Guyana Times - Monday, November 2, 2020

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THE BEACON OF TRUTH

Issue No. 4457

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

PRICE

Giveaway of State land

Govt to bring legal action against former Finance Minister, others ...NICIL transferred land valued at $150M to company for $2.4M in June 2020

Pages 3 & 11

— purchaser failed to make even minimum down payment

President Ali optimistic tourism sector will bounce back from COVID-19 Page 7

Fire razes 2-storey home at Enmore; pensioner, 3 others homeless

Govt commits to expanding Moraikobai water system See story on page 16

WHAT'S INSIDE:

Guyanese man beaten to death in P10 Dominican Republic

44 COVID-19 P2 deaths recorded in October — cases in Kwebanna continue to climb despite lockdown

Pedal cyclist killed by P17 reversing minibus at Enmore

Page 9

Residents urged to tap into opportunities as Govt opens up new lands in Region 3

$80 VAT INCLUDED

Page 2

P7 M&CC to decide on fate of employees accused of corrupt practices

46 new COVID-19 cases detected; P12 8 in ICU

2 NEWS

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Fire razes 2-storey home at Enmore; pensioner, 3 others homeless

A

mid-afternoon fire at Enmore, East Coast Demerara (ECD) on Sunday has left a 63-year-old man and his family homeless.

At the time of the fire, the home was occupied by the pensioner, his wife, and two sons.

The fire completely gutted the Lot 1 Hope, Enmore home minutes after flames were seen emanating from the wooden structure.

The owner of the house, Ramlakhan Daijnath told Guyana Times that the fire started about 12:30h on the day in question.

He recalled leaving his

The ruins of the house

32-year-old son at home and going to run some errands.

However, while doing so, he was contacted and told that his house was on fire.

The elderly man explained that he immediately rushed over to the house, where he saw members of the Guyana Fire Service

(GFS) attempting to put out the blaze.

The pensioner and his family did not save any of their household items or personal belongings, but stood helplessly and witnessed their home burn to ashes.

“We lost millions of dollars. Losing my house today, I can’t bear it. To stand up and see the house gone up in blaze…,” he explained.

“My son was downstairs in the hammock when the fire started. He doesn’t know how the fire started, but it started in the roof of the upstairs. The upstairs was wood, and the downstairs was concrete.”

Fire fighters trying to extinguish the blaze at Enmore

The devastated Daijnath explained that he and his family would now be temporarily accommodated by his neighbour, since they have

nowhere to go at this time.

The cause of the fire is still to be determined as fire officials continue their investigations.

44 COVID-19 deaths recorded in October

– cases in Kwebanna continue to climb despite lockdown

O

ctober has been dubbed the deadliest month for Guyana since the first imported case of COVID-19 back in March 2020, with a whop-

ping 44 deaths. October is followed by September with 38 deaths.

According to information released by the Ministry of Health, at the end of

October, Guyana recorded 126 deaths. On October 31, a 48-year-old woman from Region Four (DemeraraMahaica) and a 67-yearold man from Region One

(Barima-Waini) died while receiving care at medical facilities.

The day prior, 70-yearold Godfrey Layne of La Parfaite Harmonie, West

Bank Demerara (WBD), succumbed while receiving medical treatment at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

Layne was admitted to the hospital on September 30 and was in the dedicated COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU). No deaths have been recorded for November thus far.

Meanwhile, although Kwebanna, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) has gone into lockdown, the Health Ministry has continued to record positive cases. It was reported that only recently, a man died from the village and as such, the Ministry had imposed a 14-day lockdown but from reports received, there had been a breach.

The police and health officials were reportedly called in to handle the situation.

Nevertheless, the Health Ministry has taken a number of measures to bring the situation under control.

According to Minister of

Health, Dr Frank Anthony, the rapid increase in cases for such a small community is worrying.

He said the Ministry is currently monitoring each case and will take the necessary action to provide the level of care required if the health of persons deteriorates.

In addition to providing healthcare services, they are also conducting sensitisation campaigns, etc.

Only a few days back, 23-year-old Samuel Henry, the son of a COVID-19 victim went berserk and chopped one of his cousins 35-year-old Kamal Wilson to death. A sister of the suspect had stated that since his father’s death, he had not been himself and as such requested that he undergoes a psychiatric evaluation.

The sister had noted that COVID-19 has had an effect on every member of the community since they were forced to be in lockdown, thus limiting their movements.

NEWS

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

BRIDGE OPENINGS OPENINGS BRIDGE

The Demerara Harbour Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on: Monday, November 2 – 04:30h – 06:00h and Tuesday, November 3 – 04:30h – 06:00h.

The Berbice Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic on:

NICIL transferred land valued at $150M to company for $2.4M in June 2020 – purchaser failed to make even minimum down payment This is just one of the many deals brokered by the former APNU/AFC despite losing a No-Confidence Motion back in November of 2018, which meant that it was supposed to be in a caretaker status, not entering into large scale transac-

Monday, November 2 – 05:10h – 06:40h and Tuesday, November 3 – 05:45h – 07:15h.

FERRY SCHEDULE

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

WEATHER TODAY

in payments.

As of October 12, 2020, five companies which benefitted from these questionable land deals have since surrendered these lands back to NICIL. The companies that are known to have reverted lands to

Thundery showers will prevail during the day.

There will be light cloud at night. Temperatures should range between 22 degrees Celsius and 29 degrees Celsius.

Winds: South-Easterly to Easterly to East NorthEasterly to North-Easterly to North NorthEasterly to Northerly between 1.78 metres and 3.57 metres.

High Tide: 17:20h reaching a maximum height of 2.71 metres.

Low Tide: 10:57h and 23:18h reaching minimum heights of 0.62 metre and 0.49 metre.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2020

LOTTERY NUMBERS N

03 12 13

19 23 25

FREE TICKET

9 Bonus Ball

DAILY MILLIONS

07 10 16 18 26 LUCKY 3

1

1

7

6

Afternoon Draw

2

1

Evening Draw

DRAW DE LINE

02

04

09

10

15

16

PAY DAY

21 SUPER PAY DAY FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2020

03 05 06 08 13

01 06 09 14 16

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

COMMODITIES Indicators

US$

Change %

Crude Oil

$37.46/barrel

-0.51

Rough Rice

$221.99/ton

-0.26

London Sugar

$390.50/ton

+1.01

Live Spot Gold

USD Per Ounce

Bid/Ask

$1881.30

$1882.30

Low/High

$1872.90

$1882.30

Change

+2.70

0.14%

Former Finance Minister Winston Jordan signed the vesting order on June 11, 2020, in the middle of a hotly disputed election controversy

I

n the wake of the recent sacking of former Head of the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), Colvin HeathLondon, more revelations are coming to light about the way the agency undersold State assets.

In one case, NICIL sold and transferred land to a company that paid only a small fraction of the minimum down payment, thus costing the State millions.

The company in question, Premier Sales and Services Incorporated, was sold five acres of what used to be 204 acres of cane land, at Ogle, East Coast Demerara (ECD). The land was valuated in November 2018 and was found to be worth $25 million per acre.

According to the particulars of the deal, Premier Sales and Services sought to acquire the land to develop 20, two-storey stacked townhouses and mid-rise condominiums, as well as roadways and sidewalks… all hefty investments that it was estimated would cost US$30 million and which were supposed to be constructed within 24 months of receiving all requisite building approvals.

However, documents seen by this publication show that Premier Sales and Services Incorporated was only registered on June 12, 2019. Despite its meagre history as a developer, the company's application for the land was fast-tracked by NICIL. The company first applied for the land on October 18, 2019, some four months after its registration and

by February 20, 2020, the company's application had been approved by the NICIL Board.

The sales agreement was executed five days later and the land vested to the company on June 11, 2020, in a rushed deal that occurred in the middle of the hotly disputed election controversies that followed the March 2 General and Regional Elections.

According to the sales agreement, the agreed pur-

The land deal is one of several that former NICIL CEO Colvin Heath-London helped broker

chase price for the five acres of land, excluding fees and expenses, was $150.4 million. The company was supposed to pay a 50 per cent down payment of $75.2 million, but instead, the company only made two payments of $2.4 million.

The first payment, in the sum of $1 million, was made on February 28, 2020, and the second payment of $1.4 million was made on March 20 of this year. There is reportedly no official record of any other payments being made.

However, NICIL went ahead and vested the land to the company two months later. Signing the vesting order was then Finance Minister Winston Jordan.

On June 16, 2020, then NICIL CEO Colvin HeathLondon, wrote to the company’s principal, Danley Major, requesting that he settle his outstanding balance of $153.7 million inclusive of fees… five days after the vesting order had already been issued.

One of the proposed condos that the company wanted to build

tions.

But when it comes to land, it has been revealed so far that the former APNU/ AFC Government vested almost 100 acres of prime State land along the ECD to various companies.

The total value of the lands the former Government handed out along the East Coast of Demerara was $2.9 billion.

But NICIL, which is supposed to ensure Guyana gets the best value for privatised State assets, only received approximately $64 million

the State are Navigant Builders Incorporated – the developers of Windsor Estates; Cardiology Services Incorporated; the Corum Group, American Marine Services Incorporated and Supergraphics Enterprise.

In all of those cases, the firms have expressed a desire to work with the new People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration to get the necessary and proper approvals needed to pursue their respective developmental goals.

4

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

Views Editor: Tusika Martin News Hotline: 231-8063 Editorial: 231-0544, 223-7230, 223-7231, 225-7761 Marketing: 231-8064 Accounts: 225-6707 Mailing address: Queens Atlantic Investment Estate Industrial Site, Ruimveldt, Georgetown Email: news@guyanatimesgy.com, marketing@guyanatimesgy.com

The American Election

E

ven though more than 50 per cent of the expected votes have already been mailed in, tomorrow, the USA goes to the polls in one of the most highly-anticipated elections across the globe in decades. While there has been much talk about the “end of the American century” in recent decades, America remains the preeminent power in the world. As such, the individual who takes over the helm of their government after the elections is seen as a harbinger of the orientation of the powerful superpower.

And there is good reason for this, since, in an almost unique fashion, the US President is elected through a process that involves the American people evoking the direct democracy of Ancient Greece, where the concept of democracy was birthed. Unlike Joe Biden, Donald Trump is not a product of party politics that is the norm for most modern democracies.

He is the archetypal outsider who broke through ranks of the Republican Party by going directly to the people to orchestrate concerns that resonated with them.

Trump has been dubbed a “polarising” figure in American politics, but this is not entirely fair. He has brought back the original imperative that produced “party politics” as the vehicle for making democratic choices. Parties are supposed to represent distinct views on given issues and as such, in a “partisan” fashion, present a clear choice to the people to select the country’s leader. The process is ineluctably adversarial in its construct, in a similar manner to the situation in courtrooms that are designed to produce justice.

While the American Founding Fathers were not entirely free from the elitist prejudices against the “masses” when they introduced their “Electoral College”, American elections do tend to produce leaders who embody the “spirit of their times”.

This US election, then, is as much a referendum on the aspirations of that segment of the American populace who feel alienated from the “liberal” straitjacket that became the dominant paradigm due to elitist institutions, as it is on Donald Trump himself. Very few outsiders who call themselves “democrats”, and who decry Trump’s success, appreciate the irony that he has been able to bring into the political realm a wide swathe of Americans who had been historically not only ignored, but also derided.

It is also an irony of faith that if Trump were to lose the election, it would be due not to what can be called his ideological stance, but to an event that came entirely out of the blue: the COVID-19 pandemic. The only countries that were able to control the spread of the virus has been the authoritarian-leaning illiberal States such as China and South Korea, using methods of control that most Americans would not only chafe at but reject outrightly.

At this point, most of the polls indicate that Biden is leading Trump, but this was also the case in the last elections.

Because he is seen as a polarising figure, there are a substantial number of voters who do not indicate their preference for Trump when questioned by pollsters. As such, the jury, so to speak, will be out on who is the next president of the USA until all the votes are counted. But because of State rules on the deadlines for counting postal votes, we might not know the result for days.

In the meantime, however, while the individual occupying the Oval Office in the White House might signal to a great extent, the style of his administration, the substance will continue to be guided by the interests of the US, especially in the realm of foreign policy. Guyanese, therefore, should be leery of those who predict some sort of volte face by the US Administration should Biden win the elections. As has been emphasised time and again, like all great powers, the US does not have permanent friends, just permanent interests.

Be that as it may, we wish that the US continues to be a beacon to all who desire democratic governance.

The most precious marine gem sprawls for over 2300 kilometres (1400 miles) in the Coral Sea. It is one of the most pristine and versatile marine colonies in the world. The colourful marine diversity attracts thousands of tourists every year, who love to explore it by snorkeling and diving.

Who will prevail in US elections?

Dear Editor, I write voluminously on US events as related to the diasporas of Guyana, the Caribbean and India.

Thus, I have been approached by groups and media in India and the Caribbean for my views on the outcome of the US elections.

Guyanese, other Caribbean and Indian Americans have been querying me on who will win the US Presidency this coming Tuesday. Some also ask what is the implication of the outcome and which candidate is better for US-Guyana relations, US-Caribbean, and US-India relations.

Domestic issues also play a role in how people vote.

The issues in the US elections centre around COVID response, unemployment, ethnic relations, immigration, economy, foreign aid, international relations, criminal justice, health care, climate change, abortion, and gun policy, among others.

In some matters, voters rank Trump as better equipped to handle them and in others, Democratic challenger Joe Biden gets the nod. Biden leads in foreign policy and Trump in economic issues. A majority of Americans tell researchers that foreign policy is very important in this election. But so is pocketbook issue. People

vote on how well they do financially and who will put more money in their pockets as well as protect their community.

How are IndoGuyanese voting? There are no polls among IndoCaribbeans or Caribbean people. But based on my estimates of people I conversed with and interviewed, a surprising 25 per cent will vote for Trump because of how the Guyana election was resolved seeing Trump as the saviour.

An opinion poll conducted among Indian Americans by a group of scholars revealed that some 28 per cent are voting for Trump. My own interaction among IndoCaribbeans and Indian Americans finds that in this election, there is also a higher voter turnout among both groups than in previous elections. Afro-Guyanese and Afro-Caribbean turnout and voting trend are in line with that of Black Americans.

Some 93 per cent are voting Biden. I have not come across many Afro-Guyanese or Black Americans who say they are voting for Trump.

But a significant number of evangelical Black Americans, as indeed most White evangelicals, are voting for Trump.

Indian Americans who vote Trump do so

because of: threat of terror against India, lower taxation policy, and the perceived threat posed to India by China and Pakistan. US and India have become very close partners under Trump to counter China’s threat in Asia and the Pacific, and Indian Americans, as well as Indo-Guyanese, feel Trump is best for US-India relations.

(Many Guyanese do follow issues in their ancestral homeland, India).

Indo-Guyanese who vote Trump say they do so because Republicans tend to protect democracy (free and fair elections) in Guyana.

