GuyanaTimes

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thursday, june 18, 2015 | guyanatimesgy.com

Causing death by dangerous driving…

Truck driver gets 2 years in jail for death of granny

The 28-year-old truck driver accused of causing the death of a 73-year-old woman in a 2014 Avenue of the Republic accident was found guilty on Wednesday at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Ravin Singh from 46 North East Grove, East Bank Demerara, was read the verdict by presiding Magistrate Judy Latchman after she made her ruling for which he was sentenced to 2 years imprisonment.

Singh was brought to court on September 2, 2014 after he was charged for causing the death of Rajmattie Ram of Triumph, East Coast Demerara by dangerous driving.

The former employee of the Guyana Beverage Incorporated allegedly drove the company’s truck, GNN 8476, in a manner dangerous to the public on July 14, 2014, causing the death of Ram. According to information received, Ram was walking along the pedestrian crossing with her grandson Aditi Ram at the junction with Robb Street and Avenue of the Republic, in Georgetown, when the truck struck her. She was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Public Hospital.

During the trial, it was the prosecution’s case that

the accused was “momentarily inattentive”, thus causing the death of Ram. Police Prosecutor, Inspector Vishnu Hunt told the court in his submission on Wednesday morning that Singh had testified to the road being busy at the time. It is the prosecution’s contention that the accused should have been extra careful on the roadways if this was the case.

On Wednesday afternoon, Magistrate Latchman briefed the court on the details of Singh’s trial. She shared the testimonies of several instrumental witnesses. This included Corporal Davidson who was stationed at the Brickdam Police Station when he received the call about the ac-

cident.

The Constable had provided clarity on relevant measurements regarding Ram’s position on the road at the time she was found and the position of the vehicles surrounding her in relation to the marks that were later discovered on her body.

He testified in relation to the injuries Ram received –her crushed upper torso as well as the several abrasions and lacerations she received.

Magistrate Latchman noted that the Corporal had served notices to two men involved in the accident after his investigations; one being the accused and the other named Rafiq Khan, who drove a minibus bearing registration plates BHH 5293.

The Magistrate noted that Sergeant Clark had testified examining both vehicles and finding no damage to either of the two. He had stated that the vehicles were in perfect working order.

Ram’s grandson also testified to seeing the accused truck hit his grandmother. The Magistrate stated that the testimonies of children are usually quite uncertain due to their wild imaginations. However, she noted that she found him a credible witness as he was quite intelligent and understood what was being asked of him.

Nevertheless, Magistrate

Latchman expressed doubt whether he was able to see the driver of the truck clearly on the day in question. To give credence to this, she used the testimonies of Constable Light, who was on the scene on July 14 and interacted with the accused.

The Magistrate told the court that the prosecution was to prove two elements to gain a verdict of guilt: whether Singh was indeed driving in a dangerous manner and if so, did this dangerous driving cause Ram’s death?

Magistrate Latchman stated that she believes these elements were proven by the prosecution. She relied on the evidence given by Ram’s grandson. He had testified that nothing else happened to his grandmother after she was rushed to GPHC as he had ridden along with her in the ambulance, thus indicating that the injuries she sustained were due to the accident.

Singh’s Attorney called for leniency for her client. She stated that her client’s address, age and the fact that he has an unblemished record prior to July 14, 2014 incident. Singh is also a father of a two year old child. Nevertheless, she sentenced Singh to two years imprisonment based on his overall cooperation with the Police.

Businessman at wits end after repeated attacks by bandits

Adistraught businessman is seeking the community’s and the Government’s help to make his village safer after his business was robbed for the second time, between Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning, within the last two months.

Saleem Khan, owner of Aqua Purified Waters in a Masjid compound in Parfaite Harmony, West Coast Demerara, reported that his business was broken into on Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning, between 20:00h to 08:00h, and the culprits escaped with a flat screen television and DVD player, valued roughly at $100,000. Khan stated that the bandits had managed to break the locks and the grill to get into his es-

tablishment, extra security measures he had installed after the first robbery some two months ago.

Khan explained that the last robbery occurred when a young man walked into his establishment and enquired the price of a bottle of water from the young lady that runs the shop. He then proceeded to interact with the woman’s child before departing. The same young man returned to the water shop some 15 minutes later with a knife, and threatened to kill the woman and her child if she did not hand over the day’s savings and her valuables, worth about $30,000. She conceded and the crook was never found.

Khan noted that the community has a robbery almost every 24 hours, mostly during the day, as about 90 per cent of the residents in the community head to town for their daily businesses.

Khan is asking the members of the community to band together and find ways to help rid of the constant stigma that has plagued their community. He is also pleading to the Public Security Ministry to intervene. He mentioned that the community has no Police Outpost and residents often have to move to neighbouring village to file their reports at the Police Station in La Grange, West Coast Demerara.

Ravin Singh was convicted for causing the death of Rajmattie Ram

Business owner, Saleem Khan

thursday, june 18, 2015 |

BRIDGE OPENINGS

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Thursday, June 18 – 05:00h-06:30h and Friday, June 19 - 05:00h-06:30h

The Berbice River Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

Thursday, June 18 – 05:00h-06:30h and Friday, June 19 – 05:35h-07:05h

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

Sunny intervals with thundery showers can be expected in the morning and early afternoon, while heavy rain showers are expected in the later afternoon. Thundery showers are expected to return in the evening over coastal regions and near inland locations. Temperatures are expected to range between 24 degrees and 28 degrees Celsius.

Winds: East North-easterly between 3.57 metres and 4.91 metres per second.

High Tide: 05:19h and 17:47h reaching maximum heights of 2.68 metres and 2.53 metres respectively.

Low Tide: 11:21h and 23:33h reaching minimum heights of 0.55 metre and 0.70 metre respectively.

Rice farmers owed $6B

...RPA urges rigid enforcement of Rice Factory Act

Amid the uncertainty of markets for Guyana’s bumper rice harvest, the Guyana Rice Producers Association (GPA) has disclosed that farmers are being owed close to G$6 billion by the millers, while the Government must find some US$15 million to pay millers most of whom need the cash to settle their debts with the farmers.

According to the Rice Factory Amendment Act of 2007, millers are required by law to complete payment to the farmers for their produce within 42 days of receipt of product. There are other provisions in the Act that should prevent rice farmers from being exploited, but lack of enforcement of the regulations has now resulted in this bundle of problems cast upon the industry.

For years now, many have complained about rice farmers being squeezed by payment delays, which they claim blamed on the lax enforcement of the Rice Factory Act.

The Act stipulates that, if in the event a rice miller pays half of the monies owed for paddy on receipt of the rice and fails to complete the payment within the required timeframe, then the miller is bound by law to pay farmers an interest rate that is two per cent higher than the going interest rate of the Bank of Guyana. But again, the law is being blatantly ignored by some of the millers.

A rice farmer had previously told the Guyana Times that these actions by millers are merely barefaced attempts to stymie the progress of rice farmers, who may have commitments such as bank loans and other financial responsibilities. Due to the

millers’ constant failure to pay rice farmers over the years, the amount owed to them have now accumulated to some G$6 billion.

Making matters worse for the farmers is the fact that the millers are owed some US$15 million from the Government for the rice supplied and, unless the millers get paid, it appears as if the rice farmers will continue to suffer.

The Government is claiming that it has no money to pay the millers because the PetroCaribe Fund is empty. The PetroCaribe Fund was set up as part of Guyana’s arrangement with Venezuela to pay local farmers supplying rice to the neighbouring country under a concessionary fuel supply agreement.

To date, the fund should have contained a net figure of hundreds of millions of United States dollars.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon had declared that the Government now has to seek means of sourcing some US$15 million so they can pay off the millers, who can then pay off the farmers.

During an interview with this publication on Wednesday, General Secretary of the Guyana Rice Producers Association (RPA) Dharamkumar Seeraj underscored the gravity of the situation at hand. He stressed on the urgent need for the Government’s intervention to immediately settle their debts with the millers so this issue can be resolved.

Seeraj disclosed that he already wrote to Finance Minister Winston Jordan about the situation, calling for urgent steps to be taken to rectify the situation.

More markets

For long-term systems, Seeraj said that the Government needs to address the issue of outstanding debts from millers to farmers. He emphasised that mechanisms ought to be in place to ensure millers adhere to the law and pay the rice farmers on time. One such mechanism, Seeraj suggested, is stricter enforcement of the Rice Factory Act.

Another, he indicated, is having more markets available so that millers are not solely dependent on the Government and therefore, can seek alternative means of getting money to pay the rice farmers.

However, Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) General Manager Jagnarine Singh, during a previous interview with this newspaper, lashed out at the millers for using the “unavailability” of mar -

kets as an excuse for not paying farmers.

Singh said the rice industry is fully privatised and that prior to 2010, when the Board assumed partial responsibility for marketing Guyana’s rice products, the private sector marketed and exported 100 per cent of the rice produced.

He explained, however, that subsequent to the Government coming on board, those private sectors bodies became complacent and sought to depend on the Government to facilitate all of the exports.

Farmers have recently called for the removal of Singh at the helm of GRDB and also for radical restructuring of the board.

Meanwhile, Minister Harmon disclosed that the Cabinet will be establishing a subcommittee which will be tasked with sourcing markets to accommodate the level of production within the rice industry.

In Region Two (PomeroonSupenaam) alone, the farmers are owed approximately G$1.2 billion. Reports indicate that some of the millers guilty of owing these farmers are Ramesh Ramlakhan Rice Mill, Wazeer Hussain, Golden Rice Investment, Vincent Persaud, La Resource, Deonarine, Old Mac and Caricom Rice Mill.

It was noted that millers Imam Bacchus and Sons, and Roopan Ramotar do not owe farmers in the region, and that Region Two farmers are owed far less compared to those in Region Four (Demerara M ahaica) and Region Six (East Berbice Corentyne).

RPA General Secretary Dharamkumar Seeraj

Minister of State Joseph Harmon

Editor: Nigel Williams

Tel: 225-5128, 231-0397, 226-9921, 226-2102, 223-7230 or 223-7231. Fax: 225-5134

Mailing address: 238 Camp & Quamina Streets, Georgetown

Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, sales@guyanatimesgy.com

Editorial

Conflict of interest

It is very unfortunate that in spite of the many objections raised by political parties and other civil society groups the APNU+AFC Government has proceeded with contracting former Auditor General under the PNC Administration Anand Goolsarran and known anti-PPP/C critic Christopher Ram to carry out audits on major projects/financial transactions undertaken by the previous Government.

Minister within the Ministry of Finance Jaipaul Sharma had disclosed that the audit for the NICIL is being undertaken by Goolsarran, while the GGMC and GGB audits are currently being conducted by Ram and his team at Ram and McRae.

When it was first disclosed that these two individuals would have had a prominent role in carrying out these audits, we thought that it was not a ‘done deal’, and perhaps taking into consideration the many opposing views being expressed, the administration would have reconsidered the personnel that were being selected to carry out this important and massive undertaken.

The PPP/C leaders are not against any forensic audit being conducted, but rather it is the personnel themselves which are of concern to the party. And the party has every reason to believe that the key players involved, Ram and Goolsarran, will be biased in their work.

Where audits of that nature are being carried out, especially when it involves public money, persons who are well respected across the political and social divides are considered, not party loyalists or persons who are connected in some way to the group/organization initiating the audit.

Having careful thought and consideration for the selection of the right personnel to carry out such a task is important because at the end of such exercise, it is expected that the findings would be acceptable by all parties involved since the persons who would have conducted the audit could not be accused of having an axe to grind.

We do not understand the rationale behind contracting Ram and Goolsarran to conduct these audits. These gentlemen have openly criticized the PPP/C and praised the coalition before and more so during the recent elections campaigns.

Just a few days ago, we carried the views of an accredited chartered accountant who said that it was wholly inappropriate for Ram and Goolsarran to audit some of the entities given their public criticisms of these agencies.

The accountant had warned that going ahead with the former government critics could destroy the credibility of the audits and had urged the accountants to walk away from the contracts and follow the principles of their profession.

A quick Google search would show that Goolsarran had publicly commented on NICIL operations numerous times in the local newspapers.

For example, on October 2, 2012 he was quoted in Stabroek News under the caption: “Goolsarran exposes raft of breaches involving NICIL”. It was revealed that the former Auditor General had claimed a raft of breaches of the law by the government through NICIL and said there should be a judicial review of the entity’s operations should government continue to defend its action and not take remedial measures.

In another article in the same newspaper on October 4, 2012 headlined, “Goolsarran: NICIL not a public corporation, state property cannot be vested in it”, Goolsarran was quoted as saying that NICIL is not a public corporation as Government purports and therefore moveable and immoveable property cannot be vested in it.

Ram for his part was the lawyer representing former WPA MP Desmond Trotman who had moved to the courts blocking a $3B loan agreement between GGMC and the CHPA. Ram and Goolsarran again were cited in a Stabroek News article on February 17, 2014 saying that GGMC has been running a parallel treasury to circumvent parliamentary scrutiny.

The evidence is there for everyone to see. Ram and Goolsarran present a clear case of a conflict of interest. It would be difficult for these two individuals to carry out their duties in a professional, effective and decent manner given their previous stance on the matters at hand.

A setback to the ALT Project

Dear Editor, Minister of Indigenous Peoples Affairs Sydney Allicock said that he fired Yvonne Pearson from the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples Affairs (MOIPA).

The Minister’s rationale for firing Pearson is laughable. Simply put, the Minister did not stop to think about the massive votes that came from the Amerindian communities for the PPPC and not the APNU+AFC coalition at the May 11 elections.

This is certainly a reflection of the hard and efficient work Yvonne Pearson did in

the Amerindian communities of Guyana prior to the elections, which gave way to positive outputs and results for the Amerindian communities.

But the Minister’s rationale for firing Pearson should be applied to himself, since he failed miserably to demonstrate outputs and results that caused APNU+AFC coalition not to win the geographic constituency parliamentary seat for Region Nine 9 (Upper Takatu/Upper Essequibo).

This is why he should not have dismissed Pearson, popularly and respectfully

known as “Toshao Pearson”, an expert on indigenous people’s issues.

The over 150 Amerindian communities in Guyana, as well as individuals, will certainly miss her when they go to the Ministry for her help or advice, since she was definitely a resourceful and key asset at the Ministry. Toshao Pearson cannot be replaced and will certainly be missed.

Also dismissed were Renato Gonsalez, an indigenous expert from the Phillipines; Anna Correia, Amerindian Land Titling (ALT) Project Manager; Deon Johnson, ALT Project

Associate; and Romel Looknauth, ALT Sworn Land Surveyor. So the entire ALT team at the Ministry was fired by Minister Allicock. This is a set back to the ALT Project. I wonder what the UNDP is saying, since it is the partner entity to the LCDS Project? And worst, the Community Service Officers (CSO) Programme has been abolished by Minister Allicock, in which some 2000 Amerindian youths are now on the breadline in their communities.

Joyann Gomes

Guyana needs the ERC

Dear Editor,

I write to focus the public’s attention on the important role of the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) to this country.

I do so against the backdrop of a seeming lack of interest on the part of the present government to prioritize the establishment of the ERC as a matter of foremost national importance.

To say that I am flabbergasted that the ERC is not on the government’s list of priorities for its first 100 days in office would be putting it mildly.

When in opposition, the current government used their parliamentary majority to pressure the PPP/C government to activate the necessary constitutional arrangements for the re-establishment of the defunct ERC.

When members of the ERC were finally elected, the former Executive

President for some mysterious reason failed to swear them in.

This government’s apparent inertia, in putting in place the mechanisms to correct the failure of the former President to formalize the selections for the body, that were made by the constituencies involved, is unexpected.

It is also at variance to their mantra, when on the campaign trail, to foster good governance, transparency, and accountability, if elected to office. This country needs the ERC more than it needs the Telecommunication Bill or the Public Procurement Commission Bill.

I say this in all sincerity, because as much as these pieces of legislation are welcome, they would be of little use to anyone, if the country implodes through racial strife.

I further challenge any-

one to argue a contrary view to the opinion that this country is presently like a powder-keg, waiting to explode, from the concentrated heat of racial emotions that have surfaced after the just concluded elections.

Anecdotal information abounding in the public domain, suggests that ethnic considerations, more than any other factor, motivated and dominated citizens’ electoral choices for the just concluded elections.

Just check the figures that came out of each polling station for the two main contesting political parties – PPP/C and APNU+AFC –then check the racial compositions of the communities where the polling booths were located, and the nexus is easily established. Interestingly, this wasn’t by happenstance.

It is the result of the decades of historical and political conditioning of the

masses that go way back to the days of colonialism – that tempestuous period of our history during which slavery, indentureship and ‘apaan-jhat’ politics were spawned.

The evidence is pellucid that over time, this conditioning has had a debilitating effect on race-relations in our beloved country.

In general, it has insidiously built up seeming impregnable walls of distrust and seething antagonisms between and amongst the racial groupings in our society, but more disastrously, between Guyanese of African and Indian ancestries.

As far back as I can remember, despite our perceived ethnic differences, we, as Guyanese, are not inherently predisposed to hating each other based on ethno-cultural or racial differences.

Muslims offer prayers in front of the historic Taj Mahal in India (Huffington Post)

Was the election rigged?

Dear Editor,

I do not know if the May 11 election was rigged. I have no evidence of rigging – only read allegations of rigging and false SOPs.

I have not seen evidence of rigging though I was told of cases of multiple voting in parts of Georgetown –can’t ascertain if these allegations were true.

But I was told by an AFC activist, supporter and campaigner a few days ago that there was some rigging that led to the “victory” of the APNU+AFC.

The AFC activist offered no concrete evidence to support allegations of rigging. The activist conceded that some voters in the urban depressed areas voted multiple times, personifying others who were out of country.

This, he felt, could have tilted the election in the coalition’s favour. Unless concrete evidence of rigging exists, people will not accept the charges that the election was rigged.

What was curious was that an AFC activist feels the election was rigged in his party’s favour. The AFC activist, who spoke with me on condition of anonymity,

vowed to deny he ever said the election was rigged.

He did not offer any convincing evidence to me that the election was rigged, except to say the “numbers did not add up” – pretty much the same claim made by the PPP/C. He said the numbers revealed to him after the initial counting at the close of poll did not “gel with the final count”.

He said the actual outcome was much closer, and he would not rule out a PPP victory by a razor thin margin. Unless there is a proper count and providing the boxes have not been tampered with, the public would never know for sure which party won the elections.

The AFC activist said he is glad the PPP/C is out of office and does not mind the ouster of the PPP/C even if done amidst “rigging” or some kind of fraud. He feels the PPP/C needs to be taught a lesson for the arrogance of some among the leadership.

He feels the ABC countries, through their Ambassadors, had played a central role in ousting the PPP/C from office as well as in preventing a recount

Guyana needs...

