the hands of Indians; can he please provide the source of that claim?

Look at all the big companies in Guyana – few are owned

by Indians. The state (PNC) controls 40% of the economy, so that means Indians cannot own 96%. Non-Indians own about a third of the economy, and with the state controlling 40%, it means that less than 25% of the economy is in the hands of Indians.

In analyzing the latest US election, Freddie wrote that “Republican Donald Trump won the presidency because of the South”. He is factually incorrect. Trump won the election primarily because of his victories in swing states in the north (far from the south). The south traditionally votes Republican – no gains there for Trump. It was his victories in the north, like in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, that took him over the top (270 electoral votes).

Clearly, Freddie does not understand or know American politics. As Guyanese told me in a recent survey I conducted, “Freddie is a duncey and is jealous of the progress of Indians”.

Freddie needs to return to school to learn basics on every social science phenomenon.

Yours truly, Dr. Vishnu Bisram

Is it the end of operations at Skeldon?

Dear Editor, In my letter to the print media on Feb. 25th, 2017, I committed to provide this nation with fact-based details and analyses on the sugar industry, despite the excruciating pain it inflicts on GuySuCo’s IMC and its massive salaries for the top boys.

Editor, I will demonstrate

once again the deceptive tactics employed by GuySuCo to achieve its shut-down and sell-out goals. It is now public knowledge that GuySuCo’s CEO proposes divestment for the Skeldon Estate, a process projected to deliver 1.6 billion dollars to GuySuCo’s coffers and reduce Govt.’s overall subsidy for 2017. The

Corporation is also pellucid that it does not have resources to maintain that Estate.

Govt. has latched on to these positions, and is pursuing divestment relentlessly.

We now come to GuySuCo’s belated announcement of the abandonment of the 1st crop for 2017 at Skeldon, citing two unsafe boilers as the

reason. In that announcement, GuySuCo shifted focus to Skeldon Energy Inc (SEI), and explained that the company is making “every effort” to operationalize the two co-generation units in late August 2017, giving an impression that Skeldon will operate in the 2nd crop of 2017. continued on page 5

guyanatimesgy.com

friDAY, march 17, 2017

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You can send your letters with pictures to: Guyana Times, Queens Atlantic Investment Estate Industrial Site, Ruimveldt, Georgetown, Guyana or letters@guyanatimesgy.com

Very, very ominous signs Dear Editor, From the time the APNU+AFC regime took office, it has been demonstrating a strong anti-democracy tendency, which is leading towards another PNC-style dictatorship.

The first major indication was its totally insensitive action of hiking the pay of its officials by more than 50% and giving them allowance hikes by thousands of percentage points. The latest action was the arrest of many officials of the former PPP/C Administration. Those arrests were all wrongful; and in the case of former President Bharrat Jagdeo, illegal.

The regime’s main purpose was to incite fear in the population. They not only arrested several high-profile persons, but even went on to celebrate it: the party at the Oasis Café, where the bullies were enjoying their “accomplishments, drinking wine

and other exotic alcoholic beverages.

Like the old PNC regime, they seem to lack national pride, as they had a British national directing the work of SOCU. They seem to be happy taking orders from a foreign national, in this case a citizen of Britain, our former coloniser.

The APNU + AFC regime is in the process of subverting our institutions. The SOCU which was set up to investigate and fight money-laundering is now being used as the regime’s political tool. Its main purpose now is to harass PPP/C members and supporters.

We are now also witnessing the creation of another body, SARA, whose leaders are already interrogating business people at the Ministry of the Presidency.

Obviously, having set up this elaborate and very expensive apparatus, the APNU+ AFC

regime will have to justify its existence, even if it means framing and setting up people. This is iron logic of where they will lead and take us.

These bodies are stacked with relatives, associates from former law firms, old party hacks and other friends; it is just another way of milking the treasury. Now the regime is putting forward a Bill that is going to give enormous powers to the executive branch of Government. The Bill states that the President will have the power to dismiss Ministers. That, however, is an authority he/she already has. The frightening one is the power being given to the Minister in the Ministry of the Presidency. He/she will have the power to dismiss elected Members of Parliament.

This is a very dangerous development, which will lead to authoritarianism. I say this because members of that august body have been elected

by the people. We cannot now give that right to anyone other than the persons that the Constitution so authorizes.

The APNU+AFC regime’s attitude to the Constitution is that it is a piece of paper. So many of their actions are in violation of the Constitution that it cannot now be seen as an oversight or accident.

Tender procedures are violated and awards are being made to APNU+AFC financiers. These are costing our tax payers billions of dollars.

Appointments to constitutional bodies are being manipulated. The judges recommended by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) are not being appointed.

Attempts are clearly being made to pack the Court with judges whom the regime feels it can rely on. That is why some are saying, “We put dem deh; they gat fuh rule for us”.

In the Parliament, the Speaker is not acting impar-

tially. At the last sitting, he stopped MP Nandlall from speaking about the salary of the Prime Minister after he allowed Jordan to talk about former Presidents’ pension.

At every sitting, he disrupts the Opposition Members of the National Assembly when they are speaking.

Constitutional appointments are also being subverted. A case in point is the position of Chairman of the Elections Commission. The Constitution is clear on who is so qualified, yet the regime ruled that a list provided by the Leader of the Opposition after he had had wide ranging consultations was unacceptable.

All these are more than just signs. They are an indication of where we are heading.

Already, many are expressing fear; they feel that their rights are being violated. Almost everyone feel that their telephone conversations are be-

ing listened to.

Now they have moved a step further to stifle dissent by arresting Opposition leaders of the PPP/C. It is important to point out that, after the 1964 elections, the PNC regime targeted the PPP leaders as well. The then PPP Chairman, Cedric Nunes, was detained for years, along with others.

However, it was not confined to PPP. Later, particularly after 1973, the then regime went against anyone expressing any views that were not in coincidence with that of the PNC regime.

This is just the beginning.

People need to defend the gains we have made in this country. No concession should be made to any violation of our human and constitutional rights. Stand up now, before it is too late.

Donald Ramotar Former President

Culture Minister’s performance

Dear Editor, Some may say it’s hard to judge a book by its cover; but oftentimes, after a few chapters, it gets easier to grasp the gist of the story. It has been close to two years now since the Guyanese public has had a chance to read some of the chapters in that book defined as “The Performance of the Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Ms. Nicolette Henry”.

More and more, as the people delve deeper into this book, they are asking this question: How on earth can such a person become a Minister, after exhibiting so much ignorance in regard to her portfolio?

Is this a systemic problem? It can become a bit disconcerting to glance at the line-up in the cabinet room.

One can easily conclude that the competent are clearly in the minority in the Granger cabinet. Of course you have the likes of Carl Greenidge

and Raphael Trotman, who can hold their own in any cabinet room on any day of the year, because of their sound technical competence. But at the other end of the spectrum, you have the likes of Nicolette Henry, who clearly seems not capable of differentiating between Phagwah and Deepavali. But if my memory serves me right, this is the kind of stuff that I learned in primary school in the hard PNC days, when students struggled to access textbooks.

Today, I am told, all primary school students are learning this lesson from a textbook called “Social Studies for Our Children, Book 1”.

I saw this video of the Minister’s performance, and clearly if this was a Freudian slip, shame on no one; it is human to err. But after slipping once, it is clear from the video that the Minister remained clueless as to her error, and pressed on like a “be-righter” (someone who is always

Is it the end of...

In condensing these pieces of information on Skeldon, we have (1) a keen interest to divest; (2) no resources to sustain operations; and (3) dependence on SEI to fix the co-generation plants. From this position, the obvious questions that come to any logical mind are: (1) Assuming that SEI fixes the co-generation plant by August 2017, will GuySuCo operate Skeldon in the 2nd crop of 2017? The Corporation has already stated that it does not have the resources to so do.

(2) What is the present status of repair works on the co-generation plant?

If repair work is not in progress at this moment, it is clear that there is no urgency to complete such works by August 2017. Any major boil-

from page 4

er repair – such as replacing generating and superheating tubes, effecting repairs to air-heaters and economizers – is time consuming.

My fellow citizens ought to brace themselves to receive another stunning announcement – on the cancellation of operations for the 2nd crop of 2017. If this materializes, GuySuCo would have effectively ended operations at Skeldon using safety and SEI as scapegoats. The IMC and its millstone team would have classically deceived this nation to achieve its goal of increasing unemployment in this country, and thereby pave the way for selling this most prized estate in Guyana at a basement price.

Yours truly, Sookram Persaud

right). I could not believe my ears or my eyes as I watched the video. Like a programmed robot, the Minister continued to force her message down the throats of her audience, even after they protested.

Where are her cultural intelligence (CQ) and cultural manners? Those are our customs she was mashing up, and those cultural norms in the Hindu community are not meaningless, otherwise they would not have been followed for centuries.

In the modern world, according to the Harvard Business Review, CQ has become a vital aptitude and skills test for any executive before being granted a job or promotion. But it seems that President Granger was heav-

ily engaged in a game of “inee-minee-miney-moo”, when he picked some of his 27 Cabinet members.

Anyone close to the dominant party in the coalition (the PNC) will tell you that a more suitable candidate for this role of Youth, Sports and Culture Minister was PNC Executive Mr. Christopher Jones, who today has proven he is multiple time more culturally intelligent than Ms. Nicolette Henry.

And when you consider this Minister gets paid close to a million dollars a month plus benefits to dish out such high-grade incompetence, you wonder where have the PNC minds like Shirley FieldRidley gone?

When you evaluate this

situation by comparing performance vs. benefits, only words like “public squander,” “financial skullduggery” and “public waste” appear to be consistent commonalities when it comes to some of the choices in the Granger cabinet. Shame on President Granger for diverting some G$3 million per year for God knows how long from the Treasury, to send this Minister back to school to train in a field totally irrelevant to her current job.

Isn’t this wanton abuse of the Treasury? Will SARA, SOCU and the Police investigate this public squander, come 2021?

I call on President Granger to do right by the people and withdraw this portfolio from Nicolette Henry. She has

proven herself unfit and unsuitable for this role. She has disrespected a significant portion of the population with her careless statements, and has lost the right to lead the nation on the cultural front.

If the Minister is busy studying healthcare on the job, to the point that she has become tardy at her work, then it is imperative for the President to act. For how long more will her cabinet colleagues have to carry such deadweight by covering up for these acts of underperformance and unpreparedness? What next to expect from this part-time Minister and full-time student?

Sincerely, Sase Singh

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- the essential guide for breastfeeding and staying close to your baby after you return to work

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ould it surprise you to know that the single most important factor in a new mom’s success with breastfeeding is the support she gets from her husband/ partner? Dads-to-be are usually surprised to hear that they have this impact, and are all ears on how they can help the process.

Here’s some advice from veteran dads about how dad can help with breastfeeding: Breastfeeding is natural but not easy. Just like learning to drive a car, it takes time and practice to really get the hang of it.

The importance of the emotional support that you offer during this time cannot be overstated. You’re the cheerleader. If you offer encouragement and appreciation, not only will mom be more likely to hang in there past the rough part, she’ll remember you were there for her when she needed you.

Positioning and latch-on are key. Since you’re seeing mom and baby from a different angle than she is, you’ll probably have suggestions about positioning or maybe adding a pillow here or there to make things more comfortable for her. Men have a natural sensitivity to visual angles and it can come in handy here.

Help mom relax. This

BY GALE PRYOR

(continued from Thursday)

The risks of working to bonding

can be anything from a shoulder rub to the tried and true bringing her a glass of water or something to eat while she’s nursing. One new dad talked about helping his wife relax by rubbing her breast as the baby was getting ready to latch on. When she’s relaxed, the milk will let down. An engineer in Daddy Boot Camp had a good check list for problem solving breastfeeding: Mom relaxed? Milk letting down? Baby getting enough? Baby calm enough to suck? Well positioned?

Get covered. Read up on what your insurance covers in the way of breast pumps and supplies.

Breastfeeding supplies are now tax deductible, so use that flexible spending account to pay for them.

Dad can feed a breastfeeding baby too.

Speaking of breast pumps, veteran dads say a good one is worth it. After three to four weeks, mom can start pumping milk, giving dad a chance to feed his baby a bottle from time to time. This may be in the middle of the night so mom can sleep (although some moms report en-

gorged breasts if the baby misses a feeding) or during the day so mom can get out for a while without worrying about the baby getting hungry while she’s gone.

Feeding is a key bonding time, so now dad gets to share the experience with his little one.

Even if mom is breastfeeding during the night, you can share the load by getting up and bringing the baby in to her.

Sometimes waking up and not having to get out of bed is really appreciated. One veteran dad thought that even though his wife had said that she could get up and do it on her own, he felt like she was looking at him asleep and getting resentful.

Lower her stress levels. You’ll both be surprised at the amount of time breastfeeding takes.

Anything you do around the house is going to take a weight off mom. Otherwise she’ll sit there nursing, but making mental notes of everything that needs to be done around the house.

And getting stressed.

Be the protector. New fathers are often surprised at how protective they feel

towards their new family. If mom needs help with visitors that don’t know when to leave, or needs a buffer from a questioning grandma (who might not have breastfed), you’re in the perfect position to have her back.

Own another activity. Since mom is the go-to parent for breastfeeding, jump right in and own another baby activity. Dads are great with baths (watch the video of first time dad of twins, Jason, bathing his six-week-old baby), baby massage, or putting babies to sleep. With two of the big ones handled, (eating, sleeping, etc) you’ve become a great team.

Find outside help.

Maybe you do everything humanly possible and mom still has trouble. It happens.

Luckily, there are certified breastfeeding counselors around. Find one though La Leche League or the International Lactation Consultant Association’s search page. They’ve heard it all – sore nipples, not enough milk, breast infections, you name it. As the family resource finder, you will have scored again. (dad-

sadventure.com)

Bonding usually proceeds without our thinking about it much. We get pregnant, we give birth, we fall in love with our babies, we decide to breastfeed, we become mothers in tune with our babies. Voila. We have accomplished one of life’s major transitions, becoming a mother. Unless we don’t.

Sometimes women don’t fully traverse the divide between childless woman and mother. They have babies, but they resist the bone deep commitment that comes with motherhood. After all, becoming a mother is a frightening, gigantic leap into a new, all-encompassing stage of life.

Motherhood threatens to submerge both accomplishments of the past and goals of the future, as well as one’s present sense of self. The fear of losing oneself in its flood waters is entirely normal.

Besides, in American culture today, motherhood receives scant respect, especially among high-achievers. If your self-respect comes mainly from your success at work, especially if that work is competitive and pressured, re-entering the world with mother suddenly attached to your identity can be dismaying, to say the least. Despite the impressive diplomacy and managerial skills with which motherhood endows women, the business world holds mothers in suspicion.