They point to the Democrats ousting the PPP Governments in 1964 and 2015 and Secretary Pompeo, a Republican, saving democracy in Guyana.

I did an analysis of dozens of polls conducted on the elections. Biden will win a landslide in the electoral votes and also obtain majority of popular votes. The electoral votes matter. A candidate needs 270 of the 538 votes. Biden is projected to get over 300 votes. My analysis of the polls also finds that Democrats will capture the Senate and improve their hold on the House.

I must confess that the polls were wrong in 2016 – showing a Trump

defeat. So it is possible the polls could be wrong again. The contest in the swing or battleground states is close even though polls have Biden ahead.

In terms of foreign policy implications for Guyana or the Caribbean or India, it would not matter much whichever candidate prevails on Tuesday except for immigration policy. Biden will reverse the restriction of Trump on US immigration. He will probably also provide more development foreign aid to poor countries of the Caribbean and Africa. He will increase COVID assistance.

But American investment, securing democracy, geostrategic security interests would remain the same relating to Guyana, Caribbean and India. Guyana will remain under US watch for geostrategic interests vis-a-vis Venezuela.

Separately, in Richmond Hill, Little Guyana, Jennifer Rajkumar is on the ballot for State Assembly.

Guyanese and other American voters are urged to vote for her and for candidates they feel will best represent their concerns in Government.

Yours truly, Dr Vishnu Bisram

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

5

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

Guyana’s digital economic challenge When should LGE Dear Editor, I am neither an APNU nor PPP voter, I just want the best for our nation regardless of the Government in power – I am nonaligned.

Some are apt to consider this discourse to be a criticism.

However, the intent is to elevate the discussion and accelerate change. There is a big difference between secrecy and privacy and we Guyanese should demand less of secrecy.

There is not enough space to elucidate on our digital opportunities, so I will reserve some for another audience as I enjoy the cool breeze of the Atlantic and Demerara River estuary. My focus is on the 90 per cent of Guyanese and not the 10 per cent like myself, a simple discourse.

Guyana’s gap in the global digital economy is enormous, however, there is a silver lining if we seize it. Guyana is approximately 20 years behind the rest of the world in technology adaptation, I am being conservative.

The technology acronyms of “AI - Artificial Intelligence”, “BlockChain – security”, “Big Data – data integration”, “IoT – connectivity”, connected retail, “Cloud – storage and usage”, “RFID – tracking”, “Mobile Money” are major technological developments in the rest of the world and Guyana’s 10 per cent. The other 90 per cent of Guyanese don’t need to know how it works but should see the benefits.

My concerns are we continue to be left behind since technology is an afterthought in

our central planning – most think of broadband/phone as the primary objective.

Yes, some of this was caused by our limited financial resources over the years, however, much has been driven by poor planning and execution. Governments don’t have to do everything, but create the environment that foster change, innovation and competitiveness.

Blunt honesty follows!

We get an “F” for Backoffice automation - both private and public, ledger books, carbon copies, Police note pad, and physical files are a thing of the past. This is a major source of our nation’s inefficiency and corruption because of no electronic or forensic footprint!

We get a “D” for electronic payment, electronic billing, Debit/Card acceptance, etc. We are way behind. We can buy at Courts/Massy using a bank card, however, some of our well-established Guyanese institutions are cash or managers check only - Gafoors, Toolsie, Kissoon, National Hardware, etc.

They have been around decades and still function as though we are in the ’70s in payment acceptance. Not unusually, most gas stations are typically run by 2 people worldwide because of automation, we have an army of 6-8 or more to service gas. Unfortunately, my dad doesn’t have to go to the post office each month to collect his old-age pension, he is dead. GuySuCo did not have its challenges because of lost subsidy only, automation

and inefficacies caused it.

Grade “F” for tax and fees collection by Ministries, GRA, NIS and others are abysmal (manual option), bring cash only – my summation is we pay 14 per cent VAT because of the inefficiencies and noncompliance by a vast portion of the population. Automation can push down VAT by 5 per cent or more based on recent assessment, it pays for itself.

Our recent effort of houseto-house distribution of “25k cash” is a glaring example, we need electronic systems.

Grade “F” for internet availability, and voter registration nationwide needs out of the box thinking, or else we will be faced with this ongoing dilemma. There are many options to automate these processes. No more house-tohouse, this should be a onetime event at best, not every 5 years.

Most Guyanese are unaware that the BoG (Bank of Guyana) has a big impact on their daily lives, bigger than GECOM and the Ministry of Finance (Fiscal policy). BoG manages our monetary policy, primarily through the money supply, interest rates, financial institution governance, (bank and insurance regulation) and price stability (inflation). Job creation should never be a sacrificial lamb because of poor bank policies.

They (BoG) is supposed to be an independent arm of our Government. My preliminary perusal of their operations suggested they still manage our economy as a glorified “cake shop”, no glob-

al electronic banking thinking, mostly internal and regional. Time for change in the entire leadership with some economic thought leaders at the helm. There has been no discourse in the media about whether BoG was at the negotiating table with our oil-producing partners to arrange lending facilities to garner a few bases point over the next 25 years. Lost opportunity.

It takes 30 seconds or more to open the BoG web page or navigate their website, unacceptable.

Ever wonder why long lines at banks, higher than required interest rates in a high unemployment market.

The Bank of Guyana is directly responsible for the continued level of poverty in our nation and the lack of accelerated growth. No wonder more than 50 per cent of the bankable population doesn’t have a bank account and has high mortgage rates. I will pen a separate article on BoG deficiencies soon.

The Bank of Guyana cannot hide in the mud, they share some responsibility in our digital deficiencies, glad to see they now push the acceptance of driver’s licence as a form of primary identification, a long wait.

Ladies and gentlemen, the world in Guyana is not what it appears to be, yes, we enjoy a simple life here, but it’s a global community, we need to compete in. If you had any doubts, COVID-19 reminded us.

Sincerely, Everton Morris

Harmon shoots himself in the foot with untimely LGE demand Dear Editor, Mr Harmon, Leader of the Opposition, had been searching for issues on which to attack the Government but owing to his lack of political experience he has not been finding any, though they are staring him in the face. He hit upon demanding Local Government Elections next year and threatened dire consequences to the Government and country if such elections are not held.

But like so many of his actions over the last several years, he has shown a piteous tendency of badly misjudging. No one has ever become emotional about LGE and it leaves people cold, so he will be sorely disappointed in stirring up trouble.

There are a few things I would like to underline: (a) GECOM, which is the body that has to conduct elections, is badly fractured and its top officers are arraigned before the courts on serious criminal offences. Its more junior staff are demoralised and have no respect for their superiors and the public has no confidence GECOM could be ever able to conduct efficient and democratic elections.

Mr Harmon imagines that this fractured GECOM with its top brass on criminal charges and with its leaderless and demoralised staff would conduct the elections. This exposes Mr Harmon as a person who does not believe in democracy and affirms to the public and the international community that he is not a man to be entrusted with power. (b) In any case, if the Government gets through with its CoI and GECOM could be reorganised and they hold elections next year, the PNC/APNU would be disastrously defeated with far-reaching implications. Mr Harmon would quicken the disintegration of the PNC. (c) Having begun the demand for LGE in the usual PNC bullying style, he can't drop it now. But he could turn this bleak situation into a victory by offering to work with the Government to bring about early LGE and claiming kudos and so stabilise the disintegrating PNC. Sincerely, Paul Validum Ramlochan

be held?

Dear Editor, At a recent meeting of the Opposition Leader, he was overhead making certain remarks which really amount to an issuance of threats to the present Government if taken in its truest context. He was at the time speaking to his constituents in Region 10.

Now, his problem stems from the fact that Local Government Elections LGE is constitutionally due in 2021 and from his perspective, the Irfaan Ali Government is not going to hold those elections, so as a natural reaction to such an event ever taking place, there will be violent resistance from the Opposition.

He contended that the PPP/C Government is dragging its feet on matters involving LGE, which according to him leads to a dictatorship in the making.

He further explained that the PPP/C Government has been breaking the law since taking office and for this cause, there will be robust resistance from his party to the PPP/C Government.

Well, I do not know if Harmon is suffering from dementia or just the plain fact that he sorely misses power, when he could have done whatever he pleases, but here we have a man who is the architect of lawbreaking and a symbol of deceit.

Harmon, and by extension the party he serves, have disregarded every known law there is in this country.

I view this from the time of the No-Confidence Motion and the fall of his Government, to the five-

month standoff in the courts holding up an entire country due to their stubborn actions to rig the election, if this is not breaking the law then what is? The PNC-led coalition has shown total contempt for all things legal.

So, Mr Harmon is in no position to speak on anything involving the law because his party broke every law there is in the Guyana Constitution, so to now turn again speaking as though he is paying strict adherence to the law comes over as very poor on his part and makes him out to be a shameless hypocrite.

Secondly, on the issuing of threats, I must tell Mr Harmon that the PPP/C Government is not working under any threat or under the dictates of the Opposition for that matter – the PPP/C works under the dictates of the law and that's how it is going to be.

As it stands, there are numerous court cases involving the corrupt practices of some of the top brass of GECOM and these have to be dealt with before we can move safely and successfully forward on the electoral front.

There is also the sanitation of the electoral list - the House-to-House Registration exercise something himself and party have strongly advocated, so in true legal terms, I cannot see a LGE coming in less than two years. I rest my case Respectfully, Neil Adams

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

Page

Foundation ◄

Æsop’s Fables

Solving equations by multiplication and division

B

efore you begin to solve equations by multiplication and subtraction, you should review some interesting things about numbers.

Division is the “opposite” of multiplication.

Multiplication is the “opposite” of division. If you multiply an original number by a second number, and then divide the product by a second number, you are left with the original number. For example: 4 x 6 ÷ 6 = 4.

If you divide an original number by a second number, and then multiply the quotient by a second number, you are left with the original number. For example: 4 ÷ 2 x 2 = 4.

That works because division is the same as multiplying by a reciprocal.

Examples:

1 6 1 4 x 6 ÷ 6 = 4 x (6 x 6 ) 6x6 = 6 =1 1 2 1 4 ÷ 2 x 2 = 4 x ( 2 x 2) 2 x 2 = 2 = 1 You know that if you have a fraction with the same number in the numerator and denominator, the fraction is equal to 1. So (6 )/6 = 1, 2/2 = 1 and x/x = 1. (You do not even need to know the value of x!)

Remember….

In an equation, you need to treat both sides the same way. Whatever you do to one side, you must also do to the other side.

Exercises: Solve 1) 3x + 14 = 19

5) 14 + n = 7

2) 7y – 4 = 32

6) 8z + 25 = 45

3) 24 + 4p = 88

7) 9p – 4 = 29

4) 10b + 18 = 128

8) 4 + 6 = 2m

Friday’s answers 1) x = 7

5) n = 7

2) y = 14

6) z = 2

3) 4 = x

7) p = 9

4) b = 3

8) 18 = m

A

A

ll weather stations need certain instruments and today, we will make: An anemometer A wind vane

Anemometer: Measures wind speed You will need four plastic cups, a paper plate, a skewer, a cotton reel and some tape.

Decorate your cups, make sure they are all different so that you can see them spinning around when you are done.

Tape your cups onto a paper plate.

Tape your cotton reel to the other side of the paper plate.

Place your skewer into something firm, the ground, we used a tree stump.

Place the cotton reel onto the skewer and let your anemometer spin in the wind.

FOR CHILDREN

Wind vane: Measures wind direction You will need some card, a square piece of paper, a skewer, a pen cap, some tape and a compass to set it up.

Draw a large arrow shape on your card.

Tape your pen lid to the arrow Decorate your arrow.

Place compass points along the four sides of your piece of square paper.

Use a lump of plasticine (play dough) to hold your skewer in place and slip your piece of paper onto the skewer as well.

Set your compass up directed towards North and align your paper, with the compass points, with it. North aligned towards the north.

Pop your pen lid onto the top of the skewer and your wind vane will spin around and align with the wind. You measure the wind from the direction it comes, so a south wind comes from the south.

(Adapted from se7en.org)

hungry wolf spied a goat browsing at the top of a steep cliff where he could not possibly get at her.

"That is a very dangerous place for you," he called out, pretending to be very anxious about the goat's safety.

"What if you should fall!

Please listen to me and come down! Here you

can get all you want of the finest, tenderest grass in the country."

The goat looked over the edge of the cliff.

"How very, very anxious you are about me," she said, "and how generous you are with your grass! But I know you! It's your own appetite you are thinking of, not mine!"

WORD SEARCH

NEWS

7

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Residents urged to tap into opportunities as Govt opens up new lands in Region 3

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s the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government opens up new lands to push its infrastructural development agenda, it is encouraging Guyanese, especially the young people, to take advantage of the opportunities that will become available.

Only Saturday, President Irfaan Ali led a high-level Government team to visit the proposed sites for a new four-lane highway linking the West Bank of Demerara (WBD) to Parika, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) in Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara).

The alternative road will be linked to the new Demerara River bridge at the eastern end and will be connected to the Parika to Bartica road.

President Ali said on Saturday that this new highway would pave the way for massive infrastructural development and also create new opportunities in the areas of agriculture, tourism, housing, and industrial and commercial development.

In fact, a team of local experts was put together to map the area for the new highway and come up with a design plan. Notably, however, the team is comprised of young Guyanese professionals.

The President pointed to the importance of the local content component as well as youth involvement in the development of not only Region Three but the entire country. ''We are putting together a local team...we are bringing them together to commence the conceptual work in laying out this new highway… It is exciting times

Guyanese.

According to the Public Works Minister, this will allow for more agro-processing ventures as well as manufacturing and industrialisation.

He further stated that with the liberalisation of the local telecommunications sector, Guyana’s ICT sector

is also pegged for major development as more fibre optic cables will be brought in.

Already, Government has been talking about the establishment of call centres across the country to provide employment opportunities for Guyanese.

Moreover, the PPP/C Administration has taken

a number of actions to ease the burden of doing business in Guyana. Budget 2020 saw the reduction and/ or reversal of several burdensome tax measures, and the removal of VAT (value-added tax) on machinery and equipment for agriculture and mining, among other initiatives.

M&CC to decide on fate of employees accused of corrupt practices President Irfaan Ali and Public Works Minister Juan Edghill in consultation with one of the young experts who will be working on the plan for the new WCD highway

for Guyana, exciting time for young people,” the Head of State posited.

In the same vein, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill, who was also a part of the high-level Government team, urged young people to tap into these opportunities.

“We put in Budget 2020 that we’re giving special incentives to plantation agriculture – corn and soybeans. So, with this kind of work that we’re doing here today, it is also an invitation for young professional Guyanese who want to invest, professional class Guyanese who want to invest [to do so],” Edghill noted.

The Public Works Minister, who had presented the PPP/C Government’s first budget in September, had announced that special incentives, inclusive of land, would be made available for planting of corn and soybean to satisfy local and regional mill demands.