On the contrary, I feel that we only become overly conscious of our differences along racial lines whenever elections are in the air. This phenomenon tells me that the racial problems which bedevil relations between Afro and IndoGuyanese are rooted in nurture rather than nature.

This reality is further compounded by the fact that our political elite are not by any means shy to overtly mobilize political support along racial lines, spew racist shibboleths, or negatively stereotype other racial groupings in the society, in order to capture and ultimately hold on in perpetuity to political office.

A pending court matter of national import prevents me from further developing this point, so I will move on.

What I wish to add here however, is that the elections results have proven even to the most skeptical amongst us that our country is deeply divided along racial lines. The elections results have also to a large extent generated angst amongst segments of the population that did not vote for the elected government.

They genuinely feel that they will be discriminated against, or otherwise denied equal opportunities to participate in the developmental initiatives to be pursued by the new office-holders.

Taking into consideration that voting was mostly along racial lines, it follows logically that instances of actual or perceived discrimination in housing and land allocations, employment, scholarships, community relations, just to name a few areas, are bound to

of the vote. He felt the ABC countries hurried GECOM to make a declaration of the results in order to prevent a recount that could have shown a different result.

The ABC countries could have supported a recount of the ballots to remove any doubt about the winner. But the activist felt the ABC countries wanted no other verdict, but a PPP/C defeat given the abuses they suffered at the hands of PPP/C spokespersons over the last three years.

Separately, more and more traditional supporters of the PPP/C in North America are becoming upset with the party for not taking precautions to prevent a rigging of the elections. Many feel the party got what it deserved for not taking their advice on how to prevent electoral fraud.

Just to repeat, I have not seen any evidence that suggests the election was not a true reflection of the will of the majority. If the PPP/C has evidence, it should present it to the public and also file an elections petition with the supporting documents.

Vishnu Bisram

from page 4

carry distinct racial hues.

The question is: How is the government going to handle these inevitable issues that will arise?

My own belief is that the illegal land-grabbing currently taking place across the country, in the wake of the elections, is just an indicator of a larger crisis in race-relations looming on the horizon, which the new government will have to face head-on within the coming months.

Enter the ERC. The ERC is the constitutional body that was set up sometime in 2002 or thereabout to adjudicate complaints by citizens, organizations, or groups, relating to ethnic incitement, discrimination, or victimization, and bring lasting resolutions to their real or perceived grievances.

In other words, the ERC is the country’s foremost conflict resolution mechanism for resolving ethnic issues.

And, indeed, every conscious Guyanese knows that Guyana has real ethnic issues of the racial kind.These issues have always been there; they simmer beneath the surface, all year round, but predictably erupt during elections periods, along political lines, mainly between Africans and Indians.

I really would like to know what is to become of the ERC? What is the present government’s thinking on the role of the Commission?

I ask these questions in light of the predominance of race in our electoral history, and the government’s avowal to announce local government elections within its first 100 days in office.

Hail Chanders

Composed by Justice Charles R. Ramson

S.C.O.R.

Lloyd’s rookie pantomime

How he could do with Shivnarine! Chairman of Selectors, Waste Indies Forced to choose these wannabees.

First Innings, with such a poor score, Second Innings, with ducks galore, Team Coach, Bowling Coach, Batting Coach, Better service from a Cock(a)roach.

Send them Dave Martin song, How could they be so wrong?

Sending Chanders out to pasture

When the rest have no better to offer.

Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, Dave was right, let them “take a rest”. Ramdin and Company let the fans down Send for the Tiger, next time round.

Justice Charles R Ramson

A final admission ... the May 11 election was rigged

Dear Editor,

It is finally here, an admission from the Chairman of GECOM that the May 11 election was really a fraud committed on the people of Guyana.

Mark you, those were not his exact words but what he said is tantamount to the fact that the results they gave us might very well not be a reflection of what the electorate voted for.

Listen to what he said: “My job is simply to oversee the operations of the Commission ... the brunt of the work falls in the arms of the Chief Elections Officer.” His words, in effect, he is saying don’t put the blame on me blame the other guys, I am just a rubber stamp in this election farce.

How could a Chairman with over 10 years of experience utter such trash? How dare he say such things? It is not a situation of not knowing, this is an exercise that Surujbally has done approximately three elections now.

Are we going to have local government elections without the ERC? If so, then maybe we did not learn anything from our general elections.

In closing, I wish to say that there can be no better opportunity for our new President to show his commitment to the fostering of good race relations in the country than to swiftly bring on board the ERC, so that at least for local government elections, the ERC will be in place to deal condignly with instances of racial incitement similar to those which tainted the just concluded elections.

It is time! Please, Mr President! I beseech you to add the ERC to your government’s list of priorities. The nation is watching.

C Sampson

So absolving himself of the blame is no excuse. As a Chairman you are the overseer

to see to it that everything runs smoothly. You were grossly negligent of your duties, hence the serious predicament this nation now faces.

You were given fair warnings, both privately and publicly, that we were in a massive fraud situation. Instead of adhering to the norms and procedures to correct those known faults, you deliberately ignored the warnings and went ahead with a winner. This is outrageous!

I knew the truth would come out sooner rather than later, seeing pressure was brought to bear on the Commission.

Unlike the 2011 elections when the PPP/C accepted the fraud, this time around we are holding out and with just a little more pressure this shocking confession. One wonders how many more shockers are there to be exposed? Only GECOM has the answer.

We could have issued a waiver on our claims for a recount and taken our places in Parliament, but judging from the recent disclosure by the

Chairman himself we are more dogged in our call for an immediate recount.

The situation thus far only solidifies our claim that the process was riddled with errors. We never lost the election!

This means that the PPP/C has no alternative than to continue the boycott of Parliament. We are not going back there until the boxes are opened and our votes counted. We are in this for the long haul.

With this in mind I am also making an about turn on Surujbally’s resignation. Rather than asking for his resignation, I would ask him to stay on to right the wrongs done against the people of Guyana as well as those wrongs committed against the PPP/C. Let him face the music full blast even to the point of doing jail time, as one writer in this column rightly suggested. When that time comes this writer would be in full agreement for that kind of punishment.

Neil Adams

Such a margin warrants a recount

Dear Editor, Last week I went to Georgetown and the driver had to divert away from the area around GECOM. It was cordoned off.

I asked why? Surely they don’t expect PPP/C supporters to break in and steal or tamper with ballot boxes. One would expect that from the PNC and its supporters.

So the question is, why and what is there to hide or protect? The PPP/C wants a recount but GECOM has refused. There were fake Statements of Poll.

The PPP/C did not say,

so but Mr Lowenfield, the Chief Elections Officer himself said so. The Stabroek News said that the PPP/C had won Region Eight (PotaroSiparuni), but in a later edition said APNU won by one vote, yes one vote.

Isn’t it suspicious? Surely, such a margin warrants a recount. What are GECOM and APNU afraid of? GECOM did not, as required within a certain time frame, gazzett the results. Again why? The PPP/C has gone to Court.

The only reason why GECOM is locked down is to allow GECOM staff to rear-

range the ballots in the boxes to reflect the numbers on the Statements of Poll used by GECOM to declare the results, so if or when a recount is done the PPP/C will look stupid.

The rigging of the 2015 election was well orchestrated and centrally directed; the victor has become the vanquished.

The PPP/C must represent their supporters as best they could and work to prevent a repeat at the next election.

Safraz Bacchus

We are certain that you enjoyed practicing balasana and are eager to learn more. Today we are going to be giving you two extreme asanas to conquer. Those are:

- Salamba Sarvāngāsana (Supported Shoulder stand)

- Shirshasana (Head Stand)

Don’t worry, we will be guiding you step by step in these two yoga postures. Though it may sound hard and impossible, our guidelines will ensure you a simple pathway and before you know it, you’re in these two postures like a pro. All we need is concentration, focus, determination and steadiness.

Let’s first examine Salamba Sarvāngāsana.

This asana comes from the Sanskrit words “salamba” meaning "supported" ,”sarva” meaning "all" or "every", “anga” meaning "limb" or "bodypart", and “asana” meaning "posture"," position", or "seat", thus Salamba Sarvāngasana literally translates to "supported-all-limbs-pose".

This pose is nicknamed the “queen” of all asanas.

The Shoulder Stand stimulates and rejuvenates

International Day for Yoga, June 21...

Yoga sensation for the nation

Submitted by the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh-Guyana (Hindus for Selfless Service)

your entire body. In this exercise, you build up both power and a new structure in your back and you relax tension in well-known stress areas like the neck and the lower back.

The muscles of your lower back get stronger, the chest and shoulders can move more freely and the back gets straighter. The Shoulder Stand also stimulates the thyroid gland and is good for blood circulation in the chest, shoulders, upper back and the neck.

How to do this Asana?

Preparation

Lie down on the back of your mat, toes pointed up and arms above the head.

Lift the legs up, toes pointing behind you

Do the pose

Lift the hips off the floor while you bring the legs over the head. Toes should be facing the floor.

Lift your back as you extend the legs down until it touches the floor.

Lift the legs up into the air and straighten the spine. Support it by placing the arms against your upper back.

Push upwards on your back with your hands.

Hold this pose for 5-10 breaths.

Slowly come down and return to starting position.

Benefits of Salamba Sarvāngāsana

Stretches the shoulders

Improves flexibility of the spine

Calms the mind

Improves digestion

Massages the thyroid and prostate glands

Flushes mucous from lungs

Relieve the symptoms of menopause

Precautions

Do not practice if you have the following:

Neck injury

Head injury

Headaches

High/Low blood pressure

Heart condition Looks difficult? Let’s see our second advanced yoga posture.

Shirshasana also known as Headstand is asana which is dubbed “King” of all asanas. A variety of other asanas can be used to build the upper body strength and balance required for Shrishasana. The name derives from the Sanskrit words “shirsha” meaning "head",and “Asana” which by now you know the meaning.

This thrilling pose will surely turn your life upside down. Beginners may choose to do this pose as well you must be extremely cautious. It is best if you

practice this near a wall if you are just starting out.

During the practice of Yoga exercises, we not

only relax the muscles but we also build up strength, structure and stability in the right spots.

In Head Stand, you build up power and structure in both the neck and

the upper back and at the same time, you train your arm muscles and coordination. Likewise, standing in good alignment with your body upside down also has a calming effect on your thinking.

How to do this Asana?

Preparation

Sit down on the back of your feet, lean forward until the forehead and resting on the ground. The chin should be resting on your thighs and the arms should lie limp on the side with palms facing up.

Lift the head while you move your elbows in front of your knees.

Wrap the left had on your right elbow and the right hand on the other one. Don’t lift the arms and elbows off the floor when doing this. This ensures that your elbows are a shoulder width apart.

Do the pose

Pivot your arms forwards so they are parallel to each other, interlocking the fingers.

Place the head in the palms on your hands and then lift your hips up. The hands should be resting at the back of your head.

Plant the balls of your feet into the ground and push so the knees are extended up away from the

ground. At this point your body should be forming and upside down V.

Slowly walk the feet towards your face so your weight will shift towards the elbows.

Lift your feet slowly into the air until they are directly above your abdomen. Keep the knees bend and the abdomen tight.

Point your toes into up into the ceiling.

Hold the pose for 5 to 10 breaths.

Slowly put your legs down and return to starting position.

Tips for beginners

Take note that this pose is fit for intermediate to advanced yoga practitioners. You should not be doing this kind of pose when you’re taking your first yoga class. You should attain a particular fitness level (plus immense focus) to do this properly.

It is advised that you practice this pose first on a wall and then work on doing it without support once you are confident with your abilities

Benefits of this Posture

Improves blood circulation in the upper body Counters neck and back problems

Calms and quiets the mind

Strengthens the core, legs, back and arms

Relieves mild depression.

Precautions

Do not practice if you have the following:

Neck injury

Head injury

Headaches

High/Low blood pressure

Heart conditions

Note: It is not advisable to do this pose if you are pregnant. Consult an experienced Prenatal Yoga teacher if you want to do yoga while pregnant.

We urge you to continue practicing the many different yoga positions and exercises in the correct manner and daily because Yoga is one pathway that many persons take for a healthy lifestyle and a longer life span as well.

We expect you to come out, tell a neighbor, tell a friend and come in your numbers, be a part of the International Yoga Day celebrations. Remember it is at the Everest Cricket Ground, June 21 from 10am to 1pm. Let us make thoughts become reality. Let us be fit. Let us do YOGA.

We welcome feedbacks from our reader, so like and comment on our Facebook page- Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh Guyana or email us at kseenanan@yahoo.com

GuySuCo’s cash woes to continue

...despite

Govt’s $3.8B bailout

B y A lexis R odney

The Government, on Wednesday, acknowledged that despite approving a $3.8 billion bailout for the beleaguered Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), there is no immediate reversal of fortunes in sight and in fact announced that another set of funds would be needed by the end of the year to keep the sugar industry afloat.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon, speaking at a post Cabinet media briefing, also mentioned that the industry has been able to save some US$14,000 per month since it fired some staff, and is now banking on fully re-establishing the corporation’s board and the findings of what will be a public inquiry into the industry to determine GuySuCo’s future.

However, Government is yet to make public the cost of re-hiring two former senior executives of the Corporation, Messrs Paul Bhim and Errol Hanoman, whom they had severely criticised when they served under the previous administration.

Only on Wednesday this newspaper reported the President of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU), Komal Chand, as saying that he believes that the future of sugar, now in the hands of the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Government, appears to be on unstable ground.

“The future of sugar is uncertain and it is deemed as uncertain, because there is no clear position, they (APNU/AFC) are talking about all kinds of things and to make a decision, finally, some time down the road. This, comrades, is worrying,” Chand told the gathering.

He reflected on the shutdown of the Versailles Sugar Estate in 1978 and the drastic downward effect it had on Guyana’s economy. In doing so, Chand suggested in a sense, he was hoping that a similar incident did not occur.

“When the small Versailles Sugar Estate was closed in 1978, what happened with the people?

The fisherman suffered, the tailor suffered, workers had serious problems, social problems with their children getting jobs, they were not able to maintain them,” he said.

Harmon told the media that the Cabinet has granted approval for the immediate release of $3.8 billion for GuySuCo, a decision that was made following the presentation of an up-

to-date report on the operations of the sugar corporation made by Agriculture Minister Noel Holder.

He said that the Government has granted approval for the immediate release of the identified sum for the entity. The comprehensive report submitted for Cabinet’s perusal, gave a clear insight into what is needed by the beleaguered sugar corporation for the next few months.

No end in sight

The cash inflow will cover the sugar industry’s shortfall from the current period to August, given the fact that its income will only amount to US$1.6 million and the expenditure will be US$5.7 million, Minister Harmon said, with 60 per cent of the bailout expected to repay the Government’s coffers.

The Minister added that for the period August to December of this year, GuySuCo will earn US$13.6 million. However, with an estimated expenditure of US$19.5 million, another set of funds will have to be approved to meet the projected shortfall.

The national importance of the sugar sector has also warranted the need for a full-enquiry into its operations, according to Minister Harmon. “It is not something that you make (decision) easily; it affects the lives of so many thousands of Guyanese people.”

He described sugar as akin to being, “the mother of the trade union and labour movement in this country”, hence it is not a decision that the administration will take lightly.

He added that the Government is seeking to “clean up that money into the dark hole (as some have described GuySuCo) it is being poured”.

As a result of changes made since taking office, at least US$14,000 per month has been saved, the Minister explained. He said fees were paid to certain persons who were working

in the industry and not doing much of anything, and other professionals whom the administration felt were not in the best interest of the corporation.

Among those “let go” by the Government were several engineers from India, based at Skeldon, Berbice, and “not doing much in relation to the sugar industry”; and a public relations consultant who alone accounted for the almost US$14,000, which will now be saved monthly.

It was further explained that the Agriculture Minister’s report listed several measures that are being implemented to reduce monthly expenditure in the sector.

The full enquiry will see participation from members of the public and other stakeholders. “We believe that once we get the board at a certain level, we are able to get a fullfledged enquiry into sugar. At that point in time, we will be able to make a decision and that decision will be assisted by the people of this country”.

No stones unturned

Speaking at the Enmore Martyr’s annual remembrance ceremony on Tuesday, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo declared that his Government will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the industry is back on its feet and thriving.

The Prime Minister informed the gathering that President David Granger could not attend the event because he was having meetings on the survival of the sugar industry and will not leave because they have to find ways of securing millions of dollars to bail out the industry.

“He has asked me to assure you, to assure sugar workers, that this Government, under David Granger, will do everything possible to bring the sugar industry back on its feet,” he stated.

On this note, Nagamootoo stated that it was because of such reasons that his Government felt it appropriate to dismiss the leadership of the GuySuCo and ordered a forensic audit to find out where the monies went.

The Prime Minister further outlined that as they move forward in efforts to revitalise the industry, they are in discussions with counterparts from India, Cuba and the United Kingdom, all of who have indicated their willingness to assist the Government. He also added that the Government is expected to meet with the European Union also on the same matter.

thursday, june 18, 2015 |

Labourer’s future hangs on Tuesday’s decision

The future of a labourer hangs on the decision of Magistrate Ann McLennan come next Tuesday. Timothy Taylor, 19, is charged with being in possession of illegal guns and ammunition after he was busted with the weapon in January of this year.

On his first court appearance on January 8, the accused was read that he had a .32 revolver with three live rounds of matching ammunition at Avenue of the Republic, Georgetown. He had pleaded not guilty to the charge and made an application for bail through his attorney,

According to the Police Prosecutor, Corporal Deniro Jones, in January a party of Police ranks on patrol duty observed Taylor and two others acting in a suspicious manner. He said they decided to approach the defendant and his friends,

but when they observed the cops advancing they ran away. Jones told the court that the ranks chased after them but were only able to apprehend Taylor. The defendant was searched, and the gun was revealed hidden in the waist of his pants. He was arrested and taken to the Brickdam Police Station where charges were laid. Taylor was not granted bail and has been in prison since.

Wednesday afternoon saw the attorney of the accused making a no case submission before Magistrate McLennan where he stated that the prosecution had no case.

He detailed that there were several irregularities in the case, as the gun and ammunition were not recorded accurately nor was the testimonies of the prosecution’s witnesses consis-

tent once cross examined. The testimony of a Constable Williams was particularly highlighted by the lawyer, who stated that she was unable to specify whether her findings that the accused is not the holder of a firearm licence is from a search of a region in the country, a district or the entire country.

Police Constable Thornhill was also scrutinised for his testimony, where he stated that he had held the guns with his bare hands, yet refused to admit that his fingers could be an addition on the weapon.