And, as nursing mothers will tell you in chorus, breastfeeding has the most marvellous calming effect on them.

A recent study documents their experience: At one month postpartum, breastfeeding women were significantly less anxious than formula-feeding women. The breastfeeding hormones, oxytocin and prolactin, cause a feeling of well-being that tends to promote maternal behaviour. Also, the act of breastfeeding requires a woman to relax.

The benefits of breastfeeding for working mothers

Many women going back to work decide that the “added stress” of nursing is the last thing they need. As many working women can attest, however, their lives are made easier rather than harder by breastfeeding. One experienced mother finds that “breastfeeding is the easier part of being a working mother. It’s much harder finding time to iron a shirt.”

The immunologic properties of breast milk benefit working parents as much as their babies. Breastfed babies wake their parents less often at night with earaches and stuffy noses. Because breastfed babies are generally healthier, they also tend to be happier. They cry less, smile more, and are less wearying to care for after a long day at work.

The anti-infective properties of breast milk are a real boon when a baby is or will be in group day care. Babies in day care are exposed to more germs than are babies cared for at home. But when these babies are breastfed, they are protected against many serious bacterial and viral infections and secondary complications. And the lower incidence and severity of illness in breastfed babies reduces the time their parents must take off from work.

The flood of relaxation that comes with the let-down of milk is made to order for stressed-out working mothers. For the typical nursing and working mother, the most important benefit of breastfeeding is that day after day it confirms that she is irreplaceable to her baby. Most women who decide to breastfeed do so for their babies’ sakes. Only later do they discover that it’s good for them, too. For working mothers, breastfeeding is a friend, a constant ally against the anxiety that comes from having to leave their babies in someone else’s care for most of the day, and wondering if they are good-enough mothers. For your baby, after all, the babysitter may be very nice, but only Mama has a soft, sweet-smelling breast and warm, sweet-tasting milk. And when you pick up the baby and nurse at the end of a work day, you and she are immediately a couple again. There is no “getting to know you again” period for a working mother and her nursing baby.

Breastfeeding after returning to work is a way to tie the two halves of your life together. It will help you to make sense of yourself in the challenging new role as mother while continuing your pre-baby work life.

Parenting by Instinct Once we consider all the aspects of breastfeeding – behavioural, immunologic, and nutritive – we cannot help but be impressed by how perfectly we humans have evolved to feed our babies. This may lead us to wonder what other special baby-care behaviours have evolved with our species. If you travelled now to societies that are still much the same as they have been for thousands of years, what would you see?

How do parents take care of babies in cultures unchanged by such technological marvels as the clock, the baby bottle, and the baby carriage? (Excerpted from childdevelopmentinfo.com)

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friDAY, march 17, 2017| guyanatimesgy.com

Pharma scandal

Procurement delays, exorbitant prices will force billion-dollar supplementary

…still no system to replace prequalification criteria for reliability

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hile the controversy surrounding the latest $605 million sole-sourcing scandal to have beset the Public Health Ministry/Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) continues, with regard to pharmaceutical supplies procured for the health sector, reports continue to pour in from all regions – including the tertiary Georgetown Hospital – of continued drug shortages, which are having an adverse effect on poorer patients who cannot afford to purchase the drugs prescribed by their public medical practitioners.

Stakeholders are asking: When will Government sort out its pharma procurement system?

Recently-appointed Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence has volunteered that it was an acute shortage of drugs in the system that led her to approve a sole-sourced contract for $605 million for Trinidadian firm ANSA McAL. “Some of these pharmaceuticals were overdue by as much as six months, which exacerbated the drug shortage at the Hospital. These are the same suppliers who, before May 2015, when all the pharmaceuticals for the nation was sole-sourced from NEW GPC for billions of dollars, were given the opportunity under the Granger Administration to become suppliers of pharmaceuticals to the public healthcare sector,” she said.

Country Head of ANSA McAL in Guyana, Beverly Harper

After stoutly denying there were shortages in the face of persistent reports to the contrary, former Public Health Minister, Dr George Norton has now conceded that in fact the shortages did exist. He said he supported Minister Lawrence in her decision to sole source. During the budget debate in February 2016, Dr Karen Cummings, the Government’s point person on health, alluded to the cancellation of the prequalification-based contract with the NEW GPC in October 2015, and said, “Mr Speaker, open, competitive bidding is on the horizon. Sole sourcing of drugs, as we know it, will end very soon! This [A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change] APNU/AFC Government will ensure that it does not wa-

ter the hard-earned taxpayers’ dollars on enriching the pockets of the undeserving.”

The Public Health Ministry claimed to have received support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to develop a new standard for “an open, competitive bidding system”. A bidding document to this effect has been approved by the National Tender Administration Board, following which a pre-bid meeting with all potential bidders was held on December 16, 2015. However, the $700 million which were allocated the following January now appear to have been given to selected suppliers, who did not deliver and who the Minister refuses to identify. A source at GPHC has indicated to this newspaper that one of the major culprits is a company based on Camp Street, which is owned by a known AFC supporter.

The concerned professionals are worried that unless the defaulting suppliers are publicly identified, they will once again receive contracts they cannot supply, and place additional lives at risk. They hope that if the Minister continues to balk, the Auditor General would at least rectify this anomaly next year.

In the new round of efforts to supply pharmaceuticals for the country, the present revelations indicate that on four separate occasions, bids from suppliers

can be disciplinary actions,” he told reporters on the televised programme “The Public Interest”.

Prequalification

Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence

were received but were cancelled after irregularities were discovered to have been committed to give some suppliers an unfair advantage.

The IPA was not one of the four suppliers that received “emergency” contracts to bail out the Ministry from the crisis of its own making, and this lends credence to the claims of those professionals who point to the IPA as a defaulter. Because of the delay and exorbitant prices paid for sourcing of supplies, one insider has predicted that Government will have to return to Parliament with a supplementary budget for at least $1 billion.

Reviewing the debacle, President David Granger opined, “If there is some procedural irregularity, that (situation) can be rectified; and if it is found that somebody is at fault; well, there

However, according to a source from the Public Health Ministry, who spoke with this publication, “Guyana should not try to re-invent the wheel.

The Government promised to replace the World Bank/ [World Health Organisation] WHO-designed prequalification system that Guyana had because they wanted to create a “more level and decentralised playing field”.”

However, he has emphasised that in so doing, the Government allowed in “flyby-night” companies and individuals who just could not handle the internationally prescribed standards and consequent supply chain demands. “This is also why we have the Minister now complaining about ‘fake drugs’ entering the system,” the professional emphasised.

Another doctor with years of experience in the public and private health sectors said, “Whatever their concerns about the old prequalification criteria favouring one company, they have to admit it worked over the decade it was in place. And it’s a myth that only one company benefited; the others who received

a substantial amount of the business had the decade to bring their scores up to par.

We can see the consequences of that now that they can’t deliver contracts they were handed.”

Pressed to elaborate on NEW GPC’s record between 2005 and 2015 for the country’s pharma supplies, he rattled it off: “The proof of the pudding is (that) there were no shortages in the decade. None! They also offered 70,000 square feet of temperature-controlled, WHO-compliant cold chain storage pharma warehousing, completely free of cost.

And with their location at Ruimveldt, it meant almost instantaneous deliveries.

“They also added a manufacturing capacity to our national push for independence by manufacturing a substantial quantity of pharma supplies, which were FDA approved and resulted in substantial exports to bring in foreign currency. They also employed a substantial number of Guyanese, who all paid their taxes.”

According to the Minister, NEW GPC was one of the companies given part of the emergency order; however, attempts to elicit a comment from NEW GPC proved futile, as calls were not returned as promised.

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friDAY, march 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

IN THE COURTS

2 remanded for 2016 Rose Hall murder

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wo men were on Wednesday remanded for the murder of a Rose Hall Town, Canje man back in 2016.

The two, Saif Persaud and Daniel McLennon, both of Rose Hall, were not required to plead to the charge of murder which stated that between February 4, and February 6, 2016, they murdered Saitanya Kishundyal.

Magistrate Alex Moore, presiding at the Reliance Magistrate’s Court, remanded the duo to prison until March 28, and transferred the matter to the Albion Magistrate’s Court.

It had been reported that

Saitanya Kishundyal

Kishundyal, 21, was closing the gate to his residence when he was confronted by an armed man. A scuffle ensued during which he was shot to the abdomen. He died a few days later in the hospital. The case was up to Friday listed as unsolved.

Kishundyal was returning to his Outpost and Third Street home after attending a religious function at Corriverton situated 30 miles away. Surveillance footage, which was seen by this publication, suggests that four persons had entered his yard and waited on him to arrive.

At 21:57h, his car was seen pulling into the driveway

and he exited the vehicle to open the gate to the yard.

In the footage, Kishundyal was seen driving under his house and as he opened the door to exit, a lone gunman approached him from behind and after a short scuffle, a shot was fired. Three other men were immediately seen running out of the yard with the gunman.

Last Saturday, Officein-Charge of the Rose Hall Police Outpost, Sergeant Philbert Wilbur arrested a Rose Hall Town man, who after being questioned, allegedly told Police that he was present when Kishundyal was shot.

Unlicensed traffic cop charged for drunk driving

A

young unlicensed Police Officer was charged and placed before the Fort Wellington Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday after he was found to be driving under the influence of alcohol on Monday last.

Constable Joshua Ali, who was attached to the Traffic Department of the Guyana Police Force, appeared before Magistrate

Rhondell Weever to answer to the charges of Driving under the Influence of Alcohol and Breach of Condition of Provisional Licence.

The Officer pleaded guilty to both charges and was fined a total of $37,500.

Moreover, he has since been transferred from the Traffic Department to the General Duties Section of the Police Force.

It was reported that

while in a drunken state and being unlicensed, Ali slammed into a pickup that was parked along the corner of the road at Bush Lot Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB) on Monday.

The accident occurred around 10:30h, as the Officer was driving motor car PFF 4473 reportedly at a fast pace, east along the northern carriageway of the Bush Lot Public Road. He report-

edly lost control of the vehicle and slammed into motor pickup PLL 8801, which belonged to a businessman of the village.

Both vehicles were damaged as a result of the impact of the collision. Constable Ali was subsequently arrested and a breathalyser test was conducted, which found him to be over the legal limit of alcohol consumption while driving.

Verdict deferred for Linden driver accused of Policeman’s death

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Linden taxi driver who fatally struck down a police rank while that rank was on duty on the East Bank Demerara Highway last April will know his fate on Thursday morning, when Magistrate Leron Daly dispenses her ruling on the matter.

Ron Cole, 40, of Blueberry Hill, Linden was previously charged with causing the death of Nkosi La Fleur on April 11, 2016 on the Eccles Public Road, East Bank Demerara, when he drove a motor vehicle in a manner dangerous to the public.

According to police facts, the deceased was stationed at the Providence Police Station at the time, and was directing traffic on East Bank Demerara highway at Eccles. La Fleur reportedly stepped backwards to allow a vehicle to pass when he was struck from behind by the motor vehicle being driven by the accused.

The injured policeman was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), where he was treated and sent away, but was subsequently rushed there again a few days later, and succumbed there to his inju-

McLennan had initially remanded the accused Cole to prison, but he was later released on $500,000 bail.

Cole will return to court on March 24, when Magistrate Daly will hand down her ruling.

Ron Cole

ries. Post-mortem results revealed that La Fleur died of haemorrhage.

Chief Magistrate Ann

Fraudster granted $200,000 bail

A

Port Kaituma fraudster was on Thursday slapped with a fraudulent conversion charge and released on $200,000 bails

by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, after a successful bail application by Defence Counsel.

Mark Anthony October had allegedly received on September 9, 2016, at Port Kaituma, Region One (Barima-Waini), 106 barrels of diesel valued at $2.7 million from Julian Thomas; on account of Virtual Complainant (VC) Bharrat Bissoon, in order to sell, process and place into the Bank of Guyana account of Bissoon the proceeds of the sale.

The accused had reportedly converted same to his use and benefit, instead of the intended purpose.

October’s lawyer contended that his client usually executes business of similar nature for the VC; requesting bail at a reasonable sum.

The Magistrate fixed bail to the sum of $200,000 and transferred the matter to be heard at the Mathews Ridge Magistrate’s Court on May 9.

Reflexive…

I …race assumptions

t began like a clichéd joke…Two town fellas wander into an isolated, rural community and are caught stealing rear view mirrors. They’re given a sound thrashing and handed over to the Police. Nothing extraordinary up to now, right. Well, let’s introduce some adjectives into the story. Two African- Guyanese fellas wader into an isolated Indian-Guyanese community…. And we now have a fullblown “racist incident” – if some are to be believed.

The newspapers reporting the incident mentioned the Police were conducting investigations after they’d taken the two men into custody after the beating. But on Capitol News, the men are interviewed – and of course they give THEIR version of the events. They never saw any car mirrors – but the local friend they were visiting did ask them as to where they’d put the mirrors.

While in the broadcast the men didn’t mention any racial taunts, being African-looking and Canal known as an Indian community, several officials jumped into the fray without waiting for the Police report. The Government Director of Public Information (DPI) – shill for the PM as head for Information – rushed out a column “Is it OK to be black in Guyana?” That right!!

He offered a POLITICAL explanation for the beatings: the beating of the men “presumably under the suspicion of pilfering car mirrors does not exist in a vacuum. The views and convictions of the perpetrators are formed over a period of time by information they are fed, quite possibly from leaders to whom they look up to and revere… Our political leaders cannot be allowed to contrive an environment in which members of the public who ascribe to their political convictions begin to cultivate hate and bitterness and resentment to persons of another ethnicity.” Khan knows his readers know it’s the PPP he’s talking about.

Another Chronicle columnist Akola Thompson observed: “The savage beating of two Afro-Guyanese, Dameion Gordon and Vernon Beckles in Canal … by the residents in my view was prompted by stereotypes where their only crime was not fitting in the predominantly Indian community.”

But the DPI wasn’t the only public official that rushed to the “racist” judgment. The Govt Advisor on Culture shrieked, “These are the victims of the racist violence over at Canal No. 1”!! And called it “attempted murder”.

The Social Cohesion Ministry, while noting the Police should conduct their Inquiry, suggested they should visit the community. The Government Information News Agency reported this.

The following day, the Police reported their investigation showed no sign of “vigilantism” and the beaten fellas alibi were blown by the man they claimed invited them to Canal!

Think we’ll see any retractions? Would it change anything? Naaah.

…dissembling

PM Nagamootoo and Security Minister Ramjattan took a ministerial entourage to pay tribute to the 15 sugar workers massacred on March 13, 1913, at Rose Hall, Canje. Noticeably absent was Agriculture Minister Noel Holder who you’d think would have been the fittest fella to show his face. Sugar’s still “Agriculture”, no?? But maybe Holder had the grace not to be praising sugar workers for their sacrifice – when his Government’s about to CLOSE Rose Hall!