“We will continue to actively promote crop diversification and create incentives for farmers to invest

in non-traditional crops…

It is our intention to ensure that no effort is spared in diversifying our economy, cognisant of the potential of Dutch disease,” Minister Edghill had stated in his budget speech.

As such, he reiterated on Saturday that Guyana’s oil and gas industry will only be a proportionate component of the country’s economy, while emphasising the need to develop other critical sectors.

He pointed to the endless possibilities that will become available in Region Three once the new WCD highway as well as the new Demerara River bridge are constructed. Government is looking to construct a fourlane, high-span fixed bridge from Nandy Park, on the East Bank of Demerara, to La Grange, WBD. Meanwhile, simultaneous to infrastructural developments Edghill outlined his Government’s plans to add some 400 megawatts of electricity, via gas to power and hydroelectricity, to the grid to bring reliable electricity at a low cost to

T

he Local Government Commission (LGC) has concluded its investigation into five junior employees attached to the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) following the discovery of financial irregularities and has recommended that City Hall takes the necessary disciplinary actions.

Acting Town Clerk Sherry Jerrick in a telephone interview with Guyana Times confirmed that the investigation is complete and it is all up to the council to act.

Jerrick, who did not want to go into more details of the issue, stated that the matter would be tabled at the next statutory meeting.

Reports are that the discovery was made by controversial City Treasurer John Douglas and Town Clerk (ag) Sherry Jerrick. It was then brought to the attention of Mayor Ubraj Narine.

As a result, a letter was dispatched to the Local Government Commission (LGC) informing them of the breaches and calling for an immediate investigation to be launched.

As a consequence, the five workers were sent on administrative leave, pending the outcome of the probe.

City Hall

During the Council’s meeting in July, Mayor Narine vowed that after the investigation was completed, the matter would be dealt with in accordance with the laws of Guyana.

Further, he stated that the police would be called in to have further investigations conducted.

This publication understands that the five employees would usually collect money from the various markets in Georgetown and deposit it into the Council’s bank account. After doing so, they would then withdraw the money.

But this is not the first fraud unearthed at M&CC. Earlier this year, the LGC had endorsed a recommendation to have disciplinary measures taken against several officers after monies belonging to the Council were found in a bag in one of the

entity’s vehicles.

According to reports, on June 20, 2019, a bag with revenues collected from Bourda Market was found in a vehicle inside City Hall’s compound. At the time, the bank drop had already been made, and the bag with the money was not deposited as was required.

Those suspended were: City Treasurer John Douglas (one month), Iva Bryan (two months), Sonia Pit (three weeks), and Yolanda Forde (one month). Meanwhile, Clerk of Markets Sherlock Lovell, along with Felicia McRae were issued warning letters.

Moreover, back in August 2019, Town Clerk (ag), Sharon Harry-Munroe was sent packing after failing to comply with orders of the LGC to provide financial documents requested by the Office of the Auditor General.

8 NEWS

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Ruling deferred in case of former cops accused of killing “Saga”

Much ado about…

(L-R) Murder accused: Former Best Cop Derwin Eastman, Aubrey Bobb and Jamison Williams

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ruling in the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the murder of businessman Godfrey “Saga” Scipio for which former Police ranks Derwin Eastman and Jamison Williams have been charged, has been deferred until November 13, 2020, before Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Eastman and Williams are jointly charged for the murder of Scipio, which took place on October 12, 2017, in Georgetown. Also charged with the murder is Aubrey Bobb, a 26-year-old ex-convict of Kitty, Georgetown.

Bobb was the first to be charged and later would have implicated the two former policemen in a caution statement he gave to the police. In February 2019, Bobb was committed to stand trial at the High Court for the businessman’s murder following the conclusion of a separate Preliminary Inquiry (PI).

On November 13, 2020, the Magistrate will rule on whether there is sufficient evidence to have Eastman and Williams stand trial by a jury before a Judge for the businessman’s killing.

Based on reports, 64-yearold Scipio was gunned down

just as he exited a popular Kitty hotel with a female companion on October 12, 2017, in the furtherance of a robbery. He later succumbed at the Woodlands Hospital.

In his statement to the police, Bobb purported Eastman to be the mastermind behind the brazen daylight killing. He accused the former Best Cop of hiring him as the hitman and even providing weapons to facilitate the smooth execution of the plan.

Eastman reportedly had everything planned out, even assuring the hitman that a lady would deliver the target to the spot while di-

Murdered: Scipio

Godfrey

“Saga”

recting the killing be executed in such a way to appear like a robbery.

Notwithstanding the assurance of protection given by Eastman, reality struck when Bobb returned home the next day to find Eastman, in the company of other police ranks, ready to arrest him.

He had claimed that he was forced to make a false confession as he was intimidated by Eastman’s presence at every step of the interrogation process.

H

…Local Government Elections ow much more can we, the Guyanese people, take on this “election business”? Your Eyewitness is as red-blooded as anyone else when it comes to the question of democracy, but Jeez…folks have to remember that when it comes to elections, Guyana is no cakewalk. At long last, Americans might begin to appreciate how we in this country feel when the word “election” is mentioned!!

Their entire country’s about to have a collective breakdown when they think as to what’s gonna be happening “the morning after”!! Half the country is seriously discussing how extensive will be the rioting (and looting) if Trump were to win!! And the other half’s discussing seceding from the Union if Biden wins! Seriously!! Does all of this sound familiar? Right!! That’s why your Eyewitness wishes folks here would ease up on these elections talk for a while.

OK…he knows that Local Government Elections are due by the end of next year. It’s there in the law, isn’t it?? LGEs every three years? But after what has happened after every election in memory, why do we have to bring it up right now? Isn’t the spike in COVID-19 deaths alarming enough?

Aren’t the threats by Harmon about the Police solving the West Berbice murders enough??

There’s been that horrific murder of that poor 86-yearold granny at La Grange – just a stone’s throw from where Harmon comes from. Your Eyewitness was scared witless he was going to issue some threats if that case wasn’t solved pronto. Harmon WAS also going to issue some threats, wasn’t he? Thank goodness the case was cracked with alacrity! Anyhow, back to the alarm bells over LGE. After the stunts the PNC pulled after the last elections, didn’t we all commit ourselves to fixing GECOM?? Didn’t the PNC also complain that the GECOM staff across the land on Election Day allowed “thousands and thousands” of dead people and folks who were out of the country, to vote?

And made them lose the elections which Mingo and Volda already certified they’d won?? Surely, they don’t want a repetition of all those shenanigans again, would they??

Somehow there’s an assumption that we can’t have GECOM cleaned up AND have elections by next year. Why make that assumption? Once we’re all agreed that the Augean Stables at Kingston have to be cleaned, then let’s get cracking!! If we look too far ahead, we might step into the hole right in front of us, and all that!!

And as the clincher, we have it from no one else than Vincent Alexander that elections can be held next year.

Isn’t he the fella who runs the Secretariat? Or runs those who do? …electoral reform Here we go again. Another letter in the press from a bunch claiming to represent “civil society”. Insisting there must be electoral reform that places “civil society at the heart of the process”! The problem with these “civil society” types is they’re always self-appointed – and always drawn from the chattering class. They have some facility with words and believe this qualifies them to speak for “the people”. Here, on matters political!!

Thing is, we already have a political system that shows that when folks go into the voting booths to decide on the said “matters political”, they invariably vote along ethnic lines. Without anyone putting a gun at their heads. This, of course, is the big elephant in the room these “civil society” players don’t ever want to talk about.

‘Cause if they did, they’ll notice that NONE of the ethnic groups in the country can vote themselves in: they need help from across the divide. They’ve got to moderate their rhetoric – unless they intend to steal elections!

So, isn’t the problem solved? …legal representation Maybe your Eyewitness is missing something. Why would Lowenfield – through the PNC GECOM Commissioners – insist he wants to be represented by Boston rather than the Dominican SC the Commission picked?

He's a masochist?

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

NEWS

9

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

President Ali optimistic tourism sector will bounce back from COVID-19

President Irfaan Ali

T

he unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has had a devasting effect on Guyana’s tourism sector but with the strategies put in place by Government to cushion the impacts on jobs and revenue, President Irfaan Ali is optimistic that the sector will bounce back.

In his Tourism Awareness Month message, President Ali noted that the theme – “Destination Guyana, Recover and Rebuild – Getting ready to

“The local tourism sector is believed to have suffered an estimated decline of 46 per cent of its revenues for the first half of this year, with 30 per cent of the sector’s employees losing their jobs and an additional 36 per cent being placed on unpaid leave,” the President stated.

“I am optimistic, however, that our sector is resilient and will rebound from this setback. I am supremely confident that while our market may have been affected, our tourism product remains unblemished by the pandemic and that with the right support, the local tourism sector will recover. My Government is not leaving this recovery to chance. It is actively engaged in employing measures to stimulate the revival of tourism.”

For example, President Ali reminded that in this year’s budget, Government announced the removal of the value-added tax on hinterland travel and the provision of special tax incentives for new hotels and tourism-related businesses.

Surama

bounce back!”; aptly reflects the challenge presently facing the local industry.

According to the President, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on tourism globally while noting that the United Nations World Tourism Organisation estimates that world tourism declined by 65 per cent in the first half of 2020, resulting in the loss of more than 850 million jobs and as much as US$1.2 trillion in earnings.

He pointed out that Guyana has not been immune to these adverse effects.

He noted that Government has signalled its intention to nurture the recovery and revitalisation of the sector. In fact, the President added, “I am upbeat about the industry.

Guyana’s tourism sector will rebound. A world-class tourism industry will be established with the support of my Government. Already, we have reopened our international airports under strict COVID-19 prevention and containment protocols.”

In this regard, he noted that a collective effort is needed to safeguard the country’s precious and di-

verse tourism product. He, therefore, urged Guyanese to play their part as the country navigates this very challenging period.

“I encourage our people to continue to demonstrate that warmth and welcoming disposition which is so characteristic of the traditional Guyanese hospitality; to preserve and protect our natural environment and keep it free from pollution; and to ensure that we comply with the COVID-19 guidelines which are in place to keep our country, its people and our visitors safe.”

In closing, President Ali assured that Guyana will beat the pandemic and its tourism sector will emerge stronger and more resilient. He promised that jobs will be restored and Guyana will continue to entice the world with its astounding tourism product.

“Happy Tourism Month, 2020! Continue to keep the

Kaieteur Falls

environment safe. As we work towards an environment and a world in which climate change can be rec-

ognised as a serious threat, all of us as nations and people can do our part in combating climate change.”

Thus far, COVID-19 has taken more than 120 lives in Guyana and over one million globally.

10 NEWS

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Guyanese man beaten to death in Dominican Republic A Guyanese man who was among five stuck in the Dominican Republic since September 2018 was on Sunday morning found murdered there on a beach at San Pedro.

The dead man has been identified was 41-year-old Charan Kadar, formerly of Craig Village, East Bank Demerara (EBD), and of San Pedro, Dominican Republic.

Based on reports received, the badly beaten father of one was found on the boardwalk in the vicinity of the beach in a pool of blood about 09:30h by passers-by who immediately contacted the Police. He was picked up and taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Guyana Times understands that the now dead man was having an affair with a Spanish woman and on Saturday, he noticed another man leaving the home.

This reportedly angered the Guyanese man who confront-

Murdered Guyanese Charan Kadar

ed the woman and an argument ensued between them.

The argument reportedly turned into a fight during which Kadar assaulted the woman and left the house.

In retaliation, the woman allegedly hired two men to look for him.

On Sunday, at approximately 08:00h, the two men turned up at Kadar’s home and called out to him. Upon enquiring, the two men reportedly told the now dead man that the woman wanted

to speak with him and that he must accompany them to her house.

From reports gathered, that never happened.

Instead, he was reportedly taken to the beach at San Pedro and given a thrashing. The two men allegedly left Kadar and went away.

About two hours later, he was found bleeding from his nostrils with his face damaged.

His body also sustained severe injuries. This publi-

cation understands that the Police have since questioned Kadar’s landlord who saw the now dead man leaving in the company of the two men.

In addition, the woman at the centre of the issue was taken into custody as Police in the Dominican Republic continue their investigations.

Kadar, along with Jason Hamilton of Friendship, East Coast Demerara (ECD); his brother, Jared Hamilton; Pretam Pamcham and Anthony Grant were all stuck in the Spanishspeaking country after authorities intercepted a cargo vessel.

It was reported that the men left Guyana on September 17, 2018, to work on a cargo vessel – The St Jude, which was heading to St Martin, the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

They first arrived in St Martin where they loaded 1000 boxes of cigarettes on the vessel, paid the du-

ties and headed off to the Dominican Republic to collect 2500 cases of water, all of which were slated for Haiti.

Upon arrival in the Dominican Republic on September 22, 2018, the authorities carried out regular inspection of the vessel and did not find anything illegal, but still did not grant permission for them to leave.

Their passports and other documents were seized by the authorities in the Dominican Republic following allegations that they used a vessel for “financial terrorism”.

They were thrown in jail in late September 2018

without any criminal charge brought against them and were only granted bail in January 2019, but the authorities in the Dominican Republic still have their passports, so they cannot leave the country.

The situation was brought to the attention of Guyanese authorities who intervened by sending Vernon Robinson of the Foreign Affairs Ministry to have talks with the Spanish speaking-authorities, but nothing came out of them.

Robinson had stated that the Ministry was awaiting the results of the court hearing.

Corentyne man arrested after suspected stolen motorcycle found at home

The motorcycle that was found without a registration plate number

A

Corentyne man is now in Police custody after an allegedly stolen motorcycle was found at his home at Number 76 Village, Corentyne, Berbice.

Chand Latchman is now being processed for court.

Based on reports received, the black 110 Shineray motorcycle belonging to Sarwan Chandradat of Crabwood Creek, Corentyne disappeared between October 20 and October 21, 2020.

Then, acting on information received, Police went to four houses at Crabwood Creek and Number 68 Village, but found not the motorcycle.

However, at the Number 76 Village home of a domestic worker, the Police found a black 110 Shineray motorcycle without registration number that matched the description of the one stolen.

As such, Police questioned both the woman and her husband as to how they got possession of the motorcycle.

The couple told Police

Chand Latchman, called “Rice” and “Two Feet” (Police photo)

that about two weeks ago, a man they referred to as “Two Feet” brought the motorcycle for the woman’s son to keep, but the son left for sea before the man could collect the said motorcycle.

Police have since arrested the man on Saturday evening for simple larceny, and break and enter and larceny. The motorbike was impounded.

NEWS

11

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Giveaway of State land

Govt to bring legal action against former Finance Minister, others – records show APNU/AFC transferred $2.9B in land for $64M in partial payments

I

n light of a number of questionable transactions entered into by the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government and approved by former Finance Minister Winston Jordan, the PPP/C Administration has indicated that it will be filing legal action.

In a statement on Sunday, Attorney General and Senior Counsel Anil Nandlall revealed that the Government has sought legal advice and will be initiating legal proceedings

Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC

dollars of losses to the State.