The attorney told the court that the Police Prosecutor had not proven beyond reasonable doubt that his client was indeed found with the guns. Magistrate McLennan stated that she will decide on this come Tuesday June 23.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon

CXC lowers cost for exam shift

...review of scholarships programme underway

Government has finally approved the payment for shifting the Caribbean Advance Proficiency Examinations (CAPE) and the Caribbean Secondary Education Examination (CESC) to accommodate the May 11 General and Regional Elections.

The holding of Guyana’s General and Regional Elections on May 11 last had caused concern, particularly because it affected the sitting of the CAPE and CSEC examinations.

Guyana’s then Government, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic Administration, made arrangements with the Caribbean Examination’s Council (CXC) for the exams to be shifted to another date. This decision had incurred some charges.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon under the David Granger led-Administration told journalists on Wednesday that Government has granted the approval of some US$365,000 to be paid to the regional examination body.

The examinations were rescheduled after it was realised that the date had clashed with that for the General Election. The examinations that were initially set for May 11 and 12 were rescheduled for June 15 and 16 respectively.

“The original sum was in the vicinity of $385,000 however the current Administration sought a review of the figure, which they did and took off 20,000 US dollars. Government is

committed to education and so wise approved the sum,” Harmon said.

Former Education Minister Priya Manickchand had explained that there were no other possible dates for holding of elections that would not have clashed with the examinations.

She had said that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) had submitted a list of possible dates for the election, all of which were within the exam period.

Meanwhile, Harmon related that Government has vowed to continue the President’s Scholarship Programme. The programme, which started in 2012, gives full scholarships to the two best performers of the Caribbean Advance Proficiency Examination (CAPE) and the Caribbean Secondary Education

Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

“Cabinet was briefed that there was a monetary attachment to the scholarships, but that in the award of the scholarship between 2012 and 2014, there were issues regarding the universities chosen by the awardees and that of the four awardees in 2012, only two had taken up the scholarship”.

He said in 2013, only three students took up the scholarship award. The fourth awardee, he related, is currently requesting his award from the Ministry. He noted that last year, the top awardees were limited to universities in Cuba, China and Guyana.

“This offer was not accepted by their parents and one of the CAPE top awardees, sought the intervention of the Ministry of Education”.

He related that Cabinet took the position that “because of our emphasis on young people and the fact that a commitment was given to these awardees, we will honour the promise made to them up to 2015.”

He said Education Minister, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine has been mandated to examine the programme carefully and to come up with firm recommendations. He is also to give guidance that in looking for the condition of awards he should also consider scholarships for people in Guyana, at the University of Guyana.

“So that the scholarship will not be only for study-

ing abroad, but that deserving students be allowed the opportunity to study right here in Guyana”, Harmon said.

The former administration had come under fire for failing to fulfil its obligations in this regard. Government, through former Cabinet secretary, Dr Roger Luncheon had said that the absence of an Appropriation Act was responsible for this.

The admission had come in light of the claims made by 2014 CSEC top performer Elisa Hamilton who said she was unable to get a scholarship to study at an institution of her choice.

Former President Donald Ramotar had announced in 2012, that the top two students of the CSEC and CAPE will automatically qualify for scholarships to study in Guyana or abroad.

Former Education Minister Priya Manickchand had later said that the students would get scholarships to “universities of their choice”. Hamilton, who wanted to study medicine at Yale University received a letter from the Public Services Ministry, informing her that she could only apply to study in Guyana, China or Cuba in the fields of engineering, dentistry or medicine.

It is unclear whether any student has been since granted scholarships outside of the Caribbean since the scheme was set up. Most of the past top performers at CAPE and CSEC are pursuing studies at the University of the West Indies.

Indian Arrival Committee extends Ramadan greetings

The Indian Arrival Committee (IAC) wishes to extend Ramadan Mubarak greetings to all the citizens of Guyana, especially those who are adherents of Islam, the religion of peace, at the beginning of this holy month which is observed by over one billion people globally.

The IAC urges those persons who are truly observing the religious customs and traditions of this holy month to practice and teach self-discipline, self-

restraint and that being generous to the less fortunate while obeying God’s Commandments.

The IAC recognises that the observances of the holy month promotes great spiritual virtues and blessings and teaches respect for all of

God’s creation and religions.

The IAC calls on all our political leaders to learn the principles and lessons of this holy month of Ramadan to build bridges and not walls, where there would be harmony and peace in our country.

Eyew tness

Presumptuous...

...power broker wannabes

The timing couldn’t have been more serendipitous to expose the venality of that band of fifth columnists who thought they would’ve stepped into the shoes (and cork hats) of the departed British and ruled over the natives.

For the “departed”, it would’ve been cheaper (and more politically correct) to use the local Quislings. So what better to have the pomp and ceremony of the “handing over” independence ceremony be re-enacted as they made their latest attempt to become relevant.

The fly in the ointment for this band of would-be rulers, had always been the PPP/C. As far back as 1953, in the first elections under universal suffrage, Jagan and the PPP had picked up an amazing 18 out of 24 seats.

The local native informants had to retire to lick their wounds. They never thought this “upstart” from the Port Morant back-dam could leapfrog over their 100-year-dream to become “Massa”.

Not become “like Massa” ... they’d been mimicking him ridiculously all along. But to BECOME Massa.

But they didn’t have to sulk for too long. Their Massas threw out the PPP after a mere 100 days and plucked them from their enforced obscurity to run things again. But they got a trashing again in 1957 at the hands of the PPP.

More angst and weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth for this pale, effete, pitiful bunch. But even though they all connived to remove the PPP again in 1964...even Burnham couldn’t stomach them. Burnham was black...you see.

He used them to get into power then threw them away like used tissues. He hauled the ones in the Civil Service over to Hope Estate and made then chop bushes while he rode on his horse like the old Massa!!

The others fled overseas! However by the time, against all odds, Jagan and the PPP saw off both Burnham and his successor, some of the old pretenders to the throne who hadn’t absconded to Canada, had regrouped.

They’d fought a vicious rearguard action to derail the PPP though. One lawyer from the clan, a director of the SN, said Jagan was “too Indian” - the army would overthrow him! He probably thought the GDF was full of Col Mobutus!

To Jagan’s proposal of Luncheon...he was “too black”!! Sadly, that’s how the mindset of these survivors from the League of Coloured Peoples functioned: only THEY were “cultured” enough to run Guyana.

During the 23 years of PPP/C government, they never let up their war of attrition. Their main line of attack - as always - was that the folks in the PPP/C just weren’t from their “class”.

So how could they even measure up?

...Stabber News

Well, now that the PPP/C has once again been maneuvered out of office - and not without a little help from the never-say-die (but diminished) fifth columnists, they’re busy weaseling their way into “the King maker” role they believe is their birthright.

And this is as it should be, no? After all they know better than the natives, right? We’ll see if Granger sees through their game, as his mentor did.

But in the meantime, now that the PPP/C’s regrouping, they’re scared sh*tless they’ll be back in five years!! They’re presuming to tell the PPP/C how they should reorganize going forward!!

What a bunch of losers! But it’s obvious they’ve now identified some Quislings in the PPP/C who they would want to come out on top. Jagdeo, of course, is beyond the pale!! Like Jagan, he had the temerity to come from the countryside and whip their behinds! What SN and their fellow travelers don’t seem to realize is that their endorsement of fellas like Ralph Ramkarran is the kiss of death.

...young’uns

The ambitious young brigade in the PPP/C should learn of the fate of their PPP predecessors. Beware the endorsement of the Quislings!

2014 CSEC top student Elisa Hamilton

US-based Guyanese attacked, robbed at gun point

AUS-based Guyanese woman who returned to Guyana to visit her family in Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara was greeted with a tragic arrival when she was attacked and robbed at gun point, hours after landing at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri.

Seerajie Shivram, 56 years old of Florida, was attacked and robbed by two gunmen as she was making her way into her house at Lot 2 Mon Repos on Wednesday morning around 02:00h.

The woman was attacked and robbed of over US$3000, her asthmatic medication, her United States (US) passport, and US identification card and driver’s licence, among other important documents.

In addition, Shivram’s sister and brother-in-law,

who were with her at the time, were also robbed of their valuables, including $25,000.

The woman’s son, Vishal Shivram, told the Guyana Times that his aunt and uncle went to the airport to pick his mother up, and they were all travelling back to the Mon Repos home. Upon arriving at the home, it was then that the two men rushed into the yard, held his father at gunpoint and robbed the women of their belongings. They then escaped via a motor vehicle that was waiting some distance from the house.

“Everything happened so fast. When my dad came to open the gate so the car could drive in, my mum and aunt came out and the two men just ran in.

They pointed a gun to my dad and took away my mum’s hand luggage and my aunt’s stuff. They then ran away and jumped in a car that was waiting around by the market side,” the son related.

The incident was immediately reported to the Beterverwagting Police Station, where the Police there have launched an investigation.

The family said a nearby Chinese restaurant has a surveillance camera which may have captured the incident on tape and it will soon be submitted to the Police to assist with the investigations.

Shivram, who had intended to stay two weeks in Guyana, will now have to exhaust her time with back and forth trips to the United States Embassy in Georgetown in an effort to obtain a new US passport and other personal documents which were stolen in the robbery.

Her husband, Naresh Shivram told this publication that his wife has thus far been greeted with great cooperation from the US Embassy and the airline (Caribbean Airline).

“Everything is going smooth. We went today (Wednesday) at the US Embassy and everything went smooth. We went to the airline and they told us once we get the Police report everything will be okay,” he said.

Relatives of dead trio plead for justice

Relatives of the Albouystown trio who were killed by Police outside the K&VC Hotel on South Road, Georgetown on October 13, 2013 are happy now that an eyewitness has come forward. They want the killers prosecuted.

Days after Police whistleblower Lennox Wayne had given an eyewitness account on what really happened to the Albouystown trio on the night of October 13, 2013 outside the hotel, the father of one of the now dead young man, who Wayne said was cold blooded murder, said that the relevant authorities should now look in the direction of bringing the trio’s killers to justice.

“We need to know whatever took place and whoever is culpable bring them to justice; let them pay for it,” the father said.

Six months after the shooting had taken place, the Police Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) had only recommended that an inquest be held into the killing of Jermaine Canterbury, Mark Anthony Joseph and Romario Gouveia.

To date, however, it is

unclear how that recommendation was treated by the authorities. “He was murdered. He (Wayne) told me so. He told me what took place. He told me that they (the trio) were picked up in Albouystown by some guy,” the father shared.

Police, on Sunday, October 13, 2013, accused the three youths of opening fired on them when they were about to rob a guest at the K&VC Hotel. Whistleblower Lennox Wayne had related that the men did not commit a robbery but they were killed by Police.

Gouveia’s father is also of that same belief. “There wasn’t any robbery or anything...They had no weapons. The weapon that they produce, that .38 that the Police produce, is what the Police Officer had in his haversack,” Wayne had told investigators. In a press release, the Police had stated that the three young men, moments before they were shot, exited a car near the K&VC Hotel, where they were headed to allegedly commit an armed robbery.

Police said ranks had received information that an occupant of the hotel was the target of an impending robbery and that the trio

CIOG’S Al Ghazali Academy secures 95% NGSA pass rate

The Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana’s (CIOG) Al Ghazali Academy once again ranked as one of the top performing school at the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA), securing a 95 per cent pass rate.

The Al Ghazali Islamic Academy has been recognised for its commitment to ongoing quality education for Guyanese children over the past years.

In a press release, the CIOG acknowledged the efforts of Sir Johnny Mongal and Sister Bibi Young for their dedicated leadership of the primary division.

The CIOG lauded the two outstanding leaders, who were supported by an experienced staff, for continuing to produce excellence in the education of the future generation.

“Particular mention must be made of Sir Johnny, Ms Bibi and Ms Roshanie Ramlochan, who tirelessly prepared the students for the exams and are now reaping the rewards of their efforts,” the release read.

At the NGSA 2015, the Al Ghazali Islamic Academy saw 21 students sitting the examination, producing students in the top 100.

Six students gained marks to attend one of the senior secondary schools in Georgetown, 10 students for A schools and five for B schools. The CIOG extended heartfelt congratulations to these students.

The academic schools operated by the CIOG –the Al Ghazali Islamic Academy and Meten-MeerZorg Islamic Academy –have lived up to its reputation by securing high percentages of pass rates at these examinations. The schools offer religious and secular education at the nursery, primary and secondary levels.

had been staking out the building.

The Police said that they challenged the three men as they were making their way to hotel, when the men opened fire and subsequently forced them to retaliate.

Two guns and a wig were recovered following the shooting, according to Police, who said they have been unable to locate the vehicle the men used to travel to the location because it used fake licence plates.

Witnesses, however, said that the men were put to lie on the roadway in front of the hotel and then shot.

Wayne, who is now incarcerated awaiting trial for the murder of Lusignan Cosmetologist Ashminee Harrryram, said that on that night, he had played a major role in the entire set up.

Wayne said that after serving 10 years in prison for robbery, he struck up a close relationship with several ranks of a Police Anti-crime Unit, and provided them with information on criminal activities as he had detailed how the Police carried out the operation and killed the young men.

A group of students of AIA who sat the recent NGSA examination

Seerajie Shivram

Naresh Shivram

thursday, june 18, 2015 | guyanatimesgy.com

Oil for rice pact with Venezuela near expiration

India willing to help bailout GuySuCo

...Govt cautiously seeking renewal – says technical, financial assistance available

With the PetroCaribe agreement between Venezuela and Guyana slated to end sometime this year, Minister of State Joseph Harmon said Government is cautiously trying to push for an extension of the arrangement.

This disclosure was made during a post-Cabinet press briefing at the Ministry of the Presidency on Wednesday. Harmon noted that the Government of Guyana is currently engaging the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on a bilateral basis to determine if it is possible to extend the agreement so that Venezuela can continue buying rice from and supplying oil to Guyana.

These discussions are being led by Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge, Harmon stated.

Under the current trade agreement, Guyana is expected to supply approximately 210,000 tonnes of paddy and polished rice annually to Venezuela. The value of this supply amounts to US$130 million.

Recently, Harmon declared that the PetroCaribe Fund is empty, alleging that the mismanagement of the former People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) Administration is to be blamed.

However, the PPP/C is arguing that the Fund was never meant to be a vault to keep money but rather, the money was used to pay rice farmers

and millers.

Nonetheless, Harmon indicated that the PetroCaribe deal is extremely beneficial to Guyana and therefore, the Government is hoping that the agreement can be extended.

He also disclosed that there are other South American countries which are pushing to penetrate and possibly take over the rice market in Venezuela.

The likelihood of Venezuela dropping Guyana as a supplier of rice is uncertain, particularly considering the ongoing territorial dispute between the two nations regarding the Atlantic Ocean off of the Essequibo Coast where the US oil giant ExxonMobil has its operations.

ExxonMobil recently announced that it detected an indication of oil and an assessment is currently ongoing to determine if the lucrative resource is indeed in commercial

quantities.

If so, in time, Guyana will no longer have to depend on other countries for oil.

But, in spite of these factors, Harmon said the government was optimistic that the rice deal will be extended.

“We believe that because of this length of time in which we have been shipping rice to Venezuela, that the Venezuelan market might have been accustomed to Guyana’s rice and therefore we stand a better chance of being able to negotiate a longer term arrangement,” he said.

In February, Guyana’s former Ambassador to Venezuela Dr Odeen Ishmael wrote an article suggesting that the countries signed onto the PetroCaribe agreement should no longer place much reliance on it.

The article asserted that Venezuela would be unable to sustain the programme of providing concessionary oil to countries signatory of the PetroCaribe agreement due to its current economic crisis and the recent drop in international oil prices.

The article also states that this position was adopted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which in November 2014 claimed that four Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries – Belize, Haiti, Jamaica and Guyana – had begun to take steps to reduce their dependency on PetroCaribe oil.

As the Government of Guyana tries desperately to get the local sugar industry back on its feet, the Indian Government has extended a lending hand to aid in resuscitating the ailing sector.

Speaking to Guyana Times on Wednesday, Indian High Commissioner to Guyana Ventakachalam Mahalingham, said they have indicated this to the David Granger Administration and are awaiting a proposal to determine the nature of the assistance needed.

“As of now I cannot say what will be the nature of assistance but we have already committed when former President (Donald) Ramotar visited India and met with our Prime Minister (Narendra Modi), that we would help the Government of Guyana to upgrade the sugar industry in whatever way that they want but we are waiting for the proposal from the Government. It could be technical, it could be LOC (line of credit), it could be both depending on Government’s request,” he explained.

Only Tuesday, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo disclosed that as Government contemplates the way forward to revitalise the industry, they are in discussions with overseas counterparts, including India.

Earlier this month, former Chief Executive Office of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), Dr Raj Singh announced that the company does not have funds to pay workers and renewed request for a $16 billion bailout sum. The request was first made earlier this year.

The new A Partnership

competent now to comment on that,” he noted, while adding, however, there are Indian consultants available with expertise in crop production, sugar technology and upgrading of factories.

Mahalingham pointed out that the previous Government had discussions with some Indian experts during the former President’s visit in January this year. “What happened was, the sugar industry experts gave a briefing to the former President about what they could for Guyana,” he stated.

for National Unity/Alliance For Change Government has since indicated that they will inject a sum of money to assist the Sugar Corporation and was meeting with stakeholders on the amount and where to secure funding from. However, Minister of State Joseph Harmon, on Wednesday confirmed that Government has agreed to invest some $3.8 billion in the sector. However, they will have to go to the National Assembly to secure the monies.

Experts

On this note, the High Commissioner was asked by this newspaper, given his country’s expertise in the sugar industry, what steps the Government should take to ensure the recovery of the sector. He posited that he is unable to comment on this matter since he is not familiar with the root of the problems that the local sugar industry is facing.

“I need to know what are the major problems and understand the complete working of GuySuCo and the sugar industry as a whole in Guyana. So I don’t think I’m

During his trip to India, Ramotar had visited a sugar factory in the state of Gujarat and recounted that the experience was revealing. He outlined that the factory is managed as a cooperative and the farmers along with other workers are vested with the ownership.

The former President had explained the factory produces the power needed for its daily operations, as well as sells its excess bagasse to other industries.

He added that apart from producing several types of sugar, the factory also manages the crop’s by-products. Ramotar was of the opinion that the method of ownership and other aspects of the factory’s operations are factors that can be implemented to reverse the condition of the local sector.

Commenting on this, High Commissioner Mahalingham outlined that the Indian sugar factories are efficient, noting that even the cooperative factories are well managed. He noted that these factories are very disciplined in their operations and abide by very strict timelines.

Armed pirates elude Police after high seas attack

Police in Berbice are investigating a report that several fishermen operating at high seas in the Berbice area were attacked and robbed by pirates.

However they have come up empty handed in an endeavour to catch the pirates. According to reports, shortly after midday on Wednesday, a band of sea bandits robbed a group of fishermen and made their ways heading for the West Berbice foreshore.