But what about Nagamootoo and Ramjattan? They secured the 11 per cent Indian vote that put their APNU coalition over the tape by specifically SWEARING sugar wouldn’t be privatised. Nagamootoo callously reiterated that promise – without mentioning that Rose Hall and three other estates would be closed – one by his son-inlaw!!!

Imagine Rose Hall sugar workers staring into the maws of starvation – which drove their ancestors to Guyana as Indian indentured servants – yet Nagamootoo wouldn’t level with them.

Would it matter? Naaah. No empathy cause he said he ain’t no Indian!

…blaming PPP

We know the antenna at Sparendaam wasn’t moved to create Pradoville 2. Now US$5 million monies owed by the Chinese company HKGT for GTT’s stock was confirmed by the company as never paid to NICIL. Any retractions? Naaah! The damage’s been done.

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

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friDAY, march 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Govt must do more to encourage investment - outgoing GCCI President wealthy, prosperous state, or will we remain for our entire history the land of much potential?” he asked.

Doerga disclosed that for the past year, the GCCI has been fixing its internal structural weaknesses.

The executive stated that GCCI is upgrading its human resources, and will be aiming to provide more training, support, and add more skills to the organization.

Doerga has, over the past year, been outspoken on matters of taxation; in particular the 14 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) which has been placed on

A section of the gathering of business leaders and representatives

T

he 127th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), held at Duke Lodge in Kingston, Georgetown on Thursday, saw calls being made for the Government to be bold in creating legislation and a tax structure that would encourage, rather than deter, investment.

Outgoing President of GCCI, Vishnu Doerga, expressed the need for more legislation to be tabled that would create opportunities to lift Guyanese out of poverty. He pointed out that the private sector is a key stakeholder in the fight against poverty, since it creates the majority of employment.

“We want a tax structure that will reduce the burden and incentivize growth for the compliant. I must stress for the compliant, because we seem to be in a (situation wherein) the compliant pays for the non-compliant,” he expressed.

Doerga says there is need for legislation to be

created where absent, or amended where present, in order to improve opportunities for investment.

He said investors need to know that they can get a return while at the same time creating higher paying jobs for the local workforce and increased value- added services and products.

“We still have the outstanding issue of how (to) deal with the allocation to SMEs (Small-Medium Enterprises) procurement across all our agencies, and then in terms of our commercial law. How do we start focusing on our legal framework so that it makes it easier for people to get legal resolutions to civil conflicts?” he asked.

The business executive posited that if an investor wanted to do business but knew there was a risk that litigation may take years to get a result, then that investor may rather not invest. Hence he emphasized the need to make the environment more conducive for doing business.

We’ve seen movement

in that direction. And that is what we will keep (advocating) for,” he declared.

“We’ve also noticed, over the past few years, that while we have been getting early budgets, timely spending of such approved budgetary measures will provide the needed financial stimulus to energize our economy.

It’s excellent that our budgets keep increasing.

We know it’s being funded with the taxation that also increases hand in hand. But (if) the money isn’t spent and it doesn’t find its way back into the economy, it is of no use,” he explained.

He expressed worry that while Guyana has been saving money, but tracing the money and ensuring that it is directed in a way that contributes to national development would be a challenge. He was nevertheless optimistic that transformation was on the horizon for Guyana.

“Transformation is inevitable, especially if we look at 2019 and beyond.

Guyana will definitely be transformed, but will it be a

private education as well as utility services such as water and electrical. He has also made clear his opposition to the controversial Georgetown parking meter project.

The election of the 2016/2017 GCCI council is expected to take place by next week, after which a new executive will take over the reins from Doerga, owner of Doerga Business Enterprises.

The GCCI is the oldest private sector representative organization in Guyana. Established in 1889, it is a member-driven and professionally staffed

non-profit association of business people who are committed to improving the economic climate and quality of life in Guyana.

The GCCI’s mission is to represent the voice of the business community in Guyana, and to advocate policies that would stimulate trade and investment, connect businesses, sustain economic growth and expand member opportunities.

All of this is with the aim of contributing to a stable and sustainable economic and social environment in Guyana, wherein businesses can prosper.

2 am curfew could be brought forward – Ramjattan

D

espite calls by some in the business community to relax the 2 am curfew for night spots, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan has suggested that the curfew could be brought forward to as early as midnight.

He was at the time speaking on the sidelines of the launch of the Social Cohesion Ministry’s fiveyear strategic plan for which he is a stakeholder.

Speaking with media operatives at the Georgetown Marriott Hotel on Thursday, the Minister highlighted that religious and other stakeholder groups that form part of the social cohesion committee were supportive of moving the curfew to as much as two hours earlier.

“The Hindu, Muslim, Christian – with the church movement, and a lot of women want that curfew; as a matter of fact, they want to bring it forward to 12 o’ clock. We have to understand that Guyana is an extraordinary heavy drinking society,” the Public Security Minister stressed.

At present, bars, night-

Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan

clubs and restaurants across the country have a close-off time of 02:00h which Minister Ramjattan enforced in July 2015. On Thursday, he cited a recent household report on alcohol and illicit drug use showed that Guyana has the largest binge drinking culture in the Caribbean. He noted that the statistic has grave implications for the society.

“That has implications for us – lots of traffic acci-

dents, domestic violence, and a lot of monies being misspent [by persons] who would have ordinarily taken care of their children,” the Cabinet member stressed.

The Minister pointed out that he would not argue for any extension of the curfew that bar owners have been calling for, noting that the country would pay a greater price.

“It is in accordance with international best practices that bars be closed at certain hours – when you go around the Caribbean and all the states of America – I’ve done the research on it – generally its 12 midnight and one o’clock in the morning,” he added.

In the past, the Minister threatened to revoke or suspend the licences of businesses which do not comply with the enforcement.

However, concessions were given at certain intervals for night establishments to operate at later hours, but this was only for holiday periods. Minister Ramjattan has argued that the curfew was part of his crime-fighting strategy.

10 news

friDAY, march 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

GO-Invest audit

Loopholes identified now closed – GO-Invest Chair

…says services, oversight of investors have been improved

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everal loopholes which were identified in the controversial Guyana Office for Investment (GoInvest) forensic audit report have been addressed and eradicated over the past two years. This is according to Patricia Bacchus, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of GO-Invest.

Also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Caribbean Containers Inc., Bacchus has said that a board level Finance Subcommittee has been implemented among the corrective measures taken at GO-Invest. Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) have also been implemented between GO-Invest and other government agencies to promote the ‘One Stop Shop’ ideal and self-compliance measures for investors.

“I want to give you the assurance that all the non-compliant areas have been remedied. The board now has a Finance and Audit Subcommittee, which deals with financial reconciliation and ensures that there is no impropriety; and (there is also) a PR (Public Relations),” she said.

One stop shop Addressing the annual general meeting of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Bacchus said that through the signing of MoU with other sister government agencies, there has been an increase in service quality.

The Attorney-at-Law noted that while initially intended to be a ‘One Stop Shop’

Go-Invest head office

for investors in Guyana, GO-Invest did not have inhouse the sister agencies which play a dominant role in investment, and so did not fulfill that role. “It resides in agencies such as the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Ministry of Finance, Lands and Surveys Commission. But more efforts are now being taken to ensure the agency performs as far as feasible as a One Stop Shop.”

Bacchus said that senior representatives of the GRA and of the Lands and Surveys Department, as well as a private sector representatives and those from the Ministries of the Presidency, Natural Resources, Public Infrastructure, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have sat on the GO-Invest board. “This is designed to ensure a greater level of inter-agency cooperation; so, should the investor encounter any dif-

ficulties, GO-Invest would work at the level of its board of directors to ensure a timely and smooth resolution of whatever issue an investor may be faced with.

“We’ve signed memorandums of understanding (MoU) with GRA and Lands and Surveys Commission, to outline the mode of operation between the agencies, to ensure that it is constant and efficient.”

Expressions of Interest

According to Bacchus, the way investors will approach and apply to the agency has also been revamped. She said that the process has now been standardized, and made available to potential investors on the website, all to facilitate greater and more automatic service.

“Coming from the private sector, I had experiences with GO-Invest before I played any role in (its) governance. So I can attest to

things such as correspondence being misplaced; (correspondences) not being responded to in three to four years; inadequate systems of control and governance; (lack) of standardization of tools and forms. Since 2015, we have streamlined the investment facilitation process. The tool that you require to activate the investment promotion mechanism is posted to the agency’s website. It’s called the Expression of Interest form.

It’s about five pages long,” she explained.

She noted the form sets out all the categories of disclosure of information that an investor would be expected to provide, and checks and balances have been put in place to log and account for all submissions made by investors.

“So you will hear from the agency. You will not have to wonder whether your correspondences have been received,” Bacchus assured.

She also pointed to the

Go-Invest Chairperson Patricia Bacchus

self-compliance form would investors will now have to complete and submit to GoInvest. This, Bacchus indicated, is to ensure that Go-Invest can monitor the progress of investors after they would have received concessions, though not necessarily for the purpose of revoking concessions.

The Go-Invest audit is one of several commissioned

by Government into State entities in 2015. The audit report, which was released

on February 3 last, had mentioned a number of findings.

According to the report, GoInvest does not have an Internal Audit Department or Audit Charter. A weak governance structure was also cited.

Former Go-Invest CEO Keith Burrowes had stated that the agency was not getting enough funding to accomplish some of the initiatives needed for improved internal governance.

GRA warns of imposters collecting monies on livestock …says officers not authorised to collect monies from taxpayers

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he Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) is calling on citizens to be on the lookout for imposters who are going around the country collecting monies from animal owners.

According to a statement from the revenue collection agency, issued on Thursday, a number of reports have been received from taxpayers within Regions Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara); Four (Demerara-Mahaica); Five (Mahaica-Berbice), and Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) ?that a group of persons are visiting areas posing as offi-

cials of GRA and the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA).

It was reported that these persons, purporting to be conducting an official exercise, are counting the heads of cattle and number of pets owned by farmers and pet lovers, and then demanding $2000 in Value Added Tax (VAT) for each animal.

However, the GRA has advised taxpayers that the Authority has no such exercise presently in place.

To this end, it is calling on persons who encounter these individuals to request proof of identification, since

all staff of the GRA are required to carry identification during the course of their duties.

Additionally, the tax body outlined that officers of the GRA were not authorised to collect monies from taxpayers since all payments of monies should be effected at GRA’s regional offices or its headquarters.

Meanwhile, the GRA has also been taking measures through its Law Enforcement and Investigation Division (LEID) to address the issue.

Taxpayers can be assured that the perpetrators, once located, will be dealt with.

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S RAIGHT

No parking meters on public roads – Public Infrastructure Ministry …as demonstrations enter 7th week

Is a digital economy achievable in Guyana?

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an this situation become a reality within the next three years? Can an almost cashless system be achieved in Guyana? Is Guyana ready for digital payments using our mobile phone?

The answer to all these questions is YES, YES and YES. The technology is now readily available in many countries where our mobile phones can now be our banks and our wallets which can enable consumers to do just about everything. In most societies, cash has literally died. I cannot remember the day when my wallet has more than US$50 in it and that is mainly because of an old custom that I adhere called “vex money”, which is emergency money just to get home if you need to exit in a haste. I can do everything with my phone and my cards and cannot remember when last I touched cash, but yet conduct my daily life smoothly and seamlessly. I can meet all my financial obligations on time and yet I do not touch cash.

Cash in Guyana must die simply because of the fact that the country has too much cash in circulation. With 58 per cent of its economy conducted in cash, such a situation continues to breed a tremendous amount of corruption, crime, and a vibrant underground economy.

So when Clive Thomas speak such high nonsense about “Guyana was losing G$300 billion per year under the [People’s Progressive Party] PPP”, it Is clear that he is having serious issues upstairs. Only one with serious spates of insincerity will think that today in 2017 that the underground economy in Guyana is not alive and kicking.

In this Government in which Clive Thomas is serving a massive role, we have rampant procurement fraud – the State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) should check out the D’Urban Park Ponzi Scheme Project – a runaway illicit capital flight (which is worst today than it was under the PPP) and a growing underground economy. Actually if one studies the system of national accounts in Guyana over 2016 and the corresponding monetary data coming out of the Central Bank, it is clear that the underground economy has taken off to the point it a clear and present danger to the formal economy.

Therefore, rather than engage in all of these words of deception and fear mongering, what the “Robert Clives of Guyana” should be doing is encouraging their bosses to go digital on all front. No more check from the Finance Ministry but direct wire transfer into the bank accounts of payees including contractors. Plus there should be a tax advantage if you use card or wire transfers as the prefer method of payments. What such a public policy does is cause a greater amount of financial transactions to be recorded.

Guyana has many different opportunities to exploit going digital. First and foremost, we have to develop the unified payment interface that connects all the banks and the major consumers of cash in a cost effective manner.

This entire platform has to be supported by the mobile phone so that once someone has Wi-Fi, then they can execute payments or transfer money from your account to any other account including to any merchant who has a bank account, in a very cost effective manner and in the flash of a second.

Secondly, those we do not have a smartphone or the Internet, there is the GSM phone, you have a system called USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data). The USSD system uses a text-driven system to communicate with your bank to provide payment services.

Thirdly, as was developed in India, there is a low technology system called AEPS (AADAR Enable Payment System) using people fingerprints and a specific identifier number, which is presented, at a central location in the respective villages. Why is this system good for Guyana?

This system specifically targeting the elderly and the very poor and those who do not understand phone technology.

All they have to do is present the name of their bank and their AADAR number at the grocery shop or any store and the store attendant will ask them to press their fingerprint onto the machine. Behind the scene, this fingerprint is stitched to a bank account and their requested payment is executed instantaneously with a balance on their pension account printed out automatically.

To achieve a cashless society, there needs to be a change of mindset and leadership. Can we do it? Yes, we can!

Please feel free to share your comments at sasesin1@yahoo.com.

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friDAY, march 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

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These demonstrators were mute

he anti-parking meter protest has entered a seventh week of demonstrations on Thursday with reiterated calls for the deal to be revoked.

The Movement Against Parking Meters (MAPM) organised the weekly gatherings in response to the secretive manner in which the contract was signed between City Hall and Mexican company Smart City Solutions and the subsequent rollout of the project. But in the latest twist in the parking meter saga, Central Government has reminded that some of the roadways in Georgetown are outside of City Council’s control, suggesting that Smart City Solutions will not be allowed to implement parking meters in zones classified as “public roads”.

In a statement issued late Thursday, the Public Infrastructure Ministry cited the Roads Act, Chapter 51:01 of the Laws of Guyana, reminding several roads are under its remit.