“As a result, the Attorney General will commence civil proceedings to, inter alia, recover the said parcels of land and claim compensation against those implicated, including Minister Winston Jordan,” Nandlall stated.

“Additionally, each of these matters will be passed to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Guyana Police Force (GPF) and the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), for their investigations and any consequen-

A breakdown of the lands that were transferred without full payment along the ECD

against Jordan and recently sacked National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) Head Colvin HeathLondon.

According to Nandlall,

the independent legal advice which was given is that the former Finance Minister along with Heath-London, acted recklessly and in bad faith by processing these land deals, actions which have resulted in millions of

tial actions which may flow therefrom,” he also made clear in the statement.

The AG cited legal precedence for charging a former Finance Minister.

Nandlall noted that in the

case of Marin v Attorney General of Belize, 2011, it was ruled that there was a case against the respondents, two former Belizean Ministers, for transferring 56 parcels of State land. In this case, the lands were not only sold below market value but also sold to a company controlled by one of them.

He further cited the court ruling that “[A]s a matter of public policy, serious infractions by a public servant, such as misbehaviour in office, neglect of duty and breach of trust, are to be treated as crimes, subject to the right of any person or body of persons to recover damages for injury flowing from such misconduct.”

“Accordingly, we are of the view that the Attorney General could properly maintain an action for the tort of misfeasance in public office against Winston Jordan, and the Director of Public Prosecutions could similarly maintain criminal proceedings against the former Minister,” the independent legal advice quoted by Nandlall stated.

Data released by Nandlall showed that per-

Former Finance Minister Winston Jordan

sons, including Jordan and Heath-London, have been transferring land worth hundreds of millions of dollars, to various companies with only a small fraction of payments being received.

This was all done after the elections, at a time when the Government should not have been engaged in any such transaction.

Between them, the pair vested almost 100 acres of prime State land in Ogle, East Coast Demerara (ECD), to eight different companies. All told the total value of the lands is $2.9

billion. But NICIL only received approximately $64 million in payments.

Caribbean Marketing Enterprise Incorporated (CMEI) received 21 acres of land valued at $632.8 million, after paying a total of $19.4 million. Cardiology Services Incorporated received eight acres of land valued at $240 million, after paying $15 million.

S u p e r g r a p h i c s Enterprise received five acres valued at $175 million, after paying $8.9 million. And BK Marine Incorporated, which is owned by well-known contractor Brian Tiwarie, received 2.5 acres with an offer price of $202.6 million, for $20.2 million.

Three companies Navigant Builders, American Marine Services and Guyana Oil Company Limited (GuyOil) didn’t make any payments at all.

However, all three have since signalled their intention to return the land.

Nandlall reiterated the Government’s commitment to treat fairly with companies who voluntarily return lands handed to them in these circumstances.

12 NEWS

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

46 new COVID-19 cases detected; 8 in ICU – more PCR tests for regions as Health Minister concerned about low detection rates

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uyana has recorded 46 new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours, thus taking the total number of cases to 4208.

The Health Ministry on Sunday stated that only 838 of these cases are currently active, that is, eight patients in the COVID-19 Intensive

One (Barima-Waini) died while receiving care at medical facilities.

Over the past week, a total of seven persons have died from the pandemic in Guyana. The country’s COVID-19 death toll at the beginning of the week was 119.

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony with members of the Region Two RDC at the Oscar Joseph Hospital in Charity on Saturday

Care Unit (ICU) and the other 830 persons in isolation – 73 in institutional isolation and the remaining 757 in home isolation.

There are also 35 persons in institutional quarantine.

Meanwhile, some 3242 persons have recovered from the life-threatening virus to date.

The COVID-19 death toll remains at 126. The latest fatalities were recorded on Saturday when a 48-yearold female from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) and a 67-year-man from Region

A total of 19,944 persons have been tested for the novel coronavirus in Guyana.

A breakdown of the 46 new cases detected on Sunday showed that the Barima-Waini Region accounted for almost half of the cases.

There were 19 new cases in Region One, four in Region Three (Essequibo IslandsWest Demerara), 11 in the Demerara-Mahaica Region, one case in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), two in Region Seven (CuyuniMazaruni), six in Region

Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), and three cases in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).

The figures for the other three regions remained the same, that is, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) with 80 cases, Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) with 28 cases and Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) with 376 cases.

Meanwhile, the spike in novel coronavirus cases in Region One comes on the heels of a recent outbreak in the community of Kwebanna and raising cases in neighbouring Himacabra.

Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony in his last COVID-19 update had reported success in curbing the spread of the virus in Kwebanna, where experienced medical teams have been deployed as the community was placed on full lockdown.

Kwebanna has a population of about 900 residents and the teams have been able to reach 124 of the 184 households. Presently, there are 53 active cases and testing is continuous.

In relation to the neighbouring village, the Minister said “That’s an area that we’re also paying some attention to because we don’t want the number of active cases to get too high. So, the team will be deployed as well to that area so that we can put similar measures in place. We haven’t gotten to a point where we will be locking down the area.”

Since taking office, the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)

INFORMATION AND GUIDELINES HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF?

has embarked on a massive testing drive to ensure that all positive cases, especially asymptomatic ones, are detected. This has resulted in a high number of cases being detected.

In fact, health authorities have expressed concerns over the fact that the current minimal figures in some regions might be inaccurate. This was highlighted

by Minister Anthony during a visit to the PomeroonSupenaam Region on Saturday.

According to a report from the Department of Public Information (DPI), the Health Ministry has been noticing a trend in several regions where positive cases were showing up in minimal numbers. It has since been found that they are submitting a smaller percentage of samples for testing to the National Public Health Reference Laboratory in Georgetown due to a shortfall in testing, particularly in Regions Five and Six. Minister Anthony said if figures are not accurate, then this endangers everyone.

“We need to know who is active. We don’t know because we are not testing broadly. We will be providing more PCR testing for wider testing. Ventilators are also being provided to support you in this fight against COVID-19,” he posited.

The Health Minister further noted that doctors and nurses are the Ministry’s eyes and ears in the fields;

therefore, the Government would provide the necessary tools for them to deliver effective service.

In fact, Dr Anthony visited the Suddie Public Hospital and Oscar Joseph Hospital during his visit on Saturday to get a firsthand look at the measures in place to test for and treat COVID-19 cases in the region.

He also handed over two ventilators to the Region along with several Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing kits. Antigen testing kits have also been ordered for the Region.

The Minister along with Permanent Secretary of the Health Ministry, Malcolm Watkins, also met with the staff of both health institutions to discuss and address issues affecting them.

Dr Anthony was also accompanied by PAHO/ WHO Representative to Guyana, Dr Luis Felipe Codina; Director General of the Ministry, Dr Vishwa Mahadeo; and Chief Medical Officer, Dr Narine Singh.

Region Two Chair, Vilma Da Silva, and members of the Regional Democratic Council also attended the outreach.

SYMPTOMS

People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness.

Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms or combinations of symptoms may have COVID-19:

Cough

Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

Or at least two of these symptoms:

Fever People who think they may be affected by coronavirus need to call the Public Health Ministry hotline 227-4986/624-3067 for further advice. They should not go to their GP, A&E, pharmacy or hospital.

If you have come into contact with somebody who may be infected, you may be told to self-isolate. People needing to do so should take "common-sense" steps to avoid close contact with other people.

(Adapted from BBC News)

Headache

Chills

Sore throat

Repeated shaking with chills

New loss of taste or smell

Muscle pain Children have similar symptoms to adults and generally have mild illness.

NEWS

13

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Volunteer group extends clean-up campaign beyond Kingston Seawall

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eawalls and Beyond a volunteer group that has been carrying out frequent clean-up activities at the Kingston Seawall in Georgetown - has announced that it will be taking a break from works there and will be exploring other areas in need. The group expressed

ing families, couples and especially children enjoying the space. We trust that the clean environs will be respected by all who use the space.”

Seawalls and Beyond assured that it will continue its advocacy, public education and awareness. It said

Seawalls and Beyond has revealed its logo

that it is happy to have provided its services where it saw a dire need in July 2020.

“Our results and impact speak for us. Today the Kingston Seawalls are frequented by more persons as they enjoy a cleaner beach.

Our satisfaction is in see-

that it will also continue celebrating the beauty of the seasides through photography, and other activities as needed.

Govt support

It, however, noted that citizens have an important

role to play in keeping the seawalls clean by not littering or dumping waste next to and into waterways and on public spaces.

According to the volunteer group, “Ocean trash, poor waste management practices and environmental pollution and degradation remain major problems and we will advocate for these to be addressed seriously on the national agenda. If these problems are not addressed urgently, the impact on human health, well-being and livelihoods, as well as on the environment, including all lifeforms, are in grave danger. The time to address these issues is now, not later.”

On Wednesday, October 28, 2020, Seawalls and Beyond disclosed that it was represented at a multi-stakeholder meeting convened by the Office of the First Lady.

Last month, First Lady Arya Ali joined the group for a clean-up exercise at the Kingston Seawall during which she donated a number of much-needed supplies, including pitchforks, spades,

Digicel donates $1M to fight cancer

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s part of their Cancer Awareness Month activities, Digicel Guyana has donated $1 million to the Cancer Institute of Guyana to help in the fight against the disease.

The telecommunication giant which recently relaunched as a digital operator across the Caribbean has utilised its music streaming app, D’Music, as the driver to raise funds toward the fight against cancer.

The digital operator matched every stream of their “Stream For a Cause” playlist for the month of October with US$1. These proceeds were then doubled and a timely donation was made to the Cancer Institute of Guyana.

Digicel has over the years been a very prominent contributor to the fight against cancer, which dates back to their sponsorship of the Avon Breast Cancer walk, followed by their very own “Ride For A Cause” cycle race.

“Ride For a Cause” ran for seven years and all registration proceeds from those races went toward the fight against cancer. More recently, Digicel has been taking initiatives such as “Stream For a Cause” to assist the Cancer Institute of Guyana by way of cash donations and event support.

“We are very pleased to be part of this cause and giving back in a tangible way is something that Digicel is committed to. We would like to thank the pub-

Sponsorship Manager of Digicel Guyana, Louanna Abrams hands over the donation to Monette Harry of the Cancer Institute of Guyana

lic for streaming the Fight Cancer playlist in D’Music, we were pleased with the response therefore decided to double the amount which brought the donation to $1 million dollars. We are indeed better together in this fight,” Sponsorship Manager Louanna Abrams noted.

Receiving the cheque on behalf of the Cancer Institute was Monette

Harry, who expressed much appreciation to Digicel for their “thoughtful and generous” support towards breast cancer screening.

“Working with Digicel over the years has been tremendous, their support is always stellar,” Harry noted while adding that the donation will assist the Cancer Institute to provide free mammograms to women across Guyana.

First Lady Arya Ali joined volunteers of Seawalls and Beyond last month for a clean-up exercise

buckets, and brooms.

During that meeting, three Government Ministers, and heads and representatives of relevant agencies, as well as the Police Force gave commitments and made decisions going forward.

“Other important decisions will also be forthcoming at the Cabinet-level and public pronouncements will be made. A number of Private Sector entities and the Tourism and Hospitality Association will be providing major support as well,” the group added.

It continued, “Major contracts will soon be in place for the complete maintenance and cleaning of the area after an absence for some time. The contracts include cleaning of the beach that is, up to 100 feet on the seaward side, in addition to weeding and cleaning on the landward side.

Also, Seawalls and Beyond volunteers are open to being part of a possible

management committee for the Georgetown Seawalls.”

The volunteer group reported that relevant Government authorities and agencies will be taking a more hands-on approach in the responsibilities of the Georgetown Seawall with immediate effect.

Further, it said that with the Georgetown Seawall identified as a key feature for domestic tourism, the Kingston Bandstand area will soon see major improvements with an upcoming beautification project starting in November - Tourism Awareness Month.

“We thank you all for your support and will continue to be in service to the seasides, the ocean and nature as a whole. We will consider lending a helping hand as we identify needs in other under-served locations.

Individual volunteers may choose to continue to lend support at Kingston if they so desire. After all, we are lovers of the seaside and of

nature! And where will we be seen next? Keep following!”

Logo

Seawalls and Beyond has unveiled its official logo which it says incorporates Guyana’s rich brown coastal waters ('waters below') that built the coastal plain over millions of years. The logo also captures the abundant freshwater sources ('the waters above' - clouds, rainfall and rivers which are represented in white); our fertile beaches and soil (represented in a different shade of brown), and our clean fresh air (represented in blue).

The shape of a fish can be seen in the brown - representing the creatures of the sea, and the shape of a bird can be seen in the white, representing the birds of the sea and coasts. All of these are within a heart of love and reaching outwards depicting that the group is made up of lovers of the seaside and nature.

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

COVID-19 in the paediatric population: Let’s not be complacent

By Dr Narendra C Singh, BSc, MBBS, FRCPC, FAAP, FCCM, MSM, MBA, Hon LLD, Humber River Hospital Associate Clinical Professor McMaster University

T

he global experience with children in the current COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated a much milder illness, in this otherwise vulnerable population. The reason for this fortunate difference is open to scientific speculation. Chemicals (cytokines) are released by the body when exposed to an infection or injury. Adults have a much stronger immune system, often resulting in an exaggerated response (cytokine surge) to infections which can damage various organ systems including the lungs, the heart and the kidneys.

It is believed that because of their immature immune system, children cannot mount this “cytokine surge” resulting in milder disease. Despite this predominantly mild disease in children, we cannot be complacent since they can be the potential carriers to the most vulnerable in our population. We also know that children with certain risk factors can be susceptible to moderate and severe symptoms, with increased hospitalisation and death.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) is a new disease entity with a broad spectrum of clinical presentations that is predominantly seen in children.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) announced this week that

there was a significant increase in cases in children in the past two weeks in the United States. Whether this is as a result of school openings is unclear but it means that there are more kids that can potentially transmit the virus to the more vulnerable in the population. A number of studies have demonstrated that children with COVID-19 have more viral load in the nasopharynx, however, there is no conclusive evidence that they are more or less contagious.

Special precaution should be taken to avoid exposure to the elderly such as grandparents.

The symptoms of COVID-19 are similar in children and adults, but the frequency of the symptoms vary. Fever and cough are the predominant presenting symptoms but vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, muscle pain, loss of smell and headaches can all be seen in isolation or concurrently. “COVID toes” characterised by purple blisters on the distal parts of the toes have also been described.

In a systematic review by the CDC of 7480 children younger than 18 with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection, information about symptoms and severity was available for 1475. Among these, 15 per cent of cases were asymptomatic, 42 per cent were mild, 39 per cent were moderate (eg, clinical or radiographic evidence of pneumonia without hypoxemia), 2 per cent were severe (eg, dyspnea, central cyanosis, hypoxemia), and 0.7 per cent were critical (eg, acute respiratory distress syndrome, respiratory failure, shock). There were six deaths in the entire study population (0.08 per cent). Risk factors for severe disease include but are not limited to obesity, diabetes and asthma.

Since the disease is very mild in most cases there is no specific treatment except supportive care.