A joint Police/Coast Guard went into the Atlantic Ocean in search of the pirates however, after more than five hours searching, they came up empty handed.

According to a source close to the Police, two fishing boats which were anchored in the Ocean were searched. A third boat was also spotted but was not searched. According to the source, the third boat did not fit the description of the one they were looking for.

Meanwhile up to press time no one had reached land to give a report of the alleged attack.

Police are on the lookout. Senior officials of a major fishing complex on the Corentyne say that 30 per cent of the fishing folk who operate in the area were involved in piracy. He said that because many of them are allowed to get away with the crime, the scourge of high seas piracy will continue.

Former President Donald Ramotar touring a sugar factory during his visit to India in January

Indian High Commissioner to Guyana Ventakachalam Mahalingham

Former Ambassador to Venezuela Dr Odeen Ishmael

Govt to scrap Specialty Hospital project ... Nandlall says move unfortunate

Volda Lawrence when a vote had been taken for the fund.

The David Grangerled Government has announced plans to scrap the Specialty Hospital project and is hoping to utilise the remaining US$14 million given to Guyana from the Indian Exim Bank for the construction of the Specialty Hospital on primary health care services.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon, on Wednesday said that before this is done, however, there must be a comprehensive report prepared by a consultancy group.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan has been tasked with engaging officials of Exim Bank. Harmon said Guyana’s primary healthcare system is in a serious state of degradation, adding that the health of citizens here far outweighs the plan for any health tourism.

“Cabinet looked at the possibility in relation to Exim Bank for the spending of the balance of the loan ($14 million)… Cabinet mandated the Finance Minister to continue the conversation with Exim Bank with a view to having a comprehensive report on the project prepared by a consultancy group after which, based on the recommendation, the Government will decide on a way forward,” Harmon said.

The construction of the Specialty Hospital was part of an agreement between the Government of Guyana and India, for Guyana to use US$18 million through a line of credit to build the hospital which was aimed at catering for complicated surgeries, ranging from heart operations, organ trans-

plants to cosmetic surgeries. The idea had come in for heavy criticism by the current Administration which was on the opposition side of the House during the 10th Parliament. The coalition had cut the $1.25 billion that had been budgeted for the hospital in 2013. The previous administration had only escaped with $34.4 million as supplementary funding for the hospital in the 10th Parliament only by the absence of the coalition’s Member of Parliament (MP)

Scotiabank launches new auto loan promotion

Scotiabank Guyana launched an exciting new auto loan promotion geared at rewarding new auto loan customers on Wednesday at the bank’s Carmichael Street, Georgetown branch.

The promotion, called “Jump in and Drive” runs from June 15 to September 4, and is aimed at providing the bank’s customer with an affordable way to own their own motor vehicle.

Raymond Smith, the Country Manager to Scotiabank Guyana, stated that the core purpose of this promotion is to make customers financially better off, and he feels that this programme will do exactly that, as they are working with their auto dealer customers to increase their sales and therefore make them financially better, and provide the customers who would wish to purchase

such vehicles, with affordable financing to acquire vehicles that will assist them with transportation.

“This programme is a winwin situation for owners of auto dealerships and customers purchasing their dream vehicles at comfortable rates,” said Smith, as he expressed his eagerness to begin with the promotion. To participate, persons must visit one of the participating auto dealers to choose the vehicle he/she wishes to purchase. The auto dealer will complete a coupon and give it to the customer who then brings it to his/her preferred Scotiabank branch to apply for an auto loan.

The new loan customers will benefit in ways such as special interest rates with low monthly payments, up to 100 per cent financing for qualified customers, no installments for the first month, repayment between four and

six years and much more. The first 120 auto loan customers will each receive $10,000 gas at any Rubis Service Station in Guyana, and all auto loans approved during the campaign period will be automatically entered into monthly draws in July, August and September for a chance to win one of the year’s most comprehensive insurance coverage to a maximum of $150,000.

Participating auto dealers includes Best Buy Auto Sales, Carsmart Auto Sales, Vision Auto Sales, Platinum Auto Sales, Rose Ramdehol Auto Sales, Tony’s Auto Sales, and many others located in the Demerara. Dealers in Berbice are Danzie’s Auto Sales, Suresh Business Complex and A Ally and Sons Auto Depot. For potential Essequibo car owners, participating dealerships are Carsmart Auto and Mil Auto Sales in Bartica.

The previous administration was hoping that the hospital would used as a pull towards bringing tourists and overseas-based Guyanese back to Guyana; a means of “health tourism”.

However, the new Administration said with the current state of affairs in the health sector, it is better that the construction of hospital be put on the backburner. “The current thinking is that the monies being spent on the Specialty Hospital are better spent on the primary health care system. We have hospitals that are in need of funding including at the West Demerara Regional hospital (WDRH) and the hospital at Mabaruma also”. He reminded that Health Minister, Dr George Norton has been frequenting health facilities across the coun-

tries, recording the conditions under which primary health care services are being delivered.

Unfortunate situation

Meanwhile, former Legal Affairs Minister and Attorney General Anil Nandlall, who was involved in the legal battle with the contractor of the project, described as “unfortunate” the current Administration’s move. He said “Guyana and its people will lose a glorious opportunity to, for the first time, enjoy and be exposed to the quality of specialised health care that such an institution was designed to provide”.

He said under the agreement with the Indian Government and Exim Bank, very highly trained medical personnel with specialist training in very modern sophisticated medical procedure would have been employed. Added to that, he said the plan

was to have those specialists train the local health professionals here.

“All of that is being tossed aside without any consideration of the benefits that are expected from such a unique and vital medical institution. Whether one is an APNU, AFC, or PPP, whether rich or poor, irrespective of your ethnic background, every sensible Guyanese would want proper medical care for themselves and family”.

Citing instances of alleged fraud and delays, the Donald Ramotar Administration last year announced that it had terminated the contract of India-based Company Surendra Engineering to build and design the controversial Specialty Hospital. From the US$18 allocated by Exim Bank, some four million dollars had already been spent on what was said to be preliminary work for the project.

Members of Scotiabank and a few of the auto dealers involved, stand in front of one of the motor vehicles made available for this promotion

Former Legal Affairs Minister and Attorney General Anil Nandlall

Minister of State Joseph Harmon

thursday, june 18, 2015 | guyanatimesgy.com

Guyana, US agree to boost narco trafficking fight

Guyana and the United States (US) have agreed to bolster their bilateral ties and fight the spiralling drug trafficking trade, which has dogged this country’s development over the years.

Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge, on Tuesday, met with US Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson, during which the two sides agreed on the steps. According to a statement from the Foreign

Affairs Ministry, this was the highest level of contact between the two countries since the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change Government entered office.

The statement read that the meeting also agreed on deepening Guyana’s democratic processes, noting that Greenidge underscored the new Government’s determination to “improve the climate for business and investment” as well as to pursue cooperation in energy and security.

“The two officials also pledged to work to promote regional peace, security and stability in the wake of a new territorial claim by Venezuela, following the recent discovery of oil in Guyana’s maritime area by the ExxonMobil corporation”, the statement added. Greenidge also expressed his belief that the two countries are set for a “much more cooperative and productive phase in their bilateral relationship”.

Greenidge is currently in the US to attend the 46th General Assembly of the Organisation of American States. During his stay in Washington, he also met with Guyanese individuals there.

GPHC CEO explains termination of Director of Nursing

Nurses at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation on Wednesday protested the determination of the Director of Nursing Colleen Hicks.

According to one of the nurses from the Corporation, the protest started after news had spread that Hicks’ services were terminated by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Michael Khan.

Reports suggest that this decision upset many of the nurses in the compound and they decided to take a stand.

When contacted, the

CEO explained that Hicks' services was terminated at the end of her probation.

She had only started working at the hospital in April and Wednesday was to be the last day of or probationary period.

However, Khan stated that when called to accept her letter of termination, Hicks refused saying that she cannot be fired. Khan maintained that the decision was well within law and within her contract.

He said her performance was not up to par.

Bandits raid NA church twice

– Elder warns against the “wrath of God”

By Andrew CArmiChAel

The Eden Seventh Day Adventist Church of Smithfield, New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) was burglarised twice in two days and equipment used for religious services were stolen.

On Tuesday morning, the church was found broken into and on Wednesday morning, church officials responded to a call that the church door was again opened. When they arrived, they discovered that more items were missing. According to First Elder Howard Dainty, the building was last used on Sunday for a meeting and when one of the Elders turned up on Monday to retrieve a cellphone which a member had forgotten on Saturday, it was discovered that a number of items were missing and the back door to the flat building was open.

Among the items missing were two Pyramid 1800 watt amplifiers, worth in excess of $400,000; one stabiliser; a cordless microphone transmitter; a cellphone; clothing; a bull horn and a projector worth $180,000. According to Dainty, the projector has engraved on it ‘Eden SDA Church’. He said that church members were baffled as to how the thieves gained entry to the church. “Two zinc sheets were removed from the roof, we found one on the ground in the yard, but there was no brakeage

to the church. When you try to go in from the roof there is the ceiling but there was no brakeage to the church,” Dainty said.

on the chair and when I went up on the roof I saw that the thieves raised up a zinc sheet over the office where there is no ceiling and climb in,” the church Elder related. it is believed that this is how they gained entry on both occasions.

Meanwhile, as Police continue their investigation into the break-ins, two men have been taken into custody. However, so far, none of the stolen items have been recovered. Dainty is appealing to persons who may have knowledge of the stolen articles to come forward. He says if the articles are returned, the church will not press charges. He however warned against purchasing or receiving the stolen articles, sighting a story which is recorded in the Holy Bible in the Book

According to him, members had concluded that someone had opened the back door and forgot to close it, thus allowing burglars easy access to the building. Dainty explained that the following morning at about 06:00h, he received a telephone call stating that the back door to the building was again open. Upon arrival, it was discovered that more items were missing from the church. This time, a musical keyboard worth $45,000, one speaker box with tweeters and two stand fans were missing. A cabinet was also broken into and ransacked. “When we looked, we noticed that there was dust on the wall and some

of Daniel.

According to Dainty, the articles stolen were vessels dedicated to be used in the house of God. In the Book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar were involved in taking vessels from the house of the Lord and using them. Nebuchadnezzar later became a mad man walking the streets and eating grass. Two years ago, the Eden Seventh Day Adventist Church was broken into by thieves who hammered open the vent on the wall to gain entry. The church is currently making plans to have a big celebration for its 15 anniversary in October.

Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge, during his official visit to the US also met with Congressman Jeff Duncan, Chairman of the Congress’ Sub-Committee on Western Hemisphere Affairs

Eden Seventh Day Adventist Church

The empty table where the keyboard and amplifiers were kept

GPHC CEO Michael Khan

Rice millers to elect 2 reps for GRDB

...Govt requests shipment records to Venezuela

In the wake of calls for the radical revamping of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), Agriculture Minister Noel Holder has announced that two millers will now sit on the Board of Directors and all available data of rice shipments to Venezuela will be made available for their perusal.

These decisions were made when the newly formed Rice Millers’ Association met with Holder on Wednesday to iron out issues which are at present affecting the rice industry.

The Minister was also accompanied by the Permanent Secretary of the Agriculture Ministry, George Jervis, and General Manager of the GRDB Jagnarine Singh.

Among the areas discussed, according to a release form the Agriculture Ministry, were prices being offered to farmers for paddy purchased and exports. Much emphasis was placed on export to Venezuela, and possible mechanisms which can be put in place to ensure transparency of allocation of shipments. To this end, the millers requested the records of GRDB to be shared with the new millers association and the criteria used in the allocation system. The Minister recommended that the available data be shared with the millers. Also, a meet-

ing will be held on Friday between Members of the Millers Association and the GRDB. This will look at the scheduling for the rest of the 2015 export quota to Venezuela for both paddy and rice.

Minister Holder pointed out that the Government is willing to assist with the marketing of Guyana’s rice through its Heads of Mission overseas. In addition, the effective functioning of the GRDB was also highlighted as the members pointed to the lack of representation.

The Agriculture Minister welcomed the idea and the association is expected to shortly identify three possible representatives to sit on the Board of Directors, from which the two statutory members will be appointed.

The millers raised an issue of the role of the GRDB in grading and the Minister, asked that this be immediately looked at to make it more transparent where possible. President of the Millers Association, Dr Peter de Groot, mentioned that a meeting is scheduled next week to address this issue. The meeting ended cordially, with all present committed to working together, to foster the development of the sector.

On Saturday, Chairman of the Essequibo Paddy Farmer’s

Association, Naithram, had called for a reform of the GRDB and the removal of its head. Naithram said, “I am appealing to the Minister and the new Government that the GRDB Board must go.”

Naithram contended that the GRDB was working for millers and short-changing the farmers, on a number of issues including paddy prices, in terms of fertilisers and the grading of the paddy. “You have transactions going on between members of the Board with some individual millers, whereby those on the Board are having drawback from the millers,” he alleged. The farmers noted that millers purchase the paddy and then sell it to overseas markets and give the farmers a pittance.

The grading system law is broken by all the millers without penalties being administered, the farmers also said. Rice farmer Shewcharran noted that “all the millers break the law but nobody telling them anything. When you cut your paddy and carry it to the mill, you cannot talk for your rights, you get victimised…the grading system they are not implementing the law, even in the weight, even in the moisture and they are taking advantage over farmers and all GRDB telling us is that they gon look into it.”

US trip was paid for by organisers – Harmon

The recent visit by Ministers of the Government to the United States (US) to participate in a victory rally for the ruling A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change coalition was paid for by the organisers of the event, Minister of State Joseph Harmon has said. Harmon, who was himself part of the delegation which travelled to the New York based celebration over the last weekend told journalists on Wednesday that no state fund was used to cover the expenditure.

“The visit of Minister Trotman and the other officials were paid for by the organisers of the event. Airline tickets, accommodation and transportation on the ground; not a cent from the public purse was spent on that vis-

it,” Harmon told reporters at the Ministry of the Presidency

The Minister said that the President did not go to the US for any medical reasons, but was a private visit instead. “Like all Presidents do from time to time, they have to take time off to look after some personal issues because the mat-

ters of State can consume you if you do not take time to look after some personal things.”

He joked about one deciding to have a change in his “wardrobe”, “you might need to buy some fresh stuff, everybody does that, and the President is no different to anybody”.

thursday, june 18, 2015 |

PPP/C talks up management of Guyana's economy …says country at its strongest

Though it is no longer in Government, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) continues to take pride in its management of the country over the past 23 years, declaring that Guyana’s economy is at its strongest ever.

In a media release, the PPP/C highlighted that Guyana recorded positive growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) every year from 2006 to 2014 at an average of more than 4.5 per annum – nine years of uninterrupted growth in the history of independent Guyana.

These achievements began under the Presidency of Bharrat Jagdeo and continued with the Donald Ramotar adminstration.

In fact, the economy has doubled in size, with current market prices being US$3.1 billion in 2014, when in 2006 it was only US$1.4 billion. The Gross International Reserves at the Bank of Guyana was a recorded US$665.6 million at the end of 2014, when in 2005 it was US$251.4 million.

The PPP/C also highlighted that the total public debt of the country has dropped considerably from 2004 to now. Total assets of $421.8 billion at the commercial banks at the end of 2014 can be compared to that at the end of 2005 which shows $162.7 billion.

Total credit of $202 billion by the banking system to the Private Sector is compared with $52.4 billion at end of 2005. Also, the PPP/C pointed out that Guyana dollar to US dollar exchange rate of $206.5 at the end of 2014 is now matched with $200.25 at the end of 2005.

Another indicator that the

PPP/C succeeded in building a strong Guyanese economy is that of the weighted average commercial bank lending rate. At the end of 2014, it was 10.86 per cent when in 2005, it was 13.5 per cent.

Moving on, the PPP/C highlighted that the country secured several highly concessional external financing which assisted with national development, ultimately furthering Guyana’s economic growth.

There were the European Union (EU) budget support grants totalling €25.9 million, of which €20.2 million related to the sugar programme; the climate payments totalling €250 million under the Guyana/Norway partnership on climate financing, of which US$190 million has already been earned and only US$40 million disbursed to projects. The PPP/C also mentioned the US$130 million from China Eximbank to construct a new international airport; US$66.2 million from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to fund a road network upgrade and expansion project; US$64.6 million from the

IDB and EU to fund a power utility upgrade programme; US$50 million from India Eximbank to fund the East Coast to East Bank bypass road; US$34.4 million from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to fund the West Coast Demerara highway upgrade; US$31.7 million from IDB and EU to fund a water and sanitation infrastructure improvement project; US$15 million from the IDB for a new citizen security project; and US$7.5 million from CDB to fund a sugar industry mechanism project. In addition, Guyana received US$12 million for flood risk management; US$10 million for a new secondary school education improvement project and another US$10 million for the UG science and technology support project – all from the World Bank. Aside from the funds for those developmental projects, it was under the PPP/C regime that major foreign investment companies recognised Guyana as a lucrative economy to invest in.

There are the major oil exploration companies including Repsol, CGX and ExxonMobil. There are the major gold mining companies including Guyana Gold Fields Limited, ETK/Sandsprings and Troy Resources. There have also been investments in the telecommunications sector with call centres like Qualfon and Teleperformance. “All of these developments provide ample testimony to the excellent stewardship of the Guyanese economy, discharged by the PPP/C Government, and the strong position of the economy as the PPP/C demits office,” the party noted.

Bandits trade shots with Police after Diamond robbery

Police ranks on Tuesday night arrested a 21-year-old resident of Ruimveldt, Georgetown, moments after he and another accomplice robbed a taxi driver in Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara.

According to Police reports, the two perpetrators, one of whom was armed with a handgun, hired taxi-driver Zaheer Khaleel of Diamond Housing Scheme. While in the scheme, the men held up the 22-year-old driver and relieved him of his cellular phone and $10,000 cash.

The matter was reported and ranks responded promptly, but were greeted with gunshots when they confronted the suspects. Following a few minutes of exchanging gunfire, the Police was able to apprehend one of the men and recover the stolen cellular phone.

Guyana Times understands that the incident occurred sometime around 21:30h on Tuesday and the taxi driver is attached to the King of Diamond Taxi Service. Further reports received revealed that the two

men arrived at the taxi base in a Green Ice Taxi Service labelled car and hired Khaleel to go to Fifth Avenue in the scheme.

When in the street, the men directed the driver to turn the first corner and they exited the vehicle a short distance in. While outside, one of the men held Khaleel at gunpoint and relieved him of his phone and the cash. They then threatened him not to pursue them as they fled on foot. However, the taxi driver radioed the base alerting them to what had transpired.