The roads under the Ministry’s purview include: Clive Lloyd Drive, Rupert Craig Highway, University of Guyana access road, Water Street, Battery Road, Sea Wall Road, Young Street, Barrack Street, Camp Road, Fort Street, Vlissengen Road, Irving Street, Station Street, Duncan Street, Thomas Road, Sheriff Street/Kitty Avenue, Ruimveldt Avenue, Houston Bypass and the Eastern Highway.

The Public Infrastructure Ministry stated clearly that Smart City Solutions was not given permission to place parking meters in those zones.

“The Ministry wishes to clarify that it has not entered into any agreement, neither has it given permission to the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown nor Smart City Solutions to erect parking meters along the aforementioned public roads. The public should, therefore, be guided accordingly,” it disclosed in the statement.

Since its rollout in late January, the project has attracted widespread criticism and protests; so much so, that Cabinet reportedly recommended a three-month suspension pending a review. However, Smart City Solutions, with City Hall’s

permission, has continued to implement fees and clamp motor vehicles throughout this week.

At Thursday’s demonstration in front of City Hall, several protesters were mute, as their mouths were clamped, symbolic of the clamps that city operatives place on motor vehicles.

“Is City Hall running this country or is the Government of Guyana running this country?” one person questioned.

Shawn Lakan, another protester, indicated that the project was “robbing the economy”. Other protesters noted that they were arriving at work at later times as they were constantly seeking out zones which were not metered.

Meanwhile, political commentator and social activist, Dr David Hinds, who was also present at Thursday’s protest stressed that the current contract should be scrapped.

Despite a missive from Government to put a hold on the parking meter project in the city, Smart City Solutions earlier this week maintained that it would continue upholding its part

of the legal agreement with the Mayor and City Council (M&CC), since it had not received any word from its partner in business.

“Smart City Solutions confirms that it has received neither instruction nor any official word in respect to

Parking Project contract,” the company had disclosed in a statement to the press on Wednesday.

It noted too that it would continue to operate and enforce the GeoPark project in accordance with its obligations under the contract.

It was after a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Government had recommended that the contract be suspended. There are expectations that further consultations and a full review of the system and contract will be requested. Despite calls from large sections of society, Government has consistently said that it could not interfere as City Hall was autonomous – although that position changed in January when Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman said that the State would in-

This protester was clear on what he wanted

taking any action to suspend the GeoPark project from the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown, which is the counterparty to Smart City Solutions in respect of the Georgetown Metered

tervene only if necessary.

In February, the city announced 50 per cent reduced rates to about $100 per hour, but the general populace holds out that the fees are too burdensome.

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friDAY, march 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Social cohesion binds ethnic groups together – President …as Govt launches 5-year strategic plan

From left to right: Reverend Dr Raphael Massiah; Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton; President David Granger; UNDP Resident Coordinator Mikiko Tanaka and Social Cohesion Programme Coordinator Sharon Patterson

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s Government wrapped up consultations on a five-year strategic plan at a one-day workshop on Thursday, President David Granger noted that social cohesion was the thread that would bring the various ethnic groups together.

He made these comments at the Georgetown Marriott where Government launched the social cohesion strategic plan for 2017-2021, under the theme “Building a unified Guyana”.

President Granger suggested that this plan would aid in reducing conflict among the races in Guyana.

“We believe that there is a way to harmonise relations and to reduce conflict among social groups. We believe that social cohesion is the thread that will bind these various groups together,” the Head of State stressed.

President Granger also warned against a repeat of the divisions of the past that surrounded the 1964 riots and disturbances in the 2000s.

“We still see how easily the ranting of a few rancorous persons can rekindle racial animosity – a step which has no place in modern society;…such inflammatory tirades run the risk of de-

generating into social instability,” the President opined.

The five-year strategic plan seeks to formulate a coherent and structured process for enhancing and promoting social cohesion in Guyana. Programme Coordinator at the Ministry, Sharon Patterson outlined the vision for the social cohesion plan.

“A unified Guyana, where diversities are embraced; conflict is resolved; networks; in collaboration with stakeholders, strengthen; equity promoted and decision-making processes resulting in equal opportunities and benefits for all,”

Patterson highlighted as among the goals of the project.

Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton noted that a wide cross-section of Guyanese were consulted.

“This was done in the form of face-to-face municipal and regional consultations, meetings in all municipalities and the ten Administrative Regions in Guyana as well as media consultations through radio and Facebook.”

He, however, expressed regret that the Opposition People’s Progressive Party was not involved in the process.

The Social Cohesion Strategic Plan was partly based on a roundtable event in September 2015, when five key areas were identified, namely: economic equity and opportunities, citizen safety and security, social inclusion and tolerance, inclusive and participatory governance, and harmonious ethnic and race relations. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has supported the initiative.

GWI engages Mahdia residents for design of new water system – pledges to establish community office

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he Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) has responded to a call by residents of Mahdia, Region Eight (PotaroSiparuni) to improve access to water for their growing population and to establish a permanent presence in the community to address needs and issues that arise.

A team of officials, headed by Managing Director, Dr Richard Van West-Charles, travelled to Mahdia on Saturday to engage residents in a public meeting.

Residents explained that they endured constant disruptions and low level of service owing to pipelines being broken during road works, clogged lines and unauthorised connections by miners.

The dry season also impacts heavily on the community. In addition, it was highlighted that the catchment area at the Salbora Creek and the existing reservoir have become insufficient to supply the increased population.

Dr Van West-Charles told community members that providing an improved water supply was part of the mandate of GWI. The Managing Director informed those gathered of the utility’s plan to drill a new well in the community so as to ensure adequate access for all.

In this regard, Dr Van West-Charles said community involvement was integral to moving forward. He called on the community members

From left: Region Eight Regional Democratic Council member Mohamed Naieem Gafoor; GWI Executive Director of Finance Jaigopaul Ram; GWI Managing Director, Dr Richard Van WestCharles; GWI Executive Director of Infrastructure, Planning and Implementation, Ramchand Jailal and GWI Hinterland Manager Osei Manifold

to share their knowledge with GWI’s engineers for the development of the water distribution system.

“I would like to have a representative group from the community to meet with engineers to agree on the design of the system…Those of you who have technical and community knowledge come together and decide on a suitable design,” he expressed.

The Managing Director instructed the residents to identify representatives to form a committee that was capable of making recommendations to the engineers for the design of a system that could respond to the needs of Mahdia, while taking into account other existing sources of water. Representatives will be drawn from Central Mahdia, Campbelltown, Seven Miles, Danjou Hill and the Airstrip – all of which make up the entire community.

They are expected to provide GWI’s Hinterland Manager, Osei Manifold with the list of names by March 17, 2017, after which they are to produce a draft design by March 31. Another community meeting will be held on April 8 with a view to review and reach a consensus on the new design and plan.

The GWI Managing Director pointed out that “most of the towns are not planned first and because there is no planning, we have this situation, but that doesn’t mean that as human beings, we can’t reorder things.”

Meanwhile, residents are of the belief that the setting up of an office and having engineers stationed in the village would see their concerns being addressed in a timely manner, while ensuring the efficiency of contractors. However, the Managing

Director revealed that this was already in the making.

GWI Executive Director of Finance, Jaigopaul Ram welcomed the residents’ input and pledged the company’s commitment to materialisation of an office in Mahdia. Dr Van WestCharles added that GWI officials would look at the feasibility of establishing the office within the next two months.

Dr Van West-Charles, who is also a physician, noted that aside from the need for increased access, water quality was of foremost importance and he would see to it that the water in Mahdia was tested regularly. He noted that President David Granger was clear on the issue of inequity between urban and rural communities and as such, “there’s no reason why the quality of water should be different than that in town”.

Lawfare and indentured labour

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n his “Theses on the Philosophy of History”, Walter Benjamin famously remarked, “there is no document of civilisation that is not at the same time a document of barbarism.” A document, he might have added, framed and authorised by the language “the law” to mystify its purpose. And it is for this reason, in reviewing during the last month the history of indentureship and its abolition 100 years ago, I summarised my thoughts under the caption, “Lawfare and Indentureship”, from which the following is extracted.

“Indentured Indian labour” was but one of various guises under which Ravi Dev individuals across the globe were conscripted to provide labour in the development of the “capitalist” mode of production that developed as Europe began to exploit the worlds it had “discovered” - and more germanely, conquered - after 1492. The Spanish made a turn from enslaving Amerindians in the New World to the Africans which was already encoded in their medieval Las Siete Partidas. The ideology of racism - that Africans were inalienably less than human - was invented to justify their claim and African exploitation as chattel.

While it is usual to posit that the development of the exploitation of bodies for their labour occurred in a unilinear fashion from “unfree” to “free labour” in reality the process was quite discontinuous with frequent regressions. The British adapted their Master and Servant laws to initially introduce indentured workers in the farms they established in America (Virginia) and Barbados. The workers were made available by the Enclosure Acts and GameLaws of England etcm which drove them off the “common land”. These White servants would work in the New world farms for four or five years after their passages had been paid by their employers after which they were free to cultivate the plot of land they were given on their own.

But with the introduction of plantations in the seventeenth century that demanded greater numbers and rigour than Europe could supply,to cultivate sugar cane and cotton, the British turned to African Slaves. They had to invent slave laws in Barbados that used the Spanish racist ideology to also justify the practice. But even before, they had followed up their “accumulation by dispossession” through developing the modern international law that moved away from the natural law based jus gentium, which accepted equal sovereignty for all countries, to a positivistic law that specified a system of differential sovereignty. The people of the new world, were thus dubbed “uncivilised savages” and their land “terra nullius”, or “nobody’s land”. Africa was declared terra nullius as late as the 19th century when it was divided between the European nations. Before that they simply established forts from which they bought slaves from local chiefs and kings.

In India, which the British East India Company conquered between 1657 and 1818, the British passed laws that changed the rules on land taxes, crops that should be cultivated etc, that resulted in millions dying in famine and pushed off the land to become the excess labour that could be exported to other parts of the empire as needed. Under the new racism, Indians were also lower intrinsically to whites. Indentured Indian labour was first used within India in the tea plantations of Assam and then to the newly acquired French islands of Reunion and Mauritius.

After the abolition of slavery in the British Empire in 1834, rather than moving to “free labour” as was promised, they introduced unfree Indentured labour by law. Slaves were made de facto unfree laws were passed to discourage them from moving off the plantations - such that land must be purchased in 100-acre plots. Similarly, the contracts of the indentureds were structured to keep them bound to their employer to that if they were not in the fields, they had to be either in jail or hospital. Infractions of their contract were subject to criminal penalties and these were applied liberally.

It was lawfare for all the locals.

So I thought it rather ironic I was accused of raising ethnic tensions when I made my presentation at “Garv aur Izzat”, drawn from the above scribblings. We - all Guyanese groups - were all caught in the network of exploitation after brought to the New World by the incipient capitalists.

13 Efforts to revise the Amerindian Act of 2006 underway T news

friDAY, march 17, 2017| guyanatimesgy.com

he Amerindian People’s Association (APA) has partnered with the National Toshaos Council (NTC) to commence discussion regarding the revision of the Amerindian Act of 2006. A three-day workshop launched on Thursday at Moray House in Georgetown provides the opportunity for representatives of various Indigenous communities to express grievances over the current Act while simultaneously making proposals for amendments thereto.

The seminar has seen the gathering of all members of the NTC Executive body, along with Indigenous leaders from grassroots organizations, to ensure the rights and concerns of their various groups are reflected and addressed in the forthcoming amendment. This revision is funded by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) and is being spearheaded

by Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs. Attorneyat-law Nigel Hughes has also

Vice President and Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Minister Sydney Allicock making his address at the seminar

been present at the event, as he will be offering pro bono consultation services during the process of this revision.

Chair of the National Toshaos Council, Joel Fredricks, in his opening remarks, stated that, “It’s history for the Indigenous peoples,” as he expressed his delight in the realisation of the revision, which was proposed shortly after his appointment in 2015.

He pointed out that Indigenous people are concerned, as the current Act is outdated and no longer caters for their rights and needs. He reminded that the aim of the Act was to give recognition to the Indigenous as Guyana’s first peoples, and offer protection in the acquisition and possession of land and resources which have thus far proven to be insufficient. This therefore emphasizes the need for an amendment.

Mario Hastings, President of APA, reiterated Fredrick’s sentiments, stating that the amendment is long overdue. Indicating that there have been cries of disappointment regarding the deficiencies in the current Act, he went on to say that this forum provides the perfect opportunity to build on, and strengthen, the Amerindian Act of 2006.

The Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock, delivered the featured remarks on the opening day of the workshop, during which he ex-

pressed confidence that the amendment would provide for both present and future generations of Indigenous peoples of Guyana.

Declaring: “This is a wonderful opportunity to bring Guyanese together,”

he compared the harmony of Guyana’s six ethnic groups to a rainbow, alluding to the bright colours beautifully co-existing side by side as his vision for the years ahead.

The revision process is set to continue through

At the end of the sessions, the group would have revived what currently exists and present a strategic plan for what is to come. A total of 10 million Guyana dollars has been invested in this initiative, and presenters are of

Participants at the Amerindian Act 2006 revision seminar

Allicock said that with better appreciation of their individual identity, the ethnic groups of Guyana can unite in their diversity. Moreover,

Friday focal rights, cision nance,

and Saturday, with areas being land mining, logging, demaking and goveramong other things.

the view that it would prove advantageous not only for the future of the Indigenous peoples, but the country at large.

WPO encourages Capoey Mission women to know their worth

Participants during the interaction

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embers of the Women’s Progressive Organisation (WPO) in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) on Thursday hosted a women's interaction in the Amerindian community of Capoey.

Under the theme "Bold for Change," the programme, held in observance of International Women's Day – March 8 –

comprised of talks, poems and songs.

Capoey Toshao Melrose Henry lauded the Women’s Progressive Organisation (WPO) for choosing the village to hold the event.

In brief remarks, she acknowledged that although International Women's Day was already past, it was important that women's efforts and struggles be recognised. Henry explained

that many women in that Amerindian community struggle to provide better lives for their families as they continue to farm and make cassava bread as a form of sustenance.

She said she is happy that women are more empowered and independent in today's society, and encouraged parents to educate their young girl children. Henry added that the Amerindian community has produced persons who excelled in the various sectors.

Be bold, be the change

Women at the forum

Member of Parliament Yvonne Pearson, during her address to the women of Capoey, reiterated that women are important elements in today's society.

Pearson spoke at length about women in leadership. She said that women have dominated all the top positions in the health and education sectors within Region Two, and she urged women to be bold and to withstand the challenges that may come their way.

She said that, as an MP on the Opposition side, she herself has to be bold in representing the people.