Appropriate isolation, contact tracing, handwashing and mask wearing are the cornerstone to preventing the spread. Patients that meet hospitalization criteria will often require oxygen, high flow or rare-

ly mechanical ventilation.

Dexamethasone is often used in moderate to severe cases and the antiviral drug Remdesivir is available for emergency authorization.

Neither of these drugs have been well studied in the pediatric population. The author has used both of these drugs in two severe cases and both had a full recovery.

M u l t i s y s t e m

suggests that the illness is likely a post infectious complication since it coincides with the timing of the body acquiring immunity. Many patients have a negative PCR test but have circulating antibodies to COVID-19 confirming that this is not an acute infection. The mechanism by which this disease causes multisystem damage is under investiga-

with a pneumonia similar to that seen in adults. Most of these children have a positive PCR for COVID-19 and the mortality is much higher than the other two groups.

3. MIS-C overlapping with KD (35 %) – Many of these patients have a number of symptoms consistent with KD without the heart and lung involvement.

The author has provid-

Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) is a rear but increasingly recognized disease related to COVID19. It is similar to another illness termed Kawasaki’s disease (KD) which presents with some characteristic features including persistent fever, conjunctivitis, lesions in the mouth, swollen glands, skin rash and dilatation of the blood vessels of the heart. There are, however, some significant differences to MIS-C. The symptoms generally begin 3-4 weeks after exposure or infection with COVID-19 (FIG 1). The most common comorbidities are obesity and asthma and are seen in a disproportionate percentage of Black and Hispanic children.

This lag of 3-4 weeks

tion (FIG 2). This illness results in significant inflammation in many organs in the body resulting in the release of certain proteins into the blood called inflammatory markers. There are a number of such markers but the most common ones measured are CRP, ESR and procalcitonin. These tend to be extremely high especially in the first subtype and are measured serially to gauge recovery.

There appears to be three subtypes: 1. MIC-C without overlap with KD or acute COVID-19 (35%) - Patents in this group have significant heart dysfunction and often present in shock.

2. MIS-C overlapping with acute COVID-19 (30%) - These patients present

ed care for seven such in the pediatric ICU in the US. All of them had varying involvement of the heart and most of them fell into subtype 1. None of them were PCR positive for COVID-19 but five had circulating antibodies suggesting recent infection. All seven had an elevation in troponin levels (proteins released into the blood when the heart is damaged) and varying degree of heart failure as seen on echocardiogram. Five of them required medications (inotropes) to improve the function of the heart. All required oxygen and one required mechanical ventilation for severe shock and respiratory failure.

For the successful treatment of these patients it is crucial to recognize that the

condition exists and be vigilant. The treatment consists of supportive care including close monitoring in an Intensive care setting.

Provide oxygen to support the lungs and inotropes to support the function of the heart. Since this condition is thought to be an immune mediated reaction to COVID-19, therapy is directed towards supressing the exaggerated immune response using intravenous immune globulin (IVIG).

This has been found to be very successful and full recovery of the heart function is seen in most cases.

Dexamethasone is often utilised as part of the treatment protocol especially in children with significant lung involvement. Clotting of the coronary arteries and other vessels have been described with KD and MIS-C and therefore low dose aspirin is used prophylactically.

Cases of MIS-C have been reported in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). Because of the lack of recourses including IVIG, steroids are a cheaper and more readily available option. Their potential to induce broad immunosuppression might be hazardous in countries in which tuberculosis and HIV infection are highly prevalent and where diagnostic facilities (to exclude other types of infection) are scarce. Therefore, steroid use needs to be restricted to short-term courses in children who have been hospitalised with MIS-C and who are severely ill.

We are very fortunate that the most vulnerable in our population, our children, have been relatively spared from COVID-19. Let us not forget that they can be potential carriers and therefore wearing masks, hand washing and social distancing are crucial to preventing the spread the virus. Parents and clinicians alike need to be aware that there is group of highrisk children that are more susceptible to severe disease. In addition, MIS-C is a new entity and with the opening of schools and the potential increase in cases we need to be vigilant for an increase in such cases in the next few months.

NEWS

15

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Arguments concluded in 2011 shallow grave murder appeal

Convicted killer: Lakeraj Frederick

T

he Court of Appeal recently entertained a plethora of arguments in the case of the State versus Lakeraj Frederick, who is challenging his conviction and subsequent 65 years’ jail sentence for the June 2011 murder of his brotherin-law, Clifton Bonus.

Bonus was found buried in a shallow grave at Old England Backdam, Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara River), days after he was reported missing.

In April 2017, Frederick was found guilty of the crime by a jury and it was Justice Navindra Singh who imposed the 65-year jail term. It was reported that Frederick murdered Bonus called “Mutts” on Saturday, June 4, 2011.

His body was found in the shallow grave, buried almost three feet deep beneath groves of cannabis days after he was reported missing. The autopsy proved

that he was shot to the head.

Media reports are that the men had an argument over marijuana seeds before Bonus was killed.

Frederick is already serving a 22 years’ jail sentence for the June 11, 2011 unlawful killing of 38-year-old Vernon Romaldo, who was stabbed twice to the chest at Land of Canaan, East Bank Demerara.

He was initially charged with the murder of Romaldo, but pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter in April 2018.

During the appeal hearing, Frederick’s lawyer, Rachael Bakker, asked the court to overturn her client’s conviction and sentence or reduce the 65 years’ prison term imposed on him for the killing of Bonus.

She proffered four grounds in support of her case. She contended that Justice Singh erred in law when he admitted a caution statement alleged to have been given by her client to detectives.

Coercion

Bakker asked the court to find that the alleged confession statement given by her client was a concoction by the police to prove their case. She argued that the caution statement was given under duress. From the records of appeal, Bakker submitted that while her client was in custody, he was interrogated by three police ranks.

The lawyer said that

, Murdered: Clifton Bonus

during the trial, someone testified that her client was not given any refreshment or food prior to him being interviewed. She said that all he had was some water during the morning period.

She added that from the evidence of Prison Officer Tuanna Wilson, it can be concluded that her client was assaulted by Police to sign the caution statement, even though he made it clear that he had no knowledge of its contents, and that he did not commit the crime.

In relation to the voir dire which was done to determine the admissibility of the caution statement, Bakker stated that the sworn evidence given by her client was dismissed by Justice Singh. She contended that the Judge should have given consideration to her client’s testimony as it was done while he was under oath.

She further argued that

Teen critical following hit-andrun accident at Annandale

Dead: Karamchand Khemraj

A

fourteen-year-old pedal cyclist is now suffering a fractured skull after he was struck by an alleged speeding motor car on Saturday evening at Annandale Public Road, East Coast Demerara (ECD).

Based on reports received, the accident occurred about 23:45h along the Annandale Public Road, ECD, in the vicinity of a tire shop.

Police stated that at the time of the accident, the teenager was with his friend, and they were both riding their respective bicycles along the roadway when the unidentified motor car collided with the rear of the pedal cycle ridden by the victim.

As such, the young man fell onto the roadway and

sustained injuries about his head and body. The car reportedly drove away after committing the crime.

Nevertheless, the injured teen was picked up in an unconscious condition and taken the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) where he was seen and examined by the doctor on duty and admitted a patient.

An investigation was launched into the accident.

In 2018, 15-year-old Karamchand Khemraj also called “Ajay” of Lot 44 Annandale North was killed and his friend, 16-yearold Reaz Shaw of Lot 35 Annandale Public Road was injured after they were struck by a speeding minibus along the Annandale Public Road.

It was reported that the teens were heading home from a nearby shop on a pedal cycle when a speeding white Toyota Hiace “Pitbull” minibus struck them down from behind and continued its journey without stopping.

Both boys were picked up and rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where Khemraj died about an hour later while receiving medical attention. His friend, who is also his neighbour, was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of

Reaz Shaw after his recovery

the medical facility.

Shaw was paralysed from the waist down. After spending several weeks in bed, the young man started to speak and walk short distances. Shaw has completely recovered.

It was later discovered that the driver of the minibus that was involved in the fatal accident was a Chinese national who was operating a supermarket.

A police source said that traffic ranks were able to confirm that the suspect, identified as C Wen, has fled the country. His relatives have made countless offers to family members of the deceased and the injured teen to settle the matter.

during investigations, detectives failed to carry out a confrontation between Frederick and a minor, who testified that he took the police to where Bonus’ body was buried.

The lawyer said that the Judge failed to direct the jury on how to properly deal with the evidence of the minor, and as a result, this amounted to a misdirection since it allowed the jury to be prejudiced by inadmissible and hearsay evidence.

In fact, she submitted that prior to interviewing her client, the police ranks informed him that he need not say anything because someone had already told them what had transpired.

She told the court that police went with a prepared statement and asked him questions about where he lived and about his family members so that he would be tricked into signing the statement.

According to her, her client cannot read and only knows how to write his name. In this regard, the lawyer noted that Justice Singh was duty-bound to withdraw the caution statement from the jury as it was not given voluntarily.

She submitted that the Judge’s failure to do so led to a miscarriage of justice.

In addressing this ground, Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Diana KaulesarO’Brien submitted that police questioning Frederick

was permitted under Part One of the Judges’ Rule.

Also relying on the records of appeal, KaulesarO’Brien said that during the voir dire, Frederick gave sworn testimony as it relates to officers visiting him and signing the statement.

The Assistant DPP further argued that the evidence given by the murder convict does not suggest that he was being interrogated.

As a matter of fact, Kaulesar-O’Brien noted that Frederick testified that the police ranks asked him “one, one questions.” She said that the trial records prove that the Judge properly addressed the allegations of assault put forward

by Frederick.

She contended that the Trial Judge, having evaluated the evidence of the prosecution and defence in the voir dire, made a finding as it relates to the credibility of the caution statement. She reminded that the Judge found that Frederick was not a credible witness, and rightfully directed the jury to rely on the evidence of the prosecution.

Kaulesar-O’Brien held that the absence of a confrontation between Frederick and the minor does not affect the admissibility of the caution statement. She noted that Frederick’s lawyer at the time made no application for a review of the ruling in the voir dire and that there was no new evidence which would have caused

the Trial Judge to question that ruling.

Severe

Finally, on the issue of sentencing, Bakker advanced that the 65 years’ prison term imposed on her client is unduly severe and not in keeping with modern sentencing practices. While she acknowledged that statues dictate sentences be imposed for such offences, she said that Guyana’s Criminal Law (Offences) Act is dated.

She noted that while she is aware that it is entirely the discretion of the Trial Judge to impose sentence, the penalty imposed on her client is not only strenuous to him, but also to taxpayers.

In closing, Bakker pointed out that modern sentencing guidelines would not allow for a sentence of 65 years to be imposed for murder.

Nevertheless, she said that her client is throwing himself at the mercy of the court to exercise its discretion in reducing the sentence to one that is fair to the system and his rehabilitation.

Kaulesar-O’Brien conceded that there is no indication as to how Justice Singh arrived at a base of 60 years for the sentence imposed.

This appeal was heard by Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Yonette CummingsEdwards and Justices of Appeal Rishi Persaud and Dawn Gregory.

The court has reserved its ruling.

16 NEWS

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Govt commits to expanding Moraikobai water system

R

esidents of Moraikobai, Region Five (MahaicaBerbice), will soon benefit from an expanded water supply system, according to Minister within the Housing and Water Ministry, Susan Rodrigues during a visit to the Amerindian settlement on Sunday.

The village of Moraikobai, which has a population of approximately 1200 persons, is being served by a single shallow well that was drilled some years ago.

During interactions with the residents, the Minister received complaints about the neglect of the water system. She was informed that not only is the water supply system insufficient for the population, but access is also limited.

Bridget France, a resident of the community, reportedly told the Minister that there are approximately 20 standpipes in the commu-

Minister within the Housing and Water Ministry, Susan Rodrigues handing over food supplies to the community on behalf of the PPP/C

nity, but many are non-functional. Apart from the shallow well, the village sources water from the rain and the Mahaicony River.

As part of a short-term solution to address these concerns, Minister Rodrigues

committed to repair the existing standpipes and simultaneously expand the distribution network in keeping with the capacity of the well.

This will ensure more persons have access to the water system and that it is clos-

er to their homes.

She also assured Moraikobai’s Toshao, Colin Adrian, that GWI will return to flush the distribution network and repair leaks since complaints of a high iron content were also raised.

Further, in an effort to maintain the system regularly, the Minister said her Ministry and GWI would look at employing servicemen from the village who will be able to address any technical issues on a timely basis.

GWI is expected to present a full report on the village's water system to the Minister following Sunday's assessment, which would pave the way for the drilling of a new well in the new year.

The Housing and Water Minister highlighted that Moraikobai is a growing community ripe for investment and posited that the community would not be ne-

Minister Rodrigues at the Moraikobai water supply system

glected by her Ministry or the current Administration.

This visit is the realisation of a promise made by the Minister, prior to being appointed to office, to return to the community and address their needs.

On behalf of the People's Progressive Party Civic, Minister Rodrigues also handed over food hampers to villagers. These included 250 sacks of rice, 1200 pounds of peas, and 1200 pounds of channa.

President’s power to appoint Senior Counsel dates back to colonial times – AG …in response to Jonas’s application to quash appointments

Attorney General Anil Nandlall

Attorney-at-Law Timothy Jonas

Jameli Ali

Mursalene Bacchus

Stanley Moore

Roysdale Forde

he power of the President of Guyana to appoint attorneys-at-law to the dignity of Senior Counsel (SC) originates from colonial times, according to Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall,.

Nandlall made this assertion, among others, in submissions filed in the case brought by Attorney-atLaw Timothy Jonas, who is challenging the authority of former President David Granger to appoint lawyers, Roysdale Forde, Mursalene Bacchus, Jameli Ali and Stanley Moore as Senior Counsels.

Jonas’ main argument was that there is no statutory or other power conferred on the President of Guyana, whether as President or otherwise, to make such a decision or to appoint attorneys-at-law to the dignity of Senior Counsel (Silk).

As such, he contended that the decision by the former President is entirely void and of no effect.

Against this background, Jonas argued that “insofar as the President, a member of the Executive, purports to make a decision within the province of the inher-

ent discretion of the High Court, “his [Granger’s] trespass into the realm of the Judiciary violates Article 122 of the Constitution of Guyana, and is illegal and void.”

Article 122 states, “All courts and all persons presiding over the courts shall exercise their functions independently of the control and direction of any other person or authority; and shall be free and independent from political, executive and any other form of direction and control.”

The lawyer argued, too, that the appointment of Senior Counsel lies within the inherent discretion of the High Court of the Supreme Court of Judicature. He said that the power and discretion to admit persons to practise at the Bar; to preside over such persons; to discipline, suspend and disbar such persons is conferred by the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act and Common Law on the Supreme Court of Judicature.

He contended, however, that from time to time, the Full Bench of the Supreme Court of Judicature, in the

exercise of an inherent jurisdiction, exercise a discretion to confer on attorneys-at-law who have practised with distinction before the court the dignity of Senior Counsel.