Other taxis attached to the base that were on the road, heard the message and began combing outing the scheme. They confronted the two men over at First Bridge in Grove New Housing Scheme, heading in the direction of Caneville, East Bank Demerara, which is separated by a trench. One of the men went into an abandoned house while the other hid under a bridge that leads to Caneville.

Just then the Police arrived and was met with bullets from the suspect hid-

ing under the bridge. This newspaper was told that the perpetrator, who was later identified as a 21-yearold Ruimveldt resident, discharged about three shoots at the Police, who returned the fire.

Luckily, no one was injured in the exchange of bullets as the Police quickly closed in on the suspect and managed to apprehend him. However they did not recover the firearm or the cash. The other perpetrator managed to escape.

Guyana Times was told that the entire incident lasted about 30 minutes. The 21-year-old young man was charged and is expected to make his an appearance in court today.

It was further reported that this is the second time a taxi driver from the base was robbed. About a month ago, a man hired a taxi and travelled to the vicinity of the Distribution Services Limited branch at Industrial Site, Georgetown and held up the driver, also relieving him of his cellular phone and a quantity of cash.

Agriculture Minister Noel Holder and Head of the GRDB, Jagnarine Singh, meeting with members of the Millers’ Associations

Singer Eddie Neblett performs “Love and Unity” as Government Ministers Raphael Trotman and Cathy Hughes dance during the coalition’s victory rally and parade in New York on Sunday

Former President Bharrat Jagdeo

Regional

Brazil prosecutors call for halt to Amazon dam evictions

Federal prosecutors in Brazil have called for the authorities to stop the eviction of at least 2000 families living in an area of the Amazon jungle where a huge dam is being built.

The prosecutor’s office says the consortium building the Belo Monte dam has broken numerous agreements on the relocation of residents. Most of the people facing eviction are from indigenous groups.

The Brazilian prosecutor’s office has produced a preliminary report that “recommends urgent intervention in the process to halt the demolitions and the violation of rights of the population evicted”.

The Norte Energy consortium had signed a contract with guarantees that the farmers and fishermen living in the area would be relocated and provided with alternative means of survival, the prosecutors say. The contract has been breached 55 times, according to the report.

It recommends immediate action to halt the work of a vessel, “known as the demolition boat,” hired by the consortium. “It has been travelling along the Xingu river evicting the families who live by the river, in the area to be flooded by the Belo Monte dam,” it says.

Construction on the controversial dam in the northern state of Para was approved by the Brazilian Congress in 2005 but only began in 2011.

Environmentalists and indigenous rights activists have opposed the project

from the beginning, saying a vast area of rainforest will be flooded, threatening wildlife and affecting the lives of thousands of people.

The Government says the dam is crucial for development and will create jobs, as well as providing electricity to 23 million homes.

The 11,000-megawatt dam will be the third biggest in the world - after the Three Gorges in China and Itaipu, which is jointly run by Brazil and Paraguay.

It is expected to cost between US$11-$17 billion. (Excerpt from BBC News)

CDF providing funds for lighting project in St Lucia

St Lucia has signed an agreement for US$80,821 with the Caricom Development Fund (CDF) to provide lighting solutions for the Pigeon Island National Park, north of here.

The renewable energy project will be undertaken by the St Lucia National Trust and Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony, who signed the grant agreement with

the CDF Chief Executive Officer, Lorne Mc Donough, said the “lighting solutions were designed to run strictly on solar PV modules backed up by 12/24VDC battery banks”. “The use of solar lighting was initiated by the National Trust and the funding would contribute to the expansion of the use of PV lighting,” he said.

The agreement represents the third grant

awarded to St Lucia by the CDF since 2010. Previous grants included funding for the Trade and Export Promotion Agency for US$1 million and the Ministry of Agriculture’s Youth Agri Entrepreneurship Project of US$1.37 million.

During the signing ceremony on Tuesday, Mc Donough announced his departure from the regional funding agency. (Caribbean 360)

New embassy not costing St Lucia

The St Lucia Government has responded to calls for details about the opening of its Embassy in Taiwan, saying there was no mystery behind it and it did not cost the island a cent.

The statement from the Dr. Kenny Anthony administration follows a call from the opposing United Workers’ Party (UWP) for answers to “the mysteries surrounding the opening of an Embassy in the Republic of China in Taiwan”.

“It has become commonplace for the UWP to invent and create mysteries where none exist,” the Government said, noting that the announcement about the new Embassy was made since February 12 this year by the Minister for External Affairs, Civil Aviation and International Trade, Alva Baptiste, during an official trip to Taiwan, and raised again on May 15 during the

Minister’s contribution to the Budget debate, and no questions were asked of him them.

“The opening of the Embassy comes at no cost to the Government of St Lucia. Mindful of our fiscal challenges, the Government of St Lucia secured the agreement of the Republic of China (Taiwan) under the Co-operation Agreement that exists between the two states, to fund the cost of the Embassy in its initial year of operation.”

According to the Prime Minister, the facility will serve the needs of St Lucian students studying in Taiwan. There are more than 80 of them currently, and Anthony said that number is expected to increase in coming years.

Government has not yet appointed an Ambassador to head the Embassy but Prime Minister Anthony said that would be done soon. (Excerpt from Caribbean 360)

World Bank proposes new directions to boost regional trade

Anew World Bank report says there is considerable potential for boosting trade and accelerating growth in the region.

The report, “Trade matters: New opportunities for the Caribbean” which was released on Tuesday at the Third Regional Caribbean Growth Forum, highlights that trade plays an important role in job creation.

“Continued efforts to improve trade facilitation and step up investments in research and innovation, as well as quality education, will help improve skills and generate well-paid jobs in the Caribbean,” said Jorge Familiar, the World Bank Vice President for Latin

America and the Caribbean.

The report also highlights that the region’s trade performance is limited by lack of diversity and limited innovation. The number of patent applications in the Caribbean has been lower than in other region of the world.

With the exception of the Bahamas, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Belize and Haiti, exports from Caribbean countries to growing emerging markets remain small. The report suggests three main opportunities to boost trade and generate a positive cycle of shared prosperity in the region: It said deepening trade

integration with North America would boost trade and accelerate growth in the region. Additionally, the World Bank noted, improving the trade facilitation environment through modernised custom systems and better connectivity would have a major impact on trade. It said efforts across the region to modernise customs administrations and border management should be accelerated. Improving the business environment and investment climate would be essential to enhance productivity and competitiveness, the report further noted. (Excerpt from

Mexico researchers decode name on Mayan King Pakal’s tomb

Researchers in Mexico say they have decoded the hieroglyphic name on the Palenque tomb of ancient Mayan King Pakal, revealing it to read “The House of the Nine Sharpened Spears”, more than 60 years after the crypt was discovered.

Mexican archaeologist Alberto Ruz Lhuillier discovered the burial crypt in 1948 and new research into the jaguar, a sacred animal for the Maya civilization, led Guillermo Bernal, from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), to make a link with other hieroglyph-

ics of the same form.

“This is a name linked with war and an aspect which was not previously known as the hieroglyphic could not be deciphered until now,” Bernal, from UNAM’s Mayan Studies Centre. Stated. “’The House of the Nine Sharpened Spears’ is a denomination represented by the nine warriors in the walls of the tomb.”

Born in the seventh century, King K’inich Janaab’ Pakal is said to have ascended to the throne aged 12. He led a prosperous government in the ancient city of Palenque and is believed

to have been behind the building of its finest architecture.

“This expression is more commonly seen in the classical period, specifically in the eighth century between the years 700 CE to 800 CE, which is the last century of the Mayan culture and very close to its collapse,” Bernal said.

The Maya civilization, which developed hieroglyphic writing, a calendar and astronomical system, reached its peak of influence between AD 250 and 900, extending its reach over what is now Guatemala, Belize and Honduras. (Reuters)

Swipe card coming to OECS countries

Member states of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) are planning to take their integration a step further with the introduction of a swipe card that will ensure hassle-free travel between countries.

Already there is no need to obtain a skills certificate to move and live in any OECS member state, and a driver’s licence allows citizens to drive in any country in that sub-region.

Now Director General of the OECS Commission, Dr

Didacus Jules, says a biometric swipe card is coming.

“We have already designed a single biometric ID card that contains all the information that is required so that, in the near future, with the issuance of these cards, people from the OECS will not even have to fill out immigration cards to move – you just swipe and you move,” he said ahead of OECS Day today. Dr Jules added that the integration movement was progressing “admirably” and while there is still some way

to go, “we’ve come a long way as well”. “I think we need to take a balanced perspective and, the truth is, within the overall project of Caribbean regional unity, the OECS is far ahead,” he said. The OECS is a ninemember grouping comprised of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines, with Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands being associate members.

(Caribbean 360)

A vast area of Amazon will be flooded for the construction of the dam

St Lucia’s Prime Minister, Dr Kenny Anthony (left), and Taiwan’s Foreign Minister David Lin at the official opening earlier this month

Mayan King Pakal’s tomb

Hong Kong Govt debates divisive political reforms

Hong Kong’s Government is debating a controversial political reform package ahead of a much-anticipated vote later this week.

The package will, for the first time, give citizens the right to vote for their Chief Executive in 2017. But candidates will be vetted by a pro-Beijing committee.

Last September the city saw weeks of large-scale pro-democracy protests. Hundreds of activists, comprising pro-democracy and pro-Beijing supporters, were outside the Legislative Council (LegCo) premises waving banners and shouting slogans

Meanwhile amid heightened concern about security

in the city, six people accused of a bomb plot appeared in court for a bail hearing. It was not known whether they were linked to the protests.

Hundreds of Police Officers have been deployed inside and outside the LegCo building.

One of the first speakers in the debate was Chief Secretary Carrie Lam, who warned against blocking the package. “This administration cannot re-launch the (reform) process... political development will inevitably come to a standstill,” she said.

Outside, a pro-Beijing activist surnamed Chan told Reuters, “The bill needs to go through. We have to support Hong Kong stability.

We cannot keep carrying on like this.”

But protester Fion Wong stated, “I’m here to oppose the so-called democracy.” “Passing it (the bill) would be a betrayal to those who have taken part in the Occupy Movement,” she added, referring to the Occupy Central Pro-democracy Movement.

Hong Kong’s pro-democracy lawmakers, who say the reform proposal does not represent true democracy, look set to vote against the proposal despite warnings from the Chinese Government not to do so. If that is the case, the legislature is unlikely to get the two-thirds majority it needs to pass the bill. (Except from BBC News)

Nestle scales back Africa workforce

Swiss food and drinks company Nestle is cutting 15 per cent of its workforce in 21 African countries, the company confirmed on Wednesday.

A Nestle spokesman told Reuters that the job cuts would affect about 60 workers in the equatorial Africa region after the Financial Times reported that the company is pulling back because

it overestimated growth in the middle classes.

“We thought this would be the next Asia, but we have realised the middle class here in the region is extremely small and it is not really growing,” Cornel Krummenacher, Chief Executive for Nestle’s equatorial Africa region, told the newspaper.

Nestle has about 11,000 employees in the whole of

Africa, the spokesman said, with the equatorial Africa region encompassing 21 countries including Kenya and Angola. Krummenacher also said, in the free trade, that Nestle would be lucky to reach annual growth of 10 per cent in the equatorial Africa region in future years and, with the job cuts, hopes to break even next year.

(Reuters)

Escaped tiger kills man

Atiger that killed a man and wounded another after escaping from a flooded zoo in Georgia has been shot dead, the Georgian Interior Ministry says.

Police said they tracked the tiger to a disused warehouse but could not sedate it because it was too aggressive. The animal was one of several to break free from enclosures at Tbilisi Zoo last

weekend following severe flooding.

There was uncertainty on Wednesday about the number of dangerous animals still on the loose; with reports on Twitter of another tiger being cornered in a city centre cafe after the first was shot dead. The zoo had said on Tuesday that all of the missing lions and tigers had been found dead, with one jaguar

Around the World

North Korea hit by “worst drought”

North Korea says it is facing its worst drought in a century, sparking fears of worsening food shortages.

A local news agency said that main rice-growing provinces had been badly affected and more than 30 per cent of rice paddies were “parching up”.

Hundreds of thousands of North Koreans are believed to have died during a widespread famine in the 1990s. This drought is unlikely to be as deadly because of recent agricultural reforms, correspondents say.

The United Nations (UN) World Food Programme says that North Korea regularly

faces significant food shortages, and currently about a third of children in the country are malnourished.

Rice planting had finished in more than 441,560 hectares of paddy fields “but at least 136,200 hectares of them are parching up”, reported a local news agency. It said paddy fields in South Hwanghae and North Hwanghae provinces were particularly badly hit, with up to 80 per cent of rice seedlings drying up in some areas.

“Water levels of reservoirs stand at their lowest, while rivers and streams are getting dry,” the news agency said. It added that it was planting other crops in

Heartbreak over US

rice paddy fields of droughtstricken areas to “reduce damage”.

Denmark’s ambassador to North and South Korea, Thomas Lehman, told Reuters that he had visited drought-hit areas in the North in May. “The lack of water has created a lot of damage to the so-called spring crop, and the rice planting is extremely difficult without sufficient water,” he said.

Other countries, including South Korea, regularly send aid to the North. In April the UN called for $111 million to fund humanitarian activities in food, nutrition, agriculture and sanitation. (Excerpt from BBC News)

balcony deaths

Families of Irish students who died and were injured after a balcony collapsed on Tuesday evening have been arriving in California. The tragedy happened at a birthday party in an apartment in Berkeley.

Five of the six young people who died were from the Republic of Ireland, and some of them were students at University College Dublin.

unaccounted for - sparking confusion when news of the tiger attack on the two men emerged.

Internal Affairs Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri told the press that the animal was found “hiding in an unused store room”. “We tried our best to sedate the tiger, but it was not possible because the animal was too aggressive. So unfortunately we had to liquidate it,” he said.

Special units drafted in to deal with the threat posed by dangerous animals have faced criticism, with zoo workers alleging that animals have been killed unnecessarily.

The flash floods devastated parts of Tbilisi, claiming the lives of 13 people, including three zoo keepers. Up to six people are still missing and about 40 families lost their homes. (Excerpt BBC News)

Counsellors are in place to help families and friends of the bereaved and injured. An Irish university has expressed “heartbreak” at the deaths. The Irish Ministry for Foreign Affairs is working closely with families to

offer practical support.

Those who were killed have been named as Ashley Donohoe, 22; Olivia Burke, 21; Eoghan Culligan, 21; Niccolai Schuster, 21; Lorcan Miller, 21; and Eimear Walsh, 21. Several others have been injured.

Donohoe, who had dual US-Irish citizenship, lived in California while the other five who died all had home addresses in the Republic of Ireland. The majority of the victims were in the US on work visas, as part of the J1 USA summer work and travel programme.

As an investigation gets under way, a number of factors are being looked at.

These include whether the balcony was built to code, if it was overloaded and if rain or other weather had weakened it.

Meanwhile the New York Times is to review its coverage of the tragedy after complaints in Ireland. Irish Labour Minister Aoidhán Ó Riordáin said it was “completely insensitive and outrageous”. The paper’s Vice President, Eileen Murphy, later apologised. “We understand and agree that some of the language in the piece could be interpreted as insensitive, particularly in such close proximity to this tragedy,” she said. (Excerpt from BBC News)

Pro-Beijing and pro-democracy supporters gathered at the LegCo building

The dead tiger

The victims (top row from left) Ashley Donohoe, Eimear Walsh, Olivia Burke, Eoghan Culligan, Lorcan Miller and Niccolai Schuster

thursday, june 18, 2015|

Linden to get US$100,000 Habitat Resource Centre

…more than 500 to benefit annually

The Habitat for Humanity Guyana, a non-governmental non-profit agency, recently commenced works on a Resource Centre for Creative Thinking and Community Innovation in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), which will be providing direct benefits to the residents in the areas of education and youth employment. According to Rawle Small, the National Director for the organisation who spoke to the Guyana Times, works on the building began about two weeks ago, but has been affected by inclement weather. He noted that the beneficiaries represent roughly 500 persons per year, including 30 youths participating in the Dream Catchers Programme.

Small disclosed that Japanese Government in February plugged US$100,000 into the construction of the facility aimed at providing employment; volunteer opportunities and creative-thinking skills for youth development; and innovative responses to community challenges and opportunities in Region 10.

Small pointed out that the centre will have 3 programme areas: creative thinking skills curriculum for youth ages 16-35 based on an integrated model of the entrepreneurial and housing development processes; restore – sale/donation of low cost housing improvement supplies; and an Open-space Community Initiative – lease/shortterm rental of available spaces for community initiatives.

The resource centre also offers the Open Space Community Initiative – an initiative that provides recreational and leases classroom space to nurture the development of a vibrant civil society capable of responding innovatively to opportunities, especial-

ly poverty housing, undereducation, environmental conservation, artistic development, regional tourism, hydroponics and shade house farming, unemployment and HIV/AIDS. Small explained that under the Creative Thinking Skills Programme, 15 dream catchers will be accommodated per term, with a total of two 4-month terms per calendar year.

Dream catchers will learn creative thinking skills and apply these skills to practical everyday/community/personal scenarios, reframing their perception with their communities, the region and self-identity.

These skills include brainstorming, using mind mapping and break and build technique; mind mapping; lateral thinking; intuitive/mindful thinking and “probortunity” (problem and opportunity).

The National Director said that the learning experience also requires each dream catcher to explore their self-perception and personal development goals using creative-thinking skills.

In addition to these skills, dream catchers will learn basic computer building and maintenance, business innovation, servant leadership and social skills.

The programme emphasises quality over quantity, and seeks to reduce youth unemployment and its negative effects by equipping youth with key creative thinking skills that facilitate their development as social and business entrepreneurs.

The restore, the Habitat Director said, is a non-profit home improvement and donation centre that will provide employment for at least 5-10 persons. It will sell and donate new and gently used building materials, home furniture, home accessories and household appliances for a fraction of the retail price.

The objective of this

Social Cohesion Minister promises to bring healing to racial division

Guyana’s long standing ethnic divide is set for some measure of healing if the newly established Social Cohesion Ministry gets a handle of the situation. This is according to Social Cohesion Minister Amna Ally, who related that the much-needed Ministry is the first of its kind worldwide.

Leading up to the May 11 General and Regional Elections, the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change coalition had campaigned on a platform of “ a government of national unity”, promising that it will work assiduously in ensuring that the county can truly live up to its motto of “One People, One Nation, One Destiny.” Immediately after, President David Granger was sworn in; he had vowed to live up to these promises since he wanted to see the end of racial discrimination in the country.

business is to help families make improvements to their living conditions, provide employment for 5-10 persons and earn income to fund a portion of the Creative Thinking Skills Programme.