Assistant General Secretary of the WPO, Regional Vice Chairperson Nandranie Coonjah, took the opportunity to commend the efforts of the Toshoa for developing her community. Coonjah also acknowledged the contributions of outstanding women within the Region.

She acknowledged that the previous administration had fought for the rights of women and for them to be in various offices as leaders.

"International Women’s Day is all about women's struggles. In the colonial rule, women worked tirelessly in the water. The WPO, when it was formed

Toshao Melrose Henry (left) with members of the WPO

by former President Janet Jagan, put systems in place for women to enjoy a more enjoyable working condition," Coonjah said. She also urged the women to speak out against all forms of abuse.

During the interactive session, women were able to share their views and ideas on topical issues. Also attending the forum was Nadia Seeram, a member of the Regional Women's Affairs Committee.

Wakapao residents bemoan lack of health services …say more medical outreaches needed

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esidents living in the Amerindian community of Wakapao in the Lower Pomeroon River in Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) are calling for medical outreaches to be conducted in their areas, since they are witnessing an upsurge in mosquito-borne diseases.

The concerned residents explained that many persons in the area were suffering from typhoid and could not afford medical services. At the recent statutory meeting for the Region Two Regional Democratic

Council (RDC), Councillors discussed the issue. People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Councillor Lloyd Perriera, who is living in the area, said that many residents were affected and could not afford to conduct the test privately. He explained that a test cost $1500 and pointed to the poor economic state of the community. He too called for more outreaches to the community In response, Regional Chairman Devanand Ramdatt said that the 40 recorded cases of typhoid were indeed alarming, given that

the community has 2000 residents. The Regional Chairman also emphasised on the need for more outreaches.

This newspaper was informed that several outreaches were planned for the Pomeroon areas; however, owing to lack of resources, some were never conducted. Immediately after the meeting, another PPP Councillor, Ranjeev Singh, a doctor, assured that an outreach would be organised in the area. The health centre in the area is also lacking essential drugs.

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guyanatimesgy.com

friDAY, march 17, 2017

News

Threats to PPP officials’ lives

Police acknowledge receipt of report against SARU executive

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cting Police Commissioner David Ramnarine has acknowledged the receipt of a written complaint from Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo against State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) Executive Member Eric Phillips over “threats” made against him and other top People’s Progressive Party (PPP) officials and their families.

However, when asked whether the formal policing procedures have commenced in light of the report made, the acting Top Cop declined to further comment.

The report was made via a letter submitted by former Attorney General Anil Nandlall on behalf of the aggrieved parties which include: Jagdeo, several members of his former Cabinets and their respective families, 35 Members of the Central Committee of the PPP and their respective families and 32 Members of Parliament of the PPP and their respective families.

The alleged threats referred to were made by

Former President Bharrat Jagdeo

Phillips in a March 10 post on his Facebook page, in which he said: “...Jagdeo need to be careful because if anyone in my family or SOCU or SARA’s families are killed or attacked or placed at risk because of his purposeful racist... he needs to understand that he, his cabinet and their families (bar none) will be at the same risk... the only difference is that the response will be significantly dispro-

portionate and very cruel.”

In the letter dispatched and addressed to the Commissioner of the Guyana Police Force, Nandlall enclosed a copy of the declaration made by Phillips, extracted from the social media site. “… Please consider this correspondence as a formal report for and on behalf of my clients who are requesting that you launch an immediate and thorough investigation into this publication and for criminal charges to be instituted as soon as possible, if necessary,” he outlined in the letter.

The former Attorney General posited in the correspondence that the entire operations of SARU were unlawful and illegal, adding that even the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) has long departed from its initial remit and was now being used by SARU and the political directorate to investigate concocted allegations of criminality allegedly committed by the former President and now Opposition Leader,

SARU executive Eric Phillips

his former Cabinet and the Opposition Members of Parliament.

To this end, Nandlall noted that these two units have been the subject of constant criticisms by the Opposition Leader and other members of the Opposition as well as civil society. Moreover, he continued that it was against that backdrop that the Opposition Leader made critical remarks about these two units.

In fact, while on a re-

Police awaiting autopsy report in Tuschen accident A

s investigations continue into the fatal accident in which a four-year-old was killed, Police in D Division (West Bank Demerara-East Bank Essequibo) are awaiting the post-mortem examination (PME) report.

This is according to Divisional Commander Leslie James who told Guyana Times on Thursday evening that the PM report is expected to be available sometime today and then the Police will move forward with instituting charges against the female driver.

Ramkaran Mohan, called “Ram” of Lot 1088 Tuschen New Housing Scheme, East Bank Essequibo, died on Tuesday afternoon at the West Demerara Regional Hospital after he was hit and hauled under a moving car a short distance from his house.

Guyana Times was told that the former Tuschen Nursery School pupil was returning home with his five-year-old brother and teenaged uncle after they went to a shop obliquely oppose their home to purchase a ball.

The lad’s grandmother, Bibi Nazmoon Khan, related that her adopted son, the teenager who accompanied the brothers to the

tears.

Khan added that the woman removed the child from under the vehicle and had someone nearby drive them to the Leonora Cottage Hospital; however, due to his severe condition, he was transferred to the West Demerara Regional Hospital, where he subsequently succumbed.

The distraught woman related that her grandson suffered severe dam-

age to his skull and brain and experienced difficulty breathing on his own. She added that while doctors were trying to insert a tube to aid in his breathing, he died.

Meanwhile, the post-mortem examination was conducted on the body of four-year-old Mohan on Thursday and it was found that he died as a result of a fractured skull and brain damage.

Dead: Ramkaran “Ram” Mohan

shop, related to them that he was standing at the corner of the road with each of the boys holding his hands, waiting to cross when the silver Toyota Primo, bearing registration number PVV 5084, struck the child.

“The boy was waiting to cross with the two lil boys because he see the car coming so he was waiting for it to pass before they cross but then she (the car driver) swerve into the grass corner and hook the child.

She run over the child and she drag him, she didn’t stop. The boy (teenager) had to run behind the car and stop the car, and then she know that she had the child under the car,” the grandmother explained in

The car that struck and killed four-year-old Ramkaran Mohan

cent public outreach programme in Berbice, Jagdeo was responding especially to Phillips’ incredulous allegation that 15,000 ounces of gold were stolen from Guyana monthly, under the last Government.

The former Attorney General posited that as a result of the declaration

by Phillips, his clients and their respective families were now exposed to the risk of being killed or suffering grievous bodily harm.

While recognising that Article 146 guarantees freedom of expression to every individual, Nandlall posited that the said Article is predicated upon the caveat: that is, Article 146 (3) “Freedom of expression in this article does not relate to hate speeches or other expressions in whatever form, capable of exciting hostility or ill-will against any person or class of persons.”

Phillips’ utterances come just days after former President Jagdeo and former Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon, among other top

Acting Top Cop David Ramnarine

PPP officials were arrested and taken to SOCU’s headquarters for questioning as part of an ongoing probe into the acquisition of lands at the Pradoville II, East Coast Demerara.

Calling the move an attempt to instil fear in the Opposition, Jagdeo had vowed afterwards that the Party would not be intimidated into silence, in the face of poor governance.

Govt signs pact to evaluate Youth Empowerment Programme

USAID’s General Development Director Ted Lawrence and Attorney General Basil Williams after signing the pact on Thursday

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s part of a larger goal of creating a safer and more prosperous Caribbean community, efforts are underway to ensure that at-risk Guyanese youth receive maximum benefits from the new United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Youth Empowerment Services (YES) Project.

To this end, USAID’s General Development Office Director, Ted Lawrence and Attorney General Basil Williams on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will govern an impact evaluation of USAID’s YES programme.

The evaluation aims to ensure that programme interventions are evidence-based and both USAID and the Government of Guyana learn from the approaches utilised and the reforms enacted.

The YES programme will support reduction of youth involvement in crime and violence in targeted commu-

nities in the Eastern and Southern Caribbean, with particular focus on Guyana, St Kitts and Nevis, and St Lucia.

The initiative will utilise a robust monitoring and evaluation system to track and support the attainment of programme objectives.

To support the evaluation process, data will be regularly collected from a number of sources, including Ministries or agencies that handle child justice data – the Probation and Social Services departments, the Police, the Magistrates’ Court, and youth detention facilities.

A non-disclosure agreement was also signed to protect the rights of youths within the juvenile justice system, while still allowing for a thorough evaluation of reforms. This data will support and inform efforts to reduce recidivism and increase reintegration of youths who come into contact with the justice system.

friDAY, march 17, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

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Around the World

#BudgetDebate: Ex-Jamaican PM China, Saudi Arabia eye US$65B in deals as king visits champions women’s empowerment in final Parliament speech

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audi Arabia’s King Salman oversaw the signing of deals worth as much as US$65 billion on the first day of a visit to Beijing on Thursday, as the world’s largest oil exporter looks to cement ties with the world’s second-largest economy.

The deals included a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between giant state oil firm Saudi Aramco and China North Industries Group Corp (Norinco), to look into building refining and chemical plants in China.

Saudi Basic Industries Corp and Sinopec, which already jointly run a chemical complex in Tinajin, also agreed to develop petrochemical projects in both China and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia’s octogenarian monarch, who has overseen the launch of an ambitious economic reform plan since his accession two years ago, is on a month-long Asian

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China’s President Xi Jinping and Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud arrive for a welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, March 16, 2017

tour.

The visits to countries that are some of world’s fastest growing importers of Saudi oil aim to promote investment opportunities in the kingdom, including the sale of a stake in Aramco.

Saudi Arabia has sought to boost oil sales to China, the world’s second-largest oil market, after los-

ing market share to Russia last year, by working mostly with China’s top three state oil firms.

In Beijing’s cavernous Great Hall of the People, President Xi Jinping told Salman that China was a reliable and stable oil export market and the two countries should deepen cooperation. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Somali pirates release oil tanker and crew after first hijack for 5 years

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omali pirates who seized a Comorosflagged oil tanker have released the ship and its eight Sri Lankan crew, bringing the first hijacking since 2012 to an unusually swift conclusion without the payment of a ransom.

The release followed a gunfight earlier on Thursday between the pirates and the marine force, and then intensive negotiations between the marine force, clan elders and the pirates.

A pirate confirmed the release had been made with-

out a ransom payment. In previous hijackings, many crews remained in captivity for years before a ransom was paid. Eight Iranians are still being held.

But the pirates said they had agreed to forego a ransom after learning that Somali businessmen had hired the Aris 13, which was taking oil from Djibouti to the Somali capital, Mogadishu. Pirates have traditionally been wary of tangling with Somalia’s powerful businessmen.

The release will be seen as a success for the regional Puntland government and its counter-piracy force, which is funded by the United Arab Emirates.

The hijacking was the first time Somali pirates have taken over a commercial ship since 2012 and followed an outpouring of anger by locals over foreign fishermen flooding into their waters. The Somalis are also angry with their government for licensing some of the ships. (Excerpt from

The Guardian)

ortia Simpson Miller, who made her contribution to the 2017/18 budget debate today, urged more women to become involved in politics as she urged Parliament to do more to protect them.

Simpson Miller, who has dedicated 43 years as a politician and became Jamaica’s first female Prime Minister in 2006, stated that she looks forward to the day when more women will become engaged in the political process.

She also noted that be-

cause of this, women have had to work three times as hard as men to get the same recognition. “We have to stop it. Women… just look at me, when they joke with me, I deal with dem case,” Simpson Miller boasted.

Simpson Miller further stated that since independence, the administration she led has had the most women in Cabinet and in the Senate. She however noted that there is more that can be done.

Every society should enact legislation for the protec-

tion and welfare of women, Simpson Miller stated, while reflecting on the work done in Parliament to ensure the protection of women and their rights with the Equal Pay Act passed in1975, to the Minimum Wage Act and then the Maternity Leave Act passed in 1979.

She urged the Parliament to further enhance women’s protection by passing the Sexual Harassment Bill to provide a framework for addressing the issue in the workplace and institutions.

(Excerpt from Jamaica Observer)

Danielle McLaughlin ‘raped and strangled’ – post mortem

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he Irish woman murdered in the Indian state of Goa was raped and strangled, her post-mortem has confirmed. Danielle McLaughlin, from County Donegal, was found dead in a field close to tourist resorts in Canacona on Tuesday morning. The 28-year-old had travelled to India in February.

Her post mortem concluded that brain damage and constriction of the neck caused her death, police said. A local man arrested Wednesday will now face rape as well as murder charges.

The 24-year-old accused, whose name has been reported as Vikat Bhagat, appeared in court on Wednesday charged with her murder. Deputy Superintendent Sammy Tavares told local reporters he had confessed to raping and killing the victim. Police have also obtained CCTV footage which shows Ms

Danielle McLaughlin was described as a ‘friendly, quiet girl who loved to travel’

McLaughlin walking along a street with the suspect.

Ms McLaughlin had travelled to Goa with a friend from Australia and the women were staying in a beach hut, a Goa Police Officer told the Associated Press.

The pair had been celebrating Holi – a Hindu spring festival – at a nearby village on Monday evening and McLaughlin left the vil-

lage late at night, he added.

Her naked body was found the next day in a field less than 2km (1.2 miles) from Palolem, one of the most popular beaches in south Goa. Some of Danielle McLaughlin’s friends are flying to Goa in the hope of accompanying the body home on Friday to Buncrana in County Donegal - a journey that is expected to take up to six days. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Dozens of rights activists killed in Colombia in 2016 Barbados making multimillion-dollar

Guerima, a village carved out of the Amazonian rainforest in eastern Colombia, once used to live almost exclusively on coca production

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report on Colombia by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights says dozens of rights activists have been killed last year. It says most victims were human rights leaders or members of leftist political organisations and calls on the government to provide protection.

Areas with illegal drug crops were the most dangerous, it said. The UN warned that armed groups were moving into territories previously occupied by FARC rebels. Under a peace deal signed in November, the FARC rebels have moved to transition zones where they will remain until they fully

demobilise. The UN said the illegal armed groups were fighting for territory and resources.

The UN representative in Colombia, Todd Howland, said the groups were often involved in drug trafficking and illegal gold mining and see activists as a threat.

Howland called on the government to recognise that the deaths formed a pattern and to provide protection to those in danger.

Colombia’s Interior Minister Juan Fernando Cristo, said violence against rights defenders could undermine the peace deal.

“We’re all interested in facing these threats and these murders because we know that it seriously affects the chances of consolidating peace in Colombia,” he said.

(BBC News)

investment in cassava flour production

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arbados is set to make to a multimillion-dollar investment to drive the production of cassava flour. Construction of a cassava flour mill will get underway in another six months.

According to the chief executive officer of the state-owned

Barbados Agricultural and Development Marketing Corporation (BADMC) Shawn Tudor, planning permission has already been attained for the construction of the plant which is expected to cost near quarter million dollars.