Act then captured the, inter alia, prerogatives of the Queen, and vested same in the President of Guyana in 1970.”

According to the Attorney General, Section 7 of the Constitution of Guyana Act stipulates that existing laws, including the Civil Law of Guyana Act, and the Republic Act shall continue in force on and after the promulgating of the Constitution of Guyana Act as if they had been made in pursuance of the Constitution.

He noted that the effect of these provisions in that the prerogative to confer Silk, is, as dictated by the Republic Act, common law, and convention, vested in the President of Guyana, who is the Supreme Executive Authority of the Republic of Guyana.

The Legal Affairs Minister submitted that the questions which therefore arise are: whether the exercise by the President of the prerogative to appoint attorneys-at-law to the dignity of Silk; prevents the court, or any person presiding over the court from exercising their functions independently of his direction

or control; subjects them to political executive or political control; and interferes with the court’s administrative autonomy, or prevents the court’s funding from being a direct charge on the Consolidated Fund. “…the exercise by the President of the prerogative power to appoint attorneys-at-law to the dignity of Senior Counsel does not, in any way, interfere with the courts in the manner stated above, and therefore, does not infringe on judicial independence established by Article 122A of the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, Cap 101, Laws of Guyana.”

The Attorney General went on to submit that the President has the power to confer Silk as part of his prerogative to confer honours.

On this note, Nandlall added “…it is respectfully submitted that the dignity of Silk has become, by evolution of the convention, an honour. If we accept that the dignity of Silk is an honour conferred upon attorneys-at-law as a mark of distinction, then it must be accepted that the President

of Guyana, as the fountainhead of honours in Guyana, has the power, or prerogative, to confer Silk as an honour.”

Jonas is seeking from the court, an Order of Certiorari directed to the Attorney General, quashing as wholly void and ultra vires, the purported appointments made by Granger. His application comes up for oral arguments on December 14, 2020, before High Court Judge Nareshwar Harnanan. The Guyana Bar Association and Senior Counsel Ralph Ramkarran were on Wednesday, added as parties to the proceedings.

Meanwhile, the proceedings filed by Jonas come more than a year after his Senior Counsel appointment was rescinded by former President Granger shortly after he announced his affiliation with A New and United Guyana (ANUG) – a new political party formed to contest the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections. He had described the move as “vindictive politics”, noting that actions such as this have “tarnished the whole image of Silk”.

T

Colonial times

Nandlall in responding to Jonas’ application argued that the claim that the President does not have the prerogative to appoint Silk cannot be defended. In fact, he noted, “…the prerogative to appoint Queen’s/King’s Counsel originated with the monarch, and in Guyana’s case, was exercisable by the Governor, who was the Queen’s representative in British Guiana.”

Nandlall said that the powers of the Queen were exercisable by the Governor-General pursuant to the Guyana Independence Ordinance 1966, which powers include the prerogative to appoint Senior Counsel.

“Additionally, the common law of England, which included the prerogative of the monarch to confer Silk became the common law of Guyana since 1917 by virtue of the Civil Law of Guyana Act. The Republic

NEWS

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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Pedal cyclist killed by reversing US physicians to assist with training at regional hospitals minibus at Enmore

H

S

ixty-year-old Kallowtie Kishun of Block R Cove and John, East Coast Demerara, was on Sunday killed by a minibus that was reversing to solicit a passenger at Enmore, ECD. The accident reportedly occurred at about 06:00h and involved a minibus driven by a 62-yearold man of Golden Grove, ECD. Based on reports received, the minibus bearing registration number BVV 7531 was proceeding west along Enmore Public Road while the now dead woman was riding behind. However, it is alleged by an eyewitness that the minibus came to a sudden stop and started to reverse to collect a passenger who was standing on the roadway.

Upon seeing this, Kishun

attempted to avoid being hit and as such swerved but the handle of her bicycle came into contact with the rightside rear of the minibus, thus causing her to fall onto the roadway. As a result, she would have sustained severe bodily injuries.

She was picked up in an unconscious state by the

said driver and taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival.

The driver of the minibus was subsequently taken into Police custody and is assisting with investigations. The woman’s body is at the hospital’s mortuary awaiting a post-mortem.

Trans activist seeks assistance to rebuild home ravaged by fire

Candacy McEwan

G

ulliver McEwan popularly known as “Candacy”, who has been at the forefront in promoting LGBTQ+ rights in Guyana, is appealing with the public for assistance in rebuilding her 62 Norton

in Richmond Hill, Queens, New York.

In an invited comment, Paul noted the difficulties for a transgender person to own a business and somewhere to call home. “It is very tragic for her to suffer a loss of everything due to fire. She is a sister, she is a mother, she is a fighter for the trans community. As a community, we cannot sit by without trying to provide some assistance.”

In this regard, Paul added, “…I organised this fundraiser to help her get back on her feet. It may not get her everything, but once she can have certain things, like her little business, and some appliances and a shelter; she can begin the journey of healing and reconstructing her life.”

McEwan operated a small business from her

What is left of the place Candacy McEwan once called home

Street, Georgetown home which was destroyed by fire on October 25, 2020.

McEwan, her four-yearold son, trans daughter and siblings were displaced.

The Caribbean Equality Project (CEP) and Trans activist Twinkle Paul have organised an emergency fundraiser to assist McEwan with rebuilding her place of abode. CEP was founded

by Guyanese Muslim Gay Rights activist, Mohamed Amin in response to anti-LGBTQ+ hate violence

home. She had previously told Guyana Times that she was downstairs preparing to do some chores when she saw a ball of fire in one of the bedrooms in the upper flat of the house.

“I was about to do some washing and I hear a ‘pow’ sound, and when I raise my head, I saw fire and I started shouting for my sibling and by the time they run out, the place was just blazing,” she said. She explained that she had been living on the property for over 23 years,

ealth Minister Dr Frank Anthony has announced that several US physicians will assist in providing training to health personnel at local regional hospitals.

The Minister recently made this announcement during the daily COVID-19 update with the Department of Public Information (DPI).

He noted that the team should arrive in Guyana by the second week of November. Dr Anthony added that they will accompany the local team to the regional hospitals to conduct training on-site.

“We’re looking at Regions One, Seven, Eight and Nine. We’ll do some other regions on the coastline, but our primary focus would be the hinterland communities.”

To date, the Ministry has collaborated with the Government of Chile to provide online training on the

and the house belongs to her brother, who lives overseas.

The activist estimated their losses to be in the millions.

“I like the biggest fridge…

I like nice things: flatscreen TV, well-furnished home, a grocery shop, two coolers, refrigerator, into millions and billions of dollars. I can’t really explain…,” she had said.

When asked if the building was insured, McEwan’s response was “no”. She said she did not know what her next move would be, but she is definitely a strong person, and will seek God in this difficult time.

“Losing your home and all of your life worth, savings, and knowing in Guyana it is not easy working to achieve things, and especially when you are not from the normal public and you are from an LGBT population where limited resources is given to that community, you can imagine.”

McEwan is in need of clothing, essentials and groceries. Among those in support of the fundraiser are the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD), Guyana Trans United, Caribbean Equality Project and the Glenn Family Foundation.

Those desirous of donating to this worthy cause can do so here: https://bit.ly/ SupportCandacyMcewan

management of severe and critically ill COVID-19 patients. The training will run from November 2 to November 20.

The Ministry also started a four-week virtual mental health training course for 100 healthcare workers across Guyana to help

both them and patients cope during the COVID-19 pandemic.

That training is in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) and will end on November 14.

BIT kick-starts 3 programmes in Region 5

M

Twinkle Paul

Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony

ore than 90 youths in Region Five (DemeraraMahaica) are benefitting from three programmes launched by the Labour Ministry’s Board of Industrial Training (BIT).

The programmes in cosmetology, garment construction and food preparation were launched at Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice, on October 5.

The programmes will run for six months and will be spearheaded by Region Five Senior Technical Officer, Lindsworth Castello; Technical Officer, Genelle Washington and Trainer, Sandra Baldeo, all attached to the BIT. Recently, 26 youths from Potaro-Siparuni (Region Eight) completed a six-week programme in heavy-duty equipment operator train-

ing.

Also, a batch of 16 young men participated in a 24week auto body works repair training, which was a collaboration of the BIT and the private sector.

The BIT has been operationalising the Ministry of Labour’s mandate to ensure that the country's labour force reaches its full capacity to participate in Guyana’s new economy.

18

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

Regional

Brazilians protest mandatory Tropical Storm Eta expected to become hurricane COVID-19 immunisation, Chinese vaccine R

M

ore than 300 Brazilians gathered on São Paulo’s main commercial thoroughfare on Sunday to protest state Governor João Doria’s support for mandatory COVID-19 immunisation and testing the potential vaccine developed

by China’s Sinovac.

Doria has previously spoken in favour of making immunisations mandatory, once vaccines are available, sparking a spat with President Jair Bolsonaro who vows it will be voluntary. The Supreme Court’s chief justice has said the court will ultimately decide on the issue.

A number of vaccines are obligatory in Brazil, including for example Hepatitis B which is given to newborns.

Brazil has had great success with large vaccination campaigns in the past, eradicating polio in the 1980s for example.

In São Paulo, the Sinovac vaccine is being tested as part of phase III clinical trials with support from the Doria government.

Brazil’s federal Health Ministry announced last month it would buy 46 million doses of the vaccine, contin-

Brazil has the third-worst outbreak of coronavirus globally, with 5.5 million cases, after the United States and India, according to a Reuters tally

gent on regulatory approval, in a deal supported by State Governors. But a day later right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro said that Brazil would not buy the vaccine.

Bolsonaro has bashed China intermittently since the campaign trail in 2018, over the Asian country’s growing investments and influence in Brazil.

The protestors in São Paulo rallied in support of Bolsonaro, with one demonstrator holding a sign saying “We are not guinea pigs” and another in a mask that

said “no vaccine”. Many of the tightly packed protesters did not wear masks.

“We’re against the authoritarian Chinese Ambassador João Doria, who would now make the vaccine compulsory against our wishes,” protester Andre Petros said.

“This doesn’t happen anywhere in the world, not even in China.”

Brazil has the third-worst outbreak of coronavirus globally, with 5.5 million cases, after the United States and India, according to a Reuters tally. (Reuters)

Gonsalves assumes chairmanship of UN Security Council

St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves

S

t Vincent and the Grenadines assumed the chairmanship of the United Nations Security Council on Sunday.

A statement from the Foreign Affairs Ministry said

that the one-month stint was the island’s first and only presidency during the country’s time on the UN Security Council and formed part of the island’s responsibility as a non-permanent member.

“St Vincent and the Grenadines’ presidency of the United Nations Security Council, during the month of November, aims to address contemporary challenges which include pandemics, environmental challenges, climate change, and its security consequences and the nexus between development and peace and security,” the Ministry said.

It said that the key events for the month would include a virtual press briefing to be conducted by Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves today.

Gonsalves will one day later chair the UN Security Council Virtual Open Debate under the agenda theme “Peacebuilding and Sustainable Peace: Contemporary Drivers of Conflict and Insecurity”.

On November 4, the UN Security Council will host a meeting of the Police Commissioners of the UN Peacekeeping Missions; intended to highlight issues affecting Haiti.

St Vincent and the Grenadines was official elected as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security and officially assumed its position on January 2, 2020 which will run for a period of two years; culminating on December 31, 2021. (CMC)

Ministerial committee on reopening borders to meet

T

he Trinidad and Tobago Government is to decide if to reopen the borders based on the recommendations of a ministerial team.

The three-member committee appointed by the Prime Minister, Dr Keith Rowley to make recommendations about the re-opening of the borders was expected to meet for a second time this weekend before presenting their findings.

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh made the statement during the ministry’s

COVID-19 media briefing on Saturday. On October 24, Dr Rowley said he had formed the committee, which comprised the Health Minister, the Attorney General and the National Security Minister and hoped to report a decision by today, November 2.

Deyalsingh said the committee had met once thus far.

“The issue of opening borders intersects with the three Ministries, so we have to look at the legislative framework, the national security issues, and the health impli-

cations. We had a meeting on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Minister Young.

We discussed various options, we all had homework, I did my homework, I spoke to the Attorney General yesterday and he had his homework done. We will have another meeting over the course this weekend, and Minister Young will present the findings of the committee to the PM, who will then make his decision based on what we are recommending.” (Excerpt from Trinidad Newsday)

ain-heavy Tropical Storm Eta strengthened on Sunday as it headed for a drenching collision with Central America.

The system ties the record for the most named storms in an Atlantic hurricane season.

Eta had maximum sustained winds of 85 kilometres per hour (50 miles per hour) on Sunday, the US National Hurricane Center said. It was centred about 560 kilometres (345 miles) east of the NicaraguaHonduras border and was heading westward at 24 km/h (15 mph).

Forecasters expect Eta to become a hurricane today and it was forecast to Tuesday hit the Nicaraguan

coast, where a hurricane warning was posted.

Forecasters said central and northern Nicaragua into much of Honduras could get 380 to 640 millimetres (15 to 25 inches) of rain, with 890mm (35 inches) in isolated areas.

Heavy rains also are likely in eastern Guatemala, southern Belize, and Jamaica.

Through Thursday evening, downpours from Eta may cause flooding in parts of Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and Central America, and potentially landslides, the centre added.

N i c a r a g u a ’ s Government has issued a hurricane warning from

the Honduras-Nicaragua border to Sandy Bay Sirpi.

Honduras has put out a tropical storm warning from Punta Patuca to the border with Nicaragua.

Eta is the 28th named Atlantic storm this season, tying the 2005 record for named storms. However, this is the first time the Greek letter Eta is being used as a storm name because in 2005, after the season ended, meteorologists went back and determined there was a storm that should have gotten a name, but did not.

Hurricane season still has a month to go, ending November 30. And in 2005, Zeta formed toward the end of December. (Al Jazeera)

Barbados: New Chief Justice sworn in

P

atterson Cheltenham, GCM, QC, was Sunday morning sworn in as Chief Justice of Barbados.

Governor General Dame Sandra Mason administered the Oaths of Allegiance and of Office at Government House before an audience that included his brother, former President of the Senate, Sir Richard Cheltenham, other family members and Attorney General Dale Marshall.

The appointment will take effect from November 1, 2020.

Cheltenham, the fifth Chief Justice since Independence, said he felt humbled, yet proud.

New Barbadian Chief Justice Patterson Cheltenham, QC

Speaking to the media, he said this morning he would speak with the Judges

and lay out his plan because it would require “an enormous team effort”. He said there were serious matters to discuss and he had a 90day plan, but declined to reveal any of the strategies he hoped to implement to clear the backlog of cases plaguing the Barbados Judiciary.