Based on population growth trends, population figures to date put the total population of Region 10 at an estimated 60,000. Region 10 is home to Guyana’s second largest town, Linden – referred to as the “gateway” to Guyana’s hinterland regions – and a number of other administrative areas including Kwakwani, Ituni and Coomacka Lands.

The culture is diverse, with persons of African, Indian and Indigenous heritage. The region’s main economic base includes the down-sized bauxite industry which represents approximately 60 per cent of the region’s gross domestic product and timber harvesting.

Continued contraction of the bauxite industry and limitations of timber harvesting combined to produce widespread poverty measured by income, expenditure and social indicators.

It is estimated that four out of every ten persons between the ages of 16-25 are unemployed; approximately 40 per cent of this cohort; overall unemployment stands at 70 per cent.

The Region 10 Interim Management Committee and Linden Municipality are keen on improving economic and social conditions by promoting economic diversification and arresting high incidences of unemployment, illiteracy, depression, crime and HIV/ AIDS through innovative community programmes.

Key challenges to these efforts include limited capital, skills and social incentives to leverage cultural, environmental, human and tourism resources for business potential.

Social Cohesion Minister Amna Ally

sion that the country was at current, racially divided and segregated, she was however adamant that this goal set by the new Administration can be achieved with felt changes of ethnic unity becoming visible as time elapses.

This led to the establishment of the Social Cohesion Ministry with Amna Ally being placed at the helm in an effort to find ways and methods in which such discrimination can be tackled. According to Ally, the mandate which has been given to her is one which she is determined to fulfil.

Although the concept of social cohesion remains relatively new to Guyanese, and it now has a Ministry to represent it, Minister Ally has asserted the relevance of her Ministry and its mandate in the face of Guyana being a racially divided country.

“First of all, as you would know this is a brand new Ministry and it’s the first of its kind, not only in Guyana but in the Caribbean and even the world at large. We believe that it is a very important Ministry. In Guyana, we are racially divided,” Ally related.

As she made the admis-

Minister Ally explained that the mandate of her Ministry would be to follow wide consultations with stakeholders from civil society, including religious organisations, the private Sector, and even political parties. She noted that the goal of the David Granger Administration by constituting the Social Cohesion Ministry is to bridge the divides that exists in Guyana.

She alluded to President Granger’s address to the nation on June 10, when the 11th Parliament was reconvened and which featured an ambitious mandate of his Administration to a “One Nation Policy” running through to year 2020, nothing that this must become a reality.

“Your Government recognises that our foreparents came from four continents. We, their heirs and successors, resolve to work together to pursue the ideal of mak-

ing Guyana ‘One Nation’,” President Granger had told the members of the 11th Parliament last Wednesday. The Head of State added that in order to achieve the real development of all Guyanese people, “we must… combine our efforts, concentrate our energy, and endeavour to defeat the real enemies of our people.”

When asked what measures will be undertaken in the Social Cohesion Ministry to achieve its cause, Minister Ally disclosed that a meeting with stakeholders is currently in progress with hopes that on August 27, there will be a “Summit or a Roundtable at the Convention Centre, where the stakeholders and the people generally will help to develop a five-year strategic plan.” This round table discussion she related will see persons advising and making suggestions on the best way forward in tackling the issue and once feasible, implementation will be done. “Whether it’s at the community level or the level of the National Assembly, if we have to pass Bills or Motions, we will do so,” Ally said.

Minister Ally called for broad-based consultations in delivering the mandate of her Ministry. “We don’t want to impose it on anybody. We want it to come out of various stakeholders, because it is our intention to bring together the political parties, the religious organisations, civil society, [and the] Private Sector… to work together.”

President Granger though only days in office, has constantly reaffirmed his Administration’s commitment to “continue the task of working towards achieving national unity and towards making Guyana ‘One Nation’.”

Guyanese jailed for cocaine trafficking in Barbados

AGuyanese man was, on Tuesday, sentenced to seven years in prison by Barbados Chief Magistrate Pamela Beckles. The sentence was imposed after Ryon Marlon George pleaded guilty to seven drug charges in the Oistins Magistrates’ Court, involving 19.6 kilograms of cocaine. The contraband, worth almost US$1 million, was found on the MV Fairland cargo ship.

George, a father of five who lives at Lot 3 Manchester Village, Berbice, admitted importing, intent to supply, possession and trafficking cocaine on January 22 this year at the Arawak cement plant. Similarly, he confessed to committing three of the four offences again two days later, at the Bridgetown Port, Barbados.

Station Sergeant Rudolph Burnett outlined how the ship arrived in the Bridgetown Port on January 15, before making its way to

the Arawak cement plant to collect a consignment of cement. The ship, on which George worked as an oiler, was Guyana-bound. Acting on a tip-off, Police carried out an operation at the Arawak cement plant on January 22. The ship had already berthed and was being loaded. After surveying the pier and the vessel, Police boarded, searched and found a haversack with seven packages of cocaine hidden inside a garbage bin.

Police informed Customs Officials of their findings and they in turn ordered the vessel’s captain to return to the Bridgetown Port, where it was again searched. This time, the search was done jointly by Police and Customs. Information led to George’s arrest and he was taken to Oistins Police Station.

While there, he admitted travelling from Guyana to Barbados with two bags on cocaine hidden on the ship, which he intended to hand

over to unknown men in Barbados. He also told the Police he had put one of the bags on the pier in a bin and later directed the officers to a hole in the ship where he had another bag hidden. That one contained 10 packages of cocaine.

Attorney for George, Samuel Legay, told the Chief Magistrate that his client was remorseful, had five children, the youngest being a one-year-old, and that he formerly worked with the Water Authority in Guyana. The Guyanese national was remanded since January. Chief Magistrate Beckles, after consulting with the Director of Public Prosecutions, heard the case summarily.

George was given the seven-year sentence on trafficking in relation to the January 22 cocaine discovery. He was further sentenced to five years on all the other charges. The sentences will run concurrently.

(Barbados Today)

An artist’s impression of what the Habitat Resource Centre will look like

MACORP commences recruitment drive in Essequibo

… collaborates with mechanical, electrical students

Machinery Corporation (MACORP) has once again collaborated with the Technical Institute to live up to its statement “Let’s Build Guyana Together”.

On Thursday, June 11, the company commenced the recruitment drive with mechanical and electrical students at the Essequibo Technical Institute where the Institute held it stakeholders meeting. This initiative was taken to afford students who reside along the Essequibo Coast, Mabaruma,

Bartica, Wakenaam, and other areas with training.

Over the years, MACORP has been working in partnership with the University of Guyana where the company gives financial assistance to the Engineering Department while Engineers are attached to the company on a yearly basis for internship.

MACORP also joined forces with the Linden Technical Institute and the Canadian Government through Caricom Education for Employment Programme and the Government of

Guyana to give training, materials, equipment and financial support over a fiveyear period to the Institute.

The Corporation is lending it’s expertise to Technical Education and Vocational Training Secretariat (TVET) in the area of Technical Education Curriculum development, said it is working with TVET to ensure their heavy equipment maintenance and electronic curriculums provide students with the requisite industry standard knowledge and skills.

The disabled continue to be marginalised

Dear Editor,

As I travel across the country, and more so the Essequibo Coast, I can see the difficulties faced by disabled people, although the Disability Act was passed on June 10, 2010, and assented on November 2, 2010 by the previous administration.

The new coalition government on their elections campaign promised to give the disabled equal rights if they won the elections.

Five years after the passing of the legislation, the disabled still have minimal rights in several areas of employment and education. This can be seen as discrimination.

The disabled continue to be marginalized directly by flawed and dormant laws. Disability is not seen as a priority, hence no resources

Dear Editor, I never believed that I would have seen the day when Mr Nagamootoo would have hugged and embraced the PNC, but I have seen it. This man who fought the PNC dictatorship, rigged elections and ballot box murderers, etc, is now in a lovers’ embrace.

Further, he has accepted the position of Prime Minister based on an election that was rigged. He has murdered his conscience. The things he fought against are now acceptable and he has pawned the PPP/C sup-

are channeled to the various ministries and agencies to support implementation of the laws.

In Guyana, the Disability Act was developed under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, but it could be in breach of the this Convention.

This was indeed the situation confronting the disabled five years ago and will need modifying.

There are countries which for some time now have been able to move along quite nicely with the Convention because they recognized the law and give equal rights to their citizens. The new government of Guyana must do the same.

Persons with disabilities continue to be forced into

porters to gain power.

To those who supported the PNC, I hope you don’t regret it and that you will happily go or send your sons and daughters to National Service.

To the PPP/C, I say do not be disheartened, you were cheated not defeated. It happened before and you overcame it. You will do it again, but we cannot wait for 28 years.

Get back to your roots as Papa Cheddi did. Walk the streets, dams and trenches, keep bottom house meetings.

Don't let discrimination go unchallenged – Ramotar

Former President and Executive Member of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Donald Ramotar, in warning his supporters that the hard-earned democracy which Guyana gain is now under threat, urged them to not let any of the “discriminatory acts” of the new Government go unchallenged.

Ramotar was at the time addressing a handful of Party supporters in Enmore, East Coast Demerara who assembled in the vicinity of the Enmore Martyrs’ Monument to be a part of the observance activities. Ramotar told the sizeable crowd that Guyana’s democracy is under threat and that the Burnham dictatorship is slowly creeping in.

same fate may fall upon Guyana once again.

the dark recesses of our society due to social injustice.

Many times people with disabilities are forced to be in the waiting line four hours outside the Supenaam Stelling to join the ferry. This can be seen as discrimination.

Previously you could call the Stelling and book your car, and you are told to be there one hour before departure.

But since this new administration took power, the laws seem to change by someone for unkown reasons. These can be corrected by this new coalition government and give every disabled person an equal chance.

We need a new framework from this new government.

Mohamed Khan

If all your supporters had voted, the PNC could not have won even with the rigging. You must discard the soup drinkers. Activate the party groups and don’t only use them at election times. The Executive Committee must not be handpicked and be aloof from the base supporters. Local Government elections are coming, pick the right candidates.

To the PPP/C supporters, I say all is not lost, we shall overcome; just be steadfast.

Safraz Bacchus

The former President listed a number of incidents which he said suggest that the new administration has no regard for the will of the people, for the Constitution of Guyana and for the best interest of the country. Beginning with May 11, Ramotar said the first warning sign that the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) coalition as the Government was bad news for the country, was evident in the alleged mass rigging it conducted, denying the people of their constitutional right to elect a Government of their choice.

“The last election that we had in Guyana was rigged in a new way. The traditional way of rigging continued where they had multiple voting and stuffing the ballot boxes, but the new way they used to rig the elections was the penetration of GECOM’s (Guyana Elections Commission) machinery and use the staff of GECOM itself to do the rigging of the last elections,” Ramotar declared.

He noted too that the Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, who was initially sceptical about the results but for some reason, was forced to declare the results anyway.

“He put aside 490 boxes; 490 boxes he did not declare. That implies that, at least at that point in time, he saw a problem with at least 490 of the ballot boxes that were there. But nothing changed and the next day, he declared those results. Clearly, he came under pressure, from many different quarters to declare those results. And therefore, a Government has been put in place that does not represent the will of the Guyanese people,” Ramotar reasoned.

He then went on to demonstrate how similar incidents in the 1960’s turned out, indicating that the

“What began to happen was the gradual erosion of democracy, the gradual erosion of people’s freedom that impacted on the life of the Guyanese people in every area. It created shortages; it created huge problems; food shortages, people had no place to live, there was overcrowding in houses, excessive squatting...,” Ramotar went on.

He opined that Guyana is already beginning to witness some of these experiences, along with other indicators of a dictatorship Government. Firstly, Ramotar slammed the coalition for criticising the number of Government Ministers under the PPP/C when under their administration; the number of Ministers far exceeds the PPP/C’s amount.

In addition, Ramotar highlighted that the APNU/AFC administration has four Vice Presidents, whose salaries will have to be paid from the taxpayers’ money.

He said that the coalition even went so far as to trample of the Constitution by illegally appointing Technocrat Ministers. “They are already breaking the laws, they appoint three Ministers as Technocrats when clearly they should not be there as Ministers because they are on the party’s list,” he stated.

Military men in suits

Ramotar accused the “military men in suits”, who now are responsible for the operations of Guyana, of constantly disregarding the laws for their personal benefits.

The PPP/C Executive cited several incidents, including Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan’s intervention in the transfers of Police Officers spearheaded by the Commissioner of Police, his call to dismiss a Police Officer, and Minister Broomes’s instructions to the Public Service Commission to stop hiring people.

Ramotar contended that a Minister does not

have the responsibility to execute those activities and that the APNU/AFC is barefacedly breaking the laws of Guyana. “That is how the Burnham dictatorship was created, it was not created overnight; it was a creeping dictatorship,” Ramotar continued to warn.

Slander and corruption Ramotar then went on to highlight the instances of slander and corruption demonstrated by the APNU/AFC administration since they took office. “They slandered, they spoke about corruption and about everybody in this country being corrupt and they promised to pay increase in wages of salaries, to pay increases of pensions and they promised to pay rice farmers $9000 per bag for paddy,” Ramotar said, alluding to the fact that the coalition Government is yet to fulfil these promises.

“They continue their slander and their lies because they want to back out from the promises that they made on this elections campaign. That is why they are talking about PetroCaribe not having any money,” he reasoned. Ramotar insisted that every dollar that came into and went out of the fund was recorded and that the records are there for their scrutiny.

Further, Ramotar said the coalition accused the PPP/C of stealing $500 billion a year which that allegation in itself is completely farcical. “Our economy is the size of $200 billion a year. Where would you get the $500 billion to stifle out as they say? They continue to lie and spread that propaganda because unfortunately many people believe those things they are saying.” In highlighting these disturbances, Ramotar asked his supporters to back the PPP/C in its fight against the new administration.

“In less than 5 years, we will bring these people to their place…we must work to defend, we must not let none of their discriminatory acts to go unchallenged.”

Officials of MACORP and students at the Essequibo Technical Institute during the interview and entrance exams

Former President and PPP/C Executive, Donald Ramotar

thursday, june 18, 2015 | guyanatimesgy.com

PU&GWU claims transshipment company is anti-union

– to discuss grievances with Minister Broomes today

The People United and General Workers’ Union (PU&GWA) claims a list of grievances against transshipment company Oldendorff Carriers, which it claims has been negating the relevance of the union to its employees.

The union issued a release on Tuesday to publicly make known the abuse its members have been facing under the employ of Oldendorff Carriers. It is the union’s view that the company is trying to belittle its relevance to its worker’s in order to take advantage of their services.

PU&GWA stated in its release that it met with over 30 workers of Oldendorff Carriers along with the company’s (expatriate) Superintendent and their three Supervisors who are in charge for Oldendorff operations at the Aroaima Mines. The meeting took place at Aroima in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

At the meeting, the union detailed that several of the grievances of the company’s employees were given a chance to be heard. This included complaints regarding a Collective Labour Agreement (CLA) which the company has not signed as yet.

The CLA calls for the increase in wages, meal al-

lowances, out of town allowances, and other such allowances. The company was given this agreement over a year ago and has not seen it fit to provide any sort of response to the union.

It was stated that Oldendorff is known to impose starvation wages/salary’s increases on workers’ without signing or reaching a wages/salary agreement with the union which is in breach of Article 23 (1) of the Trade Union Recognition Act.

In 2012, PU&GWA received complaints from workers that the company issued forms to them to sign which guaranteed them wage increases for the new year; however, with the condition that they sign it before the new year or else the salary will only be commensurate when the document

was signed.

The union stated that these increases were never negotiated with them and with this, the PU&GWA believes that the company has no regard to the proper representation of their employees.

PU&GWA stated that it does not do this arbitrarily as it was certified to represent the employees in 2011 by the Guyana Trade Union Recognition and Certification Board.

Letters dispatched The employees of Oldendorff Carriers also called for the attention of the new Administration in their matters. The General Secretary of the Union, Micah Williams, detailed in the release that letters were sent to President David Granger; Prime Minister

Education Minister says more money to be allocated to UG

Education Minister, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine has declared that more money will be allocated to the University of Guyana (UG) to ensure that the overall level of education in Guyana rises to be the envy of the Caribbean.

In a release from the Education Ministry, it was noted that Minister Roopnaraine made this declaration at a recent Guyana National Youth Council (GNYC) event. He said his Ministry will be working to ensure that more money is allotted to the university to assist with its long list of aliments.

The Minister acknowledged that the state of affairs at the university has been appalling for quite a number of years. He stated that he has had firsthand knowledge of the struggles of the students of the university, having been a member of the UG Council for several years. Basically, Minister Roopnaraine told the young people gathered at the GNYC event that UG is in a “mess.”

This is in line with the wide cries for radical changes at the university from both students and lectures, not to mention the wider Guyanese society.

The University of Guyana Student Society (UGSS) and the two labour unions for the university had protested vehemently only months ago about the conditions at the

university. Students particularly had come forward to widely criticise the university’s Administration for what seemed like its total disregard for the progress of the younger generation and the part lecturers play in this.

Nevertheless, a compromise was reached where the university’s Vice Chancellor Jacob Opadeyi provided the requested changes for both the students and the lecturers.

Several changes on campus, in particular the furnishings in and outside the university has been praised by students and lecturers both. A compromise was also able to be reached regarding the wages of the university’s staff.

However, the release stated that Minister Roopnaraine will not be tolerating lecturers with only one degree. It was stated that he wants “to ensure we have people there with academic and professional experience.”

The release detailed that this is to ensure that the university gets the best cadre of lecturers and teachers to deliver the best education possible to students. Minister Roopnaraine explained to the young people at GNYC’s event that this can only be possible with experienced lecturers who can guide students smoothly towards their chosen paths.

Also, he noted that the

university has to compete internationally to attract the type of well trained and experienced persons needed to lift the quality of education beyond everyone’s expectations.

“We must settle for nothing less,” he stated.

This complaint of lecturers with only a one degree qualification was made by Vice Chancellor Opadeyi, who wanted to terminate such staff earlier in the year. He had explained that such lecturers, particularly part-time lecturers took away from the development of the university than add to it.

The unions for the lecturers had responded that there is no time allowed by the university’s Administration neither to further their studies nor to do relevant research in their fields that may give their academic acclaim, not to mentioned further experience in their field.

Meanwhile, the release continued that the Education Minister reiterated his desire to transform the education system from around Guyana from as early as nursery, to ensure that the nourishment is provided so that all students can have a rich and rewarding experience.

To lend to this experience, Dr Roopnaraine said that he is currently in talks with a group of local musicians regarding the inclusion of music in the classroom.