Tudor is already excited by the prospects, saying it

will not only put more cassava flour on shelves but provide additional revenue opportunities for farmers and generate employment.

Tudor told online newspaper Barbados Today that the initiative is also intended to get more people on board with agriculture, saying there has been renewed interest in the sector.

Stressing that agriculture was still a viable business, he urged the public to take it seriously, lamenting that the sector was not being treated as a serious business. The BADMC head said the agency was ready to assist farmers but urged them to formulate business plans and invest in the sector. (Excerpt from Caribbean360)

news

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fridAY, March 17, 2017 | guyanatimesgy.com

Region 10 officials discuss partnerships to tackle garbage woes

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n the wake of the ongoing challenge facing the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LM&TC) with regard to effective garbage collection, officials of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) are considering the possibility of building a partnership with the municipality as a means of rendering assistance.

Chairman of the Region's Local Government Committee, Sandra Adams said the issue of garbage collection by the LM&TC was discussed at length during a recent Committee meeting where the recommendation of a possible partnership was highlighted.

"The Local Government Committee would have discussed at length the issue of garbage in and out of our communities, realising the situation that the Council is in – the inability to be able to take care of garbage the way it should be...," Adams noted.

She added that the Committee was recommending that the two Councils come together to commence a garbage disposal campaign. At the time of the Committee meeting, Adams said that Linden Mayor Carwyn Holland was attending an exercise in New Jersey but she corresponded with him to seek help in securing a million garbage bags to offset a gar-

Regional Chairman Renis Morian

bage awareness campaign, with the possibility of engaging the participation of drivers in the community.

The Committee has planned several initiatives, includ-

ing having CDs promoting keeping the town clean being played as drivers were about to leave for their destinations.

"Our recommendation is that the RDC and M&TC partner in bringing off such a campaign exercise. We want to try something that can help us do something.

We would have recommended that they build permanent steel structures that will house skip bins at the market and around the bend of Coop Crescent," Adams continued.

Meanwhile, Regional Chairman Renis Morian said the municipality had been advised, through Mayor Holland, to prepare a proposal for the securing

of two garbage trucks along with two security vehicles during a trip to China some time ago. He noted, however, that it appeared as though the opportunity has not been utilised.

"While I am very disappointed in terms of the whole situation of garbage; when myself and the Mayor went to China, we did raise the issue of garbage collection in Region 10, and what the company that we were talking with could have done. I spoke on behalf of the Council about garbage collection and the Council was advised through the Mayor to have a proposal done...and the Council had the responsibility of doing that proposal," Morian stat-

ed.

The Regional Chairman said he was given all assurance that the proposal would have been done.

"Now, to come back and hear from Local Government (Committee) that we got a garbage problem when we got a promise for two garbage trucks...So here we had an opportunity, but the opportunity was not utilised," the Regional Chairman noted.

He added that he would like the Local Government Committee to reach out to the Mayor concerning the proposal, noting that he welcomed the idea of the two Councils working together to curb the garbage situation in the community.

raises issues of sole Shell/SOL Guyana host PSC sourcing, increased taxes, business forum other concerns with IMF team

General Manager of SOL Guyana Inc, Orlando Boxhill

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perators in the mining, commercial and agricultural business sectors on Thursday benefited from a business forum hosted by SOL Guyana in collaboration with Shell Lubricants.

Held at the Marriott International Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown, the event saw attendance of representatives from a wide cross-section of industries, including mining and agriculture. The event was aimed at enhancing the knowledge of participants about the Shell Lubricants’ products and services, and to encourage greater efficiency in their respective operations.

General Manager of SOL Guyana Inc.,

Orlando Boxhill, said his company’s longstanding partnership with Shell continues to benefit customers. He noted that the company was proud of its continued relationship with what he said is the world’s leading supplier of high-quality lubricants.

“It is in keeping with this tradition that we will continue to support the industrial and transport sectors here in Guyana.

Events such as today’s business forum are designed to ensure that owners and operators can always make informed choices of the best lubricants available, and also make the most efficient use of Shell’s world leading lubricant technology”, the General Manager said.

He said the company’s purpose is to create a setting in which customers and those who are not at that stage could come together and gain knowledge on how to maximize the use of their equipment without losing money.

The event also included a tour of the Shell Lubricants’ Experience Center, where participants familiarised themselves with the many Shell Lubricants’ services available locally.

Other speakers contributing to the forum included Rajdai Jagarnauth, Permanent Secretary within the Ministry of Business; and Colin Sparman, Administrative Coordinator of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA).

Technical Specialist Jose Hernandez also delivered a presentation at the forum.

The group of industry operators was encouraged to keep using the high quality Shell lubricants, which provide the highest level of protection available on the market.

Participants at the Shell Lubricants’ Business Forum held at the Marriott Hotel on Thursday

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s time winds down on the one-week visit by a delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) who are here to check up on the country’s economic health, the team met with officials of the Private Sector Commission (PSC) on Thursday.

During the meeting, the discussions ranged over a broad spectrum of issues, which currently engage the

PSC pointed to increased taxation and a degree of uncertainty as to the direction in which the economy was moving.

Nevertheless, the representatives of the Commission indicated their willingness to cooperate with Government in the national interest and to assist in helping to right the economy.

Only Monday last, Finance Minister Winston

these sectors have collapsed and with it, the earnings and the employment that used to go with it,” the Finance Minister had explained.

Meanwhile, the IMF team, during the meeting with the PSC officials, observed that the Private Sector is indeed the catalyst of growth and plays a crucial role in job creation. The team is scheduled to depart today. Their visit is in keep-

PSC officials meeting with the visiting IMF mission on Thursday

attention of the Commission.

The PSC expressed its satisfaction with the current Government’s operationalising of the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) and facilitation of Local Government Elections (LGE), which had not been held for many years.

However, at the same time, concerns were expressed over instances of sole sourcing of contracts which have occurred despite the existence of the Procurement Commission.

Additionally, the decline in the value of the Guyana dollar was also discussed, with the IMF representatives suggesting that a flexible exchange rate, which allowed the currency to revalue itself in response to market forces, was ideal.

Moreover, in response to questions from the mission as to the cause of a loss of investor’s confidence, the

Jordan had stated that the existing state of affairs in the country was an indication that the economy was in fact “righting” itself.

“I believe that the ordinary man may not feel it as he did four, five years ago, but the reality is that the economy is righting itself,” he said on the “Jump Start” local radio programme.

According to Jordan, five years ago, the economy was moving ahead, however, there has not been much sustainability especially in many of the sectors that once propelled the economy. “…I did mention that this economy is growing, yes; but it was running on fumes.

In other words, it was running on its last, so you didn’t have sustainability. The same things that generated the growth, after 50 years the same sectors (rice, sugar, gold, forestry, bauxite) remained. But a number of

ing with IMF’s Article IV Mission.

Under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, the IMF usually holds bilateral discussions with members every year. During those consultations, the mission reviews the overall economic developments in the country, as well as its policy measures aimed at maintaining economic stability, ensuring a sustainable external balance and further liberalising foreign trade.

Upon the completion of the IMF mission consultations, the IMF Executive Board discusses the staff report and issues an assessment of the country’s economic situation and the adequacy of its economic policy measures, based on a comprehensive analysis of the overall economic situation and the wider fiscal policy strategy of the member country.

friday, march 17, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

Star studded line-up for “Woman-in-Law” at NCC

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he National Cultural Centre is the place to be next weekend, March 24-26 to witness the ground-breaking comedy show of the year. “Woman-in-Law”, an explosively hilarious comedy that tells the story of two women in eager pursuit of one man’s heart and money living under the same roof is just the storyline to bring drama and entertainment that just keeps giving.

But with every good story, especially one like this, there is that one friend who appears to be the “voice of reason,” with nothing to lose who turns the plot upside-down.

Darren Mc Almont’s “Womanin-Law,” was first staged in Antigua just last year, with the very cast who travelled from Guyana to give what was certainly a ground-breaking and memorable performance.

The buzz surrounding this show, now set to make its debut in Guyana, is great and “Woman-in-Law” is set to raise the roof with laughter at the National Cultural Centre

Satnarine Ragoo

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Avinash Maharaj

Savita Singh

in just a matter of days.

This comedy features the powerhouse cast including: Michael Ignatius, Sonia Yarde, Clemencio Goddette, Nathaya Whaul, Mark Kazim and Abigail Brower and is directed by Jennifer Thomas. A special entertainment performance will be showcased by Guyana’s own reggae/dancehall sensation, Jackie Jaxx.

The marketing team and crew of this show implores the general public to get their tickets early since “Woman-in-Law” is the show not to be missed.

Tickets can be purchased from three convenient locations: the National Cultural Centre, Mandela Avenue, Georgetown; Giftland Mall, Pattensen, Greater Georgetown; and Gizmos and Gadgets, Wellington Street, Georgetown for $2000, $1500 and $1000. This explosive comedy comes to you with the kind compliments of the Giftland Mall.

Johnny Lever

n a week’s time, the Guyana National Stadium will be a buzz of activities as Fire Fest Productions host the return of ‘Music of the World”. The two-day event will be held on March 25 at the National Stadium, Providence, East Bank Demerara and on March 26 at the Rose Hall Canje Ground, Berbice. With just over a week to go before the events, the promoters are making sure that all arrangements are in place with respect to the line-up of performances but more importantly, security at the venues.

Tickets are already available at regular ticketing locations across the country.

The star-studded line up for the concert will feature Indian comedian, Johnny Lever; young Bollywood singing Mahendra Ramkellawan

Shakti Strings

sensation, Kumar Nihar; Del-E-Nadan’s Rennie Ramnarine; Trinidad’s chutney star Avinash Maharaj; De Showstopper, Raymond Ramnarine; Bollywood playback singer Satnarine Ragoo; Trinidad’s melody queen Savita Singh; and Guyana’s own Mahendra Ramkellawan. In addition to the cast, the Fire Fest Band, the Shakti Strings Orchestra, Asha G, Fire Fest Dancers and Del-E-nadan are expected to create quite a stir. WR Reaz and Deejay Sheriff out of Trinidad and Tobago are expected to emcee the concert.

Tickets for the event cost $1500 for general admission and $5000 for those who wish to experience the VIP treatment.

Raymond Ramnarine

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guyanatimesgy.com

friday, march 17, 2017

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ll roads will lead to Mahaica, East Coast Demerara, this weekend for its annual “J’Ouvert and Wet Fete” party followed by “Mash Soca Therapy”.

The “J’Ouvert Wet Fete” is slated for Friday at the Supply Primary School Tarmac, while the “Mash Soca Therapy” will be held at the Mahaica Community Centre Ground. The events are being held by the Mahaica Youths in Progress, in collaboration with the Mahaica Neighbourhood Democratic Council and the Government of Guyana.

Come this evening, patrons can expect a grand time with water and powder in galore.

This will definitely be off the hook as some of the popular deejays are expected to hype the party with the best sounds to suite the audience.

For those who don’t wish to be a part of the wet fete, there will be a special section for those who wish only to play with powder. However, after getting all dirty and in the party mood, the action continues on Saturday evening for the “Mash Therapy” with live performances by several Guyanese artistes.

Known for their energetic

performances, Jumo “Rubber Waist” Primo and Shelly G will undoubtedly ‘turn up’ the party.

With his new tune “Stir the Pot”, and others, Primo is ready to hit the stage and perform for his East Coast fans.

Apart from the live performances, several deejays will also be there to add to the vibes and set the tone for a memorable evening. These include David Hype, Deejay Akelo and others. Music will be provided

by Determine S o u n d s .

Admissions to the events are easy.

JUMO

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ajesty International, headed by ready made the initial cut, Natasha Martindale, is on the and will go through sevhunt for a well-rounded lady eral challenges or tests to to represent Guyana at the next Miss ensure they have what it World Pageant. In doing so, the frantakes to be a queen. chise will be hosting an audition on The person selected March 26 at Cara Lodge, Quamina will replace Miss Guyana Street, Georgetown.

World 2016, Nuriyyih The auditions are open to all Gerrard, who single natural born females represented who were born in Guyana; is Guyana with the child of a Guyanese pardignity and ent; is a naturalised citipride. zen of Guyana; or living Over abroad with Guyanese t h e parents. The applicant must be single and be between the ages of 16 on or before May 26 and no more than 25, years, four months on that date.

Guyana The applicant must also be has been one of good moral character and making strides possesses charm, poise, and peron the internationsonality and whose background is al stage and would not likely to bring into disrepute have placed in Majesty International or the Miss the top 10 twice Guyana title or the licence holders/ but more impornational director or any person in tantly, the contesrelation or associated with the pagtants Beauty with a eant.

Purpose Project took So far, 25 semi-finalists have alcentre stage.

Nuriyyih Gerrard

Shelly G

Soca Pool Party for April 1 at Aracari Resort

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est Side soca junkies are urged to grab their three-piece and five-piece swim wear and head down to the Aracari Resort on April 1 for the first ever, ‘night pool and soca party’. The party is titled the “Slick and Sexy Edition” and is being promoted by West Siderz Entertainment.

With this being the first pool party to be hosted in the night, the organisers will make sure that security is at its best along with lifeguards on hand in case of an emergency. The party will be one with a difference and is expected to attract persons from the Westside, East Bank and Georgetown.

Partyholics are promised a grand evening with the best music by the very best on the West side. Those already hyped and ready for the session are Westsiderz Sound Crew, Deejay Vybe and Deejay Rahaman who are known to add that flavour and excitement to a party.

In addition to the excitement, the first 50 ladies will get a free cocktail beverage. There will also be drink specials on Red Square Vodka during the event. Tickets cost $1000 and are available at Westsiderz Entertainment and at the venue.

This is one pool party that you do not want to miss...

for Anns Grove on March 25

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n Saturday, March 25, partyholics in Ann’s Grove, East Coast Demerara, can expect one of the wildest soca parties to be held in that village, as the Mash vibes continue. Called “Soca Therapy”, the party will see performances by the Super Ray One Man Band; a performer who is known for his versatility and controversial tunes.

He will without a doubt create the right mood for the rest of the night as the main performer hails from Barbados and with his latest singles; he will “mash up” the place.

Known for his tunes, “Whinning Positions”, “Wine and Dip” and his recent tune that has been tearing up the airwaves, “Bang Bim”, Marzville Marzville will be in the house and will be the featured performer.

The party will be held at Punter’s Place and is presented by Deejay Akelo and Father Moey. Also adding some vibes to the show will be the deejays from Stereo Sonic and Determine Sounds, alongside Akelo and others.