Meanwhile, Marshall said the appointment was the first via the recently-implemented application process. The new Chief Justice is also the first to have worked entirely in the private bar and the Attorney General believes the country will benefit from the “unique perspective and experience” this brings. (Excerpt from Nation News)

Patriotic wants T&T Govt to review Petrotrin proposal

P

atriotic Energies and Technologies Company Ltd not only satisfied the key issues in its counter-proposal to Government but also made an upfront cash payment for the acquisition of the Petrotrin refinery.

“We are saying with confidence that we met all of the requirements,” Oilfield Workers Trade Union President General Ancel Roget said during a press conference at the OWTU’s headquarters at Paramount Building, San Fernando, on Sunday.

Roget was responding to the Government’s rejection of the counter-proposal, which was submitted two days ahead of the October 31 deadline for an agreement to be struck.

During a virtual press conference on Saturday, Energy and Energy Affairs Minister Franklin Khan said Patriotic’s final proposal failed to address three key issues. The Minister said the issues were the purchase price financing, restart financing, and first

OWTU President general Ancel Roget

priority lien on the assets.

While the Union was surprised by the Minister’s announcement, Roget said he felt the ministerial team did not properly scrutinise Patriotic’s proposal.

As such, he is requesting that the same Cabinetappointed evaluation team that had reviewed Patriotic’s initial proposal last November be given the opportunity to review its counter-proposal.

Asked whether he was concerned that the Government would now be

exploring its options, Roget said, “We are concerned, but at the same time our request this morning is for the Government, in the interest of the country of Trinidad and Tobago, to stay their hands, but at the same time give an opportunity for this latest proposal, which is in line with the Minister’s offer which seeks to get over the hurdle of the stumbling block that they have, allow for that to be properly evaluated.” (Excerpt from Trinidad Guardian)

guyanatimesgy.com

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

19

Around the World

OILNEWS OIL NEWS Canada turns on oil taps as prices rise, curbs lift

C

anadian crude producers are churning out extra barrels to finish their hardest year in decades on a higher note, after Alberta’s Government lifted restrictions and as demand for heavy oil surged.

Some companies in Canada, the world’s fourth-largest producer, continued to post big losses in the third quarter, swelled by impairment charges related to pandemic travel restrictions that have depressed fuel demand.

Producers cut 972,000 barrels per day (bpd) in spring when prices set new lows, dropping production to about 4 million bpd.

They have since restored all but 270,000 bpd, according to the Canada Energy Regulator.

Cenovus Energy Inc is likely to raise production in December, with volume depending on prices, and expects rivals to re-start their curtailed capacity, Chief Executive Alex Pourbaix said last week.

“We’re going to see a significant amount of that come back over the next few months,” Pourbaix said in an interview.

Suncor Energy Inc said last week it would raise production at its Fort Hills mine in 2021 and is making improvements at its Firebag site to squeeze out more capacity.

“We’re really looking forward to this being a fully unencumbered market,” Chief Executive Mark Little said on Thursday.

Suncor’s output looks to rise 10 per cent in 2021, Little said, from expected total 2020 production of 680,000 to 710,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Even though benchmark US crude prices are down 42 per cent since the start of the year, they have rebounded sharply since April.

But at around US$35 per barrel, any profits are slim. The cost of adding incremental barrels can be modest, however, when facilities reach higher output levels, Little said.

Alberta last month lifted output restrictions that it imposed in 2019 to alleviate congested pipelines, now that they are running fluidly and storage levels are low.

More production may slow the industry’s bleeding. It is cutting some 32,000 production and service jobs, according to Government data and announcements this month by Suncor, Cenovus and Husky Energy Inc. Heavy oil supplies have tightened due to US sanctions against Venezuela, helping Canada land sales to unusual destinations such as India.

MEG Energy Corp also plans to produce more oil, and boosted its 2020 output guidance last week by 3 per cent. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Muslim groups urge Macron to end “divisive rhetoric, reject hatred”

M

ore than 20 European Muslim organisations have called on French President Emmanuel Macron to end his “divisive rhetoric”, as the fallout between France and the Muslim world continues.

In an open letter published on Saturday, the organisations from several countries including the Netherlands, Finland and Italy said the French leader has failed to provide “strong moral leadership” following the killing of a teacher and three worshippers at a church last month.

Macron in recent weeks drew widespread criticism in much of the Muslim world after defending the right to caricature Prophet Muhammad after the Charlie Hebdo newspaper republished cartoons featuring the prophet in September. The Prophet Muhammad is deeply revered by Muslims and any kind of visual depiction is forbidden in Islam.

The French President reiterated his stance about

the cartoons after Samuel Paty, a teacher who showed the caricatures to his pupils in class during a discussion on free speech, was beheaded by an attacker on October 16.

Macron has also faced a backlash from Muslim activists after claiming in a speech a month ago that Islam was “in crisis globally” and announced his plan “to reform Islam” in order to make it more compatible with his country’s republican values.

While Muslims in France have condemned the killing of the teacher, they have also expressed fears of collective punishment amid a Government crackdown targeting Islamic organisations and attacks by vigilante groups on mosques.

In their letter, the signatories denounced the French Government’s crackdown, including the closure of mosques and charities authorities had accused of inciting hatred, among other things. (Excerpt from Al Jazeera)

Attacker with sword kills 2, injures 5 in Quebec stabbings

T

wo people were killed and five wounded after being stabbed by a man dressed in medieval clothes and wielding a sword, Quebec Police said on Sunday, noting the attack appeared to be driven by personal motives and not linked to any terror group.

Police arrested a 24-yearold man from Montreal early on Sunday morning, Quebec Police Chief Robert Pigeon said at a news conference.

Pigeon said the suspect had come prepared to inflict as much damage as possible but did not elaborate.

Quebec newspaper Le Soleil said the suspect had gasoline containers in his car.

Police Officers detain a man in an area where multiple people were stabbed near the Parliament Hill area of Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, November 1, 2020

Pigeon declined to comment on the report.

The incident began late Saturday night, on

Halloween, inside the city’s famed walled centre. Police told nearby residents to stay indoors and made an arrest

after a three-hour manhunt.

“It is once again, and we believe, an isolated act,” Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume told reporters.

“We need to have a societal debate on the subject (of mental health) because it is becoming more and more difficult to manage.”

In 2017, a Canadian man gunned down six members of a Quebec City mosque and was later sentenced to life in prison.

Quebec’s Police Chief said on Sunday that the suspect had spoken of conducting an attack “in a medical context” five years ago but was not known to police and did not have a criminal record.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

Europe's COVID-19 cases double in 5 weeks, total infections surpass 10 million

E

urope’s new COVID-19 cases have doubled in five weeks, propelling the region on Sunday across the bleak milestone of 10 million total infections, according to a Reuters tally.

Just last month, both Latin America and Asia reported over 10 million total cases in their regions. The United States alone has over 9 million cases with a rapidly accelerating outbreak.

While Europe almost took

nine months to record its first 5 million COVID-19 cases, the next 5 million cases were reported in slightly over a month, according to a Reuters analysis.

With 10 per cent of the world’s population, Europe accounts for about 22 per cent of the global caseload of 46.3 million infections. With over 269,000 deaths, the region accounts for some 23 per cent of the global COVID-19 death toll of nearly 1.2 mil-

lion lives lost.

Amid the surging cases, France, Germany and the United Kingdom have announced nationwide lockdowns for at least the next month that are almost as strict as the restrictions in March and April. Portugal has imposed a partial lockdown and Spain and Italy are tightening restrictions.

According to Reuters analysis, Europe has reported more than 1.6 million new

cases in the past seven days, nearly half the 3.3 million reported worldwide, with over 16,100 deaths, a 44 per cent jump over the previous week.

For every 10,000 people in Europe, over 127 coronavirus cases have been reported and about four people have died, according to a Reuters analysis. In the United States, there have been 278 cases and seven deaths per 10,000 residents. (Excerpt from Reuters)

Typhoon Goni: Philippines hit by year's most powerful storm

T

yphoon Goni is barrelling across the Philippines, bringing with it "catastrophic" winds and rain.

At least 10 people have died amid reports of storm surges, flash floods, power outages and blown-off roofs.

Goni made landfall as a super typhoon at Catanduanes island on Sunday at 04:50 local time (19:50 GMT Saturday) packing winds of 225km/h (140mph).

It has since weakened, but is still wreaking damage across the main Luzon island, home to the capital Manila.

Mark Timbal of the

Philippines' national disaster agency said that 19 million people may have been affected by the path of Goni. "This 19 million already includes the populations in danger zones for landslides, flooding, storm surges and even a lava flow," he told the BBC. Goni - known as Rolly in the Philippines - is the most powerful storm to hit the country since Typhoon Haiyan killed more than 6000 people in 2013.

Video footage showed storm surges through coastal towns, and local governors spoke of power supply outages, roofs torn off evacua-

Gyms and schools have been converted into COVID-secure emergency shelters for people

tion centres, damage to infrastructure, flash flooding and blocked roads.

Seven people, including a five-year-old child in Albay province, are reported to have died; two drowned, another was swept away by volcanic mud and another killed by a falling tree.

Forecasters on Sunday

morning had warned of "catastrophic violent winds and intense to torrential rainfall" as Goni made landfall in eastern Luzon.

By Sunday evening, Goni was moving westward at 25km/h, with maximum sustained winds of 125km/h, forecasters said.

(Excerpt from BBC News)

Tens of thousands protest in Belarus, defying warning shots

R

iot police fired warning shots into the air, used stun grenades and arrested more than 200 people to deter tens of thousands of Belarusians who marched through Minsk on Sunday to demand veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko leave power.

Mass demonstrations have flooded the capital for 12 straight weeks since a disputed election, ratcheting up pressure on the embattled leader of 26 years

who rejects accusations the vote was rigged and says he has no intention of quitting.

This week Lukashenko partially closed the border to the west, replaced his Interior Minister and said that any protester who lays a hand on officers policing the protests should “at least leave without hands”.

Tens of thousands of people swept through Minsk in at least two columns, the Nasha Niva newspaper reported.

The Vesna-96 rights group published the names of 221 people who had been detained.

Senior police officials have threatened to use firearms against protesters if needed.

“The situation is really alarming and everyone’s mood is tense,” one protester who requested anonymity said by phone.

“Police buses and equipment are constantly driving past the column. It feels

like people are ready for any kind of escalation.”

A witness told Reuters that riot police used force to disperse marchers who had marched towards Kurapaty, a site on the outskirts of Minsk that is a memorial to victims of execution by Soviet secret police.

Mobile phone internet in the capital was unavailable and several metro stations were briefly closed down.

(Excerpt from Reuters)

20

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

guyanatimesgy.com

ARCHIE

ARIES (March 21April 19)

Refuse to let anger take control when patience and understanding are required. Put moderation and thoughtfulness first.

Romance is encouraged.

A change may be overTAURUS due, but before you take (April 20flight, work out all the small May 20) but essential details. Don’t let a lack of communication lead to a misunderstanding.

DILBERT

GEMINI (May 21June 20)

CANCER (June 21July 22)

Before you implement your plans, be sure you have the approval necessary to avoid interference. Keep your money and passwords safe. Don’t take risks with your health.

LEO (July 23Aug. 22)

Having reliable people to work with will make a world of difference, so cast a wide net for support. Be willing to compromise if it helps move a project along. Romance is featured.

VIRGO

A move someone makes will prompt you to look into whether you should follow suit. New beginnings look promising. Take care of unfinished business so you can start something with a clean slate.

PEANUTS

(Aug. 23Sept. 22)

CALVIN AND HOBBES

LIBRA (Sept. 23Oct. 23)

SCORPIO

SUDOKU

Pay closer attention to how you present yourself to others. Listen carefully, and offer only what you know you can deliver. Be thoughtful, flexible and receptive to others’ ideas.

(Oct. 24Nov. 22)

Revisit an old idea.

Consider what you will have to do to keep the peace while following a path that excites you. Seek expert help if you need it. Love will enhance your life.

Assess partnerships.

Align yourself with people who can help you grow mentally, emotionally and financially. Learn from those with more experience and teach those trying to follow in your footsteps.

Keep your life simple, SAGITTARIUS stick to the truth and question anything that doesn’t (Nov. 23Dec. 21) seem right to you. Knowledge and information will be key when it comes time to make a professional decision.

LAST PUBLISHED WORD – POVERTY

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19)

Don’t let confusion set in; go directly to the source and find out all you need to know to make an informed decision. Someone you least expect will throw you under the bus if given a chance.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 19)

You are in a position to wheel and deal. Look for bargains, and be honest about what you want. A physical change will lift your spirits.

Make exciting plans with a loved one.

SOLUTION FOR LAST PUBLISHED PUZZLE

PISCES (Feb. 20March 20)

Refuse to let your emotions take charge. Someone will use manipulative tactics to push you in a questionable direction. Don’t give in to peer pressure or bullying.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

21

Morgan, Cummins keep KKR hopes alive

E

Eoin Morgan played his most important innings

oin Morgan led from the front while Pat Cummins starred with the ball as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) beat Rajasthan Royal (RR) by 60 runs in Match 54 of the

Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 in Dubai on Sunday and kept their play-off hopes alive.

Defending 191, KKR conceded 19 runs on the first five balls. But then, KKR turned

it on with the ball. Cummins had Robin Uthappa caught on the final ball of the first over.

Cummins, bowling his second over, picked up two big wickets as RR lost Ben Stokes and Steve Smith.

While Stokes got out after Dinesh Karthik took a one-handed stunner, Smith dragged one back onto the stumps.

Shivam Mavi gave KKR their fourth wicket after he had Sanju Samson caught behind the wickets before Cummins – bowling his third over in the powerplay – picked his fourth wicket, dismissing Riyan Parag with a short ball.

Jos Buttler and Rahul Tewatia then added 43 runs together, but Varun Chakravarthy broke the partnership after Buttler, who scored 35, was holed out in the deep. While Tewatia put up some fight and scored 31, Chakravarthy dismissed the left-hander soon after RR moved past 100.

KKR eventually restrict-

ed RR to 131-9 to complete a comprehensive 60-run win.

Earlier, RR, who elected to bowl, retained the same playing XI while Andre Russell and Mavi returned to KKR’s playing XI, replacing Lockie Ferguson and Rinku Singh.

Jofra Archer struck in the first over as Nitish Rana got out without trou-

bling the scorers. However, Shubman Gill and Rahul Tripathi counterattacked to power KKR to 55-1 after the end of the powerplay. But RR broke the second-wicket partnership between the two after Tewatia got the wicket of Gill in the ninth over. The leg-spinner picked one more in the same over as Sunil Narine got out for zero.

RR continued to chip away as KKR then lost Tripathi and Karthik just before the team could reach the 100-run mark. KKR, though, managed to regain the momentum as Russell and Morgan added a quick-

fire 45 off 18 deliveries.

While Russell had moved to 25 in no time and looked set for a big one, he got out in the 16th over.

Morgan, who had earlier hammered two sixes and as many fours in the 14th over, then took it upon himself as he went after his England team-mate Stokes in the penultimate over, clobbering three sixes and a four to take KKR past 180 and complete his first fifty of the season.