Moses Nagamootoo; Henning Oldendorff, Chairman of Oldendorff Carriers; and Peter Twiss, President and CEO, Oldendorff Carriers to make them aware of the issues that troubled the workers but particularly to enforce the closing of the CLA. It was not stated when

quested by the union members to visit the work site so she can evaluate their working conditions. A joint meeting was also called for but more than anything, the basic involvement of the Ministry in their plight is what is being asked for by Oldendorff’s employees.

The PU&GWA stated that they will be meeting with Minister Broomes today to discuss the CLA, along with the possibility of getting the Ministry involved in the brewing matter between Oldendorff and the union.

The workers’ pay slip was also a sore point, the release dictated. It indicated that the employees are concerned that they are not getting all the benefits and

improved labour laws to the new Administration that will provide for foreign companies operating in Guyana to pay Guyanese’s international rates and provide international working standards. The union complained that the same treatment rendered to Oldendorff’s employees in overseas countries is not the same rendered to Guyana’s workers. It was elaborated that the pay for instance is not balanced when compared.

Oldendorff does not even allow the union to meet with its members on the company’s work site. This was called for in the worker’s list of complaints.

Although the PU&GWA has acknowledged that Oldendorff Carriagers has

exactly these letters were sent but a response has not been forthcoming from any of the aforementioned persons.

Minister within the Ministry of Social Protection Simona Broomes, was re-

premiums entitled to them under the laws of Guyana and thus want a breakdown of such to be sure this is the case.

Williams detailed that the workers had also called upon the union to propose

provided a number of jobs for Guyanese citizens, it however stated adamantly that this does not give the company the right to treat their employees in Guyana arbitrarily.

Miner shot by boss at Wallabaca Backdam

A25-year-old miner is nursing a gunshot wound to his back after he was shot by his boss at the Wallabaca Backdam, North-West District, on Tuesday afternoon. The incident occurred sometime around 16:00h.

The injured man has been identified has Quincy Abrams of Friendship, East Bank Demerara. He sustained a single gunshot wound to the middle of his back on the left side, but the bullet has moved to his right side.

Abrams was first admitted to the Port Kaituma Hospital, Region One (Barima-Waini), before he was air-lifted to the city and admitted at the Georgetown Public Hospital. However, he was released on Wednesday with the bullet still lodged in his body.

Writhing in pain, the 25-year-old told the Guyana Times that he is confused as to why his bossman, who he identified as Godfrey “Butcher” Lambert of Port Kaituma, Region One, would pursue and attacked him, since they had a fairly good relationship.

He explained that, on Monday, he and another coworker were having a discus-

sion about who can spin better (a process used to clean raw gold) when another miner “Goofy” intervened. “Just like that, he get up and start pushing his finger in my face and then he pick up a brick and pelt me pon meh hand and bruise it. I then get vex and went to pick up a knife and chase he upstairs,” Abrams recalled.

He added that “Goofy” left and shortly returned with the bossman, who is an unlicensed firearm-holder but carries a gun. The young man noted that his boss threatened him and asked him to leave the camp so he did. Abrams went to another Camp that he used to work with before.

He further detailed that the following day, on Tuesday, he was sleeping in the hammock when he heard one of men calling out to him. “When I open me eyes, I see he standing here with a gun and a cutlass in he hand –Goofy been there too – so I get up and start run… I hear two gunshots then I feel me back hurting and I fall down. He come up to me and tell me if I ain’t get hit he gone chop me up so I tell yea I get hit and show he,” the man related.

The 25-year-old went on

to say that Lambert picked him up and made him walk about 150 feet, heading up a hill. He stated that after he could not walk any more, he threw himself down and told the two men to get him transportation to go to the hospital.

Abrams stated that “Goofy” then took him a little distance further and crossed him over a “black-water creek”. The miner added that the men then called a motorcycle and he was taken to the Port Kaituma Hospital.

According to the young man, he is still trying to understand why his boss acted that way. “I want fuh know how thing really happen ‘cause I never had no problem with these people,” he declared. Furthermore, Abrams related that his boss only acquired the firearm about two days ago. He alleged that it was stolen from a shop owner and sold to Lambert.

Meanwhile, the Police released a statement on the incident saying that Abrams was involved in an altercation at Wallabaca Backdam, during which he was shot to his back. They added that he was air-dashed to the city and that the suspect has not yet been arrested.

PU&GWA and its members at their Sunday meeting

Oldendorff Carriers big and small tugs at company’s Mines Office

Domino Association head to stage Father’s Day tourney

President of the Georgetown Domino Association (GDA)

Faye Joseph has organised a massive Father’s Day competition, which will see most of the top teams in country participate for prize monies totalling over $400,000.

The competition, which will be played on Sunday at the Joseph’s residence at 1223 Gaulding Place, South Ruimveldt, will see teams such as Spartans, Thunder, Rage, All Seasons, F&H Printery, Saddam, Scamblers, Raiders,

Turning Point, Village, Frankie’s, West Side Brothers and Determined among other vying for the top three prizes.

The winning team will receive $200,000, runnerup $150,000 and third place $50,000, along with trophies.

Joseph said that the competition will be played in the memory of her late husband Orin Jospeh, who was a former President of the GDA and avid player as well.

She said teams will not be asked to pay an en-

trance fee to participate in the tournament, which is expected to start at 15:00h sharp.

According to her, teams that arrive after the stipulated time will not be able to participate in the competition.

Another incentive, according to Joseph, is that special prizes will be given to fathers, including the oldest to play in the event, while there are many other prizes to be won. Interested teams can call 685-1009 or 665-5855 for more information.

England level series with record run-chase

Eion Morgan made his eighth ODI century from just 73 ballsJoe Root soaks in the applause upon reaching his hundred

England smashed the record for their highest ever one-day run chase to beat New Zealand by seven wickets at Trent Bridge and level the series at 2-2.

By reaching their target of 350 in only 44 overs, England beat their previous best of 306-5 against Pakistan in 2000.

Eoin Morgan and Joe Root both made centuries and shared a stand of 198, while Alex Hales crashed a 37-ball 68.

New Zealand post-

ed 349-7 thanks to Kane Williamson’s 90 and Mitchell Santner taking 28 from an Adil Rashid over.

In conceding four sixes and a four, Rashid sent down the second most expensive over ever by an England bowler in ODI cricket, behind Steven Finn’s 29 against the same opponents at the World Cup earlier this year.

That, another highclass Williamson knock and yet more dropped catches, had the potential to send Morgan’s men to the de-

feat that would have sealed a New Zealand victory in a thrilling five-match series.

But a further show of batting positivity in front of a raucous Trent Bridge crowd led England to the joint fourth highest chase of all time and a decider at Chester-le-Street on Saturday.

Although Morgan (113) and Root (106 not out) did the bulk of the work, their task was made easier by Hales’ explosive start.

As New Zealand bowled too short on a flat pitch,

Hales, on his home ground, repeatedly blazed through the leg side, clearing the boundary on four occasions.

He was supported by Jason Roy, who made 38 in an opening stand of 100 that was ended when Hales was bowled heaving at Matt Henry.

The same bowler had a blistering Roy drive held by Williamson at short cover 11 runs later, but England had no thoughts of consolidation, with Root and Morgan continuing a freescoring charge with re-

markable control.

Captain Morgan played the aggressor, dancing to play a glittering array of straight drives and huge lofts down the ground.

Striking the ball cleanly, the left-hander hit five sixes in the arc between long-off and deep mid-wicket, the last of which brought up his eighth ODI hundred from 73 balls.

Root, dropped at slip by Ross Taylor off Mitchell McClenaghan on nine, was busy in support, also driving straight and nudging on the leg side.

Their partnership, England’s highest in an ODI against New Zealand, ended when Morgan hooked Tim Southee to long leg.

Root remained, went to a 94-ball hundred when a diving Santner failed to hold a top edge and, in the next over, pulled the boundary that completed victory.

That seemed unlike-

ly when Santner launched his assault on Rashid, undoing England’s good work in halting New Zealand’s progress.

As England bowled too full early on the visitors’ openers, Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill, shared 88, with Williamson and Ross Taylor then adding 101 for the third wicket.

But when Taylor was pinned lbw by Finn at the start of the batting powerplay, England began to fight back.

The impressive pair of Finn and Mark Wood registered 1-51 and 1-49 respectively but had bowled all their allocation well before the end of the New Zealand innings, leaving Rashid exposed.

In a show of character, he recovered to go for only four runs and a leg bye in the 50th over and, from then on, it was all England.

(BBC Sport)

SCOREBOARD

New Zealand innings

Guptill c Finn b Stokes 53

B McCullum c Buttler b Wood 35

Williamson c Rashid b Willey 90

Taylor lbw b Finn 42

Elliott not out 55

Ronchi c Stokes b Willey 8

Santner c Billings b Stokes 44

Southee c Stokes b Rashid 1

Wheeler not out 3

Extras (3-nb, 13-w, 2-lb) 18

Total (for 7 wickets; 50 overs) 349

Bowling: Willey 10-0-89-2, Finn 10-1-51-1, Wood 10-049-1, Stokes 10-0-73-2, Rashid 8-0-75-1, Root 2-0-10-0

Total (for 3 wickets; 44 overs) 350

Bowling: Wheeler 8-175-0, Southee 10-0-70-1, McClenaghan 8-0-64-0, Henry 10-0-77-2, Williamson 4-028-0, Santner 4-0-32-0 Fall of wickets: 100 (Hales), 111 (Roy), 309 (Morgan)

Fall of wickets: 88 (B McCullum), 116 (Guptill), 217 (Taylor), 250 (Williamson), 271 (Ronchi), 342 (Santner), 344 (Southee) England innings Roy c Williamson b Henry 38 Hales b Henry 67 Root not out 106 Morgan c Henry b Southee 113 Stokes not out 19 Extras (3-w, 4-lb) 7

President of the GDA, Faye Joseph (left), and organiser Mark Wiltshire pose with the Father’s Day tournament trophies

Golden State Warriors take NBA title

The Golden State Warriors capped a brilliant season with a 105-97 victory over LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday to win the NBA Finals for the first time in 40 years.

The Warriors, the topseeded team in the playoffs after compiling the best record in the regular season, won the best-of-seven championship series 4-2.

NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Andre Iguodala, who had not started all season until Game Four of the Finals, and Stephen Curry each had 25 points for Golden State, while James again led the way for the injury-hit Cavaliers with a game-high 32 points.

“I’ve seen this on TV so many times, dreaming about what it would be like to pour champagne on yourself and when that moment comes and I’m holding the trophy, champagne is falling on my face, that’s when it all sinks in that this is real,” said Curry. “Best champagne I’ve ever had in my life.”

Golden State became the first team since the 1991 Chicago Bulls to win the NBA title with a roster ab-

sent of any previous finals experience.

For James, who averaged 35.8 points per game, 13.3 rebounds and 8.8 assists in the Finals despite playing with an injury-hit team, the loss dropped the greatest player of his generation to 2-4 all-time in the NBA’s championship series.

“When you fall short, it hurts and it eats at you, and it hurts me to know that I wish I could have done better and done more and just put a little more effort or

whatever the case may be to help us get over the hump,” said James. “But it just wasn’t our time.”

Having trailed by 13 points late, the Cavaliers pulled to within four in the final minute, reigniting a home crowd that had been silenced moments earlier, but the Warriors held firm to clinch the title.

In the end, injuries to All Star point guard Kyrie Irving and forward Kevin Love were too much for the Cavs to overcome.

Pink ball ready for Test debut

Brett Elliot, the Kookaburra managing director, has said that the pink ball is ready for Test cricket. In 2009, the MCC made a recommendation to experiment with pink balls and since then it has been used by the ECB and CA as well.

“The Kookaburra turf pink ball has been extensively tested over the past five years by the MCC, ECB, CA, and I believe the ball is ready for an international Test match,” Elliot told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“We have also supplied a number of other ICC members like CSA and WICB, and have been equally happy with its performances at

domestic level.”

After staging a day-night round of Sheffield Shield matches in November, Cricket Australia is looking to provide the setting for the first day-night Test against New Zealand later this year with Adelaide, Brisbane and Hobart the possible venues.

Elliot has said that the pink ball is as hard as the red and white balls but an additional dye is added to improve the brightness of the ball, which is believed to promote swing as well.

“To ensure the best visibility whilst also preserving the natural wear characteristics of the ball throughout the course of the game, we add additional colour to

the pink ball and also the white ball. This enhances the brightness of the ball although some say also encourages early swing,” Elliot said.

During the Sheffield trials the pink ball had swung longer than the red ball and had undergone broadcast trials, with Cricket Australia and Channel Nine hoping to attract bigger crowds.

The board is expecting a reply from New Zealand Cricket by the end of the month on the use of pink balls and day-night Tests though some New Zealand players aren’t too keen on it, describing the night format as “gimmicky”. (Cricinfo)

Rain washes out first day in Galle

out the

Rwould be possible. Persistent showers had kept both teams in their hotel, and the heavy cloud cover

had ensured the groundstaff kept the covers on even during dry intervals.

Play will begin 15 minutes early on the four remaining days, with the middle session extended by another 15 minutes. (Cricinfo)

“We never asked for sympathy when they went down. We never made an excuse, and I certainly won’t do that now,” said Cavs coach David Blatt.

“We played our hearts out. The Warriors were better. Those guys will get healthy, and we’ll come back after it next season.”

Costly turnovers Cleveland opened the game with a 7-2 run to whip an anxious home crowd into a frenzy but Golden State

weathered the storm with a solid finish to the opening quarter to build a 28-15 lead.

After a quiet start to the game, James helped Cleveland narrow the gap with a three-pointer from the corner as part of his team’s 11-4 run to open the second quarter.

Cleveland, despite a slew of turnovers, battled mightily throughout the second before finally cutting the deficit to two points when Tristan Thompson slammed

down a put-back dunk as time expired in the first half.

The Cavaliers carried momentum into the early moments of the second half where they moved in front for the first time since early in the game but the Warriors responded brilliantly with an 8-0 run that forced the Cavaliers to call a timeout.

Golden State, powered by Iguodala, then built a gamehigh 15-point lead with a minute left in the third.

The Cavaliers came out hard in the fourth quarter and showed they were ready for a fight when James forced a turnover before racing down the court for a dunk. His basket capped an 8-0 run that put Cleveland within seven points with 10 minutes to play. But from there the Warriors used a barrage of three-pointers to hold the Cavaliers, who were largely undone by 19 turnovers in the game.

“To win a title there’s obviously a lot of work, but a lot of luck as well, and we had a lot of luck on our side this year,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr. “And our guys took advantage of it, and they were fantastic. But man, what a night.” (Reuters)

FIFA scandal… Suspicious bank transactions under investigation by Swiss inquiry

Swiss prosecutors looking into corruption at global soccer body FIFA have identified 53 suspicious bank transactions, the attorney general said on Wednesday, stressing that the investigation may take time.

Michael Lauber told journalists he would not rule out interviewing FIFA President Sepp Blatter and General Secretary Jerome Valcke, although Switzerland had so far targeted no individuals in the scandal that has rocked international soccer.

Switzerland, where FIFA is based, announced its criminal investigation and seized computers at FIFA headquarters last month on the same day that the United States shook the sport with the announcement of indictments of 14 soccer officials and businessmen as part of a separate probe into corruption.

“We are faced with a complex investigation with many international implications,” Lauber said in his first public comments since his office obtained the computer data last month.

“The world of soccer needs to be patient. By its nature, this investigation will take more than the legendary 90 minutes,” he said, referring to the length of a soccer match.

FIFA’s ethics committee confirmed it was conducting its own investigation into individuals suspected of breaking the rules in relation to bidding for the right to host the 2018 and 2022

World Cups, which were granted to Russia and Qatar respectively.

It said it was prepared to investigate more suspects and take on extra staff if needed.

Also on Wednesday, Switzerland’s third largest listed bank, Julius Baer, said it had launched an internal investigation in connection with FIFA. It said it was cooperating with the authorities and did not say when its own probe had begun.

Swiss private banks have been buffeted by a storm of scrutiny and regulation in the past five years, largely linked to accusations of helping rich American and European clients avoid tax by stashing money in secret accounts in the past.

The attorney general was clear that Blatter and Valcke could be among those summoned for questioning:

“There will be formal interviews of all relevant people. By definition, this does not exclude interviewing the president of FIFA and this does not exclude interviewing the secretary general of FIFA.”

Lauber said his team had obtained evidence on 104 bank-client relationships, each of which represented several accounts.

Switzerland’s Financial Intelligence Unit anti-money laundering agency had identified the 53 suspicious transactions flagged up from information supplied by banks.

Blatter was re-elected to a controversial fifth term just two days after the graft probes became public. However, he announced the following week that he would step down and a new presidential election is due between December and February. (Reuters)

The NBA title is Golden State Warriors’ first in 40 years

ain washed

opening day of the Test series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, without a ball bowled or even a coin tossed in Galle. The pitch and outfield remained under covers right through the day, and the umpires officially called off play after an inspection at 13:45h. By then, it was clear no play

The pitch and outfield remained under covers right through the day

Sri Lanka v Pakistan, 1st Test, Galle, 1st day…

Swiss Attorney General Michael Lauber delivers a statement at a news conference in Bern, Switzerland

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Experienced 6 headline PCL Player Draft

Half dozen players with Test match experience have been included in the list of 90 entered in the Player Draft of the West Indies Cricket Board Professional Cricket League.

The Player Draft, which has been organised with the goal of achieving an equitable distribution of the available player talent in the Regional 4-Day and NAGICO Super50 tournaments, takes place today at the Accra Beach Hotel in Barbados, starting at 13:00h.

The WICB has announced the pool of players who will be in the Draft and fast bowler Tino Best, wicketkeeper/batsman Carlton Baugh Jr, batsman Kirk Edwards, left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Ryan Hinds, opener Xavier Marshall and left-handed opener Omar Phillips head the list, which also includes five other players with international playing experience.

The other players with international credentials are openers Miles Bascombe and Nkrumah Bonner, as well as off-spin all-rounder Royston Crandon, batsman Danza Hyatt and left-arm

spinner Garey Mathurin.

Each of the six franchises in the PCL will select five players – including a minimum of two from outside their home territory – to add to the 10 players which they have already retained for a minimum squad complement of 15.

The six franchises in the League shall participate in the Draft through the Chairman of Selectors or Head Coach.

With the selection order for the Player Draft the reverse order of the final league position of the franchise in the 2014-15 WICB PCL Regional FourDay tournament, Leeward Islands Hurricanes will make the opening selection.

They will be followed by current NAGICO Super50 champions Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, then the Jamaica Franchise, Windward Islands Volcanoes, Barbados Pride and reigning Regional Fourday champions Guyana Jaguars.

This sequence will be repeated for each of the five rounds of draft picks. Each franchise must pick a player in each round and will have two minutes to select

5th annual Digicel Schools football…

the player. Where a selection is not made within the stipulated time, the offending franchise will miss their turn and must wait until all other franchises have made their selection in that round before making its selection. A total of 30 players will be drafted. The remaining players will be available for Pay-For-Play contracts at the discretion of the various franchises.