Patrons can also expect drink specials all night long and several giveaways. Some lucky dancers who will be present can also prepare themselves for some surprises. Admission to the event is easy.

friDAY, march 17, 2017

guyanatimesgy.com

Adrian Dutchin releases newest single

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Personality profile

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lthough six-time Road March King, Adrian Dutchin resides overseas, he continues to contribute to the music industry locally.

The former X2 singing was expected to be in Guyana over the Mashramani celebrations to perform at the Guyana National Stadium for the After Mash Fete concert, but due to lack of sponsorship, the event was pulled at the very last minute. While disappointed, the former Carib Soca Monarch is optimistic of visiting soon and when he does he

will be dropping several news releases.

Speaking of releases, the father of two has recently recorded yet another single called “Goddness”.

The song was written by the artiste and produced by Mark Walcott. It was mixed

by Rebla Star and mastered by Chris out of Jamaica. The song, the artiste stated, was recorded a year ago but only recently decided to release it in time for the summer vacation.

Dutchin said he will continue to record and release tunes since it is in his blood.

desh Rambharose is a young entrepreneur who resides at Parika, East Bank of Essequibo. This 22-year-old is a senior dancer attached to the Jewan Ka Nritya Dance Group, is a play writer, director, actor and founder of Magic’s Touch Décor; who dreams of someday making it big in the field of professional events décor and planning management.

This humble and hardworking individual enjoys meeting new people, exploring and of course acting and dancing. He attended Blake Primary School and after attended the Uitvlugt Secondary School where he completed his secondary education.

In 2012, his first production “I Should Have Been There” made it to the finals of the National Drama Festival winning the Best Written & Directed play, Best Costume & Set Dressing, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Performing Cast and Best Production 1st Runner- Up awards.

In 2013, another one of his productions, “Old Iguana” walked away with the Best Production 3rd runner-up award and in 2016, his very recent production “Counterfeit Love”, where he won the award for Best Actor among a few others.

Rambharose has also written and directed many other plays too numerous to mention and has a passion and love for dancing and his many friends, supporters and wellwishers. His favourite quote is “Go out there and do your best, what is for you will always be yours.”

Guyanese award-winning journalist to make presentation at

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n March 25, the Sonia Noel Foundation for Creative Arts will host “INSPIRE YOU”; an interactive session on women empowerment as part of Women in Business Expo to be held at the Pegasus Hotel.

At the event, several women are expected to participate, including Anna Mc Coy, Linda Wallace, Pamela Robertson, Hilda Bournes, Kerri Gravesande and only recently Sherry Dixon was confirmed.

They will make presentations on various topics with the aim of empowering Sherry Dixon women.

Sherry Dixon, a Guyanese award winning Journalist, Transformational Lecturer and Keynote speaker, is passionate about empowering people to be confident, assertive and to be the best they can be, and this started since she was six years old.

Today she represents women in her

community and without skipping a beat she has moved from Magazine Editor to being an internationally sought after Empowerment and Public Speaker.

S h e r r y Dixon is highly respected in the ethnic community in Britain.

Coming from a backg r o u n d of Public Relations, and as a renowned journalist, Sherry edited two magazines – Pride Magazine and SHE Caribbean.

She has written for many publications including The Guardian, Sunday Observer, The Times, Guyana Chronicle, Upscale Magazine, The Voice and has done numerous television and radio shows for Lorraine Kelly (LK Today) and BBC Worldwide helping to dispel the myths surrounding the health and beauty for

women of colour.

With her wide span of knowledge of empowerment issues, Sherry Dixon has become a sought after inspirational, transformational speaker and mentor, sharing her life skills and vast knowledge to empower individuals in the UK and worldwide.

But most importantly, it is her thirst for mentoring within her community that has been recognised and applauded. In December 2014, Sherry was commended by The Mayor of London acknowledging her inspiring work with women in her community by presenting her with a Certificate of Appreciation at the London Peace Awards.

A much sought after international keynote speaker, Dixon has on a number of occasions delivered keynote addresses at the House of Lords and House of Parliament in London.

The lists of her speaking events are much too long to mention here as it would transpire over many

pages. In March 2016, Sherry spoke at the United Nations in New York, with the Justina Mutale Foundation UN-CSW60 as part of the UK Civil Society delegation “Activating W o m e n ’ s Leadership as a Key Driver to Achieving Sustainable Development”.

In April 2016 Sherry was appointed as The Country Committee Chairperson for Motivation in the UK at All Ladies League (ALL). To hear more about the work of Dixon, the Pegasus is the place to be on March 25.

The Women in Business Expo will feature a fashion display and patrons can assess their passes at Makin’ Style Boutique Courtyard Mall, Robb Street, Georgetown.

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friDAY, march 17, 2017

Stag Elite League II

2nd half set for Sunday kick-off

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he second half of Guyana Football Federation’s (GFF) premiere league – Stag Elite League (Season 2) – is scheduled for Sunday, March 19, 2017 at the Guyana Defence Force Ground, Georgetown.

The double-header will feature Top XX vs Fruta Conquerors FC and Victoria Kings vs GDF FC and is scheduled for 16:00h and 18:00h respectively.

Denzil Thompson, who has recently joined Victoria Kings as Head Coach, is optimistic about his team’s chances in the second half: “The second round is very important. They (Victoria Kings FC) brought third in the first round; they’re preparing at a very intense level to come out more successful than just being the third team, but to be the first or second place team for the second round.”

The team, which is a

first-time entrant into the Stag Elite League and trains thrice a week, is evolving, Coach Thompson noted: “I think it’s time we have a brand of football.

It’s not just about winning; it’s about development, we need a project.

When you have a project, you can market the project because of the brand you have. I’m very much interested in coaching a brand at Victoria Kings so when you see Victoria Kings play, they will be playing a brand... you’ll see a different way in their style of play come this second round.”

Meanwhile Fruta Conquerors FC, who placed second in the League Leaders tournament, is also developing their brand of football and are ready for the second half: “We bring a very good mixture of youth and experience.

Youth with extremely ex-

Fruta Conquerors (orange) and Buxton United will renew their rivalry in the second half of the League

tensive talent that need to be tapped into not just for Fruta Conquerors but for the country,” said Head Coach Sampson Gilbert: “The fact that we have talented youths that need the exposure is a new horizon for the club and the League itself.

I’m looking forward to actually see the players develop over a period of time.

There’s no doubt our eyes are still set on winning the league in this half.”

Top XX gave a good representation of themselves in Season One of the League and hope to improve their standing. However, Head Coach Michael Mc Kinnon said his team has had some challenges in their pre-season preparations: “We practice daily but have not been

able to access the ground of our choice for training. We have had to resort to an alternate ground which is not conducive to the standard we require.” He added, “we’re looking to come off from the bottom of the table and perform better but while our hopes are high, it’s left up to the players to perform on the field.”

Winners of the League Leaders tournament, GDF FC, is set on remaining as the number one team of the League. Coach Bilaal Nantambo said the “objective for the next half of the League is exactly the same – to win. If we can perform as well as we did in the first half, then we’ll have the same expectation of not losing a game.” He noted however that “football is played on that day on the field so you can expect a fight every game but we

GCB/DMLAS/MOE/NSSCL

Petra Futsal Championships…

Mendonca enthused about opening night’s success

– media set to play national cricketers in grudge match

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onday’s opening of the 2nd Petra Organised Futsal Championships at the National Gymnasium saw both a burst of goals and a massive crowd in attendance. Those attributes have certainly enthused Troy Mendonca as he thinks the foundation is laid for much greater excitement on the upcoming game nights.

Mendonca who is a co-director of the Petra Organisation spoke to his publication and stated that the construct of the tournament is what has created the excitement among the fans.

“We are thankful for the support thus far and also the concept and structure of the tournament plays it role since we [have] invited 24 teams and went straight into a knockout after which we proceed into the round-robin; teams came out fighting because its either you win and stay or loose and go home,” the organizer said.

He added, “One of the things we really appreciate from these community teams is that they form themselves into groups which speaks volumes for them and we are happy teams came out tonight [Monday] and put their best foot forward.” Going forward, the organizer feels there is even more excitement to come as the version of the

There was certainly a high level of skill on display by the players

futsal sport allows for players to showcase their full skill level.

“The games speak for itself, lots of excitement; it’s a type of football these teams enjoy, instead of using the small goal, they now have their opportunity to do allot of shooting, for the rest of the tournament there will be lots of excitement,” Mondonca contended.

Though no sponsor is attached to this year’s tournament, Mendonca said they are still appreciative of the support given by fans.

He explained, “This progamme is one that we have on our annual calendar, we have not had anyone come forward as yet, we believe in what we do and are confident that it will be a success.”

Meanwhile, Mendonca gave much

delight to the media as they have a chance to extract revenge on the National cricketers after the cricketers defeated the outfit twice in the 2015 edition of the tournament as part of the exhibition games.

Mendonca assured that systems are being put in place to have the match played since the Media team has already set aside plans to be involved in rigorous training ahead of the tantalizing fixture. The winner of the tournament is set to pocket $400,000 and the championship trophy; while the second, third and fourth-placed finishers will collect $200,000, $100,000 and $50,000 respectively and the corresponding accolade.

The event is slated to conclude on April 15.

are prepared. We’re hoping to make a slight change in our formation…but all in all we are confident we can end as winners of the League and I trust that we achieve that.”

The top four teams will pocket $6,000,000; $3,000,000; $2,000,000 and $1,000,000 respectively.

Patrons will be given a chance to win fabulous prizes at every game including family meals compliments of Church’s Chicken, jerseys / caps compliments of Jialing, Impressions and the Guyana Football Federation, and cash vouchers and Gilette hampers compliments of Ansa Mc Al. The grand patron prize will be a JIALING 250cc motorcycle compliments of Automobile Power Products. Admission to each game is $500.

Lower Corentyne Secondary dethrone Chase Academy – Leguan defeat Bartica-Wakenaam Combine

T

he Guyana Cricket Board/ Demerara Mutual Life Assurance Society/ Ministry Of Education/ National Secondary School Cricket League (GCB/DMLAS/ MOE/NSSCL) continued on Thursday with action in both the Inter School and Combine School phases.

At the Albion Community Centre Ground, Lower Corentyne were home to last year’s National Inter School champions, Chase Academy. However, Chase Academy seemed somewhat unprepared for the challenge, when Lower Corentyne having won the toss, invited the champions to bat first.

Chase Academy were mesmerized by the Berbice pitch and ground conditions, as well as their penetrative bowling, and apart from Dwayne Dick 32 and Garrick Persaud 27, struggled to make any great impact with the bat, eventually folding on 107 for 8 form their allotted 30 overs. Bowling for Lower Corentyne, Kevlon Anderson grabbed 2 for 11 from 6 of his off spin overs, while Vijay Gopilal took 2 for 26.

In reply, Lower Corentyne reached their victory target of 108 for the loss of just 4 wickets, with Kevlon Anderson blazing 61 from 76 ball, and Junior Sinclair contributing 33.

Lower Corentyne won by 6 wickets, to dethrone last year’s National Inter School League Champions, Chase Academy and to earn the right to do battle with West Demerara Secondary School in the GCB/DMLAS/MOE/NSSCL Inter School Finals on Friday 24 March, 2017 at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground, Bourda from 11:00 hours.

Over at the Tuschen ground Bartica-Wakenaam Combine batted first but could only muster 113 all out in 27 .5 overs of their allotted 50 overs. Bowling East Bank EssequiboLeguan, Azim Mohammed grabbed 4 for 24 off 7 overs, and Chandrashakar Narine 3 for 10 from 4 overs.

In reply, East Bank Essequibo-Leguan combine reached their target in 23.1 overs to end with 116 for 6. Batting for East Bank Essequibo-Leguan Sukhdade Singh 23 and Malcolm Caesar 22.

YELLOW PAGES

sports

fridAY, March 17, 2017 | www.guyanatimesgy.com

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21

QC boy blazing the trail in martial arts

J

o h n K e n n e t h McGrath a twelve year old Grade 8 (second form) student of the prestigious Queen’s College secondary school, has been blazing a trail in Karate-do in Guyana.

His latest accomplishment has been his phenomenal achievement of becoming a third degree black belt better known as the Sandan rank last Friday (March 10, 2017). His performance at the grading event to earn him this coveted rank was nothing short of remarkable.

His father, prominent hotelier Shaun McGrath, and his mother Monica McGrath an Accountant and Business Executive also with deep roots in the tourism industry of Guyana, are both very supportive of his martial arts feats and his other physical exploits which includes playing cricket and soccer, being constantly in attendance in the Dojo, from the very first day he presented himself at the very tender age of just four years old before his Instructor who at the time was Sensei Chetram Mortley, in his Gi and white belt, all the way to his most recent achievement, of acquiring his third degree black belt ranking under the guidance of Sensei Jeffrey Wong 6th Dan, giving all the moral support they can.

They have also always set aside their busy schedules to accompany him to all of his tournaments whether he is participating locally or overseas.

In his spare time, like so many of his peers John could be found playing a wide range of video games using the modern and popular gaming consoles. That aside John is an avid reader and loves the adventure of travel around the world.

In the area of education, John began his schooling at the New Guyana School where he consistently maintained a high academic performance before earning a place at Queens College.

It’s clear from his concentration and intensity that this Karateka really loves the sport and plans to stay in karate all the way through University eventually becoming an Instructor.

John’s walls are covered with awards

which he accumulated from his attendance and participation in a number of tournaments both locally and overseas including two world tournaments that were held in Canada in 2012 and 2015, the Caribbean Karate Championships that were held in Barbados and the Pan American, South American and the Guyana Karate

John Mc Grath standing tall at just 12 years old

Federation tournaments held in Guyana.

He is an excellent role model and intends to use his athletic platform for promoting positive societal change, and has made a commitment to behaving in ways that reflect high moral values and also in ways that support personal integrity.

John always presents himself in a realistic and responsible manner and freely devotes time and energy to helping young and budding Karatekas He focuses on personal effort and accomplishments instead of making comparisons with others and feels success and satisfaction when he has learned something new, seen skill improvement in himself, or when he has given maximum effort.

John displays a healthy balance between striving for excellence and having fun in the process and wishes to promote to other young athletes the virtues of working hard to achieve goals and the importance of enjoying the journey.

Fruta Conquerors extend benevolence during anniversary celebrations F

ruta Conquerors FC on February 14 celebrated its 35th anniversary as a club and as such the executive committee has embarked on a number of activities during the course of the year t o commemorate this wonderful milestone.

The activities commenced with a coastal clean-up on March 7 where they teamed up with the Guyana International Volunteer Effort (G.I.V.E) through Susan Isaacs where the U17 team and coaches collected in excess of thirty bags of rubbish from the Georgetown seas walls.

A donation of two boxes of disposable gloves, as well as a number of garbage bags were made and the club encouraged other youth groups and organisations to be part of the G.I.V.E group who meet every Tuesday afternoon from 17:00h to engage in the clean-up.