The left-hander hit another six in the final over to move to his career-best IPL score of 68 and powered KKR to 191-7. (IPL)

Hamilton wins wild race in Imola as Mercedes clinch 7th-straight constructors' title SCOREBOARD L

ewis Hamilton spearheaded Mercedes claiming their record seventh consecutive constructors’ title at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, leading home teammate Valtteri Bottas and a delighted Daniel Ricciardo – but there was late race drama as Red Bull’s Max Verstappen retired from P2 after appearing to suffer a tyre issue, bringing out a Safety Car that led to a climactic race ending.

Bottas had enjoyed a strong start to the Imola race from pole position, leading into Turn 2 as Hamilton lost out to Verstappen on the run down to Tamburello on Lap 1 and moved to third.

But Mercedes’ decision to give Hamilton a long first stint paid dividends when Renault’s Esteban Ocon retired at the side of the track on Lap 29, the resultant Virtual Safety Car allowing Hamilton to pit from the lead – Bottas and Verstappen having boxed earlier in the race – and retain P1.

But with 12 laps to go, Verstappen’s retirement at Villeneuve led to a full Safety Car, setting up a breathless final few laps of the race, which ultimately saw Hamilton hold on to win out from Bottas, while Ricciardo secured his second podium of the season for Renault after holding off a late charge from AlphaTauri’s Daniil Kvyat, who finished a brilliant fourth as he fights for his F1 future.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc came

KKR INNINGS Shubman Gill c Buttler b Tewatia 36 N Rana c †Samson b Archer 0 RA Tripathi c Uthappa b Gopal 39 SP Narine c Stokes b Tewatia 0 EJG Morgan (c) not out 68 KD Karthik †c Smith b Tewatia 0 AD Russell c sub (DA Miller) b Kartik Tyagi 25 PJ Cummins c †Samson b Kartik Tyagi 15 KL Nagarkoti not out 1 Extras (lb 5, w 2) TOTAL (20 Ov, RR: 9.55)

7 191/7

Did not bat: Shivam Mavi, CV Varun Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Nitish Rana, 0.2 ov), 2-73 (Shubman Gill, 8.3 ov), 3-74 (Sunil Narine, 8.6 ov), 4-94 (Rahul Tripathi, 11.6 ov), 5-99 (Dinesh Karthik, 12.3 ov), 6-144 (Andre Russell, 15.3 ov), 7-184 (Pat Cummins, 19.2 ov)

home fifth, holding off the Racing Point of Sergio Perez, who’d gambled with a late stop under the Safety Car. The McLaren duo of Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris claimed P7 and P8, while it was a fantastic day for Alfa Romeo, who took their first double points finish of the year, Kimi Raikkonen leading Antonio Giovinazzi in P9 and P10, the Finn having made a 49-lap stint work to his advantage.

Meanwhile, after a brilliant effort

to qualify P4, AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly suffered a coolant leak that forced him to retire from the race on Lap 8 – while in a bizarre incident, Williams’ George Russell spun into retirement under the Safety Car on Lap 53.

For Mercedes, though, there were scenes of jubilation, as they continued to re-write the F1 history books with an amazing seventh consecutive constructors’ title. (F1)

BOWLING JC Archer VR Aaron S Gopal BA Stokes R Tewatia Kartik Tyagi

4-0-19-1 2-0-22-0 3-0-44-1 3-0-40-0 4-0-25-3 4-0-36-2

RAJASTHAN ROYALS INNINGS (TARGET: 192 RUNS FROM 20 OVERS) RV Uthappa c Nagarkoti b Cummins 6 BA Stokes c †Karthik b Cummins 18 SPD Smith (c) b Cummins 4 SV Samson †c †Karthik b Shivam Mavi 1 JC Buttler c Cummins b Varun 35 R Parag c †Karthik b Cummins 0 R Tewatia c †Karthik b Varun 31 S Gopal not out 23 JC Archer c Shivam Mavi b Nagarkoti 6 Kartik Tyagi c & b Shivam Mavi 2 VR Aaron not out 0 Extras (lb 1, w 4) TOTAL (20 Ov, RR: 6.55)

5 131/9

Fall of wickets: 1-19 (Robin Uthappa, 0.6 ov), 2-27 (Ben Stokes, 2.1 ov), 3-32 (Steven Smith, 2.6 ov), 4-32 (Sanju Samson, 3.3 ov), 5-37 (Riyan Parag, 4.6 ov), 6-80 (Jos Buttler, 10.4 ov), 7-105 (Rahul Tewatia, 14.4 ov), 8-125 (Jofra Archer, 17.3 ov), 9-129 (Kartik Tyagi, 18.3 ov) BOWLING PJ Cummins Shivam Mavi CV Varun SP Narine KL Nagarkoti

4-0-34-4 4-1-15-2 4-0-20-2 4-0-37-0 4-0-24-1

22

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

CSK knock out Kings XI Punjab after 9-wicket win the first over. While Sam Curran conceded just four runs in the second over, Mayank and KL Rahul scored 30 runs in the next three overs with the help of a six and four fours.

However, the MayankRahul partnership was broken as Lungi Ngidi struck in the final over of the powerplay, dismissing Mayank for 26. A couple of overs later, the right-arm pacer scalped one more wicket as he disturbed the timber with a slower ball to get Rahul out.

Thakur and Tahir then dismissed Nicholas Pooran and Chris Gayle respectively as CSK pushed KXIP on the backfoot, reducing them to 72-4 after 12 overs.

Hooda and Mandeep Singh, though, started the

R

recovery as the pair added 36 runs to push KXIP past 100. But Ravindra Jadeja broke the partnership as he got the wicket of Mandeep in the 17th over.

Neesham departed soon after as Gaikwad took a brilliant catch to give Ngidi his third wicket.

Hooda, though, made sure KXIP got those big hits to post a fighting total on the board. The righthander, who had walked out to bat after Gayle’s dismissal, creamed two sixes in the 18th over and notched up his first fifty of the season in the next over.

Hooda added one more four and six to his account in the last over and remained unbeaten on 62 off 30 balls to help KXIP post 153-6 on the board. (IPL)

Imran Tahir removed the “Universe Boss”

uturaj Gaikwad notched up his third successive half-century in the chase while Lungi Ngidi scalped three wickets as Chennai Super Kings (CSK) ended their Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 campaign on a high, beating Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) by nine wickets in Match 53 in

after three overs before Faf got a life despite Deepak Hooda’s stunning effort in the field.

Faf and Gaikwad then added 35 runs at a rapid pace as CSK moved to 57-0 at the end of the powerplay.

In the eighth over, Gaikwad survived a close call after the third umpire overruled the on-field decision for a

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CSK ended their campaign on a high

Ruturaj Gaikwad scored his third fifty in as many matches

Abu Dhabi.

Needing 154 runs to win, CSK were quick off the blocks as Faf du Plessis and Gaikwad made a solid start.

The two took CSK to 22-0

catch.

KXIP got a much-needed breakthrough in the 10th over after Faf could not time his scoop. While KXIP were looking for a couple

of wickets to keep things tight, Gaikwad and Ambati Rayudu denied KXIP any success. The pair did not take any undue risk and kept the scorecard ticking, occasionally creaming a few fours as CSK moved to 1181 at the end of 15 overs.

In the next over, Gaikwad notched his third half-century in a row. He and Rayudu completed a fifty-run stand in the 17th over before taking CSK home in the penultimate over.

Earlier, MS Dhoni, who made it clear that this won’t be his last game for CSK, won the toss and elected to bowl. CSK brought in Faf, Imran Tahir and Shardul Thakur in place of Shane Watson, Mitchell Santner, and Karn Sharma. For KXIP, a fit-again Mayank Agarwal and Jimmy Neesham returned to the playing XI in place of Glenn Maxwell and Arshdeep Singh.

KXIP announced their intent straightway as Mayank hit two fours in

SCOREBOARD KXIP INNINGS KL Rahul (c) †b Ngidi 29 MA Agarwal b Ngidi 26 CH Gayle lbw b Imran Tahir 12 N Pooran c †Dhoni b Thakur 2 Mandeep Singh b Jadeja 14 DJ Hooda not out 62 JDS Neesham c Gaikwad b Ngidi 2 CJ Jordan not out 4 Extras (b 1, w 1) TOTAL (20 Ov, RR: 7.65)

2 153/6

Did not bat: M Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami Fall of wickets: 1-48 (Mayank Agarwal, 5.2 ov), 2-62 (KL Rahul, 8.3 ov), 3-68 (Nicholas Pooran, 10.4 ov), 4-72 (Chris Gayle, 11.5 ov), 5-108 (Mandeep Singh, 16.2 ov), 6-113 (James Neesham, 17.1 ov) BOWLING DL Chahar SM Curran SN Thakur L Ngidi Imran Tahir RA Jadeja

3-0-30-0 2-0-15-0 4-0-27-1 4-0-39-3 4-0-24-1 3-0-17-1

CSK INNINGS RD Gaikwad not out 62 F du Plessis c †Rahul b Jordan 48 AT Rayudu not out 30 Extras (lb 7, w 7) 14 TOTAL (18.5 Ov, RR: 8.17) 154/1

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

NOW!

Did not bat: MS Dhoni (c) †, N Jagadeesan, SM Curran, RA Jadeja, DL Chahar, SN Thakur, L Ngidi, Imran Tahir Fall of wickets: 1-82 (Faf du Plessis, 9.5 ov) BOWLING JDS Neesham Mohammed Shami CJ Jordan Ravi Bishnoi M Ashwin CH Gayle

3-0-26-0 4-0-29-0 3-0-31-1 4-0-39-0 4-0-17-0 0.5-0-5-0

223-7230-1 (Ext 55)

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

GUYANATIMESGY.COM

Phil Simmons confident prolonged isolation won't affect “sharp” West Indies for New Zealand T20Is W est Indies Coach Phil Simmons has backed the players arriving on the New Zealand tour from the Indian Premier League (IPL) to be ready for the T20I series at the end of November, despite the fact that they will not have completed their managed isolation until the eve of the opening match in Auckland.

While the remainder of the touring party arrived on Friday after a 54-hour journey from the Caribbean, six members of the T20I squad, including Captain Kieron Pollard, will leave the United Arab Emirates following the conclusion of the IPL on November 10. The other players to join Pollard are Fabian Allen, Shimron Hetmyer, Keemo Paul, Nicholas Pooran, Oshane Thomas and Test Captain Jason Holder, who is not part of the T20I squad.

However, Simmons did not believe the benefits of being in the competitive environment of the IPL would wear off during their two weeks of managed isolation where players are able to train in various sized bubbles.

"It's a little bit difficult this time, because

when the main T20 guys get here, they are in isolation until [just before] the first game," Simmons said. "But the plus about that is that they are coming from playing in a high-quality tournament so they will be sharp. The guys that are with us, we have to get them up to

BCB to complete outstanding cricket tournaments

that level, so when we meet on [November 27] as a full squad, everyone is on the same page."

West Indies, who last played T20Is in early March against Sri Lanka when they won the series 2-0, will be missing two of their key allrounders, with Dwayne Bravo ruled out through an injury sustained at the IPL and Andre Russell opting out of the tour.

Simmons,, however, said this was a chance for other players to press their claims for next year's T20 World Cup in India following the postponement of the 2020 event in Australia which would have been taking place now if it were not for the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are going to try and continue how we planned the preparation," he said. "In this

series, especially there are a few guys who weren't in that team in Sri Lanka and they will be trying to push themselves into the final 15 next year, because we are missing the two main all-rounders.

"At this point, you have quite a few players trying to understand how exactly they fit into the line-up, and that's what the build-up is now – if you are on the bench, you know exactly what you have to do and if you are in the XI, you know what you have to do."

Looking further ahead to the Test series in December, Simmons wants his players to learn the lessons from the England tour which included a notable victory in Southampton before their form slipped to lose the series 2-1.

"We are trying to continue to build," he said. "We have to take that Southampton performance and see what the points are that we need to work on to better that. It's very difficult to beat teams [at their] home now and we need to play the best cricket we can in any Test to beat teams high up the table, of which New Zealand is one of them." (ESPNcricinfo)

Hayden Walsh Jr confident despite poor CPL showing W est Indies spinner Hayden Walsh Jr insists his confidence heading to New Zealand will not be diminished, despite enduring a relatively-poor Caribbean Premier League (CPL) campaign this season.

A

s Guyana welcomes the new COVID-19 measures, the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) will welcome the return of cricket with the tournaments which were postponed owing to the coronavirus pandemic.

The following tournaments have to be completed: Banks Beer two-day cricket (semi-finals); NBS 40 overs (quarter-finals); Premium Asphalt/TR Construction tourney (semi-finals/ final); Mike’s Pharmacy Under-15 tournament (final); Lewison General Store Under-15 (semifinal + final); Elizabeth Styles Under-21 (final) and Let’s Bet Sports 20/20 (overall finals).

According to the BCB Public Relations Officer Simon Naidu, teams involved are asked to get themselves in order for a possible restart of the cricket season. BCB President Hilbert Foster recently spoke to the Head of the Region Six COVID-19 Task Force, Dr Vishalya Sharma.

A letter from the BCB would be submitted

shortly to Dr Sharma seeking the Government’s permission for the restart of cricket and the regulations under which teams have to play.

No new tournament would be started for the rest of the year. The BCB is hoping to hit the ground running in 2021.

The new COVID-19 measures that will be in effect from November 1 permit sporting events to be held, subject to the approval of the Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony and in compliance with any guidelines that the Health Ministry may issue.

Additionally, gyms and fitness centres can re-open at 50 per cent capacity under these new COVID-19 measures. From November 1 to 30, the coronavirus curfew would be in effect from 22:30h to 04:00h.

23

The 26-yearold burst on the scene during the 2 0 1 9 CPL season when he was the tournament’s most lethal bowler with best match figures of 5 for 19 and a total of 22 wickets.

Walsh struggled to replicate that form this season, managing just seven wickets in 10 matches, at an economy rate of

7.65. Notably, the bowler suffered a brutal onslaught from a rampaging Kieron Pollard, which saw him end with figures of 44 for 1 in that match.

Nonetheless, Walsh was selected as part of the T20 squad for the tour of New Zealand, starting at the end of November.

The bowler, however, remains confident of making an impact, perhaps as much as he did in India last year where he was decisive in the second game.

“I would agree that the results didn’t quite go my way, but I was still quite satisfied with the way I was consistent, but as I said, you can’t win all of them all of the time, so it really was a good learning opportunity and a good learning tournament,” Walsh Jr told the Antigua Observer.

“That one game or that one over doesn’t determine who I am as a leg-spinner on a whole. I always try to get back to my feet, because my father always taught me that cricket and life go hand in hand. So, it is just like life, when you fall down today, we still have to get back up the next day and keep going again.”

(Sportsmax)

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2020

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

guyanatimesgy.com

Pg 22

CSK knock out Kings XI Punjab after 9-wicket win

Morgan, Cummins keep KKR hopes alive Pg 21

BCB to complete outstanding cricket tournaments

Pg 23

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