Fans can view the “live” webcast of the Draft on the WICB’s website, www.windiescricket.com.

The Guyana Jaguars players are: (Protected players)- Christopher Barnwell, Ronsford Beaton, Devendra Bishoo, Anthony Bramble, Rajendra Chandrika, Assad Fudadin, Shimron Hetmyer, Veerasammy Permaul, Raymon Reifer and Vishaul Singh.

Draft nomineesAnthony Adams, Ricardo Adams, Robin Bacchus, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Royston Crandon, Trevon Griffith, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Steven Jacobs, Raun Johnson, Keon Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Raj Nannan, Keemo Paul, Kandasammy Surujnarine and Paul Wintz.

Region 6 zone kicks off today in Skeldon

Eighteen schools are slated to participate in the Region Six (East Berbice/Corentyne) leg of the fifth annual Digicel Schools football tournament with only one school playing for the first time.

The Region Six leg is set to kick off today with Manchester Secondary taking on Tagore Secondary at the Skeldon Community Centre. Manchester

Secondary reached the second round of knockout last year, while the boys from Tagore were booted in the first round.

This year three schools from the region will not be participating in the countrywide tournament. Port Mourant Secondary, Winifred Gaskin and Corriverton Technical Institute could not field teams for this year’s tourna-

ment. The competition is expected to continue on Friday with the 2013 regional champions, New Amsterdam Secondary School, taking on Lower Corentyne Secondary at the All Saints ground on Princess Elizabeth Road in New Amsterdam. The lads of Vryman’s Erven Secondary are the Region Six defending champions.

The Guyana Jaguars are the reigning four-day champions

‘Dre Russ’ (Andre Russell) releases CPL anthem for fans

- Tallawahs all-rounder adds to the soundtrack of the Biggest Party in Sport

amaica Tallawahs

Jstar all-rounder Andre Russell will not only be thrilling fans on the field this CPL season, but he will also give them something to dance to off the field. Russell, who goes by the stage name, ‘Dre Russ’, teamed up with Saine to produce the infectious CPL anthem ‘It’s Time Again,’ which was released on radio on Wednesday.

Russell uses authentic Caribbean rhythms interspersed with exciting cricket commentary samples to capture the essence of CPL as he sings about the special party atmosphere and sen-

sational cricket. He says he hopes the song will help fans see another side of him; “CPL is something that everyone is waiting for, it’s the biggest party in sport and I wanted to try to describe our culture, the vibe and the fun we have at cricket. I tried to put everything in there and I just hope people play it and enjoy it across the Caribbean.”

Fresh from a superb showing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) where he was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP), Andre Russell says his form will carry over into the CPL

where he expects to deliver good performances and help the Jamaica Tallawahs regain the CPL trophy. He wants fans to come out and support the CPL and the Tallawahs while rocking to his newest track. “I just want everyone to do as the song says and bring your family and friends and come out and support the CPL, rally around the Tallawahs, and of course keep dancing to ‘It’s Time Again,’” Russell said.

At the Hero CPL, global superstars including Kevin Pietersen, Jacques Kallis and Shahid Afridi will join the Caribbean’s finest cricketers, like Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo, and exciting up-andcoming local talent.

Last year’s tournament attracted a global audience in excess of 65 million and this year is set to be even higher as fans across the world continue to be drawn to the high quality action on the pitch and the unique party atmosphere off it. Hero CPL 2015 kicks off with a repeat of last year’s final, with defending champions, Barbados Tridents, hosting Guyana Amazon Warriors, at Kensington Oval, on Saturday.

GASA to host Olympic Day activity on Sunday

The Guyana Amateur Swimming Association (GASA) will on Sunday host its annual Olympic Day activity at the National Aquatic Centre, from 11:00h to 13:00h.

According to GASA, all events will be swum as relays, and team will comprise six to eight swimmers, depending on the number of available participants. Team leaders will be selected from the senior swimmers present, and they in turn will select their team members.

The day’s activity will commence with the regular warm-up at 10:00h, before the events begin an hour later. They include tandem relay- freestyle, wet tee-shirt relay- entire team, backstroke relay, tandem relay- butterfly, breaststroke relay, floatie relay- entire team, tandem relay- breaststroke, butterfly relay, kickboard relay- entire team,

freestyle relay and fathers freestyle relay.

According to GASA, “Everyone is welcome- competitive swimmers, beginner, parents- anyone capable of competently swimming 25m in any stroke.” There is no entrance fee for teams, and teams can enter as many events as they so desire.

The winning team will be presented with tokens. Below are a brief explanation of some the novelty races that will be held on the day.

Tandem relay- Tandem relays can be swum in two or four lengths. Each length is swum by two swimmers; one in front pulling in accordance with the relevant stroke and one at the back holding the legs of the swimmer in front and kicking in accordance with the stroke.

Wet tee-shirt relay- This game starts out like any oth-

KPL Softball Cup set for July 4

Some of the nation’s top softball teams will be in action on July 4 when the inaugural KPL Cup gets underway at Everest and Demerara Cricket Club grounds in Georgetown.

The tournament will be played in the Open and Over-35 categories with the winning team in both divisions taking home a trophy and $120,000.

Entrance fee for the Open category is $50,000 and Over-35 $40,000.

According to organiser Samuel Kingston, four Open and six Over-35 teams will be accepted. He said that the launching and draw will be done on July 1 and GNIC Sports Club, Woolford Avenue.

Regal, Wolf’s Warriors and Spartons of Berbice (Open), and Frontline, Omesh XI, Savage and Shallim XI (Over-35) have already confirmed their participation. For more information teams can contact Kingston on 614-9536. Samuel Kingston

RHty&sc names strong team for caricom championship

The Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC), playing under the banner of Gizmos and Gadgets, one of the top cricket teams in Berbice and Guyana, has named a strong team for the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) fundraising event, the Caricom Championship 2015.

The team, to be coached by former national wicket keeper/batsman Delbert Hicks, and managed by veteran administrator Hilbert Foster, will include several young and talented cricketers, who have represented Berbice and Guyana at different levels.

The batting will be in the hands of Hicks, Vidal Crandon, Akshay Homraj and Jason Sinclair. The bowling will be spearheaded by pacer Clinton Pestano and a battery of spinners in Eon Hooper, Shawn Perriera, Troy Mathieson and Collis Butts.

The full team reads: Akshay Homraj, Vidal Crandon, Delbert Hicks, Clinton Pestano, Jason

Sinclair, Shawn Perriera, Eon Hooper, Sherwin Murray, Troy Mathieson, Collis Butts, Keon Sinclair, Brandon Prashad, Kumar Jeet Joseph, Jason Anderson and Simeon Lawson. Proceeds from the event, which will be held on July 5 at Albion, will be used mainly to organise threeday cricket competition in Berbice.

The Caricom Championship will see the top eight T20 first division teams in Berbice competing in a 10-over knockout competition with the final

of 20 overs to be played under lights for a top prize of $80,000 and trophy. The runner-up will receive $40,000 and trophy with the losing semi-finalists getting $15,000 each.

The participating teams are: Upper Corentyne/ Skeldon, Port Mourant, Rose Hall Town Youth & Sports Club, Albion, Young Warriors/Edinburg/Rose Hall Center, Police/Bermine, Blairmont/West Berbice and Bush Lot/D’Edward.

Admission is $300 per person and action will bowl off at 10:00h.

J.C. Chandisingh, NAMS through to final

Jer relay race. Two teams are created, and half of each team lines up on opposite ends of the pool. So what makes this relay race different? The wet tee-shirt! The starting player for each team is given a soaking wet tee-shirt. The players put the tee-shirt on, completelythen jump in, swim across the pool, climb out, take off the shirt and hand it to the next player on the team. The first team to get everyone across the pool in the teeshirt wins.

Floatie Race- For this game, you’ll need two or more people, and two floaties of any kind- as long as they’re big enough to sit on.

Two players line up on their floaties at one end of the pool and, on “go”, race to the other end. First one there wins. This game works best in a longer pool, and can also be played as a relay race with two teams.

.C. Chandisingh and New Amsterdam Multilateral School (NAMS) will meet in the Berbice final of the National Schools Basketball Festival (NSBF) after winning their respective zones.

The boys from J.C. Chandisingh are the Corentyne zone winners, having only lost one game, while NAMS lads are the New Amsterdam zone win-

ners after amassing 24 points and playing unbeaten with eight wins.

The final, which will be a rematch of last year’s championship game, will be played at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall along with the other conference finals on July 3. Winners will be then grouped for the national final.

Meanwhile, in the last round of matches in the New Amsterdam zone,

NAMS gained a walker over as Berbice Educational Institute did not turn up at the Smithfield Court in New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice/ Corentyne).

On Tuesday last, New Amsterdam Technical institute (NATI) defeated Berbice High School (BHS) 40-35. Osafo Profitt scored 21 points for NATI and Laurindo Prince scored 11 points for BHS.

St George’s/Sophia Kings win tapeball competition

St George’s/Sophia Kings defeated Bishops by 11 runs to win the Goodwood Racing Service/PKF Barcellos Narine and Company sponsored school boys tapeball cricket competition last weekend at the National Cultural Centre Tarmac.

St George’s/Sophia Kings batted first and posted 86 runs off the six overs with Andre Gibson making 47. Bishops in reply were restricted to 75-9 when the overs finished.

Neraj Ramjal topscored with 39. Captain of St George’s/Sophia Kings, Mark Mitchell was named

MVP of the tournament, after he emerged as the leading runscorer and wicket-taker. He also took the most catches.

Ten teams participated in the competition, which was organised by the Royal Tapeball Cricket Academy. Another competition is planned for July 4.

Andre Russell is bringing his singing skills to the CPL this year

Delbert Hicks Shawn Perriera

National Schools Basketball Festival…

The National Aquatic Centre

Amazon Warriors off to hunt CPL glory

– Hetmyer added to playing squad

By AvenAsh RAmzAn

Determined to go one step further and clinch the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) title for the first time, a confident Guyana Amazon Warriors squad, minus a few of the international players, left these shores on Wednesday for Barbados for the start of the competition on Saturday.

Under the leadership of Head Coach Carl Hooper and Team Operations Manager Omar Khan, the local-based players, along with Australian Brad Hodge and Trinidad and Tobago pair Lendl Simmons and Sunil Narine, departed for the island from the Ogle International Airport via a LIAT flight.

The other international and West Indies players will join the squad in Barbados for this Saturday’s opening match of the tournament against defending champions Barbados Tridents.

Khan, in an invited comment, said the current inclement weather has limited the Amazon Warriors preparations, but noted that the players will use the next few days to whip themselves into shape for Saturday’s

highly anticipated showdown.

“We plan to go in Barbados- we have a couple days before the first gameand put in some good work in the practice session we have scheduled. At the end of the day, it’s all about us coming together as a team and identifying what is required as a team to achieve success,” Khan said.

The squad will undergo some changes during the tournament with

Sri Lankan all-rounders

Tillekaratne Dilshan and Thisara Perera available for the first four games, and their compatriot, fast bowler Lasith Malinga out of the tournament with an injury.

The promising South African speedster Merchant De Lange has been named as Malinga’s replacement and will feature from the start of the competition, while another South African, allrounder David Wiese, and the flambouyant Pakistan

GVF male,female trials billed for Saturday

The Guyana Volleyball Federation (GVF) will be holding trials to select the senior male and female national squads on Saturday at the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue, Georgetown.

According to national coach, Levi Nedd, sessions will be held at the venue from 09:00h and all identified players from the respective associations affiliated to the GVF are urged to be early for registration before the sessions begin.

The long-serving coach, who is also the chairman of the GVF’s Selection Committee, said it is envisaged that by the end of the sessions, the GVF Selection Committee would be able to identify players to form

squads of at least 20 players in the two categories.

Nedd pointed out that the players named will not be solely the pool from which the national teams will be

selected as there are opportunities for others, based on their performances in the various competitions organised by the federations/associations.

The GVF is expected to send male and female national teams to participate in competitions organised by the South American Volleyball Confederation (CSV) later this year.

Meanwhile, the GVF will be holding a fun volleyball on Sunday at the National Gymnasium in observation of Olympic Day. Teams from Berbice, Demerara and Essequibo are expected to participate.

Volleyball has been an Olympic sport since 1964, when it was played at the Tokyo Olympics.

Lucky CPL fan could win...

Damien O’Donohoe, Chief Executive Officer of the Hero CPL, said, “Tickets are already selling out fast as excitement ramps up ahead of CPL 2015, and there definitely won’t be many left when fans find out about the chance to win US$1 million. ‘Catch a Million’ is absolutely massive for the Caribbean, and we’re so thankful to Guardian Group for making this once in a lifetime prize possible.”

Larry Olton, Group Vice President- Integrated Marketing Communications

of Guardian Group, said, “We’re thrilled to be supporting the CPL to introduce ‘Catch a Million’, and we wish all the fans the best of luck during the tournament. The League is all about fun and excitement, and ‘Catch a Million’ is going to take that excitement to whole new level.”

At the Hero CPL, global superstars including Kevin Pietersen, Jacques Kallis and Shahid Afridi will join the Caribbean’s finest cricketers, like Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard and Dwayne

batsman Umar Akmal will come in for Dilshan and Perera, when they depart the Caribbean for international duty on July 5.

Khan said he is confident the Amazon Warriors have found capable replacements to fill the void left by the Sri Lankan trio.

“At the end of the day, players come in, players go. This is the nature of franchise cricket, and we have young Merchant De Lange who is joining the team in place of Malinga, and he is very excited about coming to play in the CPL. He’s very excited about joining the Amazon Warriors. These players [the replacements] are quality players. These are players that have been performing all over the world, they’re professionals so we expect them to come and fit in and use their professional experience to help the team,” Khan asserted.

Meanwhile, exciting Guyana and West Indies Under-19 opener Shimron Hetmyer is travelling with the team as part of CPL’s plan to develop young Caribbean cricketers. Under the rules this year, each franchise is required to select one youth player from the training camp to form part of the squad.

Hetmyer was part of a group of four Under-19 players who participated in the Amazon Warriors one-week training camp. The others were Akshaya Persaud, Sherfane Rutherford and Keemo Paul.

Khan said Hetmyer satisfied the criteria that were set out. “It’s about performance, overall attitude in the camp, [and] how they gel and so on. It’s about overall development and seeing that they have a future, so we will give them the opportunity to mix with the international players and be part of the playing squad. They can also be on the final XI.”

The Guyana Amazon

Warriors are looking to go one step further and win the competition for the first time this year after finishing as runner-up the previous two years, in 2013 against Jamaica Tallawahs and last year against the Barbados Tridents.

The other participating franchises are St Lucia Zouks, newcomers St Kitts Patriots and Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel.

Bravo, and exciting up-andcoming local talent.

Last year’s tournament attracted a global audience in excess of 65 million, and this year is set to be even higher as fans across the world continue to be drawn to the high quality action on the pitch and the unique party atmosphere off it. Hero CPL 2015 kicks off with a repeat of last year’s final, with defending champions, Barbados Tridents, hosting Guyana Amazon Warriors, at Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday.

Levi Nedd

South African speedster Merchant De Lange will replace Lasith Malinga

Spin twins Devendra Bishoo (left) and Veerasammy Permaul, who were on opposing sides in the 2013 tournament, are now plying their trade with their home franchise, Guyana Amazon Warriors

Lucky CPL fan could win US$1M

‘Catch a Million’ will be the biggest sports promotion ever in the Caribbean

Caribbean Premier League (CPL) fans have been given one million reasons to get their tickets for this year’s competition, with the launch of ‘Catch a Million’, in association with CPL sponsor, Guardian Group.

‘Catch a Million’ will be the biggest ever sports promotion in the Caribbean. If a fan is the first to catch a six one-handed at a CPL game

they will automatically win US$1000 and a chance to win a trip to Trinidad for the finals.

The public will vote on the best catches online at CPL’s official Facebook page to decide who makes the trip to Trinidad. If selected and the feat is repeated at the final, the fan could win the incredible sum of US$1 million. Full terms and conditions can be found at www.cplt20.com.

There were 387 sixes smashed during 30 matches in the 2014 Caribbean Premier League, with Chris Gayle and Lendl Simmons topping the charts, after blasting 24 maximums each. With the likes of Shahid Afridi and Kevin Pietersen joining the ranks this year, fans can expect plenty more opportunities to win their prize at CPL 2015.

turn to page 23

Amazon Warriors off to hunt CPL glory

– Hetmyer

added to playing squad

The fifth annual Digicel Secondary Schools football championship kicked off on Wednesday with two of the three scheduled games, with the other being abandoned due to the unplayable state of the venue.

At the Wisburg ground in Linden, New Silvercity defeated Wisburg 3-2 in what was a come-from-behind success. Wisburg took the lead in the 19th minute through a Compton Caesar goal, before Tyrique McAllister equalised six minutes later for New Silvercity.

Brian Johnson then put New Silvercity in the lead with a goal in the 50th minute, before it became 3-1 eight minutes later when Shane Haynes found the back of the nets. Jermaine

Moore scored for Wisburg in the 66th minute to reduce the margin of defeat.

Over on the spanking new football field in the centre of the synthetic track at Leonora, L’Aventure edged West Demerara Secondary 2-1, after they were trailing early in the game.

West Demerara took the lead in the 12th minute when Jieel Jansen breached the defence of the goalkeeper, and just when it seemed they would walk away with a 1-0 victory, L’Aventure scored twice in the space of seven minutes in the dying stages of the game to advance to the next round.

Dan Bristol drew level in the 62nd minute, before Andeole Bowman sealed the match in the 69th minute.

The other game at the

Education Ministry ground on Carifesta Avenue in the city was called off after the players and officials were greeted with a soggy outfield, owing to prevailing weather condition.

The competition, played under the theme ‘Unite. Develop. Excel’, will continue today with five games at various venues across the country. On the Den Amstel ground, Vergenoegen and Zeeburg will go head-tohead, while at the Wisburg ground, McKenzie High will face Linden Foundation.

Tagore Memorial will face Machester at the Skeldon ground, Tucville and David Rose will square off at the Tucville ground and Friendship and Apex will collide at the Grove Playfield.

Fans have more to celebrate about at this year’s Hero CPL

Part of the action between L’Aventure and West Demerara at the Leonora football facility

Head Coach Carl Hooper (seated centre) and Amazon Warriors players Sunil Narine, Veerasammy Permaul, Assad Fudadin and Trevon Griffith ensure their documentations are in order as they prepare to leave on Wednesday (Avenash Ramzan photo)

Shimron Hetmyer was the Under-19 player selected to form part of the playing squad