The club then had an international Women's Developmental Workshop which was held on March 11 in the Conference Room of the Guyana National Racquet Center for the female

members and players of the club, but invitations were extended to the Guyana Girls Guide, the Guyana Scouts Association, The Guyana Referees Council and also the Guyana Football Federation whom all sent representatives.

Presentations were given by several distinguished women of our society including Helen Browman the Chief Executive Officer of St. Joseph's Mercy Hospital, Dr. Karen Butters, the acting Chief Justice Honourable Justice Roxanne George-Wiltshire, Dr. Jewel Thomas - Lecturer University of Guyana and by member of the National Sports Commission Lavern Fraser. The club expressed thanks to Carlton Joao, Executive Director of Banks D.I. H for donating the beverages and Lakeram Singh of Mike's Pharmacy for his donation of women's wellness products and pamphlets that were given to the participants.

22

GUYANATIMESgy.COM

fridAY, march 17, 2017

Ramdhani moves to No 3 in rankings G

uyana's Sunburst Champion and National Men's Champion Narayan Ramdhani currently training with Shuttlesport Badminton Academy in Vancouver BC Canada had moved up to the No. 3 Spot in the Men Singles Rankings.

This was revealed by the Guyana Badminton Association in a release which also stated that this position was achieved within the space of seven months, a time of which he has moved up to Canada and training with the big league players.

This elevation in the rankings comes at a time when Ramdhani has only been involved in three tournaments, all of which he has made it to the semi-finals and placed third and also winning one consolation Tournament.

His first tournament was the Vancouver Island University U23 Circuit Tournament in November 2016, BC Senior Circuit 2-Shuttlesport Open and U23 Tournament in February 2017 and BC Senior Circuit 1-VRC Jack Underhill tournament in March 2017 The GBA is extremely happy with the progress the youngster has made after just coming out of the Junior category and playing in the Senior Circuit as of 2017.

Back in August, 2016 Ramdhani had signed a five year

contract with Shuttlesport Badminton Academy located in Vancouver who has been training him towards the 2020 Olympics and also putting him through college and university. After achieving a record number 53 ranking in the world he was approached by 5 international Universities/Clubs and favoured Shuttlesport, which had all the right conditions to take him to his goals in Badminton and his education.

He attends the Douglas College based in Vancouver and started his training with Shuttlesport Badminton Academy.

The player started at the age of four and attended his first international tournament at just six years old. He continued in an upwards direction, winning all his age group tournaments in Guyana.

He then moved on to be Guyana’s Junior and Senior Champion. He continued to dominate in the Caribbean, Pan American and South America Tournaments and although still a junior player, he qualified and played the senior events at the CAC Games 2014 in Veracruz Mexico, the Pan Am Olympic Festival 2014 in Xalapa Mexico & the Pan Am Games 2015 in Toronto, Canada.

Some of his Achievements include Junior Sportsman of the Year (2015), National Under-19 & Open Champion, as well as triple gold Suriname Easter International 2016.

Naryan Ramdhani moves to number three after just three tournaments in Canada

to Georgetown LGC draws on experience Cricket returns this weekend for a bright future A – Hilbert Shields is new President

A

t its annual general meeting held on Saturday March 11, the Lusignan Golf Club (LGC) elected a committee packed with experienced members. The committee is hopeful that the accumulated experience will guide the club out of its current administrative rough patch.

The newly elected president is Hilbert Shields who had enjoyed a well-regarded two-year tenure previously. Also elected as Vice-President was another former President Brian Hackett, the experienced Esau Shamshudin as Assistant Secretary/Treasurer, and Brian Glasford as captain (a role he has performed previously).

Deanand Bissessar is the Grounds Superintendent; Treasurer is Anand Persaud; and William Walker, the Public Relations Officer (PRO). The club’s immediate past PRO, Guy Griffith has agreed to stay on for a few months as secretary to help with the transition.

Shields thanked both the outgoing President Omcar Ramroop and the Secretary for the yeoman service they had given while in office. He also noted with some alarm how many members were not financially up to date but encouraged all those interested in furthering the game to get involved by joining various sub committees which he plans to set up shortly.

fter lengthy delays due to the persistent rain, cricket is slated to make a timely return to the environs of the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA).

The semi-final of the New Building Society (NBS) second division 40-over competition will be played at the Everest Cricket Club where the home team takes on Transport Sports Club (TSC) under the charge of umpires Mikowanyah Yosef Yisrael and Deon Feassal from 11:00h on Saturday.

The Carib Beer first division T20 tournament will finally get underway on Saturday with the University of Guyana playing away to the formidable defending champions Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) with umpires Ravishwar Latif and Ryan Banwarie.

Over at the Police Sports Club (PSC), the home team will face Guyana National Industrial Company (GNIC) and with umpires Andre Hurry and Matthew Kissoon calling play.

Hoterence Isaacs and Joseph Jeffrey will be in the middle as Guyana Defence Force (GDF) travels to the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) to play the home team while Malteenoes Sports Club (MSC) hosts Ghandi Youth Organization (GYO) with Javed Persaud and Moses Ramnarine doing the umpiring duties.

On Sunday, Banwarie and Isaacs will be officiating as DCC hosts GNIC while over at PSC, the lawmen will face a challenge from TSC with Persaud and Feassal in the middle.

Everest will entertain GYO with Mario Nicholls and Andre Hurry doing on-field duties and over at, MSC, the home team will encounter GCC with Ashook Bridgekumar and Yisrael in charge.

Caribbean Cadet and Junior Table Tennis Championships 2017

N

9

ine teams including hosts Guyana have confirmed their participation in the Caribbean Cadet and Junior Table Tennis Championships set for April 13 to 18 2017 at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall Homestretch Avenue Georgetown, Guyana.

The eight regional teams that will battle for regional table tennis Supremacy alongside Guyana are Barbados, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba, Jamaica, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and French Guiana who will all be battling for supremacy over the Easter weekend.

The competition will be used as the qualification event for the second Pan

teams to battle for supremacy

American Junior and cadet table tennis Championships scheduled for the USA in September of 2017. This competition will be used to select the top four teams from the Caribbean who will join the top four (4) from Central American and the top four (4) teams from South America to qualify for the Pan Am event.

The Cadet and Junior championship engages players aged 15 years and under and 18 years and under.

The tournament will provide the opportunity for 32 thirty two of Guyana’s top junior athletes the opportunity to compete against the region’s best for regional honours.

The Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) has already shortlisted the squad

Guyana Junior Boys team from left are Kyle Edghill, Shemar Britoon, Elishaba Johnson, Miguel Wong and Nicholas Romain

to be announced in view of starting the team’s preparation.

Last year the Guyana Junior by team secured silver medal in a three way tie.

This year the locals will

look to use the home advantage to put in a more outstanding performance in view of securing qualification for the prestigious Junior Pan American Table tennis Championships and

winning regional honours.

Additionally, the 32 local tennis athletes’ opportunity to represent Guyana and compete against the region’s best for regional honours will only see long term benefits for the sport.

The junior boys team features a very formidable line up with the likes of Miguel Wong, Elishaba Johnson and Kyle Edghill while the fast improving Nicholas Romain will lead Guyana’s challenge in the 18 years and under Boys division.

Tyriq Saunders, Terrence Rausche, Yeudistr Persaud, kaysan Brandon Jaikarran, Navindra Persaud, Jeremey Singh, Isaiah Layne, Niron Bissu, Khalil Ninvalle and Jonathan Van Lange among

o t h ers should form the team who will look to protect the home turf against their counterparts from the other Caribbean territories.

On the girls side Priscillia Greaves will lead Guyana’s challenge in the girls 18 years and under, she will form alliance with young Neveah Clarkston, Salenas Jackman, Jamali Homer, Abidale Martin, Onieka Philips, Davona Bess, Thruraia Thomas and Christie Lopes among others to repel the efforts of the visitors will bring Guyana honours. The categories to be contested are: Boys – Singles, Doubles and Mixed Doubles and Girls – Singles, Doubles and Mixed Doubles in the respective age groups.

guyanatimesgy.com

friDAY, MARCH 17, 2017

GMR&SC “Reaction” Dragz Meet…

– Suriname Nissan GT-R coming for battle

T

he rivalry between Guyana and Suriname on the quarter-mile will be renewed this Sunday when they Guyana Motor Racing and Sports Club (GMR&SC) host their ‘Reaction’ Dragz meet at the South Dakota Circuit and the Suriname contingent is seeking to match the power the locals holds.

Surinamese driver Prakash Lachman, whose fleet of cars includes a Nissan Skyline GT-R R34, is confident that his machine can hold-off the anticipated assault of Mohamed’s Enterprise GTR Nismo. “Of course we can take down the GTR; we now have two very fast drag cars; chances are they could run even”, Lachman contended. Though, the Skyline GTR R34 is an old model which was made famous by the late Paul Walker of the ‘Fast and Furious’ movie series the adjustments made certainly will boost its speed. The Nismo, which was undefeated at the last drag meet, is tuned by Switzer Performance, which is known for producing some of the fastest GTRs in the world.

Lachman meanwhile, is looking to better his performance from the last time when he was easily outrun by the Mohamed’s GTR Nismo.

Meanwhile, the international drag strip and launch pad will be completed in time for the event, which will encourage even more f a s t e r times on race day, t h e

organisers have said.

With regards to comfort and safety of spectators, it was explained that the club is in the process of erecting stands in the in-field to allow a more relaxed view of the racing.

Apart from the cars, up to $50,000 will be a stake for the fastest bus, with free runs beginning at 09:00h, followed by qualifying at 10:00h and the knockout rounds from 11:00h.

T

Prakash Lachman

Rupununi League gives equal platform to women’s football T augural season of the league, underlining the strength and future potential of women’s football in the Rupununi.

St. Ignatius take on Tabatinga on March 18 as the Central Division continues. The East Central Division gets up and running on March 19, with Flash F.C. taking on Kanuku Harpies and Kanuku Warriors coming up against United Warriors in Nappi.

The 16 teams competing for the title are Titans United FC (Deep South Rupununi), Shiriri FC (South Central Rupununi), St Ignatius Sports Club (Central Rupununi), Tabatinga FC (Central Rupununi), Gladiators FC (Central Rupununi), Snatchers FC (Central Rupununi), Kanuku

UG sports on March 24 at Leonora UG sports heads over to Leonora

Mohammed’s Enterprise’s powerful Nissan GT-R

he Rupununi Football Association (RFA) is embracing gender equality in its football competitions through double-header match days for its 2017 Champions League that give equal prominence to men’s and women’s football.

The League, which began earlier this month, is split into sub-regions across the Rupununi with 15 out of 16 clubs fielding both men’s and women’s teams as standard for matches in Region Nine. The sub-regions fielding teams are: Central Rupununi – five; East Central Rupununi – four; North Rupununi – three; and Deep South Rupununi, South Central Rupununi, and South Pakariamas each fielding one team. History has also been created with a team from Mahdia in Region Eight competing for the first time.

“Our aim is to capture the entire Rupununi,” said RFA President Ken Grant. “We want the whole of the Rupununi to play organised and structured football, for both men and women.”

On Saturday March 11, at Snatchers ground in the Central Rupununi Division, Gladiators women’s team beat Snatchers 2-1 and Gladiators men’s team overcame Snatchers 4-2.

Last weekend, Paiwomak and St. Ignatius women’s side were also competing in the finals of the National Women’s Development League in Georgetown. The teams finished second and third respectively in the in-

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he date is finally set and the University of Guyana (UG) will finally be hosting their annual Track and Field Championships next Friday.

As was customary, students from UG would normally participate in the Inter-Faculty feud in the first semester but due to circumstances the event was pushed back until now.

The decision to postpone the athletic meet was taken as a result of the unavailability of a suitable venue. The annual event was originally scheduled for The University of Guyana Turkeyen campus, however, on examination of the venue by members of the Athletic Association of Guyana (AAG), the ground was deemed technically unsuitable.

An alternate and suitable off-campus venue could not be secured for the scheduled week of the semester break in the current semester.

Also among the changes, the venue is a significant change. As is the norm, the action was conducted on the lawns of UG Turkeyen Campus, however, this year will see the rivalry take to the National synthetic Track and Field Facility, Leonora, West Coast Demerara.

Awards will be presented to athletes who finish in the 1st to 3rd position in the individual events as well as the 1st to 3rd in the relays.

As is the tradition a march past competition will be the opening event at 09:30h with judges awarding prizes for the largest contingent, the best banner and the most uniformed faculty.

Transportation will be provided for athletes and supporters to the Leonora Facility.

Lady Jags now ranked 79

The Lady Jags celebrate after scoring against Guatemala in 2016 Rockers F C (Central Rupununi), Flash FC (East Central Rupununi), Kanuku Warriors FC (East Central Rupununi), Kanuku Harpies FC (East Central Rupununi), United Warriors FC (East Central Rupununi), Paiwomak Warriors FC (North Rupununi), Surama FC (North Rupununi), FC Strikers (North Rupununi), Sun Parakeets FC (South Pakaraimas) and Mahdia Gold Getters FC (Region 8).

The ladies from the Rupununi on their recent trip to the Tucville ground for the National Women’s Development League

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he Guyana National Women’s Football Team, commonly referred to as the ‘Lady Jags’, has improved their standing in the FIFA/Coca Cola World Ranking moving four places up to 79.

This is their best move yet and comes at a time when much emphasis is being placed on women’s football development in Guyana and in a month when the world observes International Women’s Day. President Wayne Forde expressed pleasure at the improvement and outline the plans for women’s football development, “The recently-concluded first ever Women’s Development League is evidence of the renewed focus we are placing on women’s football. The ‘Lady Jags’ have produced some of our proudest and most memorable moments as a football nation. I do believe that the time is upon us to match their efforts with a comprehensive domestic programme.

The Executive Committee is fully committed to implementing such programmes in the coming years.”

The ‘Lady Jags’ had their most notable outing when they defeated Guatemala 2 – 1 in the Olympic qualifier in 2016.

The team is placed 14 spots away from Jamaica (65) on the world rankings, the closest Caribbean team, preceded by Trinidad and Tobago at 46.

The United States of America holds the number onespot.

The GFF wrapped up the National Women’s Development League last Sunday with the Guyana Defence Force (GDF FC) as winners followed by Paiwomak Warriors FC in second and St. Ignatius FC in third place. Additionally, as part of International Women’s Day, the GFF will profile women in football during the course of the month on their social media portals and in the mass media.

FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 2017

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

guyanatimesgy.com

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Lady Jags now ranked 79 The National Women’s Team had a memorable 2016

Stag Elite League II

2nd half set for Sunday kick-off

Pg 20

GDF (red) got the better of Victoria Kings when the teams met in the first half of the season